“Myra and Charlotte can distract them while I go to their apartment and pick that safe,” Annie exclaimed with gusto.
Hoots and laughter bellowed through the phones. “If anyone can do this, we certainly can!” Myra said.
“Do we have our endgame planned yet?” Nikki asked.
“We need to find out what Marcus is up to and what’s on that property. We’re working on our plot for Corbett, and with the information from Avery about Steinwood, I’m formulating an idea,” Myra said.
“That’s my cheeky girl! If we can gather the missing pieces, we should be able to accomplish this very soon,” Charles interjected. “Should we alert Pearl?”
“We still have a few more loose ends, but yes, we can let her know we will be needing her help.” Myra continued, “Kathryn? Can you let her know?”
Kathryn groaned. “Sure. Okay.” She still had a thing with Pearl, and it was not necessarily a good thing. Myra kept assigning Kathryn to Pearl, hoping they could mend fences.
Charles wrapped up the conference call, informing them they would reconnect the following evening, after Myra, Annie, and Charlotte had met with Marcus. Perhaps Eileen would have more info by then, as well.
* * *
The next morning Byron served up a typical English breakfast for the women. “I didn’t know your schedule and wanted to be sure you were well nourished before you left.”
“Do all English gentlemen have a knack for food? I never thought of the British as being culinary experts,” Charlotte remarked.
“They. Are. Not. It doesn’t take a lot of expertise to fry up bacon, mash potatoes, and spoon out jam.” Annie laughed. “Take it from me. That’s the only wizardry Fergus can conjure in a kitchen.”
They helped themselves to the buffet and chatted about the day ahead.
Charlotte was getting giddy again. “What if I blow it? I might burst out laughing at some point.”
“We’ll blame it on the drugs!” Annie smiled devilishly.
“You can do this.” Myra placed her hand on Charlotte’s. “You don’t really have to say anything. Just remember to turn on the recording device on your phone. Obviously, without Dr. Marcus seeing you.”
“What about the shot?” Charlotte asked. “I don’t know what it was, and I absolutely do not want to get another one.”
“Just simply tell him you want to skip it,” Myra suggested.
“I don’t think he’ll go for that. He’ll want his five thousand dollars,” Charlotte said, dismayed.
“Not if he thinks he’s going to make triple that from enrolling us in his protocol,” Annie said smugly. “We’ll support you. Don’t worry. Another idea is to ask him if you can take it with you. Jessica is a registered nurse. You can tell him she’ll administer the shot.”
“That might work. I think the most important thing to him is the money. Remember, we’ll be right there. If he tries to bully you, which I doubt, or pressure you, we’ll step in,” Myra said reassuringly.
Charlotte gave a sigh of relief.
Byron entered the dining room and asked if there was anything else they wanted or needed. All said, “No, thank you.” He bowed and retreated into the kitchen.
The women stood and formed a small circle, holding hands.
“We can do this.” Annie spoke softly.
Charlotte and Myra responded, “Amen!”
Then came the high fives!
A chime from the doorbell indicated their car was waiting. They were on their way to see the Live-Life-Long practitioner and edge their way into his circle of dupes.
* * *
Dr. Julian Marcus was beside himself with delight. The Countess Anna de Silva was coming to his office! And she was bringing her friend, another well-heeled, monied sixtysomething-year-old woman. He thought perhaps his luck was finally changing for the better. He was almost giddy. He checked his watch for the zillionth time. Only thirty minutes to go! He could barely contain his excitement.
A half hour later, when the buzzer sounded, he almost jumped out of his skin. They’re here! He pulled out a small handheld mirror and checked his balding head one more time. Good. No sweating. He patted it with his handkerchief just in case. He cleared his throat and, trying to sound nonchalant, said, “Yes, Gloria?” A slight pause, then, “Please show them in.”
Gloria rapped softly on the door. Even that tiny sound made Marcus jump. A great deal was at stake. Regaining Charlotte Hansen and adding the countess and Mrs. Rutledge? His hands began to sweat. He wiped them on his trousers as discreetly as possible.
“Charlotte! I am delighted you’ve returned. So good of you to bring your friends,” he said. If nothing else, his tone of voice was suitable. He extended his hand to her and quickly moved toward Annie. “Oh, and Countess. This is a wonderful honor to meet you. And Mrs. Rutledge. I’ve heard marvelous stories of your philanthropy. Please do sit down.” He motioned to the comfortable seating area across from his desk.
Addressing his audience, Marcus began, “Has Charlotte told you much about our program?”
“Nothing in great detail, except that she feels so much better every time she leaves your office.” Myra faked it well. “That’s one of the reasons why we’re here.”
Annie broke in. “I will be staying in London for . . . Well, I’m really not sure. They are redecorating my place here. Charlotte spoke so highly of you that we decided to make it a girls’ trip and drag Charlotte back!”
Marcus started beaming. “I am very happy to hear this. Let’s begin, shall we?” He looked down at the brochures on his desk. “We will discuss what areas are your primary concerns. Is it memory? Fatigue? Balance? Concentration? And so forth. Once we identify the target areas, we formulate a program for you to follow. That includes taking supplements specifically compounded for you—”
Myra interrupted. “You are saying that the supplements are individually compounded according to my body’s needs?”
“Precisely.” Dr. Marcus leaned back and laced his fingers across his chest, but then he thought better of his body language and sat up straight. “We do a blood workup, urine sample, and saliva. It’s all done right here, so you don’t have to go to a clinic.” He sat up even taller. “And we also supply you with the supplements, so you don’t have to go to a pharmacy.” He was giving that “See what a great deal this is?” look.
“Why, that’s marvelous,” Myra cooed. “You make the treatments sound so easy. I much prefer not to have my personal business spread all over town.” She was pouring it on thick. “I also like your office. It is well designed and comfortable.”
“Well, thank you very much. My partners and I put a lot of thought into it.” Marcus beamed.
“I can only imagine,” Annie said with a perfectly straight face.
“Indeed,” Myra echoed. She looked over at Charlotte to make sure she wasn’t going to faint. Or laugh.
“So, what’s the next step?” Annie asked coyly.
“If you have time today, we can begin the tests. Our lab will have the results back in twenty-four hours, so you’ll be able to begin as soon as two days from now.”