Doña Isabel Morales , mother of the young millionaire Alejandro Morales , entered the Las Lomas mansion carrying an old cardboard suitcase reinforced with tape. She wore a simple cotton dress, faded with age, and her calloused hands spoke of a lifetime of hard work. Alejandro had insisted on bringing her to live with him to “compensate for so many years of sacrifice.” But from the very first day, Valeria Ríos , his beautiful, elegant, and haughty fiancée, looked at her with a disdain that needed no words.
Valeria entered Isabel’s room without knocking.
“Haven’t you changed yet, mother-in-law?” she said with a fake smile. “Alejandro is coming down soon, don’t embarrass him with that look.”
She opened the closet and took out an expensive wine-colored dress that Alejandro had bought for his mother.
“This one’s pretty,” she softened her voice. “With this on, you’ll look… more like a millionaire’s mom.”
Isabel obeyed silently. Valeria watched her change and let out a dry laugh.
—Okay, now we’re ready. Let’s go… and be careful on the stairs, don’t get your dress dirty, okay?
He squeezed her hand tightly, almost hurting her.
At the table, Valeria began her performance. When Lucía , the maid, was about to serve Isabel reserve wine, Valeria interrupted her:
—No, no. Give her ordinary wine. She can’t tell the difference anyway. Don’t waste the good stuff.
Isabel lowered her gaze, her cheeks burning. Alejandro was distracted by a call, oblivious to everything.
During dinner, Valeria kept making fun of Isabel’s poverty past.
—Tell me the story of the guava tree, mother-in-law. Alejandro loves it, doesn’t he?
Then he laughed sarcastically.
—Your house had a patio? I thought it was made of corrugated metal. Corrugated metal gets unbearable in the heat, doesn’t it?
The cruelest part came with the enchilada fish. Alejandro said enthusiastically:
—Mom, try it, it’s quite spicy.
Valeria deliberately served a portion full of chili peppers. When Isabel started coughing and desperately reached for water, Valeria slid the glass a few inches away, just enough so she couldn’t reach it.
Lucía saw everything and clenched her fists. Isabel almost choked. Valeria feigned alarm.
—Oh, my God! How exaggerated you are, mother-in-law…
After dinner, when Alejandro went out to answer another call, Valeria sat next to Isabel and spoke in a low, icy voice:
—Your role is simple: smile, nod, and remain silent. Don’t make anyone uncomfortable. You’re just a guest… a long-term one.
The next morning, Alejandro gave Valeria an unlimited credit card and left for work. As soon as the door closed, Valeria’s smile vanished. She called a friend and spoke loudly enough for Isabel to hear.
—Having to put up with this old woman all day is getting on my nerves, but oh well… it’s for the future.
In the kitchen, he saw Isabel preparing instant coffee. He snatched the jar from her and threw it on the floor.
—Trash! I hate poverty and resignation in my home.
Then he imposed his “new rules”:
Don’t sit on the main sofa.
Don’t talk to my friends.
Don’t use the pool.
Only speak when I allow it.
Lucía silently cleaned up the mess and then, secretly, prepared an espresso for Isabel in the luxury coffee maker.
“Sometimes a good coffee helps you bear the poison,” he whispered.
The following days were hell. Valeria humiliated Isabel in front of Lucía, in front of the staff, even in front of the mirror. She “accidentally” pushed her down the service stairs. Isabel managed to grab the railing, but ended up with her shoulder and arm covered in bruises. Lucía witnessed it and knew it wasn’t an accident, but she kept quiet for fear of losing her job.
One morning, Alejandro sat alone with his mother in the library. He hugged her and apologized for not paying attention. As he took her arm, her sleeve rode up, revealing the bruises.
—Mom! What is that?
Isabel took a deep breath, ready to tell the whole truth. At that moment, Valeria burst in with an envelope in her hand.
“Honey!” she cried excitedly. “The country club accepted our wedding date! Early June, only two months away!”
Alejandro instantly forgot about the bruises and hugged her, jumping for joy. Isabel looked at her son’s innocent happiness and the words caught in her throat.
“How can I destroy the happiest moment of her life?” she thought.
Valeria went further. She began saying that Isabel was “confused,” that she was forgetful, that she talked to herself. Then she fabricated a fake brochure for a supposed luxury retirement center called Villa Serenidad . In reality, it was the cheapest and most miserable nursing home in the region, hundreds of kilometers from the city.
Isabel overheard the conversation from her office. Her tea tray fell and shattered. Valeria rushed to intervene.
“Mother-in-law! You scared me so much. She’s probably tired, let’s go to her room.”
Alejandro believed everything and asked Lucía to clean.
Valeria locked Isabel’s room and whispered:
—If he ruins my plans, he’ll regret it.
But Isabel was no longer the terrified woman she once was. She decided to defend herself. The next day, she pretended to be gardening and hid behind some rose bushes near the pool. Valeria was sunbathing and talking on the phone with her friend Brenda , on speakerphone.
“The old woman already found out about the nursing home, but Alejandro thinks it’s a luxury spa. Once we’re there, I’ll say there was a deception, that the contract is for a year and breaking it costs a fortune… Then I’ll gradually stop visiting her, until she rots away in that hole. That will be my real wedding gift.”
Isabel, trembling, turned on the recorder. She had the proof.
Time was ticking. Valeria had planned to take Isabel to the retreat the next morning, just one day before the engagement party. Alejandro would have meetings all day.
That night, Valeria came in with a cheap plastic suitcase.
—Pack it. The car will come by tomorrow at nine. Alejandro doesn’t know anything… he’s too good to do this. Thank goodness he has me.
Isabel stared at her.
—I’m not leaving.
Valeria snapped. She grabbed Isabel’s hair and dragged her out of the room. Isabel clung to the doorframe, leaving nail marks on the wood. Lucía heard the screams and ran upstairs, paralyzed with fear.
Valeria threw Isabel onto the sofa and screamed out of her mind:
—You are a parasite! I feed you, I give you shelter, I allow you to live in a palace… and you dare to interfere with me! I will be the owner of this house, this money, and Alejandro.
He took Isabel’s most cherished picture: the photo of Alejandro at his elementary school graduation, and smashed it against the fireplace.
Isabel screamed and crawled to pick up the pieces. Valeria laughed.
Then she placed a small stool and forced Isabel to sit down. As soon as she did, Valeria kicked one of the stool’s legs with her heel. Isabel fell to the marble floor, writhing in excruciating pain in her hip and ribs.
—Please… that’s enough… —she whispered.
At that moment, the front door opened. Alejandro entered with a bouquet of orchids. He smiled… until he saw his mother on the floor, the house destroyed, and Valeria standing triumphant.
He rushed to help Isabel up. Her cell phone fell to the floor, the screen still on. Alejandro picked it up and pressed “play.”
Valeria’s voice filled the room:
—“…to put her in that hole… to let her die slowly… she’ll be my wedding gift…”
Alejandro froze. Valeria paled.
—Love, it’s not true… she’s crazy… she hurts herself…
Alejandro didn’t look at her. He canceled the card, blocked the accounts, and cut off her access to the house.
—You have ten minutes. Pack your things and get out. Don’t you ever come near me or my mother again.
Valeria cried, she begged, but it was useless. She left in a taxi, with only one suitcase and not a penny to her name. Her “friends” closed their doors on her one by one.
When the taxi disappeared, Alejandro fell to his knees before his mother.
—Forgive me, Mom… I was an idiot… I left you to suffer alone…
Isabel stroked her hair.
—It’s over now, son. As long as we’re together, everything’s fine.
A year later, the mansion was a home. Isabel was teaching Sofia , Alejandro’s new wife—a sweet pediatrician—how to bake homemade bread. Sofia was pregnant.
Alejandro came in and hugged the two women he loved most. He placed his mother’s hand on Sofia’s belly. Isabel felt the little kick and cried.
—Am I going to be a grandmother?
“Thank you for not giving up, Mom,” Alejandro whispered. “All of this is thanks to you.”
Far away, at a roadside restaurant, Valeria was cleaning tables in a dirty uniform. On television, they were showing the news of Alejandro, Sofía, and Isabel inaugurating a pediatric wing.
Valeria clutched the rag, filled with hatred.
“Hey!” shouted a customer. “The coffee’s cold!”
Valeria trembled, dropped the cup, and it shattered into pieces.
Like a mother’s heart… which she never knew how to respect.
On the balcony of the mansion, Isabel gazed at the stars with her son.
—Do you remember? —Alejandro said—. You said that each star was a kiss from Dad from heaven.
Isabel smiled.
—And he still kisses me every night.
Life sometimes takes time… but it always brings justice.
A mother’s love cannot be bought or stolen.
And yesterday’s tears… are today’s eternal smiles.