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.”

“You can compound supplements in twenty-four hours?” Myra acted surprised.

“Yes. That is another great service we offer. Almost immediate delivery. The lab works twenty-four hours a day. We have three shifts.” Marcus was trying to recover from his close encounter with a misstep. “It’s up in Yorkshire. Small shop.” He realized he should simply shut it and move on.

“And what are the fees?” Myra asked.

“It averages around twenty-five thousand dollars a month.” Marcus held his breath, waiting for a response.

“Well, if it works, then it’s for me!” Annie gushed.

“If it’s good enough for Annie, who am I to say no?” Myra chimed in.