Soon after Meggie and Farid are in the book, Mortola, Basta, Orpheus, and a "man built like a wardrobe" barge into Elinor's house, taking Mo, Resa, Elinor, and Darius prisoner. As per Mortola's orders, Orpheus reads Basta, Mortola, and Mo into "Inkheart", bringing Resa along by accident. Upon entry, Mortola shoots Mo with a shotgun that he brought from our world. Resa discovers that her voice has come back to her as she prays for Mo to survive the wound. As he recovers, Resa and Mo hide in a secret cave with the strolling players, or the Motley Folk. Soon the Motley Folk assume that the injured Mo is the mysterious gentleman-robber, the "Bluejay", a fictitious hero from a song created by Fenoglio's words. Fenoglio has been living within his own story since the events of "Inkheart", working as a court scribe in Lombrica's capital city of Ombra. Once reunited with Meggie, Fenoglio asks her to read Cosimo the Fair back into the story, since he died a death the author never planned for him. Meggie doesn't feel comfortable interfering with the story but is soon convinced by Fenoglio that it will be 'a double' of Cosimo - not Cosimo himself. Reluctantly, Meggie reads Cosmio in and quickly regrets it when the Adderhead's soldiers barge into the fair, injuring and killing many people. Cosimo has none of his doubles memories and doesn't seem to love his wife and child anymore. Cosimo's return upsets the Adderhead, ruler of the neighboring region of Argenta, who planned to take over Lombrica once the Laughing Prince died. With the rightful heir to the throne of Ombra mysteriously brought back to life, but with no memories of 'his own' life, war is imminent.