Valentina sat in silence as the private jet cut through the clouds, bound for Los Cabos. The champagne in her glass remained untouched. Luxury still felt foreign. Like trying on a dead woman's clothes—expensive, suffocating, and haunted by someone else's dreams.
Mateo sat across from her, eyes scanning a tablet filled with security updates.
"You've got five properties now. Eight safehouses. And your name is showing up in circles it shouldn't be."
Valentina turned toward the window. "Good. Let them whisper."
She didn't care for fame. Power was quieter. More lethal.
Los Cabos – Alejandro Reyes' Private Estate
Alejandro stood by the infinity pool overlooking the sea, wine in hand. He looked like every woman's dream and every devil's twin—charisma soaked in secrets.
"You're late," he said as Valentina stepped onto the stone patio.
"I don't answer to clocks," she replied. "Or men."
He smirked. "And yet here you are."
She got straight to the point. "You said my father left something behind. Something more than blood."
Alejandro motioned her to follow. Inside a marble study, he pulled a velvet cloth off a steel briefcase and keyed in a biometric code.
Inside: a gold-plated flash drive.
"Encrypted by Rafael Veracruz himself. The files tie Xavier to dozens of 'legit' businesses. Offshore accounts. Political donations. Even medical patents."
Valentina's breath caught.
"My father was building a weapon."
Alejandro nodded. "And now it's yours."
Mexico City – DEA Office
Diego stared at the latest surveillance photos. Valentina in Los Cabos, smiling beside Alejandro at a gala.
"She's not hiding anymore," he murmured.
Lawson raised an eyebrow. "You sure she isn't luring us in?"
Diego looked at her eyes in the picture.
No fear. Just precision.
"She's making her move. And if we blink, we'll miss the whole game."
Back in Los Cabos – Nightfall
Valentina walked the beach alone, barefoot in a designer gown, ocean breeze whipping her hair. Mateo approached with a secured sat-phone.
"Call came through. The Veracruz family estate—it's yours now. Fully transferred."
Her chest tightened.
An identity she'd never known was now hers to wear.
"Queen of what?" she muttered.
Mateo answered, "Of everything they tried to bury."
Final Scene – Xavier's Compound, Sinaloa
Xavier crushed a crystal tumbler in his bare hand.
"She has the Veracruz estate?" he growled.
Sofia's expression was unreadable. "She's making alliances. Not war. Yet."
Xavier turned to her, eyes full of venom.
"She wants a kingdom. I'll show her the cost of ruling."