The protagonist in Blackwood's novel, Widge, begins his life in the countryside. For his first seven years, he lives with a group of boys in an orphanage. He is then apprenticed to Dr. Bright, a parson and physician who has created a shorthand code called charactery. Dr. Bright teaches Widge this code and sends him to different churches every Sunday to transcribe the ministers' sermons. Widge then converts the shorthand into regular English, and two weeks later, Dr. Bright delivers the same sermon to his own congregation. When Widge realizes what Dr. Bright is up to, he asks to stop copying the sermons. Despite his indifference to the morality of the task, he is worried about getting caught. Dr. Bright insists that Widge must continue, emphasizing that Widge belongs to him. This idea of being owned is deeply ingrained in Widge's mind.

At fourteen, Widge's apprenticeship is sold to Simon Bass for ten pounds sterling. Bass's servant, Falconer, a stern man who wears a black hooded cloak like armor, takes Widge to his new home. Here, Widge is tasked with going to London to attend a performance of William Shakespeare's Hamlet, copying the entire play word for word, and transcribing it into English. Simon Bass plans to have his own theater company perform the stolen play.

The daunting Falconer escorts Widge to London. Though Widge attends the play, he becomes so engrossed in the story that he doesn't manage to transcribe much of the dialogue in the secret code. He performs better during his second viewing, but his table-book containing the charactery transcription of Hamlet is stolen. His only remaining option to please his master is to steal the playbook.

When caught inside the theater, Widge lies and claims he has a passion for acting and wants to become a performer. The theater company members vote and decide to take him on as an acting apprentice.

Another apprentice at the theater, Sander, shares his room with Widge at the house of Mr. Pope, one of the players with the Chamberlain's Men. Sander teaches Widge the various duties of an apprentice, including sweeping the stage, replacing soggy rushes with fresh ones, whitewashing the theater's thatched roof, practicing sword fights, and memorizing lines.

Julian is another apprentice with a secret equally as damaging as Widge's. If the players discover Widge's mission to steal the playbook, he will be expelled from the theater. Similarly, if Julian's true identity is revealed, he will face the same fate. Nick, the oldest of the apprentices, transitions from female roles to male parts due to his maturing voice. However, his love for drinking and mingling with actors from lesser companies leads to his decline. He becomes unreliable, showing up late and unfit for performances. Nick is also responsible for exposing Julian's secret and is easily manipulated by Falconer, who hires him to steal the Hamlet playbook.

Widge has never considered the concepts of right and wrong. As an apprentice, he is obligated to follow his master's orders. He has also never experienced a true sense of home or family. With his first master, he slept in a corner of the apothecary. While staying at a London inn with Falconer, he slept in the stable. After joining the players, he shares a room with Sander. For the first time, Widge has someone to talk to, though he cannot share his dark secret. He finally has a friend, but he is unsure what friendship entails.

As Widge's responsibilities in the company grow, including playing Ophelia in Hamlet for Queen Elizabeth's court, his sense of family begins to develop. He even feels loyalty toward Nick, who has shown him no kindness, and saves Nick's life by providing emergency first aid during a sword fight. Widge naively believes Nick would do the same for him, but he eventually learns he must be more discerning in judging character.

Relying on his survival instincts, Widge manages to evade Falconer, who persistently tracks the runaway apprentice. By adhering to his emerging sense of honor and ethics, Widge begins to navigate a new way of thinking. He learns to respect others for who they are and, importantly, learns to respect himself.