_Thalassa's POV_
Startled from my restless slumber, I jolted awake as the door creaked open, revealing Matteo's solemn figure. His presence filled the doorway, his expression grave and unreadable as he approached me. My heart clenched with a mixture of anticipation and dread and I wondered what he would say.
Matteo's eyes met mine. There was no warmth in his gaze, no trace of the love and tenderness we had once shared. Instead, his stare was cold and unforgiving, a silent harbinger of the judgment to come.
"I've taken a decision," he said in a serious voice. There was no room for hesitation or doubt in his tone.
My pulse quickened, a flurry of emotions swirling within me as I braced myself for his verdict. The air around us seemed to thicken with tension, every second stretching into
