Free Deck Z - The Titanic by Chris Pauls

Weiss said between coughs. “I’m also in terrible pain.” It was a detail he would have mentioned if the surgeon hadn’t been so intent with his thermometer.
    “What in the devil … ?”
    “I’ve been attacked and lost a tooth. I need something for the pain,” Weiss said, blinking away the agony. “But that’s not the sole reason I’m here.”
    “Attacked? On
Titanic
?” said O’Loughlin, fetching a beaker, some powders, and a glass mixing rod. He filled the container with water, mixed the solution, and poured it into a cup. “Drink this,” he said. Weiss complied, feeling a measure of relief almost immediately. O’Loughlin crossed his arms. “I’ll need to alert the Master-at-Arms.”
    “And the captain as well,” Weiss replied.
    O’Loughlin grunted dubiously and examined Weiss’s mouth. “Good lord. It looks as if the tooth has been pulled by a butcher, not a dentist.” He placed a wad of sterile gauze on the wound. “Bite down, and give that some time. The cotton should stop the bleeding and keep the socket from becoming infected. Now what about this attack?”
    Where to begin? In the cold light of the doctor’s office, Weiss saw how unlikely his tale would seem. Still, he had no choice. From now on, he must put his faith in the truth. He removed the gauze to speak.“My name is Theodor Weiss. I am a doctor like you, a bacteriologist, and I was in possession of a deadly bacterium, a new strain of plague, which the German government wants to use as a weapon.”
    O’Loughlin blinked, and then laughed, long and loud—as if this were a joke, or Weiss were simply mad. “Of course, and I’m the man in the moon!”
    “No, you must listen! The vial containing plague bacteria was stolen from me, violently, as you see. We must act quickly. I’m afraid the thief plans to expose one of the passengers. This is a mutation of the plague that decimated Manchuria. Surely you heard about it?”
    The smile faded from O’Loughlin’s face. “Of course. Some fifty thousand people died. But that plague was contained. It’s over.”
    “This is not the same plague. It’s a mutated version, and much worse. I was there. I … it’s too much to explain how I have it, but you must believe me. One drop from that vial, in the mouth, the eyes, or an open wound … on an enclosed ship like
Titanic
…” Weiss’s voice trailed off.
    “Then help us identify your attacker,” O’Loughlin said.
    “I never saw his face. And he took my bag with the vial and my credentials.” Weiss looked at the doctor in despair. “I have no proof, but still you must believe me. We don’t have much time.”
    For a long moment, O’Loughlin considered the situation. “All right, tell me more about this sickness.”
    Weiss shifted forward in his seat eagerly. “It starts like the flu. Chills, abdominal pain, and headaches last seven to eight hours, but that’s just the beginning. Then, there is a second stage. Sores appear, and a murky, infectious discharge emerges from the nose and mouth, also the ears. This progresses much more quickly, three or four hours at most.” Weiss took a breath before finishing. “And in the final stage? The victim bleeds from his eyes and is lost to violent madness. Please tell me, have you seen anyone with these symptoms?”
    “You mean discharge from the eyes? Certainly not!”
    “Anything,” Weiss said. “Dizziness, nausea?”
    “I see that every day, of course. It’s seasickness, not the plague. Not half an hour ago I sent a seasick cook who felt puny to rest in his quarters, simply as a precaution.”
    “Is this cook a veteran of the sea?”
    “Yes.”
    “Then how is he seasick? I need to examine him.”
    “I assure you, Timothy is merely suffering a bout of seasickness. That or perhaps he visited a certain Southampton district prior to sailing and got more than he paid for. Time will tell.”
    Weiss calculated in his head. “Please, we have to treat this with the utmost urgency. If