Eleanor's POV
Nomad looked down at the weeping woman, his voice devoid of any inflection. "You know the rules. Displaying weakness in my presence is a sin. It must be punished."
The woman flinched as if struck, a fresh wave of silent sobs shaking her. I couldn't stand it. I couldn't let this happen. But intervening with kindness t would solve nothing and likely make her punishment worse.
An idea, desperate and cruel, flickered in my mind. To save her, I had to become the monster they expected.
I stepped forward, sharply. "Enough," I said, my voice cutting through the woman's whispered pleas. I made sure it sounded bored, irritated. "Your crying is making you ugly. And seeing it is getting on my nerves."
Nomad's hidden gaze shifted to me. "What are you doing?"
I looked at him, tilting my head with a feigned arrogance I didn't feel. "I'm handling it. I assume your punishment for her is death? How… unoriginal. What I have in mind is better. More fitting."
