“I know.

“Then you should respect them.

I swallowed hard.

“Respecting them doesn’t mean allowing my wife to carry everything.

Isabel got up from the sofa.

“Are we the bad guys in history now?”

“I didn’t say that.

“But you’re hinting at it.

Carmen chimed in:

“Lucia never complained.

Those words hit me hard.

Because it was true.

Lucía never complained.

He never raised his voice.

She never said that anything hurt or that she was tired.

But suddenly I understood something very simple.

Just because someone doesn’t complain… doesn’t mean they aren’t suffering.

I looked into the kitchen.

The light was still on.

Lucía was surely listening to everything.

I took a deep breath again.

“I’m not here to discuss who has done the most for the family,” I said. I’m just saying something very clear.