Ricardo stood up abruptly.
—I protest! This is ridiculous. That girl is being manipulated.
—Sit down, Mr. Barragán —the judge ordered without raising her voice.
Attorney Hector Salinas wiped the sweat from his brow. For the first time, he seemed genuinely nervous.
The judge took the recorder, examined it, and asked:
—Does the defense object?
Salinas opened his mouth, hesitated, looked at Ricardo, then at Santiago, and looked down.
—No, your honor.
The judge pressed the button.
The first voice that filled the room was Ricardo’s.
—The new dose is working. He remembers less each week.
Then Victor’s voice:
—What if someone notices?
Then Ricardo again, with monstrous calm:
“No one will notice. Everyone thinks it’s the illness. As soon as he’s declared incapacitated, the company will be mine.”
There was a pause. Then Rebecca’s voice came on:
—And my accounts? You said that as soon as the guardianship comes out, I’ll be included too.
Each sentence fell like a stone on the room.
Murmurs erupted. A journalist dropped his notebook. An assistant put his hand to his mouth. The judge banged his gavel.
-Order!
Abi then lifted the two jars.
—And Rosa switched these when no one was looking. This is the real medication. This other one is what they were giving her. You can check.
The judge gestured to the court expert to receive them immediately.
Ricardo no longer seemed dignified. He seemed cornered.
“It’s a setup!” she shouted. “An absurd trap set by a brat and a maid!”
The judge glared at him.
—And with that phrase you have just made your situation worse.
Rebecca tried to get up discreetly. Two officers were already by her side.
Victor, pale, could find nowhere to hide his shame.
Then something happened that no one expected.
Santiago, still groggy from the sedatives, slowly turned his head toward Abigail. His eyes, blurred throughout the hearing, finally focused.
“Abi…” he whispered.
The girl ran towards him.
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