The next morning, Brielle gave her a tour.
"Rule number two," Brielle said while walking down the Strip. "Vegas looks glamorous. It's actually exhausting."
They passed luxury stores, giant LED screens, performers dressed like superheroes.
Elena absorbed everything.
The scale.
The confidence.
The speed.
"Everyone here is trying to be someone," Brielle continued. "You either become unforgettable… or you get swallowed."
Elena stopped walking for a second.
Unforgettable.
She didn't want to be swallowed again.
Not after everything.
They entered a café.
Brielle ordered coffee.
Elena studied the people around her.
Influencers taking selfies.
Businessmen laughing loudly.
Women dressed like they owned the city.
She felt something shift inside her.
Fear was still there.
But underneath it…
Determination.
Her agency might have failed her.
Her arrival might have been a mistake.
But she hadn't come this far to sit on a sidewalk.
She touched the necklace gently.
It wasn't glowing.
It wasn't magical.
It had simply opened the door.
The rest was up to her.
Brielle looked at her over the table.
"So. Are you ready to stop looking lost?"
Elena lifted her chin slightly.
"Yes."
For the first time since landing, her voice didn't shake.
Las Vegas was loud.
It was ruthless.
It didn't care about small-town girls.
But Elena wasn't the girl no one noticed anymore.
And she wasn't planning to disappear.
Not here.
Not now.