Please take the following for what it is: my own imagination filling in the details of this case. I go out on a limb with my thoughts. Here is what I see in my mind:
Marion responds to an ad placed by a Mr. Remakel. RB notes her details and eventually he gets around to contacting her. He love-bombs her for weeks/months. Marion is swept up in romantic possibilities. Because RB is a nasty little AH, he causes Marion distress by way of her beloved profession. Then leans on her to make good with all their romantic plans because it is “you and me against the world.”
In a hurry Marion sells her house for less than she paid, walks away from her career position, (commits to the relationship by changing her name and passport-I believe she did this on her own without RB’s knowledge-the fact is this action led to finding RB and he is too devious to have allowed this breadcrumb trail).
RB sets up flights in tandem. They will never be connected to each other. Then the luggage storage trick at the airport, his usual m.o. He has her documents. He has control. Marion goes to the UK and waits for him, filling in the lonely hours with shopping, driving around a small area, and writing postcards.
But! Disaster for RB. He gets to the UK and discovers she has changed her name. The papers he possesses use the Barter name. He meant to transfer her Australian bank accounts to Europe under her Barter name. He considers using her new Remakel identity to get the money. It’s convenient, he has to admit. But very dangerous. He is too cautious to let this kind of unpredictable event slip him up.
RB feels extremely angry by this foolish woman and her silly romantic notions. In the UK his mask drops and he shows Marion that he is not to be trifled with. He is angry and frustrated but he sees a way it could work. He announces he is returning to Australia, with or without her. If she really loves him then she knows where he is. He leaves Marion behind but he has her documents.
Marion is utterly miserable and has to make yet another fast decision, without time to really think about what is happening to her. It’s all so overwhelming. She is also beginning to feel that she might have a bit of a mess with her closest and dearest relationships back in Australia. Yes, she will return to try to make things good with RB again. But she will have to deal with the problem of trying to explain to her family the process which she has undergone in the last few months. It’s all happened so fast, and she can barely explain it to herself. Truthfully, she feels confused, befuddled, lost at sea. It is kind of embarrassing. She usually lives her life carefully, pursuing her dreams but in an ordered progression.
She decides to follow RB back, because he has instilled in her an insecurity which can’t be ignored; her lifelong dream of taking The Orient Express can’t be enjoyed anymore and all of her plans of travelling were with him.
She is not quite ready to tell anyone what she is suffering. She instinctively knows that if she were to divulge her situation to someone close then her relationship with RB would effectively end. It just would. And he has impressed upon her that his affection is contingent on her discretion, that he is very private, etc. So being a decent person, Marion doesn’t want to betray him. Not yet.
On her way back to Australia, Marion makes contact with Sally. She doesn’t want to talk about her situation, she just wants to hear her daughter’s voice.
Marion makes her way down to Byron Bay, the nearest town to RB with decent accomodation. Here, they will work things out, she hopes. RB convinces Marion to withdraw cash, the maximum allowed every day.
But Marion discovers Diane. Diane, who has made her bed long ago and knows what she’s got. What a disgusting revelation for Marion. She is shocked and devastated.
Marion confronts RB. No more money for him, she says. Or: what have you done with the money I have already given to you?
He is knee-deep in illicit funds, yet too much is never enough. He can see the finish line and has other prospects he needs to get on to. There is also the question of her name change and new passport. It nags at him. A rare loose end. He has an encyclopaedic memory for details and he knows this one thing is going to haunt him if he doesn’t do something.
Marion loved her family, her friends, and her chosen profession. She wouldn’t leave them without explanation. I feel she was moving herself back to her family and eventually would have moved on from RB.
What happened to Marion?
And on a personal note I lived on the Gold Coast at the same time as Marion and wish I’d known her. I really want to see Justice done for Marion.
