It must be dry enough for the next layer by now

Yes, it has been months since I worked on this one, so definitely dry. I was going to paint layers of transparent colours over the 'dead layer'  so I knocked back the too-dark areas before I put it away to dry. However, I got to like it in greys, so it is still shades of grey and might stay that way. 

Don't you hate it when it looked better before you 'fixed' it? There is no "undo" button in oil painting 👩🏼‍🎨