Chapter 2 - The Morning Silence
The bright morning sun filtered through the dusty curtains, completely failing to wake Mauricio on time.
He rolled over in the large bed, suddenly realizing that the house was completely and utterly silent.
There was no sound of the coffee grinder, no clinking of ceramic mugs, and absolutely no smell of freshly baked bread.
For a decade, that warm, comforting aroma had been his daily alarm clock.
He stumbled into the kitchen, rubbing his tired eyes, only to find the room entirely empty and completely cold.
His dirty dinner plate from the night before was still sitting exactly where he had left it on the dining table.
Mauricio felt a sudden flash of hot anger, convinced that Camila was purposefully trying to test his patience.
He quickly dressed himself in a wrinkled shirt and stormed out of the house, slamming the heavy front door behind him.
When he returned late that evening, the house was entirely dark and Camila was still nowhere to be found.
The days slowly passed, and the heavy, uncomfortable silence in the house rapidly evolved into a permanent habit.
Camila started leaving the house before the sun even rose and returning long after midnight.
She stopped doing his laundry, she stopped cleaning the dusty floors, and she never cooked another meal.
Mauricio was forced to eat greasy street food every night, his stomach constantly churning with regret and stubborn pride.
He absolutely refused to be the first one to break the silence and apologize for his cruel words.
One rainy evening, he was furiously digging through the kitchen trash can looking for a lost utility bill.
Instead of the missing bill, his hands brushed against a crumpled, heavy piece of parchment paper.
He carefully smoothed out the wrinkled document on the kitchen counter, his eyes scanning the dense legal text.
It was an approved construction permit for a massive commercial kitchen renovation in the historic downtown district.
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The permit was completely paid in full, but the signature at the bottom did not belong to his wife.
The massive project was legally authorized by Arturo Vargas, the wealthiest and most ruthless real estate developer in the entire state.
