Chapter 5: The Truth Hidden In My Son’s Past
I stood outside Mateo’s hospital room for almost a full minute before I walked in.
Not because I didn’t want to see him.
Because I was afraid.
For sixteen years, I had believed I knew every important detail about my son’s life.
His first steps.
His first words.
His favorite food.
The night he cried because his father didn’t show up to his school performance.
The day he told me he wanted to become an engineer.
I knew him.
I knew every scar on his knees from childhood accidents.
I knew the way he tapped his fingers when he was nervous.
I knew the exact expression he made when he was trying not to cry.
But suddenly, my mother had planted a terrifying question in my mind.
What if there was something I didn’t know?
Something about the one person I loved more than anyone.
I pushed the door open.
Mateo looked toward me immediately.
“Mom.””
I forced a smile.
“Hey.””
He studied my face.
“You look upset.””
I walked closer and sat beside him.
“I’m okay.””
He gave me the same look he had given me when he was eight years old and caught me pretending I wasn’t crying after a difficult day.
“You’re lying.””
That almost made me smile.
“You’re getting too good at reading people.””
“You taught me.””
I looked down.
That was true.
I had always told him honesty mattered.
But now I was surrounded by lies.
“Mom?””
I looked back at him.
“What?””
“Did you find out what was in the box?””
My heart tightened.
“No.””
I didn’t want to lie.
Not to him.
But I wasn’t ready to tell him everything.
“Not yet.””
He looked away.
“I knew something was wrong.””
I took his hand.
“Tell me what happened.””
He was quiet.
Then he started speaking.
“When Aunt Camila picked me up, she was acting weird.””
“How?””
“She kept checking her phone.””
“Did she tell you why?””
“No.””
He swallowed.
“She asked me if Grandma had talked to me.””
My stomach tightened.
“What did you say?””
“I said no.””
“Then what?””
“She said, ‘Good. Keep it that way.’”
I felt a chill.
“Why would she say that?””
“I don’t know.””
Mateo looked at me.
“But then Grandma called.””
My fingers tightened around his.
“What did she say?””
“She asked if I was already in the car.””
I froze.
“She knew you were with Camila?””
He nodded.
“She sounded relieved.””
“Relieved?””
“Yeah.””
My stomach turned.
“Then what happened?””
Mateo looked uncomfortable.
“A few minutes later, Aunt Camila started yelling.””
“At who?””
“Grandma.””
“On the phone?””
“Yes.””
“What did she say?””
Mateo closed his eyes, trying to remember.
“She said, ‘You can’t keep doing this. He deserves to know.’”
My breathing slowed.
“He?””
Mateo looked at me.
“Dad.””
The room felt silent.
“What else?””
“She said, ‘Daniel is alive because he escaped. But Elena doesn’t know because you made sure she never looked.’”
I stared at him.
Daniel.
Alive.
The same words I had heard from his own mouth.
Mateo continued.
“Then Grandma said something.””
“What?””
“She said, ‘If she finds out what Daniel did, she’ll hate him more than she hates us.’”
I looked away.
My mind was racing.
My mother had always been controlling.
But this was different.
This was a whole hidden world.
A world where everyone knew something except me.
“Mateo.””
He looked at me.
“Did Grandma ever talk to you about your father?””
He hesitated.
“Sometimes.””
“What did she say?””
He looked uncomfortable.
“She said Dad was dangerous.””
My heart sank.
“Dangerous?””
“Yeah.””
“Did you believe her?””
He shrugged.
“I didn’t know.””
I looked at my son.
The child who grew up missing a father.
The child who had spent years believing he wasn’t wanted.
And now I wondered if someone had stolen that relationship from him.
A knock came at the door.
Officer Daniels entered.
“Sorry to interrupt.””
I stood.
“What happened?””
He looked at Mateo.
“Your son told us there may be more evidence.””
Mateo nodded.
“The recording.””
The officer looked at me.
“We reviewed part of it.””
My heart started pounding.
“What did you hear?””
He hesitated.
“That device recorded inside the vehicle before the crash.””
Camila appeared behind him.
“What was on it?””
Officer Daniels looked serious.
“An argument.””
“With who?””
He looked at me.
“Your parents.””
The room went silent.
“Can we hear it?””
The officer hesitated.
“Mrs. Martinez, the recording contains information that may be difficult.””
“I don’t care.””
I looked at him.
“I need to know.””
He nodded.
He pulled out his phone and played the audio.
At first, there was only static.
Then voices.
My father.
“You’re making a mistake.””
My mother.
“I’m doing what has to be done.””
My entire body froze.
Because even though the recording was distorted…
I knew her voice.
Then Camila.
“You can’t force her to sign anything.””
My eyes widened.
The crash had happened after this conversation.
They were all together.
The recording continued.
My mother’s voice became sharper.
“She has no idea what Daniel left behind.””
My father responded.
“She’ll find out eventually.””
“No, she won’t.””
A pause.
Then my mother said:
“Not if the boy is removed from the equation.””
The room went silent.
Mateo looked terrified.
I grabbed his hand.
The officer stopped the recording.
Nobody spoke.
My ears were ringing.
“What did she mean?””
Officer Daniels didn’t answer.
“I need to ask you something.””
“What?””
“Did anyone ever attempt to get custody of Mateo?””
I frowned.
“No.””
“Are you sure?””
“Yes.””
The officer looked at his notes.
“Because we found documents.””
My heart sank.
“What documents?””
“Temporary guardianship papers.””
I stared at him.
“Who filed them?””
He looked down.
“Your mother.””
I felt like the air had been pulled from the room.
“No.””
“Yes.””
“When?””
“Two weeks ago.””
I looked at Mateo.
Two weeks.
The same time my mother had been collecting my documents.
The same time she had been preparing something.
“What was the reason?””
The officer’s expression softened.
“She claimed you were unstable.””
My mouth opened.
“She said I was unstable?””
“She claimed you were overwhelmed and unable to provide proper care.””
I almost laughed.
I had spent sixteen years taking care of my son.
Working.
Sacrificing.
Building a life.
And my own mother had tried to take him from me.
“Why?””
Nobody answered.
Then Mateo spoke.
Quietly.
“Because of Dad.””
Everyone looked at him.
“What do you mean?”” I asked.
He looked down.
“Grandma told me once that if Dad ever came back, she would make sure he couldn’t get near me.””
My blood ran cold.
“Why would she say that?””
Mateo shook his head.
“I don’t know.””
The officer’s phone suddenly rang.
He answered.
“Daniels.””
His expression changed.
“What?””
He walked away slightly.
Then he returned.
“We have a problem.””
My chest tightened.
“What happened?””
He looked at me.
“Someone accessed the police evidence system.””
“What?””
“The recording file.””
My heart sank.
“What about it?””
“It was copied.””
“By who?””
The officer stared at his phone.
“We’re still tracing it.””
A terrible feeling moved through me.
“Can you tell when it happened?””
He nodded.
“Ten minutes ago.””
I looked around the room.
Everyone was silent.
Then my phone vibrated.
Another unknown number.
This time, there was a photo.
My hands shook as I opened it.
It was an old picture.
A younger version of me.
Daniel.
And a baby Mateo.
But that wasn’t what made my blood run cold.
Written on the back of the photo was a sentence.
May you like
A sentence that changed everything.
*ELENA, ASK YOUR SON WHO HE REALLY IS.*
