Thank you Hollie for your continued reviews! Things are starting to heat up as we head towards the end! Hope you have a merry Christmas!
A month had passed since Callum had returned to work. It had been a struggle for him at first, getting used to working the long shifts and keeping up with all his paperwork, especially when he had his son waiting for him at home. But slowly and surely he got back into the swing of things and remembered how much he loved his job. He was also pleased to see that Jess was slowly regaining the sparkle in her eyes that hadn't been present since the death of Robert. She was becoming so much more confident with Jamie now, and she admitted that she felt her depression lifting more and more each day.
The sunnier warmer days were helping; spring really was signalling new beginnings for them. She had kept herself busy while Callum was at work, taking Jamie to baby swimming classes, and for trips round the park with friends she'd met at the new mum and baby groups, and dropping in on Claire and Michelle at least twice a week. Jess had relied heavily on the support of her sister-in-law and her mother, so she decided that to thank them, she would cook them dinner, and have a nice girly night in.
Claire was the first to arrive, bearing gifts of flowers and chocolates. She kissed Jess on the cheek, taking Jamie from her arms as soon as she was in the house.
"I can't get over how handsome he is. He's a real looker Jess." Claire said with a grin, following Jess into the kitchen.
"He's going to be a ladies man for sure." Jess said with a giggle, indicating for Claire to sit down, "Do you want a glass of wine?"
"Oh that would be lovely. I haven't had a drink for God knows how long!" Claire said dramatically.
"So what, a day?" Jess teased. It was a long standing joke between them that Claire couldn't manage a day without her favourite tipple.
"Haha, you're a funny one! But Lindsey is tiring me out. She's into everything, she can't sit still, she's like a whirlwind! And the tantrums, good God! Terrible twos indeed!" Claire said, shaking her head, gently rocking Jamie, "You just wait, you've got all this to look forward to."
"Ah, I've already been through it once though. Luke wasn't too bad, obviously he threw his hissy fits, but generally I think I had a good one with him." Jess said gently.
"Oh I'm sorry Jess, that was insensitive of me." Claire said apologetically.
"No, don't be silly. When I've been going to therapy, and to the mum and baby groups, I've felt myself talking about him more. It's almost like I'm finally allowing myself to remember him properly, and to not be sad when I talk about him. It feels like the part of my heart that was shut off has opened up, and all these memories and feelings of him have flooded back in." Jess said, handing Claire a glass of wine.
"I'm so happy for you Jess. When you were deep down in the depression, you had lost that glimmer, and believe me, I know what that feels like. And now you've picked yourself up, and you're you again. It took me so much longer to be me again. I admire you Jess." Claire said honestly.
"Don't be silly Claire. The only reason that I've got better so quickly is because of you, my mum, Callum, and all my other friends and family members. Without you lot, I wouldn't be here. That's the reason I wanted you and mum over tonight, I wanted to thank you." Jess said, taking a seat next to Claire, smiling at her.
"Oh Jess, you don't need to thank us, honestly." Claire reasoned.
"Claire, I wanted to. Now, let's not get into this anymore, cause I'll get all weepy, and I've just got my make-up perfect. Oh look, that must be mum, I'll go and let her in then I can start getting dinner done. Will you be alright with Jamie for a minute?" Jess asked, getting to her feet.
"Of course I will. Jamie loves his auntie Claire." Claire said fondly to her nephew.
"Darling! You're looking radiant tonight!" Michelle exclaimed as soon as the front door was opened.
"Why thank you. You're not looking too bad yourself. Come in, Claire's already here, she's in the kitchen with Jamie." Jess stood aside, shutting the door behind her mum and following her into the kitchen.
She watched as Claire and Michelle embraced. It was funny, since Claire and Michelle had started to get to know each other, Michelle had become the mother that Claire had lost. So not only did Claire gain a new friend, but also a mother. Michelle soon had Jamie out of Claire's arms and into her lap, and Jess readily provided her with a glass of wine.
"Where's my son-in-law then?" Michelle asked once she'd had her first sip of wine.
"Oh he's working late tonight. But he should be home by eleven hopefully. Now, if you want to go into the living room while I put the finishing touches to dinner." Jess said with a smile, shooing her family out of the way.
Dinner was a loud affair in the Stone household, especially with the female members. Just as Jess had served them starters, Jamie began to wail for his dinner. Once Jess had fed him and settled him down again, he began to cry for a nappy change. Michelle did the honours, then put him up to bed in his crib, making sure the baby monitors were on.
Once the starters were demolished, Jess served up her chicken and mushroom risotto, complete with two bottles of wine to share between them. As more wine was consumed, their talk got louder and louder, and then something Jess said set them all off laughing, but it wasn't a quiet laugh, oh no, it was so loud that Jamie woke up, wailing once again for his mother. While Jess was sorting Jamie out, the phone began to ring. Claire got up to go and answer it, but stumbled and fell over the sofa, landing in a heap on the floor. That set her off laughing even more, laughing so hard she could barely breathe, watching as Michelle sprinted for the phone.
"Hello?" she said breathlessly.
"Michelle? Is that you?" Callum asked, frowning slightly.
"Oh yes, hello Callum love. Are you alright?" Michelle asked, trying to catch her breath and avoiding looking at Claire for fear she'd start laughing.
"Yeah, fine. Is Jess there?" he asked quickly.
"Erm, she's seeing to Jamie at the minute. Is it important?" Michelle asked, sitting on the edge of the sofa.
"Yes it is. Would you be able to get her please?" Callum asked, rapping his fingers on his desk.
"Of course, hold on a minute." Michelle said, setting the phone carefully down, then rushing up the stairs to where Jess was just laying Jamie back down in his crib.
"Who's on the phone?" Jess whispered, pulling the door to the nursery shut behind her.
"Callum. He said it's quite important." Michelle whispered, slightly louder than was normal. Jess' easy smile vanished to be replaced by a worried frown.
"Oh, I'll take it in the bedroom. Desserts in the fridge, you and Claire start, I'll be down in a minute." Jess said with a strained smile. She watched as Michelle slowly made her way down the stairs, before running into her room and leaping over the bed to grab the phone, "Callum?"
"Jess? Is your mum drunk?" Callum asked immediately.
"Er yeah, a little bit. What's happened? Are you ok?" Jess asked hurriedly.
"Yeah I'm fine. Listen, I don't want you to worry, but..." Callum began.
"You should never start a sentence like that, because now I'm worrying." Jess said sternly.
"Sorry. But just listen to me, and don't interrupt ok?" Callum asked.
"Ok. Go on." Jess said quietly.
"Ricky Cheung has been released from prison." Callum said bluntly.
"What but..." Jess babbled.
"Jess, what did I say? Don't interrupt me, just listen." Callum said sternly. When he was satisfied that Jess was going to stay quiet, he continued, "We had a call from the prison saying that he's been released on a technicality. Apparently, ever since he was put away his lawyer has been working hard to find a loophole or something that will get him out. And he's found one. Before you say anything, I don't know what it is yet, the prison is going to ring later once they've got all the details. But the Inspector thought we should know."
"Oh God." Jess mumbled.
"Jess, listen to me, it's going to be ok. I promise." Callum said slowly.
"But what if he does something, you know what he's like, remember what he said before we arrested him, oh no..." Jess could feel the panic and fear rising in her rapidly.
"No, he's not going to do anything. He knows that we're going to be watching him like a hawk. He wouldn't dare. The Inspector's letting me finish early, so I'll be home in half an hour. Don't say anything to your mum or Claire yet, ok?" Callum asked her.
"Ok. Don't let him hurt us Callum." Jess pleaded.
"I won't darlin', I promise." he said.
"Callum, could you come into my office a minute please?" Gina asked, popping her head into his office.
"Sure ma'am, I'll be right there." he said quickly, hating the worry he had just inflicted on his wife. He followed Gina down the corridor, round the corner and into her office, where he took a seat.
"You've just rung Jess I take it?" Gina said immediately.
"Yep. She's worried, she thinks he's coming after us. I told her not to panic, that he wouldn't dare. And anyway, nothing has been confirmed about why he got out yet, and he's bound to lay low until this has blown over. He knows we're going to watch him closely. He may be a lot of things, but he's not stupid." Callum said stonily.
"Well yes, that's true. But the prison has just rung. Apparently, Lana Ramirez's statement has been declared null and void due to her own criminal record and some inconsistencies that appear to have cropped up between her statement and some of the others. And as she's deceased, we can't go back to her." Gina said softly.
Callum's jaw tightened as he shook his head, "That's utter bullshit and everyone knows it. He must be paying someone to pull some strings, to make up this utter crap that they're spewing. I don't believe it for a second."
"None of us do, but there's nothing we can do about it. I've posted some officers on full time surveillance of him, just to get an idea of his actions, whether he plans to rebuild his sex trafficking and whether he's going to get another brothel. But Callum, don't let Jess worry. He won't be coming anywhere near you, honestly." Gina said gently.
"That's all well and good, but you know what she's like. She's not going to feel safe anymore." Callum said sadly.
"He didn't say anything about either of you throughout his meagre stay in prison." Gina pointed out.
"I know that, but it's what he said to us before we arrested him, and the way he was quite happy to injure Jess even though she was obviously pregnant. He's a calculating criminal Gina, and I swear to God, if he even so much as thinks of her, I'm going to have his balls on a silver platter." Callum said resolutely.
"I'll pretend I didn't hear that." Gina said, shaking her head, "Now, go home to your family, reassure Jess from me. Ok?"
"Yes ma'am, thanks ma'am. Night." Callum said, nodding as he left the office, desperate to get home to his wife.
By the time Callum got home, Michelle and Claire had cleaned up and left. Jess came downstairs to find a note from them, thanking them for a lovely night and hoping that she was ok. She smiled tiredly as she picked it up and placed it on the mantelpiece, collapsing heavily onto the sofa. She knew she was being stupid, she knew that Cheung hadn't said anything to indicate that he wanted revenge or some crap like that on her family specifically, but it was the way he had acted towards her before they arrested him that was giving her the creeps. She jumped as she heard the key scrape in the look, hurrying to her feet to greet Callum. His arms were already open, ready for her embrace. She clutched him tightly, reassuring herself that things were going to be fine.
"Hey hey hey, calm down." Callum murmured gently into her hair.
"I'm sorry honey. I'm just glad you're home, that's all." she said, pulling away slightly, "Do you want a drink?"
"Yeah, a beer would be good thanks." he said, trooping into the living room, gratefully accepting the beer Jess thrust at him.
"So? What's happening?" she asked eagerly.
"Looks like he got out due to some inconsistencies between Lana Ramierez's statement and those of some of the other girls. Also, because of her criminal record, she was cited as being an unreliable witness or some bullshit. We all know that Cheung's just paying people to pull some strings. Gina said she's getting some people on full time surveillance, just to keep an eye on him. She told me to tell you not to worry." he said, allowing her to rest her head on his chest.
"I'm not worrying, not anymore. I know that he won't come near us, because he has no reason to. I was just being silly earlier, that's all." Jess said, trying to convince herself more than anyone.
"You weren't being silly darlin', just cautious. Now, how was dinner with my crazy drunk sister and your crazy drunk mother?" he asked with a smile.
Jess laughed a little, "It was just what I needed. I love them both so much. It makes me laugh remembering how our relationship with Claire started out though."
Callum thought back, the rumble in his chest indicating to Jess that he too was laughing, "Yeah, that could have gone better. But none of that matters now. What matters is where we are today."
"Wise words Mr Stone. Now, I've tidied up, Jamie is asleep, and I'm going to go up to bed. Come and join me?" she asked, looking back over her shoulder before she left the front room.
Callum studied her intently while she stood there. He was pleased to see that she'd finally regained some of her curves that he loved; she was filling out her red dress perfectly. Her crowning glory, those rapunzel like blonde locks, tumbling over her shoulder down her back, and those bewitching green eyes of hers softly boring into him. How could he say no?
A few weeks passed, the weather slowly getting warmer, but bringing with it heavy April showers. The observations on Cheung had thrown up nothing so far...but it was early days. Callum was midway through a shift when he was called to the Inspector's office, and as he got there he found it hard to conceal his surprise at seeing the Superintendent perched on the desk next to Gina.
"Sir, ma'am." he said respectfully.
"Take a seat Callum." the Super indicated. Callum did as he was told, looking at his superiors expectantly.
"Has this got something to do with the arrest I made this morning? I know I was maybe a bit slap happy with the handcuffs, but he was a slippy bastard..."
"Callum," Gina interrupted gently, "It's got nothing to do with that. It's got something to do with Cheung."
"Please don't say what I think you're about to say." Callum said bluntly.
"And what would that be Sergeant?" the Super asked, quirking an eyebrow.
"That the observation on him has thrown something up, something about my family perhaps?" Callum enquired.
Gina sighed deeply, "Well, it looks like he's out for revenge. Now, before you blow up in my face, I'll tell you now that he hasn't mentioned any names. All that's been said is that he won't allow those who embarrassed him to get away with it. And he means business. We've seen some known associates meeting with him at his newest pad in the converted apartments down by the docks."
"What kind of associates?" Callum demanded.
"The kind you buy to do your dirty work for you." the Super filled in.
"Ok, so far you know he wants revenge and that he's been meeting some heavies. But I wasn't the only officer in that arrest so why is it only me being pulled in here?" Callum asked, just wanting to get to the bottom of this.
"The officers posted to observe him managed to pick up snatches of his conversation with the heavies. He mentioned a blonde police officer quite a few times." the Super informed him.
"But that could have been Stevie or Sally, they were both there as well!" Callum said.
"Cheung also said that the particular officer was pregnant." Gina said softly.
"Son of a bitch." Callum muttered.
"Jess? It's me, listen, I'm going to be home late tonight, so don't worry about my dinner." Callum said quickly down the phone.
"Did Smithy corner you for overtime again?" Jess asked with a laugh.
"Er yeah, sure. Don't wait up, I love you." Callum said, listening to her blow a kiss down the phone before hanging up.
He wasn't going to let anyone else hurt his family. He had pulled Ricky Cheung's new address from the system which had conveniently been updated. He typed the postcode into his sat nav, waiting for it to determine the best route. Once that was done, he buckled in and set off.
By the time he pulled into the car park at the back of the building, he had decided what he was going to do. He was going to go to Cheung's apartment, and he was going to tell the bastard exactly where to go with regards to his family. It may not have been the best plan ever, but he couldn't sit knowing Ricky was plotting about Jess. He pulled on his thick leather gloves and heavy jacket, putting his hood up over his black baseball cap before getting out of the car, making sure it was locked before heading over to the intercom. He buzzed the button for the apartment next to Cheung's.
"Yeah?" a female voice answered.
"Pizza." Callum said.
"I didn't order a pizza." the woman answered, confused.
"Well someone at your address did. Maybe someone ordered it for you." Callum said with a roll of his eyes. There was a pause, and then the buzz of the door being opened. Callum took his chance and entered the building, ending up in a swanky lobby. He took a glass elevator to the sixth floor, and slowly got out, making his way as quietly as possible down the pale hall, avoiding the security cameras he spotted. He stopped outside Cheung's apartment, knocking smartly on the door. The woman who opened the door looked him up and down with disdain.
"Who the hell are you?" she said sniffily.
"I'm a business friend of Cheung's, princess, now let me in before he slaps your pretty face for making me wait in the corridor." Callum said with a glare, acting as if his life depended on it. It seemed to work; the woman scowled and stood aside, pointing down towards the living room while she stalked off into the bedroom. Callum walked down the polished hallway, entering the open plan living area with a gorgeous view over the docks and London.
"Keiko, who is it?" Cheung shouted over his shoulder, not seeing Callum stood there.
"Surprise." he said blandly, noting with satisfaction the brief look of horror that crossed Cheung's face.
"What the fuck are you doing in here? Who let you in?" Cheung shouted, jumping to his feet.
"Nevermind that. Listen to me you scumbag, you stay the hell away from my family, do you understand me?" Callum growled menacingly. What he didn't expect was for Cheung to laugh.
"You don't scare me Sergeant." Cheung said with a grin.
"I'm not trying to scare you. I'm giving you some friendly advice. Let's just say it wouldn't be in your best interests to think about my family." Callum said with a nod.
"Sure thing Sergeant, I'll be sure to take you up on that advice...maybe. Now tell me, because as you know I missed out on all the gossip while I was locked up...has your wife had her baby yet? As I remember it, she had a beautiful little bump hiding under her stab vest, she would have been perfect for my clients." Cheung taunted.
"I'm warning you Cheung..."
"You can warn me all you like. You haven't got a damn leg to stand on. I'll bet my freedom that your superiors don't know you're here, and I'll bet all my money that your wife doesn't know you're here. Hmmm, am I right Callum?" Cheung said mockingly.
Callum snapped, he ran at Cheung, arms outstretched, and was about to strangle the cocky bastard when he was stopped by the unmistakable sound of a gun being loaded.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you. I'd hate to make a mess on my new cream sofas, blood is a bitch to get out." the voice of Keiko said, from behind Callum.
"Leave while you still can, and don't bother coming back." Cheung spat at him. "Say hi to the missus, and give your bouncing baby a nice kiss from me."
"I'm not going to stop til you're back behind bars Cheung." Callum growled.
"Tell me, do you want your child to grow up an orphan?" Cheung said evilly, watching Callum trying to regain his temper.
"This isn't over." Callum muttered, stalking out the apartment, past Keiko, and down to his car.