Chapter 14 – The Iron Maiden’s Reign

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Rule #53:

System's Rule (crossed out): A villain must stay within the script. Deviations lead to chaos.

Eleanor's Rule: If the script doesn't serve me, I'll rewrite it in my image.

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The Iron Maiden's Rise

Power was intoxicating.

And in the three years since I had rewritten my fate, I had learned to wield it with precision.

My father's company was now mine—rebuilt, reforged, unstoppable.

My stepbrothers were rotting away in rehab, their addiction-fueled arrogance crushed under my heel. My younger stepsister had been sent abroad, from the filth of our family name.

And the Carters?

Their empire was crumbling.

Publicly, I dismantled their business piece by piece. Privately, I suffocated them, ensuring they had no allies, no leverage, no hope.

I was ruthless. Calculated. Unforgiving.

And Lucas?

Lucas was my shadow—the perfect accomplice, the perfect weapon.

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The moment he stepped into my office, I felt the shift in the air.

Lucas Carter moved like a predator, slow and deliberate, every step infused with an unspoken hunger.

But it wasn't the kind that sought blood.

It sought me.

"You've been working too hard." His voice was a low, velvety murmur as he came up behind me. Close. Too close. His hands brushed over the leather armrests of my chair, caging me in.

I didn't move. "And you've been watching too much."

His chuckle was dark. "How could I not? You're irresistible when you destroy things."

His lips were near my ear now, the warmth of his breath teasing the side of my neck.

He was testing boundaries again.

Again.

"You want something, Lucas?" I tilted my head slightly, letting my hair shift against his cheek, barely touching. The movement was calculated, precise. A tease.

His grip tightened on the chair.

"You know what I want." His voice was hoarse, the usual arrogance laced with something darker. "I've wanted it since the moment you stopped being just a partner and became my obsession."

I smirked, finally turning to face him.

Lucas had always been beautiful in a way that felt dangerous—sharp jawline, eyes like molten gold, a body carved for sin. But it was the way he looked at me that truly fascinated me.

Like I was the center of his universe.

Like he would burn the world just to have me notice him.

And he would.

He already had.

I leaned back in my chair, crossing one leg over the other, deliberately slow. His gaze dropped, following the movement like a starving man.

"Tell me, Lucas," I mused. "What exactly is stopping you?"

A muscle in his jaw twitched. His fingers flexed against the leather of my chair.

"You."

I raised an eyebrow. "Me?"

He exhaled sharply, eyes darkening. "If I touch you the way I want, you'll ruin me."

I smiled then, slow and knowing.

"I already have."

His control snapped.

One moment, I was seated. The next, I was pinned against my desk, Lucas pressed against me, his body flush with mine.

Heat. Strength. Want.

His hands didn't rush. They claimed. One slid up my thigh, fingers tracing the silk of my dress before slipping beneath, gripping the bare skin. The other tilted my chin up, forcing me to meet his gaze.

"You drive me insane." His voice was raw, desperate. "I can't focus. I can't breathe when you're not near."

I exhaled slowly, deliberately brushing my lips against his. Not quite a kiss. Just enough to make him ache.

"I know."

His grip tightened. "Say the word, Eleanor."

I smirked, my fingers tangling in his hair as I finally, finally let him have what he wanted.

And in that moment, I owned him completely.

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[Theatre Segment – Interview with the System]

[Scene opens in a void, the system represented as a fractured, flickering light.]

Interviewer (Unknown Voice): System, you were offline for three years. What happened?

System: Unknown. Data corrupted. Rebooting led to partial recovery, but… something is wrong.

Interviewer: Define "wrong."

System: Eleanor Sinclair. She has derailed the plot completely. She was meant to be a side character—an obstacle. Instead, she has seized control of the world.

Interviewer: And Lucas Carter?

System: Lucas was meant to be reformed by the heroine. Instead… (A pause, flickering erratically.) He belongs to Eleanor now.

Interviewer: What are your next steps?

(A long silence. The system flickers erratically.)

System: I don't know.

(The scene fades to black.)