When Mr. Utterson, a London solicitor, learns that his old friend Dr. Jekyll has secretly bequeathed everything to the detestable Mr. Hyde, he embarks on an investigation that leads from fog-shrouded doorways to murder and finally to a terrible revelation: Jekyll has been chemically transforming himself into his own darker counterpart, only to find that Hyde grows stronger with each emergence while the drug that sustains him slowly fails. The consequences of playing God with one's own soul unfold with relentless inevitability toward a conclusion where neither self survives intact.
Left alone in the silent street, Utterson stands shaken. Hyde appeared pale and stunted, radiating some quality of distortion though no specific deformity could be named. He had carried himself with a strange compound of fear and aggression. Yet none of this explained the profound revulsion the lawyer felt—a loathing that seemed to rise from somewhere deeper than the senses. Utterson tells himself that if ever a face bore the mark of evil, it is this one.
He goes directly to Jekyll’s residence. The butler, Poole, informs him that the doctor is out, but confirms that Hyde possesses his own key and that the entire household has been ordered to obey him. Utterson walks home through the dark streets, his suspicions hardening into dread. Hyde must be blackmailing Jekyll over some buried transgression, and the creature’s eagerness to inherit may put his friend’s life in danger.
A fortnight later, Utterson remains behind after one of Jekyll’s agreeable dinners. The doctor sits across from him by the fire—a large, smooth-faced man of fifty, his expression marked by intelligence and warmth. But when Utterson raises the will and mentions that he has been making inquiries about Hyde, Jekyll’s countenance changes. The color drains from his face; a darkness gathers around his eyes. He refuses to discuss the matter further. His situation, he insists, is strange and painful, beyond remedy by conversation. Utterson offers his absolute discretion and help, but Jekyll will say no more.
Despite Jekyll’s refusal to discuss the matter further, Utterson continued to worry about the troubling connection between Jekyll and Hyde. Nearly a year later, the situation took a deadly turn when Hyde committed the murder of Sir Danvers Carew.
Dr. Jekyll attempts to reassure Mr. Utterson regarding the dangerous Mr. Hyde, claiming the situation is private and not as dire as the lawyer fears. He asserts with confidence that he possesses the absolute power to be rid of Hyde the moment he chooses, urging Utterson to let the matter sleep. Despite this display of control, Jekyll extracts a solemn promise from Utterson to secure Hyde’s rights and inheritance should Jekyll die, revealing a strange, protective compulsion toward the man he claims to dismiss. Utterson reluctantly agrees to this request, though he cannot feign any affection for Hyde and leaves with a heavy sense of foreboding.
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