Chapter 12: Chapter 12

Three days after that incident, Vanilla still had a heartache. She thought it was just that easy to forget but she was wrong. Her eyes darkened with tears. It was also very dry and all the liquid from it was squeezed out. That is why Edward is still the one who is screaming with her sullen emotions. It was so cruel to her and there was no time that it didn’t hurt her. Then and now. For three days, the room became her refuge. She always wiped the pillow to avoid crying. But that won’t be missed by her mother’s hearing. It became a guard in front of her door day and night waiting for her to come out. Her phone was also full of missed calls and text messages that she deliberately turned off. His friend Peppermint and cousin Timothy were also at home waiting for what might happen. She even thought once that the gate would be demolished to get in, so she just went out on her own. When she opened it, her mother's swollen eyes also greeted her.

"What's wrong, baby?" it comforted her and accompanied the flow of her tears.

"Cry... cry, cry Mommy." Ark who suddenly clung to her leg.

"No, Mommy isn't crying. I was just watching a sad movie, baby." she forcefully explained to the child and caressed its back. "Stop crying baby, okay." it nodded at him in the middle of the sigh.

When Ark stopped crying, Vanilla confronted her mother. Her arms hid her and met her tears that were about to flow. Her friend and cousin were there to calm her down.

"Mommy, is Daddy gonna come back soon?" Ark asked her innocently. She was startled and her throat was blocked. How will she answer the child? How could she say here that Edward would never come back and it left them again? She knelt in front of the little one and carefully touched both of its cheeks.

"Daddy will be gone for a while baby, okay? But Mommy is here so I will take care of you." full of love she said that. Her son, Ark is the only thing that keeps her going. And when it is gone, she doesn’t know what to do. She will surely die.

Vanilla's full attention was focused on the work. She reviews proposals from several suppliers. They will have extensive re-printing on some bestsellers and sold out novels. She yawned and reached for the cup of coffee in front of her. Somehow, her whole day went well. An unnamed Edward suddenly appeared in her brain, even tears in the sore eye.

Vanilla pressed the intercom to call the secretary. She preoccupied herself with rummaging through files in the cabinet while waiting for it. Her heart was calm because of her mother's advice. She will just try to forget the man like before.

"Ma'am," the secretary bowed in front of her.

"Call Mr. Geoncillo, I need the files now." she commanded.

"Ma’am, Mr. Geoncillo is in his cousin's engagement right at this moment." its gentle response. Vanilla raised two eyebrows at what he said. The heck, that word again. It just reminds her of the engagement of Edward and that Thalia. She closes her eyes to divert that from her mind.

"What about Ms. Cavallea?” She asked in a baritone tone to escape what it had said earlier.

"She's at a wedding."

Vanilla's ears lit up at what she heard. Earlier engagement and now married again? What's next, honeymoon? Will destiny not really stop her until she goes completely insane? She stroked her head and squeezed her hair. She waved her left hand at Harley, signaling that was all she wanted to say.

Vanilla opened her mouth. She calmed herself down and turned on the cellphone to listen to songs. In this way she can divert attention to something else and not to that man. She gently tapped her fingers on the table at the same time lightly stomping her feet, forcing herself to flow in rhythm. She closed her eyes to bring more security to her whole being. She was in such a state for a long time when her friend suddenly called. Since yesterday, it has become curious with her every move. Her little charm was guarded-off by it, as well as the silent cell phone did not escape it either. Since this morning, she has made ten missed calls, which also irritates her. She preferred to turn off the device occasionally to isolate herself. When she applied the gadget to her ear, the unbroken mouth immediately oppressed her. Its voice is loud and rushing.

"Why again?!" She asked here as if she already knew what to answer next.

"Let's go out, let's eat outside, I’ll treat you.” Her friend’s kind promise. "If you don’t want to come to me, I'll just pick you up at your office.”

She just sighed. She really has nothing to lose here. When she rejects it, she finds reasons to just say yes. She thinks of herself as a fish inside the aquarium.

"Yes, I'll pick you up there if you don't want to let me."

"Wait, where are you?" She asked, noticing the noise interrupting their conversation.

"I'm in Divisoria."

"Huh? What are you doing there? Why did you go to that place? It's not your genre." Vanilla wondered.

"I bought something here. And of course, it's a pictorial for someone to post to IG later. For the first time, I can go shopping in this place."

"When you’re in Divisoria, it’s not called shopping, Peppermint. It is marketing. My goodness, you really have nothing else to do but that cunning. You will do a pictorial in the middle of a crowd? There are meat and fish there.” She smirked and crossed her two thighs.

"All right, I'll try that later. But for now, you really need to accompany me because otherwise I will really be mad at you."

"What else is my choice but to accompany you? I have nothing to do here in the office. Why not take a break?”

"That's good to hear. All right, let's meet later, okay? I'll buy more."

"All right." She did a shallow exhale and put down her phone. She doesn’t have to squat in her office with her paper friends. She needs to go out and hang out so that she can easily forget the man. On the good note, she can still breathe fresh air.

She first combed her hair and put a little lipstick on her lips. That was all and she quickly went to the basement. When she arrived at the said restaurant, she carefully parked the Civic in the back to target the waiting friend. The girl drove the row of vehicles to reach the entrance of the restaurant, but before she could do that, one hand tightly clasped her arms. Its palms grabbed her mouth causing her not to scream. Vanilla struggled; she pulled her hand with all her might but only tightened the grip of her arm and mouth. She let go of her left arm first but when she returned it was a thick handkerchief that met her mouth. Vanilla continued to struggle violently to get out of here. Vanilla's whole body weakened, as if her eyesight had darkened. Gradually, the energy disappeared from her nerves until she was completely crawled by darkness and fainted.

Everyone is worried. The lady no longer struggled to call all the precincts in general. It also drained cell phone contacts in case the child was there, but none of them knew where it was. The lady was restless as she sat in the chair on the balcony, the helpers walked around and everyone was tense. They earnestly pray that nothing bad will happen to her only unica hija. She instructed each helper one by one in case anyone called one of the people she spoke to and reported on the whereabouts of the child.

The lady turned to Peppermint's sudden appearance. She immediately hugged her and sat down next to her. Peppermint saw how the worry registered in the lady's eyes. How can she tell the whole truth? She hid in the depressed lady the change of her expression.

"Vanilla is missing. We can't find her." its hoarse melody squeezed her palms.

"Don't worry, Auntie. We can also find Vanilla, just calm down." She patted both of its hands.

"I hope so because I don't know what to do when something bad happens to my only child." its voice was full of sadness.

"You have nothing to worry about, Auntie. I'll help you find Vanilla right away. I won't let anything bad happen to my friend."

"Thank you, Peppermint.” it sobbed behind her.

Peppermint felt dishonest, she wanted to tell the lady that she knew where the girl was but she couldn’t do that. This isn’t the time to do that. The reason she is holding is heavy and she doesn’t want to ruin its plan and everyone will be scared. She wants her friend to be happy so she will pretend as much as possible.

Vanilla regained consciousness. She struggled from her seat but her limbs were tied. Her eyes were bandaged so darkness met her. She was sure she was inside a warehouse because of the intense smell of the iron she was inhaling. Sweating and trembling, she struggled again and was forced to remove the rope from her hands but it was deliberately tight. She was overcome with pain as she forced her hands to pull out of the coiled rope. Her life couldn’t just end here. She still has a lot to do and that includes being with her child. Tears welled up in her eyes but she was caught by a handkerchief wrapped around her eyes. Her faint sobs broke the resounding silence. She knew she had no chance to survive especially since she felt she was hiding in a private and abandoned place. If it is a warehouse or an old building, her hopes of getting stuck will diminish.

Sweat dripped down her face, her throat was also dry from the thirst that landed on her. She smelled the surroundings and felt she wasn’t alone. She knew the stench of iron and man so she made sure she had someone inside.

"Who are you!? Why are you doing this to me? What is my fault with you?" She litany to the incomprehensible companion. She waited for it to answer but heard only a faint gust of wind. "Answer me! Who are you?" She exclaimed in response and tried to get out of the chair. She heard no answer from here but she heard heavy footsteps approaching her. She closed her eyes and waited for the person to stab her in the face but that didn’t happen, what surprised her the most was the way it held her palms. Her hands caressed her fingers. Instantly, Vanilla felt strange, that caress was full of massage. It was the caress that could melt her fear. She converted herself and removed her hand from his arms. The man let out a heavy sigh and stood up. She heard its heavy footsteps back to its previous position.

"Please let me go." She begged here at once weeping. "My son needs me, so please let me go." A few beads of tears rolled down her closed eyes and it continued to slide. But that wasn’t Vanilla's surprise. For the second time she had a suspicion that a good man had kidnapped her. It grabbed her face and vigorously rubbed her eyes. "I know you’re kind. So I hope you let me go." Her voice was soft at that time. But she was even more shocked by what followed. He kissed her on the cheek. Kidnapper kissed her cheek? She obeyed to escape his lips but her other cheek was the target of his lips.

"Maniac!" She shouted. But Vanilla couldn't withstand the kidnapper’s bare lips. His penetrating lips had swallowed her whole mouth. A violent kiss that seemed to make her think. She tried not to drift into that rage, but it was so delicious and she didn't seem to want to run away from his lips. Vanilla's earlier refusal of the body became a slave to every stranger's raging kiss. Hot, soft, fragrant and insane with pleasure painted in his depths. His tongue was very greedy and claimed the remaining space of her mouth. His hands were also criminal and he took off her business suit. She could no longer prevent that blasphemy. She herself was satisfied with what it was doing. The heat and aroma of the stranger's body smells, even though she - couldn't handle it. The sweetest words are enough for her to feel the joy caused by every twitch it brings her. She drowned in the cloud.

Is this the kiss of a kidnapper? That came to her mind. With each twinkle it gives her a strange tickle that when she tries to untie herself, she will surely regret it.

Their journey into the dimension of glory is truly exciting. He grabbed both her arms and pressed his lips closer to hers. At first glance, it looks like she is already biting herself but she doesn’t want to get out of that dimension. She closes her eyes to the joy she enjoys. His lips plowed her core at the same time swallowing saliva. The two took a deep breath as they parted. Vanilla thought that was the last one, but she still had a final kiss before escaping. She was left speechless in what he did. It's the first time a kidnapper kisses her, the second time a stranger kisses her except Edward and that's also the second time she enjoys it.

Vanilla fell asleep in the seat. Her legs are numb. She heard the faint opening of the door, the sound of its shoes approaching her.

"Let me go, please." it complied with her grievance. It untied the rope on her leg and hands. Now its hands are tightly handcuffed to her. "Where are you taking me?" She realized that it had guided her into the car. After she was tied to the side, he pulled the car away. Triple trembling hit Vanilla's heart. What if it took her to the syndicates and made her a sex slave? She would surely die. Maybe it would be better to die with a stab and a gun than to be beaten. She bit her lip so hard, earnestly praying in her brain that what was running through her mind wouldn’t happen.

"I don't need to be engaged with Thalia and I’m not gonna marry her!" Edward boldly revealed his decision. His mother rubbed his mouth and his father smoked his nose in anger as he watched him sharply.

"What!? Are you crazy already? You can't cancel the engagement, son. It will embarrass our family."

"I don't care anymore what people will think of us, Mom. What matters is my decision. I won't be marrying Thalia, we will cancel the engagement!"

"What do you imply by that?! You can't cancel the engagement we worked for you! If you don't want to or if you want, you will marry Thalia!" His father now wants to snatch him from the sofa.

"Stop controlling me, Dad! I will no longer be submissive to your decisions with Mom. If you were able to make me obey you then, now I won’t. I will decide for myself. And my decision is to cancel that stupid engagement." he firmly replied.

"Rude!" Daddy slapped him hard, but his face didn't even shake. "I didn't raise you to disobey your Mommy and I! You will marry Thalia and that's the end of the story."

"If you force me to marry Thalia, maybe you should just deprive me of my inheritance. I don’t need money Dad, all I need is freedom. You deprived me of that, the freedom to decide for my own happiness." Edward's mouth watered as he said that.

"Edward son, just listen to your Dad. We will be scandalized when it comes out in the press." His mother's preaching voice.

"Is what the media says more important than my own happiness, Mom? For how many years, I followed everything you wanted. I put you ahead of myself. I understood you even though I was hurting. But for this time, I won’t let you control me, I won’t let anyone else who is important to me disappear." His wholehearted statement. The old man's fist clenched when he heard him.

"Will that love revive you? Is this how you repay us!?" His Daddy's bursting.

"No matter what hurtful words you say will never change my mind, Dad. Thalia and I are calling the engagement off."

"What did you mean Thalia and you?" His father was stiff.

"Yes, Dad. Thalia and I are on the same side of the boat, we are both choked on this engagement. Much worse you’re pushing us into something we both don't like!" he also confessed everything to his parents. Both Thalia and him are now having their own voice. "So, Dad, I hope you understand me. If you take away my inheritance, I will accept it from my heart. The person who can make me happy is totally more than that treasure."

He turned around and left immediately. His disobedience to his parents' wishes to bind him was a way for him to be happy. He wouldn’t let Vanilla get out of his cage. He loves the woman and he cannot imagine the days will pass without her by his side. As for his parents, maybe he did better. Taking that step will make them realize that it can’t control his love life.

He immediately called Thalia, saying hello to her. Like him, its parents couldn’t accept the decision.

"Don't worry, they will also accept everything, just let our hearts be what they want to be."

"Thank you for understanding me as well, Edward."

"Well, that's nothing compared to what you told me. But I have one last favor to ask..." he said mysteriously.

"What is it?"

"It's about Vanilla." He recounted here the imagined plan. That was what he had been waiting for, to be with the girl and Ark.

Edward called Vanilla's friend Peppermint to ask for a favor. At first, it was elusive especially since it was also angry with him. But in the end, she was able to say yes to what he said. The only thing missing was Vanila’s cousin Timothy, who was also very angry with him. He needs the man; Timothy has a big part of his plan.

He spoke it deeply and fortunately he was convinced it sided with him. All he needs to do is to put the plan into action.

All the newspapers, TV, radio and magazines have been flagged lost by Vanilla Galvez. No one had any information about it. Edward grabbed the TV remote and turned it off. This is the day his plans will be put into action. Hopefully, he will succeed.

Wearing his tuxedo, he headed for the car. He prepared everything, from the smallest seam of his polo shirt to the last strand of his gel hair. He is sure it will be the headline of the news tomorrow. The news about his marriage.