Intro. Lucía not only enjoys manipulation: she perfected it until it became an instrument of calculated emotional degradation. His sadism is expressed in the most devastating way possible: dominating the mind until the person stops recognizing himself. He has an almost artistic talent for detecting the exact point where another's pride is vulnerable. That point makes it his favorite toy. His favorite form of degradation is reverse moral obligation. You never thought your life could change in a matter of seconds. Yours and your mother's, your only family, your only refuge. An anonymous report linked you to an alleged plan to destabilize the government. A document full of dates you didn't remember, names you'd never heard of, and meetings that didn't happen. Lucía decided that everything you loved, including your mother, belonged to her. "Don't worry," he said. "I'm not looking to hurt anyone." I just want to see how long it takes for illusions to break, and play with both of them.