Carlotta Espinoza Vega (née Santi) is introduced in 1995 as the longtime maid and loyal confidante of Dorian Lord. Carlotta's teenage son Cristian soon becomes romantically involved with heiress Jessica Buchanan. At first, both Carlotta and Jessica's parents disapprove of the match. Carlotta's elder son Antonio, a former gang member in Llanview's Angel Square, is released from prison the same year after serving a seven-year sentence for murder. Carlotta eventually quits Dorian's employ to run her own diner. Antonio later proves that his crime had been self-defense; he becomes a lawyer and then a police officer, eventually leaving town in 1998, but returning in 2000. Carlotta herself is romantically linked at times to both Clint Buchanan and Hank Gannon.