“I will not have you disparage Miss Sharpe, here or anywhere. She is a student of medicine, a damn brilliant oneat that, and one to whom you have shown little to no respect. As a physician yourself, it is your duty to teach others and yet you ridicule her based on the mere fact that she is a woman?” He shook his head in disgust. “It’s not only beneath you, Dr. Cameron, it is in defiance of the very institution that you serve. It is your job, our jobs, as doctors, to teach those who are capable to learn.”
Dr. Cameron’s eyes went wide.
“You would defend this gossiping tramp over an innocent man?”
James’s resolve snapped and he grabbed the man by his lapels.
“Call her that again, and I’ll dissect you myself.”
The frightening threat hung in the air, causing everyone to remain still. It was like just before a storm, when the wind disappeared and everything became unnaturally quiet. James was breathing heavily, almost daring the cowering doctor to challenge him, but then the constable spoke.
“Sirs, I must implore that you settle this at a different time. Dr. Hall, you’re needed at the Necropolis as soon as possible. We must make haste.”
For a moment, James didn’t move, still staring daggers at the older man, but then he released him and turned, quickly glimpsing at Grace, whose dumbstruck expression gave him no answers. He looked at the constable.
“Very well. Let’s go.”
“H-he threatened me,” Dr. Cameron sputtered after a moment. “You heard it, constable. He threatened to dissect me.”
“Onlyifyou continue in your rude treatment of the lady, Doctor,” the constable said as James moved around the room to fill his leather doctor bag. He would have to see to Mr. Felding after his business with the constable. “I suggest you heed his word.”
Shaking with furious indignation, Dr. Cameron pushed himself off the desk and headed for the door. In a short moment, the bell to the outer door rang and he was gone, though the rage within James seemed untempered. He was nearly finished packing when Grace stepped forward, into his view.
“Thank you for that,” she said softly, but he was in no mood.
“Do not thank me, Miss Sharpe. It is far from wise to accuse innocent men of crimes they did not commit.”
“I didn’t accuse anyone of anything, I merely mentioned that I saw Mr. Roberts—”
“Saw him what? Give some money to a couple of men in dirty clothes?” he interrupted, furious with her as well. “It was Gallowgate, Grace. There are a good number of people in stained and dirty clothes all over that neighborhood, not to mention it was raining.”
“Yes, but—”
“But what? The truth is, you saw nothing of consequence. If anything, it could have been an act of charity. Not only have you offended one of the most prominent doctors in this city, but you accuse him, by proxy, of being involved with something truly heinous. Something that has caused fear and suspicion on our profession for decades. And with what proof?”
To his utter misery, Grace’s bottom lip began to tremble as her eyes turned watery. God save him from witnessing her cry over his angry words. He shook his head.
“Tend to the patients today. I fear I will not be back until late.”
With that, he was out of the office and the front door with the constable close at his heels. They both climbed onto their horses and after securing his bag to his horse, they were off.
This, this had been the whole reason he hadn’t wanted Grace to apprentice with him in the first place. Because he knew his colleagues would think she was some sort of joke. He hadn’twanted to fight about the capabilities of the female sex, and he certainly hadn’t wanted to put his hands on a man he had long considered a friend.
Yet, here he was. Without a doubt, news would spread about their argument, and before long James would be ostracized from his own community, all because he couldn’t let Dr. Cameron belittle Grace. And it wasn’t even because she was right. It was because James loved her and that was the worst of it. He had lost sight of his work, his duty to remain impartial and instead had chosen to champion her over common sense.
A small voice within his mind tried to reason that he wouldn’t have done so if he didn’t trust Grace, but it didn’t matter. There was no proof of any foul doing and he was tempted to blame her imagination, but even then he couldn’t bring himself to do so.
He would have to apologize to Dr. Cameron, and that, coupled with the memory of Grace’s unshed tears, sent him into a foul mood indeed.
Perched on a small hill, the graveyard was a vast piece of land that had become the new favorite place for the well to do to be buried. Gates that were now locked nightly opened as James and the constable rode a short way into the cemetery, where a number of other police officers stood not too far from a large oak that reached out over an open grave.
James got off his horse and landed in the wet dirt. The grave had only been recently dug and then dug up again, leaving mounds of wet soil all round. Shuffling through a few police officers, James came to the edge of the grave and peered down.
The wooden casket had been pried open, but only partially as the bottom half was still nailed in. There wasn’t much left, save a small pillow that must have been stitched by a loved one and placed inside, as a few tears of cloth that had been caught on the splitting wood were the only clues that were left behind. Frowning, James noticed the constable come up to his side.
“When did it happen?”
“Last night. They were in a bit of hurry, it seemed, as they left a hammer, supposedly used to pry open the coffin, thanks to the nightwatchman. Fortunately, they weren’t able to get away with the body in tow. We found her near the front gates.”
