Taken Over: Sapphire of Hope

The Painful Truth of Two Terrible Lives

Aiden couldn't sleep through the whole drive the night they left the Patrol Station in North Dakota. He just sat there staring out the window, watching the dark scenery pass by while Olivia was asleep on his shoulder. Taftner was quiet as he drove them away from the danger that lurked behind, until it was almost dawn. When the sun was just barely shining in the east, Taftner spoke to Aiden.

"That was a very brave thing you did back there Aiden."

Aiden looked at Taftner and smiled his appreciation for the recognition of taking a hit.

"I don't know very many people who would actually get shot for someone. You must care about her a lot."

Aiden's smile faded and he looked back out the window trying to hide his face so Taftner couldn't see the depression showing. Taftner saw that Aiden had turned his head away, and tried his best to comfort him.

"Look Aiden. I want to apologize. I know I haven't really talked to you, and I don't know if you know this, but I didn't really trust you. When you first showed up to Olivia and I at that rest stop, I wanted to leave you there. When I found out who you were, I thought keeping you around would be dangerous. I would've left you there to die."

Aiden continued to look out the window and not respond to Taftner, or acknowledge his words.

"The truth is, it was Olivia who finally convinced me to take you with us, and I can honestly say I'm grateful we did. You have not only saved Olivia's life, but everyone else in this car as well. You have proved me wrong about you. You are a good man Aiden, and I'm glad you came back for us. I know Olivia is happier with you here."

Aiden looked away from the window and at Olivia. As he saw her sleeping on his shoulder very peacefully, he couldn't help but smile. He really was glad she was alive. Taftner saw Aiden smile and couldn't help but ask Aiden a question.

"If you don't mind me asking Aiden, what happened between you and Olivia?"

Aiden's smile faded once again. He then looked up at Taftner for a moment, and then back out the window.

"Come on Aiden. Say something. We might be around each other for a while, we may as well try to be acquaintances. I didn't mean to depress you, I'm just trying to understand the situation a little better."

Aiden looked back at Taftner and finally responded to him.

"You want to understand the situation better not because you want to be acquaintances, but because you're a cop. Don't try to act like anything has changed Taftner. If I hadn't showed up to save your life and you all managed to get away and we met up later on, your opinion of me would be the same as it was before."

Taftner looked at Aiden through his rearview mirror and felt a little disappointed. He knew Aiden was right, but still wanted Aiden to feel a little more comfortable.

"Well then how can I prove to you that I am truly grateful and sorry? Would you like to shoot me? Aiden, I'm trying to be a friend here."

Aiden shook his head at Taftner and looked out the window.

"Don't bother. I've managed to do fine alone for the past few years."

Taftner looked through the mirror again at Aiden.

"I know how that feels Aiden. Believe me."

Aiden scoffed at this.

"Yeah? How do you know how that feels? You have a family and other cops you can be around. Doesn't sound very lonely to me."

Taftner kept quiet for a moment before answering.

"When I was 9 years old, my parents died in a car accident. The driver that hit them was intoxicated. I was then placed in an orphanage where I stayed until I was 18. I finished high school and started looking for a carrier. After finding out the number of people affected by a death from some form of alcohol, I decided I wanted to be a patrol man on the streets to stop the people from getting hurt, or hurting others. By 19 I had started my first year of college. Up until then, I had never had a drop of alcohol in my life, and I had no interest in drinking any. My roommate decided to play a practical joke on me one night, and slowly started slipping alcohol into my drinks while I studied until I got drunk. He took me out to some parties where I met a beautiful girl. As the night went on, her and I decided to have some fun. I took her back to my dorm room, and when I woke up the next morning, she was gone and I had a major hangover. After my roommate told me everything that had happened, I realized being a street patrol man wasn't a good carrier for me. So I left college and completely dropped out of all my classes. A few months passed, and I get a knock on my door. When I answered, it was the girl I had slept with at college, and she was pregnant. Her and I started talking and we finally decided to get married. A few more months passed and we had our family. Everything seemed to be going ok. Just her, me, and our little baby boy Tyler. After our family had started, I realized I needed a more steady job, so I talked to my wife and told her I was going to go back to school to become a cop. She supported me through the whole thing. At least, that's what I thought. After I finished my schooling, I became a fulltime patrolman and my wife and I were expecting another kid. So a month after Tyler's fifth birthday, Lauren was born. Everything seemed so perfect. I was working full time and still got to see my family, and my wife seemed happier then ever. But all good things must come to an end. Two years after Lauren was born, I came home from work and saw a note on my refrigerator. My wife had left it. It said I can have the kids and she has been seeing someone else for the past seven years. She said the kids were definitely mine and she had the proof of that on the table. When I read that note, I was devastated. I began drinking every night for about six months. Then one night, I realized I couldn't keep drinking because I had kids to take care of. On Tyler's eighth birthday, he told me he hated me and left to go live with his mom. I didn't see or hear from him for fourteen years. The only reason I saw him then was because he had gone to college to become a cop. After his awards ceremony, he stopped by the house to see his sister and make sure everything was ok for her. He didn't even speak to me until he left. When he opened the door, he told me he was glad I'm sober and the only reason he joined the patrol was to show me how a real cop is supposed to act like, and if he ever found out I was drinking again, he would personally come and take Lauren away from me to live with a good family."