She was proud of the sarcasm in her question – Carole couldn’t have done it better – but Jeremiah grinned, as if he’d anticipated her approach. ‘You know I don’t mean that, Jude. Not somewhere expensive, just somewhere accessible and welcoming. I’m talking about a centre staffed by serious practitioners.’

‘Ah, but how do you find them? And how do you check the authenticity of their “seriousness”? As you know, we’re talking about a professional area that is not very well policed. Anyone can wake up one morning, decide they’re going to be a healer or some other kind of therapist, put a brass plate on their door and wait for the gullible public to stream in.’

‘I’m well aware of that. I met my fair share of cowboy therapists in California, believe me. So, I think it’s essential that, as well as the unregulated ones, we get some people involved who have recognized qualifications. Quite a lot of GPs working in conventional medicine are open to the idea of alternative therapies, you know. The two are not so far apart. Doctor friend of mine, Bob Rawley, is very keen on the idea of co-operation between them. If the centre I’m trying to get going existed, he’d definitely be doing acupuncture there. And of course, he’d refer patients who he thought might benefit. Complementary medicine, I’m sure that’s the future.’

‘I don’t disagree. But I think you would have to be very careful about who you let in. It only takes one charlatan to unleash a storm of bad publicity and put the image of our profession back a couple of decades.’

‘I’m well aware of that. But I think we find the right practitioners by the same method as we currently do clients. Word of mouth, personal recommendation.’

‘It could take a long time.’

‘Yes, it could. But I’m thinking of the benefits of having a talented group of therapists all in touch with each other, exchanging new ideas, referring clients to each other …’

‘Hm,’ said Jude, hoping it didn’t sound too much like one of Carole’s ‘Hm’s. It was rarely that she was as sceptical as her neighbour, but this was fast becoming one of those occasions.

‘Look …’ Jeremiah almost sounded as though he were pleading ‘… I’m suggesting that we start in a small way and slowly build up the reputation of the place, until it becomes a recognized centre of excellence for alternative therapies.’

This plan sounded naïve to Jude, which rather surprised her, because Jeremiah hadn’t given her the impression of being a naïve person. ‘OK. That’s all very fine, but let’s face the biggest question: how do you fund such an enterprise?’