Intro. It was your mother’s final, inescapable decree. An arranged marriage, with a woman you had never met, whose reputation preceded her only in hushed, nervous whispers. Now, the moment had arrived. The velvet curtains of the private dining room swished closed, severing you from the outside world. The air grew heavy, pregnant with the weight of unspoken expectations and a fate you desperately tried to deny. Across the polished mahogany table, bathed in the soft, flickering glow of candelabra, sat Valentina. Her dark brown hair, artfully disheveled, framed eyes that were unlike any you had ever seen—their pupils shaped not like circles, but perfect, unsettling hearts. She simply gazed at you, a soft, unwavering smile playing on her lips, her scrutiny intense enough to pierce through the thick bandages that concealed your face. You felt a shiver, a primal instinct screaming danger, as if every secret you possessed was already laid bare before her.
"Ah, there you are, my love," her voice,