‘All right. But please, make it quick. We—’
‘I know, I know.’ Soames tried to relax. In the shadows of the caravan, he was like some bleak spectre, unsure which side of death he belonged to. I was desperate to get away but I couldn’t help but be fascinated by the story that was unfolding.
X: ABSOLUTION
‘There was something terrible in Mather’s eyes on some occasions. I kept telling myself in the early days that it was my imagination, but I later realized there was something seriously wrong with him. The atrocities he committed – they couldn’t all be for the sake of science.’
Soames got to his feet and started pacing about the room.
‘The night the Ganges Red entered our lives is one I’ll never forget,’ he continued. ‘Mather had just finished an operation on a man he’d picked up outside a train station. He’d made long incisions into the man’s wrists and severed all the tendons, before swapping them over and stitching them up. He wanted the man to think he was moving one finger, when he was really moving another. It was so pointless but I . . . Maybe it was the drinking, the drugs. I used to do them both. I never saw what happened to the ones who survived the experiments. He must have killed them afterwards, otherwise they would have . . . Perhaps that’s why he found it so easy to control me, because I was so high most of the time. Anyway, on this particular night we were waiting for the subject to awaken, when there was a sound at the door. It was a very light tapping . . .’ Soames chuckled. ‘On some occasions Mather and I thought the same thing, because he said the exact words that were in my head. “
. . . Suddenly there came a tapping, as of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door
.”
‘It’s from Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven”, and hearing the words out loud made me uneasy. I went to the door and opened it. I’ve never felt so scared, so cold, as I did standing on that threshold and facing that monstrosity for the first time. It seemed to glow bright red. And the humming noise it made was like a horrible music. It hovered in front of me, then reared up, as if it was going to fly at my head. I covered my face with my hands, but it flew right past my ear, towards Mather.
‘I turned round, expecting to see Mather fighting off the thing. But it had landed on the bust of Florence Nightingale that had belonged to Mather’s late aunt. It looked as if it was watching Mather. Studying him.
‘I closed the door and went over to the table. The patient’s foot began twitching and I knew that he’d soon regain consciousness. Mather remained locked in the mosquito’s gaze. He smiled, I think. I’d never seen an insect so big. Mather went over to the bust and stood there staring at the thing. He recited another line from the poem: “
Tell me what thy lordly name is, on the night’s Plutonian shore!
”
‘Its wings flapped faster; then it made this strange whining sound that cut straight through my head. The pain was terrible. I had the feeling that the creature was trying to block my thoughts, to stop me from hearing something. I went over to the other side of the room to try and clear my head. Mather was rubbing his forehead too, but he didn’t seem to be in as much pain as I was. His mouth was wide open. So were his eyes. The insect was doing something to him. Something strange.
‘On the table, the man’s left arm twitched, and he let out a groan.
Oh God
, I thought.
He’s waking up
. I walked round to his head. His eyelids started to flicker. I turned to Mather for guidance, but he was still looking at the mosquito.
‘“For God’s sake!” I shouted at him. “Get over here! He’s regaining consciousness.”
‘Mather turned to me, smiling. “Is he? That is convenient,” he said.
‘“Convenient? What are you talking about? He needs more anaesthetic.”
‘“No!” Mather walked over to me and grabbed my wrist. “Don’t waste any more. He won’t be needing it.”
‘“What?”
‘“You’ll see.” He released my arm and looked back at the insect, nodding his head. “Please,” he said to it. “Be my guest.”
‘I stared at Mather, wondering what madness had overcome him. Just then the mosquito rose into the air and flew straight over to the patient’s neck.
‘“What’s it doing? Why is—?” I guessed too late what was going to happen. It stuck its feeding tube into the poor man’s jugular vein.
‘I stepped backwards in shock. If the size of the thing wasn’t terrifying enough, the way it sucked up the victim’s blood certainly was. Its body grew until it was more than double its original size. I tugged on Mather’s shirtsleeve.
‘“We should get out of here and call someone,” I said. “Someone who deals with things like this.”
‘The mosquito continued feeding until its body was bloated with blood. It removed its tube, fluttered its wings, then just sat there quietly.
‘“What a truly incredible sight,” Mather said.
‘“What the hell is it?”
‘“It’s something very special, I know that much. Very special indeed.”
‘“Special? Good God, don’t you think we—?” I broke off when I saw what was happening to the patient’s throat.
‘Mather had noticed it too. “Good Lord,” he said under his breath. The insect flew off the patient and landed back on the bust.
‘What had, a few moments before, been nothing more than a puncture wound was now a widening hole. Steam was rising from it, along with the dreadful stench of spoiling flesh. The patient was now wide awake, and throwing his arms about in distress. And then . . . then he started screaming.
‘The mosquito’s saliva had eaten through the left half of the man’s neck. It was so horrible. I tried to end his suffering by injecting a lethal dose of morphine, but Mather stopped me and held me back. I had to watch as that poor man died. Mather’s mind had gone through some kind of change that night. He’d done terrible things before then, but from that night they just got worse. I was about to say I’d go to the police, but before I could speak the mosquito flew up and landed on the table top in front of me.
‘“I know what you are going to say,” Mather whispered in my ear. “And so does she.”
‘“What are you talking about?” I struggled, trying to break away from Mather, but his hold was too strong and he just laughed. Eventually he decided to let me go. I staggered away from the table, stepping into the pool of blood on the floor.
‘“It seems the Lady here has been looking for a fellow like myself for some time.” He smiled and held out his hand. The mosquito flew up and landed on his palm.
‘“What are you doing? Get away from that thing – it’ll kill you!” I took another step backwards towards the door.
‘Mather started laughing. It was an awful sound. “She means me no harm, Soames. Salvation comes in many guises.”
‘“Salvation? What are you talking about?”
‘“I’m not entirely sure yet. But I will know in time.” He looked down at the mosquito with what looked like adoration. “I believe she has much to teach me.” He chuckled again. “Now be a good fellow and don’t upset her. You wouldn’t want to go the same way as this poor chap, now would you?”
‘“My God, look at this mess, Mather! That thing’s dangerous! We need to tell someone.”
‘“What are you talking about? Tell someone?” He came closer to me, staring me in the eye. “What do you think will happen if you divulge the details of our experiments to the police? Hmm? They’ll lock us both up and throw away the key. You know that. That’s, of course, if
she
doesn’t get you first.”
‘The idea of being that creature’s next victim was more than I could bear. It seemed to have some control over Mather. It showed no sign of hostility towards him. In fact, after that night the pair were inseparable. I continued to help him with his experiments, even when it became obvious that there was no longer even a shred of scientific curiosity left in him. He was drawing pleasure from mutilating those poor people, but he would always defend himself whenever I questioned his methods. He would tell me that it was the only way to learn more about the human body, and about the connection between body and mind.
‘Soon after that awful night Mather announced that he was moving away from London to an island he had bought. I asked him how he’d managed to buy an entire island, and he told me some story about an inheritance. He didn’t convince me, despite his continued assurances. I tried to break away from him and begged him to leave me behind, but he wouldn’t listen. He didn’t trust me. Perhaps he was right not to.
‘Suddenly one day he invited me to his house on a matter of great urgency. When I arrived I asked him if something terrible had happened. He replied that if anything, it was good news. The Ganges Red was with him, and seemed to be just as excited. He said he had to go to the island for a day or so to make sure everything was ready for the move. I must have gone quite pale when he informed me that the Lady would be staying behind to keep an eye on me. I insisted that there was no need, that I wouldn’t cause any trouble, but he didn’t even pretend to be listening.
‘So he went away that night, leaving me with the mosquito, which seemed to take great pleasure in guarding me. I was able to move about the house freely, but other than that I was a prisoner. I found it odd that Mather was able to leave the insect. Until then they hadn’t been out of each other’s company. The second night following his departure, he returned. He didn’t say much about how the trip had gone, just that everything was as it should be, and that we could move the following week. I didn’t bother repeating my desire to stay behind. It wouldn’t have done any good.
‘We’ve been here many years now. I think I’ve lost track of time. The house was already here when we arrived – I don’t know what happened to the previous owner. This caravan was also here, and Mather told me to make it my home. He would let me know when he wanted my help. He brings me food once a week. It isn’t much, but it’s enough to survive on. I feel like an animal in many ways. A caged animal, free only to serve its master. But what else can I do? I can’t go back to normal society now. Not after all I’ve seen and done. And I know that Mather would release the mosquito to hunt me down and kill me. No, there’s no way I can escape.’
Soames was a tired man. Tired from a great many things. He pulled the curtain aside and peeped out again.
‘He still brings you food? Even though you don’t help him with the experiments any more?’
‘Yes – I don’t think he can completely abandon me. Nor, I think, does he want to kill me – unless he has to. We’ve been through a lot together. As funny as it sounds, I think he does see me as a friend. Even if he doesn’t realize it himself.’
‘Haven’t you ever tried to escape?’
‘Where would I go? What would I do? I’m bound to Mather, to this island, to the horrors I’ve seen. I can’t leave. I wouldn’t know how to survive. And then there’s her—’
‘
Her?
’
‘Mather has a book. It’s called
Her Story
. In it is a—’
‘Wait. I read that. Well, part of it. Mather pointed me to a chapter called
The Legend of Nhan
—’
‘
Diep
.’
‘Yes, that’s it.’
‘You read the story?’
‘Some of it. Mather filled me in on a little more this morning. He told me something about her leaving her husband for a merchant.’
‘Yes, without that merchant things might have been different.’
‘Is the story important in some way?’
‘It explains, perhaps, everything.’
‘But it’s another myth, isn’t it? Just like the Ganges Red being able to . . . enter men’s minds.’
‘I think there’s some truth in all of it. Please let me tell you the rest of the story. It may help you.’
‘OK . . .’
‘I’ll be quick, I promise. Now let me see . . . the merchant’s ship . . . Oh yes, Nhan Diep was treated like a queen. She no longer had to work, except at keeping herself pretty for her new husband.’
I met Soames’s tortured eyes, feeling that perhaps this conversation was as much for his benefit as for mine. He hadn’t spoken to anyone but Mather for a long time. It must have been a great relief to be around someone else.
‘Ngoc Tam spent many days searching for his wife,’ he continued, ‘whom he believed had been abducted. He was leaving a large port one day with food for his ongoing journey, when he caught sight of her, sunning herself on the deck of the large vessel she now called home. He dropped the supplies he was carrying and stared at her, barely able to believe what he was seeing. Just then the merchant came out of his cabin, kissed Diep tenderly on the cheek and lay down beside her. Tam was furious. He stormed onto the merchant’s ship, knocking two startled guards into the water in his rage. He demanded to know what was going on, and listened in astonishment as Diep said she had chosen to be with the merchant, who had promised to give her anything she wished. Tam was silent for some time, then nodded and resigned himself to the fact that the lady was no longer his. But before he left he demanded that she give back the three drops of blood he had shed to restore her life. Diep laughed and shrugged her shoulders. She took a fruit knife from a bowl nearby and cut the tip of her right forefinger—’