After Caliban and Mr. Shaft leave, Bernice busies herself with some neglected chores in the little room that serves as foyer to Dr. Greene's treatement office. As she's making entries to the books, she becomes aware of conversation in the other room.
"-- a man of science, don't you, Dr. Greene?" the reverend is asking.
"Well -- yes. Of course. I'm a doctor."
"And you don't believe in witches."
Dr. Greene seems taken aback by the statement. He hesitates, and stammers over his response. "No -- that is -- I mean -- I wouldn't say that, Rev. Locke."
The smaller man chuckles. "No, only think it. Believe it or not, Dr. Greene, I understand your skepticism. There was a time when I, too, doubted. When I believed that the Church's witchhunts were founded on nothing but ignorance and greed, an excuse to persecute the weak and insane and to rob from the powerless. And it's comforting, isn't it, to think that all things can be explained by Science?"
"I know there are mysteries beyond my comprehension," Dr. Greene says. "I am a God-fearing man, reverend."
Bernice perks her ears, listening thoughtfully. Her quill slows, the woman's mind becoming preoccupied with what she's hearing. It's when she notices that she's left the pen still long enough for a large spot of ink to have built up that Bernice lifts the nib back up again, blinking. She hastily blots the error, then finishes out her entry, standing up and gathering some odds and ends up to make pretense of tidying the office when she emerges from the little foyer.
"Are you, doctor?" Locke's voice sharpens, then returns to a milder tone as he asks, "And do you really know that the corpse of a cat is a treatment for hysteria in China?"
Dr. Greene hesitates. "Er ... I know the Chinese treatments often seem sinister to us ... and I don't mean to imply that it's efficaous ... " He sounds like he's floundering.
"Lying is a sin," Locke says, his voice again mild. "But sometimes one feels compelled to lie, doesn't one? For a greater good. You'd lie to protect an innocent, wouldn't you, Dr. Greene? If you felt you had to."
"We are all steeped in sin, Reverend... born with it, aren't we? Isn't it through our devotion to God, our faith in His Son, and our desire for forgiveness and to walk the right path that we're absolved?" Bernice emerges from the small side room with a jar of cotton that she wipes with a dustcloth. "As for Chinese treatment, well... they have rather a lot of queer methods. I heard they eat dogs, can you believe it?"
Locke removes the glasses from his nose to clean their lenses. "Miss Townes. Alas, it takes more than mere desire to walk the right path to achieve salvation. One must also have the determination to do the right thing." He looks at Dr. Greene as he speaks. "Good intentions alone are not enough. One can easily be led astray by those whose intentions are not so pure, or by those who do not have the foresight to see the true consequences of their actions."
On the bed where Miss Pau has been lying, her eyes flutter open. She looks from Rev. Locke to Dr. Greene, but she doesn't speak at the moment.
"I'm sure both the good doctor and I would fully agree," says Townes, setting aside the unnecessarily polished jar and beginning to unnecessarily fold and place already crisp and clean linens. "Medicine is a curious blend of science and morality, sir. Science driven by the desire to care and to do the right thing. I'm sure we're all of the same mind, to aid and to do no harm."
Dr. Greene clears his throat. "I believe all this conversation is disturbing my patient, and I must insist she be allowed to rest, reverend. If you feel it's unsafe to leave her alone then you may remain but I don't wish to tax her with unnecessary noise."
Locke follows Dr. Greene's gaze to the Chinese woman. His mouth twitches then thins. He inclines his head in acknowledgement. "As you say, doctor." He allows the topics to drop without further comment.
Bernice tries to keep the misgiving out of her green eyes when she glances at Locke, turning to look at the doctor instead and laying the stack of neatly (now double) folded linens back on a counter. "The books are finished, Dr. Greene. Is there anything else you'd like me to attend to?"
Dr. Greene shakes his head. He takes her elbow to guide her out of the room as he says in a soft voice, "No, thank you, Miss Townes. Your assistance is much appreciated."
The young woman dutifully allows herself to be led away, trying her best to look casual as she goes, but her gaze is fixed on her friend's face, watching him carefully for signs and hoping to get out of earshot.
Locke chooses to remain with Miss Pau rather than following them out, so the two are able to escape to the door of the cabin. Dr. Greene looks relieved to be out of the preacher's presence, but he still looks gravely concerned.
Bernice reaches out to take her fellow doctor's hand without really thinking about it, and her voice is low. "Are you in danger, Doctor? Please, whatever you do, don't risk yourself. Not for Pau, not for me."
"I just .... " Dr. Greene sighs heavily, a weight seeming to settle upon his shoulders. "I wish I knew what the right thing was. Are you sure about this, Miss Townes? What if she is a witch? What if Rev. Locke is right? Should we be protecting her?"
The young woman resists the urge to look over her shoulder. "I'm really not sure. I know very little about her... only that she was playing the other side of this weird little game, and that Mr. Shaft believes it was for noble intentions. Part of what Rev. Locke says is right... intentions don't mean much if the wrong thing is being done. She's in no position to do anything now, however, nor will she be after this whole mess is over. I should think it's our duty as doctors to preserve human life where possible. Besides, there's conventions for the treatment of prisoners of war, isn't there? Shouldn't that much extend to those not even in a war?"
Dr. Greene doesn't look particularly comforted by these arguments. "I didn't realize ... so she's on the side of the same people that killed Michael?"
Bernice takes hold of her braid, twisting it in her hands. "From what I can understand, she's on her own side. She has no affiliation with the murderers. She's just been trying to figure out how to... to open whatever this is, where we think nobody should be tampering with whatever this is. I think she's wrong-headed for it. I might be able to learn more."
"I suppose that
"I suppose that's something." Dr. Greene shifts again. "I'll try to stay out of the reverend's way. I'm going to get some dinner -- I'll ask the missus to bring him and Miss Pau something. Did you want to join us, Miss Townes?"
Townes seems to consider this. "I would, thank you for asking, Doctor. I'd probably best take a miss for now, however. It's evening, and I have a ways to get back to my cabin. I want to be up early for church... something tells me I really don't want to miss it."
A wry half-smile settles on his face. "No, I should think not. We'll be by in the morning to pick you up. Good evening, my dear -- and do be careful."
"Always, sir," says Bernice, returning the smile with warmth. She touches him on the forearm one more time before heading on her way.
Partway home on Slate, Bernice decides to see if she can find Miss Pau's companion. After considerable questioning of various forest denizens, she learns the nightengale was last sighted ... heading for Dr. Greene's house.
"Oh, well... that stands to reason," muses Bernice. She reaches down to give Slate a pat. "'Round we go, girl."