Chapter 6

Madelyn’s POV

I didn’t fall into the water.

Halfway down, something moved beneath me. A blur of white that slowly became clearer, and my eyes widened.

A yacht. I’m falling on a yacht!

I didn’t have time to panic, but everything seemed to play out in slow motion. My fall, the movement of the water, the speed of the yacht–I could see how clear I’d fall into its deck! 

Then, everything happened too fast.

Instead of a splashing sound, a loud thud rang in my ears and rattled every bone in my body as I hit. 

“Oh my god!” “Is that a person?!” The voices quickly faded.

The yacht was passing by just in time that I jumped, and I’m not sure if falling into it is better than the deep waters and drowning. The impact was so hard that my body went numb, and darkness started to close in. I tried to breathe, but my ribs screamed. I couldn’t breathe, like air was knocked out of my lungs.

In the blur before I lost consciousness, my eyes caught the stunned face of the same man from the cemetery, frozen on the nearby sofa as he stared at me.

**

The first thing I felt was pain before I knew I was awake. My body was screaming in pain, and I groaned or whimpered. I don’t know. The only thing on my mind is how much everything hurts.

I’m alive. In pain, but breathing. It's a good thing that I feel pain, right? It means I wasn’t paralyzed or anything.

I tried to move, failed, and I groaned.

The soft mattress I was lying on registered in my head. Someone helped me.

“Don’t move yet,” said a deep voice. My eyes darted to my left and found the man from the cemetery sitting on a couch.

Y-You…” I couldn’t say another word; my throat felt so dry and like it was being clenched tight.

“Here. Have a sip, but don’t gulp,” he helped me drink water with a straw. I did as he said, swallowing very slowly. “Better?”

I nodded. “Thank you,” my voice turned out hoarse.

He sat back on his chair and intently looked at me. My eyes darted around the room I was in. I’m not sure if I was still on the yacht or how many days I was out. Panic surges next. I’m with a stranger and I don’t know where I am, worse, I couldn’t move.

“Relax, kid. You’re safe. You’ve been out for a day, but my doctors checked on you. Call it a miracle, you only suffered minor injuries. A few cracked bones, but the doctors said it will heal on their own. Just limit your movements and rest.”

I breathed out slowly. I guess he wasn’t a dangerous kind of stranger.

“Thank you for saving my life.” I closed my eyes tight, remembering how the car wanted to hit me and how I was falling from the bridge.

“Well, that’s a shock.” I opened my eyes and found the man shaking his head with a small smile. He noticed the confusion in my eyes. “You were attempting to kill yourself, I didn’t expect you to be grateful I saved you. So tell me, why did you want to die? And why jumping off a bridge?”

I tried to shake my head, but realized I had a neck brace on. “I wasn’t. I’m not trying to kill myself, Sir.”

“I hope it's not your hobby to jump off a bridge? That would be weird.”

He doesn’t sound like joking, but I’d laugh if only I could.

“No, no. I…” I paused, remembering the white car purposely driving into me. “Someone wanted to kill me, to hit me with a car. I had to jump to survive.”

The man got silent for a second. He studied my face, probably finding a hint of a lie in my expression.

Sadly, I wasn’t lying, and someone really wanted me killed.

“And why would they want you dead? Are you a pugitive? A criminal? Were you in hiding?”

I groaned when I instinctively tried to shake my head again. “No. I’m a good citizen, Sir. I think my husband and stepsister wanted to kill me. They, uh, they took my son from me. He was not my biological son, but I see him as mine.”

“This husband and stepsister of yours, they have an affair?”

I sighed shakily. “Yes. They also used me as a surrogate without my knowledge, and now my sister came back and she… she was claiming my son.” My last words came out in a trembling voice.

I don’t know why I’m telling this to a stranger, but the heavy feelings felt light after talking about it with someone who wouldn’t gaslight me.

“My name is Randy. Can you tell me what’s yours?” he opted to change the topic, and I appreciate that. I was on the verge of crying, and his distraction helped hold back my tears.

“I’m–”

My words were cut as the television showed breaking news, and I was stunned.

"Breaking news: a woman reportedly jumped from the uptown bridge earlier this morning. Witnesses say the scene was chaotic as emergency crews rushed to the area. Authorities have not yet confirmed if she survived the fall, and the identity of the woman remains unknown. This would mark the third case of suicide on Uptown Bridge this year. We’ll keep updating about this case…" The reporter kept talking, and a picture of me jumping from the bridge, with my face hidden, was shown.

I paled.

No one knew what happened to me. The world doesn’t know that I was the one who jumped from the bridge, and they certainly didn’t know why. Only Yolanda and Carter.

They planned to kill me, and now, they must think they have succeeded and gotten away with the crime. This is attempted murder, and I have every reason to doubt them as the mastermind.

I tried getting up but struggled.

“What are you doing?” Randy asked, standing up to stop me if I tried to stand up again. “Don’t move.”

“No, I…I need to go. I need to go to the police and report that someone tried to kill me! Carter and Yolanda must pay for their actions! I know they are the ones behind this! I must make them pay!”

I managed to move my upper body up, but Randy stopped me quickly. He pushed my shoulder down, and he didn’t need to exert force because of how weak I was.

“And what can you do in your state?” he looked me straight in the eyes. “You’re weak, kid.”

“The police! I could–”

“Police are shit, they can be bought. Are you innocent or just naive? If you want to make them pay, you should have powers. Now, what powers do you have in this world?”

I…

My mind looked for answers, but I couldn’t find any. I don’t have any power. Yes, my father may be powerful, but he will not back me up. His eyes were set on Yolanda and her value in his company. I don’t have an abundance of money, just a few thousand that I saved.

None of it was enough.

“That’s what I thought,” Randy must’ve read my mind. He straightened and waited for my words but I didn't have any. “Now, tell me what your name is, kid.”

“Madelyn…”

“Okay, Madelyn. Now, I’ll ask you questions and I need your answers to be honest.” I only nodded. “You mentioned the names Carter and Yolanda. Was it Carter Hollis and Yolanda Westbrook?”

I frowned. “How do you know them?” I asked but he ignored it.

“Only honest answers first, kid,” he said in a stern voice. I nodded slowly. “Then you must be Nathan’s daughter?” I nodded again. He gave me a small smile. “I know Nathan doesn’t honor one of his daughters. I couldn’t believe he preferred water over his own blood.”

“Why do you know so much about my family?”

“I don’t think you can call the people who abandoned you as family, kid.”

His words strike the right chords. He was right, of course. Based on what happened to me and how much I told him, and he knows, Randy must have connected the dots.

He took my silence as a confirmation that he was right.

“Well, Madelyn Westbrook, instead of justice, how do you feel about getting your revenge?”

Revenge?

I never thought about it. My mind only focused on getting my son back, not getting even. Now that he mentioned it, I accepted how narrow-minded and easy to stomp down I was.

“I don’t know how. Like you said, Randy, I have no power.”

“I could give you that. Power.”

“What? How?” 

“They already think you are dead. I see that as your advantage. You can be anyone you want to be now.”

“What do you mean?”

“If you take this deal and choose revenge, I’ll help you become someone new. You’ll get a whole new identity, and I’ll support you all the way.”