CHAPTER 271 — What We Promised in Silence The hotel still had the air of a refuge suspended in time. Everything looked almost exactly the same as it had that night, as if the walls had preserved the echo of their footsteps. The same warm lights bathed the hallway in an amber glow, the same subtle scent—a blend of fresh flowers and cleanliness—lingered in the air, and that intimate, almost invisible vibration remained. The feeling that something irreversible was about to happen. Mía had arrived early, needing silence the way other people needed air. She had left a bouquet of flowers on the nightstand, a small gesture of life in the middle of an imminent goodbye. She took off her jacket, searching for relief, but the knot tightening in her chest wouldn’t loosen. She walked barefoot across the thick carpet to the large window. Outside, the city was a map of distant lights, indifferent to everything. She tried to carve it all into her memory: the dark silhouettes of the buildings,

CHAPTER 273 — When Life Takes the Lead It was still mid-afternoon in the apartment where Ayden and Milagros were still living. The new house was waiting for them, yes. Impeccable. Ready. But they had made an important decision: they wanted to walk inside for the first time after the babies were born, when they could cross that threshold as a complete family. That place wasn’t home yet. Home was still that apartment filled with memories, laughter, small arguments… and so many shared dreams. Sunlight streamed through the windows as they finished saying goodbye to Mía. Ayden closed the door slowly, as if he didn’t want to break the moment, which had been filled with both pride and nostalgia. His sister was going far away—to sharpen her skills, to grow, to fulfill a dream she had earned all on her own. And even though it hurt… it was also a source of immense joy for everyone. “She’ll be fine,” Milagros said, stroking her belly with that gesture that had become so char

CHAPTER 275 — Ariel and Evan The names hadn’t come from a long list. Or from a discussion over which one the mother would choose and which one the father would. They had come on a very special night. It was Christmas, at the Saavedra home, when the noise of the dinner table had faded and all that remained were hushed voices, the clinking of glasses, and that strange calm that settles in when the family is gathered and nothing seems to be missing. After the toast, when everyone had begun to drift away, Ayden and Milagros lay in her bedroom in Maldonado. It was her usual room—small, filled with memories that had survived time. She hadn’t wanted to sleep in her parents’ room. That night, Milagros had wanted to return to a beautiful part of her youth, to stay in the place where she had once been happy. The lights were dim. And her heart was still warm from so much shared love. “Do you remember the first time you stayed here?” Milagros asked, smiling. “We slept with Zoé and Mía in

CHAPTER 277 — The Legacy and the Silence The day Ayden officially assumed the presidency of the Castell Group, Ariel and Evan had just turned six months old. They were no longer fragile babies. They were strong, curious, full of life. They were growing up healthy, and they were beautiful. They still hadn’t been baptized. Not for lack of desire, but because life itself sometimes demands patience. Martina and Elián couldn’t travel. Elián had had a relapse and had needed emergency surgery once again. His heart—the one that had always been a battle—was asking for care, patience, and time once more. Martina wasn’t doing well. She suffered for her husband; as a mother, she tried to stay strong, and as a doctor, she fought, learned, and healed broken hearts. She patched up her husband’s tired heart as best she could, because he didn’t want a transplant. These were things that could happen, yes, but they still hurt. Ayden and Milagros understood. There was no rush. “If we have to bap