Aubrey blinked. his head hurt. this was odd for, as far as he knew, a moment ago it hadn’t.
A few other things had changed as well. For one, he thought he’d been staring at Dr Tremaine through the sights of a rifle, but now he was staring up at the shadowy ceiling of the cave. ‘The rifle.’ Von Stralick’s voice came from nearby. ‘It blew up.’
‘Blew up?’
‘You have blood on your cheek.’
‘And egg on my face?’ Aubrey sat up, which transformed his head into a paragon of pure, thundering pain. He stifled a groan and put both hands to his temples. His gaze stumbled across the cave entrance. The carefully constructed firing platform had fallen apart, and what had been the Oberndorf rifle lay in pieces on the stones.
‘Here.’ Von Stralick held out a mug of water. He was still pale, but the half-mocking smile that had been missing during his illness was back.
‘What happened?’ Aubrey asked.
‘Most peculiar, it was.’ With a grunt, the Holmlander sat on a rock next to Aubrey. ‘I saw you squeeze the trigger, then the rifle burst apart without a sound. The barrel flew back and struck you on the forehead.’
‘Ah.’ Aubrey considered this. ‘Remind me to use a brand new rifle if I ever try this again. One that is a little less rusty would be useful.’
Von Stralick shrugged. ‘When I stole it from that farmhouse, I felt that beggars could not afford to be choosers, as you Albionish so delightfully say.’ He brushed the knee of his trousers for a moment. ‘You were trying to kill Dr Tremaine?’
It was Aubrey’s turn to shrug. ‘I wanted to bring him to trial.’
‘By shooting him?’
‘It was a magic spell.’
Von Stralick listened without interrupting until Aubrey finished explaining, then he rose, somewhat shakily, and went to the cave entrance. He stood in the shadows and gazed toward Dr Tremaine’s estate. ‘When I first met you, Fitzwilliam, I was sure you were of little account. You have, however, forced me to revise my opinion.’
‘And this is a good thing, I take it?’
‘You have surprising capabilities. Dr Tremaine would do well to be most wary of you.’
‘I doubt he gives me much thought at all.’
‘You should hope so. It could mean that you may be able to take him by surprise.’