Chapter 1: The Hidden Truth Behind the Mansion
Alejandro wrapped blankets around his daughters before carrying them one by one into the warm library.
The chef had already gone home.
The kitchen was nearly empty.
He found eggs.
Milk.
A loaf of fresh bread hidden behind expensive imported cheeses.
Within minutes, he was making grilled sandwiches and hot chocolate with his own hands.
The girls stared at the food as though they had forgotten what a real meal looked like.
"Eat slowly," Alejandro whispered.
"No one will take it away."
Valeria looked at him carefully.
"Really?"
He nodded.
"You never have to ask permission to eat again."
Camila suddenly burst into tears.
She hugged him so tightly that he could barely breathe.
Meanwhile, downstairs...
The music continued.
Jimena laughed with her wealthy friends, completely unaware that her carefully built lie had already begun to crumble.
Alejandro quietly asked the housekeeper to gather every employee in the service hallway.
Only three people remained.
The elderly cook.
The gardener.
And Rosa—the nanny who had cared for the girls since birth.
The moment Rosa saw Alejandro, she broke down.
"They threatened to fire me if I told you."
Alejandro gently placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Tell me everything."
Rosa's voice shook.
"Every month you transferred over one hundred thousand pesos for the girls."
"But almost none of it reached them."
She handed him a small notebook.
Inside...
Every meal.
Every punishment.
Every expense.
Every bruise.
Everything had been recorded in secret.
There were receipts showing Jimena purchasing luxury jewelry.
Designer handbags.
Private vacations.
Even cosmetic surgery.
All paid for using the children's trust account.
Alejandro's hands trembled with rage.
Then Rosa revealed something even worse.
"She wasn't just stealing money."
"She planned to send the girls to a boarding school in another country after New Year's."
"So she could convince you they preferred living away from home."
Alejandro slowly closed the notebook.
Christmas was no longer a celebration.
It had become a battlefield.