Chapter 4 A Violent Attack

It was a long, boring night. I kept thinking about my conversation with Lord
Lynchmere,
and it didn't make sense. If Lord Lynchmere had reason to suspect that he was in
danger
of being attacked, why could he not lock his door to protect himself? His answer
that he
might wish to be attacked was absurd. Why should he want to be attacked? And who
would
attack him? Clearly, Lord Lynchmere was suffering from a serious case of paranoia,
and the
result was that I was not getting my night's sleep. I sat in the corner of the
bedroom
and listened to a clock somewhere down the hall, which struck every quarter of an
hour.
It was an endless vigil. Except for the clock, there was complete silence
throughout the
great house. On the bed, Lord Lynchmere was now breathing peacefully. I envied him
his
quiet sleep. Again and again, my eyelids started to close, but every time my sense
of duty
intervened, and I sat up, rubbed my eyes, and stretched my arms with determination
to
stay up until the end of my watch. And I did so, until from down the hall the clock
struck
three o'clock. I woke Lord Lynchmere. He sat up instantly on the bed and asked, did
you
hear anything? No, sir. Everything was quiet. Now it's three o'clock. Very good.
Now I'll
watch, and you can go to sleep. Joyfully, I got into bed, slid under the blanket,
and
was soon asleep. I don't know how long I slept, but I was suddenly woken up by
someone
pulling my sleeve. The room was in darkness. Quick, quick! I heard Lord Lynchmere's
voice
in my ear. I jumped out of bed. Over here! He whispered, and pulled me into a
corner of
the room. Shh! Listen! In the silence of the night, I could hear that
someone was coming down the hall. It was a slow, heavy step. Sometimes there was no
sound
for half a minute, and then another step. Lord Lynchmere was trembling.
Who is it? I whispered. It's satomas. Was there a ply?
What does he want? I asked. Hush! Do nothing until I tell you.
Suddenly I heard a noise at the door. Someone was trying to open it. There was the
faint
sound from the handle, and then I saw a thin light coming in through the doorway.
It grew
wider and wider, very gradually, very gently, and then the door swung open, and I
saw the
dark figure of a man, holding a huge hammer. The man suddenly jumped across the
room. I
heard three loud sounds from the hammer on the bed. I was paralyzed with horror and
couldn't
move until I heard a cry for help from Lord Lynchmere. In the half-light I saw
satomas
with his arms round the neck of his brother-in-law. He was trying to kill Lord
Lynchmere, who
held on bravely, though his frightened cries showed how terrified he was.
I jumped to the rescue, and the two of us managed to throw satomas to the ground,
though
he bit my shoulders savagely. It was a desperate struggle, and it took all my youth
weight and
strength to hold him down. Then, fortunately, the butler and two servants, alarmed
by the
cries, ran into the room. With their help, it was easier to control our prisoner
who lay
foaming at the mouth and shaking violently upon the ground. He was now a dangerous
maniac.
The big, heavy hammer which lay beside the bed showed how murderous his intentions
had
been.
Don't harm him, cried Lord Lynchmere, as we raised the struggling maniac to his
feet.
He'll sleep very deeply for a period after this violence. I believe that it's
already
starting. As he spoke, the shaking became less violent, and the madman's head fell
forward,
as if he was asleep. We carried him down the hall to his bedroom, and put him on
his bed,
where he lay unconscious, breathing heavily.
Watch him carefully, said Lord Lynchmere to the servants. And now, Dr. Hamilton,
I'll
explain everything.
Once we were back in his room, Lord Lynchmere said, My poor brother-in-law is one
of the
best people on earth, a loving husband and a good friend. But he suffers from
severe
schizophrenia. He sometimes has violent attacks. He has had several of these and
always attacks
the people he loves most. His son was sent away to school to avoid this danger, but
his
wife was not so lucky. You may remember the scar that you saw on her face when you
met
her in London. Dr. Hamilton, you now understand that he is schizophrenic. He knows
nothing
of his insanity and his dangerous attacks, and would never believe that he could,
under
any circumstances, injure those who he loves so dearly. It's typical of a mental
illness
like this, that it's impossible to convince the man who suffers from it that he is
sick.
He wanted to get him some medical help, before he seriously injured or even killed
someone,
but that was an impossible task. He likes his privacy and does not agree to see any
doctors.
It was necessary for us to convince a doctor of my brother-in-law's schizophrenia,
and
the only way to do that was to invite a medical man to see one of these attacks
with his own
eyes. But that wasn't easy to do, because most of the time my brother-in-law is as
sane as you or I, except on these very rare occasions. Fortunately, before he has
an attack,
there are certain signs that warn us to be careful. One of the signs is the
contortion
on his forehead. I'm sure you must have noticed it this afternoon. This always
begins two
or three days before an attack. This time it began three days ago, which is why his
wife
immediately came and stayed in my house in Brook Street. I had two days to find a
doctor
and convince him of Sir Thomas' insanity so that he could send him for medical
help.
I had to get this doctor to Sir Thomas' house to see an attack with his own eyes.
But how?
I knew Sir Thomas would perhaps be willing to spend time with someone who shared
his
passion for beetles. So I advertised, and was fortunate enough to find you, a man
who
had all the right requirements. I needed someone strong because I expected him to
make a murderous
attack and needed protection for myself. I knew that Sir Thomas would attack me,
but
I wasn't sure the attack would come at night. I'm a very nervous man myself, but I
saw
no other way to remove this terrible danger from my sister's life. I hope you
understand
everything now, and that you're willing to sign the medical papers to get my
brother
in law the help he needs. Of course, I said, I believe he can recover with the
correct
medication, but first we must make sure that your sister and her son are out of
danger.
So that was my visit to Sir Thomas Rosseter, the famous beetle hunter. That was
also my
first step upon the ladder of success for Lady Rosseter and Lord Lynchmere have
become
close and good friends of mine, and they have never forgotten my help in their time
of need.
Sir Thomas spent a period of time in hospital, and I believe he is now cured, for
he has
never had a violent attack since. He is now a loving father and husband, and still
waiting
for the day the world will appreciate the importance of beetles.