⚠️ WARNING ⚠️
The following content may describe situations involving
child custody offices 👶⚖️, corporate legal conflicts 💼📄,
and the sociopolitical context of Portugal in the 1960s 🇵🇹🕰️.
This content is not intended to be sensational or pretentious.
Everything narrated here is fiction 📖✨. Reader discretion advised 👁️🧠.
📝 AUTHOR'S NOTE 📝
I'm still working on this story ✍️🔥. Thanks for your patience
and constant support 🤍. The comic adaptation is underway 🎨📚,
and it will arrive sooner than you think ⏳⚡. A strong part of
the story is coming ⚠️🩸. Don't expect hugs or kisses…
If you want to support the project, follow me on Twitter 🐦📢:
@TholioMH. The link is below. Thank you from the heart 🙏❤️.
____________________________________________________________
The warm morning air slips through the hills.
We are in Portugal, in Odivelas,
at Teodoro's old house,
where the walls still hold the smell of firewood and oil.
Nona stirs the pot in silence,
as the steam blends with the scent of bread.
Outside, Helena tidies the garden,
shaking leaves and letting the sun
paint her arms with a golden glow.
From the window, Nona's voice cuts through the air:
"Helena, give Teodoro his medicine, please.
You know what to give him, right?"
"Yes, I know what to give him," Helena replies.
"And please, be careful, okay?
The drops are expensive."
Meanwhile, Teodoro wakes up.
It's one of those days where everything feels the same.
He feels the warmth of the sun coming through the window.
"I can feel the light is here. I think it's going to be really hot
today."
He sits up slowly,
until he hears soft knocks at the door.
"Teodoro," a voice calls, "come in."
Helena enters quietly.
"Good morning, Teodoro. How are you?" she says with cheer.
"Good morning," Teodoro replies.
"Ah, yes, I'm still sleepy. And you, Helena, how are you?"
She smiles faintly.
"It's time for your drops. You need to hydrate your eyes
so they won't burn so much anymore."
"Please, I don't know how to put them in myself," he says.
"Okay, you need to stay relaxed, alright?
Just let go and think of pleasant things," she says gently.
"Yes, alright," he replies, embarrassed.
"Also, you need to take the medication the doctor prescribed.
They'll help your eyes stop hurting and prevent those strange
spasms you've been having the past few days."
"Yes," Teodoro responds.
Helena calms Teodoro, stroking his head, and adds:
"Good, don't move. Anyway, I don't bite."
"Thank you, Helena," he says, happy.
As Helena applies the drops,
Teodoro stays still, feeling relief from dehydration
caused by the aftermath of the chemical burn.
Helena speaks slowly to soothe him.
"Nona said breakfast will be ready soon…
Sorry, I'm not thinking clearly. After we eat,
would you like to read something?"
"Read?"
"Yes, but this time outside,
on the grass, under the sun, just for a little while.
How does that sound?
We can pull a chair from the kitchen and read there."
"That sounds good," Teodoro replies.
"I know a tree very close by where we could read," she adds.
"Does that sound okay?"
"We should ask Nona first."
"Yes," he says.
When she finishes applying the drops,
he whispers,
"Thank you, Helena."
But everything changes.
The moment shatters when they hear
the door slammed forcefully.
The sound comes from the living room,
from the main door of the house.
Teodoro stays frozen.
He can't move his body.
He's so tense that for a moment
he forgets he's still in his bed.
His heart pounds in his chest,
and the air feels thick, impossible to breathe.
He feels that the day he never expected
has finally come.
"Not again…"
"not now… not this again…"
But his thoughts spiral.
Noises, images, and memories crush him all at once.
He can't see clearly, nor hear properly;
anxiety traps him in his own mind,
making it impossible to tell if what he hears is real
or just the echo of the fear inside him.
He starts to hyperventilate.
"Helena, please, bring me a hat."
The young woman looks at him, confused.
"What? What are you talking about?"
"Bring me a hat, please. Yes, and put me a…" he stammers,
his breathing quickening,
as if the air isn't enough.
"Please, bring me a hat, bring me a hat,
bring me a hat…" he repeats between gasps.
She doesn't think much.
She runs to the closet, grabs one, and comes back.
"What do I do now? Why are you so scared?" she asks,
unable to hide the tremor in her voice.
"Just tie my hair, please," Teodoro says,
his gaze distant, almost breathless.
"Alright, don't worry," the young woman replies,
approaching carefully.
She takes his hair gently,
ties it in a bun, and hides it completely.
Then she puts on the hat,
one of those thick winter ones.
Perhaps he's trying to avoid the wrath
of whoever is about to enter.
From afar, Nona's voice breaks the silence:
"Helena, Teodoro, come eat!"
She speaks to someone else.
The tone of her voice mingles with unfamiliar footsteps.
Teodoro stays frozen.
"Well, a month has passed, he's already here…"
pensamientoIt's here again… I knew it would come…
as fear paralyzes him once more.
When he tries to get out of bed,
Helena approaches and asks in a low voice:
"Teodoro, do you want me to hold your hand?"
He responds in a thread of a voice,
remembering the first time they spoke.
"No… I'm already a man…
I'm a man, I'm a man."
He clumsily puts on his shoes and gets ready.
She tries to help him,
but doesn't truly understand what's happening.
He says nothing.
Both leave the room.
Teodoro trembles,
but his step is steady.
Maybe this time, he's ready
to face whatever comes.
But everything changed when he heard the voice,
realizing it wasn't his father.
Nona said the following:
"Helena, can you please take Teodoro out of here?"
"If you want, you can take one of the books,
but please go outside."
"Alright," the young woman replies, a little nervous.
She takes the book The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch,
and the Wardrobe, and they both leave the house.
Teodoro, subtly, gestures with his fingers to Helena and whispers:
"Helena, please, let me stay near the door to listen,"
he says, his voice trembling.
She notices something strange. It's not just one man.
There are two. One seems like a police officer,
the other, a man in a suit, probably a lawyer.
And the third…
Teodoro recognizes the voice.
He's only heard it three times,
but he thinks he knows who it is.
When they close the door,
the two men and that gentleman have already entered.
"It's my uncle," Teodoro whispers.
"What? How is it your uncle?" Helena asks.
"Something is happening. My uncle never comes here.
Why did he come with two men?
I could hear their breathing as they left…"
"Okay, stay still for a moment," she says.
Helena tries to listen to what's being said,
but the voices behind the door are barely audible.
Curiosity burns inside her.
She won't obey Nona this time.
Carefully, she takes Teodoro by the arm
and whispers, barely letting the air out:
"Let's go…"
The silence that follows feels louder
than any words.
"If someone hears us… we're lost,"
pensamientoWe can't get caught now… not like this,
Helena thinks, feeling her pulse race.
They move around the house slowly,
until they reach a window near the living room.
From there, there's a blind spot:
they can't be seen from inside.
"What are you doing?" he asks.
"Shut up! This is how I used to spy on you."
"So… you actually did?"
"I already told you… I was spying on you even before we met.
…shh… but be quiet… that's not important right now."
Helena and Teodoro fall silent.
The men have sat down.
One is an officer, another a lawyer,
and the third, the uncle: Hélder.
He speaks firmly, addressing Nona.
"Mrs. Beatriz, listen.
This is going to be very difficult to explain, but…
alright, here goes.
I've decided that this house was sold
to a friend of mine, and on June 18 of this year
everything will need to be removed.
And as for you…
I will only be able to pay you until the 15th,
along with the new girl."
Nona is in shock.
"What do you mean, they sold the house?
I don't understand, what's happening?"
Teodoro, although he can't see,
opens his eyes in surprise at hearing it.
"What's going on?" the elderly woman murmurs.
"Listen, please," Hélder says.
"This will be very hard to explain,
especially to you, because my brother
also involved you."
"From what I understand, my brother
ordered you, through the records, to sign
the documents for the mansion in Ramada,
our parents' house."
"My brother has been involved in things he shouldn't have.
It seems he ran off with money,
and his family isn't in the capital."
"He's not in Lisbon or anywhere else;
he doesn't appear anywhere."
"This is the last place he could be, or at least where
we might get some information."
Nona brings her hand to her mouth.
"Oh my God…"
Hélder continues:
"Yes. My brother has gotten me into a terrible mess,
and we need to find his whereabouts."
"We don't know where he ran off to."
"There are no leads.
The neighbors didn't see anything.
Everything was so careful… it's like he vanished."
"But there is something," adds the lawyer.
"He left four of his letters in his name."
"And he also left a letter for you."
"For me?" Nona asks.
"Yes, this letter is for you," Hélder replies.
"We read them carefully.
We also found burned letters in his apartment,
but others survived—about seven letters.
They're from Lourdes, my sister-in-law.
And all… are about the same matter."
He pauses.
"Look, I never agreed with Lourdes marrying my brother,
but that doesn't matter anymore.
Maybe she knows where he is."
"But how would she know?" Nona says.
"We don't even know where he is.
In fact, these letters come from a fake hostel,
not even from her home."
The officer intervenes:
"Fake?"
"Yes," Hélder replies.
"The hostel is a tavern.
They say they were just doing a favor for that woman.
They tried to locate her and couldn't either."
He sighs, tired.
"I'll be frank."
Lourdes' brother will be coming from the family.
He will inspect the house.
"Look, Nona, I'll be frank with you.
You won't be able to keep working here, at least not for long.
My brother… has gotten involved in something serious, too serious."
"Apparently, he manipulated the family company's accounts,
and diverted cacao supplies meant for the State.
All through a contract with the Ministry of Development.
According to the reports, he falsified financial statements
and used nonexistent invoices to cover the movements."
"With that, he managed to escape with a significant amount of money."
"My God…" she whispers.
"The case is now in the hands of Judge António Salazar Neto,
and the PIDE has already taken statements from several employees.
Even suppliers from Lisbon are being summoned.
The company's debts are enormous,
and now it also faces a civil lawsuit from the State.
Believe me, Nona, there's no way to clean this up."
"And now they want to charge me with the company's debts,
Nona, because I'm listed as a direct line of the family.
In short, my signature is on several documents
that my brother used to found Aliança Alimentar
and Indústrias Unidas, and now it turns out
I'm co-director, at least on paper."
"How?" Nona asks, surprised.
"Yes… and the problem is they want to hold me responsible
for everything. I could end up ruined, even in prison.
This has nothing to do with me.
Yes, I helped at the start, but I only signed a few papers,
nothing more. After that, I didn't get involved again."
Hélder clenches his fists, breathing with frustration.
"This is desperate, alright?
I just wanted a quiet life,
and now I'm putting my children and my wife at risk.
I could go to jail for something I didn't even do.
My brother disappeared without leaving a letter
or an explanation. He just ran away."
"Do you know where he went?" she asks in a tense voice.
"Please, Nona, if you know anything, tell me."
She shakes her head slowly.
"I don't know, really.
He just came one afternoon, looked for some papers,
and left without saying a word."
Hélder stared at her.
"Some papers? What kind?
Don't tell me they were the documents for Aliança?
That he had them here, hidden?"
"I don't know," she replied.
"I only know he took them from his desk,
folded them, and left. He never came back."
Silence filled the house.
From the window, Teodoro and Helena listened,
holding their breath.
"There's more," Hélder continued,
placing his hands on the table.
"Custody of Teodoro will go to Lourdes' brother.
Everything was planned in secret.
Not even I knew."
"What?" Nona exclaimed, incredulous.
"Yes. My brother trusts that family more than ours.
I don't understand why he didn't leave me custody.
I wanted to take care of him…
but I can't do anything while I'm accused."
Hélder sighed tiredly.
"The only thing I can ask, Nona,
is that you leave everything in order.
Pack the things, clean the house.
I'll see what I can do, but I promise nothing.
I don't trust Joaquim, that idiot,
or anyone else on that side."
Nona watched him silently.
Outside, Helena murmured, barely audible:
"What's going to happen now…?"
Teodoro didn't respond.
He only felt the air in his chest
grow heavier and heavier.
They have no words to explain what's happening.
On one hand, Helena barely understands the situation.
But Teodoro picks up things between the lines, perhaps more.
Even so, he doesn't fully understand.
They don't mention Lourdes, his mother.
Do they know she's still in the hospital? Or not?
They have no clear notion of anything.
"Helena," Teodoro whispers, "what's going to happen to me?"
"Don't worry, Teodoro," she replies firmly.
"Wherever they take you, I'll go with you.
I have to go with you, no matter what.
I'm your family, and I'll take care of you;
that's my mission."
Inside, Nona tries to take a deep breath,
and summon an understanding that doesn't come.
"Alright," the man says with a tense voice.
"I'm not here just to inform you, Nona. I'm in a hurry.
I need to go to my wife; they're going to question her.
Also my son, Marcus. I can't allow it.
I need you to sign this, please. Just sign."
He takes out a paper and pushes it toward the table.
"It's a document stating that you will be
in charge of Teodoro during these days, agreed?"
"What?" Nona murmurs, trembling.
"Technically, custody has passed to Joaquim," he says.
"I don't understand, Nona; it shouldn't be this way.
Our family is us, not them."
"But please sign, I need your help now," he insists.
Nona signs, her hand shaking.
While writing, she clearly sees that this will go to court.
She knows this is now a matter of law.
"Here," he says, handing her a card.
"This is my new phone. I had to change it.
If my wife or children call, say it's Beatriz.
We need to identify who's calling, understand?"
"Yes, alright," Nona replies, barely audible.
"And the letters?" the man asks. "Are they from Lourdes?"
He pauses to compose himself, then continues, gravely:
"They won't bother my wife. Listen, Nona.
I'll do everything possible to bring Teodoro home.
I won't allow those people to take him. Do you hear me?"
"I haven't seen Teodoro in years," he confesses.
"He was just a child when I met him."
"My brother… should have defended him more.
If he doesn't, I will. Abandoning a child
is something I cannot accept, neither father nor family.
Besides, Teodoro is blind; I want to prevent him
from ending up in an orphanage."
He sighs, with restrained anger.
"In a couple of days, Joaquim will come,
with officers and lawyers, to take custody of Teodoro."
Nona freezes, speechless.
Helena and Teodoro listen from the window,
as the weight of each sentence falls on them.
"What will they do with us?" thinks Helena, voiceless.
Teodoro doesn't respond; he feels the world shrink.
"I won't be able to give him a top school,
but at least I'll prevent him from going to an orphanage.
I'd rather have Teodoro in my care for a thousand months
than leave him with that lunatic."
"And the bad part is you won't be able to do anything,"
says Hélder, with a dry, tired tone.
"Because you have no political familiarity with us.
Only with Joaquim.
But that doesn't help when it comes to Teodoro."
"Alright," Nona replies, holding her breath.
"But what can I do?"
"I can't take care of Teodoro right now.
I have to take care of my children first,
and also the company.
So I'm asking you not to say anything about this.
Don't tell Teodoro.
He's too young to know his father
may have escaped the country."
"How can I tell Teodoro that?" says Nona, trembling.
"I can't even tell him about his mother."
Teodoro opens his eyes at the sound of voices.
His breath catches for a moment.
"Let's go back to the door, Helena," he whispers.
Helena takes him by the arm.
She can feel that something inside Teodoro
has broken—perhaps a lie, or a truth
behind a lie.
"I don't know what's happening,"
she walks toward him, trying to smile.
In the distance, the angels watched the scene.
One nodded, and the other said:
"We have to do something now, or it will be too late."
"God already knows," the first replied.
"But our duty is to remind him
of the gravity of this present moment."
"And what will we do with Teodoro?
If Helena doesn't act, he won't be able to leave here."
They rose to the heavenly gate, disappearing among the clouds.
Meanwhile, Helena tried to comfort Teodoro,
rubbing his hands.
"Everything will be alright. You don't need to worry so much."
The door opened. Uncle Hélder,
the lawyer, and the officer hurried out.
"Please, Nona," Hélder said,
"I need to ask one more thing:
don't let that wretch in…"
He didn't finish the sentence.
Everyone turned as a well-dressed man,
fair-skinned and walking firmly, entered the property.
Each step sounded like a strike on the pavement.
He was accompanied by a lawyer.
His voice reached them before his shadow.
"How are you, Hélder?" he said with a false tone.
"It's been years since I last saw you."
Hélder fell silent.
Even though he hated him with all his heart,
he couldn't show it.
He had to maintain composure.
The man smiled.
"This is the young boy, Teodoro. How are you?
I'm your uncle. Do you remember me?
I'm your mother's brother."
The man took the child's hands.
They were ice-cold with fear.
Helena gently tapped the man's hands.
"Excuse me, it's just a reflex," she said calmly.
"The young Teodoro needs to take his medicine.
Come on, Teodoro."
He led him to the room.
Nona followed them with her eyes.
She felt something strange,
but also a trust in Helena.
After the silence, Joaquim spoke:
"He's a small child. How old is he? Ten years?"
"Don't change the subject," Hélder replied firmly.
"Listen to me carefully, Joaquim.
I don't know what they told you,
or how they painted it,
but if you touch Teodoro…"
"I'm sorry," interrupted Joaquim, smiling.
"I didn't hear you from the beginning.
Could you repeat that?"
Hélder clenched his fists.
Joaquim continued, relentless:
"I believe what I'm doing is right.
I'm here to care for and take responsibility
for my nephew, and cover my sister's mistakes.
Don't you think you should watch your words?
They could turn against you in court."
He leaned slightly toward him.
"Be smart. Don't divert your attention to other people's children
when your own children and your wife
need your attention.
If this doesn't work…
you'll be the one unable to help him."
He paused.
"Remember this, Hélder.
I'm also helping you with the companies."
The silence stretched, heavy,
like an invisible wall between them.
Only the ticking of the clock
and the echo of what they dared not say could be heard.
"But the fact that you don't trust me to take care
of young Teodoro, that… that offends me too," said Joaquim,
letting out a bitter smile.
"I'm helping you, Hélder.
And yet, you doubt me."
Hélder looked at him with disdain, barely containing himself.
"I'm sorry, Hélder," Joaquim continued,
"but this time, you'll let me handle everything."
Unless you want to explore the possible debts
your brother will leave you.
"Remember, without me, you won't get out of this.
Don't bite the hand that feeds you."
He paused.
"I don't know who's worse… my sister or your brother?
Maybe we should support each other."
He walked around the room, observing the furniture.
"Nice house. What a shame it has to be sold.
This is where my sister decided to go on her honeymoon
with that man…
And then, well… you know what happened."
His voice hardened.
"My sister is dead to me.
And I think, deep down, you and I feel the same."
He straightened his coat and added:
"Alright, I'll take my leave.
I see I've come at a bad time."
He walked toward the door.
"But tomorrow, I'll return."
He glanced slightly at Nona.
"And you, Nona, I greatly appreciate you
taking care of Teodoro.
Don't worry, Lourdes' son is in good hands.
From now on, I'll handle his education
and everything else."
He gave a slight nod.
"For now, I'll take my leave, gentlemen."
The sound of the closing door left a void.
The air remained thick, motionless.
Hélder ran a hand across his face.
"We have to do something, Nona."
She looked at him with wet eyes.
"Yes… we definitely have to do something.
And we must act quickly.
If we don't, a tragedy could happen."
Meanwhile, in the room,
Helena stayed beside Teodoro.
The boy trembled, unable to control his voice.
"So… Dad left too," he murmured.
"Then there's no one left…"
thought him, feeling the silence
become a shadow over his chest.
Helena hugged him tightly,
trying to stop the tremor in his hands.
Outside, the wind hit the windows,
as if it also wanted to come in.