By the time the conference wrapped up, my brain felt like it had been put through a grinder.
The Q&A session stretched longer than expected, full of half-smiles, political phrasing, and the kind of questions that were really just chess moves in disguise.
Then came the guided site tour.
They split the companies into their groups, a few representatives from the Bureau joining each of us as we moved through the perimeter of the proposed Meridian Development grounds.
The air smelled like concrete dust and new beginnings. I kept my focus on the terrain, the layout, the logistics, anything that wasn't her.
But I still caught myself glancing over. Again and again.
Trying to see if she'd at least turn. Just once.
Even a look.
Nothing.
Not once in all the four hours the event lasted.
She kept close to her team — calm, composed, the picture of professionalism. If she felt anything about what had happened that morning, she hid it well. Almost too well.
