Chapter 34 A Legacy Of Lies

• Mariana’s hands trembled as she held the printed photograph, her breath caught in her throat. The grainy image on the screen had been no mistake, this was her father. A younger version, but unmistakable. He stood beside Diego’s father, their postures rigid, their expressions unreadable. The past clawed at her like a waking nightmare.
• A journalist who believed in justice and never turned a blind eye to wrongdoing, her father had always been a man of quiet strength. However, the authorities had maintained that his death was a "accident" and that the circumstances surrounding it had never made sense. The truth threatened to shatter her, but now the pieces were coming together.
• Her mind raced as she rummaged through old files, searching for anything that could confirm what she already knew deep down. Pages yellowed with age rustled beneath her fingers, until she found it, an article her father had never published. The headline draft sent a fresh wave of nausea through her: "The Fall of the Valencia Empire: A Legacy of Corruption."