Recluse Island

Chapter 5

June 1845

It was silent now except for the noises made by his patients. The ever-present moaning, vomiting, and delirious murmuring were all familiar sounds to him just as they were equally reminders of his failure. Nightfall was hours ago, and Dr. Julian Thomanisse struggled to sleep knowing that Sally Rose only had hours left to live. Maybe not even that long. It wasn't simply losing her that weighed on his mind but what would happen to Gauither after.

You see Gauither looks at Sally Rose exactly the way Julian used to look at Betsy, his childhood friend and first and so far, only love. Her given name was Elizabeth but this had always felt too formal for Julian and so she had suggested he call her Betsy instead.

It has been twenty years since he had last seen her, and yet their parting was still as painful today as it had been all those years ago when she had told him she was moving away to Boston to live with her Aunt Claire.

He knew this was related to her mother dying but it didn't lessen the pain any. Especially after the care and comfort he had given her when she visited him in the middle of the night to deliver the tragic news. Collapsing in his arms and sobbing over the heart wrenching loss of her mother. For even then Betsy knew Julian was the only one that could assuage her agony.

Julian was sixteen at the time and foolishly believed they would see each other again. It was illogical he knew to still think of her and have feelings of affection but despite Julian's attempts to forget her he just couldn't seem to let her go.

Whether he wanted to admit it or not this is the real reason he's remained unmarried. If all he wanted was a wife, he could have been married years ago, women had always shown an interest in him. He supposed it was due to the fact he was a doctor and therefore a man of respect, guidance and intelligence but knew part of it was his looks which had always held a certain appeal to the general female population. He was quite tall, nearly six feet, with rich brown hair and soft chestnut eyes.

He also had been in desperate need of a change. To him it seemed like his life was in a standstill each day repeating the same as before. Like a pendulum swinging back and forth, back, and forth always the same with never any change in deviance or course. He wanted to feel alive again and he hoped this was the answer.

As a result of the strenuous activity, he performed, this left him with a rather muscular physique which Julian now knew Captain Mayhew had been after in the ships physician as often on these voyages every man was needed, and this one was vital as none of them knew when they would be returning home.

Clearly recent events had extended that timeline. They had been at sea nearly a month before being forced to make an unexpected stop on this island. In truth Julian didn't care when they returned but not knowing what had caused roughly half the crew to become ill and die, that really grated Julian.

He prided himself on being excellent at what he does. By normal standards he was still young to be practicing this profession but no less intelligent, observant, or skilled. The answer was here, Julian could feel it. He knew it had something to do with the bite marks all his patients had presented with. Three dots that formed a triangle and turned purple within a day of marking their host. Once Julian found this identifier, he knew this person would only have three days to live... unless he could find a cure.

If Betsy was here, she'd tell him that he only needed to trust in himself and believe in his ability. The rest would fall into place. She always had been supportive of him when it came to his pursuits in medicine. His own father was appalled when Julian informed him, he would not be joining him in running his law practice. They hadn't spoken in nearly fifteen years and Julian didn't care.