Whitechapel: The Final Stand of Sherlock Holmes Read Online Free Page B

sinner?”
    “No!”
    Ann whipped him across the back and shoulders, making the boy scream even louder than her own shrieks of “Never, ever do that again! Filthy animal! Filthy, wretched beast!” The leather snapped across his skin, raising welts with each strike. She lost her grip, and the buckle of the belt clipped across the back of his head, cutting it open.
    Monty felt the split flesh at the base of his skull and panicked, screaming that he was going to die. Ann grabbed another dress from Georgiana’s closet and threw it at him, telling him to press it against the wound.
    He spent that night locked in Georgiana’s room. The moon was enormous and shined brightly through the wide windows surrounding the bed. With a start, he realized his sister was on the bed at his feet, staring through the window with black hollow eyes. Her belly and throat were split open and the organs spiraled from her like tentacles, glistening in the light of the moon.
     

THREE
     
     
    Dr. William Druitt was never informed of the incident, but he quickly took notice of his wife’s cold behavior toward their youngest son. Whether it was his guilt from losing a child, or his desire to protect the boy from her hostility, he invited Monty to come to work with him. A permanent position was not offered, only a conditional invitation. His continued apprenticeship would depend on his performance and attention to detail.
    On his first day, Monty stood impatiently by the front door, waiting for the carriage to arrive. Finally, it was rolling down the road toward their house and Monty passed William his tall, black hat, but insisted on carrying the medical bag. Once inside the carriage, William mopped his forehead and sat back. He clapped his son on the shoulder and smiled gently, “I am proud to be taking you to Portsmouth, Monty. I had originally hoped your brother would be the one making this trip with me, but instead he chose to go gallivanting around India, blowing the place to bits. Now he seems content to be a solicitor for the Western Circuit.”
    “I am proud as well, Father.”
    “Excellent. Now, before we get there, I want to tell you something. People in other parts of this country live in a substantially different way than we do. Not everyone is as fortunate as we. Do you understand?”
    “Will I get to cut people open?” Monty asked.
    “Absolutely not. Did you hear what I said? I will stop the carriage this instant if you are not paying attention to me.”
    “I understand, father.”
    “All right. As far as your duties go, you will assist me by cleaning my surgical instruments, and in labeling the preservation jars. When we do not have any patients, I want you to sweep or mop.” William turned to Monty, looking at him sternly. “Under no circumstances are you to enter the operating room when I am with a patient, unless I give you specific instructions. You are to stay in the specimen laboratory during those times.”
    “But—”
    “This is not open for discussion.”
    “Do you not think I am ready to witness your surgeries?”
    William put his hand on the boy’s head and tussled his hair. “Perhaps you are ready, son. But perhaps it is I who am not. Soon the day will come when you are a man and able to see all of the grim realities this world has to offer. I just prefer it to not be all at once, and not today.”
    As their carriage pulled into the train station, Monty was impressed by the crowd of well-dressed men and women standing on the platform, surrounded by swirling steam from the engine. He smiled in wonder, studying the train’s gigantic mechanical gears as they smoked, banged and hissed. He had never ridden the train before, and was taken by William’s understanding of how to acquire tickets and who to present them to. The men on the train assisted the women to their seats and lifted their belongings up onto the overhead track. William tipped his hat to women as they arrived onto the train, and shook hands with