Rosalie felt her heart pound.
“Can you remove it?”
“Possibly. But not here, and not without proper instruments and assistance. If it has penetrated the tissue, attempting to pull it out could cause serious harm.”
He turned to Gideon.
“How long has this been happening?”
Gideon wrote his answer.
Since childhood.
Dr. Whitcomb studied the old medical notebook.
When he reached the page bearing Silas Vane’s name, he stopped.
“I know that man,” he said quietly.
Rosalie leaned forward.
“What does he have to do with this?”
The doctor closed the notebook.
“More than he should.”
He explained that, years earlier, Silas Vane had worked with Edmund Rook on a series of experimental medical devices. Edmund had been fascinated by the possibility of restoring hearing through mechanical assistance.
The work had been dangerous.
Some early devices had been inserted too deeply into the ear canal, causing inflammation, infection, and permanent injury.
