Charis (19 page)

For Charis and Ben their two weeks’ holiday was over all too soon
and the Maitlands were due back again. For the first week it seemed as though
they had all the time in the world, but the second week sped by in a flash.

They’d walked in to Castle Combe a couple of times and had visited
the home farm and spent some time with the Ridleys. And they spent a day in
Bath. Ben convinced Charis to drive a few times and she almost felt comfortable
at the wheel. He praised her for how quickly and how well she’d done, but she
gave all the credit to the car.

“It really is a dream to drive,” she said. “But I would
never
want to attempt it in London.”

She’d been able to show Ben the little village school she’d attended
and all the other special and familiar childhood places, and shared her memories
of them all with him. He noticed that nothing was ever said about the years
after her father died - the memories of those later times she had tried to
bury. He wondered if that could have anything to do with her recurring
nightmare…if he could induce her to talk about it at all, if it would help. But
now was neither the time nor the place. These two weeks were sacrosanct.

As they drove away from Meadow Lea Hall, Ben expressed his thoughts
on Mrs. Patterson. “She is a real treasure, you know.”

“Yes,” replied Charis. “I don't know what I would have done without
her after my Dad died. I'll send her some flowers and a thank you note when we
get home.”

It was hard for Charis to leave her home and to say goodbye to the
Pattersons but the closer they got to London the more excited she was to be in
her little Chelsea home. Jennifer had gone back to Hampshire and back to work. Ben
would also go back to work too and life would return to normal. If normal didn't
include any more phone calls she would be blissfully happy and content.

*****

Normal managed to last for almost two weeks. They’d settled into a
comfortable routine and Charis was relieved - no phone calls. The Music
Academy's new term had been going for less than a week and Charis had started
to prepare for a concert they would be presenting later in the year. Two of her
students were participating and she had also been asked to perform. Needless to
say, it kept her busy. Ben had received only one night time call out and it had
been a happy and successful outcome. His patient load was increasing as it
gradually became known that he had joined the prestigious St. Anne's Hospital,
and he’d taken on an extra shift at one of the NHS hospitals, so life for him
was busy, too.

It was after dinner one evening when they were sitting quietly
relaxing, cuddled up together in the downstairs living room when Charis' phone
rang. It was Helen. Charis assumed it was for her and they chatted for a few
minutes before Helen said, “Is Ben there? May I talk to him for a minute,
please?” She handed her phone to him and watched his face as he listened to
Helen explain what she wanted and almost laughed out loud at his expression of
surprise and then horror.

“Oh, no!” he exclaimed. “I couldn't do anything like
that
.”

Helen's voice continued on the other end but he said again, “Oh, no!
You
definitely
have the wrong person. I wouldn't be any good at all. And
anyway, I don't think my colleagues would approve.”

By this time Charis was utterly intrigued and could hardly wait for
him to finish so she could find out what was going on. She thought she already knew.
Helen's successful television show had resumed at the beginning of the month,
and she herself had personal experience of Helen's persuasive powers. She
listened to Ben's end of the conversation and was laughing to herself.  Helen
had used her powers to good effect, with the conversation ending and Ben
agreeing to think about it and discuss it with his colleagues.

“Oh, hell and damnation!” he muttered as he switched off the phone
and handed it back to Charis.  “You know what she wants?”

“Well, I can guess,” she chuckled. “She had me on her show about a
year ago. I actually enjoyed the experience.”

“And do you want to repeat it?” he asked.

“Well, no,” she admitted. “Once was enough.”

“Yes, well she wants me for a series. Apparently they're planning a
segment on women's health and she wants me for her resident gynaecologist.”

Charis erupted into peals of laughter.

“I'm glad you think it’s funny,” he said, a grumpy expression on his
face.

“You'll have to rely on your partners to refuse permission then.”

“Oh, I don't really have any faith in that. They're just as likely
to think its good advertising for St. Anne's and the Health Centre.” Which, of
course, is exactly what happened.

“Good idea, old boy,” said Graham when Ben told him about it. “Just
what we need! A little bit of exposure won't do us any harm.”

“Not for you,” retorted Ben. “Why don't you take my place?”

“Couldn't do that. I don't have a charming bedside manner and those
princely good looks.”

Ben threw a book at him. Graham caught it, placed it on the desk and
walked out of the room, grinning from ear to ear. And unfortunately for Ben,
the other partners agreed with Graham. Even the Senior Consultant at one of the
NHS hospitals seemed to think it was a good idea when he heard about it. Ben
had no notion how he’d found out, as he certainly wasn't going around
broadcasting the news. “Anything that encourages women to take their health
seriously, must be a good thing,” he told Ben.

Ben tried, unsuccessfully, to ignore the problem and get on with his
work but it continued to nag at him. He knew that Helen would be calling him
back soon, expecting to hear that he accepted her request. He also knew that if
he tried to refuse she wouldn't take no for an answer, but would pester him
until he finally gave in. He made up a list of all the doctors he thought would
do a better job or who had better “presence” than he felt he had, but it was to
no avail. When Helen got back to him she had arguments for every obstacle he
tried to put in her way until finally she had him cornered and he found himself
saying a very begrudging, “yes.”

The first show he was to appear in was still a week away so he
managed to put it to the back of his mind and pretend it didn't exist, but it
kept intruding at the most unexpected times and he continued to hope that
something would occur to stop it from happening altogether. Maybe the show
would be a flop and the channel would cancel the series. Maybe he would be
called away or have an emergency the day he was scheduled to appear. But of
course none of those things happened and the day finally arrived when he had to
present himself at the studio. He made Charis come with him “for support,” he
said. He knew Helen wouldn't mind.

In the end, in some ways, it wasn't as bad as he had feared. In
others, he found it very embarrassing. Helen introduced him at the beginning of
the show, told the viewers that he was, in fact, her doctor when she'd had her
twins and how wonderful he’d been with her. She listed all his qualifications
before she asked viewers to phone in or email any questions they had for him.
Then he returned towards the end of the show to answer those questions.

“Well firstly,” she told him, “We need to establish a couple of
basic things here. Seventy-one of our viewers want to know if you are married
and thirty-three have issued you marriage proposals.  Would you like to answer
them or should I?”

Ben shook his head in disbelief. He knew that Charis was watching
and he could feel her amusement.

Helen answered for him. “Well ladies,” she said, looking directly at
the camera, “Not only is he married, but he is married to one of the most
beautiful girls I know, so you don't stand a chance. Now that's out of the way,
let's get on to some serious questions, shall we?”

The serious questions turned out to be sensible and pertinent and
Ben was completely comfortable answering them and giving sound advice in a very
relaxed way. Helen closed the show by telling her viewers that Dr. Sinclair
would appear regularly, so questions could be sent in at any time and would be
answered in due course.

As soon as they were off camera she congratulated him. “You’re a
natural!” she exclaimed. “I just knew you would be. I can't wait for next time,”
and she gave him a hug.

Charis hurried up to him with a huge smile on her face. “She's
right,” she agreed with Helen. “You were really great.”

“You're just biased,” he said, putting his arm around her and
leading her towards the door. “Let's get out of here.”

The evening before he was due to appear on the second show, Helen
called to say there’d been a slight change of plan. “We’ve been inundated with
so many comments and questions about your segment,” she told him, “that we’ve
decided to give you the whole show to advise on all the letters we’ve
received.”

“Oh great,” he muttered as he got off the phone. “That's just what I
need! Instead of ten minutes, now I've got half an hour.”

Trying not to laugh, Charis answered him. “You'll be great. I
thought you were wonderful last time.”

And it turned out to be quite a good half hour. It started out with
Helen reading an e-mail sent in by a viewer.

“I was recently on a flight from Cairo to Heathrow, actually it was
at the end of May, nearly four months ago now, when a passenger went into
labour and had her baby during the flight. I’m sure that the doctor who
delivered the baby was your new guest gynaecologist. If I'm right, could you please
ask him if he knows what happened to the mother and baby?”

Ben tried to make his answer as short and concise as possible but
Helen asked questions until the whole story came out. He was happy to report
that he’d seen both of them just a couple of weeks later and that the baby was
thriving and the mother was well.

Over the next few weeks Ben's appearances went from strength to
strength. He was on every week on Friday afternoon and it was always a popular
segment. Some questions he refused to answer by telling the writer that they
needed to see their GP and be referred to a gynaecologist, or that he wasn't a
fertility expert, or for this specific problem they should go to a marriage
counsellor, and so on, but most problems he found could be solved quite easily
either with a doctor visit or the use of common sense, and he gave a lot of
very sound advice.

Of course, the amount of exposure he received was a two-edged sword.
It did bring attention to the importance of women taking care of themselves and
it was also excellent advertising for St. Anne's, but it meant that his face
became known and he was occasionally approached by strangers who would stop him
in the street and talk to him. And, of course, Mrs. Everett, now knew that her
next door neighbour was a doctor.

He ended up doing six shows in all, the last one early in November.
Helen announced to her audience that it would be Ben’s last appearance, but
promised to invite him back again next year when, once again, they would have a
series on women's health issues. The segment went well and then Helen read the
final letter.

“Dear Dr. Sinclair. I have two teenage daughters aged seventeen and fifteen.
The elder of the two is taking birth control pills and has been doing so since
she turned sixteen, eighteen months ago. Her younger sister now wants to be
allowed to take them, too. She will not be sixteen for another ten months. I
don’t want to allow her to do this, but neither do I want to see her get
pregnant. What is your advice? Both girls watch the show and have said they will
be guided by what you have to say. Signed, A Concerned Mother”

Ben was quiet for a few seconds. “What a responsibility,” he sighed.
Then he turned to Helen. “How would you like me to answer that? As a doctor or
on a personal level?”

“I really don't know,” she answered “Perhaps both?”

So Ben began. “Well firstly, this letter makes me sad. I find it sad
that these two girls are so eager to grow up and rush into adulthood. They’re
missing out on the precious years of youth when as teenagers, they should be
enjoying life with no responsibilities. Also, both they and their mother are
wrongly assuming two things; number one, that taking the pill is going to
guarantee that they will not get pregnant, and number two, that getting
pregnant is the worst thing that can happen as a result of sexual activity.
They are not taking into account STIs – Sexually Transmitted Infections - and
although taking the pill is a good form of contraception, it is still not one
hundred percent effective. There is only one way to ensure that they won't get
pregnant and won't get an STI and that is abstinence.

“On a personal level, I would be most distressed if I had daughters,
or if my sisters had wanted to be on the pill at such a young age. And I would
like to add something very personal, speaking as a husband. The first time my
wife and I were together it was the first time for her and it was the most
beautiful, precious gift she could have given me.

“So my advice to your daughters, Concerned Mother, and I know that
there will be a lot of young people who disagree with me, is that they wait
until they find someone they truly love, someone they are committed to, so if
their relationship results in having a child, that child will grow up in a
loving family home.”