Mr. Armin prevents Widge from drowning in the river. When
they are back on land, they continue their search for Nick. Widge reveals to Mr. Armin
that he knows who hired Nick to take the play he stole, but he does not know where that
person can be found, other than that he comes from Leicester. This information does give
Mr. Armin enough of a clue so that they go to Aldersgate, and there, with the help of a
beggar, they find Falconer. Mr. Armin confronts the man and, telling him they suspect
him of stealing Mr. Shakespeare's play, begins to search his saddlebag. A duel ensues,
and while the men are fighting, Widge takes the playbook from the saddlebag, and
although he entreats the men to stop their fight, they pay him no heed (Chapter
26).
Although it seems that Mr. Armin is on the defensive
during most of the violent duel, in the end he deals Falconer a death blow, driving his
sword through his opponent's midsection. Dying, Falconer peels off his makeup to reveal
that he is really Mr. Bass, and he communicates the lifelong frustration he encountered
as an extremely talented but unappreciated theatre man which led him to become a thief.
Falconer then dies, and the constable comes to take away the body, acquitting Mr. Armin
of wrongdoing when he learns the details of the duel. Mr. Armin and Widge return to the
Chamberlain's Men, and when Widge's situation is explained to them, they are lenient and
permit him to stay on as a prentice. Grateful for the chance to make something of his
life, he works frenetically through the summer and fall, and his only regret is that he
does not know what has happened to Julia.
One day just
before Christmas, Widge, Sander, and Mr. Pope run into Julia on the street. She has
learned that in France, women are allowed to become actresses, and has saved her money
and will be leaving for that country in the morning. Widge is happy for her good
fortune, but devastated to see her go, and for the first time since he was a child,
allows himself to cry. After Julia has left, Widge reflects on the new concepts about
which he has learned since coming to the Chamberlain's Men. He realizes that the most
important ones have to do with "honesty and trust, loyalty and friendship...family...and
home" (Chapter 27).
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