Chapter 16 Prison The prison cell was crowded and terribly dirty.
Men and women were both trapped inside the tiny space.
Some were handcuffed to a wall.
Others were chained to beds.
No one had much room to move around.
When they had first arrived, Miles had been overcome with rage and grief.
He could not think straight.
He was focused on his brother's crimes and could think of nothing else.
After some time, though, Miles began to calm down.
He tried to figure out whether Edith had recognized him, but he could make no sense of it.
His homecoming had been such a surprising and disappointing experience.
A few days passed while Miles and Edward wasted away in the prison cell.
They suffered through the dirty conditions and poor food.
Edward was no longer claiming to be king.
Things were already difficult enough, with everyone calling Miles a fake.
Miles was quite famous in the jail.
Guards would often stop by to insult him.
They occasionally brought people by who might recognize him, but no one said they knew him.
Then one day they brought by an old man.
He was another prisoner, one of the old servants from Hendon Hall.
The guards pointed to Miles and said, Is that your old master?
Old Man looked at Miles and shook his head.
I've no idea who you're talking about, he said.
I've never seen that man before.
The guards laughed again and left the Old Man with Miles.
When they were safely out of earshot, the Old Man whispered, Thank goodness, and smiled.
At long last, my master has returned.
We thought you were dead all these years.
George, Miles said, is that you?
What are you doing here?
Same thing as you.
Your brother threw a lot of us in here.
If it weren't for all the dirt and grub, you might recognize more of us.
And so Miles learned the story of his family.
As Hugh had told them, Arthur had died six years earlier.
The stress of Arthur's death and Miles' disappearance caused Sir Richard to become sick.
Sir Richard wanted Hugh and Edith to be safe and merry, but Edith begged for more time.
She was certain Miles would return or send word.
Sir Richard agreed.
Then one day a letter arrived saying that Miles had been killed in battle.
Sir Richard felt there was no point in waiting any longer, and Hugh and Edith were married.
It was not long before talk spread through the countryside that Edith had found several drafts of the letter announcing Miles's death in her husband's own handwriting.
But she had no hope of divorce.
She had no other family and no means of support.
If she left, Hugh would take all of her money, and Edith would have nothing when Sir Richard died.
Hugh took over the family fortune as well.
He was not well liked.
In fact, most people feared him.
Everyone knew that he was quick to throw people into jail.
No one felt safe standing up to him.
That is an awful tale, George, Miles said.
I would do anything to change it.
It is a strange time for everyone, George replied.
I have heard other rumors that the young future king is mad.
I hear they are keeping him away from the public.
Suddenly Edward spoke up.
The future king is not mad, he said.
You will do everyone some good if you stick to your own matters.
The old servant shrugged his shoulders and returned to his own thoughts.
The old king will be buried in a day or two, George said.
The new king will be crowned a few days after that.
I do wish I could take part in the celebrations.
You miss so much when you're in prison.
Edward sat in a state of shock.
Was that little peasant boy still in the palace?
For the first time, Edward realized that someone else might be crowned in his place.
When their prison term finally ended, Miles and Edward headed back down the road.
Miles was quite sad.
He knew he could not go home.
Hugh would simply have him jailed as a fraud again, and all that he had hoped for was gone.
Everyone whom he loved was gone.
He wondered if he had lost his energy to fight, too.
Edward, on the other hand, had a new strength.
He marched down the road with determination.
Miles caught sight of him and for a moment forgot his own problems.
He found himself cheering up.
I have not asked you, Miles said, where we are going.
To London, of course.
When Miles and Edward arrived in the city a few days later, they discovered that they were just in time.
King Henry had been buried and Tom was to be crowned king the next day.
