The Way of All Flesh
Page 35
Raven and Simpson returning. Neither of them speaking. Raven forming the cone of a handkerchief, dripping the chloroform. Then oblivion. Then this dark chamber, its whereabouts unknown.
He sits up and promptly cracks his head on something. At first he thinks the ceiling must be low, but his hands discern there is a bunk above. There is no window, no lamp, and he cannot see to find a door.
Tentatively he puts his feet over the side and slowly stands up straight. He hits his head again, for the ceiling is indeed low.
He advances, hands extended until they meet a surface. He is lucky, he thinks, for his fingers are touching wood. It is the door. Now he must find its handle.
He cannot. He searches with his hands, and discovers that all around him is wood. What manner of chamber is this? Is he in the country, the forest?
He balls his fists and begins to pound on the wall, shouting to be let out.
Shortly after that, he hears footsteps. Light spills in, dazzling his unaccustomed eyes as a door is pulled open perpendicular to where he had sought it. There are strong hands about him and he is hauled down a corridor. Even here, all around him is wood. The men hauling him along are in uniform. Soldiers. Has he been taken to Edinburgh Castle?
As he ascends a narrow staircase, he hears more shouts of men and once more feels the lurching sensation. With a burning fury, he understands.
He hears the slap of the waves against a hull, feels the stinging cold as he steps onto the deck.
All around is water, horizon to horizon.
He is presented to a bearded gentleman, by his uniform clearly a man of some rank.
‘Good morning,’ he says. ‘I am Captain Douglas Strang.’
‘Where am I?’
‘You are aboard the Royal Navy survey vessel HMS Fearless, bound for South America on an extended mission of coastline cartography.’
‘How long are we from Leith? You must turn around at once!’
Strang laughs. ‘We will not be turning around for some time. Perhaps never, in fact, as we may be circumnavigating dependent upon further orders. Our commission is for three years, initially.’
Beattie feels his legs weaken, and not from the sea.
‘Captain James Petrie volunteered your services as ship’s surgeon. His brother-in-law, Dr Simpson, intimated that you had problems regarding your conduct with women, so I am sure it will come as some relief to know that you will not be in the company of one so long as you remain under my command.’
‘This is illegal. This is press-ganging!’
‘Captain Petrie did forewarn that you may not be satisfied with the arrangement, so we came to an understanding. I am obliged to offer an alternative should you decide you do not wish to take up the post.’
‘And what is this alternative?’
‘We drop you over the side. Your choice, Dr Beattie.’
Acknowledgements
Warmest thanks to:
Sophie Scard, Caroline Dawnay and Charles Walker at United Agents.
Francis Bickmore, Jamie Byng, Jenny Fry, Andrea Joyce, Becca Nice, Vicki Watson and all at Canongate. Their passion and enthusiasm for this book has been overwhelming.
Professor Malcolm Nicolson at the Centre for the History of Medicine, University of Glasgow, whose MSc course led to the material upon which this book is based.
Moniack Mhor, Scotland’s Creative Writing Centre. Their course on historical fiction was an inspiration.
The National Library of Scotland, whose digitised town plans and Post Office directories provided an invaluable resource.
And of course to Jack, for listening without complaint to long-winded tales of the nineteenth century; and to Natalie for her indefatigable enthusiasm for this project from its inception.
About the Author
AMBROSE PARRY is a pseudonym for a collaboration between Chris Brookmyre and Marisa Haetzman. The couple are married and live in Glasgow. Chris Brookmyre is the international bestselling and multi-award-winning author of twenty-one novels, including Black Widow, winner of both the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year and the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Book of the Year. Dr. Marisa Haetzman is a consultant anesthetist with twenty years’ experience, whose research for her master’s degree in the history of medicine uncovered the material upon which this novel is based.
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Copyright
The Way of All Flesh
Copyright © 2018 by Christopher Brookmyre and Marisa Haetzman.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
Published by HarperCollins Publishers Ltd by arrangement with Canongate Books Ltd, Edinburgh, UK.
Cover design by Rafaela Romaya
Caduceus © Private Collection / Photo © Ken Welsh / Bridgeman Images
First Canadian edition
Digital Edition AUGUST 2018 ISBN: 978-1-44-345721-7
Version 07132018
Print ISBN: 978-1-44345-720-0
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