Catalina was devastated to learn that her husband had died in the fire that consumed their house. But years later, she was shocked when she saw him with a young woman on television.
Jorge and Catalina had been together since college. The couple got married shortly after graduating and lived a happy life for 51 years.
Jorge worked as a doctor at Santa Cruz Hospital until he reached retirement age. After that, he spent most of his days teaching young nurses and doctors at home.
Illustrative image. | Source: Pexels
Catalina, who was once a famous gynecologist at the same hospital, became a homemaker and assisted her husband with his lectures.
Unfortunately, the couple had no children, but they were always surrounded by children, which prevented them from feeling sad about not having any.
One night, Jorge was preparing for a lecture when he smelled something burning.
“Honey, did you leave the kitchen on?” he asked Catalina. He often had tea prepared by her in the afternoons before his lectures, so he assumed the smell was coming from the kitchen.
However, that was not the case.
“No,” his wife replied from the bedroom. “It must be Mrs. Pérez. At night, she and her family usually burn wood logs in their garden. Could you close the windows? The smell is choking me too.”
Jorge was puzzled. Before preparing for his class that night, he closed all the windows. Still, he walked through the house to make sure everything was okay, but when he reached the far end of the house, he noticed one of the rooms was engulfed in flames.
“Honey!” he shouted as he ran to the bedroom. “We have to get out of the house right now! The fire is spreading fast!”
Jorge and Catalina tried to escape the house, but the smoke had filled the room before they could get out. Catalina, who had asthma, choked and fainted. Jorge, who tried to save his wife, also couldn’t escape.
The doctor was unconscious for almost two months after the horrible incident, and when she woke up, she was in a nursing home. It was then that she learned her husband had died in the fire and their house had been destroyed.
The woman cried for hours, and loneliness overwhelmed her for the first time. But fortunately, Stephanie, one of Jorge’s students, was a nurse at the hospital where Catalina was admitted and kept her company. She visited her every day.
“I’m grateful for your help, Stephanie,” Catalina said one day. “However, I need one more favor from you.”
“Of course, ma’am. What do you need?” Stephanie asked.
Illustrative image. | Source: Pexels
“Can I at least see Jorge one last time? Is that possible?” Catalina’s eyes filled with tears.
“I’m sorry, ma’am,” the nurse apologized. “His body was in very bad condition. I recommend you don’t see him.”
Catalina insisted on seeing Jorge but couldn’t bear it for more than two minutes. The fire had made it completely impossible to recognize that the lifeless body in the morgue was her beloved husband.
The poor woman arranged the funeral the following week, and Stephanie stood by her side the whole time for support. But once everyone left after the funeral, she felt the emptiness again.
Illustrative image. | Source: Pexels
Over time, she struggled to recover from the trauma of losing her husband. But one day, she left her room to watch television with the other residents—something she hadn’t done at the nursing home before. Looking closer at the screen, tears filled her eyes.
“Is that really you, Jorge?” Catalina was both confused and overwhelmed. She wiped away her tears, put on her glasses, and looked more closely. But then something caught her attention.
“Wait, who is that young woman? And why did she just kiss Jorge? Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe that’s not him,” she thought as she approached the TV and sat in the front row. But the longer she watched, she couldn’t believe what she was seeing!
It was Stephanie and Jorge, posing for a variety show where they promoted a new resort in the Caribbean along with other people.
Illustrative image. | Source: Pexels
Catalina ran to one of the nurses, Rosa, who worked in the same facility.
“Rosa, this man looks like the one on TV, isn’t it him?” she asked, showing a photo of Jorge because her eyes were no longer her friends in her old age.
“Yes, ma’am,” Rosa confirmed. “But wait a minute, isn’t he your husband? And who is the lady he’s with?”
“That’s Stephanie, Rosa,” Catalina said. “She told me my husband was dead. I can’t believe this. I wonder if the whole fire at our house was just a trick to get rid of me. Did my husband do it on purpose?” she said, crying. “Did they plan it together?”
“I don’t think so, ma’am,” Rosa replied. “There were many other ways to get rid of you. Why would he intentionally burn the house you lived in? I guess you should call the police and report the situation.”
Catalina followed Rosa’s advice and dialed 911, only to uncover a dark secret Stephanie had been hiding for so long.
It turned out Jorge had had a romance with a woman named Clara while he was in college. She was pregnant with Stephanie at the time they met.
He was ready to take responsibility for the child, but things got very complicated, and he had to leave Clara.
Years later, Stephanie wanted to take everything away from him as a form of revenge. So she not only set fire to their house but also forged documents claiming she was pregnant with Jorge’s child. The police investigated the situation and arrested the young woman.
Illustrative image. | Source: Pexels
When Jorge and Catalina saw each other again after 6 years at the police station, they couldn’t stop crying.
“I’m sorry, honey,” the doctor said as he wrapped his arms around his wife.
“When I opened my eyes, I was in a completely different place. Stephanie told me you were dead before I even arrived at the hospital,” he explained.
“I shouldn’t have put my faith in her. When I lost you, I was dying inside and drinking every day to forget it. Stephanie was always there for me during the hard times, so I thought maybe I crossed a line while drunk. But nothing ever happened.”
“As for Clara’s case, you already know everything, including how Clara left me for a rich man. When she came back, we were already together. Maybe if I had told Stephanie the truth, nothing bad would have happened.”
“And you,” he added, turning to look at Stephanie, “my wife has a huge heart. We would have adopted you if you had told me you were Clara’s daughter and had no one to take care of you. I hope you now regret your decision while you’re in jail.”
Read also: Two years after her husband’s death, the woman sees him on vacation and follows him – Story of the day
As the police handcuffed Stephanie, she stood there ashamed. She tried to apologize to Jorge after learning her mother hadn’t told her the whole truth, but before she could, he and Catalina walked away hand in hand.
Illustrative image. | Source: Pexels
What can we learn from this story?
• Lies can have a present, but no future: Stephanie lied to both Jorge and Catalina, but she was eventually caught.
• Be careful with the people around you: Stephanie was fake all along. She pretended to be a good person but was carrying out a cunning and sinister plan.
