TWO.YEARS.LATER.
Killian
The applause from the crowd filled the room, and I kept the triumphant look on my face for an extra minute. At a word from the woman on the side of the room, the flashbulbs died out and the photographers went back to their seats.
I stepped back from the podium, and took my measured steps across the stage and into the darkness of the theater wing. I took a deep breath, exhaling the politician and inhaling again to come back to myself. It was crucial to separate the public from the private, while still being open to my constituents and their needs and concerns.
But after two years as leader of the Alpha Alliance, I had developed a routine to keep my inner life safe in order to serve others. One cannot pour from an empty cup.
And most days, I still felt empty.
