The Devil is French: A Whipping Society Novel
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The Devil is French
A Whipping Society Novel
Delilah Marvelle
Contents
Title Page
PLEASE READ
Glossary of Terms
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Thank you!
The Whipping Society Saga
My dearest Reader,
Unlike most historical romances that feature a hero and heroine whose journey and love for each other ends at a mere one book, I am extending a unique invitation for you to join in on a much bigger love story.
* * *
When Ridley and Jemdanee first appeared to me, and their pages started to go beyond what two books could hold, I realized they needed three books. This begins The Whipping Society Saga.
* * *
While I will ensure each full length book ends without dangling your hearts too far over the edge of impatience, please come to this book and those to follow as you would to an episode of your favorite TV show. Many questions will be answered, others not. Each book will be wrapped up in its own way, but obviously….for there to be more, not everything can be resolved.
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Please note this is still very much a historical romance, simply done on a three book scale. It’s my hope you enjoy spending an unusual amount of time with Ridley and Jemdanee as each book brings them to closer to the people they must become to embrace what awaits them: true love. I thank you for being a reader.
Much love,
Delilah Marvelle
Glossary of Terms
Arrey -- Expression of surprise in Hindi. Like ‘Hey!’
Bas -- ‘Enough!’ in Hindi.
Bête sauvage -- ‘Wild beast’ in French.
Bibi -- The Hindu mistress of a house and/or a Hindu lover, usually used with respect.
Bidi -- Indian cigarette made from tobacco rolled in an ebony tree leaf.
Bhang lassi -- A drink made of yogurt or milk, spices, rose water and cannabis (weed).
Bhoot-nee ke -- Son of a female ghost in Hindi, an offensive term for someone being mischievous or an idiot.
Bhut jolokia -- Ghost pepper cultivated to India, known for its exceptionally high heat level. Jemdanee keeps a powdered form of it which she utilizes as a defense equivalent to mace.
Bonne nuit – ‘Good night’ in French.
Capsicin/Capsaicin -- Active ingredient in chili peppers that causes burning of skin/eyes. First extracted in 1816 by Christian Friedrich Bucholz, he called it ‘capsicin’ after the genus Capsicum. John Clough Thresh isolated it in a purer form naming it ‘capsaicin’ in 1876. The decision to use the spelling of ‘capsicin’ in this book instead of ‘capsaicin’ is due to it being the only word in use at the time by the scientific community.
Chakla -- Although this term is for an Indian kitchen utensil (a flat circular board to roll out dough) it is ALSO a historical term for ‘brothel’. Laying out dough on a board one smacks and rolls seems rather…fitting.
Challo -- ‘Let us go’ in Hindi.
Coca/Limestone combination -- Prior to the first known extraction and isolation of cocaine from coca leaves back in 1859, crushed limestone was used to draw out the ‘high’ from coca leaves. The coca leaf by itself gives the user a heightened effect of modern caffeine.
Commiphora wightii – A flowering plant known as guggul found in North Africa and Central Asia, but is most common in India. The resin, known as gum guggulu, is harvested from the plant's bark and has a scent similar to myrrh that is used in incense and/or perfumes. There is a belief it drives away evil spirits and removes the evil eye.
Dactylorhiza hatagirea -- A species of orchid found in Nepali/Himalayan regions consisting of long flowering stems. A 'Panchaule' (meaning five fingered hand) arises from its root resembling fingers of a hand bearing 3-5 fingers. The plant is gathered for its medicinal tubers and roots that taste sweet.
Dhatt -- A Hindi form of expression used to reprimand something inappropriate.
Diya -- A clay lamp with a cotton wick dipped in vegetable oil.
Felo-de-se -- Act of suicide, derived from the Latin term ‘felon of himself’.
Gopika -- A Sanskrit word originating from the word gopala, a person in charge of herding cows. In Hinduism, gopika is the feminine form of gopi, and refers to a famous group of herding girls made known for their unconditional devotion to Krishna.
Goonda -- Thug or miscreant in Hindi.
Government House -- A colonial mansion in Calcutta resting on 27 acres of land. It was built in 1803 by the first Marquess of Wellesley with the belief that India should be ruled from a palace, not a mere country house. It became the home and political seat for every viceroy of Calcutta. Its construction took four years and was completed at a staggering cost of £63,291 (about 4 million today!). As a result of its obnoxious expense, Lord Wellesley, who had it built, was dismissed for improperly allocating the funds of the East India Company in 1805. Although the man lost his position as Governor General over the creation of the Government House, it went on to be used by every viceroy thereafter.
Haan – ‘Yes’ in Hindi.
Hariya -- Indian beer made from rice.
Idli -- A flat cake made of de-husked black lentils and rice, popular in India during breakfast.
Ittar -- Hindi term for ‘attar’, an essential oil derived from botanical sources, used to perfume.
Phaujee -- Soldier or male constable in Hindi.
Jee – A formal response to a yes or in answer to a question in Hindi.
Joie de vivre – ‘Exuberant enjoyment in life’ in French.
Kala namak -- Literal translation from Hindi is ‘black salt’. A very pungent condiment salt used in South Asia, also known as ‘Himalayan black salt’.
Kara bracelet -- Worn by Sikhs to symbolize an eternal and unbreakable commitment to God.
Kirpan -- A sword or dagger carried by Sikhs, originating of religious command that five items of faith be word by a Sikh at all times, a kirpan being one of those items.
Krishna -- One of the Indian divinities worshipped as the eighth incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu and also as a supreme god in his own right.
Lakshmi -- Hindu goddess of wealth, fortune, and prosperity. She is the wife of Vishnu.
Lapis lazuli -- A blue mineral consisting mostly of lazurite used for gems or pigments.
Les Bijoux Indiscrets by Denis Diderot — First published in 1748, The Indiscreet Jewels was a satire that portrays Louis XV as a sultan who possesses a magic ring that enables a female’s genitals (jewels) to “talk”.
L’Appel du vide -- ‘Call of the void’ in French, meaning: a sudden urge to do wild things.
Laudanum -- An alcoholic-based solution or morphine/opium used for pain.
Maa – ‘Mother’ in Hindi.
Mon chou -- ‘Sweetheart’ in French.
Ma femme dorée – ‘My golden wife’ in French.
Memsahib -- A white foreign woman of high social status living in India.
Mohur -- A gold coin formerly minted by British India, usually equivalent to 15 silver rupees.
Mon coeur – ‘My heart’ in French.
Mon dévot -- ‘My devotee’ in French.
Murdannia striatipetala -- A flowering plant from the dayflower family, found in tropical regions, including India. Petals are p
ale lavender/purple with dark contrasting veins, consisting of three petals to make the flower, flowering from knobby wooden stems.
Nahin – ‘No’ in Hindi.
Pallu – The most decorative part of the sari that is draped over the right shoulder. It can be tucked, pinned or left free-flowing, and much like the language of the fan in the Victorian era, which was used to communicate, its placement can be used to communicate an expression.
Papaver somniferum -- The opium poppy, a species of plant, and the principle source of opium. Latex oozes from the incisions made on its green pods, and once dried, can be utilized to create the opiate. Dried opium and laudanum are derived from this particular species.
Punkah -- A massive cloth fan (sometimes soaked in water) fastened to a frame suspended by the ceiling and worked into motion by the pull of a rope to produce the movement of cooler air through a room. This was done by servants and its usage dates back to as far as 500 B.C.
Raat ki rani -- Night blooming jasmine, referred to as ‘Queen of the Night’ given its small, white flowers only open at night.
Rara avis -- ‘A rarity’, derived from its Latin use of ‘strange bird’.
Rupee -- Monetary coin tracing back to ancient India in circa 6th century B.C. and one of the earliest known issuers of coins in the world. The coin remained in use during the takeover of India by the British and was silver based during much of the 19th century.
Salla – Expression of disgust, derogatory in Hindi.
Sahelii -- A word for a ‘female friend’ in Hindi.
Sahib -- An Urdu honorific as a term of respect that is the English equivalent of ‘Sir’.
Semnopithecus priam thersites -- Tufted, grey langur monkey, found in Southeast India.
Sepoy -- An Indian soldier serving under British or European orders.
Shiva -- One of the principle deities of Hinduism.
Sonti -- A rice-based Indian alcoholic beverage similar to sake.
Tendu -- The Coromandel or East Indian ebony is a species of a tree native to India and Sri Lanka and has a hard, dry bark. Known by its Hindi name tendu, the leaves are wrapped around tobacco to create the Indian bidi.
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HISTORICAL CHARACTER:
Dr. ‘Professor’ Nathaniel Wallich -- Born January 1786 in Copenhagen, died 28 April 1854 in London. Wallich was a surgeon and botanist. After sailing to India in 1807, he worked for a period of time as an assistant botanist to the East Indian Company. He contributed to the development of the Calcutta Botanical Garden, creating a massive herbarium collection which was distributed to collections throughout all of Europe. Many of the plants he collected from expeditions were named after him. He served as a Professor of Botany in Calcutta.
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FUN HISTORICAL ON DIT:
In Chapter Ten, Jemdanee is awakened by a song sung by drunken soldiers and Ridley. To experience the song and melody in its time of history, go to YouTube for Henry Purcell’s COME, LET US DRINK, while you read the opening chapter.
This authentic song pulled from history was playing while this chapter was being written and will put you in a jolly mood, as intended.
Prologue
Pandora has a box (or a wicker basket).
* * *
One of seven hundred and thirty seven letters stuffed into an oversized wicker basket that is falling over from the weight of endless words.

17th of March, 1832
My little raven,
Whilst I continue to battle the stiffness of this long healed injury, boxing daily at the academy has proven helpful in strengthening its weakness. Unfortunately, my physician only nags me about my overexertion and is unable to comprehend that I am a resurrected rara avis. In other words, a rarity that has risen above science in the name of a woman. My strength resides not within the muscular structure of this broken body, but within an unbreakable mind that seeks to claim what it wants most: you.
Feeling invigorated enough to work outside the house again, I have returned to working alongside Scotland Yard. Hence the silence. Aside from guiding more progressive inspectors like Parker, whom I am beginning to admire due to his tenacity, Finkle continues to amuse me by assigning my talents to ‘unusual’ cases. This last one involved a confectioner obsessed with cannibalism (the heart in particular). To quote this bête sauvage, he confessed to me that it was the toughest muscle to chew through and he found it sweet.
It certainly gives a new meaning to the term sweetheart.
You seem to have gone down that feral path yourself, mon chou. For you revel in devouring the beating heart of a man. This man. How does it taste? Is it really sweet or more on the side of bitter? Keep chewing at all four chambers and its two ventricles if you must, but remember I only have one heart for you to consume and I do consider it vital to my ongoing existence.
How I suffer. I am forced to stare at the copper tub you once pleasured yourself in and all too often cling to its sides, pleasuring myself alone. Moans, osculation and growls of our pleasure as we sweat and spend together overtakes every ragged breath I drag in through teeth knowing it will one day be real. The feel of your gorgeous, brown skin haunts these fingertips as I try to remember what holding you feels like. In too many breaths and very soon, I will dig out the magnificence of your soul that belongs to me whilst your cunt weeps along with you, begging I do nothing but fuck you into bliss.
Why do you not write? Have I not crawled enough? Or is it because I am too obscene in my devotion? Obscenity, my Jemdanee Kumar, defines me. That night, when I toasted to your innocence and drank laudanum to erase my breath, it was my chivalrous attempt to eradicate a mind that never rests whilst saving you from the depravity that has devoured my decency since youth.
Your ever annoying Dr. Peter Watkins has asked once again in a curt missive that I cease writing to you and enable you to embrace a future without me. Inform that mustachio of a clothesline that even if my hands were cleaved from each wrist, I would still be using this mouth to move the quill across the parchment.
As you know, I continue to be in close communication with the Field Marshal to ensure your wellbeing. He informs me of your progress there at the Government House and verifies you have, in fact, been reading all of my correspondences.
Which brings me to the point of this letter.
I have negotiated and accepted an assignment from the Field Marshal through his intelligence squadron that will take me into Bombay. Kneel to your venerated inspector knowing the contract you so fatuously bound yourself to, will be terminated in return for my services. I do this and more in your esteemed name knowing you have unleashed the man I swore I would never be to any woman. I count each breath in the hope of folding you into my arms without any further damage to anatomical or life-sustaining organs.
Your humble servant and overlord,
Evan Oswald Ridley
Postscrīptum. Your attempt at domination is unremitting and charming. What happens next?
Chapter 1
Calcutta, India – 1833
The Government House, 6:21 a.m.
Beyond the marble and mosaic domed halls of the Government House that beckoned her into believing she was amongst cultivated men, Jemdanee Kumar had seen enough unregulated behavior to evince otherwise.
As apothecarian and greenhouse custodian it kept her well-employed.
Last month, before a dining legion of upper class society, a diplomat had punched a fork into the hand of another diplomat, impaling that rattling palm to the pristine linen table they supped at. The two ‘gentlemen’ had been arguing over a state-commissioned contract when the subject of his philandering wife came up.
Jemdanee had been hollered upon by his lordship, the Governor General, to provide her wound-healing turmeric paste to the oozing, blood-pronged punctures as fainting women were ushered out. Fourteen men had hovered over that trembling hand to observe the anti-inflammatory effects of her turmeric paste and were so impressed by its quick deliverance of re
cuperation, they ordered several dozen jars for their shaving kits, earning Jemdanee an additional twenty rupees.
It had been a most excellent night.
While delegates from other countries occupied her time with their incessant need for insect repellents and aloe elixirs for sun-burnt faces, Lieutenant Bradley, under whom she was formally employed, depended on her services on the hour. Sometimes as late as midnight, he rang for her to deliver a tray of restoratives into the Council Room where he oversaw most of his political work.
If only it ended there.
As mandated by her contract, Jemdanee was responsible for the production of every herbal-based curative which Dr. Harper issued to soldiers at the compound.
Despite being a female and a Hindu, her usefulness outweighed everyone’s snickers. In fact, once the men grew accustomed to her vivacious, chatty presence, she became incredibly popular.
Too popular.
Officers elbowed their way into Dr. Harper’s office merely to watch her climb up toward the ceiling of the rolling ladder and use her sari-clad hip to skid from one shelving side of inventory to the next. Her refusal to wear slippers or a corset was whistled at and her bright blue eyes set against the deep bronze of her skin had earned her the nickname of Lapis Lazuli.
It was why she started wearing non-prescriptive spectacles.
Aside from making her look more ‘sophisticated’ whenever she staggered out of the government library with a stack of phytology books, the gleam of the lenses and the small-frames brass did something miraculous.
It distracted men from seeing her eyes.
Eyes that, in her not-so-humble opinion, were far too blue for a Hindu.
She hated that men noticed the shade of her eyes in the same way they noticed the shade of her skin. Whilst certain women obsessed over jewelry, she obsessed over having a collection of glasses. She had a variety of styles that ranged from Martin Margins to lorgnettes. Each represented whatever mood she was in.