As Miles Hendon takes Edward away from the Guildhall and toward London Bridge, they move quickly through the streets, the prince feeling the loss of his father keenly. Tears come to his eyes, especially when the crowd yells, “Long live King Edward the Sixth.” Despite his sorrow, however, Edward is thrilled that—despite everything—he is now King of England.
London Bridge is a village unto itself, packed with shops and family dwellings above them; in short, it is a place where people live their entire lives, and Hendon’s lodgings are in a small inn on this bridge. Before they reach these lodgings, however, Hendon and Edward are stopped by John Canty, who reaches out for the prince and threatens to beat him for escaping. Hendon again intercedes, threatening Canty with his sword, and Canty slinks away, “muttering threats and curses.”
In Hendon’s apartment, the prince falls asleep on the bed immediately, leaving orders to be awakened when food arrives. Hendon is amused by the boy’s actions—which are, however, truly in character with his claim to be Prince of Wales. Already, Hendon has become fond of the boy, and he resolves to humor him and care for him, even if it means acting as the boy’s “retainer.”
The prince is awakened by the noise of someone departing after food has been brought in, and he expects to be waited on—with water, so that he can wash himself and with a towel so that he can dry himself. In addition, the prince reprimands Hendon for sitting, while in the prince’s presence. Hendon humors the boy without a word, although he is silently amused.
Refreshed by the food and drink, Edward asks Hendon for his story. Hendon tells the prince that he is the middle son of a baronet in Kent. His older brother is gentle and generous, but his younger brother is a mean and vicious rascal. Although his older brother, Arthur, has been betrothed to the Lady Edith since childhood, he loves another. Miles Hendon himself is in love with Edith, and she with him, and Arthur has assured them that things will work out satisfactorily. However, the younger brother, Hugh, wants to many Edith for her fortune. To get his way, Hugh conspired against Miles and managed to have him banished. While fighting in a war on the Continent, Miles was captured and lay in a dungeon for seven years. He escaped only a short time before and is now on his way home to Kent.
The prince proclaims that he will set matters right. Then he tells Hendon about his own adventures. Although the prince has clearly accepted Hendon’s story as truth, Hendon cannot do the same for the prince’s story, yet he renews his resolve to protect the boy and, hopefully, help him regain his sanity.
The prince then says that Hendon deserves some reward for the service he has rendered. Even though he is startled by such news, and even though he does not believe that the prince is really the Prince of Wales, Hendon thinks carefully about the matter. Finally, he requests that he and his heirs have the right to sit in the presence of the king. Edward grants this request, naming Hendon as hence forth “Sir Miles Hendon, Knight.” Hendon cannot believe what he hears; he tells himself that he is, alas, a “knight of the Kingdom of Dreams and Shadows.” Nonetheless, he is content.
The prince suddenly feels extremely sleepy, and he orders Hendon, as though Hendon were his valet, to remove the rags he is wearing. Hendon strips the boy; then the prince notices Hendon’s obvious perplexity about where he is to sleep. Edward tells his “knight” that he can sleep “athwart the door.” Hendon does so, without complaint, and falls asleep near dawn.
Waking up near noon, Hendon measures the still-sleeping prince and sets out to buy better clothing for the boy. Gone less than an hour, Hendon returns and begins to mend the secondhand clothes he has bought. As he works, he sings and muses upon all that has happened. All this time, he has taken care not to awaken the prince.
When he finally does go to rouse the prince, he discovers to his amazement that the boy is gone. He accosts a servant, who tells him that another boy came for the prince and took him toward the Southwark area of the bridge. They were joined by a man who looked like a ruffian, and the three of them continued on toward Southwark. Hendon realizes that the man is no doubt the very one who stopped them the night before—John Canty—and he plunges out of the inn, resolved to scour the countryside until he finds the boy once again.
