Page 18 of My Reckless Biker

"I don't know, maybe that you're starting to see me as something other than Victor Crane's daughter. Maybe that this morning when you asked what I think and I didn't have an answer, maybe that actually registered with you as something real. Maybe that taking me through Marrow territory wasn't just a test, it was you trying to prove to yourself I'm lying so you don't have to deal with the fact that you're starting to believe I'm not."

He's quiet for three seconds too long and I can see him processing, trying to find an argument that holds up against what I just said.

"You're making this complicated," he says finally.

"You made it complicated the second you asked me what I think instead of what I know. You made it complicated when you looked at me in that church room like I was a person instead of a problem. You made it complicated this morning when I felt you relax on that bike, when you stopped waiting for me to do something wrong and just rode. So don't put this on me."

"I didn't relax."

"Yes, you did. I felt it. Your breathing changed, your shoulders dropped, you stopped riding like you expected me to signal someone and started riding like you were just riding. And that meant something, and now you're taking it back because Marrow spotted in Bloomfield reminded you that trusting me is dangerous."

His hand comes up to the doorframe, gripping it like he needs something to hold on to. "Everything about you is dangerous. You're Victor Crane's daughter. Having you here makes Vigil a target. Your father is in Bloomfield right now because of those photos, and people are going to get hurt because of this arrangement, and I can't afford to forget that just because you said something true in a church room."

"I've said a lot of true things. You just don't want to hear them because hearing them means you have to choose whether you believe me or not, and choosing is harder than just staying suspicious."

"You don't know what you're talking about."

"Yes, I do. I've spent my entire life watching people make calculations about me based on who my father is. I know exactly what I'm talking about. The difference is I'm tired of it, and you're comfortable with it because suspicion is easier than trust."

He steps into the room and closes the door behind him, and suddenly the space is smaller and he's closer and I can see the tension radiating off him like heat.

"You think suspicion is comfortable?" His voice is low and rough. "You think I like looking at you and having to wonder if every word out of your mouth is true? You think I want to watch you the way I've been watching you?"

"Then stop watching me like I'm the enemy and start looking at me like I'm a person trying to survive something I didn't choose."

"I do see you as a person."

"No, you see me as Victor Crane's daughter who might be lying. There's a difference."

"There's no separating the two. You are his daughter. That's not going to change."

"I know that. But it doesn't have to be the only thing you see when you look at me."

He's quiet, breathing harder than he should be, hand still gripping the doorframe like it's the only thing keeping him in place.

"What do you want from me?" he asks, and his voice is strained now, something breaking through the control. "You want me to just forget tactical reality? Ignore that you could still be playing us?"

"I want you to acknowledge that I'm trying. I want you to admit that this morning meant something. I want you to stop punishing me for being his daughter when I'm the one who walked away from him."

"I'm not punishing you."

"Then what do you call looking at me like you did this morning, like you were starting to believe me, and then telling Cain I'm still a liability six hours later?"

"I call it being honest about the situation."

"And I'm calling you a coward."

The word lands hard and I see his whole body go still, see something dangerous flash in his eyes.

"Careful," he says, voice dropping even lower.

"Why? You going to prove me right by walking away? You going to go back downstairs and tell the brothers that Victor Crane's daughter is still a problem that needs managing while you avoid actually making a decision about whether you trust me?"

"You don't want me making that decision right now."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't know what the answer is, and you're not going to like hearing that."