Chapter 8 - The Desperate VisitorLater that afternoon, a soft knock echoed on the hospital suite door.
A nurse poked her head in cautiously. “Mrs. Vance? You have a visitor in the lobby. A man claiming to be your husband’s court-appointed public defender, along with... well, someone else who insists on speaking with you.”
Elena frowned slightly. “Who?”
“It’s Mercedes, ma’am,” the nurse sighed apologetically. “She managed to find a ride from the motel. She’s currently causing a scene in the hallway.”
Elena looked at Evelyn, a cold, sharp smile touching the corner of her lips. “Send them in. Let’s see what a queen in exile has to say to her landlord.”
A moment later, the door swung open.
Mercedes pushed her way into the room, looking completely unravelled. Her expensive silk blouse was wrinkled, her hair was wild, and her diamond rings were gone—evidently hocked or lost in the chaos. Behind her shuffled a nervous-looking public defender holding a cheap manila folder.
“Elena!” Mercedes cried out, rushing toward the bed before two hospital security guards stepped in, blocking her path. “Elena, please! You have to call the police! You have to drop the charges against my boys!”
Elena didn't move an inch. She simply leaned back against her pillows, watching her former mother-in-law with icy detachment.
“Drop the charges, Mercedes?” Elena asked calmly. “Your sons and your golden-boy son physically assaulted an eight-months-pregnant woman and threw her into freezing water. Why on earth would I show mercy to people who tried to murder me and my child?”
“It was a misunderstanding!” Mercedes shrieked, tears of pure rage streaming down her face. “Álvaro didn't mean to push you so hard! He was just stressed! We’re family!”
“We were never family, Mercedes,” Elena corrected sharply. “You were parasites living off my labor, waiting for an excuse to crush me under your heels. And now you’re paying the price.”
The public defender stepped forward nervously, opening his manila folder. “Mrs... uh, Mrs. Vance-De La Rosa. As counsel for Mr. Álvaro De La Rosa, we are prepared to offer a settlement. If you agree to restore his personal bank access and sign a mutual non-disclosure agreement regarding the corporate assets—”
“Stop right there, Counselor,” Elena interrupted, her voice dropping into a register of absolute, terrifying authority. “If you utter another word of negotiation on behalf of that criminal, I will expand my corporate lawsuit to include every single financial fraud Álvaro committed while fronting as an executive at Northstar. He won't just serve five years—he’ll serve twenty.”
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The public defender closed his folder instantly, took two steps backward, and wisely kept his mouth shut.
Mercedes let out a guttural, defeated wail, collapsing into a chair by the door as the security guards gently escorted her out of the room.
