I thought I was beyond surprises.

A day before I was due to collect my daughter from her school, at the start of the school holidays, I took a call from my son. He said he was near Liverpool, some 300 miles from here, even further from his 'current' home.

He rang off before I could get much out of him so I rang his mother. "Who told you?!" was her response, it seems he had been told to lie to me but a need for money meant that he had to call me. The ex would not accept that our son had himself called me.

It seems he had decided some 10 days earlier (while school was still in full session) to leave town, in the car of an 18yo cousin, arriving in Cheshire some five or six hours later. He (and the ex) claimed they had the authority of my boy's youth worker to pull him from school ("for a break").

The youth worker says he was told some time away during the holidays would be good for him. She makes notes of every contact and has emailed me (& the social worker) those notes.

His school had him as unwell for the past two weeks, it seems he was up all night with a funny tummy, although he was well enough for the motorway journey. The school has changed the two weeks so they are now 'unauthorised family holiday'. They are applying to the local magistrates for a Fixed Penalty fine against his mother. She doesn't know that yet!

He is staying with a relative who I trust but now says he wants to stay there. His mother has said he can, if he wants to ....! Legally, however, she needs my written permission for him to live away from home (I went to court on June 4th to get that). Also, by allowing him to leave home, the ex is in contempt of court (same court ruling). Oh dear, oh dear.

I collected my daughter last Friday, straight from school during the morning session. I was deliberately earlier than normal to disrupt any interference, the school alone knew my arrival time. We got back here just before 3pm, during which time we'd made phone calls to her brother and his keeper (an aunt).

The last new days have been wonderful, with the odd nasty phone call from the ex, demanding the return of *her* daughter. I kept putting her off.

I saw my solicitor today and asked him to find a loop-hole for me, I didn't want to take her back. He insisted I had to, otherwise I was as bad as the ex. Ho hum, I suppose that's a no-brainer.

The social worker's report is due on Friday. The hints have been very favourable, and it seems like the ex is getting some of the vibes - she's whining to social services that our social worker is biased towards me. The ex has told me (and the SW) that the SW is in deep trouble. Neither of us can work out why or how. Perhaps it's just paranoia?

In the meantime, the police have formally cleared me, just in time for the SW's report.

So, now I wait. I should get my copy of the report on Friday around lunchtime, the ex will get her copy in the post I suspect. She won't like it one bit, of that I'm certain.

Topsy