Chapter Thirty-five

Rosa stood outside the door, the heavy silence pressing in around her like a suffocating embrace. She knew Sunny was just beyond that door, frightened and alone because of her family’s vendetta.

“How did it come to this?” she murmured to herself, her voice barely audible in the stillness. “How can I face Mom and convince her to stop?”

Her hand rested on the cold wood of the door, feeling the faint vibrations of Sunny’s fear emanating from within. Guilt gnawed at her insides like a relentless predator.

“Santo trusted me,” she whispered, her breath hitching with unshed tears. “I promised to protect Sunny, not to put her in danger.”

The memory of Sunny’s tearful eyes when they met flashed before her, a stark reminder of the innocent life caught in the crossfire of her family’s vendetta. She had never wanted this for Sunny, yet here she stood, responsible for her captivity.

“I have to make Mom see reason,” she resolved quietly, her determination rising amidst the overwhelming sense of gui