Chapter 5 - THE SEEDS OF RETRIBUTIONWhile the internet erupted into a frenzy over the Salcedo scandal, Gabriel stood in the central room of the Tapalpa bunker, looking down at an ancient wooden chest that had belonged to his father, Tomás Barragán.
Nicolás, his arm in a sling, and Arturo stood beside him.
Gabriel lifted the heavy iron lock, using an old brass key that had hung around his neck for thirty years. The lid creaked open, revealing not weapons or gold, but yellowed leather notebooks, stack upon stack of land deeds, original maps of Jalisco from the 1950s, and a collection of silver military medals.
"Your grandfather was never just a farmer, Nicolás," Gabriel said softly, picking up one of the old leather ledgers. "Before he married your grandmother Amparo, he was a senior surveyor for the federal land registry."
Arturo smiled grimly. "When Eduardo Salcedo’s father stole the land from the orphanage where Grandma Amparo grew up, he didn't just take the dirt. He falsified the state boundaries. Grandpa Tomás knew it. He spent forty years meticulously documenting every square meter of land stolen by the Salcedo family."
Nicolás opened one of the ledgers, his technical mind instantly analyzing the precise mathematical coordinates and legal stamps.
"Dad..." Nicolás gasped, his eyes wide. "The land where the primary Salcedo processing plants, the corporate headquarters, and the private export airstrip sit... according to these historical federal deeds..."
"...They don't belong to the Salcedo family," Gabriel finished the sentence. "They never did. The original land grant was issued to the Amparo Foundation—a trust set up for the orphans of Jalisco. A trust that your grandfather Tomás secretly maintained and kept alive in your name, Nicolás."
Nicolás stared at his father in absolute shock. "We... we legally own the ground beneath his multi-billion-dollar empire?"
"We own the dirt, the water rights, and the access roads," Arturo interjected with a cold chuckle. "For fifty years, the Salcedos operated under the assumption that no one would ever challenge their forged titles. But while Eduardo was busy flexing his wealth, Grandpa Tomás was playing a game that spans generations."
Gabriel laid a massive map on the table. "Nicolás, you hit him in the digital space. Expose his shell companies, release the proof of his tax evasion to the federal revenue service, and keep the public outrage burning on social media. Make sure every citizen in Mexico sees what kind of monster he is."
Gabriel turned to Arturo. "Arturo, use your security firm to lock down every physical access road leading into the Salcedo processing plants. File emergency federal injunctions based on these original land deeds. Cut off his supply chain."
"And what will you do, Dad?" Nicolás asked.
Gabriel looked over at little Mateo, who was now resting peacefully, his color slowly returning thanks to the counter-toxin medication provided by Arturo’s medical team.
May you like
Gabriel’s face hardened into stone.
"I’m going to pay my in-law a personal visit," Gabriel said softly. "It’s time Eduardo learned what happens when you step on the seeds of the Barragán family."
