Excerpt
The operating room was silent except for the deep, regular breathing of the
gaunt young woman who lay on the table, the immense bulge of her stomach laid
bare.
Hester stared across at Kristian Beck. It was the first operation of the day,
and there was no blood on his white shirt yet. The chloroform sponge had done
its miraculous work and was set aside. Kristian picked up the scalpel and
touched the point to the young woman’s flesh. She did not flinch; her
eyelids did not move. He pressed deeper, and a thin, red line appeared.
Hester looked up and met his eyes, dark, luminous with intelligence. They both
knew the risk, even with anesthesia, that they could do little to help. A growth
this size was probably fatal, but without surgery the woman would die anyway.
Kristian lowered his eyes and continued cutting. The blood spread. Hester
swabbed it up. The woman lay motionless except for her breathing, her face waxen
pale, cheeks sunken, shadows around the sockets of her eyes. Her wrists were so
thin the shape of the bones poked through the skin. It was Hester who had walked
beside her from the ward along the corridor, half supporting her weight, trying
to ease the anxiety whic ... read full excerpt from Funeral in Blue ebook