We Are The Cure : The Plague Doctor's Tale.

Chapter 7

 A pair of glasses and a slender wrinkled face peeked out of the room.

"Ah, of course you are. Welcome, Doctor Rae! Please, be my guest." Reverend opened the door wider and invited him inside. When Rosalynn wanted to enter, the old man crossed her way and looked at her suspiciously.

"And... what is that?"

"This is my apprentice. Miss Seward. Please, treat her with respect-"

"No sinful woman will enter my office. Get lost." He spoke to Rosalynn and wanted to close the door but Doctor stopped him.

"As I said, treat my companion with respect. Unless she enters the room, I won't talk to you." Reverend looked both surprised and furious at the same time. The atmosphere got thicker.

"May I show Miss Seward the rectory?" Suddenly the gravedigger spoke, everyone looked at him surprised.

"What an excellent idea, Jack. Now go." Reverend Cryer closed the door and Rosalynn exchanged the looks with the gravedigger. "Father Samuel has a particular dislike for women. You must forgive him." He said quietly and showed her the way to the living room.

...

Meanwhile in Reverend Samuel Cryer's office, Doctor was still standing next to the door like he was protesting against entering the room. In contrast, Father Samuel sat comfortably in his chair and looked at his guest.

"Have a sit, Doctor. I insist." The old man encouraged him. The entire room was lighted by candles and weak flames cracking of a hearth.

"I would rather not as I will not find this conversation meaningful." Doctor answered crossing his arms. Reverend sighed and stood up. He was quite short and skinny which was easy to assess by the look of his slack cassock.

"Ekhm, I assume you know the reason behind your visit here." He started officially and Doctor nodded. "Excellent! Due to my averse to falling ill, I would like to ask you and your... companion for help with the sick and their burial-" Reverend barely finished the sentence when Doctor interrupted.

"I beg you pardon, Reverend Cryer, but we are plague doctors, not plague gravediggers." By the tone of his voice the annoyance was heard. "This means we treat people infected with the pestilence only. No more, no less. Of course, I can give last rites to the sick and dying but I will not bury them. Is that clear?" Father Samuel was both impressed and terrified with Doctor's confidence. Especially in the weak candlelight the effect was even more powerful.

"I see now. Well then. Most of the sick have already died but there are still some villagers alive. We painted crosses on their doors with black paint. You will notice."

"How will we know that it is sick's house not the dead one's?" Doctor asked.

"I'm certain you will see the graves next to dead's house." Reverend Cryer smiled cunningly. Doctor didn't like that smile. "Oh, and about money. I will pay you each week for your job done." He made a short pause." Don't worry, you won't be tricked as your father was. You will get paid as promised..."

...

 Rosalynn and Jack were waiting outside the rectory. They were standing next to each other in silence looking at Castleton covered with mist. Rosalynn looked at him and noticed he would look younger if it wasn't for his light brown goatee and his grey eyes which were giving him a tired look. Also his face was covered with dirt which emphasised his wrinkles. He had medium-length hair which were put up in a messy ponytail. When he felt her gaze on him, he scratched his left cheek with a long scar from ear till his lips. 

"So, you're here to treat the sick, right?" He asked her carefully. She noticed it was her now who was being examined.

"Yes, Sir. How many sick there are?" Jack unrolled the sleeves of his linen shirt which previously was probably beige but due to his profession had similar light brown colour to his pants. His long black boots were also covered in mud. 

"About seven families. And one who might not survive this night." Rosalynn sadden but not for long as they heard the sound of footsteps interrupted with cane. It was Doctor who finished his conversation with Reverend. He looked at them and spoke to the gravedigger.

"Your name is Jack, is that correct?" Jack nodded. "Reverend Cryer told me you will provide us with accommodation."

"Oh, right. Follow me." 

They left the rectory and followed the gravedigger whose pace was pretty fast, even faster than Doctor's. Rosalynn had difficulty keeping up with the men as she was making little steps. While walking to Jack's house, they were passing other houses and a cemetery. She noticed that there are more graves near the houses rather than on the graveyard. Having acknowledged that, she shivered. How destructive a disease can be... However, she noticed one more thing. Most of houses had some items located or symbols engraved on the door frame. And of course some doors had a cross painted on them. 

Jack stopped suddenly, so did they. Before them was standing the ginger girl from before. As she was standing few meters away, both Rosalynn and Doctor noticed she was a medium height girl in her twenties. From this distance, her freckled face appeared more friendly, despite the cold look on her face. She looked at them as if she was evaluating them. 

"So you didn't listen to my advice." She said loudly. 

"There was no reason to listen to you, Madame." Doctor answered patiently and her cold look changed into angry one. 

"You are just as foolish as this old preacher. You will die here. Everyone will." Her clear blue eyes shined admonishingly.

"That's how human fate looks like." Jack interrupted their conversation. "Now, excuse us." He wanted to pass her by but she grabbed his arm.

"Don't you try doing something stupid. I'm watching you." She said quietly. Jack didn't respond to that, instead he just broke free from her grip and led the way to his cottage. The girl looked after them and quickly disappeared in the mist.

After few minutes of stride, they finally reached Jack's cottage. It was located at the very end of Castleton and looked quite modest. The whole building was made of old grey stones. Rosalynn thought it resembled some of the houses in Eyam but Eyam houses looked somehow more friendly than this one. Assessing by old window frames and some rotten floorboards on the porch the building needed a makeover. Also some of the stones on the walls were already chipped. 

In silence they entered the house which was decorated with potted heather. In contrast to  Rosalynn who was amazed by this fact, Doctor found this plant there pretty odd. Jack showed them their rooms and left them alone as he had to bury two more people. Rosalynn's room looked cosy with huge patterned carpet and white curtains on the windows. Near the window, there was a big wooden closet and a chair with a little cushion. Next to the closet there was a standing mirror which was visibly covered with dust. Rosalynn opened her bag and got a handkerchief which helped her with cleaning the mirror. In the reflection, she saw a king size bed with numerous cushions and a cosy blanket on it. On both sides of the bed there were small bedside tables with golden candelabrum put on each of them.  When she turned around, she noticed the paintings on the walls which portrayed fields and forests during summertime. When she was done examining the room, she left it and joined Doctor who was waiting for her in the hallway. 

"Are you ready to visit the sick?" He asked gravely.

"Yes, Sir." She answered quickly.

"But this time, do as I tell you. No objections and no questions... Ladies first."He allowed her to go first and then he followed her. Both of their silhouettes disappeared in the whiteness of the mist.