Chapter 52 — Lunch with UFOs… and a Question Left Unanswered(Sofía’s POV)Noon arrived, bathed in that flat, white light streaming through the lab windows, and Sofía could already feel her stomach begging for a break.She had spent the entire morning poring over reports and tests, but what was really keeping her awake wasn’t the caffeine—it was Federico’s new, yet familiar presence.He had returned with that energy he seemed to have brought back from the north, with the calmness of someone who believes the universe has a plan. Sofía didn’t say it, but it felt good to have him nearby.Even if she couldn’t put a name to it.She was just putting some vials in the fridge when she heard quick footsteps and a voice she wouldn’t mistake for any other:“Are you planning on eating lunch today, or do you want to pass out here and force us to hook you up to an IV?”Sofía turned around and smiled when she saw Lili walk in—her general practitioner, soon to be the best plastic surgeon, and always

Chapter 54 — A Lost Pen… and a Wound That Won’t Heal (Point of View: Adrián) He had spent the entire afternoon digging through drawers, checking cases, opening forgotten folders—and he still couldn’t believe it. His black pen was gone. Not just any pen. A black fountain pen with gold trim. Engraved with his name and a phrase that had followed him since the day Sofía gave it to him when he graduated: “So you can sign the future you deserve. With love, Sofía.” He always carried it in the inner pocket of his suits whenever he had something important to sign. But this time… it wasn’t there. The contract for the new international agreement was lying on his desk, waiting for his signature—and the pen had vanished. First, he looked where he usually kept it: in his bachelor apartment. Valeria wasn’t there, thankfully. He noticed his bedroom door was open but didn’t think much of it. He assumed he had left the pen in his study. Then he checked the apartment he used to

Chapter 56 — The Message That Really HurtPoint of View: DianaThat afternoon, in the lab, the words I’d read in Dr. Sofía Rojas’s report echoed in my head. Baby Castell, who had been treated like a ticking time bomb, now seemed to be improving with his treatment. But that wasn’t the information I was supposed to put in the reports. I had to alter the truth, follow Valeria’s orders—that deranged woman who held my life in her hands. With every injection I gave the baby’s mother, I felt a lump in my throat. I knew I might be hurting her, and I hated my own cowardice for not shouting it to the world. But Valeria had threatened me, and there was nothing I could do.I saved the number I’d managed to get secretly. I still didn’t know when I’d use it, but I felt that moment was coming soon.(Point of view: Sofía)Evening had fallen without a sound, as if the day knew that Sofía didn’t even have the strength to open the curtains.The house was silent.But not that calm silence that is sometim

Chapter 58 — The Letter Written with What Never Broke (Point of view: Adrián) He never thought a pen could hurt. When he opened the drawer where he always kept it, he couldn’t find it. He searched through suitcases, folders, forgotten pencil cases, and file boxes. He checked the desk three times. Nothing. And then he knew. Valeria. His mother didn’t take long to confirm it: she’d been seen entering the bachelor pad. She left with a different purse than the one she’d been carrying and went straight to Coral’s pawn shop. The sequence was clear. She’d done it. And at that moment, Adrián had no more doubts. He made several calls. First to his lawyer, then to the building’s security guard. Finally, to an old contact who used to frequent the pawnshop. That’s how he recovered what Valeria had taken… but also something else: proof of her involvement. Because that pen wasn’t just an object. It was the one Sofía had given him when he graduated. Black, with golden streaks, a metallic bod

Chapter 60 — Suspicions, Silences… and a Coffee-Scented Pause (Point of view: Lili Acosta) The hospital had that heavy atmosphere that settles in before a storm, as if the walls knew something the hallways didn’t yet dare to say. Outside, the sun was shining, the sky was clear and blue, but inside… something didn’t feel right. Lili could feel it. It wasn’t paranoia. It was that instinct you develop when you’ve seen too many times how the worst disguises itself as routine. Sofía was in a consultation with Dr. Gómez, adjusting settings, reviewing the treatment. She insisted on coming every week, even though the team already had everything under control. She said she felt calmer. That she needed to know. That if something went wrong, she wanted to be the first to know. Lili took advantage of that moment to look for him. She found him in the cardiology hallway, reviewing some reports with a slight frown. Dr. Guillermo Medina. Psychiatrist. Reserved. Honest. And until not long ago,