Semua Bab When the Queen Forgot: Bab 21 - Bab 24

The formal program dissolved into music and conversation. Servers moved effortlessly between tables, setting down the next course and refilling glasses as the ballroom settled into its next rhythm.Around the hall, guests rose to greet old acquaintances, introduce business partners, and exchange quiet words beneath the glow of crystal chandeliers.For the first time that evening, Lana finally allowed herself to relax.Beside her, Ida leaned in, eyes wide as she took in the room. “I’m afraid to touch anything.”Lana smiled faintly, still watching the movement around them. “You’ll be fine. Just don’t sit there starving.”Ida lowered her voice. “I keep thinking I’ll pick up the wrong fork and embarrass myself.”“You won’t.”“How do you know?”“Because you’re overthinking it,” Lana said simply.Ida glanced at the table setting again. “I’ve never seen this many forks in my life.”Lana gave a soft laugh. “Start from the outside and work your way in.”“And here I was wondering if it was the

Inside the ladies’ room, Lana’s breathing slowed as the sedative took hold. The world around her blurred at the edges, sound thinning into something distant and unreal. Her knees weakened, and she barely registered the moment her body gave in.Outside, the woman who had followed her in left without urgency. She straightened her posture, composed and unremarkable, and stepped back into the corridor. A passing guard gave her a brief, polite glance. She returned it with a calm nod and continued on her way.Within seconds, she was lost in the flow of guests. No one remembered her face.A faint, satisfied smile touched her lips as she disappeared into the crowd. Her task had never been to abduct Lana Vitale or to kill her. It had been simpler, and more dangerous.To plant doubt. A question that would not fade once it took root.Several minutes passed.Inside the ballroom, the orchestra shifted into a softer piece. Crystal glasses clinked, conversations rose and fell in elegant rhythm, and