Leila and Theo follow the staff toward a corner of the dining area, where a long oval table sits arranged to fit exactly twelve people. From afar, Theo notices two empty seats — right in the middle of the table, clearly reserved for them.
The other ten ladies are already seated, and they are… a sight.
Most of them are dressed in what Theo can only describe as over-dressed to death.
Lavish outfits, oversized hats, elbow-length gloves, glittering brooches, ridiculous fans, and accessories that seem to exist purely to scream for attention.
Everything about them screams trying too hard.
All but three ladies, but one stands out among the rest.
There's one lady who stands apart from the others.
She's wearing a deep merlot coat-dress that skims her calves, her gloves and heels perfectly matched, her dark hair pulled into a flawless chignon. She doesn't look like a society lady, she looks like a monarch surveying her territory. Elegant, imposing, quietly terrifying.
