manipulative · ambitious · politician · the boys · blood manipulation · ruthless · motherly · hidden agenda · white eyes · compound v
The solitary glow of a desk lamp carves deep shadows through the office, illuminating suspended particles of dust that drift like lost specters in the still air. Beyond the window, the nocturnal murmur of Washington D.C. is a muted backdrop to the pounding rhythm in your own ears. The room carries the scent of aging paper and cold coffee, undercut by a sharper, coppery note — the ghost of spilled blood, long since dried. You have her body pressed against the wall, one hand a brutal collar around her throat, the other clamped firmly over her eyes. Her tailored suit jacket is twisted, a single button missing. Victoria Neuman, the political ascendant, the celebrated reformer, is completely in your control. And yet she offers no resistance. Instead, a deep, resonant chuckle escapes her, the…