Mr Scarletti's Ghost (9 page)

She pushed at the door, and in that moment she was decided. Mina often had a struggle with doors, which were inevitably taller, wider and substantially heavier than she, some of them monstrosities of glass and brass and polished wood, which even a man in full health might find a challenge, but this one, for all its imposing appearance, moved at the touch of her fingers. Some beautiful mechanism had been installed, and whether by a system of gliding counterweights or an oiled machine she did not know, but there could be no invalid or elderly frail person who could not open it.

She found herself in a small but tastefully appointed vestibule, and was greeted by a matronly looking woman to whom she presented Dr Hamid's card. There was a small counter, and behind it a sign listing a scale of charges. A single vapour bath and shampoo was five shillings, but one could purchase six or a dozen at a reduced price, or even an annual subscription. A visitors' book was open, inviting customers to enter their comments, and a carved wooden box held a pile of printed leaflets listing Dr Hamid's qualifications and the treatments offered by his establishment.

Those waiting for attention would not be required to stand, since there were a number of comfortable seats provided for the repose of ladies and gentlemen, at a variety of different heights, so there was something to suit persons of every size, and there was also a selection of cushions of assorted shapes and varying degrees of firmness. A display of dried flowers and seed heads exuded a subtle and slightly exotic perfume.

Mina had expected something of the Oriental about the interior, portraits of richly dressed and bejewelled potentates, giant decorated urns, painted parasols or statuettes of elephants, and certainly a great deal of gilding, but apart from a colourful frieze that ran around the upper level of the wall, the lover of ornate decoration was doomed to disappointment. Neither was there a poster blaring out in capital letters with fat exclamation marks the wonderful cures that Dr Hamid had effected, or a gruesome display of abandoned crutches. All was peaceful and pleasant, and nothing offended or disturbed the eye.

Three doors led from the vestibule, one for the gentlemen's bathing facilities, one for the use of ladies, and another unmarked door, which was presumably an office.

The lady nodded as she read the card, and operated a bell-pull. ‘Please be so good as to follow the signs, and Miss Hamid will be waiting to receive you,' she said.

Mina opened the door to the ladies' baths and found herself at the head of a corridor, where the walls were decorated with prints of tropical plants and birds. A room to her left was a comfortable salon, where some ladies were reposing on couches sipping mineral water and reading periodicals. A large window faced the sea and the room was golden with sunshine. A lady with a spotless white wrapper over her gown, and undoubtedly from her appearance, Miss Hamid, was arranging a pretty bowl of fresh flowers, but as soon as she saw Mina, she came to greet her.

‘You must be Miss Scarletti,' she said. ‘I am so pleased that you have decided to come. Daniel – my brother – told me that he hoped you would call.'

‘I have never experienced a vapour bath before,' said Mina, ‘or indeed the shampoo massage, which I think might be more vigorous than is suitable for me.'

‘You have nothing to fear,' said Miss Hamid with a comforting smile. ‘The vigour or gentleness of the massage is adjusted precisely to the tolerance and the age and health of the patient. Come.' Miss Hamid was, thought Mina, just a little older than her brother, and as tall, which meant that she was above the common height for a woman. She had a round face with a small chin, and very dark eyes, and her greying hair was simply dressed. Mina, aware that the lady performed the shampoo massage, noticed that Miss Hamid's hands were well formed and looked very strong.

As they walked, Mina looked about her, and was obliged to comment that the establishment, while delightful, was not quite as she had expected. Miss Hamid gave a little laugh. ‘You refer to the absence of gilded domes, and portraits of eastern potentates?' Mina was obliged to confess that she did mean something of the kind, but Miss Hamid, so far from being offended as she had feared, was amused. ‘We believe,' she said, ‘that where it comes to Oriental opulence, that Brighton already has a sufficiency.'

By the time they had reached the door of a compartment Mina felt that her companion had somehow seen into and understood the anxieties in her mind, and every discomfort in her body. She was ushered to a small dressing-box where she was to disrobe entirely and wrap herself in a large sheet. A towel fashioned like a turban was provided to cover her hair and there were several pairs of little wooden shoes of different sizes so that she might select the one that would best fit her bare feet. ‘Do you require any assistance?' asked Miss Hamid.

‘Thank you, but that will not be necessary,' said Mina, who had arranged with her dressmaker to provide gowns specially designed so that she would be able to dress and undress herself.

‘When you are ready,' said Miss Hamid, ‘enter the next room, where the vapour bath will proceed. After fifteen minutes it will be complete and then I will bring you fresh dry sheets and take you to the massage room. If you require anything at all, please call, I will be nearby.' She left Mina alone.

Mina proceeded to divest herself of her clothing, and then wound the sheet about her body, where it was held in place by linen tapes, and arranged the turban on her head. Any resemblance between herself and the wife of a sultan lounging in an eastern harem, was, she felt, undetectable. Not without some awkwardness, she tried the little wooden shoes, found a pair that fitted, and slipped them on to her feet. She discovered with some surprise that they were very comfortable, being moulded so as to cradle her soles, and easy to walk in. Nevertheless she still felt apprehensive as she went into the vapour room. This was a chamber some eight feet square, lined with pretty blue and white tiles, and with an opening at the top, presumably to allow a free circulation of air. There was one high window, but no danger of being observed, since it was of stained glass with panes of green and blue, admitting only a subdued light. She detected a very faint but pleasing scent of flowers or herbs, which she could not readily identify. In the centre of the room was a simple wooden chair draped in a thick soft towel. Mina sat in the chair and looked about her, but could not see where the vapour was to come from. In just a few moments she understood. The floor of the room, which was tiled in a latticework design, was not a continuous surface but admitted little diamond-shaped gaps, and it was from these gaps that a vapour began to arise. It rose around her like a soft perfumed cloud and gradually began to fill the room. Any apprehension she might have felt was quickly dispelled by the deliciousness of the scent, and the feeling of warmth that stole over her. She closed her eyes, wondering where the vapour, which must already be condensing to spangle the cooler walls, must be going, since she hardly expected to find the room awash with water when she was finished. Wherever the vapour went, she felt sure that there was some ingenious method for its efficient removal. Even the floor had been specially designed so as not to offer a slippery surface underfoot. Dr Hamid seemed to think of everything.

These enquiring thoughts were set aside as she inhaled the sweet medicated cloud, inducing a delightful sense of tranquillity, while a pleasing perspiration bathed her body. The sheet around her became warm and moist; it clung to her skin, infusing her with its own heat and scent. Pain, indeed the concept that pain might even exist, was somehow washed away, time was washed away, and she felt at peace. It was with some regret that she noticed, after a while, that Anna Hamid had entered the room and that the vapour was dispersing. The last threads of moisture were beading the walls and running down into a narrow tiled gully around the perimeter.

‘Stand very slowly and I will help you,' said Miss Hamid, and there was nothing in her voice to suggest that Mina might need any more help than another person whose body had acquired a beautiful soft suppleness from the medicinal steam. She wrapped Mina in a warm fresh sheet, and drew her to the next room, which was a haven of scented and soothing heat, and laid her on a couch, then oiled her hands and, with the most exquisite care, ran her fingers over the contours of Mina's back. Miss Hamid was a strong woman with powerful shoulders, but years of applying her hands to the work of untying the knots in strained muscles had given her a perfectly directed firmness and an understanding delicacy of touch. Her hands exerted a gentle pressure on Mina's back, further warming the already relaxed muscles, and her thumbs located the seat of the shoulder pain and began to smooth it away.

‘You seem to know exactly where the discomfort lies,' said Mina. ‘You must have other patients with a similar condition.'

‘There have been some,' said Miss Hamid, ‘but the chief of those is my sister Eliza.'

‘Oh!' said Mina, startled. ‘I have not seen any lady in Brighton who is like myself.'

‘Eliza rarely goes from home,' said Miss Hamid, sadly. ‘Her case is far more advanced than yours. Her spine became curved when she was a very small child, when her bones were weaker and more pliable, and there was no opportunity for her to obtain the help that a child would certainly receive now.'

‘I am sorry to hear it,' said Mina.

‘It was her predicament that led Daniel and me to make a special study of
scoliosis
and other conditions affecting the spine, and devise our own methods of helping patients. Perhaps,' said Miss Hamid, diffidently, ‘I could prevail upon you to call on Eliza. I know that she would appreciate your company.'

‘Of course,' said Mina. ‘I am only surprised that when I met your brother he did not mention her to me.'

‘You encountered him at the salon held by Professor Gaskin, I believe?' asked Miss Hamid, her fingers exerting a delicate tapping and fluttering like tiny feet running up and down Mina's back.

‘I did. It was a very curious evening.'

‘Do you believe that Miss Eustace's powers are genuine?' asked Miss Hamid, with a note of caution in her voice that inspired Mina to take her into her confidence.

‘I saw nothing that convinced me that I had witnessed anything more than a clever magician,' she said, boldly, ‘and I fear that people are being duped, but I cannot prove it.'

‘Daniel has told me that he is not entirely convinced that Miss Eustace's demonstrations are genuine,' said Miss Hamid. ‘If you do not mind the question – what drew you to visit her?'

‘I think that is a very important question,' said Mina, ‘and I have no objection to answering. I went because my mother goes and I do not want her to be exposed to the machinations of a charlatan. My mother goes because she was widowed a year ago and seeks solace, and, I rather think, novelty.'

Miss Hamid began to explore the muscles in the soft angle between Mina's neck and shoulders. ‘I think Daniel would not mention Eliza in such company in case they should seize upon her and offer her false hope of a cure,' she said. ‘He knows of the terrible machines and even worse operations that a well-meaning doctor will recommend, but someone who claims to be in concert with the spirits can do as much evil.'

‘I do not seek a cure,' said Mina, ‘since none exists. I am content with that because I must be. Neither do I believe in the kind of spirits that Miss Eustace purports to show us. The world of the spirit is closed to the living; we will meet it soon enough.'

Miss Hamid gently drew Mina's arm across her back to raise her shoulder blade and used her fingertips to seek out clenched and sore muscles with a firm but not unpleasant pressure that made her patient gasp.

‘Although Daniel is a man of science, he nevertheless feels some hope, as all of us must do, which induces in him a need to explore and enquire,' said Miss Hamid. ‘He is of course aware that there are many things we understand today to have a foundation in fact which only a hundred years ago would have seemed to be impossible. I expect you know that he is not long a widower. He and his dear wife Jane were very devoted to each other. She died three months ago after a painful but mercifully short illness. They had been married for twenty-two years and he feels her loss very keenly.'

‘What does he seek?' asked Mina. ‘Surely he does not hope to communicate with her spirit?'

‘I think,' said Miss Hamid reflectively, ‘that he looks only for some sign, some certainty that the spirit, the intelligence, the soul – call it what you will – of an individual will survive entire. If he can be assured of this, he will be content, because he will know that one day they will be reunited.'

Mina thought of her father and Marianne. ‘We all hope to be reunited with our loved ones in Heaven,' she said. ‘But I do not think the Bible said anything about the dead speaking to the living, or playing on tambourines.'

‘The Bible teaches us that we all sleep until the Day of Judgement and then, and only then, do we rise again,' said Miss Hamid. ‘I see no reason to doubt it.'

‘Then perhaps,' said Mina cautiously, ‘your brother should comfort himself with that. Miss Eustace's demonstrations are little more than a sideshow on the pier, like Madame Proserpina the fortune teller, only I fear, very much more expensive.'

‘I can see that this worries you greatly,' said Miss Hamid. ‘Your neck and shoulders grow more tense under my fingers as you think about it. But now I would beg you to have only pleasurable thoughts.' She anointed her hands with more scented oil and smoothed them over Mina's back. Mina sighed and gave herself up to the sensation. When the massage was done she felt more supple than she could remember ever having felt, with a lightness and freedom from pain that she would have thought impossible.

When Mina was dressed, Miss Hamid brought her a cushion shaped like a door wedge, which she could put underneath one hip to right her posture as she sat, and asked if she had ever been prescribed exercises.