"Well, well, Reina," He crouched down, cocking his gun again and looking her up and down, calculating. Resting his arms on his legs, he smiled at her. "What am I supposed to do with you?"

She stared up at him with her mismatched eyes. Slowly, her lip started to tremble as she looked back and forth from him to the corpse of her mother. Blood leaked out from under the woman in a puddle, staining the carpet a darker red. Samuel yanked her up, tossing the body over his shoulder and pressing an elevator button, waiting until the door opened before turning around and stepping back into the machine. His gaze fell upon Reina, staring uncertainly at them. Slowly, he shook his head, a twinge of pity flicking through him. She could be a good child; he saw potential in her. It was truly a shame she was Daniels' daughter.

Jackson's face twisted in a frown as two small tears formed in her eyes, her watchful look trailing after her mother and stopping at the closed doors of the elevator. "What are you doing?" He barked, shoving the gun back in his coat and reaching for the child. "Stop it."

Reina's gaze snapped to him. Seeing him lean towards her, she quickly stumbled back, away from her father and pressed back against the wooden, decorative wall. Daniels flinched when her eyes, filled with terror, flicked to him, then around the dim-lit room. He hated dealing with children.

"Are you going to kill me too?" She asked in a half whisper, her gaze resting at the carpet by his feet. 

Daniels worked his jaw back and forth as he saw the blank stare. "Currently, no." I'll have someone else do it, he waved the problem of Reina away with that thought. "Reina," He gave the friendliest smile he could muster. "I'm your father. Why would I kill you?"

Slowly, her gaze met his. He nonchalantly leaned back until he was sitting, arms resting over his knees. "Mom said to be careful." She whispered, biting the tips of her hair. "She said that she'll be there if I need her." Her gaze met his again. Daniels could see the confused fight in her, not sure who to believe or what to do.

Daniels smiled again, running a hand through his hair in a careless gesture. "Reina...how do I put it..." He frowned, mind whirling with a carefully crafted story. "That woman...lied. She was a bad guy and wanted to hurt you. I had to stop her." He furrowed his brow, face twisting with regret. "I'm sorry you had to see that, but she would have done something horrible if I didn't stop her."

The girl paused, chewing on a nail and staring at the man she called "Father".

Daniels slowly inched forwards. "Tell me, Reina, did your mom feed you enough? Did she play with you? Or care for you?"

She hesitated, gradually shaking her head. "She was working all the time," She whispered, lacing her fingers together and staring at them. "Most times she came home acting funny. Like she was dizzy. The kids at school called her crazy." She mimicked the cuckoo sign, twirling her finger in a circle around her ear.

Daniels smiled. "Reina, since your mom is gone, I'm taking care of you."

She stopped, her hint of a grin vanishing as she stared at him. "But you killed someone."

He sighed in regret, shaking her head and meeting her look with an open, honest gaze. "I know, Reina." He said softly. "And I'm very, truly sorry you had to see that. I know you loved her, but I had to." He leaned forward, placing across his face an eager expression. "Let me make it up to you?" His hand extended towards her.

She stared at it for a moment, the dim wall lights shining down on them and casting shadows everywhere. The carpet shifted underfoot as she moved forwards, her nose tickling at the strong spicy scent of his cologne. She breathed in deeply. He smelled like cinnamon and cloves; her mothers favorite aroma.

Slowly, she reached out a small, short-nailed, paint-stained hand and touched his. He curled his fingers up and wrapped her in a warm grip. Reina stepped forwards and buried her nose in his shoulder, inhaling the scent. Strong arms wrapped around her, pressing against her tightly. She slipped an arm around his neck and hugged him, a small smile forming.

Stepping back, she looked up into her father's warm, brown eyes. "Can I call you dad?" She asked.

He threw back his head and laughed, tucking some hair behind her cheek. "Of course you can! I'm your father, aren't I?"

Her mouth twitched upwards as she nodded, tucking her hands in her pockets and tracing a pattern with the tip of her pink and yellow shoe. A sharp ding of the elevator popped her head up to see Samuel stepping out of the machine and nodding at Daniels.

Jackson stood and took Reina's hand into his, smiling warmly at the small child. "Reina, this is my friend, Mr. Samuel. Samuel, this is my daughter." He rubbed the top of her head, messing up her hair. "Reina."

Samuel half bowed, causing a delighted laugh from Reina. "It's a pleasure, miss Daniels." He said in his deep, thick accent.

"Reina," Daniels spoke sharply, then stiffened and glanced down at her, a cheerful smile spreading across his face. "Just call her Reina, please."

Samuel nodded, reaching out a hand as Daniels lightly pushed her forwards. Reina clung tightly to her father, shaking her head. Pursuing his lips, Daniels leaned down and whispered, "what is it?"

"I don't want to go with him," She breathed. "He looks...intemelldating."

"Intemell-" He frowned. "You mean intimidating?"

She nodded, looking Samuel up and down. "I want to spend more time with you."

"Oh. Well, you see," Daniels crouched down, positioning himself until he and his daughter were the same height. "I have a client in that room." He pointed at one of the doors lining the hallway. "And he's waiting for me, so I can give him something." He smiled. "Samuel is going to take you downstairs, and you can play with a few other people down there. But," His face turned earnest, and he leaned forward like he was about to tell a big secret. "They're going to put you in a machine for a few minutes, and you have to stand perfectly still. Okay? It's to see if you're healthy."

She looked down, biting her lip. "Okay." She nodded, kicking at the red carpet. "I'll do it."

"Perfectly still?"

She giggled. "I'll pretend I'm a rabbit that's hiding!"

He laughed, pulling her forwards and tickling her sides. She squealed, trying to escape. After a moment, he let her go and stood, dusting off his suit. "You do that, Reina, and afterward, we can play together." He paused, then slid the flower out from his lapel. "Here. You can have this until the end of the day when I'll see you again. Okay?"

She grinned, stroking the petals, her mismatched eyes staring up at him. "Okay."

Samuel took her hand and led her into the elevator, pausing as Jackson grabbed his arm. 

Jackson leaned forwards, speaking in a hushed tone so Reina couldn't hear. "Take her down to the Science room, and tell them to use the new mind machine."

Samuel stared at him. "Sir, if I may, that particular machine isn't completed yet. Even your scientists are hesitant to use it on animals."

Jackson looked over Samuel's shoulder at Reina, standing in the corner and tapping out a song with her fingers on the wall. "Tell them to erase her memory."

"Sir-"

Jackson squeezed Samuel's shoulder, glaring at him. "And tell them, you have a testing subject who is willingly going."

Locking his jaw, the man nodded and jerked his arm from Daniels grip. Turned, he stepped into the machine and slapped a button to the lowest level. 

"Bye, dad!" Reina leaned sideways, making sure her father was always in her sight as she waved while the door shut. "Can I choose what we play?"

 Daniels smiled, waved, turned, and stepped back into the room with his client without answering.