Authors: Maeve Binchy
The church was crowded when Gertie, her mother and her children arrived. Some of Jack's family, long-estranged, had turned up, with dark suits and white shirts and awkward handshakes. Gertie, pale and wearing the black dress she had borrowed from Hilary, walked up the aisle looking proudly from side to side at all the people who had come to say goodbye to Jack. At least now he might know that he had worth in people's eyes. Surely he was somewhere where he could see all this.
The Mass had only just begun when Sheila Maine and her two children came up and joined the family. A little ripple of approval went through the church. The relatives had flown in from America, a further sign that Gertie was being honoured and made much of.
Ria, Annie and Brian slipped into a bench a little further back. 'My God,' Nora Johnson said to Hilary. 'Ria came back. Isn't she a great girl.' Danny Lynch saw his wife and children. He bit his lip. It must have been hard to organise, Ria was certainly a loyal friend. Colm Barry saw them too. Ria looked magnificent, he thought, tanned, slimmer, holding herself taller somehow. He had known she would try to be here even though she wasn't meant to be back today. She and Gertie went back a long way.
Polly Callaghan sat by herself. She averted her eyes from the pew where Barney McCarthy sat with his wife. If Mona saw Polly in the church she gave no sign or acknowledgement, any more than she ever had.
Rosemary had dressed carefully for the occasion as always. A grey silk dress and jacket, very high heels and dark stockings. She was most surprised to see Ria and the children, nobody had told her they were coming back. But then she realised with a start there were few people to tell her anything. Apart from Ria herself, she didn't seem to have any friends any more.
Frances Sullivan stared ahead of her as her husband's deep rich voice sang 'Panis Angelicus'. She knew how much it cost him to do this. He had despised Jack Brennan and felt that singing this hymn was in some way letting him win.
Ria looked around the church to see could she identify Marilyn. She wasn't beside Rosemary, or Colm, or near Ria's mother. But surely one of them would have taken her under a wing. Ria couldn't concentrate on the prayers, she looked at the bouquets and wreaths all sent by people who had nothing but scorn for the deceased.
Where was Marilyn Vine?
It was when the congregation was singing 'The Lord's My Shepherd' that Ria saw her. Taller than she would have thought, auburn-haired from the Special Shampoo bottle, and wearing a simple navy dress. She was holding up the hymn sheet and singing along with the rest. Just at that moment she looked up and saw Ria looking at her. They gave each other a great smile across the crowded church. Two old friends meeting each other at last.
The sun was shining, the unexpected gales and rainstorms of the night before had blown away. The people stood and talked outside the church, a Dublin funeral where there weren't enough minutes in the hour for people to say what they wanted to say.
Ria was being embraced and welcomed home by everyone. She broke free to hug Gertie.
'You're such a true friend to come back early,' Gertie said.
'We travelled with Sheila and the children, we didn't notice the journey. And they'll be staying with you?'
'Yes, yes, we have the rooms ready. It's such a pity that they had to come for this reason, isn't it? I mean Jack would love to have welcomed them here again.'
Ria looked at Gertie with shock. She realised that history was being rewritten here. There was no longer any need to pretend to Sheila that everything had been wonderful with Jack. Gertie had bought the story herself, she really thought it had been a great marriage.
Danny looked curiously like someone on the outside. Not the man who used to dart from group to group, shaking this hand, slapping that shoulder. Ria told herself that she must not think about him and care what became of him. He was not part of her life, the notion that they could go back to the old life was only in her head. She stood looking at him across the crowds. Soon the children would spot him and run over. But she would make no move. This is the way it was always going to be.
Annie had gone to talk to Marilyn, to introduce her new friend Sean Maine, to talk about Westville. Brian had gone to his grandmother to tell her about Zach's visit next summer. Ria could hear him. 'We might be living on a halting site then but he's coming anyway,' Brian's clear, carrying tones were explaining.
Hilary was trying to tell Ria all about the move. They would leave in the autumn and settle in. Martin's post would begin in January. Ria couldn't quite understand where they were going.
'You'll come and stay, RiaGCa lotsGCa won't you? It's full of trees. Like the fortune-teller said.'
'Yes, yes of course.' She was bewildered. There were too many people around, too much was going on.
'IGCOll give you twenty-four hours to get over your jet lag and then you start working for me,' Colm said. 'You look absolutely beautiful by the way.'
'Thank you, Colm.' She thought she saw something of the admiring look that had been in Andy Vine's eye, but she shook off the notion. She must not lose her marbles now and think everyone was fancying her.
Rosemary didn't come over, which was odd. She stood, a little like Danny stood, on the outside of a crowd where she knew many people. Ria went up to her, arms open wide. She saw Rosemary looking a little uneasily over her shoulder. Ria turned to follow her glance. Marilyn Vine had paused in her conversation with Annie and was watching them. Very carefully.
'Are you going to the graveyard?' Ria asked Rosemary.
'God no, here's bad enough.'
'Gertie's so pleased to see everyone,' Ria said.
'I know, and she's been on the phone to the Vatican to organise his canonisation too. Believe me, Ria, that is not beyond the bounds of possibility.'
Ria laughed. 'God, it's good to be back,' she said, putting her arm into Rosemary's. 'Tell me, was it a good summer?'
'No, it was a bloody awful summer one way and another.'
'You're so good to put so much effort into getting me started up,' Ria said. 'I really do appreciate it.'
'Least I could do,' Rosemary said gruffly, looking over at Marilyn Vine again.
'It's a really beautiful house, Marilyn,' Annie said. 'You never told us how great it was.'
I'm so pleased you had a good time.'
'You have no idea, it was like a house in the movies, honestly. And we swam before breakfast and even at night.'
'Great.'
'And we went on roller-blades in Memorial Park and we ate huge pizzas, and we went to New York City twice and up to Sean's house on the bus all on our own. There was never a holiday like it.'
I'm so very happy it went well,' Marilyn said.
She knew that she and Ria were almost putting off the moment when they would speak to each other. And yet every time they took a step in each other's direction someone came to claim one of them.
This time it was Colm. 'I didn't know Ria was coming back today. I'll leave you something over in the house, something from the restaurant. To save you cooking,' he said.
'To save them being poisoned, you mean.' Marilyn laughed at herself.
'You said it, not I.'
Barney McCarthy had sympathised briefly with the widow.
'You're very good to come, Mr McCarthy, Jack would have been very impressed at the quality of all the people who are here,' Gertie said.
'Yes, well. Very sad,' Barney mumbled.
'Polly Callaghan is devastated that it happened on her premises,' Mona McCarthy said unexpectedly.
Gertie nearly fell down on the ground. Mona didn't talk about Polly, she pretended that she didn't exist.
Barney looked startled too. 'Well, it wasn't exactly her premisesGCa' he began.
'No, that's right, she was moving house and poor Jack, poor, poor Jack had called on herGCa He wanted reassurance about something, you see.' Gertie's lower lip began to tremble.
Mona rescued her. 'I know, I heard the story. He wanted to be sure that you loved him. Aren't men like children in so many ways? They always like everything to be there in black and white.' Gertie looked from Barney to Mona, bewildered. But Mona sailed on. 'And Polly told him that of course you loved him, those were the last words he heard.'
'Polly told me, but I wasn't sure if she was just being kind you know, telling me what I wanted to hear.'
'No, no, whatever else you could call Polly, she isn't kind,' Mona said. And moved away.
'That wasn't necessary, Mona,' Barney hissed at her.
'Yes it was. Poor Gertie had no life while that savage was alive, she's going to have one after he's dead, believe me.'
'But how did you hear what Polly said or didn't sayGCa?'
'I heard,' Mona said. 'And don't think I have anything against Polly, I think she did this city a huge service by allowing her furniture van to kill Jack Brennan. She should be decorated by the Lord Mayor.'
Then they finally met. They put their arms around each other. And said each other's names.
T'll drive us to the graveyard,' Marilyn said.
'No, no.'
'I have your car, all shiny and clean from a car wash. I want to show it off to you.'
'We cleaned your car too, Marilyn,' Brian said. 'And we got all the pizza off the seat at the back.'
There was a pause and then Annie, Ria and Marilyn broke into near hysterical laughter.
Brian was startled. 'What on earth did I say now?' he asked, looking from one to the other and getting no answer.
When they did get back to Tara Road there wasn't nearly enough time for all they had to say to each other. The children eventually went to bed. Marilyn and Ria sat on at the table. It was unexpectedly easy to talk. They apologised for nothing. Not for encouraging Clement to sleep upstairs or for cutting back the garden, nor for inviting neighbours to become part of Tudor Drive and taking up again with Hubie Green. They asked each other about the visits of their husbands. And each spoke thoughtfully and honestly.
'I thought Greg looked tired and old, and that I had taken away a year of his life because I couldn't help him over the bits that were just as bad for him as for me.'
'And will it be all right from now on?' Ria asked.
'I guess he'll be cautious, even a little mistrustful of me from time to time. If I closed myself off so terribly before I could do it again. It will all take time to get back to where we were.'
'But at least you will.' Ria sounded wistful.
'And nothing happened when Danny was over there to make you think that you might get back together again?' Marilyn asked.
'Something happened that made me certain that we were back together already. But I wasn't right. He told me all about the financial disaster, and losing the house and everything, in Memorial Park under a big tree. Then we went back to Tudor Drive andGCa I suppose if I were being realistic I would say he consoled me in the way he knows best. But I took more from it than there was.'
'That's only reasonable, and he probably meant it all at the time,' Marilyn said.
'Timing is everything, isn't it?' Ria was rueful. 'Just after that came the news that Bernadette was losing the baby and he was off like a flash. Even if we had had another twenty-four hoursGCa'
'Do you think that would have made a difference?'
'No, to be honest,' Ria admitted. 'It might only have made me feel worse. Maybe it was for the best. The stupid bit was I kept thinking that it was all tied up with the baby. Once that no longer existed, perhaps the whole infatuation would go. But again I was wrong.'
'Did you talk to him today at the funeral?' Marilyn asked.
'No. He looked as if he were going to speak but I didn't trust myself so I turned away. I couldn't think what he was doing there anyway, but he told Annie that he was there representing the family.'
'That was a good gesture anyway.' Marilyn's voice was soft and conciliatory.
'Danny's full of good gestures,' Ria said with a smile.
Marilyn had been able to change her ticket. Now she was going to stay for an extra three days. This way she could arrive back at Tudor Drive at the same time as Greg. It was to be symbolic of their starting a new life together. And Marilyn said that by staying on a few days she could help Ria settle in and start to face the whole business of selling the house.
They talked about Hilary's plans to move to the country, the pregnancy of young Kitty Sullivan. They spoke of Carlotta wanting a fourth husband and how John and Gerry's gourmet shop had really taken off this summer. They didn't shy away from personal questions. When they spoke of Colm Barry Ria asked whether Marilyn had been having a thing with him. 'That was what I heard from a probably ill-informed source,' Ria apologised.
'Totally wrong. I think he was much more interested in waiting until you came home,' Marilyn said. 'And on the subject, can I ask whether you had anything going with my brother-in-law?'
'No, your husband is quite wrong about that too,' Ria giggled.
'But he might have liked to, we think?' Marilyn wondered.
'We don't know at all because we didn't allow such a situation to develop,' Ria said.