The weeks that followed were slower than Lucia wanted. There were appointments, statements, and long afternoons waiting for replies. Mateo woke from bad dreams. Lucia sometimes checked the courtyard before opening the front door.
She also answered questions about the slap. She never described it as a victory. Every time she remembered the sound, she remembered Mateo crying immediately afterward.
Through their representatives, she acknowledged striking Carmen and expressed regret. That acknowledgment did not include permission to see Mateo or an invitation to settle matters privately.
Carmen tried both.
One afternoon, Lucia received a message from a relative asking her to withdraw everything so Carmen could retain her dignity.
Lucia replied once.
“Mateo’s safety cannot depend on protecting an adult from embarrassment.”
The eventual contact arrangements made clear that Carmen could not collect Mateo or take him on trips. Any future contact would require safeguards and agreement. The unauthorized document was referred for further investigation, and Carmen could no longer claim that Lucia had consented to the journey.
Her greatest immediate loss was Daniel.
He did not disappear from her life, but he stopped handing her control of his son’s. He declined her demands for unscheduled visits, refused to pass on hostile messages, and arranged his own time with Mateo.
When she called him weak, he ended the conversation.
For years, Lucia had waited for someone in that family to do that.
The first supervised encounter Carmen was offered did not take place. She refused the conditions, insisting a grandmother should not be treated like a stranger.
Lucia did not argue. She took Mateo to the park that afternoon. He fed crumbs to birds, chased a ball, and asked for hot chocolate on the way home.
For an hour, he did not look over his shoulder.
Lucia noticed. She did not mention it. She simply bought the chocolate and sat beside him while he drank it.
