The Mafia's Princess

Dead and Gone

A loud crash tore through the air and I felt it reverberate through my body. I felt weightless as I watched everything outside spin around a few times before finally stopping upside down. Glass flew everywhere and I could smell burning rubber. I took a shallow breathe wincing as fiery hot pain raced through my body. My mind was still sluggish with drowsiness as I tried to understand what was happening. My face felt sticky and my legs were trapped in the twisted metal that used to be the dashboard. I turned my head to the side slowly all the energy quickly leaving my body. My mum was so still, her body looking so broken and fragile. Even with my suddenly hazy vision I could see all the blood covering her and the car. The metal protruding from her stomach and thigh and the odd angle of her arm broke my heart and I felt the tears sliding down my cheeks.

My eyes finally slid shut

I felt more trapped than ever. I was borderline hyperventilating and my heart raced. Whimpering, I tried desperately to escape. “SIREN!” My eyes flew open and hastily scanned the cabin. I let my eyes fall to the ground as I tried to slow my breathing. My body was covered in a cold sweat and I felt exhausted. My mind began to clear and I sighed with resignation, I had once again relived the memory of the accident in my dreams. I cautiously looked up at the guards whose faces were etched with worry. I swallowed, my throat dry and scratchy. I probably had been screaming in my sleep which happened sometimes and would explain the terrified look one of the guards wore.

I almost sighed with relief when I felt myself going numb again now that I was more awake. “Thanks for waking me” I finally mumble looking out the window

“Are you ok?” The head guard Isaák asked, trying to catch my eye. He had been around for as long as I could remember and I had a lot of fond memories of him that seemed just out of my reach nowadays. He was little more than a familiar face now.

“Fine” I replied, my voice still croaky from sleep. He looked unconvinced and I waited patiently while he tried to assess me. Finally he sighed and sent the other guards back to their seats.

He opened his mouth before closing it again looking deep in thought. This went on a few more times before he sighed yet again. “You can talk to me Siren.” He said. I think he meant it as reassurance for me but it sounded more like he was pleading. I looked at him and noticed how worn he really looked. This accident had rocked everyone and my dad’s whole organisation suffered. I almost wished that I could give him the comfort he was seeking but there was nothing left of me to give. “I’ll remember that” I replied instead. His face fell and he opened his mouth to pursue the topic.

“We’ll be landing in a few minutes” A smiley flight attendant announced. Without sparing him a glance I stood up and moved to the bathroom. I went straight to the tap and splashed my face with cold water. I studied my reflection in the mirror. There was barely anything that I recognised. My usually tanned skin was pale, my blue eyes were empty with big purple bags underneath and my now lifeless black hair was dragged into a bun. It was surreal because the image in the mirror kind of looked like me but it wasn’t me at all. My own eyes looked haunted and foreign to me. I was dressed in baggy soccer shorts, plain canvas shoes and a giant hoodie. After the accident baggy clothes was all my tender body could handle. With a small sigh for all that I had lost I left the bathroom so we could land.

It took mere minutes to get through the airport because of our VIP documents and I only had one heavily packed backpack that needed to be checked in. We headed out to the front of the Sacramento International Airport into the warm Californian weather. To be less conspicuous we had to stand with everyone else waiting to be picked up - because a girl and 4 burly men, was definitely inconspicuous according to my father’s logic.