by Gillian Joy
HAVE A GREAT TIME, DONT DO ANYTHING I WOULDNT DO.
At least that message brought a smile to her face, she had gotten really close to Deb in the last couple of months since they met, catching up quite regularly either with Connor or more and more often only the two of the them.
The message from Hayden was just a smart.
DONT EVEN THINK ABOUT CALLING IN SICK ON MONDAY. I KNOW WHERE YOUVE BEEN AND WHAT YOUVE BEEN DOING. LOL.
She smiled as she clicked on the "unknown" message above that.
ASH, ITS MARK. I LEFT A MESSAGE. PLEASE CALL ME
Okay, not too bad, she thought as she clicked the next one.
ASH, CALL ME. ITS MARK
I KNOW YOU R AVOIDING ME. CALL ME NOW
THIS ISNT FUNNY ASH, IM LOSING MY PATIENCE. CALL ME
ASH, I WONT ASK AGAIN
YOU KNOW I AM NOT A PATIENT MAN. CALL ME NOW
IT HAS BEEN 24hrs. THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR THIS CALL ME IMMEDIATELY
THIS IS YOUR FINAL WARNING ASH
NOW I AM PISSED
The last message only came in half an hour earlier. Ash tried to be angry but she couldn't get past the nausea that was working its way up the back of her throat. She ran into the ensuite and made it to the toilet before she vomited. And she hadn't even gotten to the voice mail messages.
Ash walked out of the ensuite just as Connor walked into the bedroom.
"The girls are outside; they're out at the car ready to go Ash?" He stopped mid-sentence having noticed how pale she was.
"What's going on?" He asked, looking anxiously around the room. The only things he noticed out of place were his suitcase, and her phone.
"Crap. Did you check the messages?" He asked, walking towards her and reaching out with his hands.
She didn't reply, she walked towards him and into his arms which he wrapped protectively around her.
"Ash?"
"Only the text messages." She slowly responded. "There were only nine of them. I didn't get to the voice messages before I threw up. There are twenty-six of them. I don't know how many are from him, but I'm betting most of them."
"Did you delete the text messages?" He asked with concern. That many messages in a twenty-four-hour time period had to count as stalking and harassment. He was sure they would have a legitimate case for a court order if they took her phone to the police.
"No."
Connor could feel her body trembling in his arms.
"Okay, that's good. You go and get the girls settled while I listen to the voice messages. Okay?"
Ash took a step back from him, disentangling herself from his arms.
"No. I need to listen to them, you don't."
Connor put his hands on her shoulders.
"Ash, I can see and feel how this is affecting you. There is no way you are listening to those messages. Not happening at all. If there's nothing in them, you can hear them, but I want to check them first. We'll go to the police as soon as we get home. Even if they're not threatening, that many messages would have to be classed as harassment. We'll get a restraining order against him and he won't be able to come anywhere near you."
Connor hoped that would relax her but all she did was tense up even more.
"He's a lawyer Connor, we'd never get one to stick. He knows all the tricks."
"Ash, lawyer or not, this..." He picked up her phone and shook it towards her. "This is unacceptable. Now unlock your phone and go and get the girls organised. I've already got all of your bags out by the car. I'll bring mine out in a minute when I'm done here."
Ash looked up at him with tears brimming in her eyes. She took her phone off him, punched her pin code in again and passed it back.
"I still want to listen to them tonight, okay?"
Connor gave a short nod, even though he had no intention of letting her listen to them if they were bad and took the phone off her.
Connor gave her a quick kiss before she turned and walked out the door. He looked at the phone in his hand before quickly accessing the text messages. He might as well start by checking out what had her so upset to begin with.
After scrolling quickly through the messages, his anger was simmering. Okay, so there were no outward threats, but the implication was there. He was anxious about what he would hear in the voicemails.
****
Chapter 20
The trip home had been slow and painful, Ash could feel the tension radiating off of Connor for the entire drive but there was nothing she could do to alleviate it. They couldn't talk about it with the girls sitting behind them listening to their every word, so all she could do was hold his hand over the centre console and hope that he didn't hate her too much. The fact that he didn't seem to want to let go of her hand at all kept her feeling hopeful. He wouldn't even let go when he had to indicate.
Ash didn't want Connor worrying about the messages. It was her problem, she'd deal with it, and he didn't need to. But when Connor called Hayden on the way home she realised he wasn't going to let that happen.
"Hi Connor," Hayden answered. "Have a good weekend?"
"Yeah mostly. We're on our way back home now. Do you think you could come over and sit with the girls tonight? I need to take care of something with Ash."
"You've just had a weekend away, now you need to dump the girls?" he teased.
"No, I don't need to 'dump the girls' and you're on loudspeaker. I'll fill you in later. Can you come over?"
"I guess." Hayden's tone had changed from teasing to being filled with concern. "Call me when you get back."
"Thanks Cuz."
"What do you think you're doing?" Ash snapped as soon as he hung up.
"I already told you what we're doing."
"I don't think that's necessary Connor, and I haven't even heard the messages."
"We're not talking about this now Ash." He said, glancing up at the rear view mirror.
Ash pulled her hand away and turned and looked out the window. Connor sighed in exasperation and put his hand back on the steering wheel and concentrated on the roads as he drove them home.
****
Connor carried their bags inside while Ash got the girls organised and ready for bed. He had put her phone on silent before he left the lake house but he had felt it vibrating most of the way home. He was at the car grabbing the last of the bags when it vibrated again in his pocket. He pulled it out and looked at the unknown number calling. There was no way he was going to answer it while he was driving home, and Ash was beside him and the girls were in the backseat. But now he was alone, and Ash would be busy with the girls for at least a little while. He swiped the answer button and put the phone up to his ear.
"Hello." He said.
"Who's this?" Replied a male voice.
"Connor. Who's this?"
"Can I speak to Ash please?" Asked the voice, formal but clipped.
"She's not available at the moment. Can I say who's calling?"
"This is her husband speaking. Please ask her to call me as soon as possible."
"She doesn't have a husband. And she won't be returning any of your calls. Ever!"
"She does ha.... Who are you?"
"I'm her boyfriend Mark. And I assure you again, don't expect a return phone call." Connor wanted him to be aware he knew who he was before the conversation had gone any further.
"She doesn't have a boyfriend. She's married to me. Please put her on the phone, now!"
"She doesn't want to talk to you, as I said. Ever."
"I don't know who in hell you think you are. But I'm telling you now. I will have my wife back."
"You'll have to go through me."
"Gladly. I suggest you get Ash to call me. She knows the consequences of not doing what I ask."
"Is that a threat?"
"I don't threaten, I just do."
The call was disconnected before Connor had a chance to even reply. He was fuming when he called Hayden back.
"How soon can you get over here?"
"What's
going on Connor?"
"I don't have time to fill you in now Hayden. Please get here as soon as you can."
"Ash's place?"
"Yep."
"See you soon."
"Thanks."
Connor placed the bags in the lounge room and went in search of Ash and the girls. He was fuming after his phone call with Mark. Who the hell did that guy think he was? The arrogant arsehole.
He found Ash in the bedroom with the girls, tucking them into bed.
"Hayden's on his way, we'll go as soon as he gets here." He said to Ash.
"We'll talk about this after I've read a story with the girls. I'll be out in about ten minutes." She snapped at him. "If you don't want to wait for me that's fine. I'll call you tomorrow. Just leave my phone in the kitchen."
As if, Connor thought.
"I'll see you in ten then. Night Sarah, night Beth, I hope you enjoyed the weekend." He said as he turned away from the door to wait for Ash in the kitchen.
"Thank you Connor!" The girls called out in unison.
"We had a great time," Sarah added.
Connor heard Hayden pull up in the driveway before Ash even came back out and opened the door before he knocked.
"Hey Cuz, thanks for coming."
"No worries' but what's going on?" Hayden asked, worried.
"Nothing at all," Ash answered as she entered the room. "Sorry Hayden, Connor got you over here for nothing." She said, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"I'll have my phone back now please." Ash said to Connor, holding out her hand.
"No Ash, we're going to the police. Right now!"
"What's going on?" Hayden tried again.
"Nothing." Ash answered.
"Ash, there is no way Connor would be asking you to go to the police about nothing. Is some fan threatening you or something?" he asked Connor.
"No." Connor replied.
Hayden reached out and took Ash's hand.
"What's going on?”
"Mark went to see Marianne on Saturday morning. He wants Ash back." Connor answered.
Hayden turned and looked at Connor. "So why the police?" He asked as Ash began to tremble. "Sweetie, what did he do to you?" He asked, figuring something bad must have happened if they needed to go to the police.
"Over the course of the weekend, he left nine text messages, and twenty-six voice mail messages. Plus, whatever messages he left on the way home. And I just got off the phone to him."
"You what?" Ash shouted, terror filling her voice.
"He called again while I was getting the bags out of the car. I answered."
"Why would you do that?" She asked slumping in the chair in defeat. "You don't know what he's like. You don't know what he'll do to me." She started crying again.
Hayden looked up at Connor in fear and confusion. Connor went and knelt on the floor at Ash's feet. "What do you think he'll do to you Ash?" He asked in trepidation, needing to know, but not wanting to know.
Ash looked between Connor and Hayden, tears coursing down her cheeks.
"Baby? What do you think he'll do?"
"He'll punish me." Ash said, shaking badly. "I'm not supposed to have friends, he'll punish me for having friends, and if he even thinks there's something between us Connor... I can't do it. You have to leave. Give me my phone; I need to call him before it gets any worse. If he gets any angrier it'll only be worse."
"Ash, what will he do?" Connor asked again.
Ash shook her head. She couldn't tell him. She couldn't share that shame and humiliation with anybody. He'd never hit her; he'd never physically hurt her. He never left so much as a mark on her body, but... She couldn't go through that again. She had to appease him, she needed to call him now.
"Ash, I think you should listen to Connor, I think you might need to involve the police. That sounds like a serious case of stalking to me, and that's illegal."
"Ash, are you still married to him?" Connor asked.
She shook her head violently. "No! Definitely not."
"Ash, can I see the messages? Maybe Connor’s being a bit too overprotective." He lifted his hand to Connor in an attempt to stop him interrupting. "I'll let you know as a friend, if I think you should go to the police, rather than as an overbearing boyfriend."
Connor had no intention of interrupting, he'd already figured out what Hayden was up to. He wasn't questioning Connor’s judgement; he was just trying to alleviate Ash's fear. Connor sighed with relief when Ash nodded. He reached into his pocket and passed her phone to Hayden.
Hayden swiped the phone.
"What's your PIN number Ash?" He asked.
"Twenty-nine, Oh eight." She answered.
Of course, Connor thought, the girl’s birthday.
Hayden entered the PIN and spent the next twelve and a half minutes listening to the voice messages and scrolling through the text messages. He passed the phone straight back to Connor when he finished, and walked down to put his arm around Ash. He helped her up off the chair.
"Go now." He said with finality, fury on his face. "The police will sort him out Ash. I'll stay with the girls’ until you get back."
She was still shaking, and her eyes were red rimmed when Connor helped her back into the passenger seat of the car. He didn't let go of her hand for the duration of the drive to the station.
****
Connor didn't know what he expected from the police, but surely there was more they could do? They took all the details Ash could give them about Mark, which involved a lengthy phone call to Marianne as well; she was as helpful as could be expected through the tears. He was still her son. Then they sent off an interim order to the magistrate’s court, but explained that it basically meant nothing at all until it had been served on Mark. How could he be expected to abide by the rules if he didn't know about them? In addition, even when he was served the papers, which the police assured him they would do first thing in the morning, the onus was still on him to do the right thing and stay away and refrain from making contact. They recorded the voice messages and downloaded and printed the text messages to keep on file as evidence for the court hearing.
The senior sergeant explained that if Mr Cross decided to fight the order, they needed evidence to get the magistrate to agree to grant it.
"Please keep all future messages as well, until you go to court at least. We'll let you know once the interim order has been served and if he calls or messages again after that, then contact us straight away and we'll have him arrested."
Connor shook the officer's hand as they left and thanked them for their time. By then it was after eleven.
****
Senior Sergeant Callum watched as the couple exited the main doors of the police station. He'd seen plenty of abused women in his line of work, and despite her claims that her ex-husband had never physically hurt her, he knew in his gut that she was an abuse survivor. He could see the fear in her eyes every time the bastards name was mentioned. All he could do now was visit Mark Cross in the morning and hand him the interim order while he explained exactly what he would personally do to the son of a bitch if he went anywhere near Ash Cross again. Even though he thought he was a son of a bitch, after speaking to his mother he knew the phrase wasn't technically true in this instance. The older woman obviously cared about her ex-daughter-in-law, and was devastated by what her son was doing. He hoped she would have enough guts to stand up in court and argue for Ash's safety if Mark decided to fight the order. With all those messages, and his own mother’s testimony, he wouldn't stand a chance of having the order overturned.
Tyson Callum took the interim order with him when he left work so he could hand deliver it personally on the way into work for his shift tomorrow. Driving home, he smiled to himself as he imagined the smile on his nieces face when he handed her the personally signed autograph Connor Maise had been happy to sign for him. Even though he felt like an absolute dork for even asking, at least it had brought a smile to Ash's face when he did.
****
>
"How'd it go?" Hayden asked as soon as they walked in the door.
"Okay." Ash answered, she stopped and turned to face Connor. "I'm going to have a bath, is that okay?"
"Of course it is Babe, come on I'll run it for you." He said stepping closer and wrapping her in his arms.
"I'll be right back Hayden."
Hayden nodded and watched Connor and Ash walk off down the hall.
Connor ran the bath and lit some candles in the bathroom, he realised Ash needed some space and a chance to relax. She was in shock over the weekend and especially the day's events, and a bath was her go to de-stress.
She striped off so slowly Connor found it painful to watch and it took every ounce of restraint he had to turn around and walk out of the room instead of removing his own clothes and climbing in behind her. He could wash her back, massage her shoulders.
"Call me if you need anything at all." He said as he left.
"What happened?" Hayden asked as soon as Connor came back out. He handed him a beer.
Connor took his time answering, opening the beer and taking a swig before saying anything. Then he told Hayden all that had happened at the police station.
"She still maintains he never physically hurt her Hayden, but you saw her reaction. She's terrified of him."
"There's something weird going on, that's for sure. How do we protect her and the girls in the mean-time? I'd hate to think he'd stoop to kidnapping the girls to get to her."
"Yeah, it's crossed my mind I assure you. I'm going to talk to the label in the morning. They have security they use; I'm sure I can get the details off them, if they're not happy enough to supply them for me. She's my muse Hayden, that makes her their asset and they protect their assets."
"How's she going to react to a security team?"