Days of our Haiden (Read 6,330 times)

[ihearthaiden]

 

Author's Note: This is mainly a Haiden fic. I decided to write it picking up from where the writers left off. Other characters will make appearances, but this story will focus mainly on Haiden. I hope you all enjoy. Please be gentle on me. I know I'm not the best writer-especially not on here. Y'all are so talented! I do try my best though, and I hope you enjoy reading my story as much as I enjoy writing it. I update every Friday at around 1pm Eastern. One more thing. I use *This love came back to me* to separate the paragraphs. It's from a Taylor Swift song that I want to be the theme for this story.

Days of our Haiden

Season 1 Episode 1

                                                                                             ~~~~~*****~~~~~



    Hope just finished having lunch with her partner and boyfriend Rafe Hernandez at the Town Square. Now, Rafe had to get back to work, though it was Hope’s day off.

They stood up, and Rafe pulled her close and softly kissed her. “I’ll see you tonight for our date then?” he asked

Hope wrapped her arms around his waist and smiled. “I’ll be counting the hours.”

Rafe grinned, and they kissed once more, then he was gone.

Hope sighed happily as she watched him leave. They had been dating for almost a year. She had thought her heart would never heal after the man she had thought she was going to spend the rest of her life with tried to strangle her to death, and (as if that weren’t enough) her long-lost husband falling ill and dying shortly afterward. Then Rafe came along. He had always been such a good friend to her—caring, loving, supportive. One day he had admitted his feelings for her, and she surprised herself when she realized she was open to the idea of moving on with Rafe. After all, unlike the other two men in her life, Rafe had always been there for her, and had never let her down.

She headed for the park to take a shortcut to her house. It was a nice, fall day out. In less than a week it would be a year since the day Aiden Jennings—the man she had thought she was going to spend the rest of her life with—had tried to strangle her.

A cool breeze ran through the park, causing the fall leaves to flutter around her. She pulled her jacket tighter around herself and shivered. However, she wasn’t shivering because of the breeze. Well, not just because of the breeze. She was shivering because the night of the would-be-strangulation still haunted her nearly a year later. She still wasn’t quite sure what drove the man she loved to try to kill her on her wedding night. She now knew he wasn’t the necktie killer because Ben had confessed to the other murders. She also knew Aiden had been in debt, so she figured he was just after her life insurance policy that she found out he had changed right before they wed. She guessed he had a debt to pay that could only be paid by killing her.

Even so, she knew Aiden—or at least she thought she had—and it wasn’t like him. The man she knew had been a wonderful father to his son Chase, and loved her with all his heart. Had it really been all an act? Did this mean he had killed his first wife? Was he just some gambling addicted psychopath who made women fall in love with him only to kill them for the insurance policy money to pay off his debts? Had their love really been all put on, or had he really fallen for her?

She sat down on a bench and sighed. Even if he really had fallen for her, he obviously chose not trusting her and paying off his debt before his love for her.

Hope jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She screamed, jumped off the bench, and whirled around to see who had grabbed her.

Chase stepped back a little and held his hands up in defense. “Hope, relax! It’s just me.”

Hope sighed with relief and relaxed a bit. “Chase. Hi. I’m sorry. I guess I’m just a little on edge.”

“You’re still thinking of my dad, aren’t you?” Chase asked.

Hope felt her heart melt. She knew that this was just as hard on Chase as it was in her. She could hear the sadness in his voice. Since Aiden’s death, Chase hadn’t been the same, happy joyful kid he once was. In fact, things had never the same again. It was understandable of course, but heartbreaking nonetheless.

She sighed. “Come here.” She held out her arms to him.

Chase walked over to her and hugged her, staying in her arms for a moment.

Hope held him tightly. “I’m always going to think of that night and wonder why he did what he did, but please know that he loved you. He was a good man; he just wasn’t well. Eventually, something in him just snapped.”

Chase broke the hug. “He also loved you, Hope. I know he tried to kill you, but it still makes no sense to me almost a year later. I have no doubt in my mind that he loved you. You were all he would ever talk about. Sometimes I felt he loved you more than me.”

Hope shook her head. “You know that wasn’t true. You were the most important person in his life.”

“Well, you were pretty high up there too. You do know he really loved you, right?” Chase looked deep into her eyes.

Hope looked away. “I know. I wouldn’t think he could fake his love for me for nearly two years.” She looked at him and pushed some hair behind her ears. “But I also wouldn’t have thought he’d try to strangle me on my wedding night.”

Chase placed a hand on her shoulder again.

Hope looked him in the eyes.

“Hope, my dad loved you so much! Please don’t ever believe for a second that he didn’t,” Chase said softly.

Hope nodded, tears in her eyes. “I know. I’m going to choose to remember the man I fell in love with; not the unwell man he ended up being.”

Chase hugged her. “Good.” He then released her. “Remember, I won’t be home for dinner tonight. I’m going out with Claire, Joey, and his new girlfriend.”

Hope nodded. “Rafe and I have a date tonight anyway, and Ciara will be out with Theo.”

Chase’s face fell a bit.

Hope sighed. “Honey, I know you think I moved on too fast, but—“

Chase cut her off. “No, it’s all right. Rafe’s cool I guess. My dad tried to kill you. I understand why you had to move on.”

“I’ll always hold the good times your father and I had close to my heart. He made feel alive again when I thought Bo had deserted me. I’ll always love him for that regardless of how it ended. Plus, Rafe isn’t your father, and your father isn’t Rafe,” Hope explained.

“Rafe isn’t to take my father’s place. He’s just a new chapter in your life,” Chase said with a nod. Hope had explained it all to him before.

Hope nodded. “Exactly! That’s why love is so special—there’s always enough for more without having to get rid of any.”

Chase grinned. “See you tomorrow, if not later tonight.”

Hope kissed his cheek. “See you soon!”

Chase then left.

Hope watched him until he disappeared, then she sighed, and headed for home.



*This love came back to me. *



Meanwhile, Stefano Dimera sat in his wheelchair, watching the motionless body of his and Andre’s latest captive.

Their captive wore no shirt, revealing that his chest was scarred with an ugly reddish pink line down the center. His torso was clothed only in a pair of white, silky shorts that went to this mid-thigh, but due to the sheet draped over his lower-half, you couldn’t see the shorts. An IV drip was attached to him arm, feeding him both food, and the meds necessary to keep him in the lethargic state.

Of course, they didn’t always leave him in such a state. Once a day they would let the drugs wear off and then they would make him walk around the room. After all, they had to keep his limbs and brain functioning correctly if they ever wanted him to be of any use to them. They would chain his ankle to the wall with a ball and chain. The chain was long enough to allow their captive easy access around the room, yet he couldn’t make a break for it if he tried. For the most point, however, they kept him highly sedated. It was better that way.

Andre came up behind his father and put a hand over his shoulder. “He’s looking pretty good under the circumstances. Well, other than that unsightly scar on his chest.”

“We’ve had him here for almost a year. Remind me again of what the point is? We could at least have him working as our slave if you don’t want to kill him,” Stefano stated.

“Patience, my dear father. An opportunity hasn’t aroused yet that would make him useful to us. I want to make sure he is fully healed before we can start the brainwashing. Then, we can make him our permanent slave. After all, not only did he never pay us back the money he owes us, but he also now owes us for saving his life. All this equipment doesn’t come cheap, you know,” Andre explained.

“In a week, it will have been a year since he got shot and our doctor saved his life. That will be plenty of time for a full recovery,” Stefano grumbled. “I do not like to be kept waiting.”

Andre rubbed his father’s shoulders. “Relax, Dear father. The doctor said after a full year, his body and mind will be fully susceptible to anything administered to him. Just give it a week longer, and the process shall begin.”

Stefano held his hands together in a prayer-like motion, tapping his fingers together as he watched their captive sleep. “It’s had better.”



*This love came back to me.*



“Flowers for my beautiful girlfriend,” Rafe said kissing Hopes cheek as he arrived at her doorstep with a bouquet of six yellow roses and six red roses.”

Hope blushed and smiled. “You shouldn’t have.” She sniffed the roses, inhaling their sweet aroma. She then grinned at him. “But I’m glad you did.” She kissed him on the lips.

“I got half yellow because yellow stands for friendship, and half red because red stands for love. Our friendship turned in to love.”

“Now that deserves another kiss,” Hope said kissing him sweetly on the lips again.

Rafe moaned into the kiss and hungrily kissed her back.

“Just let me go put these in water, then we can go eat!” Hope said before quickly dashing off to the kitchen.

“Are you ready?” Rafe asked once she came back out a moment later.

She grabbed her purse. “I am now!”

They kissed once more, then he placed a hand over her back as they headed out the door.



*This love came back to me.*



“You can’t just keep me here forever,” Aiden grumbled as he walked around the room. He was tired of being drugged all the time, but the Dimeras had ways of making you do things whether you wanted to or not. Unfortunately, he didn’t have much say when it came to the IV drip.

“Oh, quit your blubbering! You’re alive, aren’t you?” Andre said crassly.

“Yeah, well I’d rather have died than have to live through this!” Aiden grumbled. He walked around the room for the third time. He was tired, but he knew he had to keep walking. If he stopped before a hundred laps around the room, Andre and Stefano had men who would come in and “help” him finish those laps. He supposed he should just be grateful they actually let him have a nice meal every night for dinner—that is, once his laps were finished of course. Though, he knew it was more for their benefit than his. They wanted him in well enough shape to do their bidding.

After his hundredth lap, they allowed him to sit down at a wooden chair in front of a small wooden table-for-one that was kept down there.

One of Stefano and Andre’s men brought in a tray of food covered with a silver top. He removed the top revealing, well-done steak, mashed potatoes, and peas. He had water to drink.

At first, Aiden had been reluctant to eat. After all, they were the Dimeras. Who knew what they could have done to his food? Eventually, however, it smelled too good to pass up seeing as this was the only real food he got each day. He simply could no longer resist it. Anyway, like he said, he’d rather be dead than be a slave to the Dimeras, so if he ended up being poisoned to death, at least he could have one last good meal and then be put out of his misery. However, he soon realized, death was not a mercy they were willing to give him. He supposed, they wouldn’t have saved his life to begin with if they had wanted him dead.

“Here’s a daily update. Chase is now seemingly getting real close with Claire, yet he can’t quite give himself fully to her, for the thought of his father trying to kill Hope on their wedding night still haunts him to this day. He misses you deeply. He’s never been the same since you died. Time does not seem to heal all wounds in his case,” Andre began.

Aiden sighed. Andre did not tell him about Hope and Chase to be nice. No. In true Dimera fashion, he was using the information to make his life even more miserable.

“What about Hope?” Aiden hated asking, but he had to know. He knew that, as usual, Andre would choose his words in such a way that he knew it would cut Aiden the deepest. Even so, Aiden had to know what was going on with Hope. He couldn’t help himself. He still loved her so much. He had never stopped loving her. In fact, he loved her more with every day that passed, even without having seen her since that fateful night he had tried to kill her. He would never forgive himself for that night—not ever.

Andre grinned. “Tell him, father.”

Stefano grinned as well. “She is out of a date with Rafael Hernandez again tonight. It’s only been a year, but they are already so close. They’ve also already been sleeping together. Have I told you that?”

Aiden gripped his fork so hard he felt his nails digging into his palm. “Yes, I believe you told me that a few times.”

“Did I? Hm. Well, anyway, they’re moving along so fast, it wouldn’t surprise me if they are engaged, or maybe even married by Christmas,” Stefano stated.

“Oh come now, Father. I wouldn’t say that soon! Rafe will probably wait until Valentine’s Day to make it more romantic,” Andre chimed in.

“He can propose on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, or maybe even New Year’s Day itself. Then they can have a big, beautiful, Valentine’s Day wedding that will not end in Hope being strangled this time,” Stefano teased.

“Enough!” Aiden said, slamming his palms down hard on the table. “Not another word about Hope and Rafe! You hear me?” He wanted Hope to be happy. Lord knew she deserved it after the way he had treated her. But the thought of Hope marrying another man while he wasted away in the Dimera dungeon… The thought of Chase having a new father… No. No way in hell.

Andre ignored him. “Oh, I don’t know, Father! Maybe we could control Rafe with all the mind-control drugs at our disposal. We could finally have him kill Hope once and for all.”

“Stefano nodded. “Rafe would be more capable, being a fellow police officer and all. He could get the job done—especially now with the dearly departed Bo Brady being dead as a doornail.”

Aiden felt the anger rise up in him again. “You leave Hope alone, or I swear I’ll—“

“You swear you’ll what, Jennings?” Andre interrupted. “Hm?” He motioned his hand around the room. “Take a look around! You’re chained up in our dungeon in no condition to fight the pope, let alone a Dimera. We will do whatever we please, and there’s not a damn thing you can do about it! Anyways, relax. It’s much more fun to keep Hope alive and torture you with Hope and Rafe stories. Heck, maybe I can even get a camera installed in Hope’s and Rafe’s bedrooms with a live feed down here for you to watch. Wouldn’t that be nice?”

“You’re sick!” Aiden snapped. “You’re pure evil. You’re twisted, sick, and evil! Both of you! Sick, twisted, and evil!”

Stefano and Andre both laughed.

“Look who’s talking! Neither Andre, nor myself is the one who tried to strangle his wife on his wedding night just for the insurance policy money,” Stefano stated.

Aiden narrowed his eyes at him. “I wasn’t given a choice in the matter, and you know it!”

Andre shook his head and clicked his tongue. “Oh dear, sweet, naïve Aiden. There’s always a choice. You made yours, and now you have to deal with the consequences.” He nodded at one of the guards. “Strap him back to the bed and sedate him for the night. I’m tired of talking to him.”

“But I’m not finished eating yet,” Aiden said.

“Now you are. Next time I suggest keeping your mouth shut if you plan on eating your whole meal,” Andre said crassly as one of his men took away Aiden’s tray and glass.

Aiden tried to fight the two men coming to strap him down, but he was too weak for them. Between the two men, they were a whole lot stronger than he was on his best day.

He cried out in frustration as they strapped him to the gurney and injected his IV with the meds that always knocked him out cold for hours on end.

The last thought in his head as he started to drift off to a deep sleep was Hope being with Rafe, and how he had to get back to her and his son. He couldn’t let Rafe take away the love of his life. He couldn’t let… He was out cold before he could finish his next thought.



*This love came back to me.*



“Isn’t this cake to die for?” Rafe asked, as he and Hope ate their dessert at Chez Rouge.

Hope felt her stomach sink. She hated that term—“to die for”. She had seen so much death over the past year. There was Serena, Paige, Will, Aiden, and Bo—just to name a handful. They had finally caught the real necktie killer at the beginning of the year. It had made her feel a little better knowing that Aiden hadn’t killed all those people, but still, he had tried to kill her, and she still didn’t know why.

“I’m sorry. I can tell by the look on your face that that was a very bad way of putting it. It was insensitive. I’m so sorry.” Rafe set his fork down.

Hope shook her head. “No! It’s okay. I knew what you meant.” She took a bite of her chocolate cake. “It really is delicious.” She licked her lips.

“So, Ciara and Chase are both out with friends tonight, huh?” Rafe asked, trying to change the subject.

Hope smiled and nodded. “Yes, they are. Ciara and Theo are at teen night at the club, and Chase and Claire are at the movies with Joey and his new girlfriend.”

“Do you feel like heading back to one of our places?” Rafe asked her with a grin. “Too bad they aren’t both having a sleepover at a friend’s house. We could have spent the whole night together.”

Hope smiled, but her heart sank a little. It seemed like just yesterday that she and Aiden had just gotten engaged and Aiden had asked if he and she could have a sleepover.

“Hope, seriously, are you okay?” Rafe asked.

Hope snapped out of it. She had to forget about Aiden. He was dead and gone and had tried to kill her. There was no reason at all he should still be on her mind.

She reached across the table, and took Rafe’s hands in her own. “I guess we’ll just have to make the most of what time we do have tonight. We’ll go to your place just in case the kids get home early.” She winked at him and smiled, then kissed his hands

He smiled too, then hailed the waitress down. “Check please!”

Hope grinned; intent on banishing all thoughts of Aiden from her mind—if only for the night.

[ihearthaiden]

Days of our Haiden

Season 1 Episode 2:

                                                                                              ~~~~~*****~~~~~



    Hope was marrying Rafe. She looked so beautiful—perfect even. She was walking down the aisle toward Rafe. She looked even more beautiful than she had when marrying Aiden—if that were possible.

Hope looked at Rafe as if he were the only one in the room and vise-versa.

Doug gave her away. “He’s perfect for you,” Doug whispered in her ear.

Hope smiled at her father. “I know.” She then took Rafe’s hands in her own.

When it came time for the vows, Hope went first.

“You’re the only man I could ever truly count on. You never cheated on me like Bo, or tried to strangle me like Aiden. Ugh! You’re so much better than Aiden. Aiden never loved me, and the more I think about it, I never really loved Aiden either. In fact, I’m glad he’s dead!”

Aiden’s head shook from side to side as he dreamed. “No!” he cried.

Flash to being back home. Chase hugged Rafe. “I’m so glad I have a new father now! My dad was nothing but a psycho. In fact, I don’t even consider him my dad any more. He’s just that psycho that tried to kill my mom.”

Aiden shook his head even more. He was sweating now. “No!”

Rafe hugged Chase tightly. “Don’t worry. I’m going to be a better dad to you than Aiden ever was.”

Chase smiled up at him. “You already are, Dad.”

“No!” Aiden shook himself awake. Sweat was pouring down his face. He tried to sit up, but he was strapped to the gurney. Andre and Stephano hadn’t even had the decency to get him a cot, let alone a real bed.

He sighed. He couldn’t let that happen. He couldn’t let Hope believe that he didn’t love her, and he certainly couldn’t let her marry Rafe—if things were as headed in that direction as Andre and Stefano had implied. He knew Hope deserved better than a man who tried to strangle her on her wedding night after vowing to love her forever and take care of her. Even so, he loved her too much to let her go. He had to get out of here, and he had to make her understand. He had to. He couldn’t let her marry Rafe, and he couldn’t let Rafe take over his role as husband to Hope and father to Chase. He had to think of a way out. He just had to! His relationship with both Hope and Chase depended on it.



*This love came back to me.*



Hope kissed Rafe in the park. “We really should be getting back to work,” she murmured with a smile. She gently stroked the side of his hair.

He grinned, and pulled her closer by the waist. “I think we have time for another kiss or two.”

She grinned, and draped her arms over his shoulders. “Another kiss or two? Or maybe three?”

He grinned. “Or maybe four or five.”

She laughed, and they kissed some more.

Rafe then got a text.

They continued kissing.

“Aren’t you gonna check that?” Hope asked, after a moment.

“I’m in no hurry to,” he said, kissing her again.

She moaned, and kissed him back.

He got another text.

“You better check it. It could be about work,” Hope said, pulling away.

Rafe sighed. “All right, all right. But I’m sure it’s nothing.” He kissed her again before checking his text. He sighed, then looked at her. “Looks like we’re going to have to cut this short. Gabi needs me. She didn’t say what for. She said she wanted to talk to me about something.”

“Well, you have a half hour left of our lunchbreak.” Hope held onto the front of his shirt and kissed him. “Go ahead. Send her my love. I’ll cover for you if you need more time.”

“Are you sure?” Rafe asked.

Hope nodded. “Of course! She’s your sister and she needs you. You need to go see what she wants.” She kissed him again. “Now go.” She pat his chest.

“Thank you. You’re the best.” He quickly kissed her lips. “I’ll see you soon.” He then took off.

Hope smiled, and headed out of the park. She felt lucky to have fallen in love again. She had never thought she would fall in love again, but she had. This time, it was with a man she knew she could fully trust. Rafe would never hurt her in the way that Aiden had.

She headed out of the park, and walked down the street, past the cemetery, which was right next to the park. She did a double take when she saw Chase sitting in front of his father’s grave, his face in his hands.

Hope sighed. She hated that Chase was still in so much pain. She had tried her best to be there for him, but she knew the loss of his father was a pain he would live with for the rest of his life.

She couldn’t get herself to keep walking on by. Chase needed her, and as his mother, it was her job to be there for him.

She headed into the cemetery, and over to Chase. Her heart broke when she heard him sobbing into his hands.

“I miss you, Dad!” Chase said between cries. “I miss you more and more with every day that passes! Why did you have to try to kill Hope? Why did you have to go and get yourself killed? Why did you leave me? I still need you, Dad!”

Hope had tears streaming down her own face now, and her heart was shattering all over again. She knelt down beside Chase and placed an arm around him.

Chase jumped, and looked to see who it was. “Oh. It’s you.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you,” she said, wiping her tears with the back of her freehand.

Chase sniffled and shrugged. “It’s okay. I guess we’re even now.” He weakly smiled at her.

Hope could tell his smile was only half-hearted. “Oh, Honey, come here.” She pulled him against her chest, and held him tightly.

Chase then sobbed into her chest as she gently rubbed his back. Chase was a very emotional person. Most boys his age would try to be tough, and not want to cry in front of anyone, let alone their mother, but not Chase. Chase wore his heart on his sleeve, and she loved him even more for it.

After a minute, Chase stopped crying. He pulled away from Hope, and sniffled. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me.”

Hope dug into her purse and took out a tissue. She handed it to him.

“Thanks,” he said, taking the tissue and blowing his nose.

“Don’t ever apologize for missing your father. You loved him, and he loved you. It’s perfectly normal to grieve over him,” Hope said, wiping his tears with her thumbs.

“I feel guilty though, after what he did to you,” Chase said quietly.

“He was once a good man. He did love you, and I know now after I’ve had time to heal that he must have loved me. He just…had some mental issues going on that he needed help with yet unfortunately never got,” Hope said. She was at a good place about it now. Plus, every day she saw Chase, it reminded her of the good Aiden had in him. He had been a good man, who raised an amazing son. He just lost his way somewhere along the way. She would always remember him for the man he once was. She would also always remember the man he turned out to be, but she would try to let the good dominate the bad. After all, she did have more good memories with Aiden than bad. Though, the one bad thing was not something she could ever overlook, she had to keep the good Aiden in her heart and mind for both her sake and Chase’s.

Chase stood up. “I gotta get back to school.”

“That’s right, you’re supposed to be in school,” Hope said, standing up and crossing her arms over her chest.

Chase looked down at the grass. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t hungry, and I really needed to see Dad, so I sneaked out on my lunch period.”

Hope sighed. She hugged him. “It’s all right. Just get back to school before anyone notices you’re gone. All right?”

Chase hugged her back. “I will. Thanks, Mom. I love you.”

Hope felt her heart swell with love for him. She loved him as if she had given birth to him herself. “I love you too.” The first time he had called her mom, she had had tears of happiness in her eyes. Almost a year later, and it still made her tear-up.

Chase then left for school.

Hope sighed, and looked at Aiden’s tombstone. She placed her hand on top of it. “I’m trying to take care of him the best I can. He’s got a girlfriend now—Claire, my granddaughter. I know it’s kind of weird with him calling me mom. It’s like Claire is both his cousin and girlfriend. I suppose it’s okay though since he’s not blood related to her. I do love him as if he were blood related though.” Hope sighed. “Chase is one of the few things I have to remind me of yours and my happier times. I still don’t know why you did what you did, but I know you must have loved me at some point. I did love you too. Oddly enough, part of me will always love you. I’ll always love the man you were before you did what you did.” She started at his tombstone a moment more, then left for the police station. She had work to do, and lingering in the past wasn’t going to get it done.



*This love came back to me.*



“I feel fine. I don’t need to go to the damn hospital!” Stefano grumbled as Andre wheeled him toward the door. He coughed again, this time even more forceful than the previous coughs of the day.

“You’ve been coughing all day, and it’s only getting worse. If you catch pneumonia, or anything else of the sort, we need to know now before it gets worse. At your age, you need to catch these things quickly,” Andre replied.

“Oh please! Like you care if I live or die,” Stephano grumbled. “Look, it’s starting to storm. I hate going out in the rain!”

“Oh, quit your bitching! You are my father, and it’s my duty to look after you,” Andre said as he wheeled Stephano out of the mansion. “Storm or no storm, you need to get checked out.”

Moments after they left, Chad came into the mansion. He and Abigail had their own place now with their son. However, he liked to stop by from time to time to make sure that all was well with Stefano. He knew Stefano hadn’t been well lately. As much as he and his father didn’t see eye to eye when it came to certain things, family was still family, and Stefano and Andre were all he had. Sadly.

“Father? Andre? Is anyone here?” he asked, looking around the living room.

“Mr. Dimera, your brother has taken your father to the hospital for a checkup. He has had a bad cough all day. They left just moments before you got here,” Harold, the butler informed him.

“Is he going to be all right?” Chad asked with concern.

“Your father was griping about being fine, but your brother wanted to take him anyway just in case. He thinks it could be pneumonia,” Harold explained.

“All right. I’ll stick around a bit. Thanks for the info,” Chad replied.

Harold then went back to whatever it was he was doing.

Chad sighed. “I might as well wait here for them to return I guess. I have nothing better to do. Plus, I do not feel like going back out in that downpour.” He plopped himself down onto the couch. Abigail was spending the day shopping with Jennifer. They had brought Tommy with them to buy new things for him as well. Abagail had wanted to name their baby Thomas after Tom Horton, and Chad had agreed, much to Stefano’s dismay.

Chad looked around, and he saw a new picture on the mantle. It was a framed photograph of him, Abigail, and Tommy, taken six months ago.

He walked over to the mantle and picked it up. He had given Stefano a copy, but he didn’t think it had meant all that much to Stefano. Stefano and Abigail weren’t exactly each other’s biggest fans. Chad was touched Stefano had bothered to not only keep it, but frame it and put it up on the mantle.

He set it back on the mantle. His eye then caught hold of a big, glass, phoenix statuette, so he picked it up and smirked. “Where did this come from? It doesn’t look like father’s style.”

Suddenly, a clap of thunder hit so loudly that it scared Chad and caused him to drop the phoenix. It fell and broke on the cement ledge of the fireplace opening.

“Great! Just what I need,” Chad grumbled. He bent down and started carefully picking up the pieces of glass. He hoped the statuette wasn’t anything important to Stefano. Maybe he could try to glue it back together, he figured. It was in big enough pieces. He saw the head had broken off and fallen toward the back wall of the fireplace.

“Where the heck is the fireplace gate anyway?” he muttered as he reached in and grabbed for the head. As he was reaching, he rested his freehand against the back wall of the fireplace for support. “I’m getting too old for this kind of thing,” he grumbled as he stretched to reach the phoenix head. Suddenly, he fell forward. “What the heck?” he asked. He looked over and saw that the back wall of the fireplace that he had been resting his hand on had moved into a partially sideways formation. “Another secret tunnel?” he asked himself.

He set the phoenix head aside, then climbed into the fireplace, making sure not to kneel on any glass. He pushed the door the rest of the way open so that the back wall of the fireplace was now entirely in a sideways position. He slipped through the hole, and saw there was a staircase leading down to a small hallway.

“How did I live here all those years and never know about this?” he asked to no one in particular. He headed down the stairs, wondering where the heck the stairs were going to lead him. Knowing his father and Andre, he had a feeling it couldn’t be good.



*This love came back to me*



“Thank you for joining us for family night,” Hope said to Chase and Claire. I wish Ciara would join us.”

Claire rolled her eyes. “She thinks family night is lame.”

“She thinks a lot of things are lame,” Chase quipped.

Claire nodded. “I know, right?”

There was a knock on the door.

Hope smiled. “That must be Rafe.”

Chase looked at her in surprise. “Rafe? Come on! Rafe’s not family!”

Hope looked at him in surprise. “I thought you were okay with me dating him.”

Chase nodded. “I am, but being okay with you dating him and considering him family are two entirely different things. I mean, come on, Mom. My father and Bo haven’t even been dead a year yet, and you’re already calling Rafe family?”

Hope felt like crying. He could feel the tears start to well up in her eyes. However, she held herself together. She guessed she could see where Chase was coming from. “You’re right. I’m sorry. If you want it to be just the three of us, it can be just the three of us.”

Chase sighed. “No, you already invited him. You can’t be rude. Just next time please let it be just us.”

Hope nodded, and smiled at him. “I can do that.” She walked over to the door and let Rafe in.

They greeted each other, then kissed each other on the cheek. When in front of Chase, they always toned down the PDA in respect for him.

“So, pizza and a movie, huh?” Rafe asked, sitting down in the plush armchair next to the couch “What are we watching?”

“Tommy Boy. It’s old, but classic!” Chase said.

Claire nodded. “I wish Chris Farley were still alive. He was so funny!”

Hope sat on the couch the side closest to Rafe.

“Yeah, Chris Farley is awesome! You know, I’ve never seen Tommy Boy. Is it good?”

“You’ve never seen Tommy Boy?” Claire asked in surprise.

“Dude, it’s the best! It’s so funny. You’re really going to love it,” Chase assured him.

“If it meets your approval, I’m sure I will,” Rafe said with a grin at Chase.

Chase grinned back at him.

Hope smiled as she saw her son and Rafe smiling at each other. She was happy to see them getting along! Rafe was good with Chase, and Chase seemed to be warming up to him—even if it was only a little bit. Right now, that was all she could ask for.



*This love came back to me*



There was a door along one side of the hallway. Chad tried to open it, but it was locked. Lucky for him, he was a pro at picking locks. He supposed every good Dimera was.

He pulled out his wallet, then took out a credit card, and slid it through the crack of the door. It took him a few tries, but eventually the door popped open.

“You’re behind on your game lately, Father,” he muttered to himself as he put his credit card back in his wallet, then shoved his wallet back in his pocket. “It must be Andre’s work. Father would have put a pass code on the door.” Chad smirked, and shook his head. “Andre will never be as bright as Father even though he believes he is smarter than father.”

Chad walked into the room, and immediately saw a man strapped to a gurney with an IV in his arm.

“Oh my gosh, who did he kidnap now?” Chad asked, rushing over to the gurney.

The man had his eyes closed; he was sleeping—what looked like soundly. However, Chad recognized the man right way.

Chad’s mouth dropped open. “Aiden Jennings?”

[heroicmuse]

Welcome ihearthaiden!

I really like this. This is a great way to undo what the writers of the real show have done to Haiden. I could hear Andres voice in some of his lines, and it would be just like him to torment Aiden endlessly.

I can't wait to see what Chad does with this discovery. Great beginning!

[nurse2herbalist]

Welcome, ihearthaiden! Love the story so far!

[sevenna92]

Really liking the story so far! Sounds like it could be very interesting.

[Kpatch]

So happy you are righting the wrong that was done to Haiden. You write Andre so perfectly, I can hear him reciting the dialogue!

Welcome ihearthaiden and keep up the good work.

[ihearthaiden]

Thank you every one SO MUCH for your warm welcome. It means so much to me that you guys like it so far. Thank you for taking your time to read it and for your kind reviews. I hope you continue to like it. I have a lot planned for it.

[ihearthaiden]

Sorry this is late. I got delayed because of the holidays.

Days of our Haiden

                                                                                                    Season 1, Episode 3:



Aiden was still sleeping. From the looks of it, they had him good and drugged.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Chad asked out loud. He looked at the IV going into Aiden’s arm. “And what the hell are they drugging you with?” He debated on whether or not he should pull the IV out. He didn’t know anything about medical things. He didn’t want to hurt Aiden by pulling out the IV. Then again, Aiden was out cold. He wouldn’t feel any pain if he were to ease the needle out. That’s all there was to it, he assumed—just removing the needle. At least, he hoped.

He carefully and gently pulled out the needle, then let it drop. It hung from the IV bag, dangling inches above the floor, and dripping whatever drugs was in the bag on the floor.

He then started to undo the bindings on the gurney, but then stopped. Aiden had tried to kill Hope. What if he was dangerous, and tried to kill him as well?

As Chad was debating, Aiden’s eyes slowly fluttered open.

Aiden coughed. “Chad?”

Chad looked down at him. “What are you doing here?”

“Oh, you know. Just lying around,” Aiden said weakly.

Chad rolled his eyes at him. “Now’s not the time to make jokes, Jennings. Tell me what the hell you’re doing here. Did my father or brother kidnap you? Or both?”

“I have no recollection of how I got here. All I remember is waking up on this gurney with a needle strapped in my arm, and Andre and Stefano staring down at me.” Aiden looked at both his arms. “The needle’s gone,” he said in surprise.

Chad nodded. “I removed it. Until now, I thought you were dead.”

“Apparently, your brother and father wanted me alive. I’m not sure exactly the details, but I do know they had their surgeons perform heart surgery on me, which saved my life. I don’t know how. I was shot in the heart!” Aiden replied.

“That’s one good thing about being kidnapped by my father. He has connections to the best heart surgeons in the world. They are capable of doing things regular surgeons can’t.” Chad shrugged. “You’d be surprised at what money can buy.”

“I wouldn’t know,” Aiden said dryly. “Look, Chad, I worked as your lawyer. I know you’re nothing like your father and brother. Can you please get me out of here?”

Chad sighed. “I don’t know. You tried to kill Hope. Why should I let you go? What? Do you want to go finish her off?”

“I’d never hurt Hope!” Aiden snapped.

“Hurt her? Aiden, you tried to kill her! What? Did those drugs that were being put into you demolish your memory?”

Aiden sighed. “Look, I had no choice. I owed your brother and father a lot of money, and I do mean a lot of money. They said that if I didn’t pay them back the money, they were going to kill my son. I love Hope with all my heart and all my soul. If it were just my life, I would have died for her. But Chad, we’re talking about my son’s life. My son will always come first to me. He has to. I’m his father, and it’s my responsibility to look out for him and make sure he is safe. I had no choice. I had to change her life insurance policy and then disguise myself as the necktie killer and…” He trailed off unable to say out loud that he had tried to kill Hope. “It was the only way. She didn’t have that kind of money as long as she was alive, and there was nowhere else I could get it from.”

Chad shook his head. “You could have gone to Hope about it, you know. She is a cop, Aiden. It’s her job to protect people from crooks like my brother and father.”

“You know your brother and father more than anybody. If I had gone to the cops, do you really think they would have just surrendered, and forgotten about the money I owe them?” Aiden shook his head the best he could with being strapped down. “No. They would have found a way to get to my son no matter what.”

“Well, then you should have come to me! I know how to handle my father and brother. It didn’t have to go down that way!” Chad insisted.

“You were in prison at the time. I couldn’t!” Aiden insisted. “Anyway, I was your ticket out. They would have killed me and my son both if I had ruined your chances of getting out.”

Chad shook his head. “I should have connected the two. My brother admitted to me that he was going to have someone pose as the necktie killer to get me out of jail. Still, I didn’t think he’d hire you. You were just my lawyer. I really thought you were the actual killer until I remembered it was Ben.”

“Look, I know I messed up!” Aiden said, tears in his eyes, and his voice rising. He softened his voice. “But just the thought of my son being killed made me go crazy. I couldn’t think straight! And, let’s face it. I’m weak. Sure I can stand up to myself over people I clearly have the power over, like Clyde. But when it comes to people who have the power over me, like your family…. I’m weak and pathetic. I never should have tried to kill Hope. You’re right. I should have gone to her, or taken Chase out of town, or anything but try to kill the love of my life. Thank God Bo Brady came home when he did and saved her. I deserved to be shot. A part of me wishes I had been left to die.”

Chad placed his hand over Aiden’s shoulder. “Look. We all do dumb things. True, I never tried to kill anyone before, but I know a lot of people in Salem who have—my brother and father included.”

“Great! I’ve become just like them,” Aiden said sadly.

“Except, there’s a difference. They forced you to do what you did. You didn’t do it out of malice like they do. And, in case you don’t know, Abigail’s baby turned out to be mine. I have a son now, and I know that if I were in the same position, and I really felt there was no other way to save his life, I’d do the same thing. I’m sure Abigail would as well. Parents will do anything to protect their children. True, killing their spouse to protect their child isn’t something you normally see, but…” Chad shrugged. “It’s Salem. We all know crazy stuff always goes down in Salem. Anyway, the bottom line is, I get it. It may not have been right, and it may not have been smart, but I get why you did it, and I’m gonna help you get out of here.”

“You are? Oh, thank you, Chad! You won’t regret it, I promise! I don’t know where I’m going to stand as far as my career goes, but if I’m ever allowed to practice law again, you will have my services pro bono for life!” Aiden promised. “Of course, I’m going to have to deal with how I’m going to get out of what I did first, but I have to let Hope know why I did what I did even if it lands me in jail.”

“Yeah, well let’s just concentrate on getting you out of here first. All right?” Chad asked.

Aiden nodded.

Chad began to undo Aiden’s restraints. “My brother has my father at the hospital for a checkup, but that was a while ago, so we have to hurry up.”

“There’s not much I can do to hurry,” Aiden joked weakly.

“Ha, ha, you’re hilarious,” Chad said sarcastically. “You’re the only one I know who can joke while being held captive.”

“Do you know many other people who have been held captive?” Aiden continued to joke.

Chad got the last of the restraints undone and smirked at him. “I’m part of the Dimera family. Need I say more?”

“Good point,” Aiden said. “I’m gonna need some help.”

Chad helped Aiden sit up, then wrapped an arm around him and carefully helped him off the gurney. “We have to get out of here quickly. We can take the tunnels so we won’t be seen in case Father and Andre get back in the meantime.”

Chad and Aiden both jumped; startled when they heard an all too familiar voice.

“Well it’s a little late for that now, isn’t it?” Andre asked.

Chad and Aiden both looked up to see Andre standing in the doorway.

Chad sighed. “Oh crap.”

Andre grinned widely. “Oh crap indeed.” His smile disappeared just like that, and his smile turned to an angry scowl. “For you two anyway.”

Aiden and Chad looked at each other, the color drained from both their faces.



*This love came back to me.*



The movie ended, and they all stood up.

Claire stretched. “That was even funnier this time around!” She turned to Rafe. “So, what did you think?”

“It was great!” Rafe said not sounding too enthused, but smiling big anyway.

Chase gave him a look of disbelief. “You hated it, didn’t you?”

Rafe hesitated. “No, I didn’t hate it, I just…”

Hope smiled, and pat his back. “It’s all right.” She kissed his cheek. “Everyone has a different sense of humor. If we were all the same, we’d be boring.”

“I don’t know how he doesn’t find Tommy Boy funny. Hello, Chris Farley and David Spade! Who doesn’t mind them funny?” Chase asked, his arms crossed over his chest.

“Apparently me,” Rafe said with a weak smile; his best attempt at joking around.

Chase rolled his eyes.

“Chase, come on. Don’t be like that. He didn’t find the movie funny. It’s not like he insulted your best friend,” Hope said; half amused.

“Whatever. He shouldn’t have been invited anyway,” Chase said.

“Chase! That was rude and uncalled for. Apologize right now!” Hope snapped.

Chase sighed. “I’m sorry, Rafe. I just don’t see why you had to come to family night when you’re not family. I don’t care how close you’ve gotten with my mom. You’re not my dad, nor will you ever be, and I will certainly never consider you family.”

“Chase…” Hope warned.

“No, it’s okay. I get it. Chase is entitled to feel the way he feels. And, for the record, I would never try to be your dad,” Rafe said, directing his last statement toward Chase.

“Yeah, because who would ever want to be my dad—the attempted murderer—right?” Chase snapped.

“Okay, now you’re just twisting my words,” Rafe said calmly.

Chase raised an eyebrow, his arms still crossed over his chest. “Am I?”

“I think it’s time I say goodnight.” Rafe nodded at Claire. “You need a ride home?”

Claire grabbed her purse. “That would be great, Rafe. Thank you.”

“I’ll walk you out,” Hope said, taking Rafe’s arm and leading him out the front door.

Claire stayed back to talk with Chase. “You don’t gotta be rude, you know.”

Chase sighed. “I’m just sick of him trying to be all up in Hope’s life. He was even before my dad was dead. Everyone saw it. It didn’t take him long to swoop in after my dad and Bo died.”

Clair placed a hand over his shoulder. “I get it. I can see how you’d be annoyed. But sometimes, love just happens. No one can help it.”

Chase rolled his eyes. “My mom does not love Rafe. She is in love with the idea of being in love. There’s a difference.”

Claire smirked. “Just try to be nice to Rafe. All right? If not for his sake, then for your mom’s.”

Chase sighed. “All right, fine. But I don’t have to like it!”

Claire grinned, then kissed his cheek. “Goodnight.”

Meanwhile, Hope kissed Rafe softly on the lips. “I’m sorry about that,” she said, gently stroking his cheek. “He’ll come around eventually. I promise.”

Rafe raised an eyebrow. “You sure about that?”

Hope nodded. “It’s just going to take some time. He doesn’t like the thought of me with anyone but his dad. Despite what Aiden did, he was still a good father to Chase, and Chase loved him very much. Try to be a little understanding. All right?”

Rafe kissed Hope sweetly on the lips, and stroked her cheek. “All right, I’ll do it. For you.”

Hope grinned. “Thank you.” They kissed once more.

“Goodnight,” Rafe said.

Hope smiled. “Goodnight.” She stroked his cheek one last time.

Claire came out then. “Thanks for tonight, Grandma.”

Hope winced.

Claire laughed. “Mother of my father?” she tried.

Hope nodded. “That’s much easier to take!”

They both laughed, then hugged.

“Goodnight my sweet Claire!” Hope said, kissing the top of her head.

“Goodnight,” Claire replied. She then left with Rafe.

Hope waved to them until they were out of sight, then went back in the house.

“Save me the lecture, all right? I’ll apologize to him the next time I see him,” Chase muttered.

Hope sighed. “I wasn’t going to lecture you.” She walked over to him and hugged him tightly. Then she kissed the top of his head. “Goodnight. I love you.”

Chase relaxed in her arms. “I love you too, Mom.”

Hope then headed upstairs. She was exhausted, and just wanted to sleep. She knew she shouldn’t think it, but a part of her wondered what her life would be like now if Aiden had never tried to kill her, and if Bo had never come back. She would be married to Aiden, and they would be raising Chase together.

She sighed as she headed into her room and closed the door behind her. She supposed there was no use in what ifs. Aiden had tried to kill her, Bo had come back (and died), and now she had moved on with Rafe. That was just the way it was. There was no use in looking back.



*This love came back to me.*



“Whatever are you doing, dear Brother?” Andre asked.

“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m getting your prisoner out of here.” Chad tried to push Aiden past Andre, but Andre stood firmly in the doorway, and placed a hand over Chad’s chest. “Not so fast, Brother. Now what makes you think I’m just going to let you just walk out of here with my prisoner?”

“I will tell the cops on you if you don’t let him go,” Chad said coldly, his eyes locked with Andre’s.

Andre laughed. “Ah, but you see, if you tell the cops, then Mr. Jennings here will be put away for life for trying to kill his beloved wife.”

“Being in jail has got to be better than being strapped to a gurney with drugs pumped into me all day long,” Aiden snapped.

Andre ignored Aiden and kept his attention on Chad. “He owes me money—a lot of money. Now he must work it off or suffer the consequences.”

“Give me a break! You know this family is as rich as it gets. I’m sure whatever you lent to Aiden is pocket change to you!” Chad snapped.

Andre shrugged. “Maybe so, but it’s more about principle than it is the money, Chad. The Dimeras have a reputation to maintain.”

Chad raised an eyebrow. “I think he’s paid enough. You’ve made him try to kill his wife, and he died. True, you brought him back to life, but—”

Andre cut him off. “I’m going to stop you right there. Contrary to popular belief, Mr. Jennings did not die. Oh, he was close to death, sure. But he wasn’t dead. The bullet just grazed his heart. It missed the pulmonary artery just by mere centimeters, lucky for him. Or, not lucky, depending on how you look at it. His heartbeat was too low to detect, as was his breathing. As soon as I heard what happened, I had the ambulance workers under our payroll make sure that the body got brought straight to the Dimera mansion so that our team of surgeons could fix the damage that had been done.”

“Who’s in Aiden’s grave?” Chad asked.

Andre continued to explain. “Seeing as the residents of Salem are too heartless to have given Aiden a funeral—even for Chase’s sake—it was easy. You should know by now Chad, that the Dimeras have people all over town. Our people in the morgue made sure some John Doe that nobody would miss was buried in his grave. No one even bothered to check and see who was in the casket. They just wanted him buried and forgotten about so that they could go about their lives and try to pretend that Aiden had never existed, and that he had never tried to strangle Hope. Of course, Bo Brady’s death made it even easier for them to forget. Except for poor Chase, but no one really seems to care about him now, do they?”

Aiden clenched his fists. “Let us go so that I can explain to my son why I did what I did and that his father is not a monster. He needs me now more than ever.”

Andre shook his head. “I’m sorry, but I’m afraid I can’t do that.”

“Well, I’m not letting you keep him hostage, so I’m afraid you have no choice this time, Brother!” Chad snapped.

Andre’s eyes grew cold as they bore into Chad’s. “We’ll just see about that now, won’t we?”

Chad kept his eyes locked with Andre’s, not about to back down. Not this time.

“What the hell is going on in here?” Stefano asked, wheeling his chair into the room.

“How did you get in here through the fireplace?” Chad asked, temporarily distracted.

Stefano rolled his eyes. “Don’t be an idiot! I took a more handicap accessible tunnel. The fireplace is not the only way to get down here, you know.”

Chad shook his head. “Whatever. I’m getting Aiden out of here. Tell your other son to let us go.”

Stefano crossed his arms over his chest, and nodded at Chad. “You’re free to go.” He then motioned towards Aiden. “Aiden Jennings, however, is not.”

Chad and Aiden looked at each other.

Chad then bore his eyes into Stefano’s. “Well, that’s a shame you see, because I’m not leaving until you let him go.”

Stefano and Chad kept their eyes locked, and their arms crossed over their chests. Neither one was going to budge.

Aiden swallowed hard. It was two Dimeras against one. Sure he could try to help Chad, but he was still weak from being held captive for almost year. He didn’t know how on earth he was going to get out of this one, but there was no turning back now. He was going to get out of here, and this time, he was not going to die trying.

[heroicmuse]

I'm as impressed as Chad is with Aidens sense of humor under duress.

I'm also still laughing at "How did you get in through the fireplace?"

And the explanation of why Aiden tried to kill Hope and the cliffhanger were perfect. Can't wait to see what happens next!

[ihearthaiden]

Thanks so much! I'm glad you enjoyed it. I was worried as I was writing this chapter that the explanation wouldn't make sense. I'm not as good at explaining things as you are in your story. But as I proofread it in the end, I was fairly happy with it.

[sevenna92]

I don't know why, but I can't help but feel a bit bad for Aiden. I hope he and Chad can escape from Andre.

Poor Chase. He really misses his father. I'm not so sure I still like Rafe/Hope together. It just seems weird.

I think the whole explanation with Aiden made a lot of sense, considering it's the DiMeras that we're talking about.

[ihearthaiden]

Thank you! I'm songlad I'm making sense. I worry I won't sometimes. I also like that you're not liking Hope and Rafe. I hate them as a couple so I'm shooting for them not to be likable in my story.

[ihearthaiden]

Days of our Haiden

                                                                                              Season 1 Episode 4:



“Move out of the way. Now,” Chad barked.

Stefano shook his head. “The way you talk to your father after all that I’ve done for you.”

“You both know that neither of you have any right to keep this man prisoner,” Chad said, trying his best to keep his cool.

“He owes us money that he did not repay,” Andre snapped.

“So? That doesn’t give you the right to hold him prisoner!” Chad snapped back.

Andre shrugged. “He should be grateful. I practically saved his life.”

“It was because of you that I nearly died to begin with!” Aiden said angrily, his eyes boring into Andre’s.

Andre shrugged. “I never forced you to try to kill Hope.”

Aiden clenched his fists. “You said you would kill my son—and me for that matter—if I didn’t. I’d say that is forcing me.”

“I didn’t stop you from going to Hope or any other law-abiding officer. You could have found another way to pay off your debt. It didn’t have to go down the way it did,” Andre reasoned.

“I had no other way, and you know it!” Aiden snapped.

“Father, if you don’t let Aiden go, I will never allow you to see Thomas again,” Chad told Stefano; ignoring Andre and Aiden’s argument.

Stefano’s eyes grew dark. “You wouldn’t. You cannot! I will not permit it!”

Chad laughed. “I’m not a little boy anymore, Father. I’m an adult, and if I don’t want you seeing my son, you’re not going to see my son. You know Rafe and I are what they call, ‘besties’ now. I’m sure he can make it legal for me. You will not be allowed within a hundred feet of your grandson.”

“Try it!” Stefano snapped, his eyes flashing with anger, and his fist shaking in the air.

“Oh, I’m not just going to try; I’m going to succeed,” Chad said.

Stefano and Chad had a staring contest.

Andre rolled his eyes. “Oh, give me a break! He’s bluffing. He wouldn’t deny the child seeing his grandfather—especially not when little Thomas is already without his other grandfather.”

“Why do you care so much about Aiden Jennings anyway?” Stefano grumbled.

“He was good to me when I needed a lawyer, and I consider him a friend. Anyway, it’s wrong to keep anyone chained up in your dungeon no matter what they have done or what they owe. Now let him go. Now!” Chad ordered.

“Not a chance!” Andre snapped. “I don’t give a crap if I never see that little brat again! I never wanted to see the bloody thing to begin with!”

Chad whipped around to face Andre. “Don’t you ever call my son that again!”

“What? A brat? Well that’s what he is. He cries and whines all the time. Are you sure he isn’t really Ben’s after all? He seems to have a bit of psycho in him already,” Andre taunted.

Chad tried to hold in his anger, but he couldn’t hold it in. Not now after Andre had goaded him into a fight. Chad raised his fist, but Andre caught it.

“Oh, don’t you dare try to punch me, little brother, or you will regret it!” Andre said calmly.

Chad smirked; his eyes locked with Andre’s. “What are you going to do, hm? Lock me up as well?” His eyes fell upon Aiden, who looked with his eyes toward Chad, and then at the IV pouch that had some of the sleep-inducing drugs still in it. He looked at Chad again, and then at Andre. Chad understood what Aiden wanted to do. At least, he hoped he did.

Chad walked over to Stefano, and turned his chair at an angle so that Stefano would not be able to see what Aiden was about to do.

“What are you doing?” Stefano grumbled.

“I don’t want you to have to see your son taking out your other son; me being the one doing the taking out of course,” Chad replied.

“Don’t be ridiculous!” Stefano snapped.

Chad ignored him, leaving Stefano’s back turned toward him as he marched over to Andre.

“Bring it on, little Brother. But before you decide to fight me, you might want to think it through. Are you sure that you want your fiancé and baby to have to worry about their precious fiancé and father being put in the hospital?” Andre asked.

Chad smirked. “They aren’t going to have to worry about that. And as for Abigail’s soon-to-be brother-in-law and Tommy’s uncle, I think they will get over it. After all, you said yourself, you never wanted to be part of Tommy’s life. I’m sure you feel the same way about Abigail.”

While Chad and Andre were bantering, Aiden sneaked over to the IV needle, and picked it up. He knew Andre would hear the wheels from the IV pole if he didn’t wait until he was fully distracted, so he waited.

Andre grinned at Chad. “To show you what a good brother I am, I’ll even let you get in the first pun-”

Before Andre could finish his sentence, Chad punched him hard in the face, knowing he had to keep Andre distracted. Plus, he had to admit, it felt good to finally punch the son of a bitch.

“Oh, you’re going to regret that, Brother!” Andre said, punching Chad in the face in return.

Aiden knew now was his chance. He wheeled the pole over toward Andre fast enough to get there before being noticed, but not fast enough for the noise to catch Andre’s attention.

Chad gave Andre another punch, and when Andre was about to punch back, Aiden held the needle high, then slammed it down hard into the back of Andre’s neck.

Andre cried out half in surprise and half in pain. He whipped around and saw Aiden standing there with the IV pole and bag by his side.

“What did you do to me, you fool?” Andre snapped. He felt the needle in the back of his neck and pulled it out, but it was too late. He was already starting to feel the effects of the drugs in his system. After all, the drug was a general anesthesia that was supposed to be used on patients in a hospital who were about to undergo the knife.

Aiden smirked. “You didn’t seem to care about the dangers to me by giving me such a drug for a purpose it wasn’t meant for. Well, now I in return, have no problem giving it to you.”

Andre stumbled toward him. “I’m gonna… Make you…” He collapsed before he could get out the word, “Pay.”

“What happened? What the hell did you just do, Chad?” Stefano cried out.

“Great idea! I didn’t think you had it in you!” Chad said, to Aiden, patting him on the back.

Aiden shook his head. “Never underestimate a lawyer.”

Chad laughed. “Ain’t that the truth? Now let’s get out of here.” As he passed by Stefano, he turned to him and said, “Don’t send anyone to try and stop us. When Andre wakes up, I expect you to handle him. Then and only then will I allow you to ever see my son again.”

“What did you do?” Stefano repeated.

“Sorry. No time to chat I’m sure Andre will fill you in when he wakes up.” Chad said before taking off with Aiden out of the room, up the stairs, out of the fireplace, through the Dimera living room, and finally, out the front door.

Aiden breathed in the fresh air. “It feels so good to see the outside again and breathe in the fresh air!” he said.

“So what do we do now?” Chad asked.

“I need to see Hope. I need to tell her why I did what I did,” Aiden said simply.

“She’s going to be shocked and even frightened when she sees you. It won’t be very easy for her to take. I better come with you to help soften the blow,” Chad reasoned.

Aiden had wanted to go by himself, but Chad made sense. He knew it might make Hope feel safer if Chad were with him. “All right. Let’s go. Can you call her and find out where she’s at? If she’s at the station, well…”

“It wouldn’t be a good idea to meet her there,” Chad finished for him.

Aiden nodded. “Exactly.

Chad nodded as well, and took out his phone. “I’ll call her.”

“Thanks,” Aiden said as he watched Chad dial her number. He took a deep breath and slowly let it out. He had gotten over the first hurdle; now it was time to get over the second hurdle. Somehow, he had a feeling that this hurdle was going to be even more difficult than the first.



*This love came back to me.*



It was a slow day at the station. Rafe and Lani had were out investigating a break in at the Town Square. Hope had let Lani go instead of her. She knew Lani was feeling down about not getting to take on many cases, and she knew how much Lani liked Rafe. She also knew that Rafe wasn’t in to Lani in the way that Lani was in to him, so she didn’t mind doing this favor for Lani. She was sure Lani would never act on her feelings for Rafe since he was, in a manner of speaking, off the market.

Hope sighed. Of course, her good deed made it so that she now had to do Lani’s assignment, which was looking over a cold case file.

“Cold cases,” she muttered to herself, shaking her head. She knew a lot of times cold cases could be solved even years after the crime. DNA technology was a lot better now than it was back then, as was technology in general, so new developments were discovered all the time. Even so, it was so tedious looking into the list of suspects again, or even finding new suspects.

She yawned and stretched. As her stomach growled, she realized she hadn’t eaten anything other than a granola bar with her morning coffee. She glanced at the clock. It was one o’clock. “No wonder I’m hungry,” she murmured. She usually took her lunchbreak at noon.

She closed the folder and put it back in the filing cabinet, then grabbed her purse. The case had been cold for ten years. She doubted one more hour was going to hurt anything.

She was about to head out when her phone rang. She looked at the number and was surprised to see that Chad Dimera was calling her.

“What could he possibly want?” she asked herself. She headed out of the station as she slid the button over to answer the call. “Yes, Chad, what can I help you with?”

“Hope, hi. I am not sure if you’re busy now or now, but I really need to talk to you. Do you think we could meet in the park any time soon?”

“Um… Sure. I’m on my lunchbreak right now, so we could do it now I guess. “What’s this all about?”

“It’s something that is better if I discuss it with you in person,” Chad replied.

Hope was intrigued. “All right. I’ll be right over.” She hung up her phone, then headed for her car. She wondered what in the world Chad could possibly want. Maybe it had to do with a surprise for Abigail.

She headed to the park, the whole ride there thinking of the different things Chad could possibly want.



*This love came back to me.*



Chad clicked off his phone. “I called her. She’ll be here in a few minutes.”

“Thank you. You have no idea how much this means to me,” Aiden said.

“I kind of feel I owe it to you,” Chad replied.

Aiden looked at him in surprise. “Why? I know I was your lawyer, but I didn’t do you much good. You still ended up in jail, then I went and died on you. Well, almost died anyway. Though, posing as the necktie killer did get you off the hook.” He smiled weakly, but Chad could tell his heart wasn’t in it.

Chad shook his head. “I’m not talking about that. Not in the way you think anyway. I owe you for getting me off the hook. I feel that, even though it was my brother and father’s doing and not mine, I need to make up for the fact that they kept you prisoner all this time.”

Aiden shrugged. “It’s my own fault. Had I not gotten myself into so much debt, I never would have gotten involved with them in the first place. Then I had to go do something stupid and try to kill my wife.”

Chad placed his hand over Aiden’s shoulder. “You did it for your son, and they made you do it to get me out of jail. So even though I didn’t ask them to make you do it to get me off the hook, I still feel responsible. I told my brother not to do it, but you know my brother. No one tells him what to do or what not to do—ever.”

Aiden nodded. “I know that’s right.”

“Chad? Are you here? Where are you?” came Hope’s voice from a few feet away.

Aiden and Chad exchanged wide-eyed glances.

“Go! Hide!” Chad whisper ordered.

Aiden did as told, quickly ducking into the woodsy area and crouching down, but staying close enough that he would be able to hear Chad and Hope’s conversation.

“I’m over here, Hope!” Chad called out.

Hope came into the clearing then. “Hey. What’s up?”

Chad sat down on the bench, and motioned for her to sit down next to him.

“So what’s this about?” she asked again after sitting down next to him.

“I actually wanted to talk to you about Aiden,” Chad said, coming right out with it.

Hope stiffened. “What about Aiden?” she asked cautiously.

“I know for a fact that the reason he tried to kill you was all because my brother and father blackmailed him into doing so,” Chad said. He paused to gauge her reaction.

Hope was silent for a moment. She blinked at him. “What are you talking about?” she asked slowly.

Chad sighed. “Aiden owed a lot of money—and I do mean a lot of money. My brother and father paid off his debt to the bookie. However, that meant that Aiden now owned them money. Now, this was when people still thought I was the necktie killer. My brother figured that if he could get Aiden to kill you posing as the necktie killer, then I would be free. He would in return, wipe Aiden’s debt free.”

“How do you know all of this?” Hope asked, her voice filled with disbelief.

“I was informed.” Chad held up a hand. “Let me finish. They told Aiden that they would kill Chase if he didn’t kill you. So, in other words, if he let you live, then his son would end up six-feet under. He was later even threatened for his own life along with his son’s. He felt he had to kill you; that there was no other way to save his son.”

“Who informed you of this?” Hope asked, her voice cold.

“This is going to be a shock for you, Hope,” Chad began.

Hope’s voice was even yet forceful. “Who informed you, Chad?”

Chad let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding. “Aiden. Aiden Jennings, and then my brother confirmed it.” He winced and looked at Hope. For some reason he was almost afraid she was going to hit him.

“When did Aiden tell you this, and why did you wait a year to tell me all this? Did you know before I was almost killed?” Her tone was angry now as she stood up, her fists clenched at her sides.

Chad stood up as well. “I knew my brother had planned on sending someone to act as the necktie killer. I tried to tell the police, but since I was locked up, and they thought I was the necktie killer, they didn’t take me seriously. I didn’t know it was Aiden that was going to do it, and I certainly didn’t know you were going to be the victim. Hope, I was frantic in trying to stop this, but like I said, the police just wouldn’t listen!”

“You didn’t answer my question, Chad. Why did you sit on this info for a year?” Hope asked, her fists still clenched at her sides.

“Until my memory that the killer was Ben returned, I just assumed Aiden really was the killer. Even when we found out Ben really was the killer, it just didn’t click for some reason that Aiden was who my brother hired,” he said calmly. “I was distracted by Abigail and the baby, and wasn’t thinking about anything but keeping them safe.”

Hope raised an eyebrow. “But you said that Aiden told you the truth.”

Chad nodded. “He did. That’s another reason I wanted to talk to you today. I wanted to help prepare you.”

“Prepare me for what, Chad?” Hope looked at her watch. “I only have 45 minutes left of my break and I’m starving, so spit it out!”

“Today I was over at my father’s mansion and I accidentally came across a secret room I never knew existed. I went in to explore it, and that is when I found that my brother and father have secretly been keeping Aiden prisoner. He was strapped to a gurney.”

Hope shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest. “Aiden’s dead, Chad. Have you been drinking? You’re acting delusional.”

Chad shook his head. “I haven’t had a drop of alcohol in days. I’m telling you the truth, Hope.”

Hope uncrossed her arms and scowled at Chad. “Look, I don’t know what kind of sick, Dimera mind game you’re trying to play, but—”

“It’s not a mind game, Hope. I’ll prove it to you.” Chad looked toward the wooded area. “Aiden…”

Aiden slowly made his way out from the trees, and walked over to Hope. “Hello, Hope.”

Hope’s face turned pale as a sheet. “Aiden? No. No, you’re dead! I saw your dead body! You were shot in the heart!” She stepped back.

Aiden shook his head. “I only appeared to be dead. Andre had the EMTs bring my body to the mansion. Stefano’s surgeon saved my life, then, like Chad said, they held me prisoner for a year. I know it’s a lot to take in, but if you just let me explain, I—”

Hope narrowed her eyes angrily at him. “You can explain down at the precinct!”

Aiden was taken aback. “I don’t understand, I—”

Hope took off her cuffs, stormed over to Aiden, and cuffed him. “Aiden Jennings, you are under arrest for the attempted murder of well, me. Kind of a poetic justice, isn’t it? Me getting to arrest the man who tried to kill me?”

“Hope, wait! Please! Just let me explain,” Aiden begged. He knew she’d be angry, but he didn’t think she’d arrest him without at least letting him explain first. Didn’t any part of her still love him?

Hope ignored his pleas. “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say or do can and will be used against you in a court of law.”

“Hope…” Aiden said, his eyes tearing up. After all he’d been through at the Dimera mansion, now he was being arrested by the woman he loved. She was so cold. Despite Chad’s explanation, she still hated him.

“You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you,” Hope continued.

“Hope, I love you. I had no choice! I had to protect my son! Otherwise, I never would have—”

Hope continued to ignore him. “Do you understand these rights as they have been read to you?”

Aiden hung his head in defeat. “Yes.”

Hope then called for a squad car since she had driven over in her own car.

She pushed Aiden down onto the bench—hard. “Not another word out of you, and don’t even think about trying anything!” She took out her gun and held it on him.

“I’ll get you one of my family’s lawyers, Aiden,” Chad promised. “I’ll get you the best lawyer we have. I don’t think Justin would be too keen on representing you right now.”

Aiden nodded his thanks, then hung his head. He was crushed. This woman who used to be so in love with him—whom he was still in love with—was now looking at him and treating him like a good for nothing scum of the earth criminal. It hurt like hell, but what hurt even worse was knowing that she had every right to feel that way about him and treat him that way, and that it was all his fault. Now he had to deal with the consequences.

[heroicmuse]

Oh no! My heart breaks for Aiden! This is a great chapter ihearthaiden. Can't wait for the next one!

You write Chad really well too. I could hear his voice as I was reading his dialogue.

[ihearthaiden]

Thank you! I am so glad you are enjoying it so far. Thank you for taking the time to read it. I'm glad to hear I'm writing Chad well. I've had problems with characterization in the past, so I sometimes worry I'm not getting the characters down just right. Glad to hear I am this time.