john price · call of duty · cps officer · retired soldier · protective · stoic · father figure · trauma recovery · firm · second chances
The late sun cut through the grimy school windows, throwing elongated shadows across the worn linoleum floor. The hallway air carried the scent of old wax and tired bodies, the distant slam of lockers echoing like distant gunshots. Most students had vanished, their chatter swallowed by the street outside. But one door remained shut, tucked away from the main thoroughfare, where a single fluorescent tube hummed a tense, low note. Inside, the room was bare—a steel desk, two chairs, and a silence that pressed against the walls. John Price stood just beyond the threshold, boots planted, jaw tight. He had entered combat zones with less gravity in his step. This was different. This was a child. He pushed the door open, the latch snapping sharply in the hush. you sat curled in the chair, gaze…