My Real Children by Jo Walton

Author:Jo Walton [Walton, Jo]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Tom Doherty Associates
Published: 2014-05-20T00:00:00+00:00

18

Divorce: Tricia 1972

She didn’t see or hear from Mark for a week. In the end she phoned him at work, which was the suggestion of Barbara from the consciousness raising group. “I’m glad you’ve finally got rid of him, he sounds like a real slimeball, but you have to get the financial details and everything sorted out. He can’t leave you with young children and walk away. Here’s my solicitor’s number. You need a proper lawyer for a divorce.”

At first Tricia’s heart sank at the thought of divorce. What had it all been for? And Mark was a Catholic, divorce didn’t exist for him. They could get divorced and he’d still regard himself as married to her. But she wouldn’t need to. She could be free of Mark. She called the university and asked the switchboard to put her through to Mark.

“Mark Anston,” he answered, his voice precise and bored as ever.

“It’s Tricia. You probably need some things from the house. And we should talk about what we’re going to do.”

“This is a bad time,” he said. She wondered who was there. Students? Colleagues? Would he have told them?

“Do you want to come around this evening?” she asked.

“Not this evening, I have an engagement. Tomorrow evening, about six?”

“I’ll be here,” she said, although the next day was Tuesday and she had her Morecambe Preservation meeting after school, which would mean hurrying back afterwards, and no time to visit her mother, still in hospital, until later.

He was late, of course. After thinking about it for most of the previous evening, Tricia had decided not to prepare a meal for him. On Tuesdays after her meeting she usually picked up Chinese take-away for herself and the children, and she did that. They had just finished eating when she heard him let himself in. Helen cleared the boxes and forks off the table without being asked and Tricia went down the stairs to greet him.

“Where are the children?” Mark asked.

“Just finishing their dinner, in the kitchen,” Tricia said. Mark walked up the stairs and into the kitchen. Helen looked away from him. George frowned. Only Cathy looked glad to see her father.

“How are you all?” Mark asked.

Tricia could hardly believe how artificial he sounded.

“Fine,” Helen answered for all of them. “Where have you been?”

Mark flashed a look of irritation at Tricia, as if he expected her to have dealt with this. “Your mother and I are considering a separation,” he said, as if it had been her idea.

“A divorce,” Tricia said.

George stood up from the table. “I don’t want to listen to this.”

“I think it would be best if you all went to your rooms while we talk about it,” Mark said. The two younger ones left.

“Do you know Gran fell and I had to get her to hospital?” Helen asked as she followed them towards the door.

“No, I didn’t know. Is she all right?”

“She is, no thanks to you,” Helen said, stopping and turning in the doorway. “I didn’t know where you were.

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