Minding Frankie - Maeve Binchy [77]
“Even Scrooge Harris can’t charge that much,” he said, nervously putting it in his wallet. Muttie Scarlet wasn’t happy about carrying huge sums of money like this, but he was even less happy still about handing it over it to this greedy man.
As it turned out, Dr. Harris turned out to be a kindly man. He was more than pleased to have Declan join them for the consultation.
“If I start talking medical jargon, Dr. Carroll can turn it into ordinary English,” he said with a smile.
“Declan is the first person who grew up on our street who became a professional man,” Muttie said proudly.
“That so? I was the first in my family to get a degree too. I bet they have a great graduation picture of you at home.” Dr. Harris seemed genuinely interested.
“It replaces the Sacred Heart lamp.” Declan grinned.
“Right, Mr. Scarlet, let’s not waste your time here while we go down memory lane.” Dr. Harris came back to the main point. “You’ve been to St. Brigid’s and they’ve given me a very clear picture of your lungs. There are no gray areas—it’s black-and-white. You have a large and growing tumor in your left lung and secondary tumors in your liver.”
Declan noted that there was a carafe of water on the desk and a glass. Dr. Harris poured one for Muttie, who was uncharacteristically silent.
“So, now, Mr. Scarlet, we have to see how best to manage this.”
Muttie was still wordless.
“Will an operation be an option?” Declan asked.
“No, not at this stage. It’s a choice between radiotherapy and chemotherapy at the moment and arranging palliative care at home or in a hospice.”
“What’s palliative care?” Muttie spoke for the first time.
“It’s nurses who are trained to deal with diseases like yours. They are marvelous, very understanding people who know all about it.”
“Have they got it themselves?” Muttie asked.
“No, but they have been well trained and they know a lot about it from nursing other people—what patients want and how to give you the best quality of life.”
Muttie thought about this for a moment. “The quality of life I want is to live for a long, long time with Lizzie, to see all my children again, to see the twins well settled in a business or good jobs and to watch my grandson Thomas Muttance Feather grow up into a fine young man. I’d like to walk my dog, Hooves, for years to the pub, where I meet my Associates, and go to the races about three times a year. That would be a great quality of life.”
Declan saw Dr. Harris remove his glasses for a moment and concentrate on cleaning them. When he trusted himself to speak again he said, “And you will be able to do a good deal of that for a time. So let’s look forward to that.”
“Not live for a long, long time, though?”
“Not for a long, long time, Mr. Scarlet, no. So the important thing is how we use what time is left.”
“How long?”
“It’s difficult to say exactly.…”
“How long?”
“Months. Six months? Maybe longer, if we’re lucky.…”
“Well, thank you, Dr. Harris. I must say you’ve been very clear. Not worth hundreds of euros, but you were straight and you were kind as well. How much exactly do I owe you?” Muttie took his wallet from his pocket and laid it on the desk.
Dr. Harris didn’t even look at it. “No, no, Mr. Scarlet, you were brought here by Dr. Carroll, a fellow doctor. There’s a tradition that we never charge fellow doctors for a consultation.”
“But there’s nothing wrong with Declan,” Muttie said, confused.
“You’re his friend. He brought you here. He could have gone to other specialists. Please accept this for what it is, normal procedure, and put that away. I will write my report and recommendations to Dr. Carroll, who will look after you very well.”
Dr. Harris saw them to the lift. Declan noticed him shake his head at the receptionist as she was about to present the bill and Declan breathed a little more easily. Now all he had to do was to keep Noel on the wagon and, more immediately, go home with Muttie and help him tell Lizzie.
Thank God Hat was able to keeps things going until he