Chapter 4

Clara does not tell him what she recognizes.

She folds the license along its old creases and hands it back before her hand can shake enough to give her away, and she watches Francis notice the delay anyway. He does not press her. That, more than anything, tells her he is choosing his moments with care, the way a man plays a longer game than the one currently on the table.

"You should rest," he says instead. "The house will want to meet you soon enough. Better you meet it standing."

He shows her through the hall himself, and Clara…