Adrian’s hand remained suspended in the air.
He stared at me as if he were trying to recognize someone who had disappeared and returned as a stranger.
—Lina…
I smiled politely.
—The funeral home is this way, isn’t it?
I turned to leave.
He grabbed my suitcase again.
This time, I looked directly at his hand.
—Let go.
He did.
Immediately.
That was when I noticed something strange.
His wedding ring was still on his finger.
But there was another mark beneath it.
A pale line.
As if the ring had been removed countless times.
I didn’t ask.
I didn’t care anymore.
Or at least, that’s what I told myself.
At the funeral home, my mother collapsed the moment she saw me.
—Lina!
She hugged me tightly.
For several minutes she couldn’t say anything.
Then she kept touching my face.
—You’ve lost so much weight.
—I haven’t.
—You look different.
—I grew up.
She cried again.
Behind her stood Clara.
She was dressed entirely in black.
Her face looked thinner.
Older.
Not like the woman from the wedding broadcast I had watched three years earlier.
She approached slowly.
—Lina.
I nodded.
—Clara.
She lowered her eyes.
—I wanted to explain.
—You don’t need to.
—I do.
She looked at me.
—Because you hate me.
I shook my head.
—I don’t hate you.
She seemed surprised.
—I don’t even know you anymore.
Her eyes reddened.
—That’s worse.
I didn’t respond.
Then Adrian entered.
His eyes immediately landed on Clara.
For the first time since I had returned, I saw something familiar in his expression.
Concern.
Instinctive concern.
The same concern he used to have for me.
I looked away.
It no longer belonged to me.
That evening, Lucas’s funeral was held.
The military district sent representatives.
His former comrades stood in perfect rows.
The flag was folded carefully.
My mother cried throughout the ceremony.
Clara remained beside Adrian.
I stood alone.
Until an older officer approached me.
He looked at me for a long time.
Then his expression changed.
—You’re Lucas’s sister.
I nodded.
—Yes.
He lowered his voice.
—Then there is something you need to know.
He handed me a sealed envelope.
—Lucas left this before the accident.
My fingers tightened around it.
—For me?
He nodded.
—He specifically said that if anything happened to him, this should only be given to you.
I looked at Adrian.
He was speaking with another officer.
He hadn’t noticed.
I opened the envelope.
Inside was a single handwritten page.
Only one sentence caught my attention:
“Lina, if I don’t come back, don’t trust anyone who tells you Adrian chose Clara because he stopped loving you.”
My breathing stopped.
I read it again.
Then again.
What did that mean?
That night, I went to my hotel room.
I locked the door.
Placed the letter on the table.
And called the number written at the bottom.
A man answered.
—Hello?
—I have a letter from Lucas.
Silence.
Then the voice became serious.
—Who are you?
—His sister.
Another silence.
—Then you need to come to my office tomorrow morning.
—Why?
—Because Lucas discovered something before he died.
My heart began beating faster.
—What?
—I can’t say over the phone.
The call ended.
I stared at the screen.
For three years, I had believed Lucas died in an accident.
But now someone was telling me he had been investigating something.
Something dangerous enough that he left instructions before his death.
The next morning, I went to the military district.
The man waiting for me was Colonel Samuel Reed.
He closed the office door.
Then placed several photographs on the desk.
The first showed Lucas’s vehicle.
The second showed the mountain road.
The third showed the landslide.
I frowned.
—What am I looking at?
Samuel pointed to the road.
—The landslide happened at 6:42 p.m.
Then he showed me another photograph.
—But Lucas’s phone stopped transmitting at 6:18.
I froze.
—Thirty-four minutes earlier?
He nodded.
—Exactly.
I looked at him.
—What are you saying?
—I’m saying Lucas wasn’t where everyone thought he was when the landslide occurred.
My fingers went cold.
—Then where was he?
Samuel pushed another document toward me.
There was a name on it.
Adrian Ferrer.
I stared at it.
—Why is Adrian’s name here?
Samuel leaned back.
—Because Lucas was investigating him.
My heart slammed against my ribs.
—Investigating his own brother?
—Not Adrian personally.
He paused.
—A military procurement operation connected to one of Adrian’s closest associates.
I looked down.
Everything suddenly felt different.
The engagement.
The secrecy.
The lies.
Lucas’s disappearance.
Clara surviving.
Adrian marrying her ninety-nine days later.
Maybe none of it had been what I thought.
That afternoon, Adrian found me outside the military archive.
He was standing beside his car.
—Lina.
I stopped.
—What?
He walked toward me.
—Where have you been?
—Around.
—You disappeared after the funeral.
—I didn’t want to bother anyone.
His jaw tightened.
—You’re still doing it.
—Doing what?
—Pretending that you don’t care.
I smiled.
—Maybe I really don’t.
He stared at me.
—You used to hate lying.
—People change.
He lowered his voice.
—You think I married Clara because I didn’t love you.
I looked at him.
—Did you?
He didn’t answer.
—That’s what I thought.
I turned.
He caught my wrist.
I immediately pulled away.
—Don’t.
His hand dropped.
—I never wanted to hurt you.
—But you did.
—Yes.
His voice was almost a whisper.
—Every day for three years.
I looked at him.
Something in his expression made me hesitate.
Then he said:
—There is something I need to tell you.
Before he could continue, his phone rang.
He glanced at the screen.
His face changed.
—Who is it?
He didn’t answer.
He stepped away to take the call.
I watched him.
Then I saw the name on the screen.
Samuel Reed.
My blood ran cold.
The same colonel who had just told me Lucas had been investigating Adrian’s associates.
Adrian answered.
—You shouldn’t have contacted her.
I couldn’t hear Samuel’s reply.
Adrian’s expression became darker.
—If she finds out everything, she will be in danger.
I stopped breathing.
Then he said the words that shattered everything I thought I knew:
—Lucas didn’t die because of the landslide.
I stared at him.
Adrian suddenly looked up.
Our eyes met.
He knew I had heard.
His face went pale.
He ended the call.
For several seconds, neither of us moved.
Then I whispered:
—What did you just say?
Adrian walked toward me.
—Lina…
—Did you know?
He stopped.
—Did you know my brother didn’t die in an accident?
His silence was answer enough.
My hands began to tremble.
—Three years.
He lowered his head.
—Yes.
—Three years you let me believe he was dead.
—Because I was trying to protect you.
I laughed bitterly.
—Protect me?
He looked at me.
—Lucas was alive after the crash.
My entire world went silent.
—What?
Adrian’s voice broke.
—He survived the fall.
I stared at him.
—Then where is he?
Adrian looked toward the road.
His eyes were filled with something I had never seen before.
Fear.
—That’s what I’ve been trying to find for three years.
My heart stopped.
Then his phone rang again.
This time it was an unknown number.
He answered.
A distorted voice said only one sentence.
Adrian’s face turned white.
—Impossible.
He slowly lowered the phone.
I stepped toward him.
—Who was it?
He looked at me.
And for the first time since I had known him…
Adrian looked terrified.
—Lina…
His voice barely came out.
—Lucas just called.
And he said he’s coming home.
