The commotion was so great that, in less than two minutes, the door opened again. It was Doña Leticia, who had stayed overnight at the mansion after a family dinner. She was wearing a silk robe and had an expression of utter triumph on her face.
“I told you, Mateo!” she shrieked, pointing an accusing finger at Elena. “I told you that this penniless wretch from who-knows-what ranch was going to hurt the children! Call the police! Have her locked up and send these kids to Houston right now!”
Mateo ignored his mother-in-law. He walked straight to Santi’s crib and pulled out the blinking device. It was a rectangular box, hand-assembled, with an exposed microprocessor and four electrodes that emitted an almost imperceptible buzzing sound.
“What is this?” Mateo demanded, his voice trembling with rage. “You have exactly one minute to explain to me what you were doing to my son before I call the police and make sure you never see the light of day again.”
Elena was trembling from head to toe, tears streaming down her cheeks. But instead of running away or begging for mercy, she stood up. Surprisingly, her gaze became resolute.
“You can fire me, Mr. Garza. You can put me in jail if that makes you feel safer,” Elena said, her voice trembling but full of conviction. “But first, listen to me. I’m not just a nanny. Until eight months ago, I was a seventh-semester student at Tec de Monterrey. I was studying Biomedical Engineering on an academic excellence scholarship.”
