I Kidnapped My Mommy (ON HIATUS)

10 - Bad Daddy

Instead of answering his father's question, Aric jumped down from his chair and fixed the bow tie of his gray plaid suit then started walking to the door. Mister Samuel and Damien then respectfully bowed to Rien and followed the little boy.

Rien gritted his teeth and watched his son casually strut away from him. "Aric Sebastian Fernandez, I asked you a question."

Aric stopped walking and turned to his father. "I know, Daddy, but I can't answer you right now. You might not agree with my plan and I don't have time to argue with you. I need to get in position." He then looked at his watch and smiled at his father with a rare charming smile. Rien was stunned but glad at the same time. Before they found Milena, Aric was never in a good mood. He had always been crafty and smart but he would never be seen being playful and cheerful. The little boy's smile used to come as scarce as grasslands in a desert but that changed since his encounter with his Mommy the night before. "Trust me on this, Daddy. I got everything under control. Just make sure to knock on Mommy's hotel room door exactly 24 minutes from now."

"Why?" Rien asked. 

"Hep! Daddy, I said no time for questions. Just be there or I'll never cooperate with you in winning my Mommy back again." Aric sighed and looked at his watch again. "23 minutes and 16 seconds. Be at Mommy's door. Make sure to knock and don't ring the bell so I know it's you." He then turned around and walked to the door that Damien had opened for him. Before he stepped out, he looked back on his father and said, "Don't be late, Daddy. But don't be too early either." With that, he left, leaving his father who chuckled and shook his head. 

"Okay, Aric. I'll play with you this once." Rien smiled as he turned to watch Milena again. He sighed contentedly and his heart felt a little bigger in his chest. It would seem that just being around Milena, despite the circumstances, has lifted the mood of both father and son. It was like the sun shining back on their life again and chasing away three years of sadness and frustrations. 

Rien touched his fingers to the privacy mirror that hid them from everyone else's sight but allowed them to watch Milena and the entire room she was in. He touched the glass as if it allowed him to feel the softness of her hair and the warmth of her skin through its cold surface. She was within his sight but still couldn't be with her. "Mon amour, will you remember who I am when we meet? Please remember. It will be sad if you completely forget how beautiful our love is." 

His fingers folded and closed over his palm as the pain and fear in his heart clenched around it. He then spoke in a very low whisper. "Milena, do you know how scared I am? I can never let Aric know but I'm afraid that after everything, you might not want to come back to us because you may never love me the same. What should I do then when my heart only beats for you and the hope to be with you forever? I fear I won't be able to hold on anymore so please come back to us, okay?" He sighed and touched the glass again. "I hope Aric is right. Milena, will your heart really recognize me even if your mind couldn't?"

Just then, she turned to his direction and for one surreal moment, Rien imagined that her bright brown eyes were looking directly at him. For that moment, his heart stopped, the world paused, and he got his answer as a spark of hope ignited inside him. He smiled softly. "Love does make fools." He chuckled at himself. He has always been a practical and logical man. He seldom placed his faith in providence, fate, destiny, kismet or whatever others may call it but for some reason, when it comes to his Milena, he would helplessly cling to the slightest glimmer of hope no matter how implausible.

At that moment, a waiter came to her table and told Milena something. Her surprised and worried expression told Rien that whatever the message was, it must have something to do with Aric's plan. He glanced at his custom-made one-of-a-kind Patek Philippe that Milena gave him as a wedding gift. The watch costs half as much as the three-floor summer villa in Capri that he gifted her. It had been over 7 minutes since Aric left. Rien has to wait almost 16 minutes more. 

Through the glass, he watched her hurriedly excuse herself from the table and immediately leave the restaurant. Rien wanted to follow her but reminded himself to trust in Aric's plan. He sat back and looked at the ceiling as he waited for every agonizing second tick by. 

Meanwhile in the elevator, Mia stood alone and leaned back against the wall. She closed her eyes and massaged her temples to relieve some of the pressure in her head. When she heard the waiter say that there was a little boy around 5 years old waiting for her outside her hotel room, she could hardly believe it. She did remember a little boy from last night before she went to sleep but because he was gone when she woke up and Dean Rosa never mentioned him, she dismissed that whole encounter as a dream. She thought maybe she was too tired and lacked the help from her medicines that she became confused and had a few hallucinations. A million things ran through her mind. If the child was real, what else was? Does that mean… 

That man. The kiss. Was that real too? 

"No!" Mia shook her head. "No, it can't be. There must be some kind of explanation about the little boy. Maybe he woke up in the middle of the night in a strange room and started looking for his real mommy. Maybe his parents found him already. Yes. That must be it. The boy... The boy could be real but the man…" 

She looked up and saw herself in the reflective doors of the elevator. Instinctively, her hand moved to touch her swollen full lips. She had wondered about that earlier but thought she might've chewed her lip in her sleep. Thinking about that man in her dream, she doubted that idea because at that moment she vividly remembered the feel of his soft lips, the sweet taste of his mouth, his strong and warm embrace, his unique manly scent around her and his low whisper in her ear. 

"No…" Mia gasped. "How is that possible?" Flashes of scenes from her dreams suddenly battered her mind, one stronger than the last. From the man's kiss, to his back as he walked away from her, to the dream in the old mansion and the man who held her, to his silhouette and her struggle to see his face clearly. 

An intense pain pulsated in her head when the silhouette of the man came to mind. She tried to remember his face, she wanted to but she couldn't and the more she tried the more painful it became. 

Just as the pain became too much, she heard a loud ding and the elevator doors opened. Fighting back the pain, light-headed and with blurry vision, she dragged her feet to go out. When she did, she fell right into the strong arms of a tall man. She didn't have the strength to struggle so she let herself be held by him. 

"Are you alright?" He spoke and his voice made her heart quiver. She looked up and saw a pair of familiar eyes. She was sure she was looking at them for the first time and yet they felt so familiar like she had stared into them a million times. 

Then a sudden realization came to her, "It's you," she whispered before she lost consciousness in his arms. 

"Milena!" Rien called in panic as he picked her up and carried her in his arms. He didn't even care that that wasn't a name she would respond to anymore. He hurriedly turned to the elevator he just came from when he bumped into her. It was the exclusive elevator that went five times faster than the regular elevators in the hotel. It was meant for his use only. 

Before he could step in, Aric's hurried footsteps and angry voice came behind him. "Bad Daddy!" The little boy yelled and hit Rien's thigh with the bouquet of flowers that he held. "What did you do to my Mommy? Where are you taking her? Why didn't you follow my plan?"

He made such a perfect plan. He would charm his Mommy with flowers and invite her to lunch with his Daddy to thank her for her kindness the night before. It was a great plan but his father had to ruin it all. 

Rien threw an icy glare at his son as he stepped into the elevator. "If I had followed your plan, I wouldn't have found my wife in such a terrible situation. Aric, there's no time for your games now. The plan has changed. Get in."

Although still feeling defiant, the little boy had no choice and stomped into the elevator followed by Mister Samuel and Damien.

The elevator zoomed to the top floor at Rien's voice command. Everyone inside kept silent with their own thoughts. When the elevator reached its destination, Rien ignored everyone and marched to his bedroom with Milena in his arms. 

Before he closed the door, he looked at Mister Samuel with a sullen expression and commanded in a clear voice, "Call Charles and have him fly here to New York immediately and tell Sophie to tie up the urchin and bring him up here."