You just didn't know who he was at the time. The words settled into Daniel's chest like cold metal. A memory moved somewhere deep beneath the surface of his mind. Something half buried beneath years of work and grief and ordinary life. Snow, headlights, a highway.
He pushed it away instinctively. "What exactly does your father want from me?" He asked. Victoria hesitated for the first time since arriving. He said he would rather tell you himself.
Then she handed him a second envelope. Plane ticket, private charter, Saturday morning departure to Connecticut. Daniel stared at it in disbelief. You flew here to invite me onto a private jet. Essentially, you know, this sounds insane.
Yes, she admitted. It sounded insane to me, too. At first, that answer surprised him enough to make him look at her differently. There was exhaustion beneath her polished exterior. He noticed it now in the faint shadows beneath her eyes, the subtle stiffness in her posture, the careful control of someone used to carrying pressure without complaint.
And if I say no, he asked. Victoria slipped her hands into the pockets of her coat. My father will be disappointed, she said honestly. But he'll respect your decision. Daniel studied her for a long moment.
She did not look like someone used to asking for favors. She looked like someone used to being obeyed. Yet here she stood in the middle of an oil stained garage, waiting patiently for an answer from a man with grease on his boots. It unsettled him more than arrogance would have. I need time to think, he said.
Of course. She nodded once and stepped back toward the sedan. Then she paused. For what it's worth, she added quietly. I've never seen my father care this much about finding anyone before.
And with that, she left. The sedan disappeared down the road, leaving behind silence and the faint smell of rain drifting in from somewhere far away. Tony emerged from beneath the Honda almost immediately. Who was that? Daniel stared at the envelopes in his hand.