by Anne Fraser
* * *
But it seemed as if she’d offered him a lift without the means to carry it through. Not wanting to drive down from Athens —she’d heard about the Peloponnese roads, especially the one that ran between here and the Greek capital—she’d taken a circuitous route; first an early morning flight, followed by a ferry and then two buses to the rental company In hindsight it would have been quicker and probably far less stressful to have flown into Athens.
And now she had a puncture. Thankfully the car did have a spare wheel. She jacked it up and found the wrench to loosen the bolts but they wouldn’t budge. No doubt they had rusted.
‘Problems?’
She whirled around to find Alexander standing behind her. He had showered and changed into light-coloured cotton trousers and a white short-sleeved shirt.
‘Puncture. I’m just changing the wheel. As soon as I get a chance, I’m going to exchange this heap for something better.’
The car the company had given her had more dents and bashes in it than a rally car after a crash. She would have insisted on a newer, more pristine model, but the company had said it was the only one they had available.
His lips twitched. He walked around the car, shaking his head. ‘They palmed this off on you?’
‘Yes, well, I was tired.’ She resented the fact that he thought she’d let herself be taken advantage of—even if she had.
‘Which company did you rent this from?’
She told him.
‘In that case, they have a branch in Katákolo, which isn’t too far from where we’re going.’
‘Will it be open on a Sunday?’
‘The cruise ships all offer day trips to Olympia from there. Like most places that cater for tourists, everything will be open. Once I’ve been jagged to your satisfaction I’ll make sure they exchange it for something better.’
‘I’m perfectly able to manage to sort it out myself.’ Did all Greek men think women were helpless?
He drew back a little, holding up his hands. ‘Hey. You’re helping me. And it’s not far from where we’re going.’
She was instantly ashamed of herself. He’d done nothing to warrant her snapping at him. It was hardly his fault that he made her feel like a schoolgirl with her first crush.
‘I’m sorry. It’s just that I’m a bit hot.’ She sought a better reason to excuse her behaviour, but apart from telling him that he found his company unsettling she couldn’t think of one. ‘In the meantime, I still have to change the wheel.’ She picked up a rock and hit the wrench. Nothing. No movement. Not even a centimetre.
He crouched down next to her, the muscles of his thighs straining against the material of his trousers. ‘Let me do it.’
‘I can manage. At least I would if the things weren’t stuck.’
He took the wrench from her. ‘It just needs a little strength.’
‘You shouldn’t. Not with your hand recently sutured.’
He ignored her and within moments the nuts were off the wheel. He took the flat tyre off and silently she passed him the spare.
‘I probably loosened them.’ He looked up at her and grinned. ‘I’m sure you did.’ He lifted the new wheel into position and replaced the bolts.
‘Thank you,’ she said. ‘I can take it from here.’
He stood back and watched as she lowered the car to the ground.
‘I’ll just tighten the bolts again,’ he said, ‘then we’ll be good to go. Would you like me to drive?’
‘No, thank you.’
* * *
Despite the open windows the car was hot; unsurprisingly, the air-conditioning didn’t work either. Katherine gripped the steering-wheel, trying not to flinch whenever a car overtook her, the vehicle often swerving back in just in time to avoid being smashed into by another coming in the opposite direction. Perhaps she should have taken Alexander up on his offer to drive? But if he drove the same way as his countrymen did, being a passenger would be ten times worse. She preferred being in control.
Eventually the countryside gave way to denser traffic and by the time Alexander directed her to a parking spot in front of the surgery she was a nervous wreck, her hands were damp and she knew her hair was plastered to her scalp. She was beginning to appreciate why the car the company had given her was badly dented.
He looked relieved as he undid his seat belt. ‘This won’t take long but why don’t you go for a walk while you’re waiting?’
‘If you’re going to be quick I might as well come in with you.’ She was curious to see how the medical services in Greece worked.
While Alexander greeted the receptionist, Katherine took a seat in the small waiting room next to an elderly woman with a bandage on her knee and clutching a walking stick. Alexander turned to her and said something in Greek that made her laugh.
‘Mrs Kalfas is waiting for her husband to collect her,’ he explained to Katherine, ‘so I can go straight in. I won’t be long.’
A few moments after Alexander disappeared from sight, a man in his early to mid-twenties, staggered in and, after saying a few words to the receptionist, almost fell into one of the empty chairs. He was good-looking with dark curly hair, a full mouth and olive skin, but his jeans and checked shirt were stained and crumpled as if he’d picked them up off the bedroom floor, too ill to care. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes, when he managed to open them briefly, glittered with fever. Perhaps she should have gone for that walk. All doctors knew that hospitals and GP waiting rooms were bad news for the healthy.
Mrs Kalfas tried to strike up a conversation with him, but he appeared to have little interest in whatever she was saying. Warning bells started to clamour in Katherine’s head as she studied him covertly from under her eyelids. Now she wondered if his eyes were closed because the light was annoying him—and the way he kept pressing his hand to the back of his neck as if it were sore alarmed her too. He really didn’t look well at all. The receptionist should have let the doctors know that he was here.
Katherine was about to suggest it when he gave a loud moan and slid to the floor. Instantly she was on her feet and, crouching by his side, feeling for his pulse. It was there but weak and rapid. She glanced around but annoyingly there was no sign of the receptionist. Mrs Kalfas was staring, horrified.
‘I need some help here,’ Katherine called out. ‘Alexander!’
The door behind which he’d vanished was flung open and Alexander, followed by a short, balding, overweight man with a stethoscope wrapped around his neck, rushed over and knelt by Katherine’s side.
‘What happened?’ Alexander asked.
‘He came in a few minutes ago. I was just about to suggest he be taken through when he collapsed. He’s been rubbing his neck as if it’s painful or stiff. We should consider meningitis.’
Alexander and his colleague exchanged a few words in rapid Greek and the other doctor hurried away.
The man on the floor groaned softly. The receptionist reappeared and came to stand next to Mrs Kalfas, placing a comforting arm around the older woman. Alexander said something to the younger woman and she hurried back to her desk and picked up the phone.
‘It could be a number of things but to be on the safe side Carlos—Dr Stavrou—is going to get a line so we can start him on IV antibiotics,’ Alexander told Katherine. ‘Diane is phoning for an ambulance.’
Carlos returned and ripped open a pack and handed Alexander a venflon. He quickly inserted it into a vein and, taking the bag of saline from his colleague, attached one end of the tube to the needle. When Katherine held out her hand for the bag of saline, Alexander passed it to her and she held it up so that the fluid could flow unimpeded. In the meantime, Alexander had injected antibiotics straight into one of the stricken patient’s veins.
As Katherine placed an oxygen mask over his face, she was
vaguely aware that the receptionist had returned and along with Mrs Kalfas was watching intently. Alexander whirled around and spoke rapidly to the receptionist. He translated her reply for Katherine.
‘Diane says the ambulance will be here shortly. She’s agreed to take Mrs Kalfas home instead of making her wait for her husband. Seeing she’s had a bit of a fright, I think it’s better.’
Katherine was impressed with the way he’d considered the old woman, even in the midst of an emergency. Their patient was still unconscious but apart from keeping an eye on his airway there was little more they could do until the ambulance arrived. They couldn’t risk taking him in a car in case he arrested.
‘You have a defib to hand?’ she asked.
‘Naturally.’
She wondered what had caused the man to collapse. A number of possibilities ran through her head, meningitis being one, but without further tests it was impossible to know. All they could do now was stabilise him until they got him to hospital.
Diane picked up her handbag and helped the old lady out. Soon after, the ambulance arrived and the paramedics took over. They spoke to Alexander before quickly loading the patient into the ambulance.
‘Should one of us go with him?’ Katherine asked.
‘No need. Carlos wants to go. He’s his patient.’
The ambulance doors were slammed shut and it drove away, sirens screaming.
‘Are you all right?’ Alexander asked.
‘Perfectly. Could you make sure they test him for meningitis?’
‘Bit of a leap, isn’t it? Carlos said Stefan—the patient—is not only accident prone but there’s a few bugs doing the rounds. Besides, I didn’t see any signs of a rash.’
‘Trust me. Communicable diseases are my area of expertise and that young man has all the signs—sensitivity to light, fever, neck pain. The rash could appear at any time.’ Alexander studied her for a moment. ‘It couldn’t hurt to do a lumbar puncture. I’ll phone the hospital and make sure they do all the tests. At least he’s been started on IV antibiotics. In the meantime, I’m afraid we’re going to have to wait here until Carlos returns. Is that okay?’
‘Sure.’ She smiled at him. ‘You can show me around while we wait.’
The practice was as well equipped as any Katherine had seen. In addition to four consulting rooms, one for each of the doctors, one for the nurses and one for their physio, there was an X-ray room and a sleek, spotlessly clean treatment room. All the equipment was modern and up to date.
‘You appear to be almost as well set up as a small hospital,’ Katherine said, impressed.
‘We never know what we’re going to get, so we like to be prepared for the worst. We have, as you can imagine, a fair share of road traffic accidents on these roads and sometimes people bring the casualties here as it’s closer than the hospital.’ Not quite the small family practice she’d imagined.
‘We don’t do much more than stabilise them and send them on,’ Alexander continued, ‘but it can make the difference between survival and death.’
‘You have advanced life-support training, then?’
‘Yes. We all do. It also helps that I used to be a surgeon.’ He picked up the phone. ‘Would you excuse me while I phone the hospital?’ he said. ‘I need to tell them to watch out for meningitis, as you suggested, and Carlos was telling me earlier that one of my patients was admitted there last night. I’d like to find out how he’s doing.’
‘Be my guest,’ Katherine replied. As she waited for him to finish the call she studied him covertly from under her lashes. The more she learned about him the more he intrigued her. So he used to be a surgeon. What, then, had brought him to what, despite the expensive and up-to-date equipment, was still essentially a rural family practice? Had he come back here because of his wife? And how had she died? Had she been a road traffic victim?
While he’d been talking on the phone, Alexander’s expression had darkened. He ended the phone call and sat lost in thought for a while. It was almost as if he’d forgotten she was there.
‘Something wrong?’ she asked.
‘The patient Carlos was telling me about has been transferred to a hospital in Athens. The hospital doctor who admitted him yesterday sent him there this morning, but he’s left to go fishing and can’t be reached. None of the staff on duty today can tell me anything.’ He leaned back in his chair. ‘I’ll speak to him tomorrow and find out why he felt a transfer was necessary.’ He shook his head as if to clear it. ‘But I have spoken to the doctor on call today about Stéfan. She’s promised to do a lumbar puncture on him.’
‘Good,’ Katherine said.
‘So what is your thesis on?’ Alexander asked.
‘As I said, communicable diseases. Mainly African ones.’
‘What stage of your training are you?’
She raised an eyebrow. ‘Consultant. Have been for four years. I’m thinking of applying for a professor’s post. Hence the doctorate.’
He whistled between his teeth. ‘You’re a consultant! You don’t look old enough.’
‘I’m thirty-four.’
They chatted for a while about her work and different infectious diseases Alexander had come across in Greece. Caught up in discussing her passion, she was surprised when she heard footsteps and Carlos came in. She’d no idea so much time had passed.
‘How is our patient?’ Alexander asked in English, after formally introducing her to his partner.
‘His blood pressure had come up by the time I left him in the care of the emergency team at the hospital. They’ll let me know how he is as soon as they’ve done all the tests.’
‘Will you let me know when they do?’
‘Of course.’
Alexander pushed away from the desk and stood. He smiled at Katherine. ‘In that case, let’s go and swap that car of yours.’
* * *
The car rental company did have another car for her, but it wouldn’t be available until later that afternoon.
Katherine turned to Alexander. ‘I’m sure you want to get home. Isn’t there another rental company in the area?’
‘I suspect you’ll find the same thing there. The cruise ships come in in the morning and a lot of the passengers—those who don’t want to take the bus tour to Olympia—hire a car for the day. They tend to bring them back around four.’
‘Damn. That’s three hours away.’
‘We could have lunch,’ he suggested. ‘Or, if you’re not hungry, we can go to Olympia ourselves. It’s years since I’ve been and it’s less than thirty minutes from here. By the time we get back, Costa here should have a car for you.’ He smiled. ‘You’re in Greece now. You’ll find life a lot easier if you accept that here time works in a different zone.’
She hid a sigh. She should be getting back to her thesis. By taking the morning off she risked falling behind the schedule she’d mapped out for herself.
Whoa—what was she thinking? Had she completely lost it? He was right. What was the hurry anyway? It was Sunday and an interesting, single hunk was wanting to spend time with her.
‘I would love to see Olympia,’ she said. And she would. It was near the top of her list of places to visit. It would also be less intense, less like a date, than having lunch.
‘Good. That’s settled, then.’ He opened the passenger door for Katherine. She looked at him and arched an eyebrow.
‘I think it will be less stressful—and safer for us all—if I drive,’ he said. ‘I know the roads better.’
She hesitated, then broke into a smile. ‘To be honest, if I never have to drive that heap of scrap again it would be too soon. So be my guest. Knock yourself out.’
* * *
It wasn’t long before she was regretting her decision—and her words. As far as she was concerned, Alexander drove just like eve
ry other Greek driver.
‘When I said knock yourself out,’ she hissed, ‘I didn’t mean literally.’
He laughed. ‘Don’t worry. I promise you driving this way is safer.’
Nevertheless, she was hugely relieved when they arrived still in one piece. Alexander found a space in the crowded car park.
‘There are two parts to the site—the ruins of the ancient city and the museum. I suggest we start off in the museum, which is air-conditioned.’ He glanced at her appraisingly and his lips twitched. She was wearing navy trousers and a white cotton blouse with a Peter Pan collar, which, she had to admit, while neat and professional were almost unbearably hot. ‘It’ll be cooler by the time we’re finished. If I remember correctly, there is very little shade in the ruins.’
She wandered around the exhibits, trying to concentrate but not really able to. She was too acutely aware of the similarity between the physiques of the naked statues and the man close by.
When they’d finished in the museum they walked across to the ruins. Although it was cooler than it had been earlier, it was still hot and almost immediately she felt a trickle of perspiration gather between her breasts. Alexander, on the other hand, looked as fresh and as cool as he’d done since they’d left the village.
As he pointed out the temples of Zeus and Hera, Katherine began to relax. Perhaps it was because, away from the statues, she could concentrate on what Alexander was saying. He knew a great deal about Greek history and was an easy and informative guide and soon she was caught up in his stories about what life must have been like during the Ottoman era.
When they’d finished admiring the bouleuterion, where the statue of Zeus had once stood, he led her across to the track where the athletes had competed. ‘Did you know they competed in the nude?’
Instantly an image of Alexander naked leaped into her head and blood rushed to her cheeks. She hoped he would think it was the heat that was making her flush but when she saw the amusement in his eyes she knew he was perfectly aware what she’d been thinking.
