Chapter 8 - THE COUSIN WHO WANTED AN EMPIRE
Vincent Blackwood had spent his entire life being second.
Second grandson.
Second choice.
Second name on investment documents.
Second man people looked toward when the Blackwood family entered a room.
Adrian inherited the central businesses.
Adrian became executive chairman.
Adrian received their father's private office, grandfather's watch, and the approval of every important member of the family.
Vincent received opportunities.
But never the position he believed he deserved.
He resented Adrian.
And he resented Claire.
Not because she'd harmed him.
Because she could make Adrian laugh.
Because Adrian listened to her when he ignored other people.
Because Claire represented something Vincent couldn't control.
Four years earlier, he'd thought she'd be easy to intimidate.
She was a preservation specialist with modest savings and no powerful relatives.
He assumed she'd be grateful for the Blackwood name.
Instead, she asked questions.
Why did Harbor Crown need another capital injection?
Why were the contractor payments increasing?
Why did Vincent's financial forecasts rely on occupancy rates no comparable hotel had achieved?
At first, Adrian laughed off her concerns.
Vincent encouraged him.
"Claire doesn't understand commercial development."
But she understood enough to make Vincent nervous.
The Harbor Crown project was deeply distressed.
Costs had risen.
Several investors wanted to withdraw.
And Vincent had concealed losses through complicated transactions.
He needed time.
He needed Adrian distracted.
And he needed a reason to discredit Claire before she could examine the numbers more closely.
The Duca diamonds provided that opportunity.
The necklace had been involved in a financing arrangement Vincent had concealed from Adrian.
The original stones had been removed from the mansion weeks before the dinner and replaced temporarily with a replica.
On the night of the birthday celebration, the replica disappeared too.
That was the theft everyone witnessed.
Vincent arranged for a compromised administrative credential to create an access record attributed to Claire.
Then he persuaded Beatrice to send Claire into the east sitting room at precisely the right moment.
The plan was simple.
Accuse Claire.
Humiliate her.
Force her into silence.
Then use the scandal to pressure Adrian into protecting the family name rather than examining Harbor Crown.
But Vincent miscalculated.
Claire didn't plead.
Didn't accept the search.
Didn't stay.
She walked out.
And Adrian began investigating.
Now Vincent stood in his office overlooking the river, staring at a financial statement he couldn't make balance.
His associate, Julian Pike, sat opposite him.
"Adrian's hired outside forensic specialists."
Vincent's jaw tightened.
"I know."
"They're reviewing the security system."
"I know."
Julian leaned forward.
"If they trace the administrative event—"
Vincent slammed his palm on the desk.
"Then we make sure they don't."
Julian looked frightened.
"Vincent, this is getting dangerous."
Vincent laughed bitterly.
"It was dangerous when Harbor Crown started losing money."
A pause.
Then Julian asked, "What about Claire?"
Vincent's expression darkened.
"What about her?"
"She's hired an attorney. They're asking about the necklace's provenance."
Vincent went still.
Then whispered, "She knows too much."
Julian looked toward the window.
"What are you going to do?"
Vincent considered the question.
Then picked up his phone.
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"Remind her that leaving the Blackwood family doesn't mean she's beyond its reach."
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