Z is also for ZigZag (Malolan Chronicles #5.2) – #AtoZ2018

8:30 AM (18 hours to go) Singapore Casey Teo was agitated. The doctors were running a plethora of tests on her over her protests. The reedy night attendant had vanished with his laptop after ensuring she transferred the money promised to him online. Casey tried to find out about the extent of her injuries and...

Z is for Zugzwang (Malolan Chronicles #5.1) – #AtoZ2018

Please read Part1, Part2, Part3 and Part4 before reading any further September 3, 1972 USP Atlanta ‘Oh, Delgatto! Dr. Gottleib’s here,’ Lab-coat opened the cell door and sauntered in. Alarm bells started ringing in his head as he found Delgatto unconscious, lying face down, in a puddle of his own blood and vomit. ‘Guards, guards!’...

Y is for stories of Yesterday (Malolan Chronicles #4) – #AtoZ2018

Please read Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 April 6, 1972 USP Atlanta, Georgia, USA The thin, frail inmate housed in Cell 370 of the United States Penitentiary Atlanta looked at the sun through the tiny window and licked his lips. He pulled himself to a seated position with considerable effort. His nerves jangled...

X is for Project Xenia(Malolan Chronicles #3) – #AtoZ2018

Please read Part 1 and Part 2 September 2, 2017 10:30 PM The case was out of Malolan’s hands within five hours of the discovery of Nikhil Taneja’s corpse. Media was ablaze with the news once they knew who Taneja was and how he had died. Sudhakar could no longer keep Prabhu’s death under wraps...

W is for the Witch (Malolan Chronicles #2) – #AtoZ2018

Read Part 1 here September 1, 2017 Malolan pored over the huge mound of paperwork that lay scattered on his bedroom floor. He usually had a strict ‘No carrying work home’ policy, but exceptions had to be made. Three days back, he’d been presented with a case that merited breaking all his policies. Malolan’s rotund...

V is for the Video (Malolan Chronicles #1) – #AtoZ2018

June 26, 1973 Koshy Varghese yawned and stretched. His mind was feeling numb after watching three movies back to back. He looked to his side and saw his colleagues were in a similar state of torpor. They had one more movie to watch before they could call it a day. ‘I cannot sit for one...

U is for The Ultra – #AtoZ2018

Alessandro sliced the onions and tossed them into the pan to sauté them. He skilfully chopped the cooked sausages and added them into the bowl containing the spaghetti. He looked at her from the corner of his eyes. She sat in the corner of his couch, trying to make herself invisible. She was a frail...

T is for The Troubles of Time Travel – #AtoZ2018

‘Tell me about time travel,’ Martin sipped his cognac. ‘What do you want to know?’ Lyndon placed his brandy balloon on the mahogany table. He stuffed some tobacco into his pipe and used a tamper to press it down. ‘Everything! Starting with, is time travel possible?’ Lyndon struck a match and moved it in languid...

S is for Surprise – #AtoZ2018

'Psst, Leo. Did you hear? Mona is coming back for good,' Nosy little Betty sidled up to Leonardo, carefully sidestepping the little balls and broken pieces of toys strewn all over the floor. He didn’t respond immediately, instead, he looked over towards Don who was whittling away on another piece of wood. 'Should be nice....

R is for Repairing Cushions – #AtoZ2018

‘Dad! What is repair cushions?’ Sharath’s six year old son Mihir had a puzzled look on his face. ‘What cushions?’ Sharath was busy working on a costing spreadsheet and didn’t pay much attention to his son. ‘Repair cushions, Dad! Anita told me about it.’ Anita was Mihir’s twelve year old elder sister who, like any...

Q is for Que Sera Sera – #AtoZ2018

Ana Maria looked forlornly into the Calle 8 that was bustling with activity. There were always people coming in and going out of the numerous auto parts shops on the road. Only half of them came for auto parts. Duvan used to say that one can buy anything from groceries to narcotics from these cleverly...

P is for Perfection – #AtoZ2018

Sayan Bhattacharya frowned. He had a queasy feeling inside. Whether it was because of the eight cups of cha he’d consumed in the past hour or because of the case reports he was studying, he couldn’t tell. But one thing was clear. He’d never felt this uncomfortable in his career spanning fifteen years as an...

O is for Once More – #AtoZ2018

I trudge along the muddy path carrying my beloved’s corpse. The inky starless sky reflects my mind perfectly. There’s a storm blowing inside me. I stumble on the uneven ground and almost drop her, but I land hard on my right knee instead to prevent that from happening. I let out a howl of pain...

N is for Night Ghoul – #AtoZ2018

It was just after midnight. He stood atop the tallest skyscraper in the city - his usual spot and a vantage point. He sniffed the night’s air and tasted the intoxicating mixture of happiness, pleasure, lust, fear, sweat, piss, danger and blood in it. Every night, he stood there and waited. Waited for a sudden...

M is for Mariposa – #AtoZ2018

‘My marriage is over, you piece of shit!’ Sarika flung the expensive Waterord crystal ashtray towards Alex. ‘And you are the reason for it.’ Alex had dodged the crystalline projectile with ease and looked at Sarika. ‘Calm down, Mi amor! I know you are in shock and disbelief. Pero, would it hurt to sit down...

L is for Lonely – #AtoZ2018

‘This is Major Tom calling Houston. Come in Houston! Are you there Houston?’ Nothing but stony silence greeted him. Tom sighed and flipped the radio channel to the European Space Agency (ESA) in Toulouse, France. He did not expect any reply from there either, but still went ahead with his ritual ‘Major Tom Jones from...

K is for Komberi Mookan – #AtoZ2018

‘Alright children, we are going to learn multiplication tables today,’ Lakshmi closed her book and turned towards her class, ‘If I have three boxes containing three mangoes each, how many mangoes do I have in total?’ After explaining the concept of multiplication, she set her class to work on the table of 3. A gentle...

J is for Journey – #AtoZ2018

The birds started chirping, announcing the impending arrival of dawn. Raghu walked along the lush green fields, shivering pleasantly in the early morning chill. He reached the river-bank and sat down. The first rays of the day lit the gently flowing water with a golden hue. These were exactly what Raghu missed in his life...

I is for Innocence – #AtoZ2018

Park Joo-Won closed the book he was reading and smiled wanly at his sister Park Ji-Woo. His eyes were half-closed as he sat under a King Cherry tree enjoying the mild breeze sifting through its branches. Joo-Won had suggested coming to the dilapidated park in Kanggye, the capital of Chagang province of North Korea. Joo-Won...

H is for Help – #AtoZ2018

‘Hello!’ ‘Suicide Helpline, this is Mike. How can I help you?’ ‘You cannot help me, Mike!’ ‘Ma’am, please tell me your name.’ ‘Shut up and listen, Mike! I have only fifteen minutes.’ ‘Ma’am, please let me know your location. I’ll send one of our grief counsellors right there.’ She snorted, ‘I knew this was a...

F is for Finish – #AtoZ2018

‘As both the accused are under eighteen years of age, this court is bound by the Juvenile Justice Act of 2015 and will recommend a specially convened Juvenile Justice board including leading Psychologists, Sociologists, Criminologists and social workers to determine whether the aforementioned accused be tried under the Indian Penal Code as adults.’ The Honorable...