Ransom 12

Robert desperately tried to make sense of the situation he found himself in. The last thing he remembered was running into the outbuilding in search of Aaron. The next thing he knew he's waking up here! Aaron holding him prisoner or at least that's how it looked. It just didn't make sense, "What's going on? Aaron?" He didn't like the way his boyfriend was looking at him, there was so hint of affection in his blue eyes, they held no warmth, it was like they were made of ice. The love he'd seen shining there just the morning before had been replaced by hatred. What had he done to deserve that? "Aaron please..."

"Bastard! " Aaron snarled. Robert was already starting with his innocent act, he despised him even more for it.

"What have I done?" Robert pleaded, he was desperate to break down the wall of hate Aaron had erected between them. Shields had to have told him the one thing he never wanted him to find out, that he'd once hired him to kill his mother! "I know you hate me right now but if you'd just hear me out, let me explain..." the words erupted from his mouth in a frantic attempt to save their relationship, he couldn't lose Aaron, not now, not ever. "I know what I did was unforgivable, I know I went too far..."

Aaron eyed Robert incredulously, he was already trying to worm his way out of what he'd done, he was unbelievable.

"It was in a moment of madness, I panicked, I wasn't thinking straight. But I quickly came to my senses and put a stop to it..."

Robert's words were going over his head, he wasn't paying them any heed. He'd heard it all before so many times... he'd no doubt hear them again if he were to give Robert yet another chance. That was never going to happen, not in a million years, he couldn't believe Robert thought he had any hope of getting away with his latest stunt. He was sick in the head, delusional, he had to be.

"Aaron?" Had Aaron heard a word of what he'd just said? No, he looked to be in a world of his own, one filled with anger and hatred. He couldn't blame him. He wasn't about to give up on him though, "Aaron please... I love you..."

"Don't!" Aaron had heard that last bit and it enraged him. Robert was using the L word now in an attempt to win him round. How dare he? Aaron shook his head in disbelief as he said, "You don't know the meaning of that word!" He started to pace back and forth as his emotions stirred inside, finally finding their voice ... "I do. I know how to love someone... and I loved you! I fucking loved you! What an idiot, what a fool. Even after what happened to Katy, and what you did to Paddy I still loved you. You threatened Leo! You... you couldn't have stooped any lower than that.. but even that didn't change the way I felt about you. I tried to fight it, I tried so hard not to care about you. But you were in my head, in my heart... and I gave you chance after chance. I thought you were worth all the aggro... all the pain, I really believed you'd come good. I truly believed you were the one for me, the only one for me."

"I am, you know I am... and you're the only one for me..."

"Shut up!" Aaron raged, "I don't want to hear your lies, I've had a belly full of them. What I want now is the truth, I want answers and one way or another I'm going to get them." Aaron held up a cricket bat he'd conveniently found in the lodge, "I think I'll start with the kneecaps!"

Robert was stunned by Aaron's threat, he didn't mean it surely, "Aaron!"

"How could you do that to me? How could you use me like that. Why Robert? Why did you do it? Were you so desperate for money you had to resort to that?"

Was there something more going on here? There had to be, something told Robert this wasn't about Chas at all, so what was it about. "Resort to what? Aaron I don't know what you're talking about."

Robert had just more or less admitted to what he'd done but here he was trying to deny it again, "You just can't help yourself can you? Everything that comes out of your mouth is a lie. It's like a disease with you. You're beyond help..."

"Tell me what I'm supposed to have done..."

"Ok, I'll remind you. You had some piece of shit hold me for ransom."

"No!" Aaron had somehow got hold of the wrong end of the stick.

"You had him knock me out, tie me up, and dump me in a...

"No that's not true, you've got it wrong." Robert was horrified that Aaron could believe he'd do such a thing.

"You mean it was just a figment of my imagination?" So Robert was going to try and convince him it had never happened. More proof that he was off his head, insane.

"No! No it happened but I wasn't responsible."

Aaron snorted in amazement, Robert really did think he could talk his way of what he'd done. "You need psychiatric help."

"I need you to listen to me..."

"You need me to believe you! Well I don't."

"My phone's in the car, there's messages on there that will prove it." Robert felt some relief on remembering his phone. Once Aaron had read the messages from Shields and saw the picture, he would know he was telling the truth.

"I'm sure there is... and all put there by you." Robert was devious enough to add such messages to cover any eventuality.

"Phone your mum or Cain, they know all about it... "

"Of course they do, they've had to come up with a ransom."

"No!"

"Another lie! I've seen the money."

Robert remembered the bank sealed envelope in his car, "I picked that up this morning but it's not what you think..."

"I bet you left them with nothing, penniless."

"It's my money, from my bank and it was to help pay the ransom. I've a receipt somewhere... in my pocket, my jacket pocket. Aaron look at it please."

"I don't think so. " Aaron shrugged in a show of disgust, "I don't want to get that close to you ever again." The thought of getting up close to Robert really did make his stomach turn.

"Aaron you have to believe me..." Desperation was taking hold, nothing he said was getting through to Aaron.

"Why? You scared of what'll happen to you if I don't. Actually... you should be scared, you only have the two options. Jail or the bottom of the quarry.

"What?"

"That's what you had planned for me wasn't it? A watery grave! No one would ever find me there, no way could my disappearance be traced back to you."

Robert was appalled, "You really believe I'd do that?"

"Yeah, I really believe you would." Aaron hadn't wanted to believe it but it had to be part of Robert's plan, that or something similar.

Robert shook his head in dismay, yes he'd given Aaron reason to doubt him in any and every way, but that was in the past. He'd proved his love for him at least he'd thought he had, he'd certainly tried his damnedest to. It was as if Aaron had been brainwashed. That was it! Shields must have told Aaron he was behind his kidnapping, he must have somehow convinced him of the fact. "Shields told you it was me didn't he?"

"Shields?" The name meant nothing to Aaron.

"The bastard who did this..."

"So you do know him?"

"Yes." There was no way he could lie and deny that now. He had to be totally honest with Aaron. "I've done business with him in the past."

Aaron grimaced in disgust. "That would be right, paying someone like that to do your dirty work... just like now!"

"No. It was in the past. I've changed, you know I have. I'm a different person because of you, a better person."

Aaron laughed at the comment, "No, you're still the lying, conniving, money obsessed lowlife you've always been! What you did to me is proof of that."

"No! You've got this all wrong, let me prove it, just give me five minutes, please Aaron, just hear me out..."

"You'd just be wasting your breath and my time... I've wasted enough of that on you as it is."

"Please, just five minutes... please Aaron." If he could just sow even the smallest seed of doubt in that time then maybe just maybe he could bring their relationship back from the brink, if he couldn't then... well he didn't much care what happened to him.

tbc