The new version simply smiled.
“You’re mistaken, ma’am.”
I pulled a document from my bag.
My lawyer placed it on the table.
“Before signing,” I said, “I think everyone should see this.”
Alejandro’s lawyer frowned.
Even the judge looked confused.
But he allowed the document to be presented.
The silence in the room grew heavier.
Alejandro’s lawyer began reading.
His expression slowly changed.
First confusion.
Then shock.
Then something close to fear.
Alejandro frowned.
“What’s going on?”
The lawyer slowly looked up.
“The company shares…”
“What about them?”
The lawyer swallowed.
“Sixty-eight percent… are registered under your wife’s name.”
The room erupted with whispers.
Alejandro shot to his feet.
“That’s impossible!”
But it wasn’t.
I looked at him calmly.
“Do you remember the early days?” I asked quietly. “When we opened the first store.”
He said nothing.
“You were out delivering products all day,” I continued. “I was the one registering the business, opening the accounts, signing the contracts.”
The silence deepened.
“I always believed we were partners,” I said softly. “That’s why I never mentioned that the majority of the shares were in my name.”
His father stood up furiously.
“This is a trap!”
The judge slammed his gavel.
“Silence!”
My lawyer spoke calmly.
“Everything here is completely legal.”
Alejandro slowly sank back into his chair.
His face had turned pale.
“So… you’re going to take everything?”
The question hung in the air.
Everyone looked at me.
I took a deep breath.
And then I shook my head.
“No.”
The answer shocked everyone.
Even my own lawyer.
I looked Alejandro straight in the eyes.
“I don’t want to destroy what we built.”
He frowned.
“Then… what do you want?”
I thought for a moment.
Then I answered.
“Justice.”
I placed another document on the table.
“We’ll divide the company equally.”
His family’s eyes widened.
“You keep the northern stores.”
“I’ll take the southern ones.”
“But from today forward… our lives will be completely separate.”
Alejandro stared at me like he was trying to understand something he had never noticed before.
Then finally, he signed the divorce papers.
The sound of the pen on paper echoed strangely.
Like a door quietly closing.
The judge officially declared the divorce final.
People began to leave.
But Alejandro remained seated, staring at the table.
When I stood to go, I heard his voice.
“Wait.”
I paused.
“What is it?”
His voice sounded different now.
Quieter.
More tired.
“I never thanked you.”
I slowly turned around.
“For what?”
He let out a small, bitter laugh.
“For being there in the beginning. Without you… none of this would have happened.”
For the first time in years, he sounded sincere.
And strangely, it no longer hurt.
It just felt… distant.
“Take care, Alejandro,” I said.
Then I walked out of the courthouse.
The Monterrey sun was bright overhead.
Warm air brushed against my face.
And for the first time in years…
I could breathe freely.
Three months later, life changed quickly.
The southern stores thrived under my leadership.
But this time, I did things differently.
I hired professional managers.
I worked fewer hours.
And for the first time in a decade… I started living.
I took yoga classes.
I began reading again.
I even traveled.
One afternoon I was sitting in a quiet café in downtown Monterrey.
I was reading when a man sat down across from me.
I looked up.
He was in his forties.
Simple white shirt.
A calm smile.
“Hello,” he said. “I’m Daniel.”
I frowned slightly.
“Do we know each other?”
He smiled.
“Not exactly.”
He pointed to the newspaper on the table.
The front page featured an article about my company.
“But it seems like half of Monterrey knows who you are now.”
I laughed.
“That’s a little embarrassing.”
Daniel chuckled.
“Well, if it helps… that’s not why I came over.”
“Then why?”
He shrugged.
“Because you’ve been staring at the same page of that book for twenty minutes.”
I looked down.
He was right.
I burst out laughing.
For some reason, talking to him felt easy.
