[Scene:] Alistair Thorne's Private Study. A space of antiques and cold authority.
Alistair Thorne's private study was the quietest, most heavily monitored room in the Thorne Estate. Eleanor Vance knew that every antique volume on the shelf was a potential trap for her façade. She had to appear as a student desperate for knowledge, not a fraud trying to steal the ten-billion-dollar inheritance.
Her fingers lightly grazed the spine of a yellowed book, waiting for Alistair's first test.
"This book." Alistair's voice cut through the silence from behind her, calm but scrutinizing. He pointed to a single volume on the History of Medieval Financial Fraud. "Read it to me, starting from Chapter Three."
Eleanor took the book. She knew this was no random test; the content was about trust, betrayal, and perfect disguise—the very nature of their contract. She began to read, her voice steady. But as she reached the line, "The greatest deception is convincing the victim they have seen through all your lies," her heart rate ticked up slightly.
Alistair abruptly moved closer, his breath near her hair. He wasn't looking at the book; he was staring intently into her eyes.
[Emotional Peak: Control and Performance]
"You read with commitment, Eleanor," he assessed, his tone clinical. "It seems you have a keen interest in 'deception'."
Eleanor maintained perfect composure. She immediately set the book down, turning to face him. Her eyes conveyed a look of perfectly calculated confusion and innocence.
"Tutor, I am simply learning. You said to understand the rules, one must understand those who break them." She lowered her head slightly, wrapping her ambition in a guise of utter humility, "I aim to be your best student."
Alistair did not reply, simply using one finger to lift her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze. His eyes scanned her soul, searching for a single crack.
The moment was broken by a knock at the door—Lady Thorne (Matriarch Serena)'s personal attendant.
[External Conflict: The Matriarch's Test]
"Tutor, the Matriarch requests Miss Vance in the tearoom. She says it is time for the 'future heir' to face her test."
The Matriarch's intervention was anticipated external pressure. Eleanor knew the test would be no simple tea ceremony; it would be a judgment on her bloodline and loyalty.
"Go." Alistair nodded, but after the attendant left, his gaze turned complex. He looked at Eleanor, the warning in his voice rare: "She will test your limits. If you cross them, I won't guarantee your safety."
"I won't disappoint you." Eleanor replied, her voice firm. As she turned, she quickly touched a hidden storage port on the corner of Alistair's desk with her finger.
[Core Secret: Eleanor's True Objective]
Her real goal was to steal the Core Algorithm of the family's secret investments, encrypted in the study's main terminal—something far more valuable than the ten-billion-dollar inheritance. Eleanor didn't want the money; she wanted to destroy Alistair's power base entirely.
She left the study for the tearoom. Passing a blind spot in the corridor, she activated a faint signal on her ear-mic.
"Suthor, data port accessed. Remember, this isn't for the money; it's for the revenge."
(Author's Note):
Chapter two introduces our external threat: Alistair's Matriarch. This puts Eleanor's perfect façade to its first major test. Pay close attention to the secret "Core Algorithm" port Eleanor touches—her ambition is far greater than ten billion. And did Alistair's line, "I won't guarantee your safety," hint at a momentary lapse in his control?
Next chapter: The Forbidden Kiss. Everything breaks!
By: KHChing