Chapter 6

Diana's P.O.V

I began cropping up tears in my eyes when I heard a knock on the door. In excitement, I ran towards the door to unlock and to welcome my parents that evening. Yes, that was my thought. But I was aggrieved and unhappy at the same time when a tall man with a menacing figure appeared at the door instead of my parents.

"Da…….d?," I said with a shaky voice.

"Hello Diana, can I come in?" the strange man said.

"My mommy said I should not allow strangers in our house or even collect something from a stranger. I retorted and stood defensively, one of my hands resting on the wall and the other held the door knob.

With a smile, he said, "Mommy is right though, but I'm not a stranger dear". He squatted and we are now at the same height.

"How do I know you are not a stranger? I queried, "You have not visited us before". I folded my arms and he chuckled.

"I am a busy type of person, and I take the blame for not always visiting. See this," He said and brought out a picture that included Mommy, Daddy, and himself.

They stood closely together and smiled in the picture he showed me. I noticed they also looked young except for the stranger whose face looked no different, but I wasn't worried.

"I have seen almost all the pictures Mommy and Daddy took while they were young, why did they keep this very one from me," I questioned the stranger while he still stood outside.

"Oh! Little Princess I never knew they hadn't, I believe they might have misplaced it. Can I come in now?" he sounded uncomfortable and wanted to come in in a rush.

"Ok, you can come in," I said and left the door, and went back to sit on my favorite-sized chair.

He hurriedly stood on his feet and came inside." Thank you, Diana". He grinned.

"What's your name Mr.? Or do you prefer I call you Mr. Stranger" We both giggled.

"Cole, You can call me Cole." He took a seat beside me.

"Ok, where are my parents? You did not go with them, did you?" I asked him and impatiently waited to hear him.

For another forty-five seconds, he kept mute. I don't know why, I could only deduce that he wanted to tell me something but didn't know how to spill the words.

"No sweetheart, I didn't" he announced.

"Well, what have you come here to do?" I questioned him again.

"Oh! That…. The thing is……", his phone rang and he stopped whatever he was about to say to pick up his call.

"Yes, we are about to leave right now", was only what he said after two minutes of silence and he returned his phone to his pocket. "We have to leave now". He said.

I was dazed by his statement, what did he mean by 'we'? I thought to myself.

"Where are we going, Mr Cole?"

"To see a family member, I was told Mommy and Daddy won't be coming home tonight." Mr Cole gave a gloomy look.

"I don't believe you, they told me they were coming home soon after they left. It just happened that they were late." I explained

He noticed I wasn't buying into everything he was saying since he arrived. He needed to act fast before it was too late for him to lure me out of the house.

Mr. Cole forcefully dragged me outside but it was too late for him when a well-built man named James appeared from nowhere. As if he was waiting for us to come outside.

"Hey! Let go of that child right now!" James ordered with a stern voice.

Mr. Cole turned to face James, a wicked grin on his face.

"Mind your own business, pal. This kid owes me." Mr. Cole sneered.

"I don't care who owes you what. You don't harm children." James stepped closer, his fists clenched.

Mr.Cole, undeterred, tightened his grip on my arm causing me to whimper in pain.

"Please, mister, help me," I said tearfully.

"Hold on, Diana. I've got this." James said, determined.

I wasn't surprised that he knew my name either, I just wanted to be safe.

With a rush of speed, James pounced at Mr. Cole, intending to save me. The two clasped fiercely, and the street echoed with the sounds of their struggle.

"You're making a big mistake, pal!" Mr. Cole struggled to say.

"Not as big a mistake as you, hurting a defenseless child." James gritted his teeth.

Their combat continued, each gust and kick brought them closer to either victory or defeat. James knew he couldn't back down; my safety depended on his boldness and strength.

Eventually, with a well-aimed punch, James disoriented Mr. Cole enough to free me. I raced away to safety, weeping but safe.

"Get out of here, and don't you ever come near this child again!" James panted victorious.

Mr. Cole, injured and defeated, fled into the darkness of the back street, vowing revenge on James. James risked everything to save me, and at that moment, he knew he had made the right choice.

"You can come out now, the bastard is gone" James adjusted his shirt.

"Thank you so much, sir," I said and hugged him right.

" Don't mention Diana, he isn't a match with me" He proudly said.

"I will take you away from here now," He said and I nodded.

We headed straight to the spot where he parked his sports car.

It was a brand from KIA, it looked new, neat, and smaller than muscle cars and looked sleeker. I only saw one inside a movie.

I was amused at the features the car had when I got in and sat in the front seat beside him. It had a Manual Gearbox, an infotainment with a smartphone, supported adaptive headlight and dynamic driver modes, and a paddle shifter.

There are a few convenience and safety features too, including lane-keep assist, adaptive cruise control, and emergency braking. This is to help the driver stay safe on the road, especially if driving long distances.

We hit the road to a destination unknown to me. His phone on the dashboard rang and he asked me to pick up the call.

"Hello, Diana, I'm your father's friend and Lawyer. I know you are safe now from any threats, but I'm bitter to announce the death of your parents to you. They had a car accident on their way back, see you soon." he spewed over the phone.

The call was disconnected, and the phone slipped away. That was all I could remember before everything went dark.