Chapter 67 - The mistakes of the past

Fernando

He positioned himself behind me in such a way that his panting near my neck bothered me more than the incessant dripping.

"Could you move away from me a little? I'm not covered in honey, and you're not a bee," I asked, trying to push him away.

"Of course! But tell me, what do you see on the other side?" he asked curiously.

"A door ajar and the dim light of a lamp," I replied, convinced of what I was seeing.

"And who's inside?" he asked again.

"I only recognized Lucia Ortiz's voice," I said, "but there are other people with her, maybe two or three, I can't see clearly who they are."

"What a shameless woman! What are we going to do?" asked Raul, worried.

"We have to go there. Get ready to storm the place," I said with determination.

"What if she's with soldiers?" he asked, showing fear.

"Don't be a coward. What soldier could beat the two of us together?" I replied, positioning myself to listen to their conversation.

"It's not about being a coward or not, your friend here just doesn't want to die. I hope you're thinking the same thing," replied Raul.

"Then stop mumbling like a rat and react. She'll hardly be accompanied by soldiers, in fact, I'm sure the biggest soldier is my brother, which would be ironic. So grab your gun and get ready, we're going to surprise them," I ordered, keeping my creativity sharp.

Raul crossed the path in front of me, showing his usual nonchalance and sloppiness. His sturdy shoulder bumped into the torch, which fell to the wet ground, causing me to mentally let out a few swear words. What if someone had heard us and was coming our way? Fortunately, my fear was limited to that moment. Raul escaped unscathed, and the flame of the torch didn't go out when it touched the damp ground.

"Sorry."

"Be more careful what you do. Now, check to see if anyone is approaching." I took the torch in my hands again.

"There's no one approaching."

I sighed with relief, releasing the air that was trapped in my lungs. As long as Raul Torres' slip wasn't forgotten, I wouldn't be able to calm down. He took the first steps towards the other door, the last one in that secret passage. Whoever was on the other side would be confined to that corner. Suddenly, we approached the ajar door and, with one agile movement, Raul drew his gun and entered the secret room.

"What are you doing here, Raul?" My abominable brother's voice echoed in the air, laden with fear, as he complained to Raul.

I had suspected this for days, but now I knew for sure. Even so, I stayed outside, waiting patiently for any slip-up from Filipe Casanova.

"Someone wants to see you again." There was definitely something unusual about that scene. Where were the other people who had suddenly disappeared without a trace? This situation was becoming increasingly intriguing.

"Ah, sit down in one of these chairs and relax, have a drink, it's been a long walk down this slippery corridor to get here." I heard Filipe's voice coaxing my soldier.

"I don't need anything that's here. Were you celebrating something?"

"What?" Filipe laughed.

"I'd say you've been in company for a while. You don't have a mouth enough to drink in all those glasses."

"This is my refuge, there's no one here but me, maybe my ghosts, believe me, they exist and even interact with me."

"Let's find out what you're hiding here, don't try to fool us."

"Don't tell me you're also accompanied by a ghost?" said Filipe, trying to divert the focus, but what he didn't realize was that Raul wasn't as easy as he thought.

"Say ghost again, and I'll lock you in here forever, but don't be alarmed, after all, it's your refuge."

"Let's take it easy, soldier. By the way, how did you find my refuge? Are you carrying someone besides your gun?"

"I've already told you that someone wants to say hello to you."

I took a deep breath and entered the room, holding tightly to the torch that was still crackling. I was surprised by the fear on Filipe's face when he saw me in front of him. His eyes widened at my surprising presence in that gloomy basement.

I, who know him like no one else, knew very well that he was speechless at my blatant revelation. It was clear that my entry into the room had had an unexpected and negative impact on their conversation. The look of surprise on his face confirmed that my arrival had been a corrosive poison. I knew deep down that I had achieved my goal by witnessing Filipe's reaction, even if, unfortunately, my plan didn't work exactly as I had wished, because Lucia was no longer there.

"Now it's time to reveal the reason for my visit and surprise you even more, my dear brother."

"You! Don't tell me you've both lost your way?" Filipe replied and gave us both an evasive smile. "This is a dangerous road, my brother."

He stood up and closed the book he had been reading before I arrived, or perhaps he was pretending to be reading.

"No games, Filipe. Where's Lucia Ortiz?" I asked incisively.

"How long will your stud friend keep pointing that gun at me? I'm still your brother, the duke's brother."

I gestured to Raul, who promptly obeyed me.

"What did Lucia do to persuade you to change sides?"

"Speaking of your ex-fiancée, we haven't seen each other for a long time."

"That's why you'll never be a man, you're a cheat without honor. She was here just a few seconds ago!" I shouted, throwing the torch away from me.

"Your friend knows this is my complex. After all, what would that woman be doing here with me? Don't tell me that my kind brother assumes that she and I are having a love affair."

"Whether you're having a love affair is insignificant to me. Two snakes go together, be happy."

"How did you find me?" Filipe asked, revealing his true facial features.

"It doesn't matter, you know very well how we got here. Don't you remember that the other day we met in the library, your body was sweaty, and you were exhausted?"

"I understand perfectly, but I didn't even think you'd notice how tired I was. The path over these wet stones is really exhausting. Anyway, congratulations on finding my refuge, but that woman wasn't here."

"You know that she and her cronies hurt my fiancée. And if Lucia was here, I suspect that bastard Jaime was too." I raised my hand and pointed at him. "I really hope you're not lying to me, Filipe. Where are the people who were with you before we arrived?"

"I want you to be happy, my brother. Everything changed after that day."

"What are you talking about?" I retorted, changing my voice.

"Don't tell me Your Grace has already forgotten? I'll remind you." He looked strangely into a dark corner, next to the stone wall on my left.

What did he have in mind? Filipe is the master of mischief.

"I'm waiting for your answer."

"I bitterly regretted planning Isabela's kidnapping, but you knew that, didn't you? You even agreed with me, I mean, all before you felt this overwhelming love for her."

"What are you saying?" Raul Torres asked.

"Oh, your soldier didn't know that? Forgive your brother for revealing our secret, I had no intention of harming you, my brother. But that tall man is just a soldier, so don't worry."

I cleared my throat. All I didn't want was for Raul to discover my initial mistake.