You look at Lívia again.
“Who is his father?” you ask, voice careful, because you already know the answer you’re afraid of.
Lívia’s face tightens.
She opens her mouth, then closes it, as if the truth has teeth.
Davi looks between you both, sensing danger.
“My husband left,” Lívia says finally, too fast.
“He’s gone.”
You don’t believe it, but you don’t call her a liar.
Instead, you pull the old photo from your pocket and place it gently on the table.
Isabela’s face looks up, younger, smiling, alive.
Lívia’s breath catches like she just inhaled a ghost.
Davi leans forward, curious.
But Lívia freezes completely.
“Where did you get that?” she whispers.
Your voice breaks.
“She was my wife,” you say.
“And she died twenty years ago.”
You swallow hard. “Or I was told she did.”
Lívia’s eyes flood.
She stares at the photo like it’s a weapon aimed straight at her heart.
Then she whispers a word that makes everything spin.
“Isabela… isn’t dead.”
Your chest tightens so hard you feel pain.
“What did you say?” you ask, voice barely steady.
Lívia shakes her head, trembling.
“I didn’t want to tell,” she whispers.
“I didn’t even want to come to this house.”
She looks down at Davi, then back at you. “But the money… I needed the job.”
You stare at her, mind racing.
“Where is she?” you demand, then soften immediately when Davi flinches.
You inhale. “Where is Isabela?” you ask again, quieter.
Lívia wipes her face with the back of her hand.
“Porto Dourado,” she whispers.
“She’s in a clinic. Not a hospital. A place people hide in.”
Your knees go weak, but you hold yourself up.
“Why?” you ask, voice raw.
Lívia’s voice shakes.
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