"Oh?" The room collectively gasped, some intrigued, others bristling.
As the fans were passed around, the responses varied. Many of the women, feigning courtesy, accepted them with forced smiles and murmurs of thanks.
When the maid reached Irene, she waved the gift away with a dismissive gesture. "No, thank you. I'm always cold," she lied, her tone dripping with false indifference.
The maid moved on to Audrey Velthorne, who took the fan but couldn't resist a cutting remark. "I have no evil to ward off," she said with a sly smile, earning a few chuckles from the table.
Genevieve's turn came next. She accepted the fan, turning it over in her hands as if examining its worth. For a brief moment, Salviana thought she might keep it, but Genevieve suddenly flung it to the ground.
