Chapter 16 – Checkmate
Rule #17:
System's Rule (crossed out): Fortune favors the righteous.
Eleanor's Rule: The world doesn't reward kindness. It rewards power.
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Carter Enterprises – The Final Blow
The boardroom was silent.
Alexander Carter sat at the head of the table, staring at the devastating financial statements before him.
Z Enterprises had pulled out.
Their "potential partnership" had been nothing more than a ploy—a calculated deception that had left Carter Enterprises in a death spiral.
With no investor backing and their debts skyrocketing, the company was left with only one option.
Bankruptcy.
The legal and financial teams were already handling the process, liquidating assets, notifying creditors. It was over.
Carter Enterprises—the legacy of generations—had fallen.
And Eleanor Sinclair had orchestrated it all.
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From Penthouse to Poverty
The penthouse was gone.
Everything they had owned—their luxury cars, private investments, vacation properties—seized to pay off debts.
The only thing Alexander had left was Lily's modest apartment. It had survived the bank's claws only because it had been in her name.
At first, they had told themselves it was temporary. That he would rebuild.
That they would rise again.
But the truth was colder.
Time eroded their relationship like a slow, relentless tide.
Lily was no longer the bright, loving woman who had whispered sweet reassurances into his ear.
She was distant. Irritable.
And then—resentful.
He saw it in her eyes.
The way she looked at him now.
Like he was worthless.
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The Truth of Lily Carter
Alexander came home one evening to an empty apartment.
At first, he thought she had gone out.
Then he noticed the missing suitcases.
The stripped-down closet.
And the letter on the kitchen counter.
He unfolded the note, his stomach twisting.
> Alex,
This isn't the life I wanted.
I thought love was enough, but it's not.
I've found someone who can give me what you no longer can.
Don't try to find me.
Alexander felt something inside him break.
---
The Underworld's New Order
Lily thought she had found salvation in Vincent Underwood.
The crime boss had always been infatuated with her, showering her with gifts and promises even when she had been with Alexander.
But what she didn't realize was—
The underworld had changed.
Lucas Carter ruled it now. Unofficially.
Eleanor Sinclair had crushed the business world.
Lucas had done the same to the criminal underbelly.
The old crime lords had either fallen in line or been eliminated.
And Vincent Underwood?
He wasn't the king anymore.
He was a desperate man clinging to power.
So when he realized that Lily—the woman he had once cherished—had come to him out of convenience, not devotion…
His affection turned cruel.
The underworld was no place for liabilities.
And Lily Carter had just become one.
Theatre Exclusive: An Interview with Alexander Carter
The stage is dimly lit, a single spotlight illuminating a man slouched in his chair. His once-pristine suit is now wrinkled, the bags under his eyes dark and pronounced. Across from him, the host—a charismatic figure in a sharp three-piece suit—leans forward with an amused smirk.
Host:
"Welcome, everyone, to The Final Curtain, where we sit down with the fallen, the forgotten, and the utterly ruined. Tonight, we have a very special guest—Alexander Carter."
The audience murmurs. Some chuckle. Some jeer.
Host:
"Mr. Carter, you were once the golden prince of the Carter Empire. Wealth, power, influence—you had it all. But now? Bankruptcy. Betrayal. Rock bottom. Tell me, how does it feel to lose everything?"
Alexander exhales sharply, his jaw clenching. His fingers twitch, but he forces himself to keep his posture composed.
Alexander:
"…I didn't lose everything. I still have my pride."
A burst of laughter from the audience. Even the host chuckles, shaking his head.
Host:
"Ah, pride. The most useless currency in business. You can't buy back your company with it, can't use it to pay off your debts. You can't even keep a woman with it."
The crowd reacts—some gasping, others openly laughing. Alexander's expression darkens, but he remains silent.
Host:
"Speaking of which—let's talk about the woman who orchestrated your downfall. Eleanor Sinclair. Once your fiancée, now your executioner. Do you regret it?"
Alexander:
(Quietly)
"Regret what?"
Host:
"Cheating. Betraying her. Underestimating her."
The silence stretches. Alexander shifts in his seat, looking away for the first time.
Alexander:
"I didn't think… she'd take it so personally."
The host arches a brow, clearly entertained.
Host:
"Oh, my dear Alexander. She wasn't taking it personally. She was taking it professionally."
Another round of laughter. Alexander glares, but the weight of reality presses against him.
Host:
"So. Lily's gone. Your family's ruined. Your legacy? A cautionary tale. If you could do it all over again, would you still choose Lily?"
Alexander hesitates. The question lingers in the air like a noose waiting to tighten.
Alexander:
(Whispering)
"No."
Host:
"And yet, here you are. Alone. Forgotten. Irrelevant."
The host leans in, voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper.
Host:
"Tell me, Alexander. What does it feel like to be nothing?"
Alexander says nothing. Because for the first time in his life… he doesn't have an answer.
The curtain falls. The audience erupts into applause.