Time stood still in that mansion.
Literally.
Roberto, standing in the doorway, felt the air escaping from his lungs.
Before him, the scene was a slow-motion nightmare.
His wife, Vanessa, had her hand raised, her fingers clenched like claws, ready to deliver a brutal blow.
But not against an adult.
The attack was aimed at Sofia, his seven-year-old blind daughter.
And in the middle, like a trembling but firm human shield, was Maria.
The housekeeper had her eyes closed, waiting for the impact, protecting the girl’s head with her own body.
But the worst part wasn’t the violent gesture.
That’s what Vanessa shouted just before she lowered her hand.
A phrase that stuck in Roberto’s brain like an ice pick:
“Get out of the way, you stupid servant! I’m fed up with this useless girl! She should have died in the accident with her mother!”
The silence that followed that sentence was sepulchral.
Vanessa was breathing heavily, her face contorted with anger.
Maria sobbed silently, hugging the knees of little Sofia, who was paralyzed with terror.
And then, Roberto took a step.
Just one.
The sound of his leather shoe against the marble floor sounded like a gunshot in the room.
Vanessa turned around abruptly.
The color drained from her face in a second.
He went from red fury to a deathly pallor.
“Ro… Roberto?” she stammered, slowly lowering her hand, as if she could erase what she had just done.
Roberto did not respond.
He looked at her with a coldness she had never seen in her three years of marriage.
“My love, you’re early…” she tried to say, forcing a nervous smile that looked more like a grimace. “It’s not what it looks like, I swear.”
Roberto continued advancing.
Slow.
Predator.
“Isn’t it what it looks like?” he asked, his voice so low and calm that it was more frightening than any scream.
Vanessa took a step back, bumping into the dresser.
“It’s just that… Maria,” she said, pointing to the employee who was still on the floor. “She provoked me! She was turning the girl against me! Sofia threw the juice at me on purpose to ruin my dress!”
The lie came out of his mouth with disgusting ease.
Roberto looked away at his daughter.
Sofia was trembling, her hands over her ears, trying to block out the screams.
“Dad…” the little girl whispered, her voice breaking. “I’m sorry about the juice. I didn’t see the glass.”
Roberto’s heart broke into a thousand pieces and was instantly reassembled, but this time armored with iron.
He crouched down next to Maria and her daughter.
“Did he touch you?” he asked Maria, completely ignoring his wife.
Maria looked up. She had tears in her eyes, but she shook her head.
—No, sir. You arrived just in time. But… it’s not the first time he’s yelled at you.
Vanessa’s eyes widened in shock.
“Liar!” shrieked the wife. “Roberto, you’re not going to believe this woman before me! I’m your wife!”
Roberto stood up slowly.
Now he looked her in the eyes.
And what Vanessa saw in that look was the end of her life of luxury.
—You were my wife —Roberto corrected.
Vanessa let out a nervous, incredulous laugh.
“What? Please, Roberto, don’t be so dramatic. It’s just a misunderstanding. I was stressed. The girl is difficult… you know she requires a lot of patience and I…”
—You said he should have died with his mother.
The phrase hung in the air.
Vanessa swallowed.
—I was angry… I didn’t feel it.
“Pick up your things,” Roberto said.
It was a simple order. No shouting.
-That?
—Pack your things. You’re leaving. Now.
Vanessa felt the ground move.
—You can’t kick me out. This is my house. We’re married. I have rights.
And that’s where he made his last mistake.
Trying to play power games with a man who had built an empire protecting his own interests.
Roberto took his phone out of his pocket.
“Rights?” she asked, dialing a number. “Did you read clause 14 of the prenuptial agreement you signed without reading because all you cared about was the ring size?”
Vanessa froze.
—What…what are you talking about?
—”Any proven act of physical, verbal, or psychological aggression toward any family member voids any financial compensation.”
Roberto put the phone on speakerphone.
“Security?” he said into the phone. “I need two agents in the master bedroom. Now.”
“You can’t do this to me!” Vanessa shouted, losing her “society lady” composure and revealing her true colors. “I’m going to sue you! I’m going to take half of everything!”
“You’re not taking anything,” Roberto said, putting his phone away. “In fact, the credit cards are already blocked. I did it as I walked here from the door.”
The story doesn’t end here — it continues on the next page to discover the rest 🔎👇
