THE SECRET COULD NO LONGER BE HIDDEN
Word spread.
People began asking questions.
Who was the giant woman?
Why did Joaquim keep her near the mill?
Why were his machines suddenly working better?
Why was the plantation producing more coffee?
Álvaro became suspicious.
One evening, he confronted Joaquim.
“You’re hiding something.”
“No.”
“I saw her working on the mill.”
“She was helping.”
“She knows engineering.”
Joaquim looked at him sharply.
“She knows how to fix things.”
“That’s impossible.”
“Why?”
Álvaro laughed.
“Because she’s a slave.”
Joaquim’s face changed.
“She is a person.”
Álvaro shrugged.
“Not to the law.”
The words hung in the air.
Joaquim knew he was right about the law.
And that terrified him.
Because he had begun to realize something.
Benedita was not simply strong.
She was brilliant.
And if the wrong person discovered what she could do, someone would try to take her.
