Heart of Gold Read Online Free Page A

to,' the Gallian said. 'Aubrey Saltin will
carry your name into the future!'
    'How long have you been in the Dirigible Corps?'
Aubrey asked him, eager to change the subject.
    Half an hour later, his head was spinning with details
of Gallia's dirigible program. It was only the appearance
of worried nurses that put an end to the airman's
passionate descriptions of water-ballast contingencies
and keel-bracing materials.
    Leaving, Aubrey waved from the door. 'Visit me in
Gallia,' Saltin called from his bed. The nurse at his side
tried to thrust a thermometer into his mouth. 'Promise
me you will.'
    'I may take you up on that,' Aubrey said, laughing.
'Good luck with the recovery.'
    Captain Tallis escorted Aubrey out of the hospital.
'Keep yourself out of trouble, Fitzwilliam, there's a good
chap,' he said at the front door. A bus rumbled past advertising
Evans Cocoa. 'Leave things to us.'
    The Oakleigh-Nash rolled up. Stubbs hurried to open
the door for Aubrey. 'Thank you, Captain Tallis. I always do my best to stay out of trouble.'
    Sitting on the leather seat, Aubrey hummed a little.
The morning had given him much to think about. He
tapped on the glass that divided the passenger compartment
from the driver. Stubbs slid back a pane. 'Sir?'
    'Let's go home through Barley Park, shall we, Stubbs?'
    'Barley Park it is.'
    The pane slid back and Aubrey was left with his ruminations.
Weariness rolled over him and he gazed out of
the window as the Oakleigh-Nash made its way through
Barley Park. Strollers enjoyed the sun, with a few kite
flyers doing their best to catch the light breeze. The
renowned avenue of elms stretched out in front of them.
    Like soldiers on parade , Aubrey thought, and the notion
made him think of the international situation, which, in
turn, made him glum because Holmland was at it again.
Its navy manoeuvres off the coast of Volnya were causing
great unrest on the Continent. Meanwhile, the fractious
states of the Goltan Peninsula were a hotbed of gossip
and rumour that Holmland was watching with delight.
    All of this military build-up meant that every nation
on the Continent was nervous. Strong allies were the best
way to keep Holmland away, which explained the desire
of Gallia to cement relations with Albion – one demonstration
of which was the maiden flight of the experimental
dirigible. Brave, plucky, stylish Gallia, Albion's
friend and bulwark on the Continent.
    Aubrey smiled. A perfect place for a holiday.
    As the car swung toward the park gates, Aubrey saw a
number of soldiers ambling arm in arm with pretty girls.
He had to admit, their uniforms did look dashing.
    The pretty girls made him think of Caroline.
    Formidably competent. Utterly presentable. Endlessly
bewildering. Aubrey sat back in the vast leather seat and
spent some time composing appropriate epithets. The
constantly surprising Caroline Hepworth. The agreeably
fascinating Caroline Hepworth. Caroline of the unruly hair.
The unruffled poise. The face that, according to George,
was too symmetrical. Aubrey pictured her in a white coat,
studying a stuffed bird of paradise, trying to decide if it
was a Lesser Superb Fantail or a Greater Superb Fantail
or another species altogether, and he enjoyed the image.
    Aubrey had come to know her no better since she'd
helped to thwart the diabolical plans of Dr Tremaine, the
one-time Sorcerer Royal. She had maintained an aloof
attitude toward him that was alternately endearing and
frustrating. Aubrey was not accustomed to having a goal
that he couldn't attain, but Caroline Hepworth was
proving to be more than a challenge.
    Aubrey lapsed into brooding, mulling over his various
failings. Most of which he was sure that Caroline had
itemised, but the greatest he'd kept from everyone but
George: he was dead. Technically, at least.
    It had been his overconfidence that had led him to
experiment with death magic. When it went awry, his
soul was wrenched from his body and dragged towards
the portal that opened onto the