Page 18 of Saving Hanna
Chapter Thirteen
AIDEN
I suggested that we go out because it was the only way that I knew I would be able to keep my hands off of Hanna. I wanted this thing between us to last. Even though I was running out of time, it was important that I didn’t fuck this up. She was my last chance in getting what I wanted. There was only one thing that I had left to do, and that was to convince her to accompany me to my father’s home for dinner. I still had a few days left, but like everything else, it wasn’t enough time.
Walking to Hanna’s room, I knocked lightly on the door and waited until she answered. I was becoming impatient standing outside her door. There was something off with her when I suggested we shower together. In one breath she was all willing and then in the next, she decided it would be faster to shower separately. Turning the doorknob, I decided at least there was a god. The door was unlocked. “Hanna, are you ready?” I asked loudly, knowing she must have been in the bathroom since the door was closed.
Without knocking, I turned the knob and pushed open the door. I thought for sure she would be inside, but I was sadly mistaken and was beginning to worry. Maybe she was already downstairs waiting for me while I finished. It would certainly be a first since every woman I had ever met took way more time to get ready than I did.
Jogging down the steps, Hanna was nowhere to be found. The only other place that she could have been was in the study. The minute I opened the door, it was clear that she had left again. Pulling my phone from my pocket, I dialed her number and waited for her to answer.
I was upset and knew that she could hear it in my voice, “Hanna, where the fuck are you?”
“I’m sorry, I had to leave. Something bad has happened,” she stated hysterically.
“What happened, Hanna?”
“I’m on my way to my house.”
The minute I heard those words, I knew there was no way this could be good. “I’m on my way. Wait until I get there, Hanna.”
“You might have a problem getting here…” she said with hesitation in her voice, “I kind of took your car.”
“You did what?” The only person that ever drove my car was me, and there was a reason.
“Don’t be mad, I needed a ride and you were still in the shower. So, I grabbed your keys and just left.”
Mad wasn’t the word I would have chosen to describe how I felt at the moment. I was beyond mad. Not only had she left with a 100k car, she just put herself in danger. “Hanna, don’t do anything. Wait until I get there.”
With my cell still in my hand, I hurried to the kitchen where the keys to my truck would be hanging on a hook. I would call Albert when I was in route since I didn’t have time to hunt him down. I wasn’t sure what had happened that would make Hanna leave the way she did. All I knew was she would be in danger if she got close to that house.
My thoughts began spinning, thinking, whatever was happening at her place was the reason she had left. Pressing my foot on the gas pedal, I had little time to get to her. I prayed that she would listen to me and not do anything until I got there.
~*~*~*~
Pulling up to her house, I was glad to see that she had made it there. Looking over to the house, the lights were on, which told me that she was inside. I wasn’t sure what I would find inside. The way she sounded on the phone it was pretty bad. I felt defenseless knowing that I didn’t have anything to protect myself. The only protection I had was in my car and Hanna locked it before she went inside.
Looking for anything I could use to defend myself, I found a piece of steel that came off an old swing set that had been taken apart and piled up in the back yard. Since I was already in the back, I decided to try the back door first to see if I would be lucky enough to find the door unlocked. My luck had changed as I slowly turned the knob and carefully pushed the door open.
I could hear voices in the front part of the house. One of them was Hanna and the other one was male. My first conclusion was that it might have been one of the men from across the street, but the more I listened to what was being said, it sounded like a family dispute.
Making my way quietly to where the voices were coming from, I peeked around the corner into the living room. I should have recognized the voice of the man that was talking to Hanna. It was her brother. Not only was he talking, he had a gun in one hand and a bottle of liquor in the other. He was in no condition to be holding a gun, and the way he was waving it around, sooner or later someone was going to get hurt.
It needed to end right now before Hanna got hurt. Stepping into the room. I got his attention, “Carter, you need to put the gun down before it goes off.”
His eyes were drawn to mine and there was a coldness in them, an evil that was clearly visible. “Mr. Drake… how nice of you to join us,” Carter mocked drunkenly as he took another drink from the almost empty bottle.
“What is this about, Carter?” I inquired impatiently wanting nothing more than to get the gun away from him.
“Ha-ha… Come on, Aiden, you of all people should know what this is all about.” By the way Hanna looked at him, she had no idea what was going on. Evidently Carter hadn’t had enough time to tell her that he knew me and I was the one who made him lose everything.
“Aiden,” her voice sounded in disbelief. “How does my brother know you?”
There it was. The ultimate question. I had no answer for her. If I told her the truth, I knew that my chances with her would be gone and my hope of becoming CEO of Elite Exchange would follow. I needed to end this conversation before too much was said. “Hanna, your brother is drunk. He is clearly mistaken.”
“Then how does he know your name?” she questioned.
Everyone knew who I was, so it was difficult to explain how he knew me. “I’m a businessman, Hanna. Everyone knows who I am. It is amazing what you can find on the Internet.”
