On a sun-drenched afternoon along the Pacific coast, Puerto Vallarta’s boardwalk hummed with life. The salty breeze carried laughter from children running barefoot across the wooden planks, while music drifted from nearby cafés and street performers. Tourists ambled along the promenade, cameras in hand, unaware of the quiet, unseen stories unfolding amid the vibrant activity.
For Elena, however, this place would never feel ordinary again.
Eight years earlier, the boardwalk had been the setting of a moment that shattered her world. Her only daughter, Sofía, vanished in the blink of an eye. She had been ten years old, her bright eyes wide with curiosity, hair neatly braided, and wearing a yellow embroidered dress. One instant she was by her mother’s side; the next, she was gone.
The memory of that day did not soften with time. In Elena’s mind, it became sharper, more vivid with each passing year.
