He had the power to assume a pleasing shape, but would he take to the
stage . . . ?
The audience was merry indeed when a third devilish imp bounded onstage
to join the two that had been written into the script. But backstage all
was uproar. The third demon seemed too much like the real thing. Even
Nicholas Bracewell, the company mainstay, was shaken when, next time the
play was given, only one devil appeared. The second, poor fellow, was
now only a little red heap backstage. Murdered.
Before the curtain rose again, Lord Westfield's Men would suffer the
sermons of a puritan fanatic, the enchantment of passion, the terror of
a London madhouse, prophecies of a famous alchemist, and danger as
they'd never known it before . . .