Naomi’s Pov

The noise hit before the air did.

Cameras shouted my name as if it were something they owned now. Questions overlapped. Someone stepped too close. Someone else yelled louder like volume meant access.

Cassian didn’t grab me. He didn’t pull me. He stepped half a pace ahead and created space without making a show of it. Mara and Rubio flanked, quiet and efficient. We moved as a unit without ever saying it out loud.

“Ms. Hale, do you stand by your claims?”

“Are you accusing government officials?”

“Do you fear retaliation?”

I didn’t answer. Not because I was scared. Because I’d said what mattered already.

The car door...