A Shocking Reunion
The narrator is horrified to recognize the woman as the same lady who had previously triumphed over his heart and to whose fate he had nearly been inseparably joined. She recognizes him immediately, strains to hug him gently, and sheds a torrent of tears.
The Lady’s Remorse
The woman expresses deep remorse for her past misdeeds, pronouncing with a feeble voice that she is a vile creature who had a base design on his person, and asks to be allowed to expiate her crimes through a miserable death.
A Sympathetic Heart
Filled with compassion by her deplorable situation, the narrator encourages her, tells her he forgives all her past intentions toward him, and offers to share his last farthing with her despite his own extremely low circumstances. He also says he will use his skill to prevent further fits, which moves her to press his hand to her lips in gratitude before she relapses into another swoon.
Reviving the Perishing Woman
The narrator runs downstairs to send his landlady to a chemist’s shop for cinnamon water, then returns to the woman’s chamber to work to revive her. After she recovers, he gives her a glass of the cordial, then prepares mulled red wine and a toast for her. She reveals she has not tasted any food for 48 hours prior.
The Quack Doctor’s Betrayal
The woman explains she is a prostitute by profession who contracted a common disease particular to her class. She sought treatment from an advertising doctor who fleeced her of all her money, left her in worse condition three days prior, and forced her to pawn or sell all her belongings except the clothes on her back to pay him and quiet her landlady’s threats of eviction.
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