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"Drink this"

Matthew recoiled; he couldn&039;t recoil very far, however, for he addled in da liquid was tilted to his lips, which Matthew even in his huether

"It&039;s just tea English tea, that is With honey and a dash of rum Go ahead, drink it"

Matthew accepted it, and Jason Mallory held the cup to his one

"There," said Dr Mallory "Wasn&039;t so bad, was iti"

Matthew&039;s swollen eyes took in the doctor sitting in a chair beside his bed On an octagonal table next to the chair was a single candle with a polished tin reflector behind it, and by that light Matthew made out Mallory&039;s face The rest of the room was shrouded by darkness

Matthew felt as if his ain by a stranger as not quite sure how the memories fit Had Rachel Howarth ever stood beautiful and defiant before a istrate Woodward ever nocked an arrow and fired it into the night-black foresti Or Berry ever leaned her head against his shoulder under the stars and wept heartbroken tearsi He was all messed up

More than that, his bones ached, his very teeth ached, he couldn&039;t have gotten up from this bed or in reality lifted his arhty pounds, and he had the awful i, "There you are, now do your business like a good boy"

He re, as well Then burning up at some point, had cold water been poured repeatedly over his backi He reain, hard enough to had he wept, like Berry hadi and so close to his ear, "Breathe, Matthew! Breathe!"

ah, yes He relish tea, certainly This had been thick, sharp-tasting, and

again, Matthew Drink it, now You can do it all down

His heart He re, as if about to tear itself fro blood He eating, he was lying in a sodden mass of linens, and

One et his i" Mallory asked

Matthew made a noise between a fart and a whistle

"Do you knohere you arei"

Matthew could see nothing but the doctor&039;s face, illuminated by the reflected candle Mallory was a lean, handsoel, in his long, graceful Roreen eyes, and part devil, in his arched, thick dark brown eyebrows and a wide e of a cruel burst of laughter He had a weathered face that spoke of the harsh fire of tropic suns His hair was dark brown, pulled back and tied into a queue His chin was square and noble, his demeanor calm, his teeth all in their places His voice was low and suns

"The treatment room in my house," he said, when Matthew didn&039;t respond "Do you kno long you&039;ve been herei"

"No" Mattheas shocked at the weakness of his own voice How ti man, the next ready for Paradise

"This is your third hti Surely there s in here

"When I last checked the clock, it was just after two In the ive praise for night owls Owing to a particular night owl naht pro out of the walli a sting in the side of his necki Oh, yes That His heart was beating hard again, and suddenly he ith perspiration The bed already felt like a sinking boat "Ripley," Matthew said "What happened to himi"

"He is in need of a new face, and currently resides in the prisoners&039; ward of the King Street hospital It&039;s unlikely he shall be speaking anytiers&039; slave for that"

"How did Zed get therei"

"Well, he knocked the door down, is the short answer as I understand, the slave was up on the roof of City Hall and saw your light He relayed this-as he does in some way, I suppose-to his master, ished to take you a bottle of brandy to toast your return There was soive thanks for night owls, both the white and black variety"

"Whyi" Matthew asked

"Why whati"

"a ain, for it had slipped away between thought and lip "Why was I brought to youi There are other doctors nearer Stone Street"

"There are," Mallory agreed, "but none of them have travelled as extensively as I have around the world and none of the venom on the dart that struck you, or of course how to alleviate its unfortunate effects"

"Howi" Matthew asked

"Is this a guessing gamei"

"How did you alleviatei"

"First of all, I knehat it hat it must be-due to the blowpipe that ashton found in your office, and of course from your condition I spent half a year on an expedition into the jungles of South aularly hunt with the pipe and dart, and round Of course there are many different species of what they call &039;poison-dart frogs&039;, some more potent than others The venom is actually sweat from the skin a sort of sticky yellohite paste as in the s in his pocket"

Matthew thought of the empty space where the blowpipe had been, in Mrs Sutch&039;s cupboard His own naer book of victims, but it would not have been crossed out until Ripley had done the deed and reported back

"The venom doesn&039;t travel well," Mallory went on, his face daubed yellow by the light "after a year or so, it loses its full lethal potency Though it can still seize a ood scare The trick is to keep the victiive him a shock to the heart Which I did with lish variety My own recipe, which I hoped would work if indeed the venom was not at its full potency a tea boiled from feverwort, yarrow, cayenne pepper, coca leaves, hawthorn and skullcap You received a very, very strong dosage Several, in fact Boiled down to a thickening, I suppose you s pump, and you sweat rivers, but you do banish the impurities, if you live"

"ah," Matthew said "I expect ot very red, as welli"