"And here's where you'll sleep," said Drue, gesturing with his hands. It was a small tent, but it was comfy. Before Drue left, he said,"we'll have to keep a guard on you until you prove yourself tomorrow. I don't like it, but it's just rules." I waved him goodbye, then stretched out on the floor. After a few minutes, I stuck my head out of the tent and glanced at the guard. He was a bulky twenty year old man carrying a nice looking sword. Any chance of escaping undetected to report to Kenswick were starting to slim. The guard caught me looking at him, and narrowed his eyes. I waved awkwardly.

"Hey," I complained, "I really got to go."

"Where?" Asked the guard.

"I have to go, " I whined. He got the message this time.

"Just wait till tomorrow," he grunted.

"I'm going to keep bothering you until you let me go." He sighed--a sign of defeat.  I scrambled out of the tent and headed to a tree. The man, grumbling the whole time, impatiently kept whacking the ground with his sword. Suddenly another guard ran up to him. I leaned in closer to hear.

"You know the new kid that came yesterday? Well tonight was his vigil, and his guard just saw him run off into the woods. Who knows where he is by now?" The man exclaimed. "We need to go now! Drue is going crazy trying to find him. If that kid leaks where our camp's at, we'll be swarming with invaders tomorrow." The guard, forgetting about me, dashed off to go search for who I assumed was Dedrick. He probably sneaked away to see Kenswick, but was caught in the act.

With the guard gone, I could now go to the meeting, but I didn't want to-- not yet at least. I would spy on Kenswick's conversation with Tobin and Dedrick, then gather insight on the Thief's whereabouts. I took one more look around me, to make sure no one could see, then dashed off.

I ran across the cobblestone bricks, my feet slapping the ground and sloshing in puddles that reflected the moonlight.

When I arrived at the pub, I found that the meeting had already started without me. Tobin, Dedrick, and Kenswick were huddled around a table in the back.

"Dedrick, Tobin," growled Kenswick, "Do you know where Ky is?" Apparently Kenswick was not in the best mood.

"Ky is under vigil. I managed to sneak away.¨ Dedrick said, quite proudly. Kenswick cursed under his breath.

"Well, then, deliver this message to him." He growled, "If you three can't kill the Thief in five days, then you'll be joining Paige. Do I make myself clear?"

"Why four days?" Tobin whimpered.

"In four days, that's when the Thief plans to kill the royal family. We have to stop him by then, do you understand?" He yelled.

Yea right, we have to stop him. He means Tobin, Dedrick, and I. Apparently someone above him was putting a lot of pressure on him to get this thief killed. I could tell by the way his shoulders sagged, how his hair stuck out of place, and by his yelling. Kenswick needed the job done and done quickly.

As Kenswick lectured the boys some more, I saw something out of the corner of my eye. It was Carlton hiding back in the shadows, out of their view. Suddenly it dawned on me, but it was too late. Kenswick nodded his head at Carlton. He crept up on the boys and in one fluid move, knocked them down and tied their hands behind their backs.

"What kind of trick is this?" Sputtered Tobin.

"Untie us!" Dedrick shouted. As he squirmed in his bondage. I for one, was glad I decided not to report to Kenswick.

He nodded his head and Carlton punched each boy in the stomach. Tobin and Dedrick groaned and slumped in their chairs.

"You boys need some motivation." Kenswick calmly stated. He nodded again to Carlton who hit each boy again. They both cried out in pain. "Every day with the Thief alive is a day of danger. We need him killed, and I will not let three fool orphan boys stop that." Kenswick leaned in close to Tobin and Dedrick. "Four days, got it?" Tobin and Dedrick shook their heads in understanding. "Good. Now go." Kenswick motioned for Carlton to untie them. Once he did, the boys scampered out of the bar. It was my time to go too; I didn't want anyone at the camp to realize that I was missing. I was concerned about Kenswick's deadline, but at the moment I had more important things to worry about. Tomorrow I had to convince the thief's gang that Drue and I knew valuable information.