Oscar sat at the defense table in a county jail uniform, no longer polished, no longer beloved. He did not look at the children.
Lucía was brought in wearing a plain beige prison uniform. When she saw Camila, her daughter stood. For a moment, they only looked at each other. Then Camila mouthed, “I’m sorry.”
Lucía pressed her cuffed hands to her heart.
The hearing lasted two days. Forensic experts testified that the shirt found in the wardrobe contained blood consistent with Samuel’s profile. The prosecution argued about chain of custody, but the video of the discovery helped protect the evidence. A handwriting expert confirmed Samuel likely wrote the hidden statement. Financial records tied Oscar to missing shop money and debt payments. The old case file revealed that police had never properly investigated Oscar’s whereabouts after accepting his claim that he arrived after the murder.
