I'll share what I mean about my "Fourth Carnation" theory.
The biggest clue to this is Ian. As stated, Chuck had told the MC that his job was going to be mainly work as a gopher and errand boy for the club, help the girls with stuff or basically do as he's told. If you watch how Ian is around the club, he's always off to the side or being ordered to move stuff around. He's the gopher, what Ian does during not only the normal club time but also during the events is what the job was originally described to the MC.
Kathleen, however, has other ideas. First off, the MC was brought in by Chuck. Kathleen has clearly been shown that she's trying to wrestle control away from August and Charles, by slowly pushing buttons of people around her. She has plans for the club that don't include the same sleazy backroom dealing bullshit that has been the status quo.
Paying attention to what the MC is actually doing, all through the game's major events and his time spent in the club Kathleen is playing her own game. In fact, I'd say she's been playing it for awhile. It would not surprise me even slightly if the reason Ian ask Chuck to replace Darius with our character was because Kathleen suggest it to him. Doing a thorough check on Ian like she has for virtually every other person she comes in contact with would lead her to the MC and every single thing about his life as well. Because for Ian, the MC is a really big button to push.
First we have the Rose interview. Tossing him in the deep end and giving him a chance to do whatever he wanted with a young single mother who from the beginning we know has parallels with Victoria. Going beyond that, even before the offer was given Ian had been trying to get the MC to meet up for him to meet Felicia. Ian knew full well that the MC was going to be encountering her at the Club and said nothing. This too feels a little to convenient. I could imagine that Killian is actually completely twisted around Kathleen's finger. All she would have had to do is play the doting mother act with him, given how his real mother acts. Encourage him to enjoy himself, to do as he pleased like his Uncle told him, giving him the keys to the kingdom. Then he'd listen to anything she'd suggest.
Even event in the office with Lucy and Veronica, I'm sure she already had decided that Veronica would be the winner. She knew full well that timid Lucy would have a hard time replacing her. Had it not been for Samson trying to grope V and her retaliation, the second game was probably set up to have Veronica win, just like the test of endurance that was the first game.
Why do I think that? Because Lucy is too similar to Rosie. Again, a mother trying to solve a problem that she can't on her own.
That's too mundane and boring for Kathleen, but breaking the Prideful Amazonian now that's a challenge.
But I digress...
Here's my main point. Through out both the first and second weeks, Kathleen has been having the MC face the exact same scenario as the Carnations, albeit in different ways. In the first week, the event was themed around "Dominance and Submission". When the MC succeeds at creating a great first interview tape, regardless of who, he's given a "reward" by Kath. This reward starts with him being tied and blindfolded and then pleasured by the girls. But in this scenario it is they who are in control. It's not until later that Kathleen drugs him with the sex drug and unties him that he experiences dominance, being stripped of his normal reason and just letting the beast inside him take what wanted from the girls. She gave him a taste of both.
Then in the event, the girls face the same dilemma. First, they are given control. They are allowed to present themselves to the MC in anyway they want but they have to figure out what it was he wanted in the first place. Just as a Dom would do to a Sub, it's not about what the Dom wants, it's about figuring out how to give the Sub the treatment they want without pushing the line too far. The girl who did the best, the girl who was the most in control and acted how the MC wanted was the one who won. The second part then became about Submission with Kathleen holding dominance over them. The loser of that round then became completely submissive to the point of not being able to move and had to just lie there and take being cummed on over and over. It even gave the MC the option of joining, and asserting his dominance over the loser. (though I always go talk to Hana instead.)
The second event is all about Shame. During the week, Kathleen made sure to give him not only plenty of opportunities to see people be shamed (Like Lucy being mistreated and abused by Iszak.) but also to be involved in creating shame with the photoshoot at the begging of the week and the ones during the week. Especially Felicia's. The winner was the one who the MC personally pushed to do as many shameful things as possible. And his decision at the end in Kathleen's office could be a massive deciding factor in the decision. She wanted to see how far he'd push them and if he himself would feel any shame in doing it.
During the event, she again gave him complete control over the situation and let him run as depraved as he wanted hoping that he'd drive the girls into the ground. It is never more evident than the Porno set up with Rosie, that Kathleen is trying to make the MC visualize his mother during it all and push his buttons. Charles even begins to realize it a bit at this point and warns her, but she only half heartedly assures him that she's not trying to do anything.
With Week 3 now approaching and his possible relationships with Hana and Mina in the mix, I do wonder what buttons she'll push next.
Speaking of, I'm almost certain that if there's a 5th Carnation, it's Hana. Kathleen is certainly trying to corrupt her in certain ways.
