And today was the day she would stand in front of the judge who would be deciding her fate.
Valentina dressed carefully in a demure black jacket, blouse and skirt—the same outfit she’d worn to her father’s funeral a year earlier, and the only good clothes she’d taken when she’d fled her marital home. It was also all she had that was appropriate, and it somehow felt like exactly what she was supposed to wear.
There was a knock at the door then, and Valentina looked at herself in the mirror. She held her head high, considered her appearance, and realised how much more mature she looked. Her face had lost some of its fullness, and the eyes staring back at her seemed older. It didn’t surprise her though, after everything that had happened, but she did have to remind herself just how young she still was.
‘I’m ready,’ she said, when she finally opened the door.
The lawyer looked her up and down, seeming happy with her appearance.
‘You’re feeling prepared?’ he asked.
‘I am. I’m ready for this to be over so that I can move on with my life.’
He gestured for her to go ahead, and they walked downstairs and to the waiting car. It was only a short drive, and when they arrived at the court, she was surprised to see a crowd outside.
‘Is there something happening here today?’ she asked. ‘It looks like these people have gathered for a protest.’
She looked back at Lorenzo when he didn’t answer her, surprised to see him smiling.
‘Valentina, all these people worked for your father. They’re here for you.’
‘For me?’ she asked, incredulously.
‘I made a few calls, and it turns out your father was even more loved than perhaps we realised, and all of these employees knew that it was you whom he intended to take over the business one day.’
She stared back out at the crowd as the car pulled up at the kerb.
‘It may have helped that I told them just how much your father generously bequeathed them in his will,’ Lorenzo said with a chuckle. ‘And that you intended on reinstating that wish. But I think we can divulge information on a need-to-know basis.’
If Valentina could have, she would have thrown her arms around the man beside her, but before she knew it the door was being opened for her and she was stepping out onto the pavement. The crowd saw her immediately, and all of the men took off their hats as she approached, holding them to their chests and calling out greetings to her.
‘Thank you all for coming,’ she said, raising her voice even as it began to wobble. ‘I know you all meant so much to my father, Basilio, and I only wish he could have seen how many of you came today to support me.’
Each man greeted her as she passed, and Valentina was pleased for the distraction as she entered the courtroom and saw her mother already seated, straight-backed and looking as elegant as ever. She was clutching a handkerchief to her breast, as if she might burst into tears at any moment, and Valentina knew then that she was about to see a performance like no other.
‘Keep walking and don’t make eye contact with her,’ her lawyer said. ‘If she addresses you, nod your head and say hello in return. Remember, we want you to seem like the better person at all times, no matter what performance she delivers.’
Valentina felt an anger she’d never known before flaring inside her, but she forced it down, knowing this was not the time or place. She would have her chance to show her mother how much she’d hurt her, but it wasn’t now. Now, she was to be the perfect daughter.
And when the judge entered and they all stood, she realised that her mother wasn’t the only one capable of a performance. If all those people were anything to go by, she was doing what was right, honouring her father, and she didn’t intend on leaving the courtroom without what she’d come for.
An hour later, Valentina had her chance to speak, and she turned her back slightly so that she couldn’t see her mother as she did so. Her only distraction was the arrival of a very familiar face—José—and it warmed her heart to see the man who’d meant so much to her father there in the room to show his support.Although she couldn’t help but search the other faces for Felipe, hoping that he might have slipped through the door with his father, but if he was there, she couldn’t see him.
‘The contents of your father’s will are being challenged here today, Mrs Ruiz, and we’ve already heard petitions about whether he was or was not of sound mind at the time of writing his last will and testament,’ the judge said.
‘Excuse me, your honour, but it’s Miss Santiago,’ she said, saying what they’d rehearsed countless times in her lawyer’s office.
The lawyer looked down his glasses at her.
‘Your honour, my daughter is lying! She’s a married woman!’
Valentina stood patiently as her mother was sanctioned by the judge, before being asked, ‘Could you please advise the court of your marital status? I was expecting your husband to be here challenging the contents of the will with you.’
‘I recently received an annulment,’ she said. ‘My lawyer has the documents here to show you. Unfortunately, the marriage was arranged by my mother as part of her plan to ensure my father’s wishes were not adhered to, hence the annulment.’
Valentina stood patiently as her lawyer presented the document, breathing a sigh of relief when the judge addressed her again.
‘Apologies, Miss Santiago. I would very much like to hear what you have to say about your father’s wishes, and why you would like me to uphold his original will.’
