CHAPTER 3

With a smile reflected on the dressing table in front of her as she removed the makeup she had been wearing all day, Erika admired her every expression. She couldn't be happier, just that day had been when she had the meeting with the staff and had let them know her idea of wanting to change what Mrs. Valladolid had done.

The door to her room was knocked.

“Come in,” she said, thinking it would be her husband.

She remained calm until in the mirror she saw the reflection of the person who had bothered her for so long and who had not told anyone.

“Antonio, what are you doing here? Don't you realize that I'm about to take a bath? Your brother can come in! I'm fed up, why are you harassing me?” she asked a little tense.

“My brother won't be here yet. I just want you to be honest with me, who are you? Tell me, I won't tell anyone,” said Antonio, getting closer to his sister-in-law.

“You're drunk, I don't know what you're talking about, let me go if you don't want me to scream!”

“Your name is Elena, isn't it? Your name is Elena? I know it's you, I know it.” He said by the time he was hugging her in a needy way.

“Let go of me!” she shouted.

And just at that moment, to her luck and misfortune, her husband arrived.

“Let her go, asshole!”

And with a single movement, he shook him off and threw him away from her.

“What were you doing to her? What were you trying to do?” asked Zein.

Antonio didn't answer. That was enough for Zein to throw himself to his own brother and punched him. Erika all she could do was scream desperately.

From Valeria's office the screams were heard. She still could not recover from what she had heard.

“Ma'am, someone is screaming!”

“It's that stupid Erika.”

“Should we go?”

Valeria thought things over, if she really wanted to destroy this woman she had to be very careful and at the same time not raise a single suspicion.

“Let's go.”

After that, the two left the office and went to the place where the screams were heard. More men were already coming up ahead of them.

When Valeria reached the room she realized that it was her two sons fighting.

“What happened here? Zein, why are you hitting your brother?” Valeria's gaze fell on her sons' faces, a little blood was coming out of their lips.

She did not avoid thinking about Erika, she was crying, she knew it was her fault. By that time, she couldn't hate her anymore.

“It was your son, mother,” said Zein pointing to Antonio. He had already been separated from his brother by the men.

“What, what's wrong?”

“Antonio came into the room with my wife, he wanted to do something to her.”

Valeria smiled incredulously. “No, no, that can't be.”

“Deny it, Antonio!”

“I'm not denying it because she is Elena, I know that!” Antonio attacked.

“Elena, who is Elena? You're crazy!”

Those words made Valeria remember what Tomas had said, now she could understand why that maid and the woman in front of her looked so much alike.

If she really wanted to destroy Erika, she had to be friendly. No one could suspect what she had in store for her. She would use the same method she used with that young man named Marco who wanted to take revenge on them.

“Erika, are you all right?” Valeria asked in a friendly manner.

Erika was surprised at her mother-in-law's treatment.

“Come with me, please, let these savages settle their differences, it's not your fault.”

A little distrustful, Erika walked to where her mother-in-law was waiting for her with open arms.

“Come with me, don't be afraid, explain to me what happened.”

And so the two of them walked to Valeria's room. Tomas stayed behind laughing. He already knew his madam well enough to know what she was up to, because that was Valeria's way, every step she took was not in vain.

“Take a seat, please, how are you feeling?” Valeria asked, being friendly.

“Fine.”

“Relax, you don't have to tell me what happened. You must be very nervous. I promise I'll talk to my son. Tell me, since when has he ever bothered you like this?”

Erika felt her mother-in-law was being honest so she decided to speak up. “Antonio claims to confuse me with someone who looks a lot like me, he calls me Elena.”

It was until that moment that Erika remembered her sister. Someone very similar to her had arrived in that town, there were many rumors about that, could that person be her sister? The thought alone made her get up from her place. She could not tell anyone about what she thought because it was precisely because of the people they had been separated at birth. The villain could be in front of her and damn it!, she was not wrong.

“Is something wrong, my dear?”

Erika looked at her with a nervous smile. “No, it's just that the memories from a moment ago came back.”

Valeria smiled reassuringly. “I told you not to worry about it. Are you feeling better?”

“Yes.”

“Good because there's something I'd like to talk to you about and I think it's time since you're always so busy.”

“Of course, ma'am, let's talk,” she said wanting to forget about what she might have discovered at that moment.

“I was told that today you held the meeting with the farmers to change some things that I didn't realize.”

“Oh! Yes, I did it behind your back because, because...”.

Valeria smiled. “You don't have to explain anything to me. After all, being madam of a whole village is not always good, I forget so many things. It's good to know that I have such an efficient daughter-in-law I can trust.”

“I didn't mean to do this behind your back.”

“Relax, I told you there's nothing wrong with you doing it that way. What I want to ask you is very simple.”

The truth is that Erika never really believed that the great Mrs. Valladolid would act that way. Perhaps Erika herself had been wrong to judge her mother-in-law so harshly.

“What is it all about?”

“I want to be present in the change of policies, I also have something to tell you, I want to give you more opportunities. And I want to be close to my people. do you think you can do that for me? I only ask you to give me the credit for my surprise, I swear that the rest of the credit is yours.”

Erika smiled. Her mother-in-law was not a bad woman after all.

“I want the change of policies to be made tomorrow, since I know you already have them ready. I want all my workers to meet in the rooms adjoining the company. I want to see them all before my three o'clock meeting starts, okay?”

Erika smiled. “Thank you very much, ma'am, thank you very much.”

And without further ado, Erika threw herself into her mother-in-law's arms without being able to see the smile of victory and mockery on her face. It was a shame that that night was going to be the last of her life. It was a shame that she didn't have many hours left to live.

A new day that came like few others, a dawn that was going to be the most tragic in that town, the one that nobody was going to forget, from her place, Valeria could already see the clear dawn being painted gray due to the smoke billows that would be born in a couple of hours, she had everything under control. All because it was only enough to have people on her side so that she could continue with the next move.

Eleven o'clock in the morning. At noon everything was going to change.

“Is everything ready?” she asked Tomas.

“Yes, my lady. The chief of police has already been alerted of what is going to happen, he is not going to say anything because I already shut his mouth with some money.”

Valeria smiled. “Tell my driver to take me to the company. Make sure Erika gets to the meeting together with the workers.”

“My lady, are you aware that many farmers are going to die?”

“Of course I am aware, Tomas. We will just give a little money to the families and that's it, you don't have to worry much, we will pay for their funerals and that's it,” she laughed. Only a woman as cruel as her could talk like that when she was about to kill so many people. “Shall we go?”

“Let's go, my lady.”

It's about to be noon. The van in which Erika was traveling had just arrived near the company, where the farmers and all the staff were meeting to talk about the new changes that were going to be implemented in the place.

Erika couldn't be happier, she had the support of her husband and her mother-in-law, the same support she never thought she would get.

From the van she could see how people were beginning to arrive to occupy the room, all of them seemed very happy, and how could they not if they had been promised higher salaries?

Erika smiled at the attitude of the men. Little by little this town was going to begin to change.

“Mrs. Valladolid, don't you want to go in yet?”

“No, I have to wait for Mrs. Valladolid so we can make our appearance together. It's already twelve o'clock and she still hasn't shown up.”

“Do you want me to dial her?”

“No, no, the lady must be very busy.”

And as if she had just been called, Erika's driver's cell phone started ringing.

“Go ahead, this is driver Gutiérrez speaking.”

“Mrs. Valladolid is running a little late, she will arrive half an hour later. Please send Mrs. Valladolid in.”

“Right.” And without further ado, he hung up the call.

“What happened?” Erika asked.

“Mrs. Valladolid is late. We have to go in so as not to keep people waiting.”

“You're right, let's go.”

And that was how Erika faced her new reality, the reality she might not get out of alive.

With confident steps she was able to enter the hall where all the farmers were already waiting for her with a big celebration. Everyone could now trust her as their new madam. Unfortunately, that smile of the farmers and of Erika herself was going to be erased. Erika was beginning to see the future shining, she was going to find her sister, she swore.

“Our new boss has come in!” shouted one of the men as they all made merry.

Never before had Erika felt so loved, except by her husband.

“The new madam of the village!” they continued.

Erika smiled as she rarely did. It was these people she really wanted and needed to be happy, but she didn't intend to take her mother-in-law's place either.

Unfortunately, their happiness was not destined to last forever. Sooner rather than later only death was going to find them.