The moment seemed to stretch endlessly as Enrico watched with a calm, detached interest. To him, this was nothing more than a necessary correction, a reminder to others of the cost of betrayal. His gaze flickered momentarily to Isabella, who sat rigidly on the couch, unable to look away. Her heart thudded painfully in her chest, each beat resonating with the gravity of the situation unfolding before her.
The guard pressed the glowing iron against Carlos’s chest, and the room erupted with the muffled sound of his scream. The acrid smell of burning flesh filled the air, and a thick plume of smoke rose from the scorched skin where the branding iron had seared itself into his flesh. His body spasmed in agony, his cries stifled by the cloth shoved deep into his mouth. Isabella’s stomach turned
