The sardonic cynicism had bled completely out of the alchemist’s features by the time Lane’s outburst finished echoing around inside his head, replaced by something darker that nagged right along the edges of his thoughts. On one hand, half of him wanted to stand up, cup her face, and kiss her until all the anger bled from her eyes. To reassure her that whatever decrepit state his heart was in, it still beat frantically when he laid eyes on the blonde. And it also constricted, painfully so, in his chest as he looked at her now. The white knight that lived underneath his skin wanted to comfort her.<br/><br/><br/>Then there was the stubborn pride that burned down in his gut, fighting every other impulse. That was the thing that pushed her away, because there was that part of him that knew he was a bastard, that knew it was better that he let her go. James had already proven time and again that his livelihood tended to affect those around him in a dire way. Why would he allow Lane Barnes to become sucked up in the turmoil caused by the facets of his history?<br/><br/><br/>If Nora hadn’t been there, James knew he would already be sitting on the couch with Lane, fervently promising that things could be different, that he was sorry, and then spill the whole sordid tale. Instead, his burning stare steered away from Lane, his own face tight with a cesspool of emotion, and stared at Nora instead.<br/><br/><br/>“OK…” he started slowly. Closed his eyes. His nostrils flared as he dragged in a deep breath. Then, reluctantly, he glanced back at Lane just as his heart went cold at her next words. I guess I shouldn't be surprised that even your kid has some sort of angle for power or something. “No,” he said quietly. Too quietly. “No, Lane. You can turn your anger on me, I deserve it. But Mia doesn’t. Mia didn’t get to decide what she is; she was just born with a genetic aptitude for magic that allows for other people to abuse. She does not know. It isn’t her fault. And it was not supposed to be like that.”<br/><br/><br/>He closed his eyes after he spoke, letting the silence linger for a long moment as he calmed his mind. As much as an asshole as he was, his daughter was what he was the most protective of. His next words were clearer, spoken hollowly, “Once upon a time, in a land far away--” It was California, actually, but no one needed to know the geography. “I made a deal with a demoness in exchange for something of mine. As cliche as this sounds, the demoness wanted a kid of mine. At the time, I knew that I was sterile, and thought that the joke would be on that she-bitch when I never had a child for her to take. The joke was on me, of course, when I wound up walking around with her mark burned into my fucking leg until she got what she wanted from me. Her mark won’t go away, she won’t go away, until I make good on my promise. So I can either destroy the bitch or I can continue to ...deal.” Or die. But now that the Syndicate was involved…<br/><br/><br/>“For fuck’s sake, we might as well go get Remy so he doesn’t have to lurk in the bushes,” he growled, eyes popping open again and his arms falling back down to his lap. He shot a pointed look at Nora with the words while watching Lane out of the corner of his eye.