Free An Unexpected Gift by Lily Zante Page B

phone calls again. I’m certain it’s Carl Summers.”
    “Does
he say anything?” DCI Osborn listened patiently.
    “No.
Nothing. He says nothing. There’s just silence at the other end. He did this
back in November, when I ended the relationship. But the calls stopped in
December. All his harassment stopped then.”
    “He
was gearing himself up for the attack on you, more than likely.”
    Caitlin nodded.
    “How
many calls had you had now?”
    “A
couple last week. Two this morning, at around half past five.”
    The DCI listened
carefully and scribbled something down.
    “Has
he confessed?” Caitlin asked quietly.
    “No.
But he will. We’ll find the proof to pin on him.” DCI Osborn took off his glasses
and rubbed the sore bridge of his nose. His eyes looked even more tired than
she remembered from last time.
    “I
don’t get it. If the man who attacked me already confessed that Carl Summers
paid him why can’t you just go and arrest him now?”
    “I
wish it were as easy as that. But it isn’t. Right now it would be a case of the
attacker’s word against your ex’s word. We need solid evidence that will stand
up in a court of law.”
    “And
what are you doing to get that evidence?”
    “We’re
working on it Caitlin, I know it must be frightening for you. But we are
working on it. We’ve approached him and he denies any involvement in the attack
on you and Daniel.”
    At
the mere mention of his name, Caitlin’s heart jumped.
    The
DCI carried on, “In fact that young man Daniel is most anxious we arrest him
and charge him as soon as possible.”
    “Has
he been in touch with you?” Caitlin asked curiously, wanting to know what else
Daniel might have asked.
    “He
has. He rang this morning. He wanted to know whether we had made any further progress.
Sorry to say I wasn’t able to give him the news he wanted.”
    Caitlin
flinched inwardly. Daniel called?
    “We will get him Caitlin, don’t you worry about that. We always do. But I
must warn you that if and when we arrest and charge him, and the CPS decide to
prosecute him, it can take many months for the full case to get to court.”
    Caitlin’s
eyes darkened with fear. “But I want him out of my life. I don’t want him to
come near me or hurt me or threaten me ever again.” If the case didn’t go to
trial for months, it meant that Carl Summers was free to harass her as he
wanted.
    “The
court can impose conditions on him to ensure he stays away from you and from
your home and place of work.”
    “A
man like Carl Summers doesn’t obey orders!” said Caitlin hotly, her face
breaking out in anger. She would never feel safe again, not until he was behind
bars.
    “Caitlin,
let’s take it one step at a time. You let me know if you get any more calls or
texts. Keep a diary, document everything. It will come in handy when this goes
to trial.  And if you need to speak to me just call me.” He gave her his
number. The poor girl looked frightened to death.
    By
the time she left the police station Caitlin was shaking uncontrollably.
    The thought of weeks and
months spreading out before her, living life as a frightened woman was
unbearable.
    She
had spent the last few months looking over her shoulder every waking minute of
the day. She wouldn’t be able to live like this for much longer.
    The
tears started falling, slowly at first, as she walked along Bishopsgate. The
passers by walked on, not seeing anything or anyone as they focused on where
they wanted to go and walked as fast as they could to get there. Just then her
phone rang again.
    “Sod
off will you!” she yelled.  She was about to hit the button to end the
call when she heard, “Caitlin? Caitlin, it's me. Daniel. What’s happened? Are
you alright?”
    The
sound of his voice reassured her, especially now that she felt all battered and
broken up. “Oh Daniel,” she burst into tears again, with relief and feeling a
bit sorry for herself too. As she walked along she noticed a small side