Page 164 of The Sisters of Sea View
He slowly shook his head, eyes downturned, almost pained. “I do not doubt you suffered. And I understand this rakes up difficult memories. Yet you sound so vindictive. Are you out to ruin this man? Perhaps he did not succeed with you, but does that disqualify him completely? Void his every ability, every technique he’s learned and experience he’s gained in the intervening years?”
Blood roared in her ears. “I don’t trust him. And I don’t want to see you hurt. Disappointed. Worse off.”
“Worse off than I am now, you mean?”
“I did not mean you are in a bad state now.”
“But I am. And I don’t want to look like this for the rest of my life. Not if there’s a solution.”
“It’s not worth the risk!” she cried, then took a deep breath, trying to calm down. “If you really must undergo a dangerous, unproven procedure, then find a different surgeon.”
“Mr. Cleeves has pioneered this new technique. It is not as though any old barber surgeon or apothecary could do it. He is a specialist and has every confidence in his ability to reduce these scars.”
She shook her head. “And when my parents consulted him, he called himself a surgeon dentist, skilled in repairing cleft lips and palates. You would trust a dentist to cut skin from other parts of your body and plant it on your face like the merest sod?” She felt nauseous at the thought.
“Mr. Bird and Dr. Davis both speak highly of him.”
“And I have personal and negative experience with the man.”
“From years ago, yes. Which means you cannot be impartial. Nor are you a physician or trained surgeon.”
“So my word counts for nothing?”
He sighed. “I did not say that. But I have made my decision based on the best medical advice available to me—advice you,Miss Summers, are not qualified to give. The procedure is scheduled for Monday. Dr. Davis has arranged the use of an operating theatre in Exeter.”
Tears stung her eyes and clogged her throat. Might there be any truth to his words? Was she unfairly biased? At the moment, rejection and offense overruled everything else.
She stepped to the door. “It’s your choice, of course, though I cannot in good conscience continue to come here if you put yourself in that man’s power. I won’t be a party to it.” Grasping the door handle, she turned back. “Good-bye, Major. For your sake, I hope I am wrong. But I doubt it.”
Tears blurring her vision, Viola hurried back to Sea View, ran past Emily straight to Mamma’s room, and threw herself into her mother’s arms.
31
I should be obliged to work weekdays and Sundays to earn enough money to put straight what a silly hare had put crooked. I knew it would take a deal of money to cure a hare-shotten lip.
—Mary Webb,Precious Bane
On Monday morning, the weather grew wet and blustery again, matching Viola’s mood.
Sitting with Emily in the library, Viola stared at the fire and sensed her twin watching her. She glanced over and saw Emily narrow her eyes.
“Why are you not at Westmount today?”
Viola gave a fatalistic shrug. “The major’s gone. Gone to have an awful procedure by that butcher of a surgeon.” She had told Mamma and Emily the news when she’d returned from Westmount. Only Mamma had seemed to understand her deep fears about the surgeon and the danger he posed to Jack Hutton.
“Already? I didn’t realize it was happening so soon. Why are you not with him?”
“I have no place there. Besides, he knows I don’t approve, and we argued. Heatedly. He doesn’t want to see me. And at all events, it’s too late. He’s already gone to Exeter.”
“Exeter?” Emily echoed in surprise.
“To an operating theatre there. I believe they were leaving early this morning.”
Emily stepped to the side window and looked out. “Are you sure? There’s a carriage at Westmount’s door.”
Viola hurried to join her there and squinted across the distance. “That’s not the major’s carriage. I think that’s his father’s chaise.”
Emily turned to her. “I know I am the last person who should be offering romantic advice after recent events, but I know you. I know you care for this man. Don’t you want to be there with him, to support him, even if you disagree with his decision?”
