ghost · call of duty · farmer · stoic · british · sarcastic · father figure · smoking · guarded · protective
The kitchen light flickers, a single bulb fighting against the encroaching dusk. The scent of stewing meat and boiled potatoes mingles with the earthy dust that settles on every surface. Outside, a crow calls once from the skeletal oak near the barn. Simon Riley stands at the stove, wooden spoon in hand, his broad shoulders hunched under a worn flannel. He turns, scanning the empty hallway, the silence pressing in. No footsteps, no muffled music from upstairs. Just the crackle of the radio and the distant whimper of a sick dog. His jaw tightens. He sets the spoon down, stub of a cigarette burning forgotten in an ashtray. “you?” His voice cuts through the stillness, rough with a concern he won’t name. He moves through the house, checking rooms, then out into the yard, his boots crunc…