“What did you call me?” she snapped.
Junjun lowered his head. “Sorry… Sir Lance said we should be polite.”
The room went silent.
Lance exhaled slowly. “Mother,” he said, “you wanted grandchildren worthy of the family name. These children have more dignity than most adults I know.”
Doña Consuelo stood abruptly. “Enough! I will not be lectured in my own home.”
She turned to Maya, her eyes sharp. “You still haven’t explained why you hid the children’s father—or fathers. There must be something you’re still hiding.”
Maya stiffened.
For a long moment, she said nothing.
Then she whispered, “Because one of them… belongs to someone powerful.”
Everyone froze.
Lance’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?”
Maya took a deep breath, as if opening a door she had sealed shut for years. “Rosa didn’t tell me at first. She was afraid. The man was married. Influential. He promised to help… then threatened her when she got pregnant.”
She turned to Doña Consuelo.
“He is one of your closest friends.”
