Twenty-five
‘Are you sure you want to go to this?’ Joe asked, seeing Erica dressed and ready to leave. When she told him Gill had invited her to attend the Zonta meeting at which Ali Wells was to speak, he’d tried to dissuade her. He didn’t have anything against Zonta – they did good work in supporting and promoting women – but he wondered if it would bring it all back to Erica and hinder her recovery. He’d checked out Ali Wells after meeting her in Bellbird Bay and was aware of her views on abuse of women, which he assumed would be the topic of her talk.
‘I’m sure. Don’t worry about me, Joe. It’s time I did something for myself… and if I can find a way to help other women who’ve suffered as I have, I mean to take it.’
‘Okay.’ Joe sighed. Growing up, Erica had always had a mind of her own. It had only been since she met and married Geoff that he’d noticed how she’d changed, become more passive, more subservient. And while he was glad to see the old Erica reasserting herself, he worried it might be too much for her.
‘I want to contact Briony, too. She’s having my grandchild, and I need to know how she’s doing.’
‘I’m not sure it’s a good idea,’ Joe said, his stomach clenching at the thought of Geoff finding out where she was. ‘Geoff…’
‘It’s okay. I plan to get a new phone. She won’t know where I’m calling from, and I can withhold the number. I want to know about Kieren, too. He’s my son, and we’ve never been out of contact for so long before. You can’t change my mind,’ she said, as Joe opened his mouth to speak. ‘I’ve decided. Now, I’m off. I won’t be late. Gill said the meeting will only last for an hour, then there’ll be tea and cakes and a chance to chat.’
Joe managed a smile. ‘You have fun,’ he said.
After Erica left, Joe poured himself a Scotch and took it into his study, Coco padding loyally behind him to settle at his feet before gratefully crunching on the offered gravy bone. He fired up his laptop intending to make some inroads on a speech he had promised to give to the local Rotary group on the challenges of local government. But ten minutes later he was still staring at a blank screen.
‘It’s just not happening, Coco,’ he said to his pet whose ears pricked up at the sound of her name. He was worried about Erica. While she might think she was safe contacting her daughter-in-law from a withheld number on a new phone, Joe was afraid Geoff would discover she’d been in touch and that would make him even more determined.
He hadn’t told Erica about the call he’d received from Geoff demanding Joe tell him where his wife was hiding. Joe had pleaded surprise and ignorance, mentioning an old schoolfriend of hers living in Cairns and hoped he’d managed to convince him.
From what he knew of his obdurate brother-in-law, the man would move heaven and earth to find his wife and bring her home. Joe doubted any love was involved. From what Erica had revealed, that had gone out the window years ago. But to men like Geoff, their wife was a possession, one they didn’t give up readily – or rationally – and not without a nasty fight. He dreaded to think what might happen if Geoff worked out Erica had sought refuge with him in Pelican Crossing, sure the presence of an AVO would do nothing to prevent him from banging on the door.
Deciding he wasn’t going to get anything done on his speech, Joe closed down the laptop and, Coco following, made for the door, pausing only to pull on a jacket and take Coco’s leash from its hook. What he needed was some fresh air to clear his head.
He headed towards the marina. It was beautiful at this time of night, the lights from those boats which were occupied mirrored in the water, the clear sky filled with stars, the moon almost full. As Coco padded along at his side, stopping to sniff every few seconds, Joe’s mind went to the woman who was never far from his thoughts. Although he’d tried to dissuade Erica from going to the Zonta meeting, it was good of Gill to invite her, to take an interest in what was, for her, only another client. Though he did wonder if the fact Erica was his sister might have something to do with it. Whatever the reason, Erica seemed to enjoy speaking with Gill both as her client and as the friend she was becoming. Joe wasn’t sure how he felt about that. His feelings for Gill were so new, so unexpected. The fact she was also becoming friends with his sister felt a bit odd. And from what he knew of Gill, it was unusual for her to befriend a client. She seemed a very private person, not one given to making friends easily. The entangling enigma that was Gill Dickson appeared to be growing by the day.
Which left him wondering why she’d agreed to have dinner with him.
*
Gill was pleased to see Erica stepping into the room where the Zonta meeting was to be held. Ali had already arrived, and Gill and she were chatting when the other woman made her tentative entrance.
‘Excuse me,’ she said to Ali before going across to where Erica was standing just inside the door.
‘Hi, Erica. I’m glad you could make it,’ she said. ‘Let me introduce you to Ali.’ She led Erica across to meet her.
The room began to fill, and the women took their seats around an oval table. It wasn’t a large group, and Gill was pleased to see Erica being welcomed and shown to a seat.
The meeting began with her introducing Ali and giving an overview of her background finishing with, ‘Ali is now director of Bellbird Women’s Centre and has kindly agreed to come here tonight to tell us about the services it offers. I hope by learning of the good work of the centre, we can work out a way in which we can help.’ Gill sat down, and Ali took her place.
At first, Gill listened closely as Ali outlined the goals of the centre and the various sections. Then her mind wandered as Ali began to repeat much of which Gill had learned on her visit to the centre. She could see Erica listening intently and wondered not for the first time, where she might have ended up if she hadn’t had Joe to rescue her. Would she had stayed with her abusive husband, or gone to a women’s refuge similar to the one attached to the women’s centre? As she watched the woman who looked so like her brother it was almost as if he was there, Gill saw the colour drain from Erica’s face. Had she made a mistake in inviting her?
Then Ali’s presentation was over, and she was replying to a barrage of questions. To Gill’s delight, the group were keen to offer their support to the centre both in terms of funding and, in some instances, as volunteers. She was surprised to hear Erica offer to visit and talk to the women about how it had taken her so long to recognise that the control her husband had exerted over her was a form of abuse, and how his behaviour had escalated. It was a huge step forward for her to acknowledge this publicly.
When a couple of the women disappeared to reappear a few minutes later with tea and cakes, the group moved from the table to enjoy the refreshments and chat. Gill took the opportunity first to thank Ali informally – she’d given a more formal vote of thanks earlier and presented her with a basket of goodies – then to join Erica.
‘That was very brave of you… your offer to speak to the women at the centre,’ she said.
‘Brave? I don’t think so. I wish I’d had someone to tell me earlier. As Ali said, many women don’t recognise their husband’s behaviour as abuse. I found it interesting that the centre doesn’t only cater for woman like me who’ve made the decision to leave. If I can help just one person in my position…’ She gave a tight smile, and Gill could see Joe’s determination in her expression. It was the sort of determination that had helped the town outwit a developer, save a newspaper and protect the dog beach.
Joe Harris was a good man. He was her friend. And they were having dinner together in two days’ time. Gill’s stomach fluttered as it had a couple of times before… when she thought of Joe, she realised. For the first time, Gill began to wonder if she and Joe could become more than friends, if, for him, she could forget her vow, let down the barriers she’d erected around her emotions and allow herself to feel something for another man.