Chapter 6 - The Desperate PleezWhile Valeria was solidifying her corporate standing, the walls were closing in on the rest of the family.
Ricardo’s high-end lifestyle instantly collapsed. Without Valeria’s income, his credit cards were maxed out, his luxury apartment rental lease was terminated for non-payment, and his mother’s luxurious lifestyle came crashing down like a house of cards. The real estate deal Mariana had pinned all her hopes on fell through because the deposit bounced.
Desperate and humiliated, Ricardo showed up at Valeria’s corporate office building during her lunch break. He waited outside the lobby, looking disheveled, his designer shirt wrinkled and his hair unkempt.
As Valeria stepped out of the glass elevator accompanied by two security guards, Ricardo broke past the barrier and fell to his knees right in front of her.
"Valeria! Please! I’m begging you!" Ricardo sobbed loudly, drawing the attention of dozens of employees in the lobby. "I was an idiot! I listened to my mother! I was blind! But we love each other—remember our wedding day? Remember Paris?"
Valeria stopped, looking down at the man who had once claimed to be her protector. There was no anger left in her heart—only profound, crystal-clear pity.
"Get up, Ricardo. You’re making a scene," Valeria said, her voice completely flat.
"Not until you forgive me!" Ricardo cried, grabbing the hem of her tailored blazer. "Drop the lawsuits, Valeria! The police came to my mother's house this morning! They’re threatening to arrest Mariana for financial fraud! If she goes to prison, our family name is ruined forever!"
Valeria gently but firmly pulled her blazer away from his grip. She signaled the security guards to step back, leaning down slightly so only he could hear her.
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"Your family built their entire empire on extortion and entitlement," Valeria whispered, her eyes flashing with ice. "You thought I was weak because I chose to keep the peace. You thought my kindness was a permanent weakness. You made your bed, Ricardo. Now you and your family get to lie in it—without a single cent of my money."
She turned around, walking briskly toward her waiting car, leaving Ricardo kneeling on the marble floor as the realization of his complete ruin finally washed over him.
