Valeria 

I froze in place, my heart hammering like it wanted to escape my chest.

My eyes darted between the two men in the room, but somehow, my gaze was drawn back to Dante. I couldn’t focus on anything else. A bead of sweat ran down my temple, and I wiped it quickly, trying to make myself seem composed, but my hands trembled at my sides. This felt unreal, like a nightmare I couldn’t wake from.

I had looked at Dante. His eyes met mine, and a chill ran down my spine. I couldn’t ...