Drusilla slides it back on. “I was the fifth woman in his life to wear it,” she says. “I knew some of those who wore it before me.” She smiles at Amara, seeing the expression on her face. “An early lesson in men. The fourth was Procris, his wife’s maid. She raised me. When I was a grown woman, she had to give this up to me, along with all the favor that went with it. He broke her heart.”

Amara does not know what to say. Drusilla just told her Veranius meant everything to her, yet the man sounds as monstrous as Felix. “I loved him,” Drusilla says, as if guessing her thoughts. “And I despised him. What else is possible toward the man who gives everything and takes everything?”

“He must have favored you the most,” Amara says. “As you kept it, and he freed you.”

Drusilla laughs. “You can be as naïve as Rufus!” she says. “I survived him, that’s all. Nothing more to it than luck. If he had died when Procris was wearing this, no doubt she would be free, and I would be dressing his widow’s hair.”

Thalia stands back from Amara, offering her the mirror to see her work. Amara turns her face, admiring her curls. “It’s lovely, thank you,” she says, carefully laying the silver disc on the table. Drusilla nods at Thalia who leaves the room. “Thank you for letting me come here,” Amara says, when the maid has gone. “I could not continue to see Rufus otherwise.”

“He will never love you more than he does now,” Drusilla replies. Amara puts her hand to her neck, upset because she knows it is true. “I don’t say it to be cruel,” Drusilla continues. “But you need to think carefully about what you want from him. There will never be a better time to ask.”

“He is always saying he will marry me,” Amara admits. “But it’s impossible! I would be arrested, the marriage dissolved. Roman citizens don’t marry brothel whores. Life isn’t one of his plays.”

“I didn’t mean marriage!” Drusilla is amused. “Perhaps aim a little lower.”

Amara laughs with her, embarrassed to have exposed the heights of her own ambition. “Can I ask you something?” she says, feeling a little shy. “Why did it not work out between Rufus and you?”