Chapter 93

Augusto sat at the dining room table with the envelope in his hands. The house was silent, except for Júnior’s hurried footsteps as he spoke on the phone with the doctor and the distant sounds of the first animals waking up on the farm.

With trembling hands, he carefully opened the envelope. The paper was folded into four parts and carried the lingering scent of a sweet, unmistakably feminine perfume.

He unfolded the sheet slowly, as if each movement weighed a ton.

“Dear Augusto,” be