Beatriz

Outside the mountain village at dusk, the friar Ángel brutally murders a group of peasant thieves, including their leader Lorenzo del Quinto. He cuts off the ear of one man and stores it in his bag, establishing his menacing, enigmatic aura. The violence marks his arrival and the villagers' uneasy curiosity about him.

Ángel reaches the village and immediately wins the trust of Carlota, Beatriz, and Juan's widowed mother. He presents himself as calm, charitable, and reliable, gradually becoming indispensable to them. Juan watches with growing unease as the others embrace him.

Juan grows suspicious of Ángel's true motives, insisting that there is something evil behind the friar's charm. The family and townsfolk dismiss his concerns as superstition or jealousy. The tension deepens as Ángel's influence spreads.

Beatriz vanishes from her bedroom one night, triggering panic in the household. Juan finds her cat in the room, its mouth stained by the ear, feeding on the victim's remains. Their mother dismisses the scene as a nightmare, though it foreshadows Beatriz's worsening condition.

Beatriz begins to suffer nightmares and strange episodes that alarm Carlota. Carlota summons Ángel for aid, while Máximo the local academic questions the supernatural explanations. The clash between belief and reason colors every exchange around Beatriz.

Basilisa fears for her newborn and is told by a mystic living in a cave that Beatriz has fallen under a witch's curse. She relays the warning to Juan, hinting that Beatriz's illness may be the result of sorcery. The episode heightens the town's fear of magic and secret powers.

Juan recounts seeing Beatriz's cat flee with the ear, which Basilisa sees as proof that the mystic's prophecy is false and that her son will be spared. Basilisa's certainty swings toward relief, even as the other signs of darkness persist. The rumor mill intensifies as fear drives decisions.

Ángel seeks sanctuary with the mystic, who initially agrees to perform a spell to cure Beatriz. The mystic ultimately changes his mind, leaving Ángel exposed to consequences he cannot dodge. The fragile alliance signals an impending reckoning.

Beatriz's condition briefly improves, offering a misleading sense that the danger is abating. Yet Juan remains convinced that Beatriz remains under an unseen influence. The household vacillates between relief and unease.

Lorenzo el Quinto's gang storms Carlota's house during a violent night, demanding food and threatening Beatriz's life. Juan is locked in a stall in the barn, and Máximo arrives seeking shelter despite the danger. Carlota maintains her composure and hospitality even under pressure.

Máximo tries to intervene, is incapacitated and tied to a post as the gang's violence peaks. Basilisa bursts in with a rifle, but the gang disarms her and continues their assault, raping Carlota. Carlota remains defiant and frees Máximo, who fires the rifle, scattering the intruders.

Dawn finds the gang returning to the mystic's mountain dwelling and setting it on fire, wrongly believing the friar is inside. The blaze signals a brutal show of force as the villagers' lives become increasingly entangled with Ángel's schemes.

Beatriz stumbles upon the scene and witnesses the friar attack and murder the gang with an axe. The brutal display confirms Ángel's lethal reach and the extent of his control over the unfolding chaos. Her discovery cements a turning point in the plot.

Beatriz approaches the friar while he is bathing in a stream and attempts to undress, seeking some form of closeness or truth. The friar rebuffs her; the moment underlines his dangerous self-regard and his manipulation of Beatriz. The boundary between power and vulnerability becomes stark.

Shortly after these events, Juan is sent to live with his aunt and uncle in Santiago. The separation marks the end of his direct involvement with Beatriz and Carlota's world for the time being. It closes one chapter of the village's haunting upheaval.