The Grand Mistress

Somerset Village-Twenty years ago

A week had passed when Hawk last saw Cat. After that one great afternoon they spent in the festival together with the girl's father, the girl hadn't come out and played with them. He asked Doug about her and the boy only shrugged, not able to tell him anything.

Worried and curious, the young Hawk bravely went to the white mansion alone where he last saw Cat and her father went. Until then he wasn't sure whether his butler was right when he said they were the Hans as when he inquired about it with Dough—the boy who brought Cat to their group—he simply answered that he didn't know and that it was impossible for Cat to be and heiress because there was no heiress in their village.

When he reached the big metal gates of the white mansion, he peeked inside, hoping he could find any signs of Cat in the vast garden inside it. However before he could look further, a guard who was stationed beside the gate shooed him away.

"Hey boy! Go away! This is no place for playing," The guard reprimanded but instead of going away, Hawk went toward him and politely bowed.

"Hello sir, I'm looking for Cat. Is she around?" He asked and the guard for a moment looked at the little boy wondering what he was talking about, but then he realized something.

"Cat? Hmm… you are friends with the Miss?" The guard returned the question and looked sideways to check whether someone had noticed the boy aside from him.

"Yes sir. She had not been going out for many days. Is she alright? Is she sick?" He inquired further as the guard's expression somehow told him he knew her.

"Oh boy, this is not a good time to visit her. The Don is here and if he will see you here, both you and the Miss will be of trouble," The guard explained it all in one go and asked him to leave once again, "Things are not good in the miss now, it might become worst when the Don figures out she had been making friends with commoners,"

"Off you go now or  the Miss will be in more trouble," The guard said and Hawk could do nothing but retreat. He understood the predicament when the guards said something about commoners and he understood right away that heiresses like her shouldn't be going around making friends with village children as it was not appropriate with her status. Being born as an elite and having been trained all his life to act as one, he knew their standards when it comes to making friends as he too was always reminded not to make connections with people below his status.

Hawk heaved a heavy sigh and left but there was something about the situation that made him want to linger longer. He looked at the big mansion far ahead and the big wide wall that surrounded it. There's no way he could pass through it without going through the front gate. 

Without much hope, he traced his steps back to the big dusty road Cat and his father previously tracked the afternoon of the festival. He was then walking slowly, his hands in his pocket and head bent low because of frustration. What could be happening to Cat these days? The guard at the front gate seemed to be implying her situation isn't good.

As Hawk advanced his steps, something hit his right arm that made him shriek. "Ouch!"

A tiny stone had hit his right arm and although he wondered how he was hit that hard, he went on, thinking it was just a natural thing. However soon, he was hit again successively and he noticed that many tiny stones had been thrown toward him.

Hawk immediately frowned and when he looked back at the mansion to see who had been throwing stones at him, he saw no one. He looked back at the front gate and saw the guard busy on something but aside from him, there was no one there who could throw stones at him. Still wondering, he thought of leaving the place right away, afraid that some evil spirits had been playing pranks on him, however as he was about to turn, he saw something glistened at the east part of the gate.

There was a tree that nestled in there whose branch seemed to have covered a part of the wall and there, something bright was reflecting, almost making his eyes squint. Hawk found the thing a bit strange and so he ran back to the mansion but this time he didn't go to the front, but instead went to the east side where he saw the reflecting light.

It took him a few good minutes to reach that part as aside from it being far from the front gate, it was also a bit grassy there that he had to look at every step he took, afraid he might step onto some animals that might attack him, like snakes for example.

"Faster or the guards will see you!" Someone called on him and he immediately realized it was the girl whom he came for.

"Cat?"

"Faster you slowpoke!"

Hawk did so as instructed and when he reached the wall, he looked up realizing it would be impossible for him to climb up. It was so high, even an adult person will not be able to climb up on it. He was about to nag about how he couldn't go up when suddenly, a rope ladder fell in front of him.

"Get on! Guards are roving, hurry!"

Hawk climbed up on the wall and although he was aided by a rope, he still struggled to get through it and his climb did not go on easy. After a few minutes of struggle, he reached the top and saw the girl, immediately pulling the rope ladder up with haste.

Hawk wanted to help her but when his eyes fell on her, his heart leaped almost leaving him breathless.

"Don't laugh," Cat caught his expression and immediately understood it. She knew she looked different as she was all dolled up into an heiress, far away from the Cat the boy used to see. She was then wearing a little white dress with stockings and her hair was all adored by beautiful hairpins. She was so beautiful, far more beautiful than Hawk had seen her previously. "The servants made me wear this freakin thing,"

"How did you climb here with that?" Hawk wondered as she seemed too girly and put up to be able to climb such a high tree. Up there, there was a little platform built with bamboo where the ladder she threw at him was attached to.

"With the same ladder you used, dumbass!" She exclaimed, obviously not in the mood. Only then did Hawk notice she had red eyes. Had she been crying up here?

"Why are you here?" She asked the a bit later and added "You should have not come,"

"Then you should have not helped me climb the wall," He noted and sat comfortably beside her. Judging by her expression, it was obvious she was not okay and he had never been glad to be there. 

"Sorry if I just visited today, I should have come sooner," Hawk added, trying to tell her that was worried about her and that no matter what she was sad about, he was there to give her company. "Is everything bad in he—"

"Cat!" Hawk's words were cut off when he heard someone calling the girl. Below, they both saw her father rummaging the entire garden looking for her. "Cat, where are you?"

It was obvious he was in distress and Cat who was then sitting beside Hawk tensed up upon hearing her name, but instead of answering, she chose not to answer. Hawk who saw the whole ordeal wondered why Cat wasn't answering her father and his gaze went from the girl's father and her. He didn't understand what was happening but it was obvious Cat was hiding away from him.

Just after a few calls, another figure appeared. It was an older man, walking straight and proud like he owned the place. He was then wearing glasses and his eyes shared the same color that Cat had. Right behind him, another man walked, seemingly trying to appease him as it was obvious from his expression that he was mad.

Cat's father, who had heard the two persons from his back, immediately turned to them and with eyes filled with fury and resentment, he confronted the older man with glasses. "This is all your fault! How dare you come here and make such a mess!"

"Mr. Han, please calm down," The man, whom Hawk recognized as either secretary or a butler, turned to Cat's father to appease. "Don Benedicto is just fresh from the hospital. He is not that stable yet, please be considerate with your father,"

"Don't call him my father! I refused to acknowledge this man!" Cat's father pointed at the old man's face. "He is not worthy of such a call!"