Chapter 2 - The Whispering Tablet
The silence that followed Lucía’s confession was heavier than the ocean.
Gabriel took a involuntary step back, clutching his leather briefcase as if it were a shield against the absolute failure of his fatherhood. His son, who had not spoken a coherent word to him in twenty-four months, had just called the housekeeper Mama.
Before Gabriel could speak, the heavy oak front door clicked open. His older brother, Mateo Valdés, stepped into the marble foyer, shaking raindrops from his expensive umbrella. Mateo was a senior vice president at Gabriel’s renewable energy firm—a sharp, ambitious man with calculating eyes who had always insisted that Gabriel was too soft for the corporate world.
“Gabriel? What are you doing home?” Mateo asked, eyeing the scene with immediate suspicion. He looked at Lucía standing by the piano, then at Nicolás holding her apron, and finally at Gabriel’s pale face. “The board in Madrid is waiting for the sign-off on the €21 million investment contract! Why aren't you on your jet?!”
Gabriel didn't answer. He was staring at Nicolás.
Mateo walked further into the room, his eyes narrowing as he took in Lucía’s bare feet. A cold, cynical smile touched his lips.
“Don't tell me,” Mateo sneered, turning to Gabriel. “You caught the help taking liberties with your Steinway? Gabriel, fire her immediately. She’s manipulating the boy. This is a classic, low-class manipulation to get herself a permanent place in this house.”
“Shut up, Mateo,” Gabriel said, his voice barely a whisper.
“I’m serious!” Mateo insisted, taking a step toward Lucía. “She knows you’re vulnerable. She knows you’d pay anything to hear Nicolás talk. She’s playing you like that piano, brother!”
Lucía didn't cringe or shrink back. She quietly slipped her shoes on, her posture erect and filled with quiet dignity. “I will leave, Mr. Valdés. I didn't mean to cause trouble.”
“No,” Gabriel said suddenly, his authority cutting through the room. “Lucía, stay.”
Mateo gasped in disbelief. “Gabriel, are you insane?! You have a twenty-one million euro deal on the line! You’re letting a maid influence your family decisions?!”
Gabriel turned off his phone, pulled the €21 million contract from his leather bag, and tossed it onto the coffee table without looking at it. Then, to his brother’s complete horror, the billionaire CEO sat down directly on the hardwood floor, right beside his son.
“I’m not going anywhere today,” Gabriel said quietly.
Mateo threw his hands in the air. “You’re losing your mind! If you don't sign that deal by midnight, the board will call a vote of no confidence!” He stormed out of the house, slamming the heavy front door behind him.
The mansion fell quiet again.
Gabriel looked up at Lucía from his place on the floor. “Show me,” he whispered. “Show me how to talk to my son.”
Lucía knelt beside him. She took a small, old tablet from her tote bag—an outdated iPad with a cracked screen that had belonged to Gabriel’s late wife, Irene.
“Where did you get that?” Gabriel asked, his breath hitching.
“I found it in the study attic two months ago while deep cleaning,” Lucía explained softly. “The battery was dead, but I bought a charger. I didn't mean to pry, but Nicolás recognized it immediately.”
As Lucía powered on the tablet, the screen lit up with a soft chime. A draft folder opened automatically.
On the screen was a recorded video message dated the exact night of Irene’s fatal car accident two years ago.
A gentle voice whispered from the speakers: “If you are watching this, it means I didn't make it home... and it means Gabriel is still running away from the truth. Mom was waiting, my love...”
Gabriel froze, his heart pounding in his chest. “What... what truth?”
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Lucía pointed to a locked folder on the screen titled 'For Nicolás when he hears music again'.
“Your wife didn't die in a random accident, Gabriel,” Lucía said quietly. “She was trying to leave Barcelona that night because she discovered someone inside your company was using Nicolás’s medical trust to launder money.”
