Face to face I

- Mama? Maria extended her arms to me.

I felt my heart break into a thousand pieces and I went towards her, being pulled into the house. The door closed and Daniel passed the key.

- What do you do here? - He asked.

Maria Lua followed with her arms towards me and Daniel stopped me from getting close to her. It was enough for her to start crying vehemently.

Celine came towards me and handed me the girl:

- I hate her crying. She is spoiled and cunning.

I closed my eyes, smelling her hair wafting through my nostrils. Her skin was warm, the blood circulating in her body, her cheeks rosy.

She laid her head on my shoulder and stopped crying immediately.

- Mom is here, my love.

- Daddy? She looked into my eyes.

- Daddy too! – I said, seeing a smile on her face, the kind that made me lose my mind and donate a kidney without thinking twice.

I wiped the tears that were still on her face and asked:

- Are you hungry?

She nodded.

- What the fuck are you doing here? – Daniel immediately went to a counter and took a revolver, putting bullets inside.

- Daniel, I just want to get my daughter and get out of here, please. - I spoke.

- You think I don't know they're after me? He looked at me with hate.

- How can you be so stupid? Celine asked.

I looked more closely at her. The hair was loose. He was wearing jeans and a wrinkled white shirt. Feet were in sneakers. I've never seen her dressed like that.

- What are you doing here? – I asked, confused.

- Nothing that interests you. – Daniel answered for her.

- Fuck, what's going on here? – I was trying to understand.

- Where's Hector? Did they bring the police? Daniel was panting, pacing back and forth, gun in hand.

I pressed Maria Lua against me and said in a low voice:

- Be very quiet, okay? Everything will work out... Mom promises.

- What about daddy? She raised her little hands, wanting to make herself understood.

- Daddy's here. - I heard outside the door. – Open, Daniel, I'm alone. And unarmed.

Daniel looked at me and laughed, mockingly:

- You can only be crazy!

- No, we just want our daughter.

- If they really wanted the girl, they weren't making fools of themselves and trying to save themselves from passing me the money.

- Open for Heitor, please. – Asked. "Let's talk and everything will be fine."

- No, it won't be okay. Celine said. - I warned you, dammit. - She looked at Daniel - But you never listen to me.

- You... - I looked at the two, not knowing the relationship that united them somehow.

Hector started knocking hard on the door. Daniel took me by the neck, without making much effort and turned me towards the door, pointing the gun at my head.

- Open the fucking door. – He ordered Celine, who removed Malu from my lap, making her cry again.

- Mom... - She stretched her arms towards me.

Celine opened the door and Hector stood still, looking into my eyes. Without saying anything, he slowly raised his arms and took a step into the house. Celine looked across the porch, to both sides, and closed the door.

- Did you call the police? – She asked Hector.

- What the fuck are you doing, Celine? Are you behind my daughter's kidnapping? Hector was confused.

- She's not your daughter... She's a bastard and you know it.

- Don't say that again, or I won't have mercy on you, Celine.

- I don't want your pity, Hector.

- What is your relationship? He looked at both of them, as surprised as I was.

- Daddy... - Maria tried to throw herself into his arms, the crying starting to get insistent.

- She is sleepy. - He said. "Let me pick her up and I'll put her to sleep..."

She shook her head, stunned. I knew Malu's crying bothered her, especially when she was sleepy. He hoped that would break Celine's sanity.

- No... - She walked away, with Malu in her lap.

- Daniel, let go of my wife.

- Hector, why are you such an idiot? I just wanted the money!

- And then, Daniel? When it was over you would want more and more. It snowballs and we both know it. Barbara and I came here to sit down and discuss what we can do.

- What is your relationship with Salma anyway? I asked, feeling the gun to my head.

I could tell I was scared. In fact, I really had to be scared to death. But I think my biggest fear was something happening to my daughter, who was in the hands of a Celine completely different from the one I knew. Honestly, if I took the shot I would die and that's it. But seeing something happen to my daughter would be the end of my life, just the same.

- The relationship you've always fucking seen. - He said, shouting.

I touched the gun and reached down slowly, hands shaking, without him objecting. I turned towards him, calmly and faced him, deep in the blue eyes:

- Why all this? Fuck, when I first met you, you were a hardworking man... Fuck, you had two jobs, you worked so hard to suddenly decide to get rich at Heitor's expense? It never crossed my mind that you could be this despicable being. I came to like you...

He laughed, ironically:

- No, you never liked me.

- I knew there was something wrong with you from the beginning. But I liked it, yes. That doesn't mean he had ulterior motives with it.

- I was never the man you knew, Babi.

- Like this?