'The Reunion' by Margaret Rayson
It was a beautiful summers evening, and as Charlotte stood outside her cottage in the heart of the Cotswolds and looked up at the lovely colours of the setting sun she let out a long and heartfelt sigh.
Perhaps, she thought to herself, just perhaps her Eddie was at this moment looking up at the sky in his part of the world. The thought made her feel so close to him, as if the distance involved was merely an illusion and not thousands of empty miles away.
She turned to go back in, all the time fighting back the tears. The children must not see her cry. She had to be brave for them at all costs.
She began to get the tea. The children were in the other room playing with their toys, and would be ready for something to eat.
It was then that she looked up and saw Eddie sitting across the room, smiling his old wonderful smile at her and heard him say, “Don’t worry, love, we’ll all be together again soon.”
With that he disappeared.
When Captain Whithers called the following day to give her the news that Eddie had been killed in action, he could get no response despite knocking several times.
Eventually, when the neighbours became alarmed, the police broke in and found everyone seemingly fast asleep in their beds.
Unfortunately, on closer inspection they were all found to be dead, killed by carbon monoxide poisoning, from a faulty boiler.