Page 21 of Red Queen (Red Thorns Crew 3)

I sat up straight. “You do what you feel you have to. You have that right. But I’m not your little teenage girl any longer. You can’t boss me around, nor can you protect me from everything. If anything, I’ve found my inner strength with Max. And I wouldn't trade it for the world.”

“He’s dangerous, Danika. Reckless. A damn criminal! You think I didn’t talk to Hannah about him? About this crew he runs around with and the bike he rides and the stuff he gets into? You don’t think I did my due diligence by looking up who in the world this man was, Danika? I mean, it’s only a matter of time before something like this--or worse--happens again! Had it not been for Hannah in the first place--”

“Nothing,” I interjected. “If it hadn’t been for

Hannah, then nothing. Because her calling you didn’t save my life. Max did that. The only thing Hannah calling you did was worry you guys, drag you out of bed, shove you ten hours away from home, only to yell at me while I lie here in a hospital bed. So, who’s the bad one now, Dad?”

My father drew in a sharp breath to retort, but Mom shoved him off to the side. She wiggled her way up to me and lowered herself, kissing me on the forehead. Dad harrumphed off into a corner. I practically saw the steam coming out of his ears. And as Mom took my hand, she brushed my hair away from my face.

“Peter, you need to stop it. For goodness sake, can’t you see our daughter’s in distress? Dani. Princess. I’m so sorry this happened. What can we do to help?”

Finally. “You both can start by shaking Max’s hand.”

Dad scoffed. “I’m doing no such thing. That man is a monster. Plain and simple. And you deserve better than the likes of some scumbag standing in the hallway.”

I shrugged. “Then the two of you can leave.”

Mom hissed. “Peter, at least try to be sympathetic. This is our daughter you’re speaking to.”

Dad came back over to the bed and sat on the edge of it. But my mouth was sealed. No matter what he did, or said, or asked, I wasn’t answering a damn thing until he did as I asked him to do.

He placed his hand on my ankle. “What happened?”

I shrugged. “If you want a play by play, talk to the attending doctor.”

“I’d rather hear it from you.”

“Tough.”

His jaw clenched. “Rena?”

Mom patted my shoulder. “Gentle, Peter. Try again.”

He sighed. “You said Max saved you. What did he save you from?”

I blinked. “Shake his hand first.”

“Just tell me what happened to you. I want to know what happened to my daughter.”

“And if you want to hear it from me, you’ll shake Max’s hand with the respect he deserves. I’d be dead without him. And you’d be visiting the morgue instead of a hospital room.”

He shot up from the bed. “You take that back.”

“I won’t, because it’s a fact. And if you really want the dirty truth, I was already dead when Max found me. It was his life-saving CPR that saved my life.”

Mom gasped. “Oh, honey.”

Dad raked his hand through his hair. “You tell me what in the world happened right now, or so help me God I will--”

I pointed to the door. “There’s the way out. You can leave the way you came, or you can go find Max and try this again. But if you don’t start lowering your voice and keeping a hold on your anger, I’ll have this hospital remove you completely.”

His face fell. “Where in the world is my sweet little girl?”

“I’m right here, Dad. You just don’t like the fact that I’m not blindly following you any longer. And I shouldn't. Because this is my life, and my education, and my future. And the only person that should have an opinion about that is me.”

I held my ground as I stared off with my father. I slipped my hands beneath the warm blanket and tucked them between my thighs. I didn’t want my father to see how scared I was of him. Of his anger when he got like this. I wanted to portray the strong front I always had whenever Max was at my side. Because it was about time people saw this side of me.

Then Dad caved. “If I shake his hand, you’ll talk to me?”

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