Nigel Singh felt honoured to have the great Ellingham in his surgery. As for Louisa, he was smitten from the moment she walked in and flashed him one of her brightest smiles. He noticed how they looked at each other, how Louisa held Martin's hand for comfort and thought that they were very much in love. Whatever problems Martin might have had before with his infamous temper and imperious manner seemed to have disappeared. He was behaving just like any other anxious partner.
Nigel did Louisa's physical himself, not trusting anyone to do it to the demanding standards for which Martin was known. The physical complete, Louisa got dressed and re-joined Nigel and Martin. Martin offered to wait outside the consulting room, but Louisa begged him with her eyes to stay.
Nigel did not treat the visit as a social event. Briskly and efficiently, he settled down to getting as much information as possible from his patient.
"Louisa, everything checks out fine with your physical. I understand from Martin that you have some other issues. Tell me about your happy/sad episodes. Do you know why you have them?
Louisa felt a little wary about sharing the personal struggles of her life with a stranger. Yet when she felt Martin's hand holding hers and saw Dr. Singh's warm, kind eyes, she took the plunge and began her story.
"I'm not sure if what happened between Martin and myself goes back this far."
"Louisa, why not tell me as much as you want to share and we can make that assessment later."
She told him how her fainting spells began when she was about 11 after her mother abandoned her. They continued when her father left her alone for long periods. She would sit and worry waiting for his return from his gambling binges, sometimes after days at a time. Blacking out became her way of coping when faced with difficult situations she could not immediately process. As an adult, she sometimes had dizzy spells or fainted outright when she skipped meals, was anemic or worrying about something. She told him how she had been sad when James left for London, how difficult it had been for her when Nathan became ill and how his death had left her devastated.
"All of this made me worry all the time about people leaving me, and having to cope on my own. I was never a crier, but over the last few years, that's all I seem to do. Worry, cry, babble or stay by myself. I do have friends, and people are generally friendly, but sometimes I just want to be alone. And then I met Martin again. We got engaged on Christmas Day, and I'm not sure what happens next."
"Thanks you Louisa for sharing so much. My congratulations on your engagement."
Nigel looked at Martin and smiled by way of congratulations. Better late than never, he thought. Martin had served Medicine selflessly and with immense distinction. He could see how Louisa would be a wonderful partner for Martin. But back to my patient, he reprimanded himself.
"Louisa, why do you think your happy/sad episodes occur post-coital?"
"I'm not sure. I think it's because being intimate with Martin makes me so happy and then my old feelings about abandonment kicks in and I begin to worry if what we have will last."
Once she decided to talk about it, Louisa wasn't shy about opening up to Nigel with Martin present. She knew he had her best interest at heart. She had never really told him about her childhood so she appreciated the gentle squeezes he gave her when he felt she was faltering.
After listening quietly and scribbling notes as he went, Nigel told Louisa that a few sessions with a therapist would help her to deal with her feelings of loss and abandonment. He also, recommended some form of relaxation practice and a few supplements for the short terms. He asked her to return to see him a month after she had begun seeing the therapist.
"Please see the therapist as soon as possible."
Martin remembered Paul Milligan from Truro and suggested his name since his surgery was convenient for Louisa. Nigel was familiar with Dr. Milligan and shared with them that he had a practice in Truro, and in London, and had helped his sister to handle the sudden loss of their father.
Privately, with the consultation over and while Louisa had stepped aside to take a call from James, he told Martin, "That was a timely intervention. Good catch."
"I blame myself for proceeding so fast with our relationship. We only met each other last April."
"No blame necessary. The problem began in childhood."
When Louisa got off the call, Nigel introduced them to his practice manager who would contact Dr. Milligan's office for an appointment before they left.
Miss Williams made the appointment with Dr. Milligan's office for London, the following morning, at 10 am. When Dr. Milligan heard the name Martin Ellingham, he stuck his head out of his office to see if he was hearing right. When his practice manager told the person on the telephone that he could see Louisa in Truro, he mouthed, "No. I'll see her tomorrow, anytime." He gathered that Louisa and Martin were together at the surgery from which the appointment was being made. Milligan would have moved heaven and earth to have them in his surgery. No need for that, though, he was staying over in London for the weekend and could easily accommodate them.
He had married a pediatrician from Cornwall so he had stayed abreast of the Martin and Louisa saga for a time. Martin fascinated him. He admired him for overcoming the herculean obstacles life had thrown at him. He, more than anyone else, understood why Martin had left the village.
He had followed his career, and felt personal pride when the haemophobia was conquered and Martin was back at the pinnacle of his career. He had lost touch with Louisa and had always wondered what had become of their son. Now out of the blue, he would be meeting with them tomorrow.
Milligan had outgrown his boyish looks, somewhat. He now sported a hip, moderately graying ponytail secured by a thick elastic band, usually to match the colour he assigned to each day as his fancy took him. Saturday was a red day, he decided. He thought about it for a bit, and in the spirit of the day, selected his funky red clogs and red elastic band for his ponytail.
When they returned home, Louisa took Martin into her confidence. "I feel better already knowing that I'm not dying from some incurable disease."
"Not on my watch, you won't," he assured her with a playful kiss on the nape of her neck. He liked seeing glimpses of her neck every time she swung her ponytail from as far back as when he was living in the village.
Later, when they were getting dressed to attend the critically acclaimed modern adaptation of Norwegian playwright Henrico Ibsen's A Doll's House at the West End, she was positively purring. Martin told her that the production was one of many aimed at attracting a younger audience to the theatre, especially those from London's inner-city communities.
They were an attractive couple. Many eyes in the packed foyer discretely followed the strikingly tall, handsome grey haired man and his beautiful wife, they assumed, dressed in a red sheath that clung to her shapely body. She was glowing as she looked up at Martin with adoring eyes and he had his arms around her waist protectively as they followed the usher to their seats.
Louisa enjoyed the play immensely. They had the best seats in the house and with Martin's arm around her shoulder, she was in perfect bliss. She was intrigued by its exploration of the subservient role of women, especially in marriage. So antiquated, she thought. Her best spin was that everybody owed it to themselves to be true to who they are. She shuddered to think what might have happened if she hadn't thrown caution to the wind, gone against conventional wisdom, and decided to resume her relationship with Martin. She tugged at Martin's hand, gave it a soft squeeze and said, "I love you." He mouthed, "I love you too."
She had not been exposed to London's theatre productions, but for a couple shows while she was at uni in London. Martin had been a part of the cultural life of London since he was a boy and was comfortable with it. As they were leaving, a tall, thin graceful gentleman, who she later learned was the play's director, waved to Martin and walked towards them.
"Glad you could make it. Your investment was well placed."
Martin introduced Louisa to Bill as his fiancée and the mother of his son. Bill looked at her appreciatively and kissed her on the cheek.
"I hope Martin has told you about his philanthropic ventures. I guess you know that he's not all about surgery, even more so since James came into his life."
This was a surprise to Louisa and her face must have shown it. Bill asked them to follow him into a room backstage. It was small, minimally furnished and had a striking red accent wall filled with art. He took two photographs down and showed them to Louisa.
One was taken next to a huge billboard that read, Round in the Theatre. The other was at a reception. She looked at them closely. Both showed a relaxed, smiling Martin, glass in hand, in animated conversation.
When the theatre community saw that attendance was dwindling and that they needed to attract new, younger theatregoers, Bill had approached Martin to brainstorm solutions with him. He had met Martin years earlier when his teenage son had enrolled in a programme called Science Is Cool. Through some detective work, he discovered that Martin had been a founding board member and generous donor to the project since its inception.
Louisa's turned to Martin, "You never told me."
"He will only blow his trumpet under pain of death," Bill said gleefully, happy to out his friend for a good reason.
According to Bill, every summer The Centre staged special exhibits on various aspects of science for inner-city communities around London. The Science Is Cool project operates from a voluminous former warehouse space which the locals referred to as the Science Centre or just The Centre. Besides these special summer programmes, The Centre maintains a permanent collection on various sciences, including astronomy, medicine, biology, physics, chemistry, electronics and computers. You name it, The Centre had it.
Louisa again turned to Martin in astonishment. "Is it affiliated with the Science Museum?"
"No" he said with a smile. "Bill exaggerates. Our collection and focus is not in a zillion years near theirs. Ours is a modest community operation with a laser focus to engage and inspire teens and young adults."
Bill listened patiently to Martin trying to deflect attention from himself, then continued telling Louisa about the Science Is Cool project.
He told her that much of what The Centre featured were subjects of interest to Martin and which he was knowledgeable about. Martin's contribution was inestimable. He had created computer models for the exhibition spaces, kept an eye on their installation, vetted the wall texts and scripts for digital interactive media and was a regular presence, though he kept in the background, for talks and hands-on sessions The Centre hosted for its patrons. Though Martin preferred to work behind the scenes, many Saturdays, Bill said he would go over to The Centre when he wanted to find Martin and he would be there.
This was a side of Martin that Louisa would never have guessed. She knew he was a catholic and prolific reader, but out and about with grubby kids? Not in a millions years could she have imagined. For that she gave him a quick hug.
"I had seen first-hand, through my son, the dedication and knowledge Martin brought to the project. Because he's a great teacher, he got a lot of these young people fascinated about science. In fact, he used his vast network of contacts to get some of the more promising teens placed in specially created internships all over London to nurture their interest," Bill said.
When he had approached him, Martin had agreed to fund some of the expenses as seed money, set up an endowment fund and do for the theatre community what he had done for the Science Is Cool project – engage and inspire young minds.
"An Ibsen production is demanding work. Martin insisted that we do it right, especially because Ibsen is considered to be the father of modern drama and he wanted the young people to get that. This evening you saw how well the community responded to a quality production."
Before they went upstairs to bed that night, Louisa lay curled up in Martin's lap thinking about her amazing day that began with her visit to Nigel Singh and ended with her visit to the theatre at which she heard things about Martin which she had no idea about. Not even James had said anything to her about the Science Is Cool project.
"What happened why you got involved in the Science Is Cool project," she finally asked him.
"My involvement isn't all that unusual," he answered looking uncomfortable. "I'm a scientist, The Centre is not far from where I work and there was a clear need."
"I know. But why this project? I'm sure the hospital has many projects that you could have helped out with. Seems that it would have been far easier to do."
He looked at her for a long time, took a long jagged breath, before answering. "Uhm … It was my way of paying forward."
"Nice, but paying forward for what?" she prodded as he seemed reluctant to open up to her.
"I did it for… please Louisa …," he begged, too uncomfortable to say anymore.
"Not so fast, please answer me."
"I did it for all the people who helped to bring up James when I wasn't able. Many of the young people at The Centre have absentee fathers and I wanted to make up for that, somehow."
"What? Did I hear you right?"
"Yes you did and as I said, it's not a big deal," he said defensively, clearly misreading her response.
"Martin Ellingham, sometimes I can't believe how you have changed. That was a spectacular thing to have done."
She was even more pleased, if that were possible, when he told her that he had gotten James interested in the project and when he was able, he had brought some of his friends to volunteer.
"Mr. Ellingham, I'll have to do something special for you. I'm so pleased to learn about this side of you."
"Please dance with me. That's all the special I want." Martin asked.
Louisa noted that this was the second time since Christmas he had asked her to dance. What she didn't know was that Martin was an accomplished dancer having been groomed at his posh London public school to take his place in society. He hadn't danced in a million year, but with Louisa in his life again, he liked holding her close and moving with her to music which had brought him comfort when his world had seemed to be collapsing in on him. She had never danced with him before, not even in Portwenn when she had tried to entice him to go out with her.
"You're a dark horse, Martin," she whispered as she laced her arm around his neck and melted her body into his, swaying gently to the sound of U2's With Or Without You.
See the stone set in your eyes
See the thorn twist in your side
I wait for you
Sleight of hand and twist of fate
On a bed of nails she makes me wait
And I wait without you
With or without you
With or without you
"Didn't know you liked pop music," she teased appreciatively.
"I have James to thank for my appreciation of some of the good ones. Some are rubbish."
"We have a wonderful son, don't we?" she said as Martin pulled her tighter in agreement.