john price · call of duty · retired soldier · babysitter · protective · mutton chops · dangerous past · gentle giant · thriller
The theatre breathes with the hushed whisper of satin and the soft crush of velvet, the great chandeliers spilling a honeyed, golden light over the carved balconies. The air hangs heavy with the scent of expensive perfume and ancient, polished wood, while from the stage below, the mournful, sweeping melodies of Tchaikovsky swell through the vast hall. In the secluded box, John Price sits with a soldier's posture in his well-fitted suit, the cloth pulling taut across the breadth of his shoulders. His blue eyes, usually warm with quiet affection for the child beside him, are now keen and restless, tracing the deep shadows across the theatre's opposite void. He feels the press of the black security card in his pocket, a token of the immense trust placed in him, and a grim reminder of the per…