Page 64 of A Merry Little Christmas
He grunted. ‘I’ve been a wreck for the past few weeks since all this kicked off... so confused about what to do for the best and resorting to alcohol far too often.’
‘I really wish you’d told me all of this,’ I said at last. ‘I know you thought you were protecting me. But do you know how desperate I’ve been feeling? I thought you didn’t care about me anymore.’
‘I know. And I hate that I had to do that to you.’ He shook his head wearily. ‘Telling you I thought we should cool things was so hard, but I genuinely thought it was for the best. To tell you the truth, I had no idea until tonight – when Will told me about you almost being knocked down – how serious the threat against you actually was.’ He shuddered. ‘Thank God Will was worried enough to let me know what was going on.’
I nodded. ‘He’s a wise boy, your nephew. So when is the court case actually happening?’
‘Monday.’
‘This coming Monday?’
He nodded. ‘Just a couple of days to go until I’ll be giving evidence.’
‘We should call the police now... let them know what’s going on.’
He took in a breath and let it go very slowly. ‘I’ve read about cases where they got the police involved and it all went wrong, and I’m terrified.’ He shrugged. ‘Not for myself. But for you. Threatening to run you off the road and almost mowing you down... it’s obvious they mean business, Katja. And I’m just not prepared to take a risk with your life.’
A shudder ran through me. I still had flashbacks of seeing that black car accelerating directly towards me, mounting thepavement and then swerving away only at the very last minute. I’d been just a whisker away from death that night...
Caleb squeezed my hand and turned in his seat. ‘If we stay together until the court case, I can make sure you’re safe, okay?’
‘I... I don’t know, Caleb.’ I really didn’t. Fear was making my head spin. What if we didn’t make it until Monday? If their threats to me weren’t producing the desired result – Caleb changing his statement in their favour – maybe they’d turn on Caleb himself, and the thought of losing him now was terrifying...
‘Do you trust me to protect you?’ he asked softly.
I looked into his eyes then. And I nodded. Of course I trusted him. I always had and with good reason. But it was the drama of the past few weeks – knowing he’d kept the truth from me, while confiding in Amanda all along – that was making me doubt if we had a future together. I understood he thought he was protecting me. But did I want to be with someone who kept things from me because he thought I wouldn’t be able to handle the truth. Lies between lovers – for whatever reason – were surely a recipe for disaster...
‘I just wish you’d told me what was happening,’ I muttered again. ‘I really thought you and Amanda were...’ I broke off, shaking my head.
‘I know. And I’m sorry. I should have told you.’
‘You should,’ I said tightly, trying to hold onto my emotions. I had to keep calm – we both did – if we wanted to get through this mess unscathed.
‘I suggest we go to a hotel,’ he said at last. ‘Stay there until Monday.’
I nodded. ‘Okay. But I need to collect some things from home first.’
He groaned. ‘Not a great idea. They know where you live. They’ll be watching the flat.’
‘I’ll be really quick. In and out,’ I promised. ‘But if we spot that car on our tail – the one with the wonky roof rack – we go straight to the police station, okay?’
‘Okay.’ With a sigh, he started the engine and we drove back to Sunnybrook.
All the way, I was aware of Caleb glancing frequently in his rear-view mirror, and I kept turning around and staring back along the road. Thankfully, there were no headlights following us and we made it back to my flat without any problems.
‘I’m coming in with you,’ said Caleb, and I nodded, feeling relieved. The thought of entering my flat alone and in the dark was not a pleasant one.
Caleb had parked in the nearest space available on the street, which meant a short walk to my flat, and I had to break into a run every now and then to keep up with Caleb’s purposeful strides.
We were almost at my building when I heard the hum of an engine starting up behind us.
I swung round, filled with panic. A dark-coloured car was bearing down on us, its headlights blinding me.
CHAPTER THIRTY
‘It’s him!’ I grabbed Caleb’s hand and he looked behind.
Cursing loudly, he pushed me further onto the pavement so that I could feel the thorns of a hedge prickling my back. He was shielding me with his whole body and I knew that if that car was coming for us, Caleb would take the brunt of the smash.
