She gripped my hand tightly.
“I have spent my whole life lying, Efraín. I lied to protect you. I lied because I was scared. But I cannot marry you. Not like this. It would be wrong. It would be a betrayal of your mother. It would be a betrayal of everything that was true.”
She released my hand and walked toward the door.
“I’m going to leave now. I’m going to disappear, Efraín. You won’t see me again. But I want you to know that the only truth I ever felt was the love I had for you.”
She was gone before I could say anything.
I sat there, alone in the bedroom, the envelope and keys on the table, the mark on her shoulder burned into my memory.
I had married a woman who turned out to be my aunt.
And she had just walked out of my life.
