PART 28: ERNESTO\u2019S RECORDING<\/p>\n
Nobody moved.<\/p>\n
The red laser remained fixed on Julian\u2019s chest.<\/p>\n
Outside, he had no idea someone was watching him through a rifle scope.<\/p>\n
Ricardo smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow, Isabella\u2014tell me where Ernesto hid the recording.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
He struck the table with his gun.<\/p>\n
The plates jumped.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have spent fifteen years protecting a dead man. Don\u2019t waste your last chance.\u201d<\/p>\n
Isabella looked at me.<\/p>\n
Then at the fireplace behind my mother.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we were children,\u201d she whispered, \u201cErnesto used to say the truth belonged where the family gathered.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ricardo turned toward the fireplace.<\/p>\n
Above it hung our oldest family portrait.<\/p>\n
Ernesto stood in the center.<\/p>\n
My mother beside him.<\/p>\n
Ricardo smiling behind them.<\/p>\n
Isabella and I seated in front.<\/p>\n
Ricardo ripped the portrait from the wall.<\/p>\n
Behind it was a small metal compartment.<\/p>\n
My mother\u2019s face drained of color.<\/p>\n
Ricardo opened it with the silver key.<\/p>\n
Inside sat an old digital recorder.<\/p>\n
He grabbed it.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt last.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then pressed play.<\/p>\n
Static filled the room.<\/p>\n
Ernesto\u2019s voice emerged.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you are hearing this, I am probably dead.\u201d<\/p>\n
My heart stopped.<\/p>\n
The recording continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cRicardo has been stealing from the company for years. Patricia helped him falsify the accounts. Elena discovered the theft, but instead of exposing them, she demanded a share.\u201d<\/p>\n
My mother closed her eyes.<\/p>\n
Ricardo\u2019s smile disappeared.<\/p>\n
Then another voice sounded on the recording.<\/p>\n
Isabella\u2019s.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t trust any of them, Uncle Ernesto.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ernesto answered softly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know. That is why everything passes to you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ricardo raised the recorder, preparing to smash it.<\/p>\n
But Isabella shouted.<\/p>\n
\u201cWait! That isn\u2019t the only copy.\u201d<\/p>\n
He froze.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere are the others?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSafe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ricardo aimed the gun at her forehead.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
She stared directly into his eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith the police.\u201d<\/p>\n
For the first time, Ricardo looked afraid.<\/p>\n
Then sirens wailed in the distance.<\/p>\n
My mother smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou thought you controlled everyone,\u201d she said. \u201cBut I sent them the address before she arrived.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ricardo turned on her.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou betrayed me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d my mother replied. \u201cI finally stopped being afraid of you.\u201d<\/p>\n
A gunshot exploded.<\/p>\n
My mother collapsed.<\/p>\n
Isabella screamed.<\/p>\n
The phone fell from Ricardo\u2019s hand.<\/p>\n
On its screen, the red laser moved from Julian\u2019s chest to Gabriel\u2019s head.<\/p>\n
Then the feed suddenly went black.<\/p>\n
The lights inside the house died.<\/p>\n
In the darkness, someone grabbed my arm.<\/p>\n
I heard Ricardo curse.<\/p>\n
Another gunshot shattered the window.<\/p>\n
And Isabella whispered beside me:<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t move. There\u2019s someone else in the house.\u201d<\/p>\n
PART 28: ERNESTO\u2019S RECORDING Nobody moved. The red laser remained fixed on Julian\u2019s chest. Outside, he had no idea someone was watching him through a rifle scope. Ricardo smiled. \u201cNow, … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3850","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-insightdrama"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3850","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3850"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3850\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3883,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3850\/revisions\/3883"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3850"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3850"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3850"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}