The chandeliers above the grand hall gleamed like rows of captive stars, each crystal piece painstakingly polished by trembling hands under Rebecca’s watchful eye. Silverware gleamed on the long banquet table, roses and orchids filled every vase, and the golden drapes had been freshly pressed until they fell in perfect lines. The room smelled faintly of beeswax polish and cut flowers, as though beauty could be bottled and forced into the air.

Rebecca stood in the center, silk ...