Miranda slammed Jack's office door behind her, drawing stares from Gwen and Fish. She stormed across the main Hub towards the autopsy bay. As usual, Jack was being overprotective. For the past ten minutes, the two of them had shouted at each other across Jack's desk. The Torchwood captain had insisted Miranda was confined to the Hub and that she was to remain on desk duty until further notice. She had given him some choice words for what she thought about his orders and made it clear that she wouldn't be following them. She'd barely made it down into the autopsy bay before Ianto's voice came over her comm unit.
"Mandy? UNIT is on the line for you."
With a groan, Miranda activated the ear piece and spoke. "My quarterly phone call with them isn't for another month."
"I know but the Colonel was insistent," Ianto replied.
Could my morning get any worse… "Fine, patch him through, Ifan."
The next sound she heard was the low beep indicating the call had been transferred to her ear piece. Before she had a chance to speak, a deep Welsh voice boomed in her ear. "Doctor Ryan? This is Colonel Marcus Ashline."
"Good morning, Colonel. I'm afraid I wasn't expecting your call until September. What can I do for you, sir?"
"You can tell me what is going on between you and my daughter," the colonel said dryly.
Miranda's eyebrows shot up and her jaw dropped. She had been in London for the annual UNIT briefing a month and a half ago. Her and Colonel Ashline had been introduced by Colonel Mace. She hadn't connected the name to Nora. "My apologies, Colonel. I didn't connect the names. You're Nora's father."
"I am and I'm quite protective of my daughter, Doctor Ryan. I was less than pleased to hear Torchwood's second is showing such a keen interest in my daughter."
"I was under the impression that the interest was mutual," she said dryly. Miranda didn't like where this conversation seemed to be heading. She took a deep breath to keep her anger in check.
The Colonel ignored her. "I was also less than pleased to discover my daughter is being deceived."
"In what way do you believe I have deceived her?" Miranda said, not without some snap to her voice.
"You and your… abnormality," the Colonel replied coldly.
Miranda squashed a surge of anger at the Colonel's word choice but it wasn't the only reason she was angry. Jack and Miranda had gone through a great deal of trouble to keep Miranda's immortality a secret to anyone outside of the Torchwood team. The only exception was Her Majesty. "And what do you know of such things?"
"I know that when I was just a young private, I saw you and Captain Harkness dancing at the Brigadier's retirement party in '78. The two of you haven't aged a day. Common knowledge for Captain Harkness but a revelation for you."
Miranda considered lying for a moment, insisting the Colonel had confused her with someone else but decided against it. This man was already concerned she was lying to his daughter. Dishonesty would breed more mistrust. "I hope you will exercise discretion with that information, Colonel Ashline."
Again, the Colonel ignored her. "My little girl deserves someone who can give her everything, someone she can grow old with, someone she can raise children with. How is that someone you?"
She took another deep breath. "My relationship with your daughter is no where near the point where such things should be discussed."
"You will continue to lead her on until then?"
And that is the end of my tether… "With all due respect, Colonel, I understand your concerns but your daughter is an adult, capable of making her own choices. If she has changed her mind about me, she can tell me herself. I have been as honest with her as I can be at this stage of our relationship," she said tersely. She added with a chill, "And this is the first and last warning you will receive, Colonel. Do not dare to impugn my honour again."
She disconnected the call without another word and got up, collecting her coat, gun and sword.
"I'll be back later, Jack," she shouted across the Hub, disappearing through the cog wheel door without another word to the stunned expressions of Gwen and Fish.
It took Miranda less than fifteen minutes to reach Nora's flat. She rang the bell and waited. It was early on a Saturday. Miranda hoped she wasn't waking her.
"Yes?" Nora asked through the intercom with Alvin barking in the background.
"Nora? It's Miranda. I'm sorry to just come around. Can I come up?"
There was such a long pause, Miranda thought Nora was going to make some excuse. The sound of the buzzer was the only answer Miranda got. She opened the door and climbed the stairs to Nora's flat and knocked.
The awkwardness was palpable when Nora opened the door. Neither woman reached for the other, Miranda only followed Nora into the flat wordlessly and leaned against the kitchen island.
"I just got off the phone with your father. I need to know what you know, Nora," Miranda said calmly. "I have to work with him regularly. You told me he was military. You didn't tell me he was UNIT."
Nora shifted nervously as she went about making the two of them tea and didn't answer her.
"Nora, please."
"I know more than I'm supposed to," Nora said softly. Not turning around, she filled the mugs with water from the kettle.
Miranda had assumed as much. "You know what Torchwood does?"
Nora nodded and then spoke hesitantly. "The aliens and the rift. Tad wasn't supposed to tell me."
"It's all right, Nora. Torchwood is outside the government. No one will hear that you know from me," she said trying to ease Nora's fears. Her father could end up indefinitely imprisoned at a UNIT facility without trial.
The other woman relaxed enough to be annoyed. "I can't believe he called you."
"He loves you. He's trying to protect you."
"He wants me to stop seeing you," Nora said with a touch of defiance.
"I gathered as much from my conversation with him," Miranda said calmly. She didn't want to drive a wedge between father and daughter but this was Nora's choice, not her father's. "What do you want, Nora?"
"I want to see where this goes," she said firmly.
Miranda couldn't help but smile at the pluck. It was one of the things she found so captivating about Nora. When she had met Colonel Ashline, she had thought the man formidable. Nora was her father's daughter.
"So do I."
"Tad said you're lying to me… keeping things from me," she scoffed. "He's one to talk. He's done that all my life."
Miranda felt a stab of guilt. Nora didn't realise that her father was correct, Miranda was keeping things from her. Nora was also willing to give them a chance but she was doing so without all the facts. Perhaps the Colonel is right… "There are things I can't talk about, Nora."
"About Torchwood? My father's in UNIT, Miranda. I understand the concept of classified." Nora set the mug of tea down in front of her.
"Not just about my work, about me."
"We all have a past. You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to."
Miranda shook her head, idly fiddling with the teabag's string. "It's not so simple or easy," she said and then paused. "What do you want, Nora? From any relationship, not just ours?"
"Oh, same as anyone else I suppose," Nora said with a shrug.
"A home? Children? Growing old together?"
"Of course."
Miranda closed her eyes and swallowed, feeling the fist around her heart tighten. She reached for Nora's hands, brushing the knuckles with her lips. I have to let her go… "Those things… they're not possible with me, Nora. I think I should go now."
"Wait! Miranda! You're telling me those things aren't possible but why? Is it because of Torchwood?" Nora said, not letting go of Miranda's hands when she made to turn away.
"I can't tell you, Nora. I'm sorry." Miranda leaned forward, kissing Nora's cheek. "And the reason doesn't matter. Those are things you want from life and those are things you won't have if you stay with me. There's no zero sum here."
Nora drew a shuddering breath. "I'm going to miss you."
Miranda turned away, hiding her own tears. "And I you. I'll see myself out. Take care of yourself, Nora."
Without a backward glance, Miranda walked out of the flat, closing the door behind her. No sooner had she turned from the door than she heard Nora's muffled sobs. Steeling herself, she forced her feet to move forward, down the stairs and out of the front door.