It is generally assumed that she was in search of her husband Juan de Málaga, who had left Spain to serve in the New World with the Pizarro brothers.

Although they were from the same area of Spain and at least one novelist relates a tale of long-standing love between them, there is no real evidence that they had met prior to her arrival in Cuzco.

In late 1539, over the objections of Francisco Martínez and encouraged by some of his captains, Valdivia, using the intermediary services of a Mercedarian priest, requested official permission for Suárez to become a part of the group of 12 Spaniards he was leading to the South.

The natives, having already experienced the incursions of the Spaniards, (Diego de Almagro, 1535–1536) burned their crops and drove off their livestock, leaving nothing for Valdivia's band and the animals which accompanied them.

Captured Indians declared that they had seen a man, mounted on a white horse and carrying a naked sword, descend from the clouds and attack them.

The Spaniards decided it was a miraculous appearance of Santo Iago (Saint James the Greater who had already been seen during the Reconquista at the battle of Clavijo) and, in thanks, named the new city Santiago del Nuevo Extremo.

After the plotters were taken care of, Valdivia turned his attention to the Indians and he invited seven caciques to meet with him to arrange for the delivery of food.

In spite of the advantage of their horses and their skill with their swords, by noon the Spaniards were pushed into a retreat toward the east, across the Mapocho River; and, by mid-afternoon, they were backed up to the plaza itself.

All day Suárez had been carrying food and water to the fighting men, nursing the wounded, giving them encouragement and comfort.

The historian Mariño de Lobera wrote of her activities during the battle: ...seeing that the business was going to a beaten defeat and victory was being declared by the Indians, she put a coat of mail over her shoulders and in this way, she went out to the square and stood in front of all the soldiers, encouraging them with words of such weight that he was more of a valiant captain than a woman exercised on his pad.

There was some objection to the plan, since several men felt that the fall of the city was imminent and that the captive caciques would be their only bargaining advantage with the Indians.

She then went to the house where the chieftains were guarded by Francisco Rubio and Hernando de la Torre and gave the order for the execution.

"[5] In a second version of these events, Gerónimo de Bibar points out that, on the same occasion, Inés grabbed a sword and, heading towards the location where the Spaniards had some indigenous caciques, killed them.

[6] She then goes on to be extremely disappointed in the lack of bravery on the part of the soldiers and commands them to at least move the bodies in the view of the attacking armies.

unable to mount his horse, Ines went up to the knight and stopped all the blood coming from his veins, allowing him to continue the fight.

His testament of dedication said in part: ...in battle with the enemies who did not take into account the caciques who were our prisoners, they that were in the most central place - to which the Indians came, ...throwing themselves on you, and you, seeing how weakened your beleaguered forces were then, you made them kill the caciques who were prisoners, putting your own hands on them, causing the majority of the Indians to run away and they left off fighting when they witnessed the evidence of the death of their chieftains; ...it is certain that if they had not been killed and thrown among their countrymen, there would not be a single Spaniard remaining alive in all this city... by taking up the sword and letting if fall on the necks of the cacique prisoners, you have saved all of us.Suárez continued to live openly with Pedro de Valdivia, until the time of his trial in Lima.

[11] In exchange for being freed, and his confirmation as Royal Governor, he was forced to relinquish her and to bring to Chile his wife, Marina Ortiz de Gaete, who only arrived after Valdivia's death in 1554.

In her author's note Allende wrote: "This novel is a work of intuition, but any similarity to events and persons relating to the conquest of Chile is not coincidental".