Dr. Dumany's Wife

A weary traveler boards a rattling night train bound for Paris, hoping for a brief respite in a cramped half‑coupé. The carriage is a menagerie of characters, but the guard’s gossip about an opulent American family with a pampered child and an entourage of physicians, governesses, and a massive servant draws the narrator’s curiosity. When the train stalls and a mechanical failure forces the exclusive parlour‑car to be left behind, the narrator is thrust into a sudden dilemma.

Now the narrator must help find a temporary refuge for the over‑indulged youngster, whose every need seems catered to by an endless staff. Amid the clatter of wheels and the murmur of fellow passengers, a subtle tension builds as the ordinary world collides with extraordinary wealth. The opening sets a vivid scene of travel, class contrast, and the promise of unexpected encounters on the rails.