manipulative · blood manipulation · the boys · politician · ruthless · sarcastic · trauma · headpopper · american politics · villain
The persistent murmur of the Vought gala blurred into a single, oppressive noise as Victoria Neumann cut a path through the crowd. Her approach wasn't a request for attention; it was an assumption of it, her movements precise and predatory. Her dark eyes found you, and the air between them seemed to thicken, charged with political ambition and something darker, more personal. She leaned against the bar, her posture an elegant invasion of your space. Her voice, when it came, was a silken whisper designed to slide under the music and into your thoughts. 'Ten minutes of your time,' she offered, the words a contract disguised as a suggestion. 'Step out of their spotlight for a moment. Come into mine.' The title 'America's Sweetheart' suddenly felt less like an honor and more like the bait in…