CHAPTER 5 — "THE MISSING MECHANIC'S FINAL EVIDENCE… AND THE VIDEO THAT MADE MERCEDES QUESTION EVERYTHING SHE BELIEVED"
The evidence bag slipped from Lucía's trembling hands.
Fortunately, Alejandro caught it before it hit the floor.
Inside the transparent bag lay a short section of black brake line.
To anyone else, it looked like an ordinary piece of rubber.
To Inspector Gabriel Herrera, it looked like the beginning of a murder case.
He carefully accepted the evidence using latex gloves.
"Do you understand how important this is, Dr. Ortega?"
The elderly man nodded slowly.
"I've carried it with me every single day for three months."
"And every day I expected someone to kill me."
Silence filled the room.
Mercedes looked at the old man in disbelief.
"You knew my son?"
Dr. Manuel Ortega turned toward her.
"No."
"I knew my own son."
"My son repaired Eduardo's car."
"He was the last honest mechanic who touched it."
Lucía felt her heartbeat quicken.
"You said he disappeared."
Dr. Ortega closed his eyes.
"He called me the night before he vanished."
The old man's voice cracked.
"He sounded terrified."
The Last Phone Call
Inspector Herrera activated a digital recorder.
"Please tell us everything."
Dr. Ortega nodded.
"My son, Daniel, owned a small repair shop outside the city."
"He never cared about expensive clients."
"He believed every customer deserved honesty."
"Three weeks before Eduardo died..."
"...Eduardo brought him a black SUV for routine maintenance."
"When Daniel inspected the vehicle..."
"...he discovered the front brake line had been sliced."
Lucía covered her mouth.
"Sliced?"
Herrera nodded grimly.
"Brake lines don't fail like that."
Dr. Ortega continued.
"Daniel replaced the damaged line."
"But before installing the new one..."
"...he photographed the cut."
"He said no accident could create a mark that clean."
The room remained silent.
"He called Eduardo immediately."
"And what did Eduardo say?" Herrera asked.
The old mechanic smiled sadly.
"He thanked my son."
"But then he said something strange."
"'Don't tell anyone.'"
"'I'm already being watched.'"
Lucía remembered the letter.
Someone is trying to kill me.
Eduardo had known.
He truly had known.
Daniel's Disappearance
Dr. Ortega took a deep breath.
"Two days later..."
"My son called me at 11:48 at night."
"He was driving home."
"He sounded frightened."
"He kept checking his mirrors."
"He told me..."
"'Dad... if anything happens to me...'"
The old man's eyes filled with tears.
"'...give the photographs to Eduardo.'"
"'Don't trust the police yet.'"
"'Someone powerful is involved.'"
Then...
"The call suddenly ended."
"What happened next?" Lucía whispered.
"I never heard his voice again."
His repair shop burned down the following morning.
Police concluded it was an electrical fire.
No body was ever recovered.
No suspects were identified.
The investigation quietly disappeared.
Inspector Herrera looked toward his team.
"Reopen the Daniel Ortega missing-person case immediately."
One investigator nodded and stepped outside to make the call.
Mercedes Begins to Remember
Mercedes sat silently in the corner of the room.
Every new revelation felt like another crack in the world she had built.
A memory surfaced.
About four weeks before Eduardo's death...
Her younger son had arrived late to dinner.
His shirt had grease stains on the sleeves.
She had laughed.
"Since when do surgeons repair cars?"
Ricardo had answered almost too quickly.
"I helped a friend whose engine broke down."
She never questioned it.
Now...
The memory refused to leave her mind.
Could he have been lying?
"No..."
she whispered.
"My son wouldn't..."
But another memory interrupted.
Eduardo had tried to tell her something that same week.
"Mom, I need to talk to you about Ricardo."
She had stopped him immediately.
"Don't start another argument."
"Your brother has worked too hard for this family."
Eduardo had lowered his eyes.
"I'm not arguing."
"I'm worried."
She never asked why.
That conversation haunted her now.
The Camera Technician
One of the forensic specialists entered carrying a laptop.
"Inspector."
"I recovered more files from Eduardo's hidden security system."
Herrera looked up.
"Can they be restored?"
"Most of them."
The technician connected the laptop to the television in the living room.
Several folders appeared.
Hallway.
Garage.
Office.
Library.
Driveway.
One file was labeled only with a date.
April 18 — 10:42 PM
Lucía's breath caught.
That was four days before Eduardo died.
The technician clicked the file.
Static filled the screen.
Then...
The image cleared.
Eduardo stood inside the garage beside his SUV.
He wasn't alone.
Another person entered the frame.
The camera captured only the side of the man's face.
Not enough for a full identification.
But Lucía immediately recognized the expensive silver watch on his wrist.
Ricardo wore it every day.
Eduardo's voice echoed through the speakers.
"Tell me the truth."
The other man answered calmly.
"Stop asking questions."
Eduardo stepped closer.
"Did you steal from the foundation?"
Silence.
Then the man replied.
"You should've stayed in the operating room."
Eduardo's expression hardened.
"I'll expose everything."
The recording suddenly glitched.
Several seconds disappeared.
When the image returned...
The garage was empty.
The file ended.
Inspector Herrera frowned.
"Someone intentionally corrupted these recordings."
Alejandro nodded.
"They removed exactly the part they feared."
A Discovery in Eduardo's Notebook
Lucía returned to Eduardo's study carrying his leather notebook.
She slowly turned another page.
Most entries contained dates and financial notes.
Then she stopped.
One page had been folded.
Inside was a tiny handwritten sentence.
If you find this...
Call Sofia.
Not my mother.
Not Ricardo.
Only Sofia.
Beneath it was a phone number.
Lucía looked toward Alejandro.
"Who's Sofia?"
Alejandro's expression changed.
"I've never heard Eduardo mention anyone named Sofia."
Inspector Herrera leaned closer.
"It could be a witness."
Lucía immediately dialed the number.
Once.
Twice.
Three rings.
Finally...
A woman answered.
Her voice sounded cautious.
"...Hello?"
Lucía hesitated.
"My name is Lucía."
Long silence.
Then...
The woman whispered only one sentence.
"So..."
"Eduardo really is dead."
Lucía felt chills run down her spine.
"You knew my husband?"
The woman inhaled sharply.
"I've been hiding for almost four months."
"My name is Sofia Ramos."
"I worked as an accountant for the Montero Foundation."
Lucía exchanged a stunned glance with Herrera.
Sofia continued.
"I found proof that someone stole over two million dollars from the charity."
"I gave the documents to Eduardo."
"Two days later..."
"I survived an attempt to kill me."
The room went completely silent.
Lucía's hand tightened around the phone.
"Who tried to kill you?"
Sofia's breathing became shaky.
"I never saw his face."
"But before he left..."
"He said something I'll never forget."
"What did he say?"
The woman's voice broke.
"He told me..."
"'Dr. Montero says dead people never testify.'"
Lucía slowly lowered the phone.
Every eye in the room turned toward Mercedes.
Her face had become ghostly pale.
Because everyone knew exactly which doctor people called...
Dr. Montero.
The Cliffhanger
Outside the mansion...
Police officers suddenly surrounded a black SUV parked across the street.
Inside...
They found a laptop.
Three prepaid phones.
And an envelope addressed to Ricardo.
Inspector Herrera opened it carefully.
There was only one sentence inside.
"If Lucía opens Eduardo's notebook... eliminate her before sunrise."
Herrera immediately looked toward the officers.
"Double security."
"No one enters or leaves this house."
Then he turned toward Lucía.
His voice was firm.
"This isn't about money anymore."
"This is a hunt."
May you like
"And you're the next target."
END OF CHAPTER 5
