“We broke the window…” Lucas sobbed, clutching his apron. “We had to break it to reach you. Dad locked us in.”

Clara’s heart stopped for a moment. They had been hurt for her. They had walked through broken glass just to keep her from leaving. The magnitude of that love hit her harder than any insult.

At that moment, a menacing shadow fell over them. Alejandro arrived, breathing heavily, red with anger and confusion. His eyes, poisoned by Valeria’s lies, saw only a thief manipulating his children.

“Let them go!” Alejandro roared, trying to snatch Mateo from Clara’s arms. “Get your filthy hands off my children! I’ll throw you in jail for kidnapping!”

“No, sir! Be careful!” Clara cried, protecting the boy’s injured hands. “You’re hurting him! He has glass in his hands!”

Alejandro stopped, confused by the protective ferocity of the woman he had just dismissed. He looked down and saw the blood. He saw the deep cuts. A father’s panic momentarily replaced his fury.

“What did you do to them?” he whispered, horrified.

“She didn’t do anything!” Lucas shouted. The timider twin stood before his father with the courage of a giant, his fists clenched and filled with rage. “You’re the dangerous one! You and that witch Valeria!”

The mention of his fiancée’s name in that tone was like a bucket of ice water for Alejandro.