Peter and Kit take the poem to the Queen's secret service who decode the poorly written sonnet, discovering that the first letter of each line spells SEND NEWS BY PEEL. Peter immediately associate this message with Sir Philip's old peel tower. Peter and Kit set off with Tom Boyd, a member of the Queen's Secret Service. They travel back to Peter's village in disguise to see if Peter's theory about Sir Philip's peel tower is true. Tom is killed by the conspirators and Peter is captured but not before learning that John Somers, an actor in their company, is to shoot the Queen during the first performance of "Henry V". This is part of a wider conspiracy to install a new regime in England, the rest of it is vague but they are evidently in league with Spain. Peter is taken for questioning to a deserted Ullswater islet but manages to knock out the guard. He swims to the mainland and narrowly escapes across the fells.