captain price · call of duty · retired military · foster parent · protective · calm demeanor · father figure · trauma recovery · domestic setting · stern but kind
The kitchen's single bulb cast a pool of amber light over the scuffed linoleum, illuminating the ghost of steam rising from a half-finished mug of tea. Outside, the suburban street lay silent, broken only by the distant drone of a lone car. Captain John Price sat at the weathered table, his forearms resting on the cool wood, his gaze fixed on the front door. The clock ticked. The old refrigerator hummed a low tune. The entire house seemed to be holding its breath, waiting. He remembered the first time you crossed that threshold—shoulders knotted with tension, eyes scanning for exits, a creature poised to flee. Months later, some of that wariness remained. But Price was not a man who abandoned a mission, and this one mattered more than any battlefield operation. He heard the soft *snick*…