Roger Chillingworth’s Journal
Doctor Roger Chillingworth July 21st 1646 The minister’s health is fading. I fear that if I do not find a solution to his ailment soon that he may die, leaving me without a meaningful patient. Maybe it is Hester Prynne that is the problem. She is the evil influence that is taking the last little bit of life he has left. I am ashamed to think that I was even minutely involved with her many years ago. I used to be a good man but our terrible marriage corrupted me. All I have left is Mr. Dimmesdale. I have made him a concoction using plants I found on tombstones.
I hope that these plants, which have grown from buried human hearts will have an effect on him. If he dies then I will no longer have a patient to perform experiments on so I will have to slow my medical research until I find another ailing individual. It will be hard to find another individual with such a strong heart and a similar aura to the pastor. Also, a victim with enough assets to pay for my expenses. He knows that I have profited from his ailments and his weak frame. I do not see the Pastor’s recovery as a likely scenario.
I see that he is heading to his grave so I need to take as much energy from him before he passes on. Maybe it is the demon child Pearl that is causing his imminent death. She has her own sickness which I tried to cure previously, but was unable. The deep rooted evil in the child is something even the most skilled physician cannot remove with any medicine. You can see the malevolent spirit in her eyes. I wonder if the father of this child is the devil himself. Hester is too ashamed to name her father even years after the incident. One day I will find out how this child came to be.
Perhaps I will go out again to the forest tonight and perform a ritual to try to find out the true father. I must find out soon, I am getting to be an old man and I fear my time in this town is limited if I cannot find another host. I shall take the pastor for a walk on the beach tomorrow while I secretly gather ingredients for a spell. He has not been walking as well but I will still insist that he come. I must search into this matter further. If he questions me as he usually does, I will give him some medicine to calm him down.
I have a draught I have made that will slow him down for a few days giving me the opportunity to control the situation. My intelligence is far superior to that of Arthur’s and I can use that to my advantage. It is true that he is a man of purity; but he is also naive. He is the perfect patient in every way. I hope that my medicines can extend his life for at least another year. He is a very rare case, I must find out more before he leaves my care. I will continue practising on him until he expires. ,Roger Chillingworth~
