Novels by Dark Scape

Victoria dropped to her knees.The silk of her crimson dress pooled around her on the floor. She did not try to hide her face. She let the tears spill freely down her cheeks."I only took the folder because I was terrified."Victoria sobbed loud enough for her voice to carry. The VIP lounge doors were still wide open. Guests lingering in the hallway stopped to watch the spectacle.Victor watched her with dead eyes. He did not offer her a handkerchief.Rosaline remained by the bar. She took another slow sip of her bourbon."You do not understand what it is like in this house," Victoria wept. She looked up at Victor with wide pleading eyes. "My mother married Graham when I was a child. I do not share the Whitaker blood.""Keep your family history to yourself," Victor warned."I have to explain," Victoria insisted. "Rosaline is his real daughter. She is the true bloodline."Victoria clasped her hands together against her chest. Her voice cracked with manufactured anguish."Graham only va

"You did not learn predictive logistics in a public library."Victor handed Rosaline a crystal glass of bourbon.The VIP lounge suspended above the main ballroom offered unbroken privacy from the Meridian Dynamics gala. Soundproof glass muted the string quartet playing for the wealthy crowd below."A library card grants access to the same public filings your analysts read," Rosaline replied. She accepted the heavy glass.Victor took a step closer. "Public filings do not teach you how to circumvent the Macau dock authorities," Victor said. "My senior analysts spent three months trying to crack that regulatory wall. You bypassed it with a single clause on page four."He leaned against the polished mahogany bar. His dark eyes mapped her features."They do not teach you how to bribe a union boss either," Victor added. "Your severance bump strategy was aggressive and illegal. I appreciate both qualities.""Poverty is an excellent teacher," Rosaline said. "You learn how leverage works when

"Close your mouth and walk."Graham Whitaker gripped Rosaline by the elbow. His fingers dug into her bare skin."You will not speak unless I cue you," he commanded. "You will not embarrass me.""I know how to handle myself," Rosaline replied."You know how to scrub floors," Graham spat.They stood at the top of the grand staircase overlooking the ballroom.The Meridian Dynamics annual charity gala was a corporate battleground disguised as a party. Fortunes were made and destroyed over glasses of imported champagne.Graham needed Victor Hargrove tonight. The Ironcrest acquisition was the only thing keeping the Whitaker board from voting Graham out of his own company.Rosaline smoothed the front of her emerald silk gown. The styling team had done their job. The dress clung to her frame and cost more than her mother had earned in a decade."Keep your eyes on Hargrove," Graham ordered.Rosaline took her first step down the marble stairs.The ballroom went silent.The city elite paused the

"I will not be sold to cover your failures."Rosaline dropped her meek posture. She straightened her spine and looked her father directly in the eye.Graham Whitaker froze behind his desk. He had expected his illegitimate daughter to grovel for a roof over her head. "Excuse me?" Graham demanded. His voice was dangerously low."You heard me." Rosaline let the manufactured tremble vanish from her tone. "You brought me here to use me as a human shield against the press. Now you want to trade me like a corporate asset. I refuse."Graham stood up. He leaned his heavy frame over the desk."You do not have a choice," Graham said. "You are nothing but a stain on my name. You owe me for breathing the air in my house.""I owe you nothing." Rosaline matched his cold stare. "My mother scrubbed floors until her hands bled while you slept in silk sheets. I survived the slums without a single cent of your money."She gripped the strap of her cheap canvas bag. The leather chair Graham sat in likely

"Keep your dirty hands off the leather."The driver spat without bothering to look back.Rosaline pulled her hands into her lap. She clutched the frayed sleeves of her oversized sweater and shrank against the passenger door."I am sorry," she whispered.The luxury town car rolled along the private road. "You do not speak unless spoken to," the driver continued. "You do not look the family in the eye. You do not wander the halls at night."He met her gaze in the rearview mirror. His eyes held sharp contempt."You are only here because Mr. Whitaker gave the order to collect you," the driver said. "Do not forget your place.""I understand the rules," Rosaline replied with a tremble in her voice.She turned her head to look out the tinted window. The iron gates of the Whitaker estate loomed ahead.The gates swung open to reveal a sprawling stone mansion surrounded by acres of manicured gardens.Rosaline widened her eyes and let out a soft gasp. She played the part of the overwhelmed and