Chapter 39 - Dressed for a Queen

Power was an invisible, intangible force, yet Lina could feel its influence growing around her. For the first time, she began to understand why so many people were willing to sacrifice everything to obtain it. There was something intoxicating about being treated as someone extraordinary, about seeing people bow their heads and look at her with undisguised admiration. She had spent her previous life climbing the corporate ladder, but even at the height of her career, she had never experienced anything quite like this. The sensation was difficult to describe, and she suspected that once someone became accustomed to it, giving it up would be far harder than she had imagined.