"…and so we must remember that forgiveness is not weakness but strength. To release hatred is not to excuse evil, but to refuse to let it continue living inside us."
The church doors creaked softly as Regina and Mikhail slipped inside.
The priest stood at the pulpit mid-sentence. His eyes lifted automatically toward the disturbance.
Then they landed on Regina.
A moment later they shifted to the man beside her.
His expression immediately turned cold.
Regina met the stare without flinching. She simply bowed her head and made the sign of the cross as though nothing unusual had happened.
The priest looked at her for another second before continuing his sermon.
Mikhail followed her into one of the back pews.
Within minutes, Regina was sitting properly while Mikhail looked as though he had been sentenced to prison. He sprawled across the bench with one arm draped lazily behind her shoulders, absently twisting a strand of her hair around his fingers.
