What I Want

Chapter 4

Aubrey

I stood on the porch as I watched Haden and Ivory leave for their two week trip. My heart pained to see him go. The fact is, Haden simply didn't care and there was nothing I could do about that.

"Bye Aubrey." Ivory waved as she climbed into the car.

"Bye Ivory. I hope you guys have a good time." I called to them. Those words left an unfamiliar taste in my mouth. I practically forced myself to say it.

I looked towards Haden but he wasn't looking at me. I waited for him to tell me bye, but the words never came.

Soon after they left me standing on the porch in a state of melancholy.

I made my way back into the house and sat on the couch. I switched on the TV and flicked through the channels. I wasn't really paying attention to what's going on. My mind only wandered back to Haden. Why couldn't it be me with him?

Ringing of the doorbell disturbed me from my train of thought. Who could it be?

I opened the door and came face to face with a very hot guy. He had jet black hair, light blue eyes, and pink plump lips. I had to admit he is handsome. He stood about 6"2, around the same height as Haden. I suppose Haden was slightly taller than this guy. Why was I comparing him to Haden?

"You must be Aubrey." He smiled. When he noticed my confused look he explained himself.

"I'm Vincent McKnight, Haden's bestfriend. That i***t never introduced me to you." He chuckled.

"Oh nice to meet you Vincent." I smiled as he took my hand and kissed it causing me to blush.

"Nice to meet you too. You're very beautiful. Haden is lucky." He winked cheekily and I laughed awkwardly. 

"Speaking of that i***t, Where is he anyway? I have some papers for him to sign." He said.

"Umm he went to run an errand. He'll be back later." I lied hoping he wouldn't come back later. Haden is gone for two weeks for crying out loud!

"Humph! He could have at least told me. Well I'll be back later then." He said with a soft smile.

"Alright." 

"Nice meeting you again Bre." He winked as he left. Bre, I like that.

After he left, I continued watching television. A couple minutes later the doorbell rang. It's probably Vincent again.

I opened the door to reveal a man standing there. One look at him made my skin crawl. He had dirty blonde hair and dark eyes. He wore a menacing smirk and he looked no older than 30.

"C-Can I help you?" I stuttered. An eerie feeling overcame me as the man stared at me. There was something off about him.

"Yes, I'm a plumber, your husband sent me to check all the pipes."

"Um I guess you can come in." I said uneasily. Maybe he's just here to do his job.

The man quickly walked pass me and entered the house.

I ran to my phone on the couch and dialed Haden's number. On the third ring he answered.

"Haden." I breathed.

"Aubrey?"

"Can I ask you something really quick?"

"Look whatever it is, it'll have to wait because I'm kind of busy right now." He spoke coldly and ended the call.

I tried calling him again but he didn't answer. I was panicking.

"Who are you calling baby?" The man said as he walked up to me.

"Y-You're n-not a plumber aren't you." I stuttered and the man only smirked.

I ran upstairs but he was hot on my heel. He grabbed my leg and dragged me downstairs as I screamed in agony.

"Help! Somebody Help me!" I screamed with all my might.

"Shut up." He yelled as he slapped me across my face.

Tears stung from my eyes not only from the pain but I knew what he was gonna do next.

"You're so hot baby." He smirked and licked his lips. He undid the button on my pants.

"Please don't." I begged but he ignored me.

He quickly and skillfully removed my clothing leaving me in my under garments. He kissed all the way down my chest and I squirmed in disgust.

"Help!" I screamed again only to earn another slap.

"Help! Help! Help Me!" I shouted on the top of my lungs.

He started choking me and I began losing consciousness. This can't be it.

"Get the f**k off of her." Was the last thing I heard before I lost my consciousness.

~

My eyes fluttered open and I began panicking and trashing around on the bed.

"Calm down Aubrey. You're okay." Vincent said softly.

I realized I was in the hospital.

"W-wh...at." I tried to speak but my throat was hurting like hell.

Vincent passed me some water which I greedily drank.

"Vin...cent....did he r-rape me?" My lips quivered as I waited for his answer.

"No, of course not. I stopped that bastard before he could do anything." He spat angrily.

That's it. I broke down. All the memories came flooding back.

I was full out sobbing when I felt Vincent's arms around me.

"Hey, it's alright Aubrey." He cooed.

"What would have happened if you hadn't come. I would have been....." I couldn't finish the sentence.

"Don't think about that. I'm glad I came." He whispered as he rubbed my head.

"By the way, I called Haden." He said and I stiffened.

"What did he say?"

"Well last time I checked he was in the airport." He wore a confused frown but didn't say anything further.

"Oh, did you tell him what happened?"

"Yeah I told him what I saw."

"Is he coming?" I bit my lip dreading the answer.

"I'm not sure. He might come." Somehow we both knew the answer to that question.

"Okay. Why did you come back? You know to save me and all." I asked.

"I figured I'd just leave the papers for Haden to sign so I turned around to drop them for you. Then I heard you scream as I reached the front porch." He explained and I closed my eyes.

"This is all my fault. I shouldn't have let him in. I thought he was a plumber."

"Its not your fault Aubrey. That guy is a sick man and he tricked you. Just be more careful next time. I also made a report so the cops should be able to find him."

"Thank you."

"Hey I've got to go Aubrey. I have to get back to work. I'll see you around." Vincent said as he walked away with a small smile.

"Bye."

I stayed at the hospital for the remainder of the day and was released at night. I decided to stay at an hotel. I wasn't comfortable staying in that house all alone. I was afraid he'd come back.

Haden

My mind was in a frenzy and I couldn't think straight. Some part of me was thinking about Aubrey. After Vincent told me what happened I just couldn't stop thinking about her.

"Haden is everything okay? You look tense." Ivory said as she sat next to me.

We were still waiting on our flight and it's been two hours. Apparently the weather was bad so our flight was postponed.

"Its just that some guy attempted to rape Aubrey." I muttered.

"What! Oh my goodness! We have to get back there immediately. Is that what you heard from talking on the phone earlier?" She questioned.

"Yeah." I sighed.

"I think we should be there for her." Ivory spoke as she stood.

"Alright."

We got in the car and drove to the hospital that Vincent told me Aubrey was in.

I went to the front desk to ask for information.

"Hello I'm here to check up on my wife Aubrey Vanderbilt. Can you tell me what room she is in?" I flashed the woman a charming smile causing her to blush.

"Um Sir.. she checked herself out already." The woman replied.

So she left already.

"I think you should drop me home." Ivory spoke softly.

"What? Why?" I was confused by her response.

"Because I've been intruding on you and Aubrey's life. If I hadn't suggested we take a vacation then that whole incident wouldn't have happened to Aubrey." She explained and I groaned.

"Its not your fault Ivory."

"Look I just feel bad about it. After all she is your wife Haden. Can you please just drop me home? I think it's for the best."

"Fine." I finally gave in.

I dropped her off at her house just as she requested

I arrived home about 15 minutes later. The house was deathly silent not a single sound was heard.

"Aubrey." I called only to receive no response.

I checked her room but she wasn't there at all. I tried calling her phone but she wasn't answering at all.

Fuck!  Where the hell is she?

I decided to call Vincent instead. On the third ring he answered.

"Haden." He spoke calmly.

"Vincent do you have any idea where Aubrey is or could be?"

"Isn't she at the hospital?" He questioned.

"If she was at the hospital would I be calling you." I said sarcastically.

"How was I suppose to know? You're the one who said he doesn't care about his wife." He spat and I felt a pang of guilt.

"I'm sorry okay. Can you just please help me find her?"

"Yeah, no problem. Let's just meet at Linda's Bakery. Then we'll start looking for her."

"Sounds good. I'll meet you there in about ten minutes." I ended the call.

Did she leave me? That's impossible and absurd, Aubrey would never leave like that.

~

I arrived at the bakery a couple minutes later to be greeted by Vincent.

"Do you know any places she likes by chance?" Vincent questioned.

"Umm no." I responded awkwardly rubbing the back of my neck.

"Why am I not surprised." He answered with an eyeroll.

"She must be at some hotel." He concluded.

"There are over two hundred hotels here in New York smart ass." I retorted.

"Then I suggest we get started."

We split up and started looking for Aubrey. I had been through ten hotels but hadn't found Aubrey yet. And it seemed to me as well that Vincent wasn't having any luck.

I decided to take a break and call Aubrey again but she didn't answer. Was she okay?

I arrived at Hotel Hendricks and asked the secretary for Aubrey. I was beginning to lose hope in finding her.

"Sorry sir, there is no Aubrey Vanderbilt here." Damn it.

I was about to turn and walk away when an idea popped into my mind.

"Is there an Aubrey Evans?"

The woman typed on her computer for a couple seconds.

"Yes, she is in room 125 she just checked in a couple hours ago."

I took the elevator all the way up. I was determined to find her.

I arrived at room 125, took a deep breath and knocked on the door. A few seconds passed and she opened the door.

She looked startled and took a small step back.

"Haden." She breathed.

"Aubrey."

"What are you doing here?" She asked in a small voice.

"I came for you." Her eyes widened at my words.

"I'm fine Haden. You can leave. I'm okay."

"Aubrey you are coming home with me. You have a role to be my wife and you need to be present. What will my parents think if you are not at home?"

"So that's why you came. For Your reputation. You don't actually care about me." She spoke softly. Maybe I shouldn't have said that.

"Whatever let's just go."

"Fine." She muttered.

She took a few minutes to gather herself and we left together. I sent Vincent a message to tell him I found Aubrey.

We arrived home a few minutes later and I was tired. This had been a long exhausting day for me and quite the turn of events. Ivory was still on my mind. She was all alone and here I was with a woman I didn't want to be with. I heaved a sigh and went to my room.

After taking a shower, I strolled downstairs and prepared a bowl of soup for myself. I hadn't seen Aubrey since we arrived home and I think that's for the best. I didn't feel like being around her, but to be honest when did I ever? I'm being honest with myself, I just can't see Aubrey as my wife. Ivory and I built soo much and I can't let that go. I'm having a family with Ivory and I'm not about to miss it for this sham of a marriage.

I settled into bed and turned closed my eyes. I don't know how long I was sleeping when I heard a loud piercing scream. It sounded like, Aubrey?

I got out of bed and went to her room. I found her screaming and thrashing around the bed.

"Please leave me alone." She screamed.

"Haden help me." She cried in agony and I felt a pang in my heart.

"Aubrey Wake up." I spoke as I shook her awake.

Her eyes fluttered open as tears cascaded down her face. Her eyes held so much pain.

"What's wrong Aubrey?" I questioned.

"Haden he is looking for me." She cried.

"Who is looking for you?"

She just stared at me and continued crying.

"Hey it's alright." I cooed and after a few minutes she settled down.

I was about to leave the room when she held unto my hand.

"Can you please stay." She begged. I've never seen her so vulnerable.

"I can't."

"Haden please." She looked like she was on the brink of tears again.

"Alright." I sat on a chair beside her. A couple minutes later I fell  asleep, Aubrey's tear stricken face plaguing my mind.