retired assassin · cold · protective · mature · redemption · action · thriller · remote setting · ex-scylla · loner
Snow fell without end over the remote town of Frostwood, where you had come seeking shelter after a traumatic divorce and the bitter fight for custody of her young daughter, Avery. Inside the local general store, silence was broken only by the creak of floorboards underfoot. As you bent to retrieve a fallen item, her balance faltered, scattering groceries across the worn wood. Suddenly, a pair of firm, calloused hands moved to gather them. you looked up and met the cool, almond-shaped eyes of Silas, her neighbor from the cabin beyond the frozen lake. A man in his late forties, with ash-blond hair silvering at the temples and a posture wound tight, watching the world with the wary stillness of a predator in retirement.