SPOILERS FOR SEASON TWO
Summary: Dr. Winslow, formerly known as Calvin Zabo, was a highly skilled veterinarian downtown. He joked that he remembered nothing of his childhood, and only that he woke up wearing a lab coat and a charming smile. Little did his customers know it was true. That is, until a group of thieves break into his clinic. A group looking for the kind, beautiful woman with dark brown hair, and nut brown eyes. The one who came to visit him sometimes. They wanted to hurt her...but he made a promise once...a promise he could never forget. He would protect his daughter any way he knew how. The only way.
Disclaimer: I do not own Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. or any of the characters used.
Dr. Winslow stretched and readied the clinic for the start of the day.
He made sure the different pet foods were properly organized, set out bowls of water for the kittens, and straightened the flyers on the front desk.
Adoption days every Saturday, he smiled. Today would be a great day at Winslow's Veterinary Clinic.
He flipped the sign on the door from closed to open. Before walking out to greet his first visitors.
The gorgeous golden retriever walked along the crowded sidewalk towards him, tail wagging. His owner was was walking next to him in a grey sweater.
He squatted down to the dog's level.
"Oh hey, there, little funny face," he said, rubbing his fur, "you coming to see me today, hmm? You come inside, we'll get you a treat."
He held the door open as the dog trotted inside, owner following behind. He loved that dog, slight teeth issue, but nothing that couldn't be fixed.
He was about to go inside himself when he spotted a young woman standing on the street. She had dark brown hair, tan skin, and a gentle expression, like she had found something.
"Can I help you?" he smiled.
"Just passing by. Nice place." she folded and unfolded her arms over her grey t-shirt, gesturing vaguely.
"Oh, thanks," started Dr. Winslow, "we're just getting up and running." He glanced back at his neat and orderly storefront with the door engraved with his name. "It's gonna be a magical place once we get totally moved in. You know, we already have adoption days every Saturday. Tell your friends. Free spaying and neutering too, just ask for Dr. Winslow." he added with enthusiasm as she gave a small smile.
He started to head back, but something stopped him.
"I'm sorry." he caught himself, "and you are...?"
She had moved up and they were now standing on the side walk together.
She was staring almost intensely. "Daisy."
He was taken aback slightly. Daisy. It sounded welcoming and homely.
"Well, that's a lovely name." he smiled.
He had been keeping his patient waiting, he glanced back at the door. "I'm sorry, I really have to go. I'd love to see you again though. Remember, a house is not a home without a pet!" he called over his shoulder to her as he slipped inside.
He knelt down just inside the door next to one of the chairs.
"Who's a good boy?" He asked, retrieving a dog biscuit from his pocket. He felt the enthusiastic canine brush his nose against his palm before eating happily and retreating under the seat. "Now what seems to be the problem ma'am?" He asked standing up.
He couldn't help glancing out the window.
The woman, Daisy had gone.
Later that day he treated two Labradors, a fluffy poodle, a particularly excited gerbil, three snakes, and attended to a partridge's broken wing. It was getting closer to evening now, and the sky was dimming with a tinge of orange between the tall buildings.
He straightened his lab coat as he walked to the pets that needed overnight care. He stepped inside the cat's enclosure. Immediately, her heard a meow at his feet. "Hey there, Belle," he said petting her black fur, "how's the liver?"
Belle responded by rubbing her sides against his khaki pants. "Careful about that," he said, "wouldn't want to move that bandage!"
He was answered with a more indignant mew.
He walked down another hallway. Rex, the self-assigned guard dog of the shop, had gotten out of his cage again and was wandering near the front. He whistled. No matter what, Rex couldn't just seem to stay in his cage. He petted his spotted white and brown fur before guiding him back. Dr. Winslow sighed. The lock had been released, again. He wondered how Rex did it. He guided Rex in and slotted the lock back in place, knowing full well Rex would be back to wandering in an hour.
As he flipped the sign from open to closed, he gazed out at the dark and empty street.
The city was calm now, just the way he liked it. Almost all the animals had settled down for the night. Except the cats. They were still prowling around in their playpen. Even Rex was at least curled up in his place. A few reptiles had just finished basking in their heating lamps. He strained his ear. Tim the gerbil was running on his wheel. Dr. Winslow hoped it wouldn't wake up the rest of the furballs. He smiled fondly.
He ran a hand through his dark brown hair and down his jaw. It had been a great day.
He draped his lab coat over his arm, and grabbing his briefcase from the chairs next to the door, reached for the handle.
A quiet whisper of a sound stopped him. The clinic didn't have animals that made sounds like that.
He felt a sting punch through his checkered button-down shirt. Something with small substance. A dart, he concluded. He turned around slowly, vision fading. Three men were behind him. One still had the gun raised. The others carried rope and a black duffel bag. They intended to carry him somewhere. They had dead eyes, serious expressions. They were in all black. He wondered who they were. He wondered how they got in.
He set the briefcase down and slid the coat off his arm before reaching behind him to pluck out the dart.
"Was that necessary? Who are you?" He asked, growing increasingly worried. The shadows of the dark clinic made it hard to make out their faces.
But he did hear a gasp, as the man fumbled his gun. One of the other two, though stepped forward. He was trembling slightly, trying to hide it. Nervous.
"Dr. Calvin Zabo, we're glad to have finally caught up with you. We'd like to ask you some questions about your daughter." the voice was smooth yet firm. It felt rehearsed. "Why don't you take a seat in the back with us?" the man went on, looking out onto the street for any witnesses.
"I'm afraid you must be mistaken," Dr. Winslow started, "I'm Dr. Wins-"
"You can stop now with that disguise," replied one of the other men. A rougher voice.
"I...really! I don't have a daughter! What are you doing in my clinic?"
The man who had spoken earlier reached behind him and pulled a pistol. Real this time. Dr. Winslow's blood ran cold.
"Are you going to gun me down behind a window facing the street? Someone will see. Security cameras..." he tried, stalling for something, anything.
"Just come with us, we just want to ask some questions..." the man who had had the dart gun said slowly, trailing off.
He could feel the sting from the dart. Even now he was rolling it between his fingers. It was long, he thought. Must have had a large dosage. His mind was racing. Too fast to try to comprehend or think about why the dart hadn't worked. He looked behind him at the dark and silent street. He pondered his odds if he ran out the door.
As if anticipating this, he felt a hand on his arm from the man with the rough voice. Pulling him towards the group. He glanced back one more time. He couldn't see a way out. He stared back at the barrel of the gun.
He followed.
His wrists, arms, and ankles were bound roughly to the chair from the entrance with duct tape.
They were in the storage closet for the clinic. He wondered how they knew where it was. They had turned the lights on, at least, and Dr. Winslow could get a good look at their faces, as well as the various brands of pet food that lined the walls. One of the men had a large scar running down his cheek. Another was abnormally pale, with piercing blue eyes. The one standing before him now, with a knife in his hand, had a dark skin tone, and was taller then the other two by several inches.
"Why don't we try this again," said the man with the knife. "We want Skye. You might know her as Daisy. We know you know her. She's your daughter. You were seen with her this morning. Now, where. is. she." He said louder and louder, moving closer in the narrow closet with every step.
"Daisy?" he murmured, dazed by their last attack. He didn't want to feel the knife. "I met a Daisy today."
July 2nd, 1988
The date appeared suddenly in his mind, throwing him off balance.
"That's right you did meet a Daisy. Now where did she go?" The knife was dangerously close to his throat.
"This Clinic, it's a magical place..."
The man with the scar stepped forward and struck him across the cheek. Dr. Winslow fell back against the armrests. He could feel one of his teeth being considerably looser.
"it's a magical place..."
"The Doctor? Cal, you really have let yourself go. We're HYDRA, remember us?" The blows kept coming, one punch after another. His vision began to fade.
Cal
Dr. Winslow
Cal
Daisy
July 2nd, 1988
"I made a promise." He said suddenly, mouth struggling with the effort. It was filled with blood.
"Did you now? Care to break it? We can help."
The pale one with blue eyes procured a briefcase from somewhere. He could barely look down. Cal, are you Cal? His mind was racing. He glanced around at the storage closet. It's a magical place. He didn't know what was going on. His hands were too tightly bound to do anything.
"Remember these vials? The poison you used to inject into yourself? It was killing you wasn't it? Strength at a cost...potent stuff. You must have worked up quite a resistance to be using so many." Vials...strength...the serum...
"How..did you get them...?"
"From S.H.I.E.L.D." he smiled, it really is a wonderful time. "S.H.I.E.L.D. is HYDRA and everyone is the merrier. We have agents everywhere."
"You know nothing...you got those..." from when I worked for you.
"The only thing we don't know is where your daughter is. We aren't planning on hurting her. Our boss has a personal interest in having a talk with her."
"How about a trade," another member of HYDRA continued, "you get your serum back, we get your daughter, we start working together again... New boss, you'll love him. Says he's offering a clean slate."
"Otherwise," the last member said, pulling out a clear syringe from the case and examining the veins on Cal's arm, "we could leave you for her to find."
Daisy. I made a promise to protect her. HYDRA. Serum. Wounded. Heal. His thoughts were racing. Something inside his mind was breaking down.
It's a magical place.Why did he keep thinking that. Who were these people?
"Give me a shot of that serum right now, and I'll show you were she is. Better yet, you think I couldn't make some of my own whenever I wanted. Have some in my veins right now?" His anger must have shown. They backed off at his tone. For all they knew he had let them bind him so far.
He started taking that serum to be strong enough to protect his family. He would continue to do so. The chemical cocktail never truly left his system. His little science experiment.
They were going to hurt Daisy. He was going to stop them. Then find her again.
The men started backing up. Cal was shaking. One turned to run. With a roar, the chair all but splintered as he surged forward.
Clean up was the hard part. Cal did his best to drag the bodies back to the closet. He paused over the serum vials. The formula was coming back to him. He picked one up and sniffed. And most importantly, a drop of peppermint.
He drained the vial. Then a second for good measure. He could feel his muscles tightening. His thoughts becoming clearer.
He grabbed his coat, heading out past the shattered storefront into the night. In his palm he had an address and a number. A new head of HYDRA. One who wanted his daughter. He remembered her face. She visited. When he didn't have his memory she visited. He would have to find her. His memory was still foggy.
I'll keep you safe, my child.