“I am so sorry.” Cecily kissed Anna’s forehead. “My darling lovely one. I know it does not help to be told it, but someone else will come, and she will treat your heart as the precious gift it is.”

“Mama,” she said. “You do not mind—that I might not get married or have children?”

“There are many Shadowhunter children orphaned, as Ariadne was, seeking loving homes, and I see no reason why you might not provide one someday. As for marriage …” Cecily shrugged. “They said your uncle Will could not be with your aunt Tessa, that your aunt Sophie and uncle Gideon could not be together. And yet, I think you will find that they were wrong, and they would have been wrong even if marriage had been forbidden. Even where laws are unjust, hearts can find a way to be together. If you love someone, I have no doubt you will find a way to spend your life with them, Anna. You are the most determined child I know.”

“I am not a child,” Anna said, but she smiled, in some amazement. Ariadne might have disappointed her, but her mother was astonishing her in quite the opposite way.

“Still,” her mother said. “You cannot keep wearing your brother’s clothes.”

Anna’s heart fell. Here it was. Her mother’s understanding could go only so far.

“I thought you didn’t know,” she said in a small voice.

“Of course I knew. I am your mother,” Cecily said as if she were announcing that she were the queen of England. She tapped the long, ribboned box. “Here is a new outfit for you. Hopefully you will find it suitable for accompanying your family in the park today.”

Before Anna could protest, a loud and demanding cry sounded through the house. Exclaiming, “Alexander!” Cecily swept out the door, instructing Anna to meet her downstairs in the sitting room when she was dressed.

Glumly, Anna untied the ribbons holding the box closed. She had received many clothes from her mother in the past. Another pastel silk? Another cunningly constructed dress, meant to make the most of her slight curves?

The ribbons and paper fell away, and Anna gasped.

Inside the box was the most gorgeous suit she had ever seen. Charcoal tweed with a thin blue stripe, the jacket was neatly tailored. A gorgeous silk waistcoat in radiant shades of blue complemented a crisp white shirt. Shoes, braces—nothing had been forgotten.

In a daze, Anna dressed herself and gazed into the mirror. The clothes fit perfectly—her mother must have given her measurements to the tailor. And yet there was still one thing not right.

She tightened her jaw, then crossed the room to get the pair of scissors. Standing before the mirror, she grabbed a thick fistful of hair.

She hesitated for only a moment, Ariadne’s soft voice in her ears.