When Lewis woke late the next morning, it was to the sound of voices in the next room. It had just started to get light when he had finally climbed into bed, and now there was a patch of sunlight lying across the bedcovers from the small gap in the curtains.

Yawning, he forced himself to get up, pausing to look out the window after he had gotten dressed. It seemed like the storm from the night before had blown itself out at last, with the damp grass outside sparkling in the sun. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Remembering the voices that had woken him, he left the bedroom.

Edmund sat in the chair in front of the fire where he had spent part of last night. Absorbed in an animated explanation that he was giving to Emily, who was alternating between cooking and tidying, he didn’t notice Lewis.

‘Morning,’ Emily said with a smile when she spotted him standing in the doorway. ‘Or should I say afternoon?’

‘What time is it?’ he asked as Edmund looked around.

‘Almost one,’ she replied as she returned to the meat on the chopping board.

‘I’m sorry, I wasn’t expecting you, Edmund,’ Lewis said as he filled a glass with water before taking one of the vacant chairs by the fire.

‘I hadn’t planned on coming by myself, but my carriage driver has been taken ill,’ Edmund explained. ‘I hope I’m not intruding.’

‘No, I was going to come and find you today, actually,’ Lewis said, waving away Edmund’s apology. ‘I wanted to ask you some things about this prophecy.’

‘The Prophecy of Days?’

‘We were talking last night after you left, and we might be able to help,’ Lewis said.

‘That’s fantastic!’ Edmund said excitedly. ‘I knew you would come around to the idea.’

‘I’ve thought about it, and there are some conditions,’ Lewis said. After Emily had gone back to bed last night, he had spent over an hour contemplating his position.

‘Which are?’ Edmund said with a wince.

‘Firstly, I’m sure that Anthony has guards watching my family in case I show up. I want the guarantee that any of my family will be left alone and free to return to their lives,’ Lewis said as he pulled the list of his conditions from his pocket.

‘Very well.’

‘Along the same lines, my grandmother’s bakery was burned down by guards when they took Charles. It is to be rebuilt for her so that she can return to work,’ Lewis continued.

‘I don’t know if I can do that. Someone will notice if it is rebuilt, not to mention if the money to do it goes missing,’ Edmund said as he eyed the list in Lewis’ hand.

‘Then I guess we have a problem,’ Lewis said firmly. ‘I have no ties to Tristan. If you can’t help me, then I can’t help you with your prophecy.’

‘But don’t you realise what will happen if the rightful heir isn’t crowned?’ Edmund said it angrily.

‘To be honest, I don’t really care,’ said Lewis as he stood up. ‘My family isn’t in Tristan, and everything else I need is right here. I’m sorry, I can’t help you.’

‘You’re using this to extort the city!’ Edmund said it angrily, getting to his feet as well.

‘I have no interest in the city, only in returning what was taken from my family,’ Lewis said. ‘After all, if I am the rightful heir, then isn’t it my decision what I do in the city?’

‘Alright,’ Edmund sighed, slumping back into his seat, recognising that Lewis had him backed into a corner. ‘It might take some time, though.’

‘All I ask is that it be done,’ Lewis said, settling himself back into his chair as he looked at the list again before folding it up. ‘There is one other thing.’

‘Which is? Edmund asked nervously.

‘When the prophecy has been stopped, then I will pass the crown on. After that, I want no further involvement in the running of Tristan or the kingdom,’ Lewis said as Emily appeared at his side, placing her hand on his shoulder.

‘Anthony has managed to get the city into a terrible mess in the short time he has been in charge. You would do a much better job than he ever could,’ Edmund said hopefully.

‘I’m sorry,’ Lewis said as he handed the list to Edmund. ‘I’m sure I would do a terrible job. I’ll help you deal with the prophecy, but after that, I plan on coming back to Whitecliff.’

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‘We’ll see,’ Edmund said. ‘Things can always change between now and then.’

‘I’m sure they won’t,’ Lewis insisted, watching as Edmund read his list of conditions.

‘There is one issue with all of this, though,’ Edmund said with a wince as he tucked the list into his pocket.

‘What’s that?’ Emily asked, sitting down on the arm of Lewis’ chair.

‘The crown.’

‘What about it?’ Lewis said worriedly.

‘It hasn’t been seen in nearly a quarter of a century,’ Edmund explained. ‘Not since my brother attempted to steal it.’

‘What are we supposed to do if we don’t know where it is?’ Lewis asked, his voice rising slightly in frustration. Why couldn’t Edmund have given them all the facts before he agreed to this? Was it too late to back out now?

‘We know where it is,’ Edmund said confidently.

Taken aback, Lewis and Emily exchanged a confused glance.

‘What’s the problem then? Can’t you go and get it?’ Emily said, voicing the question that was on Lewis’ tongue.

‘We know where the crown is; we just don’t know how to get to it,’ Edmund admitted.

‘Where is it?’

‘It was placed inside a tomb on one of The Misty Islands,’ Edmund explained. ‘After my brother attempted to steal it, Sebastian placed it there to protect it from any other thieves.’

‘How hard can it be to get inside a tomb?’ Emily asked. ‘Surely the miners have something you can use to blast the tomb open with?’

‘It isn’t that simple,’ Edmund said. ‘The tomb was built over a century ago. In all that time, it has only ever been entered when the body of the former king has been laid to rest or to return the crown after a coronation.’

‘So, what are we supposed to do then?’ Lewis asked.

‘There is one person who might know how to get into the tomb,’ Edmund said. ‘Thomas, my brother.’

‘Your brother, who tried to steal the crown?’ Emily asked.

‘The very same,’ Edmund said.

‘But if he knows how to get into the tomb, then why hasn’t he taken the crown since it was put there?’ Lewis asked.

‘I’m fairly certain that he has no idea where the crown was hidden,’ Edmund said. ‘It was a frantic time at the castle. I was lucky enough that Sebastian told me where the crown was going to be hidden.’

‘So why haven’t you asked Thomas how to get into the tomb?’ Lewis asked.

‘Sebastian told me he was exiled from Tristan when I asked him about the family tree one time,’ Emily said quickly.

‘That is correct,’ Edmund said with a small smile. ‘I remember the day well.’

‘So where is he?’ Lewis asked.

‘The last place we have any record of him living was in a town called Eraea.

‘I’ve never heard of Eraea before,’ Lewis interrupted, forcing Edmund to pause.

‘Have you heard of Arcis?’ Edmund asked.

‘I’ve heard it mentioned a few times down near the waterfront,’ Lewis replied.

‘Well, Arcis is a port city about six or seven days voyage from Whitecliff,’ Edmund explained. ‘Our Kingdom has a long-standing trade agreement with them. Eraea is a town to the north of Arcis.’

‘How are we supposed to get there?’ Emily asked.

‘There is a merchant who lives down by the port who is setting sail for Arcis in a couple of days,’ Edmund said. ‘I spoke with him, and he is more than happy to take you with him. As long as you don’t mind helping out from time to time, of course.’

‘You already arranged it with him even though we hadn’t agreed to do this?’ Lewis asked, slightly irritated that Edmund seemed to presume that they were going to do any task he gave them.

‘I thought I would inquire." Just to be on the safe side,’ Edmund said.

‘I see,’ Lewis said bluntly. ‘Are you sure you’ll be able to find him when we get there?’

Looking away from Lewis, Edmund suddenly became very interested in one of the buttons on his brown coat. ‘I won’t be going with you,’ he said quickly.

‘What?’ Lewis and Emily both demanded it at the same time.

‘I’ve already risked a lot just by coming here. If I came with you, my absence would just arouse suspicion back at the castle,’ Edmund said. ‘The less I have to do with this, the less chance there is that they will find out what is going on. Anthony is already turning the castle upside down, looking for the crown. I’m sure you saw the mess in The King’s Office when you left.’

‘That was him?’ Emily asked.

‘Yes. He’s getting desperate,’ Edmund said. ‘It won’t be long before he has guards searching the entire city. We have to find the crown and stop him before people get hurt.’

‘We?’ Lewis asked bluntly. ‘You mean us.’

‘Alright, you have to stop him,’ Edmund replied reluctantly.

‘That’s what I thought,’ Lewis muttered darkly.

‘I’m sorry for this burden I have placed on you,’ Edmund said.

‘It’s okay,’ Emily said, placing a hand on Lewis’ shoulder before he could rise to the occasion. ‘We’ll find Thomas and get the crown.’

‘Fantastic!’ Edmund said excitedly.

‘Is there anything else that might help us?’ she asked.

‘Or anything you’ve neglected to tell us?’ Lewis muttered. For his words, he received a hard squeeze on his shoulder from Emily, her nails digging in sharply.

Pausing, Edmund sat back in his chair, thinking. ‘There is a man in Arcis, Winston. He owns a pub called The Golden Cannonball with his wife. Tell him I sent you, and he will help you get to Eraea.’

‘Anything else?’ Lewis asked, glancing at Emily in disbelief. How could he have forgotten to mention that? From the look on her face, it seemed like she was thinking along the same lines as him.

‘That’s everything I can think of,’ Edmund said, oblivious to the look that Lewis and Emily had exchanged as he stood up, straightening his brown coat. ‘I should probably get going. Hopefully Jonathan is feeling better and we can get back to Tristan.’

‘Thank you for coming by,’ Emily said as she stood up to see Edmund out.

He had just opened the door when he paused, turning back to face Lewis. ‘Oh, your ship leaves at noon two days from now.’

Rolling his eyes, Lewis nodded. ‘Thank you.’

‘Good luck,’ Edmund said with a nod before he stepped out into the sunshine, striding off down the street.

‘It’s a surprise he even remembers to breathe sometimes,’ Lewis muttered as Emily shut the door again.

Laughing, Emily hit him on the shoulder as she walked back to the fire. ‘You should be grateful; without him, we would both be dead.’

Lewis sighed. ‘I’m just worried he might have forgotten to tell us something important.’

‘We’ll manage,’ Emily said confidently. ‘At least we won’t have people trying to hunt us down this time.’

‘That’s one thing, I suppose,’ Lewis agreed. ‘I’m still not sure about this, though.’

‘What other choice do we have, though? I don’t know what will happen if the prophecy is fulfilled, but I doubt it will be anything good,’ Emily said as she began to dish up the stew she had been making while they had been talking to Edmund.

‘I doubt it will be either,’ Lewis said, offering her a smile as he took the bowl that she offered to him. ‘We’ll just have to see, I guess.’