“It seems that the mummification process, however, was either interrupted or perhaps never took place as the man is as you see him here.”
Poor fellow, I thought.
Sir Reginald looked from Brodie to me, obviously expecting us to share his enthusiasm.
“Magnificent,” I replied. Then I reminded him, “The papyrus found among Dr. Bennett’s notes?”
“Oh, yes. Do forgive me, that is the reason you are here.” He gestured to the chairs across from his desk, also covered in books and papers. He quickly gathered the papers, then circled round his desk and sat down. He adjusted his glasses.
“From other artifacts that have been found, it seems that the Egyptians were quite advanced in their medical treatments. With this, I was able to discern some very interesting procedures. See here,” he carefully turned over a page of that ancient manuscript.
Brodie shook his head. “Cutting open a man’s head to operate on his brain!” he exclaimed with obvious disgust and no small amount of doubt as our coach left the British Museum.
“They were quite advanced in a great many things— plumbing, water systems, astrology,” I pointed out.
“There is plumbing in London,” he pointed out. “And water systems built by the Romans, ye told me.”
“How do you think they knew what to build?” I replied. “The Egyptians were far ahead of the Romans in that regard.”
“The brain?” he made a disgusted sound.
It was not the procedures of the brain Sir Reginald had discovered in those ancient texts and then also in the doctor’s notes, that caught my attention. And Brodie’s as well.
“The complete restoration of a person’s face.”
“Fascinated with that, were ye?” Brodie commented.
“It seems that Dr. Bennett was as well.” I thought of Ethan’s injuries and the burns that were now healing.
“How remarkable, the ability to restore someone’s features by using their own skin.”
“Has anyone ever mentioned that ye have a somewhat odd fascination for such things?”
I had heard that before, present company included. I ignored it.
“You must admit that it seems that Dr. Bennett was able to use those same procedures to help Ethan,” I pointed out as we reached Mayfair.
I wanted to change into something more appropriate for our meeting with Sir Avery.
“I believe that Mr. Brimley would call it an experiment,” Brodie pointed out as we arrived and went to the front entrance where we were greeted by Mrs. Ryan and a most incredible aroma of food.
“However, as I have learned, inventions, procedures, everything begins with someone’s experiment at some point in time.”
“Ye have a peculiar nature, Mikaela. Most women would be taken with a new gown, a bit of furniture for the home, or a bouquet of flowers. However, ye are fascinated with surgeries of the brain and tissues.”
“The doctor’s notes referred to ‘grafting’ the skin at the site of the injuries,” I corrected him as he moved in the direction of the dining room and kitchen.
“That is a remarkable aroma, Mrs. Ryan,” he commented.
I headed for the stairs and my room to change.
“Making a statement, are ye, fer our meeting with Sir Avery?” Brodie commented as I returned.
I had chosen my gown with that in mind. Sir Avery did have a tendency of putting me in my place from time to time, as it were, or completely disregarding the points I had made in the past regarding a specific inquiry.
Brodie had intervened at the time, however, I had not forgotten those encounters. In addition he had sent Brodie off to Edinburgh with very little assistance that could have had disastrous consequences.
The Agency was important in the often delicate and frequently dangerous inquiries they made on behalf of the Crown. A somewhat murky organization to be certain.
