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FLASHBACK•••
OVER 500 YEARS AGO.
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In the dimly lit room, a young woman, the size of a teenager with dark, waist-long hair, dishevelled and wild, slapped an older man across the face. Her hand connected with a sharp crack, and he stood there, stiff and shocked, his breath reeking heavily of alcohol. Valeria's chest heaved with every breath, tears streaming from her eyes, pooling at her lashes before cascading down her cheeks.
"How could you?" she cried, her voice trembling with disapproval. "Why would you do that to me?"
The man, handsome but bearing the unmistakable signs of a heavy night's drinking, stared at her with wide, guilt-ridden eyes. He made no move to defend himself as her hand swung again, striking his other cheek. The slap echoed through the room, and he merely fl
