Page 70 of Murder on Harley Street
“I do. Sister Dearden is very caring and an extremely dedicated nurse.”
“And yet she works for a doctor whose treatments she doesn’t believe in,” I said.
“I told you, it’s just theonetreatment. Don’t think poorly of her for not telling him her thoughts on the machine. She simply doesn’t want to upset him. A harmonious working environment is best for everyone. Sister Dearden enjoys her work at the clinic. The good wages and easy hours allow her to see unfortunate women in her spare time without charging them. If she were in a hospital, she’d be overworked and underpaid, and those poor souls who come to see her wouldn’t have anyone.”
“They come here?” I asked.
“Mostly, although sometimes she visits them. One is with her now.”
A thought struck me, but I needed to discuss it with Harry before I went upstairs to confront Sister Dearden. Harry’s mind was on something else, however.
“I’ll find a new doctor for you,” he said to Miss Wainsmith.
“I don’t need a new one. Dr. Iverson is one of the best. If he can’t cure me, no one can.”
“Perhaps so, but a second opinion can’t hurt. I don’t have a name yet, but I’ll get it by the end of the weekend.”
“Very well, but I don’t think anything more can be done for me. Dr. Iverson is doing everything he can. Anyway, the laudanum helps…” Her bony fingers twisted in her lap and she looked away.
Once outside, I asked Harry if he planned to ask Mr. Hobart for a name. The hotel manager knew everyone of note in the city, including the names of the best doctors, not just the ones everyone thought were the best.
Harry confirmed it but added a grim point. “Miss Wainsmith may need a surgeon. Sometimes the only way to find out what’s going on inside a body is to take a look.”
It was a troubling thought. She was so young.
Harry looked over his shoulder at the lodging house door. “What do you think about Sister Dearden’s opinion on the Electro Therapy Machine?”
“It makes me wonder if she thinks the doctor’s other treatments don’t work, which leads me to wonder if he has ever misdiagnosed a friend of hers. Perhaps she wants revenge for that misdiagnosis. I wonder if Edith Hamlin or Mrs. Pierce was that friend. Just because we don’t know of a connection between her and either of them doesn’t mean there isn’t one.”
Harry clicked his fingers. “What if herloverdied as a result of Dr. Iverson’s malpractice?”
I gasped, as the implication struck me. “You think she’s sapphic, too? Thatshewrote the anonymous note to Mrs. Iverson?”
Harry looked at the lodging house again. “Do you want to ask her?”
I gave it serious consideration before shaking my head. “Not yet. If she’s guilty of tampering with the machine to get revenge on Dr. Iverson, we won’t get a straight answer from her. She’s not going to admit she killed Isabel Kempsey, even if it was an accident. Nor do I think it’s a good idea to let her know we’re fishing for more information. Let’s ask the doctor if Sister Dearden has ever questioned his methods. If they’ve argued over the death of a patient in the past, and if we can prove that patient was her lover,thenwe have solid evidence. It might be enough to convince Forrester to release Hamlin and arrest her.”
Harry checked the time on his watch. “We’ll need to be quick.”
We foundDr. Iverson strolling along a path strewn with fallen leaves in the garden square near his house, his hands clasped behind him. He seemed to be deep in thought. I was glad he was alone. The previous discussion we’d had with his wife had been awkward, and I didn’t want to bring up the possibility of Sister Dearden’s sapphic tendencies in front of her.
Harry had no such qualms mentioning it to Dr. Iverson, however. “Has she ever recommended a particularly good friend see you, and that woman subsequently became your patient?”
“No. Never. Why?”
Not put off, Harry tried a different question. “Was she close to any of your patients?”
“Close?”
“Lovers.”
“Good lord, no! That would be highly unethical. Besides, she isn’t like that. She doesn’t have relationships with women.”
“Are you sure?”
He gave Harry an arch look. “I know when a woman is interested in me, Mr. Armitage.”
“Are you implying she has flirted with you?”
