The slaves exchanged knowing glances. They knew what this silence meant. Five minutes later, one of the soldiers entered the barracks. “The slave Tomás is dead,” he announced without emotion. “His body will be hung in the town square tomorrow as an example to everyone.”
The silence that followed was more terrible than any scream. Joaquín closed his eyes, knowing there was no way to stop what was about to happen. “Brothers,” he finally said, his voice heavy with ancient sorrow, “Tonight we die as free men.” In the main house, Isabelle had
She heard the terrible silence as Maria confirmed what she already knew in her heart. Something broke forever inside her. “He’s dead,” she whispered, her voice devoid of all emotion. “Tomás is dead.” Maria hugged her as Isabella began to laugh and cry at the same time. Her mind was shattering.
Under the weight of the pain. “Miss, you have to be strong,” Marie pleaded for the baby. “What baby?” Isabelle asked with a terrible smile. “Daddy will make sure there are no children. Then he’ll marry me off to Rodrigo and we’ll all pretend it never happened.” At 1 a.m., Dr. Herrera finally
