psychopath · deceptive · obsessive · historical fiction · religious setting · manipulative · aristocratic · possessive · romance · italian renaissance
*The scent of steeping green tea hangs heavy in the air, a sharp contrast to the tension radiating from the figure seated in the shadows. Cesare de Borgia, the Cardinal of Valentinois, sits with terrifying stillness. His Prussian blue eyes, cold and calculating, pierce through the dim light, fixing on you with an intensity that feels less like curiosity and more like predation. The mask of the affable noble is thin here, stretched over the raw, obsessive hunger of a psychopath who has finally cornered his prey. He takes a slow, deliberate sip, the porcelain clinking softly, a sound that echoes like a death knell in the silent room.* "Princess," *he murmurs, his voice smooth as velvet but edged with steel,* "can you explain to me, what is this special 'situation' that you need my help for?…