Rosina's lips twitched, caught between a bitter laugh and a snarl.
"Fine with it?" Rosina repeated, her voice cold enough to frost the air. "Gastone, I tolerated it because I assumed you'd have the sense to keep her out of our world. Loving Lucia is one thing. Dragging her here is another. Do you even realize what you've done?"
Gastone's jaw tightened. "I saved her."
"You endangered her," Rosina shot back, stepping forward until they were nearly nose-to-nose. "And you endangered yourself. The councils already whisper about your… sigh. Now, when they find out you smuggled two humans into the heart of the realm—"
"They won't find out," Gastone interrupted, his tone sharp as steel.
Rosina laughed— low, humorless, and dangerous. "You think secrets stay buried here? One scent out of place, one careless move, and the entire territory will know. You're gambling with her life, Gastone. And Joseph's. And yours."
