Chapter 67: The art of being seen

Chapter 73: The art of being seen

The knock came in the early afternoon, sharp and deliberate.

Lilliana had been waiting.

She was already dressed, modestly, deliberately. A dove-grey day gown cinched at the waist, the color soft enough to blend into marble but crisp enough to suggest purity. Her hair was pinned in a neat coil, her face untouched by rouge. Just a brush of lavender oil behind each ear. She looked like the kind of girl older women pitied and younger girls forgot.

A maid entered without looking her in the eye. "The Lady will receive you now."

Lilliana rose with quiet grace, smoothing the front of her skirt. "Of course."