Free Beyond Death by Deb McEwan Page A

wasn’t half the man that my husband was. I’ll regret it for the rest of my life and now Ron’s gone and I can never tell him how sorry I am.’ She started crying and Marion reached out to comfort her. She knew what it was like to be the wronged woman, but was determined not to judge Val. Nobody knew what went on inside a marriage except the married couple and though Val had made a mistake, Marion could see that it was now destroying her. Val stopped crying and looked at her new friend.
    ‘He died of a heart attack the same night as Ron died. Ron dying was my punishment and I’ll never forgive myself.’
    Marion gasped.
    ‘How tragic and how awful for you.’ Marion squeezed her hand. ‘You can’t blame yourself, Val. It’s a horrible coincidence yes, but not your fault.’
    ‘But it must be. If I wasn’t having an affair Ron wouldn’t have been on night shift and would never have died, and neither would Ken.’
    ‘It was their time, Val. They would have died that day whatever they’d been doing. That’s the way it is. Not easy to hear or understand, but that’s life I’m afraid. It wasn’t your fault.’ She smiled weakly.
    ‘You really believe that? That there was nothing I could have done to prevent Ron’s death, or Ken’s? Ken wasn’t half the man that Ron was and I don’t know what I saw in him. I’m so sorry.’ The last was said to herself.
    ‘Listen, you can’t change anything, Val. You need to try and move on.’ Marion knew that she should take her own advice but for the moment, felt an overwhelming need to comfort her new friend.
    The irony wasn’t lost on Val.
    ‘Talk about the blind leading the blind,’ said Val.
    They looked out of the window as a person dressed as a clown walked by. The clown seemed out of place among the casually dressed shoppers in the Mall and the women did a double take and looked at each other, the bizarre sight lightening their mood. Marion’s eyes twinkled and her smile turned into a giggle. Val chuckled and both women erupted into fits of laughter, releasing the tension of the previous months. Other patrons looked toward the booth in the corner and when Marion stood to make her way to the toilets, were surprised to see a middle-aged woman and not a youngster.
    They both felt better for crying, laughing and talking and sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes on Marion’s return. An idea had been forming in Val’s head and she decided to run it by her new friend. At worst she would say no, but there was a chance that she might go along with it.
    ‘Marion?’
    ‘Yes.’
    ‘You know you said you want to get away and do something?’
    Marion leaned forward, curious.
    ‘Well, have you heard of the charity People Against Poverty?’
    ‘Hasn’t everyone?’ Marion had seen the TV adverts requesting funds, the mental images of the poor children that had disappeared because of her own personal grief, now returned.
    ‘Well,’ said Val. ‘Would you consider working for them?’
    ‘I haven’t really thought about doing something like that.’
    ‘We could maybe do it together. Doing something for charity would make me feel better about myself and I would be happier if I had company. You seem to be at a loose end and we could really make a difference...’
    Val stopped, and wondered if she’d made a mistake. Marion seemed to be looking at something in the far distance and Val wasn’t sure whether she was still paying attention. She couldn’t wait any longer.
    ‘Well?’
    ‘Do you know,’ Marion smiled. ‘That might just be the saving of me. When do we start?’
    They chatted for a little longer about their families, the unfairness of life, but mostly about the opportunities ahead. The time flew and when the waitress asked if they’d like to order food they decided it was time to leave. They swapped telephone numbers and email addresses and Val said she’d do further research and let Marion know the outcome.
    ‘I’m not going to say anything