Ariadne sat in Dr Makaris’s little waiting room in the health centre with a heavy heart. He had trained in America and returned to his birthplace to put into practice much of what he had learnt abroad, so she had every faith in his judgement.
‘We’ll go in together, Hebe. I have some questions to ask the doctor.’
‘Why are we here?’ Hebe asked. ‘My headache is better. I don’t want to waste his time.’
‘Don’t you remember we had a fire last night? There was a lot of smoke, so I want him to check your chest and blood pressure. You’ve been a bit forgetful lately.’
‘Did we burn anything?’ Hebe looked out of the window, distracted by a passing truck. ‘I wonder where he’s going.’
Ariadne saw it was full of rubbish, the contents of their kitchen by the look of it. ‘I don’t know, dear.’
It was a relief to get into the consulting room and to see the smiling face welcoming them. Dr Makaris’s English had an American drawl. ‘I don’t see you very often, do I? How are things? I heard about the fire. Have you got anywhere to stay?’
‘We’re at the retreat. They’re empty at the moment,’ Ariadne replied.
‘So, how can I help?’
Ariadne explained her concerns while Hebe stared at the picture on the wall. ‘Have we been to Santorini?’ Hebe asked.
Dr Makaris watched her intently. ‘Tell me, Kyria Hebe, how are you feeling?’
‘What?’ she replied, not looking at him.
‘What happened yesterday? Tell me all about it.’
‘Nothing. We went for a walk. I was tired. Ariadne went out somewhere and I went to bed, but my head is better now.’
The doctor looked Ariadne. ‘How long has Kyria Hebe been like this?’
‘About three months, but lately there’s been a few worrying episodes and she’s forgotten the fire. She told me she came down to make tea and I think she left a lighted match or something. Thank goodness the gas wasn’t on high.’
‘I see,’ he said. ‘I think we should do some little tests.’ He brought a pack of animal pictures out of a drawer and asked, ‘What day is it today?’
Hebe shrugged. ‘Ariadne will know, but it’s Christmas soon.’
He placed the pictures on the table. ‘Look at these pictures, but take your time.’
Hebe stared at them and smiled. ‘I like dogs and cats.’
‘Now I’m going to cover them with paper for a minute. Then you can tell me what they all were.’
Hebe looked at Ariadne. ‘Why? I’m not a child. Why is he asking me these silly questions?’
‘So what pictures did you see?’ he asked. ‘Can you tell me their names?’
‘I like dogs,’ Hebe said.
‘Good. And the other pictures?’
‘What others? I only saw the dog.’
Ariadne felt tears in her eyes. How could such a clever teacher be reduced to this? She shook her head in dismay.
‘Can we go now? Why are we wasting the doctor’s time?’ Hebe stood up. The doctor pressed a button.
‘Let my wife give you a little lemonade, while I talk to Kyria Ariadne.’ His wife, Caliope, appeared in her nurse’s uniform to guide Hebe towards their apartment.
‘Is it what I fear?’ Ariadne said.
‘I’m afraid so, but we must do more checks. Sometimes an underlying cause makes someone forgetful. Does she have double vision or dizziness?’
‘You mean a brain tumour? She does get headaches and is sometimes a little dizzy, but she’s not herself any more. She can’t make decisions and depends on me for everything.’ Ariadne began to weep. ‘We’ve been together for forty years and to lose her to dementia…’
‘It may not be that. Only scans can show this, but that will mean a trip to Heraklion or Athens for a fuller diagnosis.’
‘Wherever,’ Ariadne said, with a sigh. ‘How soon can we go?’
‘As soon as I can arrange it. Prepare to stay for as long as it takes. They will have all the right tests and she will be in good hands.’
‘Thank you. We’ll wait for an appointment and I’ll make the arrangements. Pity it’s so close to Christmas. Everything seems to be going wrong for us.’
‘The best-laid plans “gang aft agley”,’ he replied.
Ariadne looked at him in surprise. ‘Robbie Burns. How did you know?’
He smiled. ‘I roomed with a Scotsman in Boston. He was a Burns fanatic. Now, don’t worry, we’ll get to the bottom of your friend’s problem.’
‘That’s what I’m afraid of. I fear the worst and what may come next.’ Ariadne felt more tears coming.
‘All in good time, siga, siga… slowly, slowly… We will wait and see.’
Ariadne shook his hand. ‘I’ll try to take it slowly.’ She didn’t want Hebe to see her upset, so she straightened her face and took a deep breath. Onwards and upwards, old girl, but it was hard when her heart was leaden with despair.