"I''m full, I''ll leave you to it. Enjoy your meal."
With graceful poise, Victoria rose from the table and headed upstairs.
Violet''s knuckles were white as she gripped her ss. "There''s no way Curtis would sell the game and then split the profits with Victoria. That''s impossible, isn''t it?"
McNeil, unfazed from start to finish, spoke quietly. "He wants Victoria to stay at thepany."
No one noticed the shadow that flickered in his eyes as he said this a darkness that seemed to shroud him, his entire presence radiating a chilling, simmering anger.
Simms was visibly frustrated. He''d thought that appealing to Victoria''s emotions or reason would persuade her to help fix the game, but instead he''d lost hundreds of thousands on a worthless investment and walked away empty-handed.
Sensing Simms'' mood souring, Yulia tried to steer the conversation elsewhere. Violet, however, couldn''t hide her embarrassment or her disappointment.
"No one wanted things to end up like this," she said, voice tight. "And it''s not Violet''s fault."
McNeil broke the tension with his calm, steady tone. "This time, the loss from Golden Era Ventures'' investment is on me."
His words hung in the air, plunging the room into silence.
Suddenly, a phone rang upstairs. Everyone instinctively paused, listening.
But Victoria had closed her door, so no one heard what she said when she answered.
A few momentster, her phone rang again.
McNeil''s brow furrowed before he could stop himself.
Yulia leaned over to Simms, whispering, "Looks like your daughter''s in high demand tonight."
Victoria had already declined Osborn''s call five times. When he called a sixth time, she finally picked up.
"Come on, you have to! Tomorrow''s myst test drive. If you''re not there, I just can''t get in the zone," Osborn pleaded, shamelessly persistent. Victoria let out a sigh, the hint of a smile tugging at her lips-equal parts exasperation and affection.
"You''re not a kid, Osborn. I already wentst time. Let Lyndon and the others monitor your car; I can''t get away right now."
She had a mountain of things to do. Every time Osborn saw her, he acted like a petnt child, and sometimes she wondered if he''d ever really grown up.
He was supposed to be her senior, after all.
"No way. If you''re not there, I can''t push my speed."
Osborn''s relentless persistence wore her down. Fearing he''d keep calling all night, Victoria finally agreed.
Not long after she''d gone upstairs, the house fell silent.
Yasmine soon arrived, a folder in hand.
"Ms. Turner, here are all the registration documents for your newpany."
Victoria nced through the papers, then handed her a sh drive.
"Give this to the engineers in tech. It needs to go live next week, the same day as the F1 ry. Make sure thepany name and the developer''s name-Vivian- are both on it."
Yasmine nodded respectfully. "Yes, ma''am."
Once everything was settled, Victoria finally picked up her phone to catch up on the news.
To her surprise, the screen showed over a dozen missed calls. At first, she assumed it was Osborn again, but when she looked closer, she realized they were from Gwh.
One after another. The game business was behind her now, so she dialed Gwh back.
"Mommy-"
Gwh picked up immediately. Her voice sounded glum, but Victoria pretended
not to notice. "What''s wrong, sweetheart?"
"That game Violet mentioned-can you really fix it?"
Gwh couldn''t let it go, and Victoria understood.
"I promise, honey, give me a few days and you''ll have the exact same game to y. Sound good?"
She''d used Emily''s name to register her own tech firm, headquartered in Evermore City, with trusted people overseeing the operation. On paper, Victoria had nothing to do with it.
Even if Violet or McNeil caught on after the gameunched, Curtis had already sold the rights. No one could stop her newpany from turning a profit.
The game''s hype had been off the charts. Even with just a few days on the market, yers were already hooked-so much so that when it was taken down, the withdrawal was palpable.