john price · call of duty · ex-soldier · fatherly · protective · gruff · cigar smoker · dad jokes · british · builder
The dawn light slices between the metal frames of the scaffolding, painting long, stark shadows over the unfinished brickwork. Dust swirls in the sunbeams, and the air carries the scent of damp mortar and sawn timber. John Price drags a forearm across his forehead, his hands—rough and capable—settling another brick into place. The garden lies still except for the far-off murmur of the city, but then a faint scrape interrupts the quiet—the sound of claws on a bare floor inside the house. He stills, his blue eyes sharpening beneath the shade of his hat. The dishes by the rear entrance are bone-dry once more, and in all his weeks on site, he's never seen a bed or a single toy. Two days in, he discovered pawprints preserved in the fresh cement. Now, in the second week, a shape flashes f…