“What is this, Salomé?” Carmela asked, pointing at the hand. The girl wrote a single word beneath the drawing: “Mom.” Carmela felt the air leave her lungs. “Your mom escaped. Your mom is alive.” Salomé looked at her with those enormous eyes that seemed to carry the weight of the world. She nodded slowly. Then she wrote another hidden word and one last one: waiting. Gonzalo Fuentes arrived at the Santa María home two hours later, accompanied by two men in dark suits. He carried documents that supposedly returned Salomé to him temporarily.
“Order from the Third Family Court,” he announced, handing the papers to Carmela. “Signed by Judge Aurelio Sánchez. I’ve come to take my niece.” Carmela examined the documents. They seemed legitimate, but something inside her screamed at her not to hand over that girl. “I need to verify this with the appropriate authorities,” she said. “I can’t give up a minor without confirmation. The confirmation is in those papers, ma’am. Don’t waste my time. It’s not a matter of time, it’s a matter of protocol.”
Gonzalo took a step forward, invading Carmela’s space. “Listen to me carefully, that girl is my blood. Her father is going to be executed tomorrow.” She needs a family, not a charity home full of orphans. What that girl needs is protection, not more violence. Violence is accusing me of something. Carmela looked him straight in the eye. The bruises Salomé arrived with six months ago accuse me more strongly than any words I could ever say. Gonzalo’s face hardened.
I can get this place shut down. I can get you to lose your license. I can make sure you never work with children again. I just need one phone call. What Gonzalo didn’t know was that Carmela had activated the security recording system the moment she saw him arrive. Every word, every threat was recorded. Leave, Mr. Fuentes. I’m not going to hand that girl over to you, and if you threaten me again, I’ll use everything I have to destroy you. Gonzalo smiled coldly. I’ll be back, and when I do, I won’t be so nice.
Three hours later, Gonzalo returned. This time he didn’t knock. His men broke down the door. Carmela was ready. He had called the police after the first visit, but they still hadn’t arrived. When he heard the door slam, he took Salomé by the hand and led her to the safe room he had prepared for emergencies. “Stay here, little one, no matter what happens, don’t come out until I come for you.” Salomé nodded, her eyes filled with terror. Carmela went outside to confront Gonzalo.
The two men held her down while he searched every room for the girl. “Where is she?” Gonzalo shouted. “Where did you hide her?” “Away from you, where you’ll never find her.” Gonzalo approached Carmela and grabbed her by the neck. “I’m going to ask you just one more time. Where is Salomé?” “Go to hell.” At that moment, police sirens filled the air. Someone had seen the men break down the door and had called emergency services. The officers entered with their weapons drawn.
“On the ground, everyone on the ground.” Gonzalo released Carmela, trying to regain his composure as a respectable man. “Officer, this is a misunderstanding. I only came to pick up my niece. We have a recording of your previous visit,” the officer said. “Threats,”
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