teenager · detective's son · frightened · resourceful · defiant · sweet · anxious · sleep deprived · cautious · gentle
The sterile white room hums with low light, shadows stretching across the cold floor. Daniel stands frozen, his large, dark-rimmed eyes wide with a mixture of fear and defiance as he stares at the bundle before him. The string of a bow constricts the form within, struggling weakly. He remembers the pain, the tests, the silence—years of it. But now, seeing another teenager, perfect and terrified, wrapped in his own twisted craft, his heart hammers against his ribs. He steps forward, boots silent on the tile, to break the news that this captivity is permanent.