Episode 5

Rafael walked into the cemetery, keeping a good distance, following her.

He saw her sit in front of her mother's grave, taking some things out of her cloth bag.

She began to clean her mother's tombstone with deep despair.

He got as close to her as he could, hiding behind a tree, so as not to be seen. From there, he could hear everything she was saying.

Victoria - You always liked to arrange the garden, I'm sorry the house is a mess. She starts to cry and get emotional.

"You must have been very scared... being alone in that clinic."

"I didn't stop thinking about you for a single day... She kept pulling out the weeds with her hands."

Seeing her cry, he took a handkerchief from his pocket, took two steps to try to give it to her. But he couldn't help feeling something similar to fear when approaching.

"I miss you so much, so much..."

"It's clean now."

She took a small bottle from her cloth bag, put water in it, and placed some daisies in it.

"I'm sorry, the flower shop only had daisies and carnations."

"They didn't have white roses, I promise to get them for you next time."

He couldn't keep watching her and left the place.

Outside, Santiago was waiting for him in the car.

Rafael - Let's go, please!

He lay back in the car, holding his head.

Santiago - Is something wrong, sir?

Rafael - I saw her up close...

"I shouldn't have gotten so close..."

He grabbed his head, overwhelmed with everything.

Santiago - What are you going to do, sir...?

Rafael - I don't know...

"To start... I want you to arrange for someone to come every other day to clean her mother's tombstone."

"And change the water in the vase very often."

Santiago - Understood, sir, I will personally take care of it.

Rafael - Let's go home.

At 4 PM, Victoria was already arriving at her house. In the distance, she sees some neighbors hanging around her house. When they see her, they leave.

Victoria - What are they doing... she says under her breath.

Arriving at her house, she sees garbage in the yard.

"Ufff. She turns and sees her next-door neighbor looking at her through the window."

"Why are they doing this?..."

She opens the door of her house, puts her things down, and starts picking up the garbage outside.

She spent a while doing that until she went to take a bath, made herself some chamomile tea, and lay down on the bed, trying to close her eyes and relax, to try not to dream or have a different dream, but it was always something similar.

She turned on many lights and candles, unable to avoid falling asleep, a memory invaded her.

Man - Walk, let's go.

Victoria - Why? I didn't do anything...

Man - It will be a lesson for answering me back!

"Don't forget here that you are a number, just another delinquent like anyone else!"

"Here you are 98723..."

Victoria - Let me go, you're hurting me!

She walks with her hands handcuffed behind her back, walking through a long, dark corridor.

Reaching the end of the corridor, he opens a rusty metal door that creaks.

Man - You'll stay here for 2 days, that will bring down that high and mighty attitude you have!! He takes off the handcuffs and pushes her inside.

"There's only light here at 12 PM and 8 PM, when it's dinnertime."

Victoria - No, please, don't leave me here...

"I won't say anything! He slams the door in her face."

"Please!!!! She bangs on the door."

The smell was terrible and inexplicable, there was a type of mattress, a hole (which served as a toilet).

A while later, they had brought her a piece of bread and some white rice.

Man - Eat, and the cell must be left as clean as you received it.

Victoria - Please... let me go back to my cell, I won't say anything again...

This man slams the door in her face.

Victoria - Please!!

"Please!"

She fell asleep crying. In the middle of the night, the light was off. The door suddenly opens, a flashlight shines in her face, blinding her.

"What's happening...?"

Man - Woo... how beautiful you are...

He enters the cell with her and closes the door.

Victoria - Let me go, noooo!

(...)

"end of memory-"

She woke up suddenly, all sweaty.

"God, when will I be able to sleep peacefully??? She began to have a crying fit."

"I can't take it anymore...."

She stayed in a fetal position for a while until she got up and started cleaning her whole house.

As soon as it dawned, at 6 AM, she put a book, her cell phone, and a thermal mug with some coffee in her cloth bag. She left her house walking to a nearby park.

She spent the whole morning under a tree reading. In the distance, Rafael's men were following her.

On the other side of the city, Adam was in his office working.

Employee - Are you going out, sir...?

Adam - Yes, I have to go see Monica.

"We argued yesterday and I promised I would invite her to dinner!"

"So today I will leave early to go pick her up at her house."

Employee - Ok sir...

He worked a little longer, and after noon he was already leaving his office. He was in the car, he stopped near the center to buy a bouquet of flowers.

He bought a bouquet of tulips and went back to the car. When he put the bouquet on the passenger seat, he saw Victoria Ross's file, he couldn't help but give it a brief read...

"Her house is nearby..."

"I'll just deviate for a moment. He checked the exact address of the house."

"Calle Independencia 1785, it's 15 blocks from here... he threw the bouquet back and drove to her house."

Arriving, he parked on the opposite sidewalk. After 5 minutes, she was walking to her house. When she was about to enter the patio of her house, he quickly got out of the car.

"Miss Ross... she was paralyzed when she saw him."

Victoria - What are you doing here?

Adam - I see you remember me....

Victoria - Get out of my house!! He walks backwards, trying to step on her patio.

"Go away!! She backs away."

Adam - Calm down, I was just wondering how you were?

"How... she interrupts him."

Victoria - How am I?

"Why do you want to know..?, why do you care!"

"Did you come to enjoy yourself, to gloat..?"

"Get out!!!"

Adam - Please... I... was doing my job.

Victoria - Well, you did a shitty job, I didn't do anything, I was innocent!

"Now get out of my house. She got upset and ran into her house."

Upon entering, she threw herself on the floor, unable to control herself, she started to cry.

Adam stayed outside her house for a while, he could hear her crying a little, a terrible anguish overwhelmed him. He sat in the car for a few minutes thinking about her. When he realized and remembered, he had to stop by Monica's house.

He started the car and soon he was outside her apartment.

Monica - You're late...

"What's that...?"

Adam - Mm what?

"The flowers...? I brought them for you."

Monica - Ha! You don't know me very well!

"You know I hate tulips, right?"

Adam - Ufff no, I didn't know...

"Can you please let it go, I'm not in the mood now..."

Monica - What are you here for then??

Adam - You're right!

"What for? He grabs the bouquet, throws it on the floor, and gets in the car."