A figure entered the house. A man the little girl knew well. A man who always wore blue shirts and brought her candy when he visited. Sara screamed, then silence. Little Salomé hid in the hallway closet, trembling, as the man in the blue shirt walked toward where her father slept. Dolores spent the entire night reviewing the Fuentes case file.
Hundreds of pages, photographs she preferred not to remember, testimonies, expert reports—everything pointed to Ramiro: his fingerprints, his clothes, his lack of a solid alibi. But there were cracks, small, almost invisible, but they were there.
The first witness, a neighbor named Pedro Sánchez, initially stated that he saw a man leaving the Fuentes house at 11 p.m. Three days later, in a second statement, he specified that it was Ramiro. Why the change? Who pressured him?
The physical evidence was processed in record time. Forensic analysis normally took weeks. In this case, the results arrived in 72 hours, just in time for the arrest. The prosecutor in charge of the case was Aurelio Sánchez.
The last name matched that of the neighbor witness. Coincidence or family connection? Dolores looked for information about Aurelio Sánchez. What she found deeply disturbed her. Aurelio was no longer a prosecutor.
He had been promoted to judge three years earlier, just after securing Ramiro’s conviction. His career took off thanks to this case, which he resolved with exemplary efficiency, according to the newspapers of the time.
But there was more. Aurelio Sánchez had business connections with Gonzalo Fuentes, Ramiro’s younger brother. Together they had bought several properties in the last five years.
Properties that once belonged to the Fuentes family. Dolores dialed a number on her phone. “Carlos, I need you to investigate Gonzalo Fuentes’s business dealings. Everything—every property, every transaction, every partner.
And I need to know if Sara Fuentes knew something she shouldn’t have.” Gonzalo Fuentes arrived at the Santa María home in a luxury black car that contrasted sharply with the modesty of the place. He wore an impeccable suit and a blue tie, always blue. Carmela saw him enter and felt a chill.
There was something about that man that reminded her of snakes. Elegant on the outside, venomous on the inside. “I’ve come to see my niece,” Gonzalo said without greeting her. “I have the right. I’m her legal guardian.”
“You relinquished that guardianship six months ago when you left her here,” Carmela replied firmly. “Now she’s under state protection. Circumstances have changed. With everything that’s happening with my brother, the girl needs a family. She needs someone to take care of her. To take care of her like you did before you brought her here with bruises on her arms.”
Gonzalo’s eyes darkened. “Be careful what you’re implying, ma’am. I have connections. Important connections. I can shut this place down in a week if I want to. You’re threatening me. I’m informing you. I want to see Salomé now.”
At that moment, Carmela noticed movement behind her office door. Salomé had heard everything. The girl was pale, trembling, her eyes fixed on her uncle. There was pure terror in that look. Gonzalo saw the girl too.
For a second, his mask of a respectable man slipped. What Carmela saw in his eyes convinced her of one thing. That man was dangerous, and Salomé knew it best. “No one. Go away,” Carmela said. “Go now or I’ll call the police.”
Gonzalo smiled. A cold smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “This isn’t over, ma’am. I’ll be back. And when I do, no one will protect that girl from her family.” The prison visiting room felt colder than ever.
Ramiro waited handcuffed to the table, but his demeanor had changed. He was no longer the defeated man of two days ago. There was fire in his eyes. Dolores sat across from him and studied him silently. “My name is Dolores Medina. I was a criminal defense attorney for 40 years. I saw your case on the news, and I need you to tell me everything.” “Why do you care?” “No one believed me for five years.” “Why would you be any different?” “Because 30 years ago, I let an innocent man be convicted.”
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