Caray, Caray!

Well, this is my last recap for this novela and I would like to thank my fellow recappers Adriana, Nandicta and Pablo for making this a fun experience as well as all of the commenters on our tiny patio who also made this worthwhile and fun.

ACT ONE: Kidnappings

We start out where we left off with poor, pathetic, crying and conniving Ernesto begging Esperanza to let him in to talk. He is not there to hurt her. Against her better judgment (and because she has a bad habit of giving in), she eventually caves. As soon as he is in and she goes to get him some water, she knows she is in trouble. She comes back out to talk to Ernesto and has an incredulous look on her face the whole time he raves on and on. Ernesto is supposedly upset that Esperanza could believe what Tracy said about him on the recording after all they have been through together. He loves her. Esperanza mentions the photo. Not him! Ricardo is turning her against him. How can she doubt him and his love. He does not have to take days to decide. He wants her. He knows Ricardo is going to choose Cristina. His reason is when she got sick it took Ricardo no time at all to hook up with Cristina. Esperanza defends Ricardo by saying she told him she did not love him. Ernesto thinks that Ricardo should have investigated what was really going on. Ricardo's love is divided. Now he has a younger, attractive fertile woman in front of him with a child the same age as his children and Esperanza can no longer have children and as much as he hates to say it: she does not have a STOMACH!!!! She is also the woman who lied to him, deceived him. Ricardo will never ever forgive her completely. The long and the short of it is since Ricardo will choose Cristina and since Esperanza's children are no longer living with her, he can offer her his unconditional love. They can leave. Esperanza wants to know where. Paris, Rome, wherever she wants. He knows they can be happy together. Esperanza tells Ricardo that she does not love him. Ernesto tells her that that could change. She has affection for him. Esperanza reiterates that she loves Ricardo. She does not trust Ernesto and she prefers to wait for Ricardo's decision. She is declining Ernesto's offer but that is not the end. Crafty Ernesto has one final request: will Esperanza go out to breakfast with him one last time as great friends so he can say goodbye to her? He promises her that after today he will not bother her anymore and he will accept Ricardo's decision whatever it might be. He begs her like a dog. She does not think that it would be convenient but Ernesto does not give up and lays the "how could she deny him a dying man who gave her his whole life just see her happy and alive?" guilt trip on her until she gives in again.



The next thing they are getting in his car but Esperanza quickly realizes they are not going to breakfast when Ernesto asks for for her cellphone at gunpoint and all of the doors of the car suddenly lock. She cannot get out; she wants to know where they are going. Holding the gun to her head, Ernesto tells her that he gave her a chance but she spurned his love. If she keeps moving he will shoot her so they can die together. He then covers her face with a white cloth and she passes out.

The door bell rings at Cristina's. She is all excited thinking it is Ricardo and answers the door without asking who it is. It is Ernesto's henchman Regino who puts his foot in the door and takes her out at gunpoint.


ACT TWO: Everything but Kidnappings and Torture.

There is a very short scene where Ricardo tells el nano Andrés that he is going out for a bit to tell somebody "a decision" so el nano Andrés should not open the door for anybody.

Ruperto wakes up Pedro licking and nipping his neck. He thinks it is Anya. No such luck.

At Margarita's house the baby has arrived. It is a puppy dog. It looks like a Boston terrier. It sort of looks like Félix. Félix has dreamed his whole life of having a dog. Margarita and Félix talk about how well they accept each other for who they are. Margarita names it "Pincho Amor". They agree that "Pincho Amor" will strengthen their love.
Margarita's life is great. The only thing missing is Silvana.

Thinking of Silvana, now that she is in jail, she is either truly sorry for what she did to end up like "a rat in a hole" or is giving the old sob story to La Tuerta. It is all the same to La Tuerta who tells her she does not know what is more stupid her "supposed" repentance or giving classes to the prisoners. All she cares about is Silvana paying up or Silvana will end up dead one night.

Ricardo arrives at Esperanza's and she does not answer the door. He tries calling her but there is nothing. Very strange. His next move is to call Pato.

Pato and Luca are in bed discussing Ernesto. Pato tells Luca the time has come for him to accept that maybe Ernesto is guilty. Viviana just walks into their bedroom after Jazmín the maid has left her into their apartment. She congratulates them about the pregnancy. Pato gets Ricardo's call. She is all happy thinking that Ricardo has chosen Esperanza. When he tells her that Esperanza is not answering the door or her phone she says she will be right over with her keys. She is sure everything is okay. Viviana tells Luca she is meeting with the lawyer at 10:00 to put some final changes in the divorce papers. Mario is going to sign them.

As he waits for Pato, Ricardo remembers what Ernesto told him about how he was going to beg Ernesto on his knees to forgive him and how he was going to wish he were dead. He looks troubled and calls Cristina. She isn't answering either.

Pato calls Pedro from Esperanza's to see if he has heard from Esperanza or knows where she is. Pedro and Anya will be right over. Ricardo now inside Esperanza's house tells Pato that Cristina is not answering either. Suddenly Ricardo gets a call from Ernesto: he has both of Ricardo's women under his control. Ricardo needs to come to see him alone. If the police come, he will kill both of them. Ricardo tells Pato that as long as he is alive he will not let anything happen to her mother.

At Viviana's, Mario quickly signs the divorce papers as Salma looks on sadly. Viviana signs next. Mario has the same cold stubborn look on his face that he has had as of late as he tell her goodbye and that this is where their story ends (?). Later, Salma tells Adrián that the divorce proceedings have started but can be stopped at anytime. She and Adrián take it upon themselves to go seek out Estella and Kiko so they can get Mario and Viviana back together again being the Four "Galácticos".

Pato has an idea: if they go see el nano Andrés at Cristina's house maybe he can contact Baxter and get some help in finding out where Ernesto is holding Esperanza and Cristina. Pato is desperate with fear. Pato, Luca, Pedro and Anya head over to Ricardo's. Pato's idea is a good one because soon Baxter is on the case pouring over security videos. It looks like Esperanza went willingly with Ernesto. They have his license plate number. They are all going to review the videos together.


ACT THREE: Torture

At the warehouse, Ernesto is brandishing his gun, manhandling both women grabbing their faces and necks as he declares himself the guest of honor at his game and makes a point of getting up close and personal in the faces of both women. This is a tactic he uses for the rest of the never ending warehouse scene. Ernesto Is not going to kill Ricardo because then Ricardo would feel nothing. Right now the "great leading man" is arriving at the party! Ricardo arrives half conscious with Ernesto's goons. He allows himself to be restrained by his neck with his wrists zip-tied behind him. Ernesto has a question: Which one will it be Cristina or Esperanza? Ricardo says to let them go and he can do with him whatever he wants. That is a no go for Ernesto. The winner wins, the loser dies. He even has a time clock! If in five minutes Ricardo does not pick either, they both die.

The rest of these never ending scenes at the warehouse are horrific with Ernesto raving on and on like the wild-eyed lunatic he has turned into. Also to be noted, Ricardo is trying to saw away at his plastic ties on a piece of wood behind him (with bloody results) and Cristina is working on loosening her cord ties all during these scenes. Regino watches the show from the sidelines. He needs a bag of popcorn.

A tearful Esperanza asks how Ernesto can say he loved her now that he is open to killing her. He screams in her face that he loved her like nobody else in the world and she promised him they would go forward together but as soon as Ricardo was free, she went running to him. She tells Ernesto he fell in love with her 18 years ago and then lied to her. She had not heard from him all that time. Ernesto tells her that he never stopped thinking about her or the child they had. She reminds him he abandoned that child. Ernesto tells her that she knows he had to leave his daughter because of the pressure from Viviana's family. As far as Eaperanza is concerned, he preferred money to them. Ernesto is livid that she is still holding that against him. Esperanza says the only reason Pato forgave him is that she is an angel from heaven. He does not deserve a daughter like her or any of his children for that matter. Ernesto damns her and tells her to shut up. Esperanza doesn't so Ernesto backhands her hard across the mouth. (Now she has a bloody mouth to match Ricardo's bloody wrists.) Ricardo tells him he isn't much of a man to hit a woman like that. Ernesto tells him to just wait because his turn is coming.

Esperanza, trying to get away from Ernesto trying to kiss her bloody mouth he just caused, has a proposal for him. He can have her life if he lets Ricardo and Cristina go. That will not work for Ernesto because that will ruin the game.
Esperanza insists she will go wherever he wants and marry him if he only lets them free. She begs him. He tells her sorry but that offer has E-X-P-I-R-E-D. Anyway, they both know it would not be real. He can see her sacrificing herself for Ricardo but for her rival??? Would she not like to see her die? He will kill Cristina and then she and Ricardo can go on and live very happily. Esperanza asks that he leave Cristina alone. But she is the intruder. She robbed Ricardo's love. That does not sit well with Cristina who says she did not rob anything. Ernesto admits that this has not been a game but he likes it. He leaves it up to Esperanza. Just give him the word and he will let her and Ricardo go. Killing Cristina is no big deal. He grabs Esperanza's face and screams: Damn you! Should I kill her or not????

Ricardo pipes up with if it is him that Ernesto wants to torture, why not let Esperanza and Cristina go? No deal there. Esperanza asks if Ernesto is capable of killing the mother of his daughter. Ernesto talks about the possibility of Ricardo choosing Cristina and him having to kill Esperanza. He points the gun at the top of Esperanza's head. Just think about how she put so much effort into curing her cancer and it could all be over with a bullet in her head. On the other hand, what a waste it would be if Ernesto chose Esperanza and he had to kill the young beautiful school director Cristina. Cristina suddenly starts talking and says she has discovered what Ernesto likes the best. He is sarcastically impressed. He sits on Esperanza's lap (she is clearly in pain) to hear what Cristina has to say. Wow! She is going to psychoanalyze him!!! She tells him he is constantly looking for approval. He has a low tolerance for frustration. He needs to be the center of attention just like he is right now. That is why he has them all tied up because there is no other way anybody would listen to him. He is a frustrated narcissist. Cristina adds that people get rejected everyday and do not go to these ridiculous extremes. At that point, a rather bored Ernesto comes to life, puts the gun to her throat and asks her if she wants to die. He is sick of her voice and is going to kill her.

Ernesto decides he will help Ricardo decide. How does that seem to Ricardo? As far as he is concerned, Ernesto can go to hell. Ernesto has a big flip chart on a stand. On one side is Esperanza's name. On the other side is Cristina's. Under each name their are two categories: Pros and Cons. Esperanza Pros: love that lasted all those years for Ricardo, she's a fighter, a good mother, intelligent. Cons: She hid her illness from Ricardo, the way she handled love in her life, she does not have a STOMACH!!!! and so cannot have more children. On to Cristina. Pros: she can have babies, she is young. Cons: not very submissive, Ricardo does not know her very well. Looking at the chart, Ernesto asks if his analysis helped him at all. All Ricardo wants to know is when this stupid game is going to end. Since Ernesto loves to play, they are going to play. He puts five minutes on the time clock. Ermesto assures Ricardo it is all serious. Everyone is ready to play, right? Time is running out. The countdown has begun. A buzzer goes off. Which one should die? Ernesto says Ricardo has decided that they both should die by not making a decision. Ernesto starts with Cristina. Are those shots we hear?

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