CHAPTER 4 — Mónica Pointed the Rifle at Valentina... But She Had No Idea the Police Were Already Watching
The morning air turned cold.
Not because of the weather...
But because of the silence.
Valentina slowly rose from her knees, keeping both hands where Mónica could see them.
Neither woman spoke.
Between them...
The old iron box remained open.
Its yellowed documents fluttered gently in the breeze.
Mónica's smile never reached her eyes.
"Interesting place to take a walk," she said calmly.
Valentina glanced at the hunting rifle.
"You seem nervous."
Mónica laughed.
"Nervous?"
"No."
"I'm careful."
She stepped closer.
Her expensive boots crushed the dry grass beneath her feet.
"You've been asking too many questions."
"You arrived yesterday..."
"And suddenly you're wandering around the oldest part of the ranch."
"What exactly did your father tell you?"
Valentina answered without hesitation.
"Nothing."
Mónica tilted her head.
"I don't believe you."
She lowered the rifle slightly...
Not enough to stop being a threat.
Just enough to remind Valentina that she was in control.
Or so she thought.
Valentina calmly closed the iron box.
"You should put the rifle away."
"If someone sees you..."
Mónica interrupted with a cold smile.
"Who's going to see?"
"Your parents?"
"They won't dare."
"My husband?"
"He believes whatever I tell him."
She took another step.
Only a few feet separated them now.
"You've always been the successful one."
"The perfect daughter."
"The one everyone admired."
Her voice hardened.
"You know what I hated most?"
"Your parents never stopped comparing Federico to you."
"'Look at your sister.'"
"'Work harder like Valentina.'"
"'Why can't you be responsible like her?'"
"They never realized..."
"They were destroying him."
Valentina stared at her.
"So this..."
She gestured toward the ranch.
"The humiliation."
"The abuse."
"The lies."
"That was your revenge?"
Mónica's expression didn't change.
"No."
"This was business."
"You have no idea how much money this land is worth."
Valentina's heartbeat quickened.
Money.
So that was it.
Not hatred.
Not jealousy.
Greed.
Pure greed.
Then Mónica said something that made Valentina's blood run cold.
"We didn't expect your father to refuse."
"So we gave him a choice."
Valentina frowned.
"A choice?"
Mónica smiled.
"Sign..."
"Or lose everything."
"What do you mean?"
"The bank notices."
"The fake debts."
"The foreclosure letters."
"They were all fake."
"We created them."
"We convinced your parents the ranch would be seized unless they transferred control."
Valentina felt sick.
Her elderly parents...
Who barely understood legal paperwork...
Had been terrorized into submission.
Then Mónica laughed.
"The funny part?"
"They still believed Federico would protect them."
Valentina's fists clenched.
"You forged the signatures."
"We improved them."
"You committed fraud."
"We call it opportunity."
Before Valentina could answer...
A truck engine echoed across the hills.
Both women turned.
A dusty pickup approached rapidly.
Don Ernesto jumped out before the vehicle had fully stopped.
"Valentina!"
He was out of breath.
Fear filled his eyes.
He looked directly at Mónica.
Then at the rifle.
His voice broke.
"Please..."
"Leave my daughter alone."
Mónica sighed dramatically.
"Oh, Ernesto."
"You're always overreacting."
She casually rested the rifle against her shoulder.
"I was only protecting the property."
But Don Ernesto didn't move.
Instead...
Something astonishing happened.
For the first time in years...
The old man stood up straight.
His voice no longer trembled.
"I've been afraid long enough."
Mónica blinked.
"What?"
He took another step forward.
"You wanted obedience."
"You got silence."
"But today..."
"I'm done."
Valentina had never seen her father look like this.
The proud farmer she remembered...
The man who had built this ranch with his bare hands...
Was finally returning.
Mónica's smile slowly disappeared.
"You should think carefully."
"You know what happens if people discover your little secret."
Don Ernesto frowned.
"What secret?"
Mónica leaned closer.
"The one about twenty years ago."
Valentina looked at her father.
His face turned completely pale.
No...
It couldn't be.
There was something else.
Something even bigger.
Something he had hidden for decades.
Mónica whispered just loudly enough for both of them to hear.
"Tell your daughter."
"Tell her whose land this really was."
"Tell her who died so your family could own it."
Don Ernesto staggered backward as though someone had struck him.
Valentina caught his arm.
"Dad..."
"What is she talking about?"
He couldn't answer.
His lips trembled.
Tears filled his eyes.
For nearly a minute...
No one spoke.
Finally...
He whispered five words that shattered everything Valentina believed about her family.
"It wasn't always our ranch..."
At that exact moment...
A second vehicle rolled slowly through the front gate.
An old white government pickup.
No ranch logo.
No family markings.
Just a small silver emblem on the driver's door.
Three people stepped out.
A gray-haired man in a suit.
A woman carrying a leather briefcase.
And a uniformed state police officer.
The older man removed his sunglasses.
Looked directly at Valentina.
Then held up an official identification card.
"My name is Ricardo Salazar."
"I've been trying to find the Hernández family for almost fifteen years."
He paused.
His next sentence left everyone frozen.
"We're reopening a murder investigation connected to this ranch."
Mónica's face instantly lost all color.
The rifle slipped from her hands...
May you like
And hit the ground.
End of Chapter 4...
