Elena nodded solemnly.
Mateo surged to his feet so hard the bolted chair toppled backward.
The guards rushed forward, but he wasn’t trying to fight or flee.
He was shouting—shouting with a power no one had heard from him in five years.
“I’m innocent! I’ve always been innocent! Now I can prove it!”
They tried to pull Elena away, but she clung to him with surprising strength.
“It’s time everyone learned the truth,” she said clearly, her small voice steady and sure.
“It’s time.”
From the observation window, Colonel Vargas felt the hairs rise on his neck. Thirty years of instinct screamed that something seismic was unfolding.
He lifted the phone and dialed a rarely used number.
