Chapter 4
I put the phone on speaker.
Mateo sat beside me.
Neither of us said a word.
Renata seemed to understand that he was listening.
"Mateo?"
He swallowed.
"Renata."
A long silence followed.
Then she whispered, "I wondered whether you'd finally listen."
His face crumpled.
"I'm sorry."
"Don't apologize yet."
Her voice hardened.
"You don't know what happened."
I leaned forward.
"Then tell us."
Renata took a breath.
She was thirty-five now.
She lived in Guadalajara and worked as a commercial property consultant.
For years, she'd avoided discussing the Cárdenas family.
Not because she'd forgotten.
Because the experience had nearly destroyed her career.
"My father trusted Ernesto," she began.
Julián Villaseñor had supplied land and financing for a proposed warehouse development.
Cárdenas Montajes would provide industrial installations and manage construction-related contracts.
The venture was supposed to benefit both families.
But Renata began noticing unusual expenses.
Invoices for equipment that never arrived.
Consulting fees paid to unfamiliar companies.
Transfers that didn't match approved budgets.
She asked questions.
Ernesto dismissed her.
Beatriz called her suspicious.
Mateo told her his father would never steal.
My husband lowered his head.
Renata continued.
"Then I found evidence that project money had been moved into accounts connected to Beatriz."
I felt cold.
"How much?"
"Nearly two million pesos."
Mateo covered his face.
I asked, "Did you report it?"
"I tried."
Her voice trembled.
"But Beatriz told my father she'd prove I authorized the transfers."
I looked at the photograph on my laptop.
"The property agreement?"
"Yes."
Renata explained that she'd signed an earlier document during negotiations.
It was supposed to concern the possible use of land as security for the project.
Several pages had later been replaced or altered.
Her signature appeared on a version she insisted she'd never approved.
The revised document described transfers she supposedly authorized.
I felt my stomach tighten.
"Did you have proof?"
"Not enough at the time."
She continued.
"Then Paulina took files from my apartment."
Mateo looked up.
"What?"
Renata's voice hardened.
"She visited me two days after our engagement ended. She said she wanted to help us reconcile."
My husband stared at the phone.
"I didn't know."
"She stayed for an hour. After she left, a folder containing original invoices and correspondence was missing."
I felt anger rise.
"Did you confront her?"
"Yes."
"And?"
"She denied everything."
Renata paused.
"Three days later, my father received a legal demand alleging I'd authorized improper transfers."
My stomach tightened.
"What happened?"
"He panicked. His business was already struggling because the project had stalled."
Her voice broke.
"He sold property to settle the dispute and protect his reputation."
I looked at Mateo.
He was crying silently.
Renata continued.
"The settlement included an agreement not to make public accusations while the matter was unresolved."
"Did your father believe you?"
"Yes."
"Then why didn't he fight?"
"Because his health was failing. He couldn't endure years of litigation."
I closed my eyes.
"And the settlement?"
"Beatriz and Ernesto received money and certain development rights."
My heart began pounding.
"Development rights where?"
Renata hesitated.
"Paseo del Mezquite."
I stared at our kitchen wall.
The same property name Ernesto had posted in the family group.
The same area where our home stood.
I took a breath.
"Renata, are you saying my house was built on land involved in that settlement?"
"Possibly. I don't have every parcel record."
Mateo leaned forward.
"Why didn't you contact me?"
Renata went silent.
Then she answered.
"I did."
My husband froze.
"What?"
"I sent emails. I called. I even went to your office."
Mateo looked confused.
"I never received anything."
Renata's voice cracked.
"Your mother told me you'd moved on and wanted nothing to do with me."
I stared at him.
He looked devastated.
Renata continued.
"Eventually, I believed her."
A heavy silence filled our kitchen.
Then I asked, "Why contact us now?"
She took a breath.
"Because someone sent me a photograph of your family's meeting notice."
I frowned.
"Who?"
"I don't know. It came from an anonymous account."
I looked at Mateo.
Someone else was involved.
Renata continued.
"When I saw Beatriz threatening your house, I recognized the pattern."
"What pattern?"
"She creates a situation where someone feels guilty. Then she presents a financial demand as the only way to restore peace."
My stomach tightened.
That described the dinner perfectly.
The groceries.
The witnesses.
The obedience test.
The threat.
I asked Renata whether she still had documents.
"Yes."
"Would you share them with our attorney?"
She hesitated.
Then said, "I will."
We arranged to meet in Querétaro the following week.
After the call, Mateo sat motionless.
I waited.
Finally, he whispered, "I failed her."
I looked at him.
"Yes."
He flinched.
But I wasn't going to comfort him with a lie.
"You believed your parents without examining the evidence."
Tears slid down his cheeks.
"I know."
I took his hand.
"But you have a chance to behave differently now."
He nodded.
"I will."
The next morning, Gabriela reviewed the information we'd received.
She was cautious.
"Renata's account gives us important leads, but we need original records and independent verification."
I agreed.
She requested historical records for the development company.
Then she reviewed our current deed.
"No registered claim from that old agreement appears against your individual property in the records we've obtained so far."
I exhaled.
"So Beatriz can't simply take the house?"
"Certainly not by holding a family meeting."
I almost laughed.
Gabriela smiled faintly.
"But we still need to understand what they're planning."
At noon, Mateo received an email from Ernesto.
Subject: Succession Conditions.
Inside was a proposal.
Mateo would remain in line to manage Cárdenas Montajes if he agreed to several conditions.
He had to apologize publicly to the family.
He had to persuade me to withdraw my objections.
And he had to sign a statement acknowledging that the family had a financial interest in our home.
I stared at the screen.
"That's outrageous."
Mateo read it twice.
Then he did something I'd never seen before.
He forwarded the email to Gabriela.
Without asking his father.
Without trying to explain it away.
I looked at him.
He met my eyes.
"I'm done hiding things to keep them comfortable."
My throat tightened.
That afternoon, Paulina called.
Mateo answered on speaker.
"What do you want?"
She sounded furious.
"Why are you talking to Renata?"
He stared at the phone.
"How do you know?"
Silence.
Then Paulina whispered, "Because Mom said she would come back and destroy everything."
I felt my heart pound.
Mateo leaned forward.
"Paulina, what did you take from her apartment?"
The line went quiet.
Then she began crying.
"I didn't know what they were going to do with it."
I stared at Mateo.
He closed his eyes.
"Tell me the truth."
Paulina whispered, "Mom told me Renata was trying to ruin Dad."
"What did you take?"
"A blue folder."
"And where is it now?"
Her breathing became uneven.
"I don't know."
Mateo's voice hardened.
"Paulina."
She sobbed.
"Mom kept it in the office safe."
My stomach tightened.
May you like
Then she added something that changed everything.
"But last month, I saw Alejandra take it out."
