The police arrived in under twenty minutes, but to Gabriel, it felt like an eternity.

No one touched the garment again. It lay on the dresser in the master bedroom, like a silent piece of evidence in a house that still smelled of dampness, mothballs, and old medicine. Marco paced restlessly, fists clenched. Lucía, Gabriel’s mother, hadn’t been called yet—whether out of kindness or fear, no one knew. How do you tell a mother that her missing daughter’s clothing was found hidden beneath her own father’s mattress?

When the officers stepped inside, the house changed instantly. It was no longer a place of grief. It became a crime scene.

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The lead officer, Renata Tavares, studied the garment without touching it, then looked at Gabriel.
“Are you certain it belonged to your sister?”