Free Word of Honour by Michael Pryor Page B

city. While no part of Trinovant lacked life, the
theatre district had cultivated its own special variety of it.
Not only did the swells mix with the common folk,
it appealed to Aubrey because it brought together art,
magic and technology to create something wonderful –
usually six evening shows a week with a matinee on
Sunday. The theatre was tradition, it was story made
grand, it was low farce, it was a place to find just about
every expression of humanity. He loved it.
    They rolled down the hill of Eastheath Street, past the
Royal Theatre and the many-pillared mock classical
frontage of Miller's Showcase. The streets had grown
crowded and the cabby had to argue his way through
the pedestrians who spilled out onto the street, waves of
them promenading from theatre to theatre in search of a
good night out.
    They turned the corner into Harkness Street, the main
theatre row. Proudly taking up the corner was the
Orient, which – to Aubrey's eye – had never looked the
slightest bit oriental. The cabby saw a gap in the traffic
and urged his horse forward, just as Aubrey's gaze lit on
the colourful playbill outside the theatre.
    He felt as if he'd been hit on the back of the head with
an electric eel.
    The face of Dr Mordecai Tremaine filled the playbill.
    Of all the faces, the ex-Sorcerer Royal's was the last
he'd expect to see on a poster advertising a light opera.
The man who had plotted to kill the King, who had
kidnapped Sir Darius, who had orchestrated the theft of
Gallia's sacred Heart of Gold, all in order to plunge the
world into war. He'd haunted Aubrey's thoughts ever
since he'd disappeared from Albion.
    Dr Tremaine was the greatest magician in the world.
His knowledge and his bravado had led him to master
arcane areas of magic that others wouldn't dare to
contemplate. He achieved the difficult with casual arrogance.
Hardly paying attention, he juggled spells that
would drive others to distraction.
    Aubrey knew that Dr Tremaine was one of Albion's
greatest threats. So why is he on a theatre poster ? he
wondered.
    He shook himself and twisted in his seat to see more,
but a tall woman in a hat the size of an airship chose that
moment to pause in front of the Orient and laugh at her
companion's witticism. He grabbed George's arm. 'Did
you see that?'
    'I certainly did. Dreadful hat, that. Fruit and feathers?
Appalling.'
    Aubrey hissed with impatience. He hammered on the
ceiling of the cab. 'Cabby! Cabby!'
    The small hatch opened. The driver's eyes flicked
downward for an instant, then flicked back to the
swirling street ahead. 'What is it, young sir?'
    'Stop here! Now!'
The driver grimaced. A ten-pound fare was vanishing
in front of him, and he knew it. 'Here, sir? Can't, just yet.
Hold on a mo . . .'
    George leaned forward. 'Don't worry about it, driver.
We have to be at the Russell by eight.'
    'Eight? We'll have to get a move on, then.'He snapped
a whip that looked more decorative than functional, but
the cab lurched forward.
    'I'll get out,' Aubrey said. He put his hand on the latch.
    'You'll miss Caroline,' George said.
    Aubrey froze, then let his hand drop. He sat back in his
seat and noticed that his knees were trembling. 'At the
Orient. The poster. It was Dr Tremaine.'
    'Dr Tremaine?' George's eyebrows rose. 'Is that what
this is about? I saw the poster at the Orient. That was for
Arturo Spinetti, the singer.'
    'Spinetti? Singer?'
    'He's the talk of the town, come over from Venezia.'
George crossed his arms on his chest and looked satisfied.
    'You see, Aubrey, there are other sections of the newspaper
apart from the politics section.'
    'So it wasn't Dr Tremaine.'
    George frowned. 'What a bizarre notion. Spinetti
doesn't look anything like Tremaine. You know he's
probably still in Holmland, constructing plots and generally
making mischief. And even if he wasn't, he wouldn't
plaster his face about on a poster.'
    Aubrey wasn't convinced, and he had a feeling that
something was afoot here. The man he'd seen on