CHAPTER 4: THE WOMAN FROM HIS PAST WHO CAME BACK TO DESTROY HER
Renata stared at the photograph for almost five minutes.
She couldn’t move.
She couldn’t speak.
The image in her hands felt heavier than any accusation she had heard that week.
There was Andrés.
Smiling.
Standing beside a beautiful woman with dark hair.
A woman he had never mentioned.
Not once.
Not during their first date.
Not during their wedding.
Not during eight years of marriage.
The woman was called Valeria Montes.
And according to the documents hidden inside the envelope…
she was still legally connected to him.
Renata slowly looked up at Doña Amparo.
“Tell me everything.”
For the first time in years, her mother-in-law looked like a frightened woman instead of a powerful one.
“I can’t.”
Renata’s eyes narrowed.
“You came to my house. You brought me proof. You said Andrés is dangerous.”
A pause.
“Now you’re afraid to speak?”
Amparo looked toward the hallway.
As if she was afraid someone was listening.
Finally, she whispered:
“Because Andrés doesn’t forgive betrayal.”
Renata almost laughed.
“Betrayal?”
Her voice became colder.
“You mean like trying to steal my home?”
Amparo lowered her eyes.
“Yes.”
For the first time…
Doña Amparo admitted it.
“Valeria was Andrés’ first wife,” Amparo explained.
“They married when he was twenty-seven.”
Renata listened silently.
“At first, everything seemed perfect. She came from a wealthy family. She had connections. Money. Influence.”
“Then what happened?”
Amparo swallowed.
“She discovered that Andrés was hiding debts.”
Renata felt a chill.
“Just like now.”
Amparo nodded.
“He convinced her to sell some of her family properties to save his businesses.”
“And she did?”
“Yes.”
“Then?”
“Then everything disappeared.”
Renata looked at the photograph again.
“And she left him?”
“No.”
Amparo’s voice became lower.
“She tried.”
That answer disturbed Renata.
“What does that mean?”
Her mother-in-law hesitated.
“She filed for divorce.”
“Then why did you say they were still connected?”
“Because Andrés never finished the process.”
The room became silent.
Renata felt sick.
“So when I married him…”
“Yes.”
Amparo closed her eyes.
“You may not have been legally married.”
The words were devastating.
Eight years.
Eight years of memories.
Eight years of sacrifices.
Eight years believing she had built a life with someone.
And maybe the foundation had never existed.
The next morning, Renata went directly to the civil registry.
She needed the truth from official records.
Not from Andrés.
Not from his family.
Not from anyone who could manipulate her.
After several hours, the confirmation arrived.
The employee looked uncomfortable.
“Mrs. Alvarez…”
Renata corrected him.
“Just Renata.”
The woman lowered her voice.
“There is a problem.”
Renata already knew.
“What problem?”
“The marriage record you provided…”
“Yes?”
“It appears there are irregularities.”
Renata felt her hands become cold.
“What kind of irregularities?”
The employee turned the screen toward her.
“There is no final divorce certificate for Mr. Andrés Sandoval.”
Everything around Renata became quiet.
The noise of the office disappeared.
People walking.
Phones ringing.
Printers working.
All of it disappeared.
Because one sentence destroyed eight years of her life.
She had never been his wife.
But Renata did something nobody expected.
She didn’t cry.
She didn’t collapse.
She didn’t scream.
She simply thanked the employee and walked outside.
Then she called Sofía.
“Cancel everything.”
Her lawyer became concerned.
“What happened?”
Renata looked at the busy street in front of her.
“Everything is worse than we thought.”
She explained.
Sofía was silent.
Then she said:
“Renata…”
“Yes?”
“This changes everything.”
“Good.”
“Good?”
“Yes.”
Renata’s voice was calm.
“Because now I don’t have to save a marriage.”
A pause.
“I only have to expose a fraud.”
That afternoon, Andrés called seventeen times.
Renata ignored every call.
Then came the messages.
“Where are you?”
“We need to talk.”
“You’re making a huge mistake.”
“Please answer.”
Then finally:
“I know you found out.”
Renata stared at that message.
Her fingers froze.
How did he know?
Before she could respond, another message arrived.
“You should have left things alone.”
A warning.
Not an apology.
Not regret.
A warning.
That night, Renata received another unexpected visitor.
But this time…
it wasn’t Doña Amparo.
It was Valeria.
The woman from the photograph.
The woman Andrés had hidden for eight years.
She stood outside Renata’s door wearing a simple black coat.
Her eyes looked exhausted.
“I know you hate me.”
Renata didn’t answer.
“I deserve that.”
Still silence.
Valeria took a deep breath.
“But I came here because there is something you need to know.”
Renata crossed her arms.
“About Andrés?”
Valeria nodded.
“He has done this before.”
The sentence immediately caught her attention.
“What?”
Valeria looked down.
“Your apartment wasn’t his first attempt.”
Renata opened the door slightly.
“Explain.”
Valeria reached into her bag and removed a folder.
Inside were documents.
Bank transfers.
Contracts.
Names.
Several women.
Several properties.
Renata’s face changed as she read.
“He did this to other people?”
Valeria nodded.
“He finds women who are successful. Women who have something valuable.”
“And then?”
“He makes them trust him.”
A pause.
“Then he slowly takes everything.”
Renata felt a wave of anger.
Not because she was his victim.
Because she realized how many others had suffered before her.
“How many?”
Valeria whispered:
“Five.”
Then Valeria revealed the secret that changed the entire case.
“There is one more thing.”
“What?”
“Your apartment was never the final goal.”
Renata frowned.
“What do you mean?”
Valeria looked directly into her eyes.
“They didn’t just want your property.”
“Then what did they want?”
Valeria opened another document.
A document with Renata’s company name.
Her construction projects.
Her financial records.
Renata’s breathing stopped.
“No…”
“Yes.”
Valeria whispered:
“They wanted access to everything you built.”
The apartment.
The money.
The company connections.
Her reputation.
Her entire future.
And suddenly, the broken plate at dinner wasn’t an act of anger.
It was desperation.
Because they knew Renata was getting too close to the truth.
The next morning, Renata made a decision.
She walked into her office.
Sat at her desk.
Opened her laptop.
And started creating a folder.
The name of the folder was simple:
SANDOVAL FAMILY — EVIDENCE
Inside, she placed every document.
Every recording.
Every message.
Every lie.
Then she made one final call.
Not to her lawyer.
Not to the police.
To a journalist who had investigated financial fraud cases for years.
“Hello, Daniel?”
“Yes?”
“I have a story for you.”
“What kind?”
Renata looked at the files in front of her.
“The kind that destroys powerful people.”
Three days later…
the Sandoval family woke up to a nightmare.
Their names were everywhere.
But not because of their wealth.
Not because of their influence.
Because the truth had finally escaped.
And when Andrés saw the news report playing on television…
his face turned completely pale.
Because the journalist had revealed something even Renata didn’t know.
The Sandoval family’s biggest secret…
was not fraud.
It was a disappearance.
A woman who had vanished five years earlier.
A woman whose last known location…
was the Sandoval mansion.
And now…
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Renata was determined to find out what happened to her.
TO BE CONTINUED…
