SPOILERS!!!
This is the first book in the second series of Episodios nacionales. This time the main character is Salvador Monsalud, a young man who is part of the French guard. He claims that joining the guards was his only solution when he was in a desperate situation. Now the French are leaving the country, but Salvador is determined to remain loyal.
His loyalty means that he is seen as a traitor. His friend Juan Bragas warns him and when they go to visit Salvador's uncle, Andrés, Salvador is insulted and some rascals throw mud at him. At his uncle and aunt's, there are some guests, who disapprove of his attitude, but Salvador remains firm even though even his uncle calls him a traitor.
Salvador leaves with the French, and they stop at Puebla de Arganzón, where he is from. What he first does is go and see his mother. When the woman, Serafita, sees him, she starts sobbing. There is an old woma, Doña Perpetua, with him, and she tells him that he is a shame for his mother because he has stood on the side of the enemy, and minutes later the priest, Don Aparicio Respaldiza, arrives, and he also tells him that even though he knows he is a good man, what he has done is wrong. Salvador leaves, promising to think about leaving his position.
That night Salvador goes to see the woman he loves, Genara. He stands behind a fence and throws a pebble at Genara's window. The woman appears but the fence separates them. The woman tells him that she still loves him even though her grandfather has always opposed to her loving Salvador. The thing is that Salvador doesn't have a father as his mother had him out of wedlock and he has never told anyone who made her sin. Salvador asks Genara about some rumours he has heard about her being courted by Carlos Navarro, and the woman says that it is true that he has chased her, but she doesn't love him even though the man is brave and has fought with the guerilleros. Genera wants to know if it is true that he is a French guard, because if that were the case, she wouldn't be able to love him. So Salvador lies and tells her that what she has heard is not true.
Then Carlos Navarro appears and the two men start to fight. Genara leaves her position behind the fence to stop the fight, but when she sees Salvador in uniform, she is shocked and calls him a liar and a traitor, and she says she doesn't want to see him again. Salvador is upset and challenges Carlos, but he just tells him that he won't hurt him and they can do it another time.
The next chapter we are introduced to Carlos's father, Fernando, who is a man that is known for his intelligence and courage, but he is also considered impious. Doña Perpetua visits him to tell him that he needs to redeem himself, and then we discover that Fernando Navarro is the man who left Serafita pregnant and who is Salvador's father. When Doña Perpetua tells him about his sins, the man seems unaware of the fact. However, when he discovers that the son is a French guard, he swears that he is no father of someone like that.
I am already enjoying this new series in the episodios nacionales, and there are some characters from the first series that appear here like Licenciado Lobo, Mauro Requejo or Father Salmón.
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