He opened a door and yanked her in using her hair. She heard a large thump as her head hit the wall. “Will you ever learn to listen?” He yelled at her.
“No, and definitely not to you, so move out of my way and let me out.”
He put his hands around her throat as he shoved her against the wall. Aimee used one of her moves from self-defense classes. She took her finger and poked his eyes, causing him to release her neck and grab his eyes. She quickly kicked him in the middle and ran for the door.
She had her hand on the door knob ready to turn it, when he grabbed her legs and yanked her down to the floor. She tried to get away, but he had the upper hand. He flipped her over and sat on her holding her arms with his hands.
“Aimee, I didn’t want it to go down like this. Things could have gone a lot different, if you would have just listened to me.”
“Let me up! NOW!” Aimee was still trying to free an arm.
“Shut up and listen for once in your life. Aimee, I have a year invested in you. I have been more patient with you than anyone I have ever met. You owe me this.”
“I don’t owe you anything. Now, let me go.”
“You can go when I get what I came here for.” His smile sent chills down her spine, as he kneeled his head to her face and began kissing her neck and mouth hard. She did the only defense she could think of. When he broke the kiss, she spit in his face.
He jumped back and let loose of one of her hands, she started hitting him where ever she could reach. This was her first mistake, because he pulled a knife out of his pocket. “You shouldn’t fight me, Aimee.” She stared at the knife for a second.
She had to get out of here. “LJ, just let me go please.” She was crying, begging him to release her. He only laughed at her. He moved his head to her ears and whispered to her. “Hold still and this won’t hurt.” She took her free hand and scratched his face.
Mistake number two. He took the knife and stabbed her in the leg. She screamed loud because of the pain. He slapped her face for that one. Then he took the knife and cut off a piece of her dress. He took the piece of cloth and tied her hands together.
Next, he took of his belt and started tearing her dress from the waist down. Aimee was trapped. She was unable to defend herself. She just started yelling for help over and over praying somebody would hear her and come to her rescue. LJ was furious, he started yelling for her to shut up and slammed her head on the floor. Aimee was as terrified as the room went dark and she was unable to hear or feel nothing. Her last thought was, where is my Prince?
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Aiden was beginning to worry; he should have walked her to the powder room. She had been gone for ten minutes. He started looking around, maybe she was talking with one of the girls. He spotted Piper and Lexi walking in the room with Jaxson and James.
“Hey guys, have you seen Aimee?”
“No, why?” Asked Piper.
“She said she was going to the powder room.”
“How long ago?” James ask.
“About ten minutes ago.”
“Aiden, there is probably a line.” Lexi shook her head.
“I don’t know. I have a bad feeling, can you go see for me?”
“Go see what?” Colin joined them.
“If Aimee is still in the powder room.” Aiden explained his bad feelings while the guys waited for the girls to come out of the powder room.
“Aimee is not in there and the attendant said she never was.” Piper looked worried now.
“Aimee went down the hall with LJ Edward about ten minutes ago.”
They all turned to see Leo (from the Aimee and Aiden’s study group).
Aiden looked horrified. “What do you mean she was with LJ?”
“I just caught a glance. He was holding her arm and they went down this hall.”
They took off running down the hall, checking all the doors as they went down. They heard a horrifying scream coming from the last door on the right, then everything went silent. James called his parents to get help and meet them as they ran down the hall.
They could hear Aimee begging him to let her go. The door was locked and no one knew how to pick locks. The guys were trying to figure a way to get in the locked door, when they heard Aimee screaming for help, then they heard LJ telling her to shut up. They heard a series of thumps and then silence. Out of a pure rush of adrenaline, the guys broke the door down.
When they ran in the room, the sight was sickening. LJ was sitting on Aimee, tearing at the layers on her dress. She had been knocked out on the floor, helpless, with a pool of blood on the left side of the floor. Aiden was still running on adrenalin as he ran straight for LJ, knocking him off of Aimee.
Aiden started hitting LJ over and over until his brother, Donovan, and James pulled Aiden off of LJ, while Jaxson and Colin grabbed LJ and pinned him to the wall.
“Aiden, you are better than this. Calm down. Aimee needs you to be calm.” James was trying to bring him back to reality.
Donovan looked his younger brother in the face. “That piece of crap is not worth this.”
Aiden looked over at Aimee and tugged for the guys to let him go. He sat in the floor beside her. “Aimee, oh Aimee. I am so sorry.” He started crying like a baby.
“Aiden. Aiden.” She coughed and whispered as she looked over at him and smiled.
“I am here, honey. I am right here. He is not going to hurt you anymore, I promise.” She smiled again, and squeezed his hand, before she closed her eyes again.
Mark and Tessa came running through the door with security and Mr. Edward. Tessa leaned over Aimee. “Has anyone called for an ambulance?”
Piper nodded her head. “They are on their way. She has a pulse and she looked and talked to Aiden.” Piper was crying hard.
Tessa looked at Kelli, holding pressure on Aimee’s leg. “What’s wrong with her leg?”
“He stabbed her. She is losing a lot of blood.” Kelli pressed more pressure on Aimee’s leg.
“I would like to know how Aimee ended up like this and why LJ is beat up and being pinned against the wall?” Mr. Edward demanded.
“LJ attacked Aimee. When we busted the door down, he had knocked her out and was tearing off her dress.” Piper motioned around the room at the pieces of her dress.
Mr. Edward looked at LJ. “You did this to her?”
LJ turned his head. “She started running her mouth and would not listen. Things went down the hard way.”
“LJ, I can’t believe you.” His dad yelled.
“Believe it. This is not the first time he hit her. In fact, it is the third, that we know of. The first time, he jerked her backwards at the flat on the sidewalk. She had to get steri-strips on her arms and face and she had a concussion. The second time, was at Dolli’s Delegacy, he slapped her twice in front of all the customers and then dragged her down the sidewalk, while he punched her in the face. And you see what he did today.” Lexi was very angry.
The EMS crew came through the door and started checking Aimee. Everyone moved out of the way, so they could work on Aimee. One medic put a pressure dressing on her leg, while the other placed a neck collar around her neck. Then, the two placed Aimee on the long board to protect her spine. Once they had all the spinal immobilization protocol done, they left, telling Mark they would be taking her to Ancaster General.
Aiden wanted to rush right after her, but he had to stay for questioning. He volunteered to go first. He relived the horror of breaking down the door and seeing Aimee lying on the floor, helpless. Then, he left with Mark and Tessa to go to the hospital. He was so anxious and nervous. He paced the floor for a while; and then, he sat in a chair linked his fingers into praying hands, and prayed for Aimee again.
The others came in and ran to Aiden, Tessa, and Mark. They still didn’t know anything, the receptionist told them they had Aimee in testing and would let them know when she returned to the room.
Mr. Edward came in and went to Mark. “They brought LJ here to be
checked out, but I am more worried about Aimee, is she ok?”
Aiden heard Mark telling Mr. Edward the same explanation they just told the others. All Aiden could focus on, was the fact Aimee maybe in the ER alone with LJ lurking around. He had to get in the back with Aimee.
The receptionist called the nurses’ desk and found out Aimee was just brought back to her room. Aiden told Piper, to tell the others he wanted to go to Aimee first. When he walked into the Trauma unit and looked at Aimee lying on the ER bed, looking so helpless, and his heart fell to his feet.
She looked so pitiful. Her color was pale, her leg was wrapped with a different type of bandage, but he could still see blood on it. They had her on a heart monitor and an IV in her left hand. He watched the machine monitoring her heart rate, it was in the high fifties.
Tessa and Mark entered the room, with the doctor behind them. Aiden listened as he told them how Aimee had lost a lot of blood, due to the stabbing in her leg. They had a tough time, but the bleeding has stopped, for now. He said that she had a concussion, but no signs of any hemorrhages or blood clots in her brain.
He mentioned she will be getting a blood transfusion shortly, when she was admitted up stairs. They are hoping that her heart rate and blood pressure would go up after her transfusion. He told them that Aimee needed to rest, but for them to let her know they are here with her.
Tessa was asking about visiting hours and how many can come back at a time. Aiden didn’t care, he was not leaving Aimee.
Tessa and Mark joined Aiden at Aimee’s bedside. He looked at them, his eyes full of tears. We need to pray for her. Aiden held tightly to her hand. “Aimee, I am here and not leaving you. You’re safe and ok now. I promise.” He wiped the tears from his eyes.
Mark touched Aiden’s shoulder. “Let’s go for a walk and get you some air.”
They took a walk outside and sat on an empty bench. “Aiden, we need to talk. I am just going to come right out and ask you, what is going on between you and Aimee?”
Aiden looked down at his folded hands. “Nothing.”
“You are not looking at her like nothing. I have been observing the way the two of you act around each other for a long time now.”
Aiden looked up at him. “I am in love with her. She is the one for me, but I can’t…”
“You can’t what?”
“I can’t date her. The main reason is because we live in the same flat. I now know why that is so important to her. The temptation would be too great.”
“Does Aimee know how you feel?”
“Yes. She has feelings for me too, but she is scared. She has all these other reasons we can’t date.”
“Like what?”
“Like, we are from different countries or it is too soon after my breakup with Ava.”
“I know Aimee better than she knows herself and, you are right, she is scared. It is hard for her to give her love to someone. She has a fear of losing those she loves. That is why she went out with LJ. She didn’t stand a chance of becoming emotionally involved.”
“I hate seeing her like this.”
“I know. Listen, Aiden, if you have these feelings for her, you need to be careful. You need to really think about your living situation to start with.”
“I know. I am working on things. I am not rushing things with her. When God tells me the time is right, that is when I plan on asking her to be my girlfriend.”
“That is a good plan. Just know, I am watching you closer, after tonight.”
“Thanks. I think we need to get back before they move her to a room.”
Aiden and Tessa stayed in the room with Aimee while everyone else stayed in the lobby. No one was leaving until she woke up. The nurse said it may be in the morning. They brought in an extra reclining chair for Aiden that, he laid back in and he fell asleep, holding Aimee’s hands.
Tessa watched him with a mother’s eye. Mark told her about the conversation outside. They had guessed right. She could tell how much Aiden cared for Aimee and they looked so good together. She knew Lillian was smiling from heaven about Aiden liking her daughter.
Aimee’s head was pounding and she still couldn’t open her eyes, but she could feel her head and leg hurting. She can hear Aiden too. He said he was not leaving her. She heard him pray for her over and over. Right now, he was holding her hand, but not speaking. Tessa said something about both Aimee and Aiden are sleeping. That made her smile inside. Aiden really loves her. He loves her enough to be sleeping in a hospital chair beside her.
She managed to get her eyes to open a little. Everything was blurry, she looked to her left and seen Aiden, even blurry, and he was the most gorgeous guy she had ever seen.
“Aiden. Aiden.” She whispered her voice was horse. She even coughed.
Aiden sat up immediately. “Aimee, oh thank you, God.”
He jumped up and looked at her face. He didn’t care if Tessa caught him or not. He bent over the bed and kissed her lips. She liked that, he could tell.
He stroked her hair from her face. “I have been so worried. I am so sorry for all of this. I should have walked you to the powder room.”
“Aiden, stop, you can’t blame yourself.” Her throat hurt.
“I just thank God you are ok.” He kissed her forehead. “Sorry I went crazy a minute ago and kissed your lips. I….”
Aimee laid a finger on his lips. “I’m not.” She grinned. “It was a nice way to wake up.”
Aiden smiled at her. “Glad you feel that way.”
Tessa decided it was time she let them know she was awake. “We need to call the nurse.”
“Tessa.” Aimee turned her head.
“Hey, honey. Aiden isn’t the only one thankful you woke up. Everyone else is in the lobby.”
Aimee looked at Aiden then Tessa. Tessa caught them kissing. “Tessa, I ...”
“Aimee, it is ok. Mark and I have known for a while you two were in love. We have been waiting for you to admit it. But, just keep the living situation in mind.”
“We will.”
The nurse and doctor came into the room to examine Aimee. He told Tessa and Aiden to go let the others know she was awake. He would join them in a few minutes.
Aimee was fine. She was alert and oriented to person, place, and time. All her neurologic exams were good. The leg stopped bleeding and the doctor said she could go home tomorrow as long as her blood count remains in normal range.
Aimee had a lot to think about, but she was so tired. Everyone, except Aiden and Tessa, went home for the night. Tessa sat quietly in the corner reading, while Aimee and Aiden talked. Aimee told him as long as they were sharing a flat, they couldn’t kiss or date at all. Aiden agreed. He didn’t want the memory of the time they started to date to be while she was in the hospital recovering from an attack by her ex-boyfriend. Neither did Aimee. Now, wasn’t the time for them as a couple, but neither of them are getting involved in any other relationships either.
Chapter Nineteen
Aimee had been home for two days now. Life was different, she was using a crutch to keep pressure off her leg. They had to call and tell her dad what happened. At first, he was furious and ready to make her move back to the States. But, Mark calmed him down by letting him know that he and Tessa have now stepped into parent mode with Aimee.
He was upset when Aimee told him she didn’t want to press charges. Mr. Edward was meeting her, Aiden, Mark, and Tessa to work out an agreement. No one wants this in the news; and, if she presses charges, it will make the headlines. She told her dad she would feel like people were trying to violate her again.
Her dad agreed to this, as long as he was on video chat with them during the meeting. He was an ocean away, but no one was going to violate his daughter again. He spoke to Mark for a long time about how to protect Aimee. Surprisingly, Aimee was glad her dad was reacting this way. For a first time in a long time, he was acting like a father.
The meeting was at five today and Aimee was nervous. Today was also her first day
in class. Aiden had been taking notes and videoing the lectures, with the permission from the professors. She couldn’t walk to Chapman hall on crutches, so Aiden got permission to park close to the building.
Before she could go to class, Lexi and Piper helped her dress the wound on her leg. The cut from the knife was pretty deep and caused her upper leg to be in pain, but she had to get on with her life, and the sooner the better, she would just bare the pain.
Aimee was glad all her classes were in Chapman Hall. She just wished she could have walked to class today, instead of having Aiden drive her. He was being so supportive. She was trying to hide the pain of her leg, head, and her heart from him. She wanted nothing more than to walk into her classes, hand in hand, with Aiden. To be perfectly honest with herself, she wanted to walk through life, hand in hand, with Aiden.
BREAKTHROUGH (Love's Not Easy Series Book 2) Page 17
