The door to the room opened. I turned so fast that the earbud almost slipped out of my hand. There was Araceli, yes, or at least that’s what I thought at the first second: the same brown hair tied back anyway, the same white blouse, the same beige linen pants, the same slim figure leaning against the doorframe. He had a small towel in his hand, as if he had really just come out of the bathroom.
“Who are you talking to, mother-in-law?” She asked in that soft voice she always used when she wanted to appear sweet.
I felt my skin crawl from head to toe.
On the other end of the line, Ivan continued to speak in a low voice, alarmed.
“Mom, don’t tell her anything. I’m sure it’s Araceli. I have my passport in my hand. I checked her well when I went to first class. She’s up there, sitting next to that man. Don’t approach alone if something doesn’t add up.
I could barely breathe. He looked at the woman who was going down a step so calmly, as if there was nothing unusual about that morning. But something, something minimal, made my heart skip a beat. Not his face. Not their clothes. His eyes. Araceli always looked me in the face, even when she was in a bad mood. That woman looked at me as if she were calculating distances.
“Mom, are you still there?” Ivan whispered.
“Yes, mijo,” I replied without taking my eyes off her. Yes, I continue.
The woman smiled barely.
“All right?” You look pale.
I don’t know where I got the courage, but I went with the flow.
“It’s Ivan. He is talkative, as always.
She stood still for a second. Just a second. But I saw it. He felt it. Ivan’s name fell on him like a stone.
“Ah,” he said. Send him greetings.
A different cold ran down my back. Because Araceli adored Iván. He always asked about his flights, about his photos in Europe, if he brought chocolates from duty free for Mateo. That dry, quick, uninteresting answer was not hers.
“Sure,” I said, and I heard Ivan take a deep breath on the other side.
“Mom, get out of the house,” he said in an almost inaudible voice. Right now.
I couldn’t. Not yet. I needed to understand. I needed to know if I was going crazy or if I really had a strange standing in front of me with my daughter-in-law’s face.
