CHAPTER 1: THE MAN THEY SHOULD HAVE FEARED
For the first time… Santiago Rivas stepped back.
The air in the grand foyer shifted so abruptly it felt as though the entire house had been plunged into ice.
My father didn’t raise his voice.
He didn’t need to.
“Take your hands off my daughter.”
The words were calm. Measured. Deadly.
Santiago frowned, confusion flashing across his face. “Who the hell—”
But then he saw the men behind my father. The attorneys. The security detail. The unmistakable authority.
And then recognition hit.
His face drained of color.
“Ricardo… Salazar?” he stammered.
Beatriz’s wine glass slipped from her hand and shattered against the marble.
My father didn’t even glance at them.
His eyes were on me.
On my bruised arm. My trembling body. My swollen belly.
Something in his expression broke.
“Valeria…” he said softly.
That was all it took.
I collapsed into tears I had held back for months.
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And in that moment, Santiago realized something far worse than fear—
He realized he had made a catastrophic mistake.
