Chapter 4: The Brother Who Wanted It All
Alejandro stared at his phone for several seconds before answering.
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
It felt like the entire hotel was waiting.
Finally, he pressed the button.
“Marcus.””
A smooth voice came through the speaker.
“Brother.””
Even without hearing his face, I knew that voice.
The kind of voice that sounded calm because it had never been forced to face consequences.
Alejandro put the phone on speaker.
“Did you know Lucia was working here?””
A pause.
Too long.
“Yes.””
My stomach dropped.
Alejandro closed his eyes.
Just for a moment.
But I saw the pain.
“You knew?””
“I was trying to protect you.””
I almost laughed.
Protect.
That word had been used so many times by people who hurt others.
Alejandro’s grip tightened around the phone.
“Explain.””
Marcus sighed.
“You’re angry right now. I understand.””
“No.””
Alejandro’s voice was colder.
“You don’t understand anything.””
Marcus ignored him.
“You were making emotional decisions. Lucia was becoming a weakness.””
My chest tightened.
A weakness.
That was how they saw me.
Not a wife.
Not the mother of Alejandro’s child.
A weakness.
Alejandro looked at me.
And I saw shame.
Because someone he trusted had reduced me to a problem.
“You told people my wife was leaving me.””
Silence.
Then Marcus answered.
“I told people what was necessary.””
Alejandro’s face hardened.
“Necessary for what?””
Another pause.
And this time, Marcus didn’t sound calm.
He sounded careful.
“The company.””
There it was.
The real reason.
Not love.
Not protection.
Not concern.
Power.
I had spent months wondering why anyone would destroy a marriage.
Now I understood.
Money could make people do things they would never admit they were capable of.
Marcus continued.
“You were about to sign away control without thinking clearly.””
“I was transferring assets to Lucia and the baby.””
“Yes.””
His voice changed.
“That was the problem.””
The words were so cold that even Mr. Bennett looked uncomfortable.
Alejandro stepped away from everyone.
“You tried to make me believe my wife betrayed me.””
“I tried to make you see reality.””
“You had her removed from my home.””
“I gave her a place to stay.””
“You had her working in my hotel.””
“I kept her close.””
My hands curled into fists.
Close.
That was what he called humiliation.
That was what he called control.
Alejandro looked at me.
I could see the guilt building.
The weight of every moment he missed.
Every appointment.
Every night.
Every tear.
“You don’t get to decide what happens to my family.””
Marcus laughed softly.
“Your family?””
“Yes.””
Alejandro’s voice became stronger.
“My wife. My child. My family.””
For months, I had waited to hear those words.
But hearing them now was complicated.
Because love could return.
Trust could not.
Not that easily.
Marcus lowered his voice.
“You’re making a mistake.””
“No.””
Alejandro looked around the lobby.
At the people who had helped betray us.
“At some point, I stopped making decisions. I started believing whatever everyone around me told me.””
His eyes found mine.
“And I should have listened to the person who actually loved me.””
I looked away.
Because part of me wanted to believe him.
Another part remembered the nights I cried alone.
The appointments.
The fear.
The humiliation.
Marcus spoke again.
“You think Lucia is innocent?””
Everyone froze.
Alejandro’s expression changed.
“What?””
Marcus continued.
“There are things she hasn’t told you.””
My heart stopped.
Because I knew that look.
The look of someone preparing another weapon.
Alejandro turned toward me slowly.
“Lucia?””
I didn’t answer immediately.
Not because I had something to hide.
Because I knew what was coming.
When people lose power, they don’t always admit defeat.
Sometimes they search for another secret.
Another wound.
Another way to make everyone doubt the truth.
Marcus said one final thing before ending the call.
“Ask your wife why she never told you about the letter.””
Then the line went dead.
The silence afterward felt heavier than before.
Alejandro looked at me.
“Lucia…”
I stared at him.
Because there was one thing I had learned about secrets.
They always come back.
Even the ones you keep because you think you are protecting someone.
May you like
And the letter Marcus mentioned?
It was a letter I had prayed Alejandro would never have to see.
