Héctor.
I said his name in my head again.
He was always polite.
Always respectful.
Too respectful, sometimes.
The kind of man who never raised his voice.
Who never showed too much.
Who always stood just a little behind Daniela at family gatherings.
Watching.
Listening.
I swallowed.
“Did you hear anything else?” I asked.
Emiliano thought.
His brows furrowed.
Then—
“She said… ‘It has to happen tonight.’”
The car seemed to shrink around me.
“And Héctor?” I asked.
“I couldn’t hear him,” Emiliano said. “Just her.”
I nodded slowly.
Then I pulled into a gas station.
Bright lights.
People.
Noise.
Something normal.
Something grounding.
I turned off the engine.
For a moment, neither of us moved.
Then I turned to him.
“Listen to me carefully,” I said.
He looked at me, eyes still red.
