Chapter 4

The palace's Riverside Ballroom glittered under crystal chandeliers, filled with the murmur of nobles and the clink of fine glassware.

I arrived neither early nor late, taking my seat just as several icy glances settled on me—Lillian and her circle of aristocratic friends.

"Well, if it isn't Ms. Wynn—oh, pardon me, Mrs. Grant," a young woman in a pink gown remarked, her tone saccharine and just loud enough to carry.

Another giggled behind her hand. "I heard her father was a merchant who bought his military commission. Can that be true?"

And so it began—the lineage debate.

Lillian sat nearby,…