Page 192 of When Lies Unfold

Abuelita was certainly right all along. Fate really is in control.

I never anticipated remarrying, let alone marrying another narco. But fate taught me a powerful lesson: to never underestimate it or the surprises—and gifts—it has in store.

I could’ve never imagined that after all the suffering, heartache, and pain, I would experience an abundance of pure joy.

I never imagined I’d find love. That I’d be a mother. That I’d have a family—one supportive and loving in its own unique way. A family made up of individuals who’d risk their lives to defend one another. One that’s made up of those not blood-related but bonded by loyalty, love, and respect.

I never imagined any of those possibilities coming true, but they have. All because of Santiago Hernández, Central America’s most ruthless cartel leader.

Notoriously violent. Cunning. Powerful. Those are all characteristics he’s known to emulate. But to me, he’ll always be Santy, my beloved husband.

The man with the little ponytail…and the biggest heart.

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ALMA HERNÁNDEZ

A Few Decades Later

When you find yourself entrenched deep in the shadows, it’s for a reason. There’s a lesson to be learned. It may not seem like it at the time, but fate always has a purpose.

I can attest to this because it led me to your father. The first time we met, other forces were already in motion. When we met again, we were far different people. We needed to rebuild ourselves to be better, stronger, and more resilient.

We each found our inner strength through circumstances intent on destroying us. But we didn’t succumb.

Everyone has to deal with traumatic experiences. But if you let it define you, you’ve lost the battle entirely. Instead, use it as fuel to rise higher and to better yourself the way you want.

Remember, my love: Always pave your own way, and don’t be afraid of those shadows. Make them fear you instead. Force them to face the light. But most of all, I want you to live every second as though it’s your last—without a single regret.

I love you, my sweet girl, and am so very proud of the young woman you’ve become.

Fate’s a ruthless bitch at times, and I hate the hell it put my mother through. Yet it brought her back to my dad. And, in turn, it brought her to me.

My mother wrote little notes for me year after year and kept ’em in a journal. She gifted it to me once Dad retired and handed over his business to me.

Every single entry’s special and relevant in a particular way. Many of ’em I’ve reread time and again.

I change up the entry I carry with me dependin’ on what’s happenin’ in my life. Shitty times come and go, but I don’t let it get me down.

Both my parents are responsible for teachin’ me that.

They’re also the reason I believe in love. Maybe not happily-ever-afters the way the movies portray, but the real, authentic kind. The type that includes struggles and triumphs and love that never dies.

They made me believe that I can achieve just about anythin’ if I’m stubborn enough and work my ass off. It’s how I got where I am today, provin’ myself not only to my father, but to the men who worked for him and subsequently chose to work for me.

I like to think I inherited my strength and determination from my parents. My father taught me that gettin’ my hands on all the information I can to increase my intelligence is critical.

My mom taught me how important it is to be resilient. To learn to navigate the thickest part of the jungle and maintain the utmost respect for nature. To keep my body and mind strong and healthy.

Most of all, she showed me what it meant to be willin’ to sacrifice for those you love. To willingly walk directly into danger.

She did that for me when I was just a child. That moment confirmed that there was no other woman on this earth I wanted as my mother.

Even though I wasn’t her biological daughter, she never treated me like it. I never called her my stepmother, and she never introduced me as her stepdaughter.

I never once wondered if she loved me. If she cherished me. If she adored me. She did all that and more.

I’ve always believed that my mother had a little magic to her, ’cause she not only changed my life for the better, but my father’s, too.

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