“So what if I stand alone against the entire world?!”
The deafening declaration reverberated through the air, echoing in every ear like a rolling thunderclap that refused to fade.
For a brief, surreal moment, no one spoke.
Everyone stared at Matthew Powell, stunned into silence, their minds scrambling for a rebuttal that simply would not come.
What kind of man could say something like that?
What kind of presence, what kind of conviction, did it take to shout those words in front of a crowd—no, in front of reporters, cameras rolling, public opinion sharpening its knives?
It was raw.
It was absolute.
It was terrifyingly resolute.
And for countless women standing there, consciously or not, a single thought rose in unison:
This… this is what real security feels like.
Eyes began to c
