PART 2 — The Father’s Arrival
PART 2 — The Father’s Arrival
The silence after my father’s words felt like the world had stopped breathing.
Santiago didn’t move.
For the first time, his arrogance cracked.
“Ricardo Salazar…” Beatriz whispered from the stairs, her glass of wine freezing mid-air.
Even she knew that name.
My father stepped fully into the mansion.
No rush.
No anger.
Just control.
“I gave you two years,” he said calmly, eyes locked on Santiago.
“And you turned my daughter into this.”
His gaze dropped to my trembling body on the floor.
Something in his expression shifted.
Not rage.
Something far more dangerous.
Regret turning into judgment.
Santiago finally laughed nervously.
“This is a misunderstanding—”
My father raised one hand.
The sound of silence was louder than his interruption.
“No,” he said.
“It’s not.”
And for the first time, Santiago realized—
May you like
this wasn’t a negotiation.
This was the beginning of the end.
