‘I am indeed, sir, from Fisherrow,’ I replied meekly, for I did not want to upset this gent and end up poisoned, even though I was desperate to find out if he had any news of the wicked Mrs Rose.

‘A bleak place, I’ve heard,’ he mused. ‘Although the oysters are second to none. I have rooms in Edinburgh very near Fishmarket Close. I do like to choose my own seafood. Selecting shellfish is not a job I would trust to a servant.’

‘And you are a physician,’ I said, for I was thinking in the back of my mind that although I would not like to trust this man with my life, one day I might have to, if there was a problem with the birth.

‘I practise regularly in Edinburgh,’ he observed, ‘for the monies are better there. Anyway, enough of this small talk, for I believe that we have a mutual friend.’

‘Mrs Rose,’ I said. ‘But she was not my friend, for she stole all my money, and all the town knows it.’

His eyes darted about the room to see if we were being overheard, but the minister was deep in conversation with Mrs Baxter.

‘Tell me, have you heard anything of her since?’ he asked.

‘Not a word,’ I told him. ‘But I am keen for news.’

‘Well, that makes two of us – you and me both – for I am most keen for news of her. And if you do hear of her, I would like you to tell me, would you do that?’

I assured him I would, although I did not fancy Mrs Rose’s chances if he ever caught her. Mibbie he would poison her, like his poor wife Kitty. Good.

His lewdness had shrunk away now, leaving something else – a look of bitterness. I knew, then, that whatever Mrs Rose had done to me, she had infuriated the doctor. ‘Well, Mistress Dickson, if you are ever in need of any tinctures or sleeping draughts, pay me a visit. Mrs Rose swore by laudanum for her nerves; ladies often do, and I do not charge a fortune for it.’

I hoped I would never need his attentions and I did not want him staring at me any more, for if he was any sort of doctor, he might realize I was with child. By now, the rest of the table were rattling for their wine, so I excused myself and went to fill their cups, making sure my apron hung nice and loose over me.