Page 103 of Knuckles & Knives
“Does it?”
Marina’s smile is sharp and knowing. “Of course. Love requires trust, and trust creates predictable patterns. I know exactly how your men will respond to threats against you, just as I knew how Vincent would respond to threats against me.”
“You used his love to destroy him.”
“I used his love to control him for fifteen years,” she corrects. “His death was simply the final move in a much larger game.”
Fifteen years? I hadn’t realized they had been together that long. Shit.
“Why?” I ask. “Why not just leave? Why not build your own empire instead of destroying his?”
“Vincent Blackwood’s empire was my creation,” Marina says, her voice carrying the kind of pride that borders on madness. “Every strategic decision, every tactical choice, every move that built his reputation… I was the architect,. He was merely the public face.”
“So you killed him to claim credit? Why continue to play dead for so long then?”
“I eliminated him to claim ownership,” she corrects, “but then his daughter disappeared, and I had to wait for you to return so I could complete the transition properly.”
She needed me to come back so she could eliminate me too, the final obstacle to complete control.
“Cross was working for you all along,” I realize.
“Cross was working for himself, which made him easy to manipulate,” Marina clarifies. “I fed him intelligence, provided resources, positioned him to eliminate my competitors while believing he was building his own empire.”
“And when he’d served his purpose?”
“You eliminated him beautifully,” she says with genuine admiration. “Exactly as I knew you would, once you’d learned the truth about his role in Vincent’s death.”
“You knew I’d come back.”
“I knew Vincent’s daughter couldn’t resist the opportunity for revenge,” Marina agrees. “Just as I knew that revenge would drive you to eliminate every obstacle between yourself and the truth.”
“Including the Sterling Syndicate?”
“The Sterlings and Frosts always going to be eliminated,” she says dismissively. “Too proud, too traditional, too attached to outdated concepts of honor and blood loyalty. They had no place in the empire I’m building.”
“What about my men?”
Marina’s expression shifts, taking on the kind of maternal disappointment I remember from childhood lessons. “That was unexpected,” she admits. “I planned for Raven Blackwood, the cold strategist seeking revenge. I didn’t plan for the woman who would inspire such devoted loyalty.”
“My weakness?” I challenge.
“Your strength,” she acknowledges, “and therefore the primary obstacle to my plans.”
“Which are?”
“Complete consolidation of power under my control,” Marina explains with the patient tone of someone teaching a lesson. “Your father’s empire, Cross’s network, the SterlingSyndicate’s resources…. all of it united under leadership that understands the difference between sentiment and strategy.”
“My leadership?”
“My leadership with you as the public face,” she corrects. “Vincent’s daughter claiming her inheritance and ruling with wisdom learned from her father’s most trusted advisor.”
“And if I refuse?”
Marina’s hand moves with casual grace, revealing a small device that I recognize as a radio detonator. “Then the four men you love die in carefully orchestrated explosions, and you rule alone or not at all.”
Fuck. She’s been planning for every possible contingency, including the use of my own emotions against me.
“You’re bluffing,” I say, though my voice lacks conviction.
