At the Lafayette mansion, Ingrid fearfully enters Thierry’s bedroom. At least, she is reassured by the fact that the place is clean and orderly. Thierry had never again forbidden the maids to sweep, dust, and wash clothes grimy with pee and marijuana. And Thierry kept his hair trimmed and styled, and shaved.Still, his serious expression in front of the computer and Evanescence’s song “Bring Me To Life” blasting through the speakers intimidated her. Would it be a good time to talk to the son...?“Sonny?” Ingrid clears her throat unnecessarily and takes a chance.“Yes, Mom?” Thierry responds, still staring at the computer.“Do you have a minute? I need to ask you something.”Ingrid plucks up courage and enters the room. Then she sees what her son does.Thierry was applying color and lighting edits, making a panoramic photograph of Lagoon City’s urban scenery even more perfect and pleasing to the eye.“THIERRY! What are you doing? This... this photo is just mar-ve-lous!” Ingrid is fille
Moments later, Daryl returns to Crystal Blue covered in sand. William tells Tiago’s ‘boys’ to dispose of Daryl like garbage at the back of the restaurant, near the container where Felipe usually looks for something disgusting to eat.“OUCH!” Daryl exclaims in pain.After they leave, Patrick gets out of the restaurant with garbage bags containing leftover food. He is startled to find Daryl on the ground.“Boss! Mr. Mountain, what happened?”“I was temporarily kidnapped, that’s what happened!” Daryl tries to get up.Patrick enters the restaurant. Seconds later, he returns with Felipe and another burly cook.“FATHER! What happened? You went out to pay some bills and came back like this! Mom was worried!”“No! Don’t tell your mother. You guys better take me to the penthouse. Pietro, can you drive?”“Yes, Mr. Mountain.” The burly cook answered.“Then come on, take me to my car. Son, don’t worry.”“No, I’ll go with you, Dad. Pat will come up with something to justify my absence.”Patrick is
Daryl shows up at the police station. Ivan welcomes him with effusiveness.“Mr. Mountain! It’s a great pleasure to welcome you to my office.”“How is your son, Sergeant?”“Growing up, as it should. Now he can’t stop talking about ‘suspects’ and ‘search and seizure’.”Daryl is still under the impression that Ivan is trolling him, but decides to stay on topic, “Call Amoreira. We need a thorough investigation into an urgent matter.”Amoreira, as if he had heard Daryl’s request, enters Ivan’s office with a copy of Maggiezine in hand, “Ivan, you won’t believe...”“WHAT?” Daryl is shocked, “Is the brilliant detective Amoreira wasting his time reading the summaries of the soaps in my sister’s magazine?”Amoreira quickly straightens up, “Hey, Mr. Mountain, you should know that your sister only produces quality entertainment. Besides, you know my vision: these magazines let me know the people I end up working with. And I imagine you’re here to deal with such a matter, correct?”Daryl shuts up
At night, the Lafayette Mansion was lit up more than usual.Jacques Lafayette threw a party to bring Lagoon City society closer to him and his family.At the entrance and in the foyer, guests were in awe of the renovated mansion. The white and immaculate floor and the staircase divided in two that gave access to the second floor left some with their jaws dropping. Just above the stairs, the chandelier was so huge that Reuben wondered how anyone managed to hang it from the ceiling.Alan jokes, “Probably Mr. Lafayette asked some Nephilim.”Reuben is dumbfounded. Would it be possible?Maggie and Bernardo brought a team from Maggiezine to record the moment. Videographers and photographers spread out in strategic positions to work professionally.Jacques appeared in his black tuxedo with a bow tie, “Gentlemen, Mr. and Mrs. Marçal... What a pleasure to welcome you. Oh, I see you brought your team...”“As per our arrangement.” Bernardo winks at him.“Oh, what a beautiful son of yours.” Jacqu
Alan was stunned by the beauty of Sofia Vasquez.The girl, the same age as the heir to Rocha Constructions, had an Iberian appearance, but one could tell that she could still develop her beauty when she reached the age of majority.The party dress was rosy and graceful. Mr. Vasquez smiled and wrapped her in his protective arm.“Are you enjoying the party, my little girl?”“A lot, Dad. Thank you for inviting me.”“This is Alan Campos Rocha, the future heir to Rocha Constructions.”Sofia looks at Alan with respect and admiration. Her voice is kind and polite, “Pleased to meet you, Mr. Rocha.”“The pleasure is all mine, Miss Vasquez.” Alan shakes her mimosa hand.Reuben and Pedro look at the scene from afar and are amazed.“Wow, our friend Alan is talking to Lagoon City bigwigs!” Reuben lifts a glass of guarana, passing it as champagne, “Let’s toast!”Pedro takes another glass and toasts, “To our friend and partner Alan Campos Rocha!”Henrique arrives late, “Hey, wait for me, I want to t
The next day, Josias is having breakfast with his family in the dining room. Mary asks, “Mummy, when are we going home?” Melissa smiles patiently, “We’re not going back to Victoria. We’re going to live here now with Josias and Alan.” “What about Daddy?” “Dad will stay in Victoria, taking care of the restaurant.” “OK.” Mary smiles as she chooses pancakes with lots of caramel. “I like this house, Mr. Rocha,” Ignacio speaks respectfully. “You can call me Josias, Ignacio.” Josias comments kindly. “Ignacio’s nickname is ‘Nacho’, right?” Alan asks between giggles. Ignacio shrugs, not knowing how to respond. It’s a fact that many are calling him that. Josias turns to Alan, “Son, how was the party yesterday? Did you have fun?” Alan smiles wryly, “I think the question you want to ask is, have I behaved decently? Yes, Father, I managed to hold Reuben and Pedro.” Melissa winks, “The question was if YOU behaved, son. We aren’t talking about Pedro or Reuben.” Alan sighs, “Well... I met
At Lafayette Mansion, Ingrid has just left Nadia’s bedroom, wondering why she wasn’t there with Rodrigo. Did they go elsewhere?Ingrid then remembered that there were some guest rooms over to the corner of her residence. She smiles, thinking that Nadia is in one of them so far being loved and possessed by her boyfriend without mercy.Calm, she goes down to the dining room and finds her husband and son talking about the party.“We did it, son!” Jacques exclaims excitedly, “We managed to get close to the elite of Lagoon City. Now, our prestige in the city will increase. I want to thank you for that.”“What did I have to do with it?” A confused Thierry asks.Ingrid replies, sitting down at the table, “You appeared before everyone as a decent young man, without a beggar’s beard, without disheveled hair, and your tuxedo was clean. Your mother was proud. And I still want to see how the photographs turned out.”Thierry blushes to the roots of his hair, “You don’t need to see my pictures. The
At Rocha Mansion, Melissa is being guided by a female lawyer sent by Damascene Lawyers to handle the divorce proceedings between her and Kelvin.“Read all the documentation, Mrs. Rocha.” The lawyer advises her, “If you want to change any clause, I will be willing to comply with it.”Melissa reads carefully. According to the document, Melissa says she does not want a penny of child support for herself or the twins and agrees to collaborate so that Kelvin and the twins have a normal life together.“It’s all I need.” Melissa nods, “You represented me pretty well.”“OK. We’ll send the documentation by express mail to Mr. Mountain to sign. Thus, you carry out the process without much headache.”“Yes, I don’t want to demand anything or make things difficult. In fact, I recognize that I was the one who left home.” Melissa nods.Hector appears in the living room, “Mrs. Rocha, you have visitors. Mrs. Queiroz and Mrs. Motta.”“Oh, send them in, Hector.”The lawyer rises from the sofa, “I must g