PART 4: THE NEW ERA

I closed my eyes, a cold shiver running down my spine. "They wanted the baby for the Rivas trust fund. Without an heir, their creditors would have dismantled their board of directors months ago."

"Exactly," Sofia said. "But it gets better. Because you were legally married under a regime of shared marital property, but the debt was acquired strictly under Santiago's signature prior to the marriage, we have successfully shielded your personal inheritance. In fact, due to the extreme nature of the criminal fraud, the judge has executed a forced restructuring. Rivas Enterprises no longer exists. Its assets have been entirely absorbed by Grupo Salazar."

My father placed the silver knife down, looking up with a grim smile. "I've already rebranded the logistics division under your name, Valeria. The 'Valeria Mendoza Foundation' is now the sole owner of their shipping fleets and real estate portfolios."

"I don't want the money, Dad," I said softly, looking down at my swollen belly. "I just want them to never see the light of day again."

"They won't," my father promised, his voice tight. "Santiago's legal team tried to post bail this morning using an offshore account they thought we hadn't discovered. I bought the bank that held the account at 9:00 a.m. By 9:05 a.m., the bail request was denied due to suspected money laundering. He is staying in a high-security cell until the trial."

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Just then, the television mounted on the wall flashed with a breaking news report. The elegant anchorwoman spoke with a grave tone: "The supreme downfall of the Rivas dynasty continues tonight as federal agents remove centuries of art and luxury assets from the Lomas de Chapultepec estate. Former high-society matriarch Beatriz Rivas was seen being escorted into a transport vehicle in handcuffs..."

I watched the screen, watching the mansion I had been trapped in for two years get stripped bare by men in federal jackets. It was a beautiful sight. They had tried to turn me into a ghost, to erase me from existence so they could live off my son's legacy. Instead, they had invited their own executioner into the house.