The Anatomy of Deception - Lawrence Goldstone [123]
“Our first step, then, it seems to me, is to try to make sense of Turk’s journal. The one you discovered.”
“Our first step?”
“Together, we can make faster progress, Ephraim. You said you have the materials on cryptography from the library at your rooms? I’ll meet you there this evening, after rounds.”
“At my rooms?”
“Why not? We can sit in the parlor. I’ll keep both feet on the floor, just like in billiards.”
I felt myself smile—after this day’s events, I would not have thought it possible. “Very well. I have an errand to run first, but I will meet you at eight.”
We made to get up but Simpson placed her hand on my arm to stop me. “We agreed to be honest with each other, did we not?”
I assured her that I remembered.
“Good.” She smiled. It was the warmest I had ever seen her look, and for a moment she appeared … pretty.
After checking through most of the hospital, I finally ran down the Professor in the pathology lab. He was alone in the room, so I spilled out my tale of the abominable conditions under which Farnshaw was being held.
“We must delay our departure to Baltimore,” I urged. “We must stay here and help.”
“I’m not sure that will be possible,” the Professor replied. He was busying himself with papers on his desk, straightening and tidying. His movements seemed stiff and forced. “Gilman is expecting us and arrangements have been made. Besides, I was successful in contacting Farnshaw’s parents in Boston. They will be here tonight. They are quite well-to-do, as you know, and I am sure they will do what is necessary to secure his release. I cannot see how our remaining in Philadelphia will achieve anything but add to the chaos.”
“But, Dr. Osler, we know so much more about this than they do. Surely a few days won’t matter, especially in such a just cause? Gilman could not object to our taking some time to prove that our colleague—our friend—has been falsely accused.”
The Professor stopped tidying. He tugged at the end of his mustache in silence, then sighed. “Ephraim, what if the accusation is not false?”
“Impossible!” I exclaimed.
“You were too quick to declare Halsted guilty. Is it possible that you are now being too quick to declare Farnshaw innocent?”
“Halsted was a different case entirely,” I retorted.
“Was he, now?” the Professor said. “The two cases seem remarkably similar to me. In the first, you leapt to a conclusion supported by little but the scandalous past and abrasive personality of one man. Now, in the second, you seem to be likewise jumping to a conclusion supported by little but the youth and pleasing personality of another.”
“Perhaps,” I conceded, “but a man is innocent until proven guilty.”
“And Borst seems to be well on his way to proving it.” The Professor shook his head. “No, Ephraim, we were betrayed by Turk and I do not intend to let it happen a second time. We will do all we can for Farnshaw while we’re here, but we leave as planned.”
I was stunned. I had never anticipated the Professor to be so embittered or so heartless. The wound that Turk had left must have been deeper than I realized. I too felt betrayed by Turk, but I had no intention of allowing Farnshaw to suffer for the sins of another—or my own.
“I cannot pretend to agree, Dr. Osler,” I insisted, “but I do, of course, respect your judgment and will accede to your wishes.”
The Professor placed his hand on my shoulder. “And I respect your loyalty and your honor, Ephraim. More than you know. If I thought we could help Farnshaw, I would move mountains to do so. But even you must see that, at every juncture, your involvement has made matters worse, not better. You have uncovered more evidence in this affair than has Borst. Without you, Halsted’s secret would have been safe, Farnshaw would be free, and no one would be the worse for it.
“Every time you tried to loosen the knot, you succeeded only in making it tighter. It is only by good fortune that you pulled back before it strangled Halsted. Now you want to attempt the same thing with Farnshaw. I say no. I say let his parents hire the best lawyer