Excerpt from Fire and Earth

by David West

Galileo’s study was the sort of room that spiders love and cleaners don’t. The bookshelves were full, leaving no space for the stacks of books dotted around the floor. Several books lay open on his desk, along with an inkwell and a pot of quills. The room was a little smaller than the chancellor’s study, yet still a generous size. Even so, the chancellor led Anthony and Hugh through a zig-zag course towards Galileo, avoiding the stacks of books and small tables supporting various models, a globe, and musical instruments.

‘These gentlemen are here to ask you a few questions, Galileo. They act with the authority of the pope. This is Sir Anthony Standen, and this is Hugh O’Neill, Earl of Tyrone. I shall leave you now. You know where I am if you need me.’

‘Yes, yes, let me see, there are two chairs here somewhere.’ As Galileo stood up, Anthony noticed that he was a good three inches taller than Hugh. Hugh was an inch taller than Anthony, who was, himself, a couple of inches taller than average. He was also broad in the chest and powerfully built. He had piercing, enquiring eyes, and a long, straggly beard. He took a lute and a pair of brass calipers from the seat of a chair, and brushed a pile of books to one side with his foot, to make room for it in front of his desk. He took a wooden model from the seat of another chair. ‘This is the model for a horse-powered pump I am working on,’ he explained, as he put it on top of a stack of books and placed the second chair in front of his desk. ‘Please sit down. What is it you want to discuss?’

Excerpt from Fire and Earth by David West, available on Amazon

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