Chapter 3 - The Matriarch's Return"Hello, Esteban," she said, her voice as icy and regal as I remembered.
"Mom?" I gasped, stepping back. "You died in that car crash in Madrid..."
"A necessary fiction," she replied smoothly, stepping out of the shadows. EfraÃn and Tomás stepped out from behind her, flanked by armed mercenaries. We were surrounded.
"You faked your death?" I felt sick. "Why?"
"To escape the SEC investigations, darling," she sighed, adjusting her gloves. "But I had to return. Your grandfather’s secret trust—the one holding five hundred million dollars—only unlocks when you are deemed 'unfit' to lead, and your children are placed under the legal guardianship of the family."
The pieces fell into place. "That’s why you needed my sons," I whispered. "And that’s why you needed Julieta framed for infidelity. A messy divorce, a staged mental breakdown for me, and you get the kids. And the money."
"Exactly," Tomás smirked. "And since Julieta is pregnant with your third child, the trust's payout is about to double. We couldn't let you keep her."
Pregnant? I stared at Julieta's unconscious body. I was going to be a father again.
"Take the boys' mother," my mother ordered the mercenaries, pointing at Paula. "And put Esteban in the trunk. We have papers for him to sign."
The guards lunged forward. But before they could grab me, the blanket on the luggage cart shifted.
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Julieta sat bolt upright, her eyes wide open and furious.
"Nobody is touching my husband," she snapped, pulling a taser from her garter belt.
