Miguel Torres Sandoval was finishing cleaning the grills at El Fogón del Norte restaurant when he noticed that a kitchen floor tile was loose. It was March 2012, and he had only been working there for two months. The tile shifted every time he passed over it with the cleaning cart. “Another thing to fix,” he thought, as he bent down to examine it more closely.

When he lifted it completely, he discovered a rectangular hole cut into the concrete. Inside was a small metal box wrapped in plastic. Miguel looked toward the kitchen door. The restaurant was closed, and he was the only employee left on night cleaning duty. He picked up the box and carefully unwrapped it. Inside were a restaurant ID badge, a silver ring with initials, Polaroid photographs, and a small diary.

The ID badge bore the name Rosa Delgado Morales, waitress, with a hiring date of January 15, 2011. Miguel recognized the format of the old IDs used before the new computer system arrived. He opened the diary. The first page was written in a woman’s handwriting:

“If anything happens to me, find Aurelio. He knows everything about this dirty business.”
August 15, 2011

The photographs showed the inside of the same restaurant but from unusual angles. One showed the manager’s office with documents scattered on the desk. Another captured a middle-aged man counting bills next to cardboard boxes. A third showed the rear parking lot of the restaurant at night, with several cars and people Miguel couldn’t identify.

He remembered hearing about a waitress who had disappeared the previous year. Other workers sometimes mentioned “Rosa the Waitress” in casual conversation but always changed the subject when he asked for details. He placed everything back inside the box and rewrapped it in plastic.

His shift ended at midnight, and the restaurant wouldn’t open until 7 a.m. He had time to think about what to do with his discovery. He left through the back door and walked to the bus stop. On the ride home, he replayed what little he knew about Rosa Delgado. Older employees had said she was a hardworking young woman who supported her family. She disappeared during a night shift, but he never knew more.

At home, Miguel searched the internet for news of missing persons in Chihuahua in 2011. He found a short newspaper article dated August 20, 2011:

Local newspaper — August 20, 2011.
Young waitress disappears without a trace.

Rosa Delgado Morales, 23, was last seen at her workplace on August 16. Police are investigating possible links to organized crime.

The article included a photo of Rosa — a young woman with long black hair, a kind smile, and expressive eyes. She wore the restaurant uniform in the picture. It mentioned she had two younger sisters and helped support the household after their parents’ death.

Miguel made a decision. The next day, he would try to find Rosa’s family. The newspaper gave an address in a neighborhood on the outskirts of the city. If her sisters still lived there, they deserved to know he had found something connected to Rosa.

The following morning, Miguel arrived early at work and observed Aurelio Vázquez Herrera, the restaurant manager, closely. He was a man in his fifties, always well dressed, who handled scheduling and payroll. The employees respected him, but Miguel noticed how they avoided long conversations with him.

At lunch, Miguel asked the most senior worker on the morning shift, Lucía Hernández Rojas, about Rosa.

“She was a good coworker,” Lucía said while pouring coffee. “Always punctual and never complained about tough shifts. The last night she worked, she seemed nervous. I remember she asked if someone would be staying late with her. And what happened that night? Aurelio said she left early because she wasn’t feeling well, but she left her purse and belongings in her locker. The next day, she didn’t show up, and we never heard from her again.”

Miguel asked where Rosa’s family had lived. Lucía gave him an address in the Riveras del Sacramento neighborhood.

After work, Miguel took two buses to get there. The house was small but well kept. He knocked on the door, and a young woman of about 25 answered.

“Are you looking for someone?”
“I’m looking for the Delgado family. My name is Miguel Torres. I work at the restaurant where Rosa used to work.”

The woman’s face grew serious immediately.
“I’m Carmen, Rosa’s sister. What do you know about her?”