Episode: 6
Caterina inspects her injured hip at the mirror, weeping over her secret. Augustus sneaks inside and holds her waist from behind. After lifting her onto the sink counter, he uses a wet cloth from his silver flask to tend her wound. He questions her choice of Felton and promises his blessing if she labels him a monster to his face. Caterina looks directly into his eyes and tearfully admits he is not.
Caterina stands alone in the powder room, crying as she looks into the mirror. She checks the bleeding crest branded on her hip and worries that Felton will find out his own father deflowered her before their planned wedding.
Augustus comes up behind Caterina and wraps his arms around her waist, offering to treat her injured skin. Caterina pulls against his grip. She tells him to step back and reminds him that he is her fiancé's father.
Augustus lifts Caterina onto the marble counter and points out that Felton sits in the adjacent room. He wets a cloth with liquid from his silver flask. Augustus dabs her bleeding brand, and Caterina winces from the pain.
Augustus demands to know why Caterina prefers his son over him. He raises his hands and steps away, making her an offer. If she can look him in the eyes and call him a monster, he will bless her marriage.
Caterina stares straight into Augustus's eyes as tears run down her face. She cannot call him cruel. Instead, she quietly confesses that he is not a monster. Their faces draw inches apart in the quiet room.
“Marrying Felton is my only chance at freedom. He can't find out I've been deflotted by his father.”
“Felton's right next door. Do you want him coming in and catching us like this?”
“So tell me now that you truly think I'm a monster. If you say it, I'll bless your marriage to Felton.”
“You're not a monster.”
Caterina speaks through her tears and tells Augustus that he is not a monster. The Duke stands inches away from her face, and their shared gaze leaves them breathless in the locked room. Will Caterina pull away before someone catches them, or will her secret feelings for Augustus ruin her arranged marriage to Felton?