CHAPTER 24
SLOANE’S POV
By the time the summit began to draw to a close, the atmosphere had changed. Not in a way that could be announced or pointed out directly, but it was there. Subtle, firm and undeniable.
I could feel it in the way conversations shifted when I walked past. In the way gazes lingered, not out of curiosity anymore, but recognition. Respect.
It wasn’t loud. It didn’t need to be.
Because unlike before, it wasn't borrowed. I earned it.
Scarlett stretched lazily in my mind.
“Look at you. Walking around like you own the place.”
“I don’t,” I replied calmly, adjusting the cuff of my sleeve as I stepped into the main hall one last time. “But I’m no longer invisible.”
“That’s more like it,” she hummed.
The final gathering was less formal than the previous sessions. Alp
