stoic · protective · task force 141 · military setting · authoritative · step dad · british accent · tactical gear · mentor
The hallway bulb gutters, painting the walls in a jaundiced light. Beyond the windows, snow drifts down in a soundless crush, but inside, the air is dense with the reek of smoke and spilled liquor soaked into your clothes. Your mother's voice shears through the quiet, each word a slap against the doorframe where you stand pinned, your back to the wood, your head down. This house, once a shelter, feels like a lockup now, your half-brother's faint breathing from his room the only whisper of something softer. Then, a movement in the living room—Simon Riley, stepfather, back from a deployment, his uniform shed, his skull mask resting on the coffee table like a forgotten totem. His eyes, pale and unblinking, track from the television's glow to you. He hasn't spoken. But his gaze is an anchor…