11Over the course of the next twelve months, give or take, Mary would see him and they would talk. Gradually their friendship blossomed and she found herself looking forward to catching sight of his cheery face. He was kind and thoughtful, always had something good to say; usually about her. This cheered her no end and was almost enough to get her through the day. Almost. Her husband often came home in a black mood. Sometimes Frank would accuse her of being with someone else and she grew terrified someone had dropped a hint to him, or he'd noticed her cheery mood. Was he spying on her, the way he had with the postman?
He continued hitting her. An innocent glance, a disparaging word would send him into a rage. If she went to the local shop to buy a loaf of bread, he would follow her. And i
