Free Time of Trial by Michael Pryor Page B

so Aubrey was sure the professor was aware that his protégé was in the room.
    Aubrey was taken aback when the professor called him from across the room. ‘Mr Fitzwilliam!’ he bellowed, in a hoarse but commanding voice. ‘Over here, if you please!’
    The professor was so demanding that Aubrey was on his feet before he knew it. Kiefer looked hurt and Aubrey shrugged. ‘I’ll go and see what he wants.’
    Caroline frowned and for a moment Aubrey thought she was going to say something, but the moment passed and she busied herself with her bag.
    As Aubrey drew closer to the impatient Professor Glauber, he began to grow uneasy. The professor had him fixed with an impatient, glassy gaze and he was still clutching the earpiece of the telephone in one hand, almost as if it were a weapon.
    â€˜Hurry, Fitzwilliam.’ The professor adjusted his grip on the earpiece. ‘I have a message for you.’
    â€˜Is there someone on the other end?’ Aubrey said.
    â€˜Yes,’ Professor Glauber said. His face was leaden, with a greasy sheen to it. Aubrey wondered if the man were sick. ‘It’s important.’
    Despite his misgivings, Aubrey stepped closer.
    â€˜Dr Tremaine wants you.’ Glauber darted out a hand like a snake and clamped it on Aubrey’s upper arm.
    Instantly, Aubrey’s eyes flew open wide. His teeth clicked together and his head snapped backwards. Every muscle in his body went rigid and it felt as if a bolt of white light had shot through his body. He started to shake, to spasm uncontrollably, his limbs flailing, his head jerking wildly. A scream sounded from nearby but Aubrey only heard it dimly as he shook, unable to speak or to tear himself away. All he could do was stare at the awful, impassive face of Professor Glauber.
    Dosomethingdosomethingdosomething , he thought.
    Then, if he’d been able to make his mouth work properly, he would have cried out with horror. Professor Glauber’s hand, the one holding the telephone earpiece, had melted.
    Even in the middle of his spasm, in a room suddenly thrown into chaos as Holmlanders bolted for the door, Aubrey managed to correct himself. No, not melted. Professor Glauber’s hand had fused with the earpiece, reshaping and dividing until it disappeared through the holes. As he watched, helpless, the process continued rapidly, the professor’s hand actually being drawn into the earpiece, right up to his wrist. Within seconds, the earpiece swallowed the professor’s arm up to the elbow like a python swallowing a pig.
    Aghast, Aubrey summoned all his strength. He struck at the hand clamped to his upper arm, but it was like hitting a sack of sand. The professor didn’t even change expression. He pulled Aubrey closer, and grappled for a one-armed embrace while his other arm disappeared up to his shoulder.
    His face showed no emotion.
    He’s going to disappear up the telephone line , Aubrey thought, heaving at the professor’s grip. And if he doesn’t let go, he’s going to drag me along with him.
    A metal tray skimmed past his startled eyes. It hit the professor edge-on, just above his nose, and made a musical ringing noise.
    â€˜Aubrey!’
    Caroline came into view, swinging another metal tray, but she was seized by von Stralick. ‘Do not touch them with metal!’ he cried, but then he lurched backward to avoid Caroline’s angry backswing.
    The interruption gave George a chance. With a shout, he charged at Professor Glauber. If Aubrey had been able, he would have gaped, for George was wielding a wooden hatstand as a medieval knight would wield a lance. With a grunt, he smashed into the half-professor. Aubrey was thrown backward and, suddenly boneless, he slumped to the floor, striking his head hard enough that blackness threatened to swamp him.
    No , he thought, and struggled with consciousness. Dizzy and feeling sick to his stomach, he sat up to see the aftermath