Chapter 7
SAFARI IN SOUTH AFRICA

After twenty years of marriage, Maria and Ron had good careers and had saved money. Maria was working full-time now that the children had grown up and were pursuing their own careers away from home. Jonathan had gone backpacking with his girlfriend. The eldest, Emma, Maria’s stepdaughter, was training as a teacher and had left home for Derbyshire to live closer to her school.

Lilian, the second of the three, was on internship in Germany. She rang to tell her father that she would be taking a full-time job in the car manufacturing company where she was doing her internship. Both parents thought it was a good idea as they realized how much their daughter was enjoying her stay in Germany and loving her job.

Maria’s position as chief prosecutor had put her on the spot. Defending children in the courts is a sensitive and challenging business, and she had on several occasions received death threats from angry defendants. She was good at what she did, which had earned her a good reputation. She was highly respected in her community. She gave free advice to people on their cases and made sure that children got the justice they deserved.

By contrast, she had lately been missing the last words in her sentences and was getting worried about it. This has knocked down her confidence a bit.

In the first week of June, a bank holiday, Maria and her husband Ron decided to stay home and sit in their lovely, well-tendered garden, something they rarely did due to work pressures.

‘It’s nice sitting here,’ she said, looking into the pile of papers in front of her.

‘Honey, don’t you think you need to give yourself a break, at least for today?’ Ron reasoned with her. ‘It’s bloody bank holiday, love. Please let’s do something different today, sweetheart.’

For him she was delicate and must be treated with care. He had never wanted to upset her, but lately, Maria would snap at him for no reason. The bedroom department hadn’t been good; Ron could not remember the last time he and his wife had been intimate. She had gone cold and had totally lost any interest in sex. She did not respond to his touches and would find an excuse for pulling away from him. Either she had a bad headache or she needed a pee, and that put him off. The situation had been frustrating. And she had snappishly let him know that it was a subject she did not want to discuss. Ron had even begun to read about women in their fifties. She may be experiencing menopause, he consoled himself, admitting that it was not like her. She had always been a loving wife, so her behaviour worried him

‘Hm,’ she said. ‘I need to get this right and done for Tuesday. I … er, er—I can’t remember what I want to say. Never mind, it will come back.’ She gave up the struggle to finish her sentence.

When Maria failed to finish her sentence, that left Ron thinking the worst. ‘You have a lot on your mind, sweetheart. You need to take things easy,’ he said, hoping his wife would agree and say yes. He had attributed his wife’s change of attitude and forgetfulness to work pressure.

Ron convinced her to put away the papers, and they decided to do some gardening. They went to Wickes for some plants and manure. It was an enjoyable day.

At tea that day, Ron suggested thoughtfully, ‘Why don’t we get away for a while, like a holiday?’

‘Holiday? Where?’ she asked, looking up at him.

‘I would like us to go somewhere exotic. I don’t know, but somewhere nice, you and me,’ he said romantically.

‘That would be good,’ she replied, looking excited. ‘What exotic holiday do you have in mind mister?’

‘How about the Caribbean?’ Ron suggested, selecting his words carefully. He did not want her to change her mind.

Maria looked up and pulled a face.

‘What? Don’t you want to go to St Lucia in the Caribbean? It’s a nice place, they say, and I have checked their packages; they seemed good. What do you have in mind, love?’

‘I am thinking South Africa. You know how I love animals. I would like to go on a safari in South Africa,’ she said.

‘South Africa, then. I will check the hotels and food,’ Ron replied. Both seemed happy with the choice of holiday destination. Soon they had decided to spend four weeks in South Africa, enjoying themselves. This would be their first holiday together without the children.

In December, Ron and Maria went to South Africa for a safari. She texted her daughter, ‘Arrived safely, It’s warm and nice over here. We are having a drink at the beach house in … How’s the temperature in England?’

Her daughter rang as soon as she saw the text. She wanted to know if they were all right. ‘Mum, it’s getting colder every day. It’s five degrees Celsius. I am curled on the sofa watching Coronation Street at the moment.’

‘We have been promised an exciting day tomorrow,’ Maria said excitedly, ‘and I am looking forward to it.’

‘Enjoy, Mum, you both deserve it,’ Emma replied.

‘Will go now, and will talk to you tomorrow. Love you, pet,’ Maria said.

‘Love you too, Mum,’ Emma said and hung up.

Ron was all this while dancing to music in his chair and sipping chilled beer from a big glass.

They had arranged a trip inland to visit the famous Kruger National Park. They were going to have a spectacular safari experience. Ron had taken care in selecting these holiday destinations to take his wife’s mind off work as a therapy for relaxation. They would see elephants, lions, and cheetahs, rhinos, and buffalos. The landscape was brilliant, and they would dine in one of the finest restaurants notwithstanding the accompanying entertainment.

They had a spectacular experience as described in the package. She even had the opportunity to touch a baby lion and had pictures with them. It was relaxing, they had chilled drinks at different stops and it was nice. Maria had loved the day and got back to their hotel room feeling exhausted.

They retired to bed after spending the day watching wild animals in their natural habitats.

Why haven’t we been here sooner? she asked herself.

Before the holiday, Maria had not been happy. She had no confidence in herself because she had seen circles around her eyes and wrinkles along her neck. She did not want her husband to come close enough to spot all those weaknesses. She had also lost interest in sex, which worried her. That is very unfair to him. I don’t know how to solve this, she had thought to herself.

She had mentioned it to her doctor, who confirmed it might be the onset of menopause. She was not happy about the news, but she had to deal with it. She told Ron about it and said the only way out was for them to support each other. That, coupled with work, had kept her more distant from her husband. I am fifty-one and should not be sexually dead, not when I have a loving husband who cares.

At the hotel room, she dreamt about Emilia. She saw Emma going with her to Tyler’s flat. It was empty of furniture, but Tyler was there in her dream. Tyler drew her closer to him and looked into her eyes. She longed for him to have her; knowing, he smiled and teasingly squeezed her breast and kissed her, to which she responded passionately. Then Tyler laid her gently on the floor and had sex with her. She felt satisfied.

Maria woke up in the morning feeling happy, fulfilled, and energetic. She had not had sex for a very long time, and the experience the night before had brought back life in her. She yearned for a man, for her husband.

Ron was surprised when Maria kissed him as they were about to go out for the day. He had always been the one who took the step, and she had always been at the receiving end. What has come over her?

‘I don’t want to go out, honey. Let’s stay and make love,’ she said, looking straight into his eyes. There was no doubt that she was hungry for him. He lifted her into his arms, placed her on the bed, and poured into her all that he had missed in years. They spent the whole day making love in their hotel room. It never stopped there. When they returned to England, Ron and Maria were solid in their relationship. Maria kept having those dreams seeing Tyler and was sexually energized each time that she saw him. Ron was a happy man now because Maria had changed in her attitude; she was not as forgetful as before, and she dressed smartly for work and smiled more.

At times she felt guilty, thinking, Why do I keep on dreaming of having sex with Tyler? He has been dubbed a monster who molested children. I did love him, but that was a long time ago. It’s a shame that I never got the chance to have sex with him. In fact I would always want to dream about him. He is the love of my life.

Am I cheating? The answer is no, because it is a dream. She took satisfaction at the thought, As long as I am happy and Ron is happy there is no problem and no one knows how I feel about the man who molested me when I was just a child. Maria brooded over the thought every day. She knew for a fact that Tyler was actually grooming her.

Ron trusted his wife. It had never crossed his mind and probably never would that his loving wife had feelings for any man apart from him. He was satisfied the way things were.

Maria and Ron got home before Christmas. The two girls and their brother had planned to spend Christmas with their parents. At the dining table, Maria told her children the lifetime experience she’d had in South Africa. Then Emma and her boyfriend Luke announced that they were getting married. It was not surprising, as the two had been very close, living together at Derbyshire.

Back at work, Maria was called into Justice Howard’s office at the beginning of the week. She knew it was another challenge awaiting her.

‘You are the only one I can count on …. The Melony case has to be reopened. There are new leads pointing at the defendant’s foster parent.’

Howard continued, ‘It’s a never-ending case, but we need to get to the bottom of things. I presume you remember the story, Mrs Mackintosh?’

‘Very well, sir. This is the ten-year-old boy who was neglected by his foster parent for years, and was rescued by a tip-off from the general public, right?’

‘That’s it, that’s the story. Well then, please take it up for us,’ Howard said, feeling relieved. He was certain that the case was in good hands and that justice would prevail.

Maria picked up the files and left the office, with one of the toughest challenges in her career.

She got home tired and saw her husband sitting on the couch with his head down. He looked up and said, ‘What a day it has been,’ and yawned. His day had been stressful as well.

Miss Simpson was a newly trained teacher, just in her early twenties. Her speciality was in early years learning, and she had been in the school for about three months. Some parents had protested that they preferred the previous early years teacher because she was more mature and motherly. They said they could not trust Miss Simpson with their children.

Miss Simpson had a meeting with parents and assured them that the children were safe in her hands. Parents who had thought she was too young to understand children had started to believe in her, and she was tactful with the little ones and showed professionalism. All the children liked her and would touch her and pull her skirt for her attention. She sang nursery rhymes and offered them building blocks; she played in the sand and painted with them. There was no doubt that Miss Simpson was the children’s favourite, and she enjoyed their company.

Then this afternoon, Miss Simpson had stormed into his office shaking and sobbing. There had been an accident in the playroom. One of the children had somersaulted from a height and had fallen. Joe, the teaching assistance, was quick to act. He picked up the child, checked him thoroughly, and gave a deep sigh. He advised that the child was OK, but they still needed to call an ambulance to take the child to the hospital for further examination.

That was the first accident Miss Simpson had experienced as a teacher, and she was shaken. When the ambulance crew arrived, they made their checks and confirmed that the child had not sustained any injury. They did not take him to the hospital.

Ron had Miss Simpson to deal with. She was scared that she would lose the trust of parents again. She had worked hard for their trust. Ron considered the situation and decided to let her go home and rest.

After the paramedics had come and gone, the child was seen playing with other children as if nothing had happened. The child’s parents were called in and informed about what had happened. Ron assured him that no injuries were sustained. The parents took their child home but made no angry outburst as some would do.

Ron was himself shaken; he knew how angry parents can react. He had encountered similar situations many times and learnt to stay calm and never try to justify himself. He had learnt to be patient and reassure family when they were distressed. Although shaken, he was relieved and planned to tell his wife all about it when he got home.

‘I had a strange encounter today,’ he began, narrating the episode to his wife, and then stopped. ‘Oh. Sorry, sweetheart, to bombard you with my own stress.’

Maria laughed. ‘Tell me about it, honey, and I will tell you mine.’ They both laughed.

‘Tea?’ he asked.

‘Yes, that will be nice,’ she said and sank onto the couch as her husband brought her the brew. She sipped and looked up at him. ‘I wish we were in South Africa on a safari,’ she said lazily.

‘So do I, love,’ he said and kissed her cheek. ‘I will order out Chinese when you are ready.’ They related their days to each other and then watched Grey’s Anatomy together on TV4.