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."