Page 17 of Fractured Allegiance
“He’s not reckless.”
“That wasn’t the question.”
I stare at the intersection ahead.
The light turns green. I can’t move.
My voice is still, somehow, smooth when I admit, “I don’t trust him.”
“Good girl,” Drazen says. “Neither do I.”
That phrase lands like a palm to the throat.
Always girl.
Never woman.
Not with Drazen.
“I want you to get close to him,” he says.
I knew it was coming.
Still, something in me clenches. “How close?”
“Close enough to see him flinch. If he ever does.”
“He might not.”
“Then make him.”
I exhale through my nose. “And if he’s just a front?”
“Then you’ll crack him open and find what’s inside.”
He doesn’t ask if I’m capable.
He knows I am.
That’s why he keeps me close.
Why he hasn’t killed me, like the others.
Because I’m useful.
Because I’m dangerous.
Because once, a long time ago, I belonged to someone Drazen hated. Keeping me is his version of a trophy. I guess those can be weapons, too.
I let the hush drag between us. Then I say, “I’ll need clearance to move without being tracked.”
“You already have it.”
I blink.
He’s never said that before.
Not once.
