Icy Glances and a Troubling Incident
When Roberto was present, Sofia was all warmth and charm — kisses on the cheek, bright laughter, tender words.
“My darlings,” she would say to the children, though her gaze would drift almost immediately back toward Roberto.
But when the gardener moved out of earshot, the atmosphere shifted.
Elena felt it in the sharpness that crept into Sofia’s voice, in the way she snapped at Mateo to stop hovering when he came too close. She saw it in Laura’s eyes — the way the little girl would press herself behind Elena’s skirt whenever Sofia approached without Roberto nearby.
One afternoon in the heat of summer, the unease became something more concrete.
The children were playing by the pool, carefree and noisy. Mateo splashed around in his goggles. Laura clung to her unicorn float, laughing with abandon.
Sofia reclined on a sun lounger, leafing through a fashion magazine.
Then Mateo reached for a toy drifting too far out. He stretched too far, lost his footing, and went under.
Nothing serious, Elena thought from her position in the kitchen — but she watched, and Sofia did not move. Not a single muscle. Not a flicker of response.
Mateo struggled below the surface, the water closing over his face. Laura screamed in terror.
It was Elena who ran, without a moment’s pause, and pulled him out.
Mateo coughed and shook, but he was all right.
Sofia looked up from her magazine with an expression of irritation. “How clumsy. Always causing some kind of trouble.” And she turned the page.
Elena stood there, heart hammering, unable to look away. How could anyone be so utterly unmoved?
