Retribution

Chapter 21 - Ex Parte

For the first time ever, I not only slept for more than a few hours, I also enjoyed an uninterrupted sleep. I woke to find Jake staring back at me, his brilliant blue eyes awash with warmth.

"Hello there, sleeping beauty," he said, grinning.

"Hey." I rubbed my eyes and yawned. "What time is it?"

"Midday."

I scrambled up, panic grabbing me. I had jobs to do, housework, preparing tea. What about Harvey?

"You ok?" Jake said, sitting up with me.

Finally snapping out of my half-asleep state, I nodded. "I've never slept this late. Just had a moment of panic about getting stuff done." I relaxed back down and breathed a sigh of relief. "Old habits die hard."

Chuckling, he nodded. "I know, it's ok. Your mum has called to say she'll bring Harvey home after tea time."

"You spoke to my mum?"

"Yes, why? Is that a bad thing?"

"No, I guess not. She's just...well, she's mum. Not the easiest to understand at times."

He smirked but said nothing. I prayed she hadn't given him an interrogation over the phone or told him what she'd found on her latest 'surf' of the net.

"Are you going to make me rest again all day?" I asked, pulling the cutest puppy dog face I could muster.

"Yep," he said, throwing back the covers.

He jumped out of bed, still wearing his clothes. A tiny part of me was disappointed. Curiosity was killing the cat with regards to his body. The gradual stir of womanly needs was beginning to come back, and whilst part of me welcomed it with open arms, part of me was absolutely terrified.

I groaned and batted my eyelashes at him. "But I'm so bored. I feel fine, honestly."

"Nope," he said, walking around to me. "I'm under strict doctor's orders. Seeing as I'm going back to work tomorrow, perhaps you can twist Jonny's arm."

My eyes lit up. "Really?"

He leaned down and pecked me on the lips. "So long as you feel ok, and you take one or both men with you when you go out, yes, go and enjoy yourself. You have three weeks to just relax and get yourself better, so go and do whatever you need to."

Walking out, he left me all but stunned. Maybe this trust thing wasn't so bad after all. Dark whispers tried to creep through from the corners of my mind, telling me his bodyguards were just spies to see what I was doing, but I ignored them, constantly reminding myself to think only of the positive.

He came back a few minutes later with two glasses of fresh orange juice. Handing me one, he sat himself on the edge of the bed and smiled at me.

"What?" I said, giving a nervous smile. "You're staring at me again."

"Nothing. Just admiring the view."

I looked down to see if my top had slipped and let a boob loose or something, but my t-shirt was still in its correct place. When I looked back up at him, frowning in confusion, he started chuckling.

"You need to learn to accept attention you know. But, all in good time. Rome wasn't built in a day."

"Since when does a multi-coloured face and broken bones count as a view to admire?" I said, giggling. "I think you need to see my therapist."

"Well, since the woman with the busted cheek and bruised face can still laugh and smile. I think that's something to admire."

Heat raged through my cheeks. He spoke the words in a such a way it was as if he caressed each one as it passed his lips. The serious look on his face told me without a doubt he was being sincere.

Just as I was struggling with a response, he saved me, continuing the conversation. "Anyway, I need to talk to you about something. You know you said you wanted me to do whatever I needed to?"

I nodded.

"Well, I have spoken with my lawyer to start the ball rolling with dragging him through a private court."

My heart leapt, first with joy, then with fear. Holy shit. This was really happening. The urge to drown in smugness was in a tug of war with the impulse to quiver in fear. Adam would be livid. If anything would tip him over the edge, this would be it.

"Ok," I said, my voice trembling. "So what happens next?"

"Well, Harry, my lawyer, drove up here last night with this—" he leaned down and picked up a white A4 envelope from the floor "—bundle of paperwork. He's filled in all of it—it just needs your signature."

I took a few seconds to assemble some thoughts and a comprehendible sentence. "He drove here? From where? And what's it for?"

"It's a court order for an ex parte non-molestation order. It's a temporary injunction that's effective immediately until you have a return date for a full hearing. Once you've signed it, Harry will take it to the courts as soon as they open in the morning. He'll then serve the papers on Adam and file a copy at the local police station."

My head was spinning. I hadn't expected this at all, let alone so quickly. I stared at the envelope as if it might eat me. This was time to face my fears, right?

"Just like that?"

Jake nodded and smiled.

"Can I...see it?"

He moved further up the bed and handed me the chunk of paper. Trying to ignore my sweaty, shaking hands, I pulled the official looking forms out and scanned over them. The pounding of my heart thudded through my entire body. This was real. This was an actual event that was going to happen. One signature on these forms and my life would be transformed to either blissful harmony or a level of hell I'd not yet experienced.

A witness statement had been filled out. All personal details such as occupations, distinctive marks, date of property purchase, how long we'd lived together, et cetera, was all filled in. The statement focused solely on the attack last weekend; nothing prior. That saddened me to an extent, but if we could slap this on him from one assault, I'd be home dry. Doctors reports and a handful of rather graphic pictures backed up my claim.

I read through the final part of the statement which had a blank line for my signature beneath it.

I am making this application without notice under section 45(2)(a) of the Family Law Act because I believe that I will be at risk of significant harm if the Respondent is not ordered to stop immediately because of the recent threatening incident of violence. If this application was made with notice and the Respondent was served with the application, I believe he may cause me physical harm. The Respondent has been violent and aggressive and I am in imminent danger. The evidence of the harm I have already suffered is set out in my witness statement and I truly believe that unless he is ordered by the court to stop acting in such a way the Respondent will continue to cause me significant harm.

I gasped and looked at Jake. "Without notice?"

He nodded. "Ex parte. He can't do anything about it. The first he'll know of it is when Harry knocks on his door and serves him with it."

"He'll go mad," I said. "Like insane." I flicked back through the photos, the doctors reports, and briefly re-read the final statement. "But he should have thought about that before he did this."

"I'm sorry we couldn't get it based on past incidents as well. There is literally no trace of them anywhere. It's like they never happened."

I motioned towards the pen he held. "It's fine, Jake. If this is enough to give me some space and peace, then that's all that matters. The past is the past. It's the here and now that's important."

"I know," he said, passing me the pen. "But don't you want some kind of justice for the horror you've lived through?"

I signed the court papers and then the witness statement. Handing them back to Jake, I gave him a sweet smile. "Don't you believe in karma?"