Chapter 52

• Chapter 52
• Aurora returned to the boutique the next morning with a calm determination. The sun was bright, but her mood was steady—cordial purpose replacing the fear that had driven her for so long. Behind her, the boutique’s gold-plated sign glinted mockingly, but Aurora no longer saw it as a symbol of her mother’s control. It was simply a building. A shop. Nothing more.
• Inside, Madame Blackwood was already at her desk, tapping away on her phone. She looked up at Aurora’s entrance, eyebrows rising in faint surprise. “Back early, darling. I expected you at the gala dress fitting.”