Wood creaks in the corridor. I consider calling for Anna, a thought which must show on my face, because the Plague Doctor tuts at me.
‘Come now, how clumsy do you think I am?’ he says. ‘Anna left a little while ago to meet with Lord Ravencourt. Believe me, I know the routines of this house as a director knows those of the actors in his play. If I had any doubt that we might be interrupted, I wouldn’t be here.’
I have the sense of being a nuisance to him, an errant child in the headmaster’s office again. Barely worth a scolding.
A yawn rattles me, long and loud. My brain is clouding over.
‘We have a few more minutes to talk before you fall asleep again,’ says the Plague Doctor, clasping his gloved hands together, the leather squeaking. ‘If you’ve any more questions for me, now would be the time.’
‘Why is Anna in Blackheath?’ I say quickly. ‘You said I chose to come here, and my rivals didn’t. That means she was brought here against her will. Why are you doing this to her?’
‘Any questions aside from that one,’ he says. ‘Walking into Blackheath voluntarily brings certain advantages. There are also disadvantages, things your rivals instinctively understand, which you do not. I’m here to fill in those blanks, nothing more. Now, how goes the investigation into Evelyn Hardcastle’s murder?’
‘She’s one girl,’ I say wearily, struggling to keep my eyes open. The drugs are tugging at me with their warm hands. ‘What makes her death worth all of this?’
‘I could ask you the same question,’ he says. ‘You’re going out of your way to save Miss Hardcastle, despite all the evidence suggesting it’s impossible. Why is that?’
‘I can’t watch her die and do nothing to prevent it,’ I say.
‘That’s very noble of you,’ he says, cocking his head. ‘Then let me respond in kind. Miss Hardcastle’s murder was never solved, and I don’t believe such a thing should be allowed to stand. Does that satisfy you?’
‘People are murdered every day,’ I say. ‘Righting one wrong can’t be the only reason for all of this.’
‘An excellent point,’ he says, clapping his hands together in appreciation. ‘But who’s to say there aren’t hundreds of others like yourself seeking justice for those souls?’
‘Are there?’
‘Doubtful, but it’s a lovely thought, isn’t it?’
I’m conscious of the effort of listening, the weight of my eyelids, the way the room is melting around me.
‘We don’t have much time I’m afraid,’ says the Plague Doctor. ‘I should—’
‘Wait... I need to... why did...’ My words are sludge, thick in my mouth. ‘You asked me... you asked... my memory...’
There’s a great rustling of material as the Plague Doctor gets to his feet. Picking up a glass of water from the sideboard, he hurls the contents in my face. The water’s freezing cold, my body convulses like a cracked whip, dragging me back to myself.
‘Apologies, that was most irregular,’ he says, staring at the empty glass, clearly surprised at his actions. ‘Normally I let you fall asleep at this point, but... well, I’m intrigued.’ He puts the glass down slowly. ‘What did you want to ask me? Please choose your words carefully, they’re of some import.’
Water stings my eyes and drips off my lips, the wetness spreading through my cotton nightshirt.
‘When we first met, you asked me what I remembered when I woke up as Bell,’ I say. ‘Why would that matter?’
‘Each time you fail, we strip your memories and start the loop again, but you always find a way to hold onto something important, a clue if you will,’ he says, dabbing the water from my forehead with a handkerchief. ‘This time it was Anna’s name.’
‘You told me it was a pity,’ I say.
‘It is.’
‘Why?’
‘Along with the sequence of your hosts, the thing you choose to remember usually has a significant impact on how the loop plays out,’ he says. ‘If you had remembered the footman, you’d have set off chasing him. At least that would have been useful. Instead, you’ve bound yourself to Anna, one of your rivals.’
‘She’s my friend,’ I say.
‘Nobody has friends in Blackheath, Mr Bishop, and if you haven’t learned that yet, I’m afraid there may be no hope for you.’
‘Can...’ The sedative is dragging at me once again. ‘Can we both escape?’
‘No,’ he says, folding his damp handkerchief and replacing it in his pocket. ‘An answer for an exit, that’s how this works. At 11 p.m., one of you will come to the lake and give me the murderer’s name, and that person will be allowed to leave. You’re going to have to choose who that is.’
He lifts his gold watch from his breast pocket to check the time.
‘Time runs away and I have a schedule to keep,’ he says, retrieving his cane from its spot by the door. ‘Normally, I remain impartial in these matters, but there’s something you should know before you trip over your nobility. Anna remembers more from the last loop than she’s telling you.’
His gloved hand lifts my chin, his face so close to mine I can hear his breathing through the mask. He has blue eyes. Old, sad, blue eyes.
‘She’s going to betray you.’
I open my mouth to protest, but my tongue’s too heavy to move, and the last thing I see is the Plague Doctor disappearing through the door, a great stooped shadow dragging the world behind him.
28
Day Five (continued)
Life pounds on my eyelids.
I blink, once, twice, but it hurts to keep them open. My head’s a shattered egg. A noise escapes my throat. It’s somewhere between a groan and a whimper, the low animal gurgle of a creature caught in a trap. I try to heave myself up, but the pain’s an ocean, lapping around my skull. I don’t have the strength to lift it.
Time passes; I can’t say how much. It isn’t that sort of time. I watch my stomach rise and fall, and when I’m confident it can do so without my help, I drag myself into a sitting position, resting against the crumbling wall. Much to my dismay I’m back in Jonathan Derby, lying on the floor in the nursery. Pieces of a broken vase are everywhere, including my scalp. Somebody must have hit me from behind when I left Stanwin’s bedroom, and then dragged me here out of sight.
The letter, you fool.
My hand leaps to my pocket, searching for Felicity’s letter and the ledger I stole from Stanwin, but they’re gone, along with the key to Bell’s trunk. All that remains are the two headache pills given to me by Anna, which are still wrapped in the blue handkerchief.
She’s going to betray you.
Could this be her doing? The Plague Doctor’s warning couldn’t have been any clearer, and yet surely an enemy wouldn’t provoke such feelings of warmth, or kinship? Perhaps Anna does remember more from our last loop than she admits, but if that information was destined to make us enemies, why would I drag her name from one life into the next, knowing I would chase it like a dog after a burning stick? No, if there’s betrayal afoot, it’s a result of the empty promises I’ve made, and that’s rectifiable. I need to find the right way of telling Anna the truth.
Swallowing the tablets dry, I claw my way up the wall, staggering back into Stanwin’s room.
The bodyguard’s still unconscious on the bed, the light fading beyond the window. I check my watch to find it’s 6p.m., which means the hunters, including Stanwin, are probably already on their way home. For all I know, they’re crossing the lawn or ascending the stairs even now.
I need to leave before the blackmailer comes back.