“Yes,” she said. “And he wrote things. He wrote that he had to ‘borrow’ from the firm because his personal assets were tied up in the new fund.”

“He wrote that?” I asked, amazed by his arrogance.

“He did,” she said. “He wanted me to know how much he was risking for me. He thought it was romantic.”

I stared at the paper in my hands.

Alvaro had always believed he was too smart to be caught.

He believed his own myth.

“The prosecutor’s office has already verified the accounts,” Lucía said.

“They told my lawyer they are preparing the indictment.”

“For corporate embezzlement,” I said. “And tax fraud.”

“And money laundering,” she added.

“That is why they are calling you today,” I said. “They are going to file the charges.”

“They wanted to confirm I was in Barcelona,” she said. “They are going to raid the Madrid office tomorrow.”

I stood up, placing the documents back into the envelope.

The pieces of my own plan were falling into place, but this accelerated everything.

Alvaro was finished.

Once the news of the indictment broke, the board of directors would have no choice.