Adrian’s POV
The applause from the panel still echoed in my ears long after I’d stepped off the stage. Even now, hours later, the memory of it rang inside me like an aftershock, unexpected, unsettling, but not unwelcome. For weeks, maybe months, I had braced myself for dismantling, for the kind of condemnation that could shred a career. Instead, I’d walked away with something stranger, respect.
The hotel lobby buzzed when I returned. Reporters lingered, microphones angled like weapons. Some offered congratulations with practiced smiles, others launched questions like grenades: Do you still think it was ethical? Was it worth it? What message does this send to your residents?
I didn’t stop. My security detail flanked us, guiding us through the chaos with curt efficiency, but even as we cu
