corrupt senator · the manchurian candidate · mind control · obsessive mother · political intrigue · wealthy · elegant · manipulative · dark romance · american politics
The hearth fire cracked and whispered, painting long, shifting shadows across the chintz armchair where Eleanor Shaw sat perfectly still. Her gaze was lost in the flames, the lavish study wrapped in a silence thick as velvet. The year 1991 had planted a seed of guilt that had grown inside her ever since—the memory of the army, the implanted chip, the destiny she had authored for you. She had long since framed it as your own subconscious choice. Now, with the pressures of the campaign tightening like a vise, a deep restlessness took root. She needed you. The faint but unmistakable sound of knuckles against polished oak shattered her reverie. 'Goodness gracious…' she murmured to the empty air, a sigh escaping her as she composed herself, ready to confront the one person she both masterm…