“Annie, I have to go. Charles is plying me with those luscious raspberry scones. Oh, I want to have a dinner party for Charlotte. Get as many girls as are available. I think having our group around will lift her spirits. You and Fergus will be here. Friday. Eight o’clock. Unless the two of you want to show up early. Fergus can help Charles in the kitchen, and you and I can sample the champagne. We wouldn’t want anyone getting sick, now would we?” Myra giggled at her own words.

“That’s an invitation I cannot refuse. Shall we come by at, say, six?”

“Six is perfect. If Charles needs Fergus here sooner, I’ll let you know.” After she got off the phone, Myra looked up at Charles, who nodded in agreement. He set down the tray of scones and poured his beloved her favorite tea.

“So, my dear. What exactly do you have in mind?” Charles took the seat across from Myra. “I can almost see those wheels turning.”

Myra reached for her pearls again. “I’m not quite sure. I think the dinner party and a few relaxing days here will cheer Charlotte up, raise her spirits, but I am definitely not happy about this large number of medications she referred to in her letter.”

“What did she say exactly, when you called her?” Charles leaned in closer to read the expression on Myra’s face.

“I’m not clear on it yet. The treatment hasn’t been approved by the FDA, but she is enrolled in some sort of trial. It’s like the Wild West of medicine. No rules to speak of.”

“Yes, apparently, one signs a waiver in those cases,” Charles chimed in.

“And, I’m willing to bet, all their money,” Myra snapped back.

“Now, love, before you get your vigilante pants in a knot, let’s see what else Charlotte has to say. Maybe she’s just feeling a little blue.”

“I do hope so, Charles. I really do. But something isn’t sitting right with me.”

Charles rolled his eyes.... He could feel a mission coming on.

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

London

After three days of arguing with her daughter, Maryann, Charlotte snapped her suitcases closed and eyed the collection of medicine bottles on the vanity. She had secretly stopped taking them after mailing her letter to Myra. It had been almost a week. Everything had been happening so fast, but she felt much better. Maybe it was the anticipation of visiting her friends, or maybe it was the absence of “supplements” coursing through her body. Either way, she hadn’t felt this lighthearted and alert in a long time.