Chapter 2: The Masks Fall

The music stopped the moment Alejandro entered the ballroom.

Champagne glasses froze halfway to smiling lips.

Jimena looked down from the dining table, surprised.

Then she smiled as though nothing were wrong.

"Alejandro!"

She climbed down gracefully and kissed his cheek.

"You weren't supposed to be back until tomorrow."

"I changed my plans."

His voice carried across the silent room.

"So did I."

She laughed nervously.

"Everyone, this is just a misunderstanding."

Alejandro ignored her.

Instead, he walked to the center of the ballroom and connected his phone to the giant television mounted above the fireplace.

The screen lit up.

One by one...

Bank statements appeared.

Luxury purchases.

Diamond receipts.

Resort reservations.

Private shopping appointments.

Every expense had been paid from the account intended for his daughters.

Guests exchanged uneasy glances.

Jimena's smile faded.

"You don't understand..."

"I understand perfectly."

Then another video appeared.

Hidden security footage from the mansion's kitchen.

Jimena stood with crossed arms while one of the housekeepers quietly placed fresh food onto plates.

Jimena stopped her.

"No."

She pointed toward the trash.

"Throw it away."

"But the girls haven't eaten."

"I said throw it away."

The room became deathly silent.

Another recording followed.

One of the girls quietly asked for another piece of bread.

Jimena leaned close enough for the hidden microphone to capture every word.

"If you're hungry, learn how to look beautiful while suffering."

Several guests lowered their heads.

Others quietly walked toward the exit, ashamed they had celebrated in a house where children were starving only a few rooms away.

Jimena's confidence finally shattered.

She looked desperately toward the lawyers she had invited.

None of them moved.

Because Alejandro had invited someone else.

His family's longtime attorney stepped through the front doors carrying a folder.

"I've prepared the divorce documents."

Jimena's face turned white.

"And the fraud investigation has already begun."