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“You caused bodily injury to him with that stunt, tripping him on the stairs,” the officer said. “You could have hurt him worse. It was two of you against one.”
“We were so afraid,” Briana said in an overly dramatic voice. “We didn’t know if he had a gun or a knife and we had nothing to defend ourselves with. It was all we could think to do to stop him from coming any closer.”
“And you tied him up. He could sue you with unlawful restraint,” the officer continued.
“How else could we get him to hang around for you to come arrest him? I don’t think saying pretty please would have worked,” Briana said. “Look, Tessa’s the victim. He has stalked her and scared her so badly that she moved from her hometown to get away from him, only for him to find her and stalk her here. What is a woman supposed to do? Stand back and be assaulted, killed, or kidnapped? He broke in here and we didn’t know his intentions, but could logically assume they weren’t good.”
“Miss O’Conner, I don’t doubt for a second that you’re right and that you were both afraid when he broke in here. I’m just warning you both that he could come back at both of you with his own civil charges.”
“Duly noted,” Briana said. “Will you at least guarantee Tessa that he won’t be released without her being notified?”
“Yes,” he said. His gaze shifted to Tessa. “You’ll be contacted by one of our victim advocates who will remain in touch with you throughout the process, from arraignment through sentencing, and even parole if he’s convicted and sentenced to jail time.”
“Thank you,” Tessa said, grateful they had a victim advocacy program.
“And this guy has to be freaking crazy. Can you get him locked up for a psych eval?”
The cop chuckled. “I’ll see what I can do. We’ve got your statements. We’re going to go now.”
Briana and Tessa watched him drive away. The second cop who had responded had already transported the stalker to the police station.
“Thank you,” Tessa said. “I can’t believe it’s over. Well, I hope they keep him locked up. I hope it’s over.”
“Me too,” Briana agreed. “Let’s go in and see what needs to be done to repair that window he broke.”
“And I need to pay you, too. We really didn’t discuss your fee beyond the three hundred dollars, but whatever it is, I’ll find a way to pay you. I don’t know what I would have done had you not been here.”
“You would have figured something out. You’re a survivor,” Briana told her. “We’ll talk about my fee inside.”
They returned to the house and cleaned up the broken glass. Tessa called a local hardware store that repaired windows. They would arrive within the next few hours to take care of it. At Briana’s prompting, Tessa put a kettle on to boil water for tea and they sat at the kitchen table.
“I don’t want to scare you, but you need to be prepared that he may be released from jail,” Briana said. “It’s very unlikely they will keep him in custody until a trial, assuming he pleads not guilty at his arraignment. And even if he pleads guilty, I doubt he’ll get much jail time.”
Tessa looked shocked at her words. “How can that be? I had a restraining order that he violated. And he broke in here, literally broke a window and entered my home.”
“Violating a no-contact order, in most states, is a Class A misdemeanor. It carries with it a fine up to twenty-five hundred dollars and a person can be sentenced to no more than a year in prison. If there are weapons involved or the victim is assaulted, it can get bumped up to a Class A felony, which carries a sentence of about five years in prison. If he pleads innocent, I think the chances are good he’ll be released on his own recognizance.”
“I can’t believe this!” Tessa exclaimed. “I thought the restraining order would help protect me. What am I supposed to do?”
“You’re doing all the right things,” Briana said. “Unfortunately, the prisons and jails are over-crowded, the current climate in a lot of cities is to not hold offenders in jail awaiting trial if they can’t post bail, and they release a lot of criminals who in my opinion shouldn’t be released.”
“So, I’ll ask you again. What am I supposed to do?” The tone of her voice was outrage.
“Contact the victim support advocate in Indianapolis who helped you obtain the restraining order there. Let them know he violated it here and was arrested today. Give them the police report number the officer gave you. Then you call the phone numbers to the victim advocate here, give them the phone numbers to those in Indianapolis who were on the case. Then talk to the DA here. Tell him you want to press charges, you want him remanded into custody, and want restitution for the window. The two District Attorneys should be asked to work together.”
Tessa nodded and blew out her breath. After she poured the hot water into the mugs, she made the phone calls. Briana was impressed with how she clearly communicated with each person she reached during the calls. She exhibited fear that he’d found her and broken into her house, but was also insistent that he be locked up and that she be notified if he is released.
The arraignment was scheduled for the next morning. Both Tessa and Briana would be in court. Tessa had an appointment with the DA and the victim advocate prior to the scheduled appearance. Briana agreed to spend the day with her and to sleep in Tessa’s spare bedroom. Depending on how the arraignment went, they’d decide the next steps. Tessa had already uprooted her life once. She refused to do it again. And permanently disappearing and changing her name was not something she would discuss.
Briana stepped outside and called her brother. She gave him an update on the situation and all that had transpired. “And it’s not even lunchtime yet,” she added with a laugh.
“I know your use of Lisa’s name is solid, but I always worry when you’re dealing with the cops. What if Sebastian’s group has both your names flagged?”
“I’m not doing anything illegal, Cam. Well, technically not illegal.”
“Except using an alias,” Cam pointed out.
“I’m careful. Don’t worry,” she said. “Anyway, I’m staying the night at our client’s house, and I’ll let you know what happens in court tomorrow morning. We’ll take it from there.”
