The clue is in the name

This was as equally startling as it was thrilling to read. When I began the novella, I remembered to pay attention to the cover so that I would not miss any hidden meanings, like I did with The Final Solution; so when I read that the beautiful Aura had bright green eyes, I began to wonder if the cat on the cover with green eyes was a hint that Aura may not be what she seems.

Fuentes drops many hints that there is a very irregular relationship between Aura and Senora Consuelo. On page 25, Senora Consuelo says, "I told you she'd come back," and the reader assumes that the old woman is talking about her rabbit, but it is Aura who appears. When Senora Consuelo does something, Aura immediately mimics her. Felipe is struck by this strange relationship and assumes that Aura is a servant, against her will, of Senora Consuelo's and makes it his mission to free his love from the old woman's grasp. Yet, if you read closely, you realize that Felipe is also becoming a mirror self of Senor Consuelo. Felipe is not simply copying Senor Consuelo's memoirs, but he is rewriting, reorganizing, and editing the documents. They are no longer in Senor Consuelo's hand, but in Felipe's. Felipe is becoming Senor Consuelo, like Aura is to Senora Consuelo.

Fuentes also provides the reader with clues about the nature of his characters through their names. An "aura" is a mystical, spiritual being that surrounds and is generated by a living thing. The character Aura is Senora Consuelo's aura. Consuelo, when translated from Spanish to English, means "comfort" or "solace." My interpretation could be a bit abstract, but I take this to mean that Senora Consuelo relies on her younger, more beautiful self, Aura, to comfort her in her old age. Llorente is a conjugation of the verb "llorar" which means "to mourn, to lament." Senor Llorente mourns the loss of his wife's sanity, and worries that he has lost her, while Senora Consuelo laments over the death of her husband. And finally, Montero, means "hunter." Felipe tries to save Aura and be her hero, but ends up falling into a trap. I could be reaching here, but I believe Fuentes chose these names intentionally.