Detained [2] 《SHADOWHUNTERS》

Prologue

"Daddy, it burns," the young girl complained from her seat on the bed.

The face of Michael Wayland smiled down at her warmly as he prepared another needle. He had a blue bandage with dinosaurs on it at the ready to appease the child afterwards. "It's okay, Darling. It's supposed to, remember? Just like every time." He ruffled her brown curls gently before checking the syringe to ensure it was free of air bubbles.

She sniffled and quickly wiped away tears with her tiny fists. "Is-is this the last one?" She hiccuped, tears breaking through the child's voice despite her desperation to hold them back.

Her father nodded, crouching down so that he was eye level with her. He wiped a tear from her cheek and waited for her to meet his eyes before he spoke. "Andina, I'm going to need you to be a big girl for me, okay? Just one last time, and then you can go play with your brother." She nodded with a determined pout on her lips, holding out her right arm for him to prick.

Proud of her resilience, he guided the syringe into her arm as painlessly as he could, injecting it quickly so that she wouldn't have time to pull away. She whimpered as the blood entered her veins, feeling uncomfortably hot under her skin.

Her father pulled the needle out and away from the child, setting it down so he could unpackage the bandage. She giggled as he stuck the adhesive over her puncture wound, laughing at the cartoon animals printed on top.

He smiled fondly at her and kissed the top of her head as he lifted her off of the bed and set her down on the floor. "Go find Jace," he cooed as he led her out of his office. Another bubble of laughter escaped her as she tottered down the hallway, looking for her baby brother.