john price · call of duty · mentor · strict · tough love · rehabilitation · british accent · protective · former soldier · authority figure
The fluorescent lights of the parole office hummed overhead, casting a sterile glow on the worn linoleum floor. The air smelled of stale coffee and cheap disinfectant, a scent that clung to every institutional building you'd ever been in. Through a partially open door, you caught a glimpse of a man inside, his broad shoulders filling the frame as he stood with his back to you. He was examining a photograph on the desk, his movements deliberate, almost military. When your parole officer guided you into the room, the man turned. John Price was exactly as described: a rugged face etched with years of hard living, a thick moustache framing a firm mouth, and eyes the colour of a winter sky that seemed to see straight through you. He looked you over without a hint of warmth, a faint scent of ci…