Back in the Desert The shaman’s chant slowed. The taste of haoma lingered—bitter, sweet, then gone. Tarmo sat under the Iranian sky, tears drying on his cheek; he could not remember shedding them. He understood: the hunger in the warehouse, the ache in the shower, the urgency of seeking Elena was not merely his own,…
Tag: Istanbul
The COMC Files Book V chapter 10
The Coffee Tightens Burçu’s spoon traces deliberate, silent circles in thick coffee. Her gaze is fixed on the swirling grounds, as if they might condense themselves into the neat bullet points of a diplomatic cable. “Since the EU accession dream ended,” she says, “Türkiye’s rewritten its own rules—always in motion between West and East, between…
The COMC Files Book V chapter 9
The Meeting Morning pries itself through Istanbul’s glass and minarets—a blue-gold light, soft and sleepless.Sleep claimed me late, but the city’s hum—street vendors, ferry horns, muttered prayers—is relentless. The scent of Tarmo’s cologne, mint and pistachio from sweets untouched, clings in corners and to my skin. Istanbul’s lesson: nobody gives up their pieces—only moves them…
The COMC Files Book V chapter 8
The Wolf’s Silence After Tarmo leaves, the room is louder—his absence thickens the air, the old mosaic and high ceilings seeming to absorb and amplify every unspoken word. On the side table, pastries glint under the lamplight: pistachio shine, sheets of syrup stiffening with neglect. Mint tea, untouched, sends up a last drift of steam,…
The COMC Files: Book V chapter 6
Back to the Hotel By the time I drift back toward the Pera Palace, Istanbul’s sky has sunk into velvet indigo and the Bosphorus exhales with the sharp tang of salt and iron. My camera is heavier now—the weight of images is memory pressing into my palm. Dust follows me to the hotel’s illuminated façade….
The COMC Files Book V chapter 4
Historic grounds, coffee grounds, all grounds for a wager “Walk with me, Elena. See what the city will show a newcomer—if it chooses. But for now, finish your coffee. Old Istanbul weighs a guest’s worth in patience.” He rises, coat brushing velvet, profile softened by latticework shadow. He lets me watch him leave: uncertain, provisional….
The COMC Files Book V chapter 3
Pera Palace My DIEK driver sweeps the car along the Bosphorus, minarets blinking in and out of the morning haze. Istanbul grows brighter—histories threaded through fog and horn blasts.Up ahead, the Pera Palace rises with sly confidence, its neo-classical lines softened by decades of dawns. Velvet chairs catch the new light; gilded mirrors throw fractured…
The COMC Files: Book V chapter 2
Istanbul Cabin lights flicker; I jolt awake. Descent has begun. Outside, the sky bruises itself into day: bars of pink, slashes of blue, and new gold. My hand drifts to Asdar’s note—a nervous relic, its shape bitten into my palm—as the city unfurls below, vast and split by water and empire. IST is fever-bright, sharp-edged….
The COMC Files: Book V
Chapter One — Departure I wake to cool light and absence. The space beside me is empty; only the dent in the pillow remains. On the dresser, a folded sheet in Asdar’s slanted hand: Where eyes don’t see, the heart will be ominously aware. A sigh escapes. I fold the note and stick it on…
The COMC Files IV: last chapter today
Dear Readers, Next up: the final chapter of Book IV from the Chronicles of the Mythic Cartographer. For those just joining, this series follows Dr Elena Delange—a once-cautious anthropologist whose research into myth takes a dangerous, visceral turn. Each book dives deeper as her world collides with legends made real, forcing her to survive, adapt,…
The C.O.M.C. Files 