The Circle

Excerpt

o the University of Southern California Medical Center, wait for him, and get him
back to the hotel. That’s his business for the morning, nothing else. The ride takes
about fifteen minutes, as rush-hour traffic is over and the streets are quieter at this
time of day. They arrive and the driver opens the door for them. Ibrahim gets out
with Hakim, and they walk toward the reception area. A blonde girl of about
twenty-five greets them.
“Good morning, sir, please have a seat. The nurse will be with you shortly.”
“Thank you.”
The nurse comes to get Ibrahim. Before she guides him away, Hakim asks
how long they’ll keep him inside and the nurse says about one to two hours. They
have to perform a CBC and obtain a few scan images; the doctors have organized
two MRIs, and they need to do a small procedure to get a specimen. After that,
he’ll be free to go.
After they take his uncle away, Hakim takes a stroll on the grounds of the
medical. He walks for a while and then dials Talal’s number. The phone rings
four times before Talal answers. Hakim asks for news and Talal confirms that it
will take a few days. Hakim finds a bench and sits. His mind goes to Matthew and
Bevan once more. He is eager to learn more of what they do, the specifics of what
they deal with, and whom they report to.
He dials again and calls Peter at the office.
“Hi Peter, how are things there, today?”
“Not much different than any other day. How are things with you and your
uncle?”
“They’re doing the tests. He’ll be in for a couple of hours.”
“Okay. Do you need anything else?” Peter senses Hakim has something to say
to him.
“Look, Peter, I’d like to sit down with you in the next couple of days, is that
okay?”
“Yeah, what’s on your mind? Talk to me.”
“There is no rush. Just hang tight, we’ll talk when the time comes.”
Peter understands he has to leave this alone until the right time; after all, you
don’t push the people who have money and the power that comes with it.
“Suit yourself, Hakim, I’ll be ready.” He stresses the last words and Hakim
likes the sound of that.
“Thanks, Peter, I know I can count on you when it comes to the serious stuff;
thanks a lot.”
He spends the next hour or so outside, with his thoughts traveling to the
future and what he needs to organize with Talal next to him at the top of the
ladder. But he wonders what to do about Jennifer. The question breaks the …

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0978186524

Savages and Beasts

Excerpt

tables; there was absolute silence until the teachers gave them the
okay to go and pick their bowl of porridge, their daily breakfast.
Once the order was given, two at a time, like little soldiers, they
stepped to the counters, each took his bowl and a spoon and
walked back to their seat where they focused on their food.
Anton and Dylan took their coffees and a slice of toast
each and walked to their table when the maid, Ananya walked
in and with quick strides reached Father Nicolas and said something
to him as if whispering. Father Nicolas raised his hand
and called Sister Naomi, told her something then both Father
Nicolas and Ananya took their leave.
Dylan looked at Anton and signaled to him to stay put
while he walked to George the cook. He leaned over the small
divider between the kitchen and the eating area, talked to
George, then went back to his seat and kept having his coffee.
Sister Naomi walked around the tables holding her stick in her
hand and moving from side to side she meant business to these
kids who knew very well the feel of the stick on their flesh.
Time passed in absolute quietness. When all the porridge
was consumed and the children took their bowls back to kitchen
counters, Sister Naomi escorted them to their classes for their
first lesson. Dylan and Anton went to their job at the laundry.
“What you think happened?” Anton asked Dylan when
they were loading the washers with dirty clothes.
“I don’t know, but we’ll soon find out. George will let us
know.”
A few minutes later George came in and declared, “the
old skunk is dead.”
Dylan stopped loading the washer, “When? I knew he
wasn’t that well, but…”
“An hour ago.”

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1926763602

Marginal

Ancient Tomb


The moon gleams with soft rays
over Mycenae, while the blow
of wild air bursts Agamemnon’s
tomb open, next to the spirit of
the almond tree jutting out like
Oreste’s mania swirling skyward
like a dancing serpent while
Electra’s dance depicts the end
of the Asphodel’s dream
in the Hellenic essence of my soul
rivulets still hold the sunshine
in their hands and the paradisiacal
lust of the first kiss dangles from
the lips of the Kore glorifying
innocence as the kyrie eleison travel
eastward to the Mediterranean Sea
say,
let’s dance and long for this year’s
newborns, for this year’s red eggs
a wavelet appears from the blue forest
with the light wave froth calling
and promising nostalgia
in the Hellenic essence of my soul
tomorrow isn’t yet and
splendorous yesterday dwells in the void
what else can one ask other than
the profound meaning
of the non-existent now?
Bravo, he says to me,
always follow the stars and read their minds
the end is never a goal, only the way
to its faraway shore that gleams
clear in your viscera

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1771715987

Tasos Livaditis – Poems, Volume II

The Executioner
Grunts were heard from the dens, a mad person
was looking at me from the window, a bird was
sitting on the huge bulb of his eye, a bird he had
buried, as a child, in the edge of the garden;
the woman with the covered face was following
my way, that ugly, dump woman with whom
I slept once; after she died she often visited me
in fact I saw her once unfolding the small carpet
over where I kneeled so people would feel sorry
for me; it was when he took me in, the one with
the small garden at the far side of the back yard;
when we knocked the executioner opened,
“I’m innocent” he said, “this killed them; it’s not
my fault the others couldn’t hear it” and he pointed
at the flute on the table;
the dead cried and leaned on the fireplace, even
if others said it was the rain, my aunt started yelling
when they tried to take her childish drawing which
she still held in front of the Lord during the Last
Judgment Day,
while, as evening came, the passing musicians
played tirelessly at the street corner although
no sound was heard since their violins were already
faraway in the unrealized.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1926763564

George Seferis – Collected Poems

Automobile
In the public road like the embrace
of a two pronged compass,
the wind’s fingers in the mane
and miles in the belly,
us two were leaving, hollow,
whiplash for the soft gaze;
the mind a makeup, the blood make up
naked, naked, naked!
…On the bed with a soft
high pillow
how dizziness slipped away
like a fish in the sea…
In the two pronged public road
we were leaving, just bodies,
but with our hearts on each branch
separate, one left, one right.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B096TTS37J

Constantine Cavafy – Poems

An Old Man
In the back of the noisy cafe
bent over a table, an old man sits;
with a newspaper in front of him, alone.
And in the miserable scorn of old age
he thinks of how little he enjoyed the years
when he had strength, and eloquence, and beauty.
He knows that he has grown old; he feels it, he sees it.
And yet the time when he was young seems
like yesterday. How short, how short a time.
And he contemplates how Discretion deceived him;
and how he always trusted it—how foolish—
the liar who said, “Tomorrow. You have plenty of time.”
He remembers urges he restrained; and all the joy
he sacrificed. Now for every lost chance
he scolds his foolish Discretion.
. . . But from all this thinking and remembering
the old man gets dizzy. And falls asleep
bent over the table in the café.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1723961833

Jazz with Ella

Excerpt

Just as they had spent that first evening on the street, Jennifer and Volodya spent the next afternoon mostly on the street, in the peculiar privacy that Soviets find in large crowds. She bought him cognac and cigarettes at Beryozka the foreign currency souvenir store. He bought her Russian language books, stories of the city, and corrected her sentences. She showed him her contact lenses and how they worked. He marvelled. Such things were unheard of in the Soviet Union, he told her, but he had seen some Japanese tourists use them. That night Jennifer returned to the hotel, Volodya to his home.
The next day as they were passing the Hotel Europe, another accommodation reserved solely for visitors from the west, he grabbed her hand, glanced around to see if they were being followed and walked into the lobby, saying in English, “I want to show you something. Go along with me to the restaurant.” They strolled to the elegant restaurant portal and waited in the foyer. There was no one in sight.
“Hey, if you’re pretending to be an American, you’re holding your cigarette all wrong,” she whispered. “Don’t curl it under your hand. Just let it sit between your fingers. Like so.” She surreptitiously straightened his fingers, rearranging the cigarette. He grinned at her. She felt the warmth of the smile and let her hand linger on his.
“Thank you,” he said in English. “Now look over at that table under the light. I will not point. You see?” Jennifer peered. “See the centre arrangement? That is a microphone—how they listen. Only the ones with that arrangement—and some of the others there, that table and that one.”
Jennifer stared but couldn’t see the difference in the various tables.
“How do you know?”

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1926763246

Still Waters

Excerpt

with pleasant features which, at this moment, looked grim. But he
smiled reassuringly when he saw the fear on the faces of Carol Ann’s
parents. He nodded to Tyne, then turned to them.
“Mr. & Mrs. Shaughnessy, I’m Dr. Kendall. Your daughter will be
fine. She’s in the recovery room, but you can see her as soon as she
comes to the ward.”
Mr. Shaughnessy, who had risen to his feet, took a deep breath. His
voice was hoarse. “Thank you, Doctor. That’s such a relief.” He hesitated,
glanced at his wife, then turned again to Dr. Kendall. “Do you
know what caused so much bleeding? Is it likely to happen again?”
Dr. Kendall’s eyes opened wide, and for a moment he stood immobilized.
Tyne held her breath. Then, appearing to regain his composure,
he stepped further into the room. “I’m sorry. I see you were
not aware that Carol Ann was pregnant.”
“Oh, my God.” Mrs. Shaughnessy’s hands flew to her face.
Mr. Shaughnessy stood rigid, his face drained of colour. “What are
you saying?” His eyes, two deep pools of anger and shock, did not
leave the face of the man in front of him. “What are you saying?” he
repeated, his voice rising.
“I’m sorry to have to tell you this, Mr. Shaughnessy,” Dr. Kendall’s
face registered genuine regret, “but I’m afraid Carol Ann went to
someone to have the pregnancy terminated. Whoever it was did only
half the job. She could have died.”
Mr. Shaughnessy sat down heavily and buried his face in his
hands. His wife broke into uncontrollable sobs as Tyne held her, her
own heart breaking. 
Carol Ann came to the ward from the recovery room at eleven
o’clock. Tyne remained in the waiting room while Mr. & Mrs.
Shaughnessy went in to see their daughter. She thought they might
wish to speak with her before they left. But when they came out
of the room, grim-faced, they passed the open door of the waiting
room without a glance in Tyne’s direction.
Feeling light-headed from lack of sleep and food, she made her
way to the nurses’ station to speak to Sister Mary Louise. “May I see
Miss Shaughnessy now, Sister?”

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1926763068

Ken Kirkby, A Painter’s Quest for Canada

Excerpt

distance away observing him. When they saw that he had noticed them,
they came to sit beside him. The man said, “My mother says you are a
very quiet Kabluna.”
“Maybe all Kablunat are quiet,” he said.
The man translated for his mother and said, “She says that all other
Kablunat that she has known are noisy. They talk a lot.”
“Maybe I don’t have much to say,” he replied. “Maybe I don’t know
very much.”
When Ken questioned the old woman about the Inuksuit she told him
a story that began a long, long time ago when there were very few human
beings. They travelled over the vast land in small family groups, following
the herds of caribou that were the source of their food, their tents,
their clothing, and their utensils. They could not afford to deplete their
energy by chasing the food. Instead, they made stone human beings and
called them Inukshuk, which means, like a person or acting in the place
of a person.
The people placed the Inuksuit in V-shaped formations. The caribou
with their poor eyesight, thought the Inuksuit were hunters and so it required
only a very few people to herd them into a trap. The closer they
came to the end of the V, the closer together the Inuksuit were placed.
At the point of the V, hunters hid behind boulders while women
and children lay on the ground beside the Inuksuit. As the caribou approached,
the women and children jumped up, waved their arms, and
danced about, to give the appearance of many, many hunters. The caribou
would then stampede to the end of the V, which was usually at the
junction of a lake and a river. When the caribou plunged into the lake,
the hunters hidden behind the boulders would jump into their kayaks
and paddle after them, spearing them in the water. Then they would haul
them back to shore where the entire family, even the children, would
clean and gut the animals.
Inuksuit also took on many other shapes, the old woman said. The one
on the river’s edge where they were sitting was a fishing Inukshuk. She
knew this because it was topped with a smooth stone taken from the riverbed.
It indicted that the fishing was good here. Other shapes had other
meanings and the configurations of Inuksuit had meaning also.
To my mind, what I was hearing sounded like language but they didn’t
write the language on a piece of paper – they wrote it directly on the land.
And I was beginning to get the picture of absolute practicality. Here you
could live with minimum technology if you knew how. To think that you
could direct an entire way of life by putting a few stones together just so,
so that other people coming would be able to read the significance of these
things. The degree of sophistication of this began to seep into me and I realized
there was much to learn here. And this way of life was like the people

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981073573

Swamped

Excerpt

“Yeah.” Frankie smiled. “Movies. Look it up. It’s going places.”
“I shall.”
“Have a good day, Eteo,” Frankie said as his phone rang again
and he walked off to answer it.
Eteo had met Frankie when they both worked for Yorkshire Securities,
one of the solidest firms in Vancouver. He had known Henry,
Frankie’s brother, first, and through Henry he had met Frankie, who
had risen from a junior broker there to being one of the big wheels
in downtown Vancouver.
Frankie had important contacts all over, which meant he could
raise huge amounts of money for any deal he thought was good. Eteo
knew nothing about the film industry, but if Frankie said Lionsgate
Entertainment was going places, Eteo knew he should look into it.
He walked toward the 22nd Street dock. The water was beautiful
again, with small swells washing over the rocks on the shore and
making the sea weed and barnacles that covered them shimmer.
Countless sea gulls circled and swooped above calling out strange
messages that only gulls understood. Their screeching voices always
struck Eteo as almost out of this world. ey seemed to inhabit a
world of wonders and exaggerations. Did Frankie, who had le the
resource sector to get involved in the film industry, inhabit another
world of wonders now?
Eteo knew that a lot of brokers followed Frankie wherever he led.
They all wanted a piece of whatever action Frankie had. At one time
there had even been rumors that Frankie controlled Yorkshire Securities.
He had certainly seemed to have the biggest say in everything
the firm got into. Then the rumors were that he had left the firm to
develop something totally his, a company from scratch. Could this
Lionsgate Entertainment be the one? Eteo always admired people who
started from the bottom and became leaders in their field. Frankie
was such a man, and Eteo promised himself to look into Lionsgate as
soon as he could.
His eyes were drawn to a runabout coming under the Lions Gate
Bridge and speeding toward the outer area of English Bay. Runabouts
were used as water taxies to ferry harbour pilots, who by law were
assigned to command the vessels in and out of the harbour.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08WP3LMPX