Chapter 13 - The Cracks in the Glass
Daniel sat frozen on the nursery floor, the old smartphone trembling in his large hand. The words on the screen were burning into his retinas, a corrosive acid eating away at the last two years of his carefully preserved memories. He looked down at Sofía, who was clinging to his shirt, her large, frightened eyes staring up at him. She had Isabella’s nose, Isabella’s dark hair... but did she have his eyes?
Doubt, the most insidious of poisons, began to seep into his mind. He felt a sudden, terrible distance growing between himself and the little girl in his arms.
Rebeca saw the hesitation. She saw the exact moment the seed of doubt took root. She crossed her arms over her chest, projecting an aura of sympathetic superiority.
"I am so sorry you had to find out this way, Daniel," Rebeca purred, her voice dripping with fake pity. "But you can't build a future on a lie. She betrayed you. And you are sacrificing your own happiness for a child that doesn't even share your blood."
Daniel closed his eyes, a heavy, agonizing silence filling the room. He felt entirely broken.
But Mateo was not broken. The ten-year-old boy, who had just offered his life for his sister, felt the physical shift in his father’s posture. He saw the way Daniel looked at the phone, and he remembered the flickering blue light in the study.
Mateo pulled away from his father’s chest. He wiped the tears from his face, his expression hardening with a fierce, adult clarity.
"She’s lying, Dad," Mateo said, his voice ringing out loud and clear, shattering the silence.
Daniel opened his eyes, looking at his son in confusion.
Mateo pointed a shaking finger directly at Rebeca. "I saw her. Last night. I couldn't sleep, so I went downstairs to get water. She was in your study, Dad. She was on your computer, plugging that exact phone into it."
Rebeca’s smug expression instantly vanished. The color drained from her face, leaving her pale and panicked.
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"That is a ridiculous lie!" Rebeca shrieked, taking a step toward the boy. "He’s just trying to protect his mother's memory!"
"She said a well-written lie can destroy a legacy," Mateo continued, ignoring her screams. He looked directly into his father's eyes. "I heard her say it, Dad. She faked those messages to make you hate Sofía."
