—I want them to finish digging the hole themselves.
And what was inside could not only destroy Valeria’s plan.
He could also leave Rodrigo without a company, without money, and without a family.
PART 3
Three weeks later, Mariana was arranging the first paintings in her new studio when Rodrigo appeared.
He looked at the easels, the small tables for children, and the cream-colored walls.
—Do you seriously think you’re going to make a living from this?
Mariana continued working.
—Good morning to you too.
—Let’s go home.
She turned around slowly.
-Sorry?
Rodrigo sighed as if he were granting her a favor.
—I’ve thought things through. Valeria is getting on my nerves. We can forget what happened. You come back to me and we can go back to how things were before.
Mariana looked at him for several seconds.
—You brought your lover to the family dinner, you let him hit me, and now you come to tell me that you are willing to forget.
He frowned.
—I’m trying to fix things.
—No. You’re trying to regain the comfort you lost.
The phrase hurt him.
Rodrigo changed his tone.
—Then I’ll see you in the divorce proceedings. Just remember this: I have debts of over twelve million pesos. If they were incurred during the marriage, half of them could be yours.
For the first time, Mariana felt fear.
But he didn’t show it to her.
—My lawyer will review every penny.
Rodrigo left convinced that he had intimidated her.
Fifteen minutes later, Don Ernesto called.
—Tell me exactly what he said to you.
Mariana was surprised.
—How do you know he was here?
—Because my son is as predictable as he is irresponsible.
She told him about the debts.
The man remained silent.
—They are fake.
-That?
—I have copies of the transfers, dates, messages, and the documents he fabricated. I also know where he put the assets he tried to hide.
Mariana had to sit down.
—Why are you doing all this for me?
—Because you didn’t do anything to deserve this. And because if I cover for my son just because he has my last name, then I’m just as responsible as he is.
While Mariana was rebuilding her life, the other deception began to crumble.
Doña Teresa visited Valeria unannounced.
He found her smoking in her apartment.
“It belongs to a friend,” she said quickly.
Later he tripped over a chair and hit his abdomen against a table.
Doña Teresa screamed in alarm.
Valeria barely grimaced.
-No problem.
That reaction aroused all sorts of suspicions.
The mother-in-law left the apartment and called a doctor known to the family. After several legal checks on the documents Valeria had presented, it became clear that none of them belonged to her.
There was no pregnancy.
Doña Teresa arrived home furious.
Rodrigo had barely entered when his mother slapped him.
-Mother!
—That woman was never pregnant.
He went white.
-It just can’t be.
—He deceived us all. And you destroyed your marriage over a lie.
Rodrigo drove to Valeria’s apartment.
-Tell me the truth.
She crossed her arms.
—What truth?
—Are you pregnant?
Silence was enough.
Finally, Valeria rolled her eyes.
-No.
Rodrigo seemed not to understand.
-Because?
—Because you would never have left Mariana without a strong reason. Your mother would never have accepted me. I needed to speed things up.
—And then?
—Then we’d have a real child. What was the problem?
Rodrigo felt disgusted.
But not only towards her.
Also towards himself.
He had traded a woman who was with him when he had nothing for someone who needed to invent a pregnancy to trap him.
He left without saying goodbye.
He drove around the city for hours.
He ended up in front of Mariana’s studio.
Through the glass, he saw her laughing with several children who were painting colorful alebrijes. Her hair was tied back, she wore an apron stained with paint, and her expression was something he hadn’t seen since before their marriage.
She looked happy.
Without him.
Rodrigo lowered his gaze.
For the first time he understood something he had never wanted to accept: Mariana had not lost a life by leaving him.
I was getting it back.
Valeria, however, was not willing to disappear empty-handed.
She knew Rodrigo kept an emergency card and knew his computer password. She entered the house using a copy of an old key, took the card, and downloaded files that recorded several irregular transactions Rodrigo had made to hide assets.
He then withdrew almost one million pesos.
He called her that same night.
—I have the files.
—What did you do?
—It’s what I had to do. If you don’t keep your promise, I’ll hand everything over to Mariana, your father, and whoever else is necessary.
—Are you blackmailing me?
—Call it compensation.
Rodrigo felt like the world was closing in on him.
When he hung up, he found Don Ernesto behind the office door.
—How much longer do you plan to keep turning one stupid thing into ten?
Rodrigo lowered his head.
-Dad…
—I know about the transfers. I know about the fake promissory notes. I know about Valeria. And now she has some of your evidence.
—I’ve already lost everything.
—No. You could still lose something more important.
Rodrigo looked up.
-That?
—The opportunity to stop being the man you became.
Don Ernesto placed a folder in front of him.
“Here is everything necessary to prove that you intended to defraud Mariana. If you force me, I will personally deliver this to her lawyer.”
Rodrigo paled.
—I am your son.
—That’s precisely why I’m giving you one last chance. Sign a fair agreement. Acknowledge the debts you fabricated. Return the assets you hid, and stop trying to punish a woman for having the courage to leave.
Rodrigo remained silent for a long time.
Finally he asked:
—And the company?
—The company is not the reward for behaving well.
That answer finally shattered his pride.
The next day, Valeria appeared at the offices of the Salazar Group shouting that Rodrigo had abandoned her while she was pregnant.
The entire reception area heard the commotion.
Don Ernesto arrived a few minutes later.
-Enough.
Valeria lifted her chin.
—I have proof of illegal movements by your son.
—And we have proof that you stole money and are trying to extort him.
The young woman lost her color.
—They wouldn’t dare.
—Try me.
Don Ernesto took a step towards her.
—The fake pregnancy won’t work anymore. Rodrigo is going to admit his actions in the divorce. Your USB drive is no longer a weapon. Now you just have to decide whether you return the money and disappear, or if we let the lawyers do their job.
Valeria looked around.
Nobody was on his side.
Two days later he returned part of the money through an agreement and disappeared from their lives.
Rodrigo, defeated, personally called Mariana’s lawyer.
He accepted a transparent distribution.
Months later, the divorce was finalized.
When they left after signing the last documents, Rodrigo looked like he had aged several years.
—Mariana.
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