I finally found my niece—the child I had been searching for all this time. Manuel's thoughts were now filled with regret.
He looked at the child inside the cage. For the first time, he noticed how her cheeks resembled those of her mother. A faint, bitter laugh escaped his lips. He wanted to reach out to the imprisoned girl.
"Stop it, Manuel. You've already seen your niece. Stop this madness," came Angely's voice.
He clenched his fists and quietly looked at her, giving a slow nod.
"If I hadn't met you back then… I would've been happy with Leah," he muttered.
Angely turned to him, glaring. "Do you think you can turn back time? You wanted everything that happened to us—so don't you dare blame me."
"You should be honest, Angely. Was my father your lover even before we met?" He asked directly, eyes locked on hers.
She didn't answer at once. She avoided his piercing stare.
"Come on. We're dead now—what else can we do but tell the truth?" He chuckled bitterly and shook his head.
"Don't dump your regrets on me now, Manuel. You're still a coward. You blindly followed your father, didn't you?"
"Yes. I admit it—I'm a coward! I killed the woman I loved! I killed my child! I couldn't do anything when my younger sibling was murdered! I failed to protect my only niece!" His voice rose in frustration.
The fury and guilt over his sins while alive still burned in him.
"I'll face it! I'll admit it! But you? When will you confess the foolish things you did? Huh?! Are we three going to keep spinning around in circles like this?" He yelled, slamming the cage. The child inside was startled.
He took a deep breath and calmed himself.
"Until death... really! We'll rot together here! Goddamn it!" he shouted.
He remembered when Leah got pregnant. That's when the cracks in their marriage began to show. Though they lived under the same roof, he could still feel Leah's love.
Sometimes, he returned to his father's mansion.
"Manuel, tell your in-laws I borrowed some funds to grow the business. I'm sure they'll understand."
"Dad, even though you're business partners, you should still discuss it with them. That money isn't entirely yours."
His father punched him in response.
"You think you can lecture me? I raised you—I'll do what I want!" he snapped before walking away.
Frustrated, Manuel ran to his mistress, Angely, to escape his father's fury.
"Where were you?" Leah asked quietly one early morning when he came home.
He didn't answer, walking straight into their room. Leah followed.
"Leah, please—not now," he muttered.
She sighed, left the room, and then came back with a basin of warm water.
"Did you fight with your father?" she asked as she gently cleaned the bruise on his face.
He didn't respond.
Even as their relationship grew cold, Leah remained kind, hoping to save their marriage.
"Ouch," he winced.
"I'm sorry. I'll be gentle, Manuel," she said softly.
She looked at him with deep concern. "I don't know where our money is going, Manuel, but it keeps disappearing from our savings."
He'd been using their money on alcohol and women.
"I'm short on cash… I'll pay it back."
"You don't have to pay me back. Just be honest about where the money goes. We earned that together, and we shouldn't just live off our families' wealth."
She added, "Mom and Dad are also upset. Your father withdrew money again from the bank without telling Mom."
He stayed silent, guilt gnawing at him.
Leah took his hands in hers. "We need to prepare… because we're going to be parents."
His heart skipped. "You're pregnant?" he asked in disbelief.
She smiled gently. "Three months now."
Joy overwhelmed him. After learning she was pregnant, he tried to quit his vices. He wanted to be a good father. He even gave Angely hush money, hoping to cut ties.
"My wife is pregnant. I need to be a father to this child," he told her. That was supposed to be their last meeting.
Months passed. At seven months, they found out they were having a girl.
Leah returned to the mansion, where Raymundo, his father, was present.
"Your due date is close, right?" Raymundo asked, smiling at her belly.
She nodded.
"I bet it's a boy—another heir for the Santiagos," he said cheerfully.
"O–Our firstborn is a girl," Leah replied.
"A girl? As the eldest?" Raymundo's smile faded.
"Y–Yes, sir."
His expression hardened. "Firstborn girls bring misfortune. Abort it."
"Dad…" Manuel protested, shaking his head.
Leah grew scared. They left in silence to avoid upsetting her further.
"I'm sorry for Dad, Leah," was all Manuel could say.
Later, Raymundo sent a package—with abortion pills—and a warning: if the child wasn't aborted, Leah's life would be at risk.
Terrified, Manuel chose Leah. Forgive me, Leah. Forgive me. I chose you to live.
He secretly slipped the pill into her drink. She writhed in pain, bleeding heavily. She begged for help, but instead of taking her to a hospital, he brought her to the basement.
He watched as Leah screamed and cried until the baby left her body.
He trembled. Why did I do this? He cried for what he had done to his wife and child.
When Leah awoke, she was inconsolable. She slapped him—a first. Even when she'd caught him cheating, she never raised a hand. But this time, she broke.
She left their home carrying the dead infant. That image haunted him.
A week later, she filed a case against him.
"I can still forgive you, Manuel… if you surrender. You killed our child!" Leah sobbed.
"I did it for you!"
She slapped him hard. "You disgust me."
Afraid of prison, he panicked and beat Leah until she lost consciousness.
He called his father for help.
Leah was placed in a coffin—alive but unable to speak. Angely stood by his side.
"Angely, this isn't right. We can't do this," he pleaded.
Angely glared. "If we hesitate, we'll be the ones buried."
He could still hear Leah's muffled screams from inside the coffin. He wanted to save her, but Angely stopped him.
Later, he married Angely. Leah's parents were made to believe she'd run off with another man.
Now, staring at the girl in the cage—his niece—Manuel felt the full weight of everything he had done.
I will die carrying the burden of my conscience.