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By Root 718 0

and general handyman of the establishment, waddled to keep up with Pyke, his round face and ruddy cheeks puffing with indignation. Dressed in a dark jacket, fitted trousers, black cloak and Wellington boots, Pyke had pushed past him into the entrance hall of the crumbling building, a row of terraces near the docks which had been haphazardly converted into an asylum. Interior walls had been knocked down to create space for a communal ward, but the construction work itself had been of poor quality and, even to an untrained eye, it was easy to see that the edifice was on the verge of collapse: walls were buckling, ceilings sagged and the unmistakable stench of rising damp saturated the air. In this higgledy-piggledy room no larger than a parlour, Pyke counted ten iron-framed beds, pressed so tightly together that even a skinny man would have struggled to navigate between them. In each, a pitiful specimen of humanity, little more than an amalgam of hair, skin and bones, was chained to the frame with hand-and leg-cuffs. The wails and cries emanating from their mouths collectively constituted a din that was so unpleasant Pyke was compelled to seek out Kennett’s private quarters. Townsend, who was dressed in the attire of a hospital porter, thrust a copy of the Chronicle into Kennett’s chubby hand as they walked, and pointed to an article, describing the work of Thomas Southwood Smith at the London Fever Hospital and drawing attention to a new treatise on fever he was about to publish. Pyke had come across the article the previous afternoon and formulated his plan accordingly.

‘A ship docked in the port last week from the East Indies,’ Pyke said, having barged his way into what he presumed was Kennett’s office, though the damp seemed even riper here than in the rest of the building. He placed his hat down on the table and tapped his cane against the stone floor, as though to chivvy a response from the physician.

Kennett seemed both befuddled and concerned by their unsolicited intrusion. He ran a private asylum that, Pyke supposed, had been financed by public money. The lunatics housed in the ward they had just passed through would not have come from poor backgrounds. Rather, wealthy patrons such as Edmonton would have paid handsomely for Kennett to take unwanted relatives off their hands and would not have concerned themselves with the conditions of care. Pyke was certain Kennett turned a considerable profit from the enterprise.

‘I was alerted to the possible manifestation of Asiatic cholera in one of the crew.’ Pyke wore a monocle and removed it to properly inspect Kennett. ‘Are you aware of this condition?’

The rotund physician wiped sweat from his brow. ‘I have heard stories of its relentless march across whole continents.’

Pyke nodded briskly. ‘It is a monstrous disease. The man in question was suffering from chronic diarrhoea and vomiting, severe dehydration and acute pain in the stomach and limbs. These are, indeed, the symptoms of Asiatic cholera. In addition, his ravaged skin had assumed a ghastly blue-grey complexion. But even more terrifying is its contagiousness; the speed with which it can spread across entire neighbourhoods. Entire cities.’ He sniffed the air.

‘You do not think . . .’ Kennett was not able to complete his sentence, perhaps fearing that his concerns might actually be borne out if he spoke their name.

‘The docks, as you know, are within a half-mile radius of your establishment. I have been instructed to visit all such premises, in order to determine the precise nature of any risk posed to those living in the vicinity.’ Pyke replaced the monocle and looked at Kennett. ‘Are you aware of my work on fever?’

The physician reddened. ‘This is a modest practice and in my capacity as—’

Pyke interrupted. ‘It is my belief that diseases such as typhus or indeed cholera thrive on account of particular atmospheric and environmental conditions. The laws of diffusion mean that anyone within a certain distance of an infected person is vulnerable to the disease. But the likelihood of the disease spreading is greatly