It always followed the same pattern. Middle of the night. Panicked phone call. Incoherent story. She always ended up agreeing to go over. This is different. Door wide open. Probably just a neighbour didn't close it right. Out of habit she checks the mailbox. Empty. Up the stairs, lit by flickering halogen. Along the corridor. … Continue reading OPEN DOOR
Dead roses in winter, withered and defeated. The Grand Armée reduced to an icy hell. The villages they entered had nothing to offer. They had stripped them bare of what little they had on their way to Moscow. Starving, frost-bitten and dog-tired, he stumbled on. To drop now meant certain death. No comrade would burden … Continue reading DEAD ROSES
We had our differences. For most couples they would have been irreconcilable, but we always muddled through. It's all about compromise. Sure, his job kept him busy, away from home a lot. Maybe that helped. We weren't living under each other's feet for forty years. Then I found out it wasn't his job that kept … Continue reading IRRECONCILABLE
They couldn't be it. After following the track through the forest for three days, this couldn't be the end. The broken track hung in mid-air. The others looked at him. They were tired, hungry and desperate. And angry. It was Barnaby that challenged him. 'What now?' He had no answer. They had trusted him, and … Continue reading ROAD TO NOWHERE
'It seems they broke in and found themselves indisposed.' 'Indisposed?' 'The toilet, Sir.' 'And this is the best chance we have?' 'Yes, Sir. No fingerprints, no footprints, no strands of hair. A professional job.' 'Except they forgot to flush, eh? Not brought up right.' 'No, Sir. We've extracted three pieces of loo roll. One is … Continue reading MAKING A MARK
