Lorenzo didn't let Elena step outside the mansion.
No matter how hard she begged, he wouldn't listen. He took her to his private room — the one only he knew the passcode to — and locked her in.
"Elena, stay here," he said, his voice deep and serious. "Don't come out no matter what happens outside."
She tried to grab his hand. "Lorenzo, please! I can fight too—"
"No!" he shouted. Then, softer, "I can't lose you. Not now. Not when our child needs you."
He touched her belly for a brief second before walking out and shutting the steel door behind him.
The lock beeped. Silence followed.
Then—
Gunshots.
The sound echoed through the walls. Loud. Endless. Terrifying.
Elena's heart began to race as she pressed her hands against the door, crying, shouting for him. "Lorenzo! Lorenzo, please answer me!"
No reply came. Only more gunfire.
She sank to the floor, her whole body shaking.
Minutes felt like hours.
She couldn't take it anymore. She needed to do something.
Her hands trembled as she picked up her phone. Without thinking twice, she dialed a number she never thought she would again—her mother's.
The line connected.
"Mom," Elena said, her voice breaking. "Please… I know you tried to kill me once, I know you wanted me free from him. But please—help me this time. Don't let that monster kill Lorenzo. Don't let my father destroy everything."
There was silence. Only breathing on the other end.
"Mom, please," Elena begged. "I'm asking you as your daughter. Help me—for once in your life, just help me."
Her mother said nothing.
Then—click.
The call ended.
Elena dropped the phone, tears spilling down her cheeks. She screamed into her hands, terrified and helpless.
Forty-five minutes later, the gunfire hadn't stopped.
The war outside was pure chaos — explosions, screams, the heavy sound of weapons clashing. The police had arrived, but they couldn't get close. It was a battlefield no one could control.
Lorenzo was losing half of his men, but he refused to fall back. Every time one of his guards dropped, he fought harder.
He was a beast unleashed — all for the woman locked behind those walls.
Then suddenly—
New gunfire erupted from the other side of the street.
A second army arrived, taking positions and firing back at Miguel's men.
Lorenzo turned sharply, his eyes widening when he saw who was leading them.
It was her—Elena's mother.
The woman everyone thought had disappeared returned with her own army, battling against her ex-husband, Miguel Santiago.
Elena heard the news from one of the guards through the intercom.
"Madam," the voice said, breathless. "Your mother—she's here. She's fighting alongside the boss."
Her eyes widened in disbelief.
"Mom…?" she whispered, her hands covering her mouth. "She came back?"
For the first time that night, hope flickered in her heart.
"Please win, mama," she whispered. "Please defeat that monster. Please let this end."
Minutes passed. The gunfire slowly faded.
Then—silence.
Elena froze.
The quiet was worse than the war.
She heard footsteps. Then the sound of the lock beeping.
The door opened, and there stood Lorenzo, his clothes stained with blood and ash, his face pale and broken.
"Lorenzo?" she whispered.
He couldn't meet her eyes. "Elena…" His voice cracked. "I'm sorry. I couldn't protect your mom."
Elena's heart stopped.
"No…"
She pushed past him before he could stop her. "Elena, wait!" he shouted, but she didn't listen. She ran down the hall, through the destroyed living room, and out into the cold night.
Bodies were scattered across the yard. The smell of smoke and blood filled the air.
And there—lying in the middle of it all—was her mother.
Elena dropped to her knees, her hands shaking as she pulled her mother's body close. Blood covered her clothes. Her mother's eyes fluttered weakly, barely open.
"No, no, mom, please don't do this to me," Elena cried, her voice trembling. "Please, mami, stay with me. I know you did me wrong, I know you made mistakes, but please—don't leave me now."
Her mother smiled faintly, her lips moving with the last of her strength.
"I told you… one day you'd understand… love hurts, but it's worth fighting for…"
Then her hand went still.
Elena screamed, shaking her, crying, begging her to wake up.
"Please, mami! Please! Don't leave me again!"
But it was too late.
Lorenzo stood behind her, his chest tight, his eyes filled with grief. He wanted to pull her away, to tell her it was over — but he knew it wasn't.
This war had only opened another wound.
Elena held her mother's body close, sobbing as the night swallowed the sound.
The woman who once tried to destroy her… had died saving her.