Chapter 5

The sun was still down the hill, and the white mist filled the atmosphere. The wind was cold and fresh, but only if the Uncle and niece could have peace of mind to enjoy this breathtaking sunrise after the chaos of last night. Mr. Bennett and Madeline were on the way to the airport as they booked a flight to leave New York this morning. Madeline was numb from inside with tear marks on her face, while Mr. Bennett was silent as he can’t bring himself from the anxiety to get caught by those gangsters.

“Everything will be alright, Maddy,” he spoke in a comforting tone and held her hand.

She looked at him, while in a moment, a Van hit their car from behind. Their car slipped its balance and crushed to a pole. Everything stopped for a second in Madeline’s eye as the darkness covered her. She tried to gain consciousness as she heard some footsteps running towards them. Once her eyes were open, she saw Mr. Bennett was severely injured on the head and her left leg got a huge wound. Her whole body was numbed and in pain. She tried to reach her uncle when their doors opened and some men in drag them out of the car. They were all dressed in black coats, like bodyguards. They threw them on the road and surround them.

“Mr. Shaw said to you he will visit today. HOW DARE YOU RUN AND DISOBEY HIM!! “.One of them shout and pulled a gun toward Mr. Bennett. Their blood run cold at the sight as all the men smirked and pulled their guns out as well. The man was about to pull the trigger when a gunshot echoed in the air. The same man pointing at Mr. Bennett falls to life with a shot on his back head. Before the rest could look back, the firing started like rain on them. Madeline run to her uncle and try to lift him when the men ran here and there, shooting back at their attacker.

As Madeline took her uncle in her arms, she saw his slow smile at the person. She looked back and found a man in a casual grey suit firing at Shaw’s men. As the person walked near them with guns in his both bloodied hands, she noticed the wrinkles on his face. Despite his grey hair and beard, he had a tall and built figure, shooting down every enemy in his way. He approached them and gained another shoulder of her uncle to help her lift him to a new car that stopped in front of them. In the approach, Mr. Bennett notices a man was about to fire at Madeline. He covered her back and took the shot.

Madeline’s heart stopped for a moment when she heard the shot and weight on her back.

“U-Uncle,”

“Nelson!!” the man beside her shouted and caught her uncle. His eyes got glossy as he called him again and again, but Nelson didn’t reply and coughed blood into his hand. He started firing intensely as he left Mr. Bennett in Madeline’s arms.

“NO!! NO UNCLE!! You can’t give up. We have to leave New York together... PLEASE!!” She hitched with her shaking body and tears brim out of her eyes.

“QUICK!! WE NEED TO TAKE HIM TO THE HOSPITAL! PUT HIM IN CAR!!” the male shouts, running back to them.

They laid him in the car where his head was on that man’s lap and Madeline was holding and rubbing his hands. She was a crying mess, as Nelson wasn’t responding to them.

“p-please h-hold a little w-we will reach soon, please Uncle holds just for a minute,” she said weeping in her tears. Her eyes shined when she felt a grip on her hand by his weak figures.

Mr. Bennett slowly opened his eye but hardly kept them steady. His breath was getting heavy every second and his hand was turning cold. He drifted his face to Madeline as he try to speak up.

“Maddy...I’m s-sorry i-i can’t.” Mr. Bennett replied weakly between his scant breath that dropped her heart in fear.

“NO! Uncle, please don’t say this. You are my only family, you can’t leave me!! You promised me you will be always with me!!” She holds his palm tighter, as her tears stream down her face continuously.

“L-Listen to y-your uncle Madeline. I c-can’t protect you anymore. R-Run. r-run away, far from them. They will kill you.” Mr. Bennett turn his head a bit to the man, who was also torn to see him struggling to hold on to his life.

“Darnell, my B-Buddy. p-please save her... as y-you promised me its time for you to pay back... t-today I ask you to take care of m-my niece after I’m gone.” he holds his shaking hands of Madeline as he smiled at her.

“M-Madeline leaves with him. He is my best friend and your uncle as well... don’t w-worry about me. Just r-remember... you have to live. Promise me to live happily after I’m gone otherwise. Y-Your f-father will curse me from heaven.” He chuckled in a barely audible voice.

Madeline shook her head as she denied their departure like this. The person who stayed with her the longest protected her, guide her and loved her like his daughter was leaving her forever. She was always under his roof of care and love, from her hardest time to her happiest moment. Her only family and friend, her uncle, was the only light that she had in her life that helped her to survive in this dark and inhospitable world. How can she even think of losing him all of a sudden?

Mr. Bennett slowly cared her head as it hurt him to see her cry but to his misery, he couldn’t even hug her with this dying body. “My child... Uncle really... r-really l-loves you....so take care...........” With his last words, his hand loses its life and falls off her head. They took away the roof of the family from her head.  

“No... No...NO!! Uncle PLEASE NO... YOU CAN’T LEAVE LIKE THAT!! I Am SORRY!! I WILL NEVER DISOBEY YOU... I promise will listen to you and be a good girl. J-just... Uncle... d-don’t leave me alone!!”. Madeline shacks him between her sobs.

She burst out crying like crazy and hugged his senseless body, losing her last person in this world. Mr. Darnell’s eyes shed tears, closing his friend’s eyes, which were once filled with light.

After a while, the car stopped and she saw the airport from afar.

“Let’s go. We have to leave as soon as possible.” the Darnell man said to her. Her body was still shaking and her face was full of dried tears.

He slowly pats her shoulder and looked down. “I never thought to say goodbye to him like this when we were finally able to meet after 10 years.” He said in a dull voice. He took a break, gulping the sorrow of losing his friend before even being able to greet him.

“Madeline, I know it’s hard, but we have to move fast. Those men could be following us and you can’t be in public openly. I have arranged everything, so trust me and come.” He offered a hand to her with consoling eyes. She finally nodded with a last glimpse of Mr. Bennett and head out of the car.

As their private jet took flight in the air, a tear rolled to her cheek again while staring out at the city where she spends her past years with her uncle smiling, laughing, joking, and working together. Madeline was gazing at the window with sad eyes needing someone’s warmth, but that someone was no longer by her side. She couldn’t able to hold a funeral for her only family and had to depart without any traces of this place. She was alone in this world now.

Darnell come back with a new suit as it was covered with blood and noticed the poor girl, lost outside. He sits in front of her to join the sky view.

“We were childhood best friends.” The old man breaks the silence between them. She whipped her tear and turned to the person who saved her a while ago.

“He texted me everything about it earlier when your two were driving to the airport. Don’t worry you are safe, now you are my responsibility, I’m your Uncle too,” he said with a comforting smile. Madeline just nods with glossy eyes.

“I never heard of you before from Uncle, and you... who exactly are you?” Madeline asked as she could remember him shooting around with blood all over his body earlier.

“Well, I see he didn’t tell you anything about me but he always talks about you... that jerk. Haha. I’m chairman of Davis Enterprises, Darnell Davis,” He introduced me with an offer of a handshake.

“A-and t-that gun and firing” she shuttered sinking in her seat.

He noticed her un-comfort, so he backed off and sigh softly. “Hmm, that.” He leans back in his seat looking at the girl. “First promise me you won’t be scared.”

Madeline frowned at his word “That I can’t guarantee especially in this situation.”

He chuckled “Okay but I’m giving you precaution in advance so you won’t be shocked.”

She nods “I will trust you since my Uncle asks me to believe in you.”

“I’m the Mafia King of the Underworld...”