Chapter 5 - The Arrest of the Parasites“What?!” Mateo shrieked as two deputies closed in on him, grabbing his arms and forcing him against the side of the cruiser. “You can’t touch me! Do you know who my family is?! My brother is a major investor in this state!”
“Your brother is currently broke, and you are currently under arrest,” the deputy replied coldly, the heavy metal click of handcuffs echoing sharply across the stone patio.
Carlos tried to bolt toward the garden path, but the second deputy intercepted him instantly, sweeping his legs out and pinning him to the gravel with a rough thud.
Mercedes let out a piercing, dramatic shriek, collapsing onto a wrought-iron patio chair and clutching her chest. “My boys! My innocent boys! They’re arresting my sons over a hysterical pregnant woman! Somebody do something!”
None of the twenty-three relatives moved. They stood frozen like statues, staring at their phones, where fresh notifications were popping up by the second: LEASE TERMINATED. EVICTION NOTICE ISSUED. VEHICLE REPOSSESSION SCHEDULED. ACCOUNT BALANCES CLEARED TO ZERO.
Álvaro stood entirely alone in the center of the terrace, completely abandoned by his own panic.
He looked at Elena, who was calmly walking toward the open doors of the ambulance under the care of the paramedics.
“Elena... please,” Álvaro whispered, his voice cracking as tears of pure humiliation welled up in his eyes. He stumbled forward, dropping to his knees on the wet grass right before the ambulance steps. “Please don't do this. I’m sorry. I lost my temper. We have a child coming—think of the baby!”
Elena paused at the threshold of the medical unit. She looked down at the man who had smiled while pushing her into freezing water, expecting her to drown in silence.
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“I am thinking of the baby, Álvaro,” Elena said softly, her voice carrying a finality that chilled him to the bone. “That is why I am making sure she never has to spend a single second around a coward like you.”
She stepped inside. The heavy doors swung shut, sealing her away from the wreckage of the De La Rosa empire.
