“She told me: ‘Ernesto, our son has the right to make mistakes. All we can do is teach him to acknowledge his mistakes and give him a place to come back.” »

The man closed his eyes.

“And you’ve always had this place, my son.”

Javier hugged his father.

It was not a brief embrace.

They stayed like this for a long time.

Both had lost something during those months.

Trust.

Tranquility.

Time.

But they had found something more important.

The possibility of speaking without fear and of truly listening to each other.

CHAPTER 24. THE FAMILY TABLE

The second anniversary of the foundation coincided with the eightieth anniversary of Don Ernesto.

Javier wanted to organize a big party.

He invited former employees, friends, family members and collaborators.

But the old man asked for something different.

“I don’t want a huge party.”

“Dad, you’re going to be eighty.”

“Precisely. I’ve been to enough receptions where no one can hear whoever is sitting next to him. »

Javier ride.

“So, what do you want?”

“A quiet meal. With the people who were there when I needed them. »

That afternoon, the mansion welcomed twenty guests.

Carmen prepared Mercedes’ favorite dishes.

Elena arrived with a bouquet of flowers.

Rosa brought a cake.

In the dining room, a long table was decorated with simplicity.

Don Ernesto sat down at the head of the table.

Javier took his place on his right.

Before starting, the old man asked for a few moments of attention.

He stood up with his cane.

The guests were silent.

“Thank you for coming.”

He smiles.

“I’m not a big fan of speeches, so I’ll try to be brief.”

A few people laughed.

Don Ernesto continued:

“Two years ago, I had an experience that I never imagined I would be able to go through in my own home.”

Javier looked down.

The old man continued:

“I felt humiliated, alone and convinced that my voice didn’t matter. But several people helped me regain my self-confidence. »

The regarda Elena.

Then Rosa.

Carmen.

And finally his son.

“I learned that dignity does not depend on age, money or physical strength.”

The dining-room remained silent.

“I also understood that a house full of precious objects can become a terrible place when there is no more respect.”

Don Ernesto took a deep breath.

“Today, I don’t want to celebrate the number of years I’ve lived. I want to celebrate the fact that I can still share my life with people who love me. »

Javier gets up.

He took him in his arms.

The guests began to applaud.

But the most moving moment came a few minutes later.

When everyone was seated, Carmen came in with a tray of food.

Don Ernesto looks at the table.

The white tablecloth.

Porcelain plates.

Glasses.

And the people who were smiling around him.

Her gaze fell on Javier.

“My son.”

“Yes, Dad?”

“Do you remember that morning?”

Javier knew perfectly well what morning he was talking about.

“I’ll never forget it.”

The old man nodded.

“Me neither.”

Then he looked at his plate.

“But today, I want to remember something else.”

“Of what?”

Don Ernesto smiled.

“That no one will tell me where to eat anymore to make me feel inferior to others.”

Javier took her hand.

“Never again, Dad.”

And this promise, pronounced in front of all, was more valuable to Ernesto than any title deed.

EPILOGUE. THE REAL OWNER OF THE MANOR

Years before, Lucía had entered this house convinced that wealth meant power.

She believed that owning a mansion, controlling bank accounts, and surrounding herself with expensive items was enough to guarantee a happy life.

That is why she had seen Don Ernesto as an obstacle.

An elderly man who occupied a room, kept documents and refused to give up what he had built.

She had tried to turn her age into weakness.

His silence as proof of incapacity.

His confidence in an opportunity to deceive him.

But she had never understood one fundamental thing.

Don Ernesto had not built his wealth with money alone.

He had also built it with work, human relations, sacrifices and years of responsible decisions.

The manor belonged to him legally.

But its true value lay in the memories of Mercedes, in Javier’s childhood and in the experiences that had filled those walls.

When Lucía tried to take over the house, she didn’t just want to take away a piece of real estate.

She had tried to take away his right to decide on his own life.

And it was for this reason that Ernesto had finally stood up to him.

Not to prove that he was rich.

Not to humiliate him as she had humiliated him.

But to recover something that no document should ever have questioned.