We Are The Cure : The Plague Doctor's Tale.

Chapter 34

Throughout the way, Lady Margaret explained in detail the motives behind asking them to come. For Doctor it was quite unusual to being called by a wealthy lady to perform a post mortem examination on her family members. 

"You see..." She started her explanation. "When family members suddenly dies in short intervals of time, you are the only one suspected of wrongdoings. That is exactly my case." She wasn't directly looking at them as her eyes were already filled with tears. "I buried my own husband and both of my children. There are no words to describe how devastated I am, and these accusations... I'm so sick and tired of hearing I killed people I loved  with all my heart." She looked at them and Rosalynn noticed pain, tiredness, and annoyance in her facial expression. 

"So in order to clear your name you need to be in possession of an undeniable proof you are not a murderer." Doctor summed up her words. 

"Exactly! Personally, I think it was plague that killed my family. The symptoms they all had seems to indicate that but I'm not an expert. That's why I ask for you." She looked directly at Doctor and he nodded with understanding. "Of course, your companions are my guests as well. I believe they are as skilled as you are in terms of plague, aren't they?" The previous neutral mood appeared on her face again.

"I believe so." He answered after a long silence and both Rosalynn and Giovanni gave him a disappointing look.

...

The Catchstone Mansion wasn't very far from the port. It was impressively big and lavish, especially when they were standing outside the grandiose building. It was a this kind of a huge grey stone villa with white windows and with numerous servants serving there. Rosalynn and Giovanni gave Doctor surprised look but he actually was as surprised as both of them but due to the mask they couldn't see the surprise look on his face. Lady Catchstone's servants approached them and suggested kindly taking their belongings to their rooms but all of them declined their offer and decided to do this on their own. 

"Please, make yourself at home." Said Lady Margaret as they entered the mansion. Being already impressive on the outside, the villa's interior was much more majestic as it was packed with fresh flowers, red carpets and good quality wooden furniture. Each of the wall was decorated with a portraits of the ancestors and the previous owners of the property. "My servants will show you the way to the sleeping area. After you're done unpacking your things, please join me for a cup of tea." She curtsied and disappeared in the labyrinth of corridors escorted by her personal maid. The maid looked rather grave and unpleasant although she wasn't very young. It was a woman in her late fifties with wrinkled face and perfectly ironed dress. 

"This way." Informed one of the servants and she headed up the stairs and then turned right. "Here is the sleeping area for the guests." She pointed to the corridor full of doors. "Please, do not enter the sleeping area on the left. There are Madame's bedrooms and Natalie's room-"

"Who is Natalie if I may ask?" Doctor interrupted the maid. 

"Oh, she is Madame's assistant. She takes care of our Lady." In their heads popped out the image of the elderly lady with not nice look on her face. "Do not disturb them unless they are the ones who start the conversation." The hints given by the maid seemed quite valuable. "Oh and Madame invites you for a tea-" She was again interrupted by Doctor.

"Yes, we already know that. Thank you very much for your assistance." The maid curtsied and quickly disappeared. "I will install myself in the very first room." Doctor opened the nearest door and was greeted with pleasantly decorated bedroom with huge bed. Rosalynn and Giovanni took the other rooms which were closely located to Doctor's room. 

Rosalynn's bedroom resembled pretty much Doctor's although in her room there was a dominance of gold and navy blue accents. There was also a cosy sofa, large fireplace, few mirrors and a king sized bed. However, the most interesting part of her room was a balcony which was new to Rosalynn. She opened the balcony door and quite hesitantly went outside. It was new yet so strange feeling to her, she felt like floating above the ground. She was facing a beautiful landscape of the area covered with colourful flowers. It was hard to deny that somebody must have been taking good care of the garden below. The colours and the types of the flowers seemed to be thoroughly selected to create the Catchstone family crest which consisted mainly of white, red, and yellow colours. 

While she was unpacking her belongings, she heard knocking on her door. 

"I hope you managed to finally unpack your things. We are all waiting only for you." It was Doctor; by the tone of his voice she could tell he was a bit impatient so she nodded her head and left her room. Together they went downstairs where the maid who had helped them find their rooms were already waiting for them. 

"This way, please." She led them outside so they could join Giovanni and Lady Margaret on a tea meeting in the garden. 

They were talking basically about the plague symptoms and the way it take its course. Lady Catchstone seemed truly interested in that matter and asked Natalie who was standing beside her to note important things. As Doctor was describing some of the cases, Giovanni provided an elaborated explanation of the usual symptoms of the plague, and Rosalynn talked a bit about healthy herbs. Then the subject matter of the talk was changed and Lady Margaret focused on her state of pregnancy and the fact she had been feeling unwell for few days. Rosalynn suggested Lady Margaret should be drinking an orange and honey tea so it would support her immune system which is especially important throughout pregnancy.

...

For the rest of the day they had some more time to accommodate in their rooms. When the night came, Rosalynn asked one of the maids to light the fireplace and the candles so she could read some of the medical records. While reading she couldn't understand one of the cases so she decided to ask Doctor. She knocked on his door which weren't opening for a long time. She knocked again and the door remained shut. She turned around and faced Doctor who just came back. 

"Were you looking for me, my dear?" In his voice there was a strange tone Rosalynn hadn't spotted before. Some mixture of surprise but also joy?

"Uhm, yes. I was reading the records and I have few questions."

"Please, come inside." He was about to open the door of his bedroom when she quickly asked him to read the records at her place. "As you please. Let me just leave my cloak and I will be back." He disappeared inside his room but quickly joined Rosalynn and the two sat on the cosy sofa in Rosalynn's room. 

She was reading the cases out loud as the fireplace was cracking gently, and Doctor was explaining her some important medical aspects as internal diseases that could not be cured in any way currently known. While he was in his own world, she fell asleep and leaned on his arm. Then he closed the book with records, put it aside and carried her to bed. 

Leaving the room, he snuffed the candles and looked at her as she was sleeping. Doctor thought she was one of these people he would like to protect and care about. Then he closed the door and went to sleep.