Chapter one introduces the reader to Charles Monet. He is a French expatriate working on a sugar plantation in western Kenya. The story begins on New Year's Day, 1980, when Charles and a woman take an overnight trip to Mount Elgon, a formerly active volcano. During their trip, they visit Kitum Cave.
After returning to his quiet life, Monet becomes ill. The reader knows that he is experiencing a catastrophic illness, but Charles and those who treat him are unaware of how serious it truly is. He experiences headaches and backaches for several days before spiking a fever and vomiting violently for a long period of time. His eyes turn red, his face becomes expressionless, and his personality changes. Finally, a coworker drives him to a hospital in the city of Kisumu.
Part 1, Chapter 2 Jumper Summary
In this short chapter, Charles Monet is placed on a gurney and wheeled into the intensive-care unit. Dr. Shem Musoke, a young, well-liked doctor is unsure of what is happening, but he recognizes that Monet cannot breathe. When Dr. Musoke attempts to insert a breathing tube, he realizes the patient has developed severe brain damage. During the insertion, the patient vomits blood upward and it gets into the doctor's eyes and mouth. Because Monet's blood will not clot, attempts to give him a transfusion only cause him to bleed more; and he dies that evening. The autopsy shows that his recently living body resembles a several-days' dead corpse on the