It works into me, the thread I’m using, fine as the hair from a baby’s head. I never notice as I stitch, concerned with the promise I’ve made. I advertise in the corner shop and the post office: ‘All reasonable… Continue Reading
My arms were scratched raw. I’d been at it for ages. I’d been up on the tussocks of the bank trying to reach the berries at the very top and a wasp had stung me and it didn’t half hurt. … Continue Reading
Click. The meter turns over again. My fingers thump the door handle to the beat of Anchors Away. I clutch my dark blue duffle bag to my chest. If I was smart, I’d let the driver take me to the… Continue Reading
I’m a friggin’ star, I tell Bev in a telephone call from Istanbul. She laughs just like I knew she would and I ask her to please wait for me. I’m coming back to you, doll, soon as I can.… Continue Reading
The crack of the starter’s gun gives rise to a low rumble around the stadium as the girls set off at speed. The race clock at the finish line carries the logo ‘British Athletics National Youth Championship’. By the first… Continue Reading
Mrs. Frost always gave unusual tips after I gassed up her Mercedes. Hard candy, a pamphlet on holistic medicine, a vial of tea tree oil she said I could use for an ear infection. One Saturday she gave me cosmos… Continue Reading
Niall knew what people said about him. They said he was slow, simple. Not right in the head. They looked at him staring off into space, at the girders on the local building site, at the opaque water of the… Continue Reading
My mother spends her days in frigid rooms behind gray walls under dull white light. Once, she was quite the piano player, the songbird, showcasing her talent around town at local cocktail joints, churches and parties. Miraculously, she had an… Continue Reading
It is spring. She is at the first farmers’ market of the season. Here is the early lettuce, the Swiss chard, the spring peas. “I’m growing the peas in a cold frame,” the stall owner tells her. He wears an… Continue Reading
“Ratho Babu is coming! Ratho Babu is coming!” yelled Suhash, jumping up and down. His bare feet kicked dust and his brown eyes sparkled. The mop of rusty dry hair on his head flapped as he urgently twisted around to… Continue Reading