But it was too late. Amoreira already knew from the fingerprints left on the steering wheel and William had also been duly informed.The mocking face of the two made Gustavo uncomfortable, “Are you thinking of arresting me?”“Should we arrest you?” Amoreira repeats the question to mock Gustavo and make him more scared, “We happen to find Mr. Fields in the General Hospital parking lot. And you just admitted you were trying to stop a nosebleed.”“If I got in that car, there would be blood on the passenger seat!” Gustavo responds furiously. The survival instinct is in full swing inside him.But Amoreira sits down and lights a cigar, “You mean... if you were going to be in the passenger seat, then someone else drove for you?”Gustavo couldn't take it anymore. Panicked, he claps his hands on Amoreira's desk and leans over him, “OK, no more investigating or interrogating me. I assume the bullshit! It was me!”William was about to protest, but Amoreira gives him a stern look, ordering him to
The next day, Josias is communicating the decision about Katherine to his children and employees.“Guys, Katherine is going to work as a secretary at the company. So do not be surprised by her presence.”Lilian shrugs, “I hardly ever go to the company, so it's fine with me.”“Mom is a secretary.” J.J smiles.“Let's have breakfast.” Josias takes J.J on his lap and everyone heads to the dining room.There, Lilian starts bringing out the platters containing delicious and nutritious options. David chooses peach pieces.“Dad, won't my mom come back?” He asks respectfully.Lilian gulps, "Eat your breakfast, David."“Your mother is not coming back, David.” Josias responds cautiously, “Do you miss her?”“If she stays with that friend, I want to stay here.” David lowers his head and pouts.Josias pats him on the head, “It's okay, son, we're going to be together.”Ernesto is standing in a corner of the dining room, watching the familiar scene.******When Ernesto is at Rocha Constructions, he i
Melissa is talking to Daniel in his office like she's never been on her honeymoon. Daniel narrows his eyes and wonders how she does it.“Therefore, Mr. Oliveira, according to the readers' letters, I think we can adjust the storyline of 'Daniele'...” She realizes that she is being stared at, “Is there something wrong with my face?”“No, pardon!” Daniel straightens, “I just wanted to know how you manage to be so dedicated.” He looks at his computer, “You managed to send me the missing episodes during the honeymoon.”“I took advantage of a computer the hotel had available.” Melissa smiles.Daniel removes the floppy from his computer and returns it to Melissa, “Very good. I hope the trip and the wedding were fun.”“Oh, I sure had a lot of fun.” Melissa smiles dreamily.Finally, she is sleeping in the same bed as Kelvin without offending Alan and Caroline.After that, she gets up and goes to the recording studios.Veronica and her fellow actors are sitting on the sofa in the scenographic l
Melissa is in her office getting ready to do more work. Isabel enters and starts a conversation with her.“Izzy, how was that thing about you guys picking up Wallace from jail?” Melissa asks with interest.Isabel responds smiling, “It's tomorrow, my dear. Harold went to the company to talk to Josias and ask for support.”“Great.” Melissa nods, “Do you think Wallace will manage to stay out of trouble?”“If two minxes stay out of town, my boy will recover,” Isabel responds with a grimace.She will never forgive Pamela and Vera, the two vipers who destroyed Wallace's life.Melissa is fearful, “I don't know, Izzy. The two wretched women will likely return to the city, eager to make love to him.”Isabel purses her lips, then replies, “I wonder if they would still behave like bitches in heat. The last time I visited my son, he was very thin and malnourished, his hair and beard disheveled, and his eyes lifeless. That handsome guy from the 80s died thanks to them.”Melissa nods, realizing the
Angela can't seem to get out of the mess she's gotten herself into. She thinks that no one is aware of her involvement with William's car theft, which only makes it more embarrassing.William smiles evilly and is amused, “Don't worry, you crazy girl. We already know the idiot just wanted to protect you.”Angela shakes her head and still tries to deny it, “I don't—““Fingerprints were on the steering wheel.” Beto cuts her roughly.Angela gapes enough to fit a mango through her mouth.Beto goes on, “Here's the thing, you weird one: my boss allowed your lover to be forgiven, as long as he works here in the warehouse instead of staying inside the supermarket. If he accepts, William will turn a blind eye and drop the charge.”Angela smiles pathetically, “Really? And then Josias says you're a bad person, William! Thank you so much for the mercy!”William doesn't get carried away by the false compliment, “Just answer me one thing, bitch: why did you steal my car?”“I just wanted to get away
On Wednesday, we have the release of Wallace Freire from the Cariacica Penitentiary.Isabel was already wiping her tears with silk scarves that she bought thanks to her fat salary earned from the success of 'Love Just Happens'. Harold and Uélton maintain a serious posture. Flavia and Reuben just waited with a slight smile.Josias was inside the premises talking to the prison director and taking care of all the bureaucracy for the release of the (friend?). He had promised to help his best friend's family.The Freire family was waiting in the lobby. It was not a familiar environment, and the activity of police and inmates from time to time scared the ladies.Reuben turns to Flavia, “Mom, can I be a cop when I grow up?”“Son, if it's up to me, you'll never touch a revolver.” Flávia hugs her son tightly as if he were in danger.Uélton turns to his son, “I thought you wanted to be an electrician like your old father.”“I think I'm going to be a fisherman just like the gentlemen on the show
Josias and Wallace return in the first one's car to Lagoon City. Wallace's sights strange the landscape. Nine years without seeing the outside was too much for him.“Different landscape?” Josias asks casually.“Yeah, man, a lot has changed,” Wallace responds in a low tone.“Wait until we get to town.” Josias smiles slightly, “New neighborhoods have appeared and old ones have undergone a renovation. Even Happiness Slum is not as unpleasant as it is in our time.”Josias reaches for the radio and turns it on. Wet Wet Wet's song “Goodnight Girl” was good for Wallace's spirits.He was back in the world of the living.“Josias, how are we now?” Wallace tried to return to his old intonation and constantly cleared his throat.“I didn’t understand the question.” Josias raises one eyebrow.“Are we going to be friends this time?” Wallace fears being more explicit.But Josias got what he was getting at, “Wallace, you know Melissa is married to another guy.”“And I'll never understand why you let a
The answer is no. Vernon and Maggie didn't drop a footnote in either the LCN paper or the Maggiezine about Wallace Freire's return to Lagoon City.Vernon is explaining to Elza in her office at Rocha Hotel, “Honey, we know that bitch Pamela is going to read my column and find out that poor young man will come back here. It's a matter of seconds before she shows up here with the biggest gall, pretending she didn't know anything.”Elza feels her blood boiling, “I can't believe it. Will this so-and-so ever leave us alone?”Jane appears, “Madam, Mrs. Barbosa wishes to address you.”Elza understands that this is Cristina and nods, “Let her in, Jane. Thanks.”Jane gestures and makes room for Cristina to pass, “Good morning, everyone. Ah, Vernon, I thought I would find you here.”Vernon smiles, “And I'll tell you right now: no, I didn't publish anything in the paper about Wallace Freire. I managed to convince all my colleagues to keep silent.”“Do you think the news might leak in another news
Josias visits the Rocha Hotel since he didn’t have a day off for the staff. In the management room, Eugenio gathered David, Benjamin, and Sybil. “Why is that mere cook present at this meeting?” David asked disparagingly. “Because that’s how our boss ordered it,” Eugenio replied dryly. “I didn’t say anything and didn’t call this meeting, so if you’ll excuse me...” Benjamin and Sybil were horrified to see David leaving the meeting just like that. However, when he opened the door, David came face to face with his father. “David, where do you think you’re going?” “DAD!” David exclaimed, extremely surprised. “I didn’t know you were coming!” “Didn’t Eugenio tell you I was coming?” Josias asked with a scowl. David understood who the ‘boss’ was. Benjamin and Sybil felt vindicated. Josias sat down at the desk, taking Eugenio’s seat, while the manager remained humbly standing. “Very well,” Josias began the meeting in a formal tone, “I’m here just to make things crystal clear. First
Melissa and Mary visit the Mountain Café.“A guava juice for me, Mr. Mountain!” Mary requested, smiling sweetly.“Of course, my princess!” Rodrigo replied, thinking Mary was very adorable. “Neil will make a delicious cup for you.”“Thank you. But the princess is Carol,” Mary responded, striking a serious pose.Melissa and Rodrigo laughed heartily. Mary is something else...“Rod, how has it been managing the café in your father’s absence?” Melissa asked seriously.Rodrigo served a baked chicken pastry with ketchup to Mary. “I'm getting by, Melissa. Josias was here earlier, more concerned about my loss than his own, as always. Isn’t he supposed to be resting?”Melissa nodded. “My husband is like that: he only relaxes when all of us are relaxed.”“An impossible mission because of certain people.”Neilton approached with the glass. “Who ordered a guava juice?”“I DID!” Mary grabbed the glass and went to a table.Melissa leaned forward, “Neil, Rod, how are Daryl and Diane? Behaving?”“Cont
At João Paulo’s house, he and Josias were about to have a significant conversation.“Walter, do you want to go with your mom to the kitchen?” João Paulo asked, looking at Helen. “I think she made some walnut cake.”“It was carrot cake,” Sandra replied, already getting up from the couch.“You got it.” Helen appeared and picked up Walter in her arms. “Let’s let Dad and Uncle Josias talk.”“Bye, Uncle!” Walter waved goodbye to Josias.“Bye-bye, I want a piece later!” Josias chuckled.Once alone with João Paulo, Josias became serious. “Don’t let anything or anyone ruin this family scenario, little brother.”“I’m fine. No one wants to ruin anything,” João Paulo replied casually.“Well, I hope David hasn’t caused you any trouble.”“He probably doesn’t even know I exist, man.” João Paulo shrugged.“But I stopped by Café Montanha and found out that the Vasquez family has replaced the Mountain family as the ‘annoying people.’”João Paulo sighed in disappointment. “Yeah. They—”The doorbell ran
Josias visits Café Montanha for a coffee and finds Rodrigo there. “Rod, how have you been?” Rodrigo is taken aback. “How am I? You’re the one who suffered a horrific loss recently!” “But you also lost your father. We’re in the same situation,” Josias explained as he sat down on a stool. “I’m okay, Josias. Life has a way of cheering me up. For example, I’m back at the diner after Thierry decided to take his place at the supermarket.” Rodrigo smiled. “What about the photography studio?” Josias smiled back. “It’s still going to operate, and Thierry will make periodic visits. But he’s going to appoint one of the staff to manage the studio.” Rodrigo served a pizza pastry to Josias. “Thank you. Well, I hope everything is alright between you two. I need to visit Rosemary and meet Jean Luc — is that the name of the baby?” “Yes, the name of the supermarket heir. Meanwhile, Frank will be here or somewhere else.” Josias interjected, “If Frank wants to work at Rocha Constructions, count
At the Rocha Mansion, Josias receives a visit from Benjamin. “How have you been, Ben? Any news about your parents?” The two embrace. “Actually, that’s what I want to talk about.” Benjamin scratches the back of his neck. The embrace breaks. “Let’s go to my office.” The two gentlemen enter Josias’s imposing office. “Any problems with Adolfo?” Josias asks, becoming serious. “Not yet, but I hope not to have any,” Benjamin replies with some sadness. “You know, Josias, what happened with your father made me think about my family, about how important it is for all of us to be together in the final moments.” “That’s true. João Paulo can tell you that better than I can.” “I think you can say it too. Vernon was the father you never had.” Benjamin clears his throat. “So, I’ve been looking into some hotels and realized there’s a demand at the Rocha Hotel in Victoria.” Josias looks at Benjamin, understanding where he’s going with this. “You want to go to Victoria to be close to your pare
Someone rings the doorbell at João Paulo’s house. The homeowner goes to answer after taking a shower and putting on clean clothes. But when he opened the door, João Paulo felt like slamming it in the visitor’s face. “Don’t be rude!” Erasmo exclaimed. “What do you want, you old bore?” João Paulo shot back. Erasmo barged into João Paulo’s foyer. “The mourning is over. Let’s pick up where we left off.” “Are you crazy? Who decides how long mourning lasts? We just got back from the trip!” “Not exactly, it’s been a day. Life goes on, my friend!” Erasmo replied mockingly. João Paulo remained serious. “But I don’t want to continue living this way, where fights and intrigues are the order of the day. Mr. Vasquez, you have a business to run, and I have a family to raise.” “But you found time to slap my son-in-law when he was here defending his family, didn’t you?” “Alan was extremely rude, but that was some time ago.” João Paulo frowned. “I don’t feel the same anger as before.” “So a
At the Vasquez Mansion, Alan could hardly believe that the people were thinking about more intrigues and disputes. “Guys, don’t you understand that I even forgot the reason I slapped Uncle João Paulo?” “Ridiculous!” Erasmo gestured. “You just maintained respect because it was a difficult occasion. But now, the mourning is OVER!” “Do you think João Paulo will rest, dear?” Sofia asked, sitting next to him. Alan shook his head. “If Uncle João Paulo doesn’t want to rest, then he is truly despicable. But my dad is back in town. He wouldn’t dare to do that.” The news should have been uplifting, but the members of the Vasquez family merely exchanged silent glances. With Josias present, it’s quite likely that he will put a stop to their fighting. Alan turned to Olivia. “In the meantime, we should celebrate the recovery of my dear mother-in-law!” Olivia and Sofia smiled awkwardly because of the secret they were keeping. “That’s right, let’s celebrate life!” Erasmo wrapped his arm arou
Josias Rocha and his family returned to Lagoon City. Those who were waiting for them stayed in the mansion and greeted them cheerfully in the foyer. “WELCOME BACK!” Melissa, crying, embraced her parents, William, and the twins fervently. Josias greeted them with a light smile. “Where’s João Paulo?” William asked. “He went straight to his house. His kids needed to rest from the trip.” Melissa wiped her tears with her fingers. “Alan went straight to his mansion. Especially now that his mother-in-law has woken up from the coma.” “That was a scare; I thought we’d have two funerals,” Simeon commented. Everyone headed to the living room. “Is Paris very beautiful, Mom?” Mary asked. “Yes, sweetheart, it’s stunning. We’ll go shopping together another time, okay?” “Do you have pictures?” Ignacio asked anxiously. “Yes, son, we took some pictures.” Melissa sat on the couch, pulling out a package from her bag. Josias sat in the armchair, taking a deep breath. William approached him.
At Café Montanha, Daryl walks in for a coffee and finds Rodrigo at the counter while Neilton serves the others. “Hey, are we back to the old tradition?” “Don’t be a clown, man.” Rodrigo laughs. “Yes, Thierry is at the supermarket, as we agreed.” “Hi, Neil. Can you make me a cappuccino while I enjoy a natural sandwich?” Daryl places his order. “Sure thing, Mr. Mountain.” Neilton heads to the back. Daryl sits on the stool. “So, how do you feel after getting back to your element?” “I don’t regret at all helping my dear wife at the supermarket, Daryl,” Rodrigo admitted while preparing the natural sandwich. “I’m not talking about regrets.” Daryl joked. “But it’s undeniable that after Uncle Francisco’s passing, you prefer to stay here, carrying on the legacy he left.” “Just like Crystal Blue.” Rodrigo smiled. “Hey, I’m aware that you’re looking to open another restaurant in Sunset Village. Do you think you can manage it? How’s the prospecting going?” Daryl picks up the sandwich but