Chapter 30

ANA’s POV

As I looked around San Alfonso, I didn’t realize that the car had already stopped.

“Lady Ana,”

I looked at Alexis and raised my eyebrows, wondering why we had stopped. “Hmm?”

He scratched his head and seemed hesitant to speak.

“Alexis, what’s going on?” I asked him. He took a deep breath and pointed towards the entrance of the ranch.

“It’s forbidden to enter the Montes’ territory,”

I furrowed my brow, not understanding what he was saying.

“Their properties have been closed for a long time. Don Levi also prohibited us from going to this area.”

What?

“How did he forbid it? Wasn’t the former Vice Mayor the pillar of the Montes’ family?” I asked. He sighed and shook his head slowly.

“Since the incident in San Alfonso, they have closed the Montes’ properties. It was also Don Levi’s order, as it would be detrimental to the future of San Alfonso.”

I stopped when I heard that story before, when I overheard Martin talking to his uncle.

“How long have you been here in San Alfonso, Alexis?” I asked. He smiled at my question.

“I was born here. I even witnessed the leadership of Don Martinez and Don Ignacio Montes,” he replied.

I nodded at him and looked at him. “If that’s the case… Do you know what happened 28 years ago?”

I noticed Alexis pause and saw the tight grip he had on the steering wheel, so I knew he knew what happened back then.

“I was still too young back then, Lady Ana, so I didn’t really know what happened. All I know is that the Montes family is very kind. Don Ignacio was a close friend of Don Martinez,” he smiled at me, but I knew his smile wasn’t genuine and that he seemed to be in pain.

I took a deep breath and leaned back. “How well do you know Don Ignacio? And what happened 28 years ago?” I asked. He looked at me as if trying to figure out why I was interested in what happened 28 years ago.

We fell silent for a moment, but he avoided looking at me and sighed. “It’s also forbidden to talk about those things. I’m sorry, Lady Ana,”

I tilted my head and just nodded at Alexis because it seemed that Levi indeed prohibited discussing what happened 28 years ago. Furthermore, I looked at Alexis again, who couldn’t look at me.

And I also wonder if there’s a secret about what happened back then? And why are the details so confidential? Hmm… “How does Don Ignacio lead the town?” I asked because my curiosity never fades.

Alexis looked at me and smiled slightly. “Don Ignacio is an honorable and dedicated leader. He is helpful to the poor and willing to assist those in need. The same goes for his wife, Lady Stella.”

My arm crossed and I nodded again. “If that’s the case… Why did this happen to the Montes?”

He swallowed and shook his head firmly. “I’m sorry, Lady Ana, I can’t say.” he said, taking a deep breath. “To make it up to you, we will enter their ranch, but please don’t mention to Don Martin that I brought you here, as he may terminate my employment.” he added. I smiled and patted him on the shoulder.

“I'll handle Martin.” I replied, looking at the Montes’ ranch. It was larger than the Villalobos’.

We stopped at the rice fields, and she opened the door and helped me out.

“Welcome to Montes De’San Alfonso.” Alexis said with a smile, to which I just nodded and smiled back.

Their land was much larger than the Villalobos’, but I noticed that some crops were dead and there were no trees either.

“What are you doing here, Lady Ana?”

The two of us stopped, and I turned to look at the person, not surprised that one of Levi’s men was here.

“Ex-Former Chief,” I greeted him with a smile.

He looked at me emotionlessly and said, “What are you doing here? You’re not allowed here.”

“I want to go to Moon Falls, I heard it’s a beautiful place. I just want to unwind,” I smiled at them. He looked at me and Alexis suspiciously, so I just smiled. “And you? Why are you here?” I asked, and he seemed surprised by my question, so I smirked secretly.

“I was assigned to guard this area. Moon Falls is over there,” he pointed to a secluded path leading to Moon Falls.

I nodded at him, and we went to where he had pointed. “Thank you!” I said.

He just nodded and we passed by him.

“What do you want me to do, Lady Ana?”

I just smiled at Alexis and raised my hand before I glanced at the former Chief, Delgado, who was still watching us as if he were keeping an eye on our movements.

“You don’t have to do anything, Alexis. Let him speak to Don Levi that I am here now. But… entertain him for a while. I just need to talk to someone here, and please… Don’t interrupt us, okay?” I said, and he nodded at me, so I patted him on the shoulder. “You take care of him. I’ll call you later,” I added, and I held his shoulder before I walked towards a secluded path to meet with the person I trust.

As I was walking, I took my phone out of my bag and called Tyron. “Meet me at the place… Near Moon Falls,” I told him.

(“Yeah, I saw Delgado. I’ll wait for you here.”)

I ended the call and continued walking. This place was entirely different from Monticello’s Cristina Falls, as it seemed abandoned for a long time.

“Ana!”

I saw Tyron waving at me, so I headed towards where he was stationed.

“What do you want me to do? Besides our plan?” he asked. I took a deep breath and sat down on a log.

“I want you to investigate what happened to the Montes family 28 years ago,” I said seriously, which caught him off guard as he looked at me as if he couldn’t believe what I was asking him to do.

If the Montes family is connected to Levi, I can use this against them.

“Wait! Do you want to investigate what happened 28 years ago? Are you sure?” he asked in surprise. I nodded in response.

“You’re the current Chief, so I know you can do it. I trust you. I just need to know everything about Montes.”

He looked at me, his eyes narrowing, as if he were wondering why I had an interest in the case.

“Why are you interested in them?”

I knew he would ask me that. I took a deep breath and looked away from him. Furthermore, I didn’t know why, but I was curious about what happened to them. So, I looked into the distance and then stood up to look at the falls.

“I’ve heard about them. I apologize, but I overheard the conversation between Martin and your father. There’s a part of me that wants to know the truth about what happened 28 years ago. I might uncover some hidden secrets of the Villalobos,” I turned to him, and he noticed the seriousness in my gaze. “The evidence we have against them is not enough. I want to know everything about them and what happened 28 years ago,” I added.

He hesitated, ran her hand through her hair, and looked at me. “I can do that, Ana, but… the case has been closed for a long time. The files at the station are almost incomplete, as if they don’t want the truth to be known,” he said. I bit my lip and looked back at the Falls.

I won’t be able to sleep until I find out what happened. It might be connected to everything that happened to me.

“I also found out that Don Levi prohibited my colleagues at the station from talking about what happened, so they are also afraid to speak up.”

I nodded in agreement, as Alexis had already informed me about that.

“Yeah, I know.”

This made me even more interested in the Villalobos family’s secret, which is why they prohibited discussing what happened…

I took a deep breath and faced Tyron. “Continue investigating, Tyron, because I won’t rest until I find out the truth. I know that’s what Don Martinez wants too,” I said seriously, gripping his arm to persuade him to agree with me.

Tyron just let out a sigh and seemed to be at a loss for what to do.

“Ana, what you’re asking me to do is difficult, but I’ll find a way. For Uncle Martinez and for you. Wish me luck!” he said with a smile. I smiled back at him and put my hand on his shoulder, but we were suddenly interrupted by a loud noise coming towards our spot.

Tyron and I looked at each other, and he pulled me towards the grassy area behind the hut. He signaled for me to be quiet, so I nodded in agreement.

We also checked on the person who was coming.

“They’re here, Don Levi,”

Tyron and I looked at each other when we heard the name.

“I’ve been looking for Lady Ana — alright, Don Levi.”

The man put down his phone and tucked it into his pocket.

“Bro! There’s no sign of Lady Ana here. She might have left!”

“Tsk, Delgado will take care of that. Let’s just go have a drink!”

They left, so I breathed a sigh of relief before Tyron and I emerged from our hiding spot.

“I’ll go first, Tyron, in case someone catches you. It’s dangerous now because it looks like Levi is keeping an eye on my movements,” I said seriously. He nodded at me and patted me on the shoulder before I watched him leave.

Damn. Someone has noticed my actions too.

I also left Moon Falls and saw our car.

“Alexis…! Damn it!”

I ran to where Alexis was lying unconscious on the ground. I looked around and noticed that Delgado was nowhere to be found, so I picked up Alexis and put him in the car.

As I closed the car door, a gun was pointed at my head.

“You have defied the only law of Don Levi.”

I sighed and then grabbed his pulse and twisted his arm as he screamed. I grinned as I took his gun and pointed it at his throat, surprising him.

“It looks like you made a mistake in scaring Delgado. Don’t you know that I am a sponsor of Don Levi’s campaign? I can revoke that with just a snap of my fingers,” I whispered with a smile, then I hit him hard on the head with the gun, causing him to lose consciousness.

“F*ck you.” I spat at him before getting into the car and driving back to the ranch.

I clenched the steering wheel tightly.

“You picked the wrong fight, Levi. It looks like you don’t want me to find out what really happened 28 years ago. You can’t stop me. You will pay for everything you’ve done to me.”