~Katia~
The invitation said charity gala and I believed it right up until the moment I walked through the door and saw my mother standing in the entrance hall of the Kensington ballroom wearing her best diamonds and the expression of a woman who had been planning something for at least two weeks.
She had rented the ballroom. That was the first sign. Martha Kensington did not rent ballrooms for charity. She attended charity events at other people's ballrooms, where she could be seen and photographed and positioned correctly relative to the right people. Hosting meant she controlled the guest list, which meant she controlled who Katia Kensington walked into.
I should have known.
"Darling." She kissed both my cheeks and squeezed my hands and looked at me with the particular warmth she res
