“For how long… It depends on the frequency.

Laura recalled.

Six years.

Every night.

The glass of warm water.

The doctor spoke cautiously.

—Over time, these doses can cause a person to become dependent, easier to handle… even unable to remember important conversations or decisions.

Laura was silent.

Suddenly, many strange moments began to fall into place.

The times he had forgotten where he left documents.

The financial decisions he barely remembered signing.

The arguments with Diego that ended with her feeling confused.

As if his mind were covered by a fog.

“Doctor,” he asked in a trembling voice—… If I stop taking this… can I recover?

“Yes. But it will take time.

Laura left the clinic with her legs shaking.

He got into his car and remained several minutes without starting.

Only one question swirled inside his head.

Why?

When he returned home, Diego was in the kitchen preparing dinner.

He smiled when he saw her.

“My wife, you arrived early.

The tone of his voice was the same as always.

Soft.

Affectionate.

But now Laura heard it differently.

As if each word were a mask.

“I went to see a friend,” she replied calmly.

Diego approached and kissed her on the cheek.

“Perfect. Today I will make your favorite soup.

Laura watched him in silence.

For six years he thought he knew every gesture of that man.

But now he wondered if he had known anything real.

That night, when Diego brought her the glass of warm water…

Laura held him in her hands.

“Thank you, my love,” he said.

But when Diego went to the bathroom, he poured the contents into the sink.

The next day, he called his lawyer.

For years her late husband had worked with a trusted man: Arturo Mendoza.

When Laura explained the situation to him, the lawyer was silent for a few seconds.

“Laura… are you sure?”

—Completely.

“Then we must review all the legal decisions you signed since Diego appeared.

Two weeks later, Arturo returned with a thick file.

And the truth was worse than Laura imagined.

In the last three years, Laura had signed several documents gradually transferring control of her properties to a company.

A company created by Diego.

Included…

the beachfront villa in Puerto Vallarta.

Laura felt a lump in her throat.

“I don’t remember doing this.

Arturo sighed.

“Probably because you weren’t fully conscious when you signed.

The final piece of the puzzle appeared a week later.

Laura checked Diego’s computer while he was away.

In his email he found a conversation.

With a woman.

They did not talk about love.

They talked about money.

“Just hold on a little longer,” one of the messages read.

“When the house is in your name we can sell everything.”

Laura closed the computer with trembling hands.

Six years.

Six years of sweetness.

Six years of “my little wife”.

It had all been a plan.

But Laura was not the same woman he had manipulated.

The day Diego returned home, he found something unexpected.

Two policemen in the room.

And Laura sitting quietly.

“What’s going on?” He asked confused.

Laura looked at him.

His eyes were clear.

Firm.

“It happens that today I stopped drinking your water, Diego.

The color disappeared from his face.

The police stood up.

“Mr. Diego Ríos, you are arrested for fraud, manipulation of documents and administration of substances without consent.

Diego looked at Laura, desperate.

—Laura… yo…

But she slowly shook her head.

“For six years you called me ‘my little wife.’

He paused.

“But you never understood anything.

Laura’s eyes shone with new strength.

“True love doesn’t need anyone to sleep to stay.

As Diego was being taken away in handcuffs, Laura felt something she hadn’t felt in a long time.

Silence.

But it was no longer an empty silence.

It was a free silence.