Chapter 6
Daniel stopped struggling when he heard the call. —Dad, tell them not to come. Her voice changed. Now yes. Now he was a son. “You didn’t want Dad last night,” I told him. “You wanted an inheritance.” —I was drunk. -Not today. —I despaired. —Today too. —I have debts.
Lucia closed her eyes. Therein lay the other truth. “What debts?” she asked. Daniel did not answer. Roberto, yes. —Betting. Loans. Cards. There are transfers from accounts related to the workshop to platforms and lenders. Lucia sat down as if her legs had been cut off. —Daniel… “I was going to fix it,” he said. I looked at him. —With my house.
The patrol arrived minutes later. A truck from the Prosecutor’s Office also arrived, because Roberto had asked for guidance early that morning. Two officers came in. One spoke to me. The other approached the children. The house, which yesterday smelled of a birthday celebration, now smelled of cold mole, stale cake, and family fear.
Daniel was no longer shouting. That was the dangerous part. Men like him become friendly when authority appears. “It was an argument,” she said. “My dad’s been sensitive lately. He’s been lonely since my mom died.” The officer looked at me. —Mr. Ernesto, do you feel at risk?
May you like
All eyes were on me. Daniel barely shook his head, as if warning me. Lucia cried silently. Sofia was still under the table, hugging her brother. I breathed. —Yes —I said—. I feel at risk with my son.
Daniel closed his eyes. As if I had betrayed him. I did not understand. I still didn’t understand that I was the one who had been betrayed long before.
