A Peculiar Curiosity by Melanie Cossey

Author:Melanie Cossey
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Regal House Publishing
Published: 2018-10-19T13:10:39+00:00

Chapter Eighteen

Henri is fading back into his former state—the very condition in which I first discovered him in the Haitian village. His eyes have dulled, glazed over, and sunk back in his head. The boy requires sustenance and I have been made to understand that it is not the food of the civilized that sustains him—he feasts on the living.

It is necessary that I keep Henri in an animated state so that I may continue in my scientific study of the boy. There is so much yet to comprehend in regard to the physical, intellectual, and emotional characteristics of this boy; I must conduct careful, controlled testing to measure the scope of his capabilities—to say nothing of a more complicated inquiry into his taste for live organs. It seemed clear that consuming the polecat’s heart had re-engaged Henri’s energies, activating his molecules, and now, deprived of that sustenance, his molecules are returning to a compact state. Perhaps any cure is only temporary, or perhaps I haven’t gone far enough to cure the boy.

It is necessary that Henri remain animated so that I may continue to study his responses, and therefore I must discover a way to furnish him with small prey. Where might I find a constant supply of such needful things? It would be too difficult and time consuming for me to trap his food myself. I must find a supplier. London is full of rats, but they are such filthy creatures, populating outhouses and rubbish heaps, carrying fleas, and capable of delivering a punishing bite, and I will not risk infesting my household, should any escape.

Aviculture, I understand, has become a popular pastime with many enthusiasts keeping parrots, finches, and lovebirds. I will ask James to procure several breeding pairs of parakeets and cages for me. The birds’ existence must be concealed from Betsy for had she knowledge of them, she would insist on being involved in their breeding, and then how would I explain their sudden disappearance? While birds are indubitably noisy creatures, the brick walls are impenetrable to sound, and the adjacent windowless room will serve as the perfect place to house them. Now, I have only to sneak the birds into the house, while Betsy ventures out on some outing or another.

I shall leave off now, and pen a note to James, requesting that he procure birdcages, pertinent literature on parakeet breeding, as well as several male and female parakeets from the nearest emporium in readiness for my arrival later this afternoon.

Wednesday, July 26, 1865

After delivering the note to Mr. Turner, I returned to my study—with a quick glance to Henri to ensure he showed no signs of waking—opened a small trunk, and pulled out a book, a fine example of anthropodermic bibliopegy, the art of covering a book in tanned human skin.

The pages within contained the illicit poetry of Mrs. Abigail Emerson, revealing the intimate nature of her affair with Jack Murdock. Abigail’s husband, Richard Emerson, discovered the poetry and murdered Murdock in a jealous rage.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.