The Next Heiress

Chapter 2 - Secret

Thick fluffy clouds with rounded tops scatter throughout the blue sky. They hang above me like big balls of white cotton, moving slowly as my eyes follow them. Mhmm, I mumble. Those floating spheres remind me of my mother. Whenever I get bruises or wounds, she would rush inside the house to retrieve her tiny medical kit and get those cotton balls that look like the clouds up high.

Wait. Where is my mom?

My eyes widen at the realization. Am I in a different place?

I tilt my head to the right. Dark, green grasses welcome my cheeks. They are brushing against my skin. The smell of soil and moistened leaves drive my nostrils in surprise, causing me to stand up from the ground.

No. This can't be. I whisper to myself, shaking my head numerous times.

Panic starts to cover my whole being. "Mom? Mom! Where are you?" I run away from my current position, not having a single idea of where I should go. As my feet continue to move, I keep on calling my mother, silently hoping that she would answer, but nobody hasn't replied.

Instead, a deafening silence answers me.

"Mom, please, I'm alone! Show yourself!" I cry in frustration. Different questions start to flood my brain. Most of them stem from my growing anxiety. They range from simple thoughts like how did I get in here, then to that one heavy possibility: Am I already dead?

No.

I couldn't take it.

It's too early. I am not ready.

As I think more about it, my level of breathing gradually becomes difficult like a pile of cemented blocks is pinning me back to the ground. I blink my eyes in a rapid manner to fight against it, but they aren't cooperating. Like a flickering light bulb, my vision becomes unstable. Everything is transforming into a massive blurry background, and I find myself collapsing on the grassland.

Before my eyes totally shut, I see a tall figure of a man hovering above me. He is gazing down at me. Seems like he's wearing a white collarless, long-sleeved shirt that ends on his wrists, paired with brown pants. His face, however, is blurry.

"I have been waiting for you," he whispers with a soothing tone. His gentle voice echoes in my ears until I drift myself to sleep.

"Celine?"

As soon as I hear my name, my eyes burst open. I raise my back from the bed and move my head to the left. There I see my best friend, looking at me with worry plastered on her oval-shaped face.

"Thank God you're awake now. I've been waiting at you for almost an hour," Brielle heaves out a sigh.

I lift a brow. "What happened?"

"Did you forget? Your finger was bleeding so bad," she extends her right hand to caress mine. "I brought you here and you passed out."

My eyes widen. "For real?"

"Girl, is your brain flying? You're so forgetful," she rolls her eyes.

I remove my gaze from her to glance at my left hand. My ring finger is freshly bandaged with gauze—a thin, translucent fabric with a loose open weave. Somehow, the proof is right here, but everything still feels a little unreal.

"Let me get you a glass of water," Brielle offers.

But before she could stand up from her seat, I manage to stop her by grabbing her arm.

She turns around and looks at my hand, then later her eyes meet mine. "Why?"

"I think I saw someone in my dream...It was a guy."

Her brows squish together in wonder. "Who?"

"I don't know. It was so blurry," I respond with a small voice. "But I'm sure he's not from here."

Brielle stares at me in bewilderment.

✥━━━━━༺◈༻━━━━━✥

PHILIPPINES UNDER AMERICAN COLONIZATION. YEAR 1931.

MANILA: A CITY OF FOUR PERSONALITIES—AMERICAN, SPANISH, CHINESE, & FILIPINO.

A strong gush of wind blew against my skin. I hugged myself even more in an attempt to comfort my body from the cold. I should've brought my shawl, I thought to myself. When I got here at eleven o'clock in the evening, the Chinese people were already fixing their belongings, and some were returning to their homes for the next day of doing their usual businesses in the busy streets of Binondo. The noise of arranging their boats and lifting heavy wooden boxes had diminished. Instead, a deafening silence took over the place.

My anxiety grew as I felt the time had passed by.

Where is he? I asked myself.

My eyes wandered from side to side, hoping to get a glimpse of that one man that I needed to see. We both agreed to meet at the huge brick house near the Binondo bridge, and here I was, waiting for him patiently. To ease my worry, I touched my oblong-shaped locket hanging on my neck. It was a gift from him that I received for my birthday last month. A smile played on my lips as I remember the vivid memory of him being stupid for securing the lock of the necklace on the first try.

As my mind was reminiscing happy memories, suddenly, a hand grabbed my waist. My eyes widened at the sudden gesture. I almost screamed due to fear, but it was replaced with a feeling of relief when somebody planted a kiss on my forehead. That was him, I smiled.

From my behind, a person went in front of me. I was welcomed with a sight of a beautiful man whose heart-shaped face was as fresh as dewy mornings. He greeted me with a sweet smile on his thick lips. His tall figure bent once more to give me a kiss on my forehead.

"You scared me to death, Tadeo," I told him, hitting one of his arms in a playful approach.

He smiled even more, showing his crooked yet wonderful pearly whites. "I miss you, Yolanda."

"I'm sure you do. Me too," I beamed.

"That's good to know," Tadeo replied softly. He leaned closer to hug me. As soon as my body felt safe inside his arms, my eyes closed in pure bliss. I could feel his warmth taking over me. This moment could last forever, but suddenly, he detached himself from my body to look above.

"Yolanda, look. Do you see those?" He pointed at the stars in the night sky, then he sat down on the ground. I joined him and glanced at them. Some were clustering and some were scattered. They were all shining luminously. Too beautiful for my eyes, I thought. If I had a chance, I would get one. The one that shone the brightest.

"They are breathtaking," the young man said in awe.

He faced me, giving me another sight of that wonderful smile that I longed to see. My heart shook when his eyes met mine. They glowed before me, just like the stars above. Just by staring at them, I forgot about wishing to catch the brightest one, because I realized that I already had two precious lights, and those were his tantalizing brown eyes.

"Just like you, Tadeo," I grinned.

Tadeo smiled. Later on, it faded and his face turned into a look of longingness. He paused for a moment to stare at me. "Do you have any idea how much I missed you?"

You already said it, I thought to myself. Even if he did, those words still made my heart flutter. He was the only man who could make it beat in a fast manner accompanied by indescribable euphoria. Yes, the only one.

"How I wish I could see you every day," I sighed deeply, looking back at him. My right hand touched his cheek softly.

He leaned closer. "I've been wishing that too."

I bit my lips in frustration. "You know that I couldn't."

"It is because your parents don't let you out," his head lowered. "If they do, then you can enjoy the taste of freedom here. Outside the villa."

My shoulders fell, and my head lowered too. When Tadeo noticed my movements, he rose up quickly and got my chin to let me face him. This man already knew that I was bothered, so he held my hand and kissed it in the most gentle manner.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

"No. I just realized that you're right," I let out a deep sigh.

He stared at me, trying to analyze if I was saying the truth or not. I gave him a small smile, assuring him that everything was okay.

"Look what I've been missing. I know there's a lot of things to discover outside my room," I gave him a little smile.

He caressed my cheek. I held his hand and felt the gentleness in every touch that he made. My lips formed into a great smile, a special curve that he used to request from me to show every single night we were together.

"If that's the case," Tadeo scooted closer to me. "Then let me be with you and your little adventures," he said, beaming at me. As his head drew nearer, he cupped my face with his hands in a loving manner, making my heart pump out of my chest.

Suddenly, Tadeo rested his head on my lap. He got my right arm and intertwined his hand with mine. His thick fingers slowly embrace my slim ones until they fully hug my sweaty hand. I tried so hard not to blush at the sweet gesture, yet I failed.

"I really like it whenever you react with our hands intertwining," Tadeo raised our affectionately connected hands above his face. He savored the sight of expressing our love to one another. "I would borrow a needle and a thick thread to one of your servants, and sew our hands together if I could."

With his response, I snorted. "You are crazy."

"Yes, I am," he gazed at me. "For you."

My heart raced. "Really?"

"And only for you," he tightened his hold.

I stood up, making him rise from my thighs and sit on the ground. My full heart couldn't handle this situation anymore. I jumped on him to kiss him directly on his lips. Tadeo was surprised by my action, yet he let me do my move. My arms were wrapped around his neck. He held my hips with both of his hands, and he drew several circles on them. Due to the tingling touch, a soft moan escaped from my mouth.

"T-tadeo..."

I can't imagine my life without him. This man was the only one who made me feel everything. He introduced me to another world where I could be myself. I was sick of all the pretentiousness, suffocating rules, hypocrisy, and twisted principles of the people around me. Tadeo pushed me out of my comfort zone. I had never thought that I could be this free whenever I was around him. He gave me that selfless love that I had never seen in anybody—even to my own parents and the whole clan.

"I love you," he mouthed in the middle of our kiss.

A smile grew on my face. "I love—"

"There! They are in there! Go and get them!" A loud voice suddenly dominated the streets of Binondo.

Immediately, I pulled from our kiss and stood up. Tadeo grabbed my hand without saying any word. Despite hiding his worried face, he looked at me and even managed to form a smile. He tightened his hold on my hand, and his head nodded to make a signal. I breathed nervously, then agreed.

We ran away together from the brick house that we had been sitting near. It was the spot that served as our only hiding place far from the villa, and the witness of our friendship and secret love for several years. Deep inside, it hurt me that we can no longer go and meet there. Anymore.

"Faster! They are disappearing! We have to catch them!"

I turned around. My eyes widened when I saw a large group of middle-aged men with weapons on their hands and bodies. My parents, I thought to myself. I was sure that my parents were the reason behind all of this. As I took another glance, they were running faster than us.

"Tadeo, they are fast approaching!" I cried.

"Don't mind them," he pulled me even closer. "We can do this."

We ran as fast as we could. The pain in my feet didn't bother me. The only thing that mattered to me during that time was the reaction of my parents if our servants catch us and get us both back to the villa. Even though we didn't know the place where we were going to end up on, we continued. We had nowhere to go. There was only one thing that we knew, and that was the fact that we had to escape.

"Tadeo!" I called out.

His head shook. "Yolanda, just keep running—"

"I love you too," I tightened my grasp on his hand.

My lover turned around to face me. A small smile flashed on his anxious face. I admired his determination and strength. He is not giving up, I thought to myself. Tadeo tightened his grip on my hand more—a sign that he didn't want to let me go. Instead, he was going to fight this battle, with me.

"Señorita Yolanda! Please surrender, so both of you won't get hurt!" A man yelled.

I glanced at my lover who was busy running without removing my sweating hand with his. He was breathing hurriedly. Guilt started to cover every inch of my body.

"Señorita Yolanda! Please! Listen!" The man continued.

Suddenly, an unfortunate incident took place.

"Watch out!" Tadeo warned me with a loud voice.

Before I could turn my head to look at the thing that he was referring to, my right foot was tripped by a protruding rock on our way. My hand involuntarily let go of my man's grasp, causing me to fall carelessly to the ground. Instantly, I got up and touched my foot. He rushed back to check up on me.

"Yolanda! Are you okay? Let me see it!" Tadeo asked, getting my hand away from my foot.

I pushed him away from me. "Run! I can't do this anymore. Go!"

"No! I won't! I will carry you. Come on!" Tadeo instantly formed himself in a position of carrying someone on his back. He grabbed my thighs, but I slapped his hands away from me. He looked at me with a frustrated face.

"Yolanda, why are you doing this?" His brows furrowed, looking so upset. "I thought we already talked about this?"

"We have to surrender or else they will—what are you doing?! Put me down!"

Before I could answer, My man had already lifted me up and carried me on his back. He continued running without minding that the servants were still chasing us with their weapons.

"You don't know what my parents are capable of. Please! Let's surrender!" I hit his shoulders in panic.

He sighed heavily. "I don't know what's gotten inside you but I won't give up. You know me."

I tapped his shoulder. "But Tadeo, I'm only thinking—"

"I won't accept reasons anymore. You're so heavy, Yolanda. Flooding me with nonsense ideas makes it more difficult," he chuckled.

Tadeo kept on darting. This time, he was breathing wearily. In a silent voice, I prayed that he could still bear to carry me. He was so determined to get away with our servants. There was a part of me that agreed with this, yet I was so scared at the outcome of our choices. In each step that he made, I stared at him. He seemed so tired, making me feel terrible.

The servants were still chasing us, yelling at us to surrender. They also looked tired, but none of them gave up. I knew what they wanted, and that was us, so stopping at this incident was the last thing on their minds. Besides, my parents wouldn't settle for frail followers. I knew them all my life.

Minutes later, loud sounds of firing guns were heard.

"Tadeo! They are going to shoot us!" I shrieked in fear.

He tilted his head. "Yolanda, Please! You have to trust me! We can make it—"

Tadeo's voice dissolved quickly when his feet were tripped by a thick rope. It was held straightly by two men to block our way. He let go of me involuntarily. Both of us fell so hard to the ground. I touched my head, caressing it from the impact it had received.

"Arg-gh...Tadeo?" I groaned.

I opened my eyes. They widened when they saw two men, surrounding us. One of them got into Tadeo's arms without hesitation. My hands pulled their clothes to stop them, but they ignored me.

Soon, their whole group gathered around us. Probably eight to twelve men were surrounding us. I saw Tadeo on his knees, looking so helpless and weak. His arms were locked behind him by the hands of the two men who tripped us. They all dropped their weapons and other belongings on the ground.

"Who are you?" I asked the middle-aged man with a thick beard. He was the one who shouted numerous times to refrain us from running.

"My name is not important. I'm sure you know why I'm here, but I want to be clear that I don't have any intentions of hurting you both," he answered calmly, the opposite of what he had shown earlier.

"Let him go!" I shouted.

He laughed, tilting his head to one side. "You don't have the right to do that."

"But I am the daughter of the people whom you're serving to!" The volume of my voice had raised, hinting a great fury along with my shaky tone. "If they aren't existing, who would give you money and goods? You won't even feed your families!"

I didn't know what was gotten inside me. That was my desperate attempt to intimidate them with my status. I wasn't even sure if I was doing the right thing, yet I threw insulting words at these men. In response, the other servants were startled at their positions, and their head sentinel stared at me with a blank expression on his wrinkled face. They immediately got their firearms back in their hands and were about to point them at me, but surprisingly, their leader stopped them with his hand.

"Yolanda, you don't have to say that. Have you already forgotten?" Tadeo asked, looking greatly disappointed at me for the first time.

I thought if I was going to frighten them with my words, they would stop and leave us alone, but to my surprise, my courage at bickering only lasted for a few seconds. I closed my eyes, regretting my careless actions. Suddenly, footsteps were discerned approaching. My fists clenched on their own, waiting for the next move that the man would do toward me. My heart was pounding loudly.

"Yes, I agree, but you must also include that you're a worthless and disobedient child."

My eyes remained closed, still absorbing his harsh yet real words. No servant had done this to me before. I didn't utter any word. If I was going to say more, it might make the situation worse.

"Well, it seems like you've forgotten that your boyfriend is one of your servants," the man smirked.

With that sentence, I opened my eyes immediately and looked up at him. The bearded man was still staring at me with a furious reaction. My head lowered in extreme humiliation. Tears started to pour down my face.

"I'm sorry," I wiped my cheeks with a regretful soul.

Silence began to spread around us. The man didn't answer with my apology. I continued crying while glancing at Tadeo. My heart broke as I saw him. He was still in his position, looking powerless. I felt so useless. I can't even help and defend the only man I love.

"Get her," the man finally broke the quietude after a few minutes. He motioned to the other servants.

The other men walked closer to me. I pushed them away with my wobbling feet and started crawling on the ground. One of them got a rope and came even nearer. To my surprise, some Chinese people were flocking on the corner of the street, watching us with curious stares.

"Please! Help me!" I begged, trying to reach their spot.

However, none of them dared to move an inch from their positions. Instead, they talk to each other in their own language, then some of them started to leave the scene by running away from us. Meanwhile, I tried to flee from the men, shouting as loud as I could to get some succor from the other people, hoping that there could be at least one brave person that could help us, but it was too late.

"Tadeo!" I screamed while they were tying my wrists and feet.

"No! Don't touch her! Get away from her!" Tadeo tried to break free from the two men, but they were pulling him away from me.

"Do it," the man ordered with a stern that is evident in his voice.

One of the others got a combat knife from a holder attached to his pocket. My eyes broadened to their maximum level when I saw him coming closer to Tadeo's place. "What are you doing?! You said you won't hurt him!"

He didn't mention anything and signaled the man to proceed.

"No! Please!" Tadeo begged with all the power that he could plead.

The head of our servants just laughed. I tried to break off the rope on my wrists and feet, but the more I did it, the more my skin became sore. Some red wound marks were forming from my rushed actions. My clothes were soaking from the tears and dirt. I continued trying even if the chances to be successful were low. At this point, I was becoming hopeless, but I knew that I should not give up.

Suddenly, my hands frantically stopped moving when I heard a loud cry of a man.

"Tadeo!"