It was just past dawn when Sara heard the first meow.
It wasn't normal.
Not only that, but it wasn't the quiet sound Persi made when asking for food or attention.
It was weak… broken.
Without thinking twice, she jumped out of bed and wrapped herself in her jacket as she rushed to the window.
The backyard was covered in morning mist, but something glimmered beneath the early light.
A dark spot.
And besides it… Persi.
Sara ran downstairs, not caring if she woke anyone up.
She threw the front door open and stepped into the cold morning air, calling out:
"Persi! Persi!"
She found her near the stone pond where they used to sit together on sunny afternoons.
The cat lay on the wet grass, breathing with difficulty.
There was blood on her side.
And her eyes — still as green as ever — looked at Sara with a pain that needed no words.
"No, no, no!" Sara cried, kneeling beside her. "Please, Persi… what did they do to you?"
Persi let out a weak meow, rubbing her head against Sara's palm — just like she had so many times before.
But this time… it was different.
This time, it hurt.
Tears streamed down Sara's face as she cradled Persi in her arms, searching for wounds, trying to understand how she'd ended up like this.
That's when she saw the rope tied around her collar.
One end was frayed.
The other… hung from a high branch of the nearby tree.
Someone had thrown her from above.
"Agatha!" Sara suddenly shouted, her voice filled with fury. "You did this!"
She ran back toward the house, Persi in her arms, climbing the stairs like a storm.
She reached Agatha's room and pounded on the door.
"Open it! Open it right now!"
The door creaked open slowly.
Agatha appeared, wearing a mask of false tiredness.
"What do you want at this hour? Have you completely lost your manners?"
"You know exactly what you did!" Sara shouted. "You hurt Persi! You threw her off the roof!"
Agatha didn't deny it. She simply raised an eyebrow.
"That cat attacked me first. She had it coming."
"She was only protecting me from you!" Sara exploded. "You're a horrible liar! A murderer!"
Agatha took a step forward, her gaze cold and cruel.
"Listen well, stupid girl. You have two choices: either you stop acting like a disobedient rebel… or next time, it won't just be your cat who suffers the consequences."
A chill ran through Sara.
Not from fear…
But from hatred.
She said nothing.
She couldn't speak.
Furthermore, she only held Persi tighter against her chest and ran back downstairs.
"Melinda… Melinda, please," she called.
Melinda arrived quickly, concern written across her face.
"What happened?"
"Help me," Sara begged. "Please… don't let her die."
Together, they took Persi to the emergency vet.
The trip was silent, except for Sara's sobs.
For hours, they waited outside in the rain until the doctor finally came out.
"She's stable," he said. "But she needs time. She had a broken leg and blood loss. If she had arrived just a few minutes later… there would've been nothing I could do."
Sara hugged Melinda tightly — grateful, but also furious.
When they returned to the mansion, the timid girl who had hidden behind her grief was gone.
In her place stood someone new.
A girl filled with rage.
She went straight to her room, grabbed her mother's diary, the secret folder, and a single change of clothes.
She walked downstairs and entered the main dining room, where Agatha sat breakfasting as if nothing had happened.
Sara stood before her.
"I'm going to destroy you," she said softly, but firmly. "I swear I'll do everything in my power to take everything from you. Everything you stole. Everything you destroyed."
Agatha placed her teacup back on the table.
"And how do you plan to do that, pathetic girl?"
Sara didn't answer.
She simply turned and walked out of the house.
"Where are you going?" Melinda asked.
"To find answers," Sara replied. "To find Elias Then. To uncover the truth about my parents. And when I come back…"
She paused.
"I won't just be an orphan any more."
"I'll be their nightmare."