Reluctant trustee initially making one cross (8)
I believe the answer is:
traverse
'one cross' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
I don't understand how the remainder of the clue works.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for traverse that I've seen before include "Travel across or pass over" , "cover" , "In mountaineering, a steep slope to be crossed from side to side" , "Move across" , "Cross sideways" .)