The Map of Your Murder
- Jun 21
- 2 min read
Kamal K. Jabbar
On an afternoon interrupted by rain and cricket, an inspector’s visit uncovers far more than he appears to be investigating.
It happened in Sri Lanka
On the final day of the final test
Against England,
when play had been delayed
due to rain.
After lunch, and a little
before tea.
The portly inspector
Had poked around my
Freshly prepared flower bed
Strewing cigarette ash
over my dracaenas and begonias
Trampling the rectangular planting area
Shuffling in search of footprints,
Presumably.
Turgid, theatrical and Tamil
He moved like a tug boat across our villa
Inspecting the books
that had overflowed into the foyer.
Why is Seneca of interest to you today, Inspector?
Over the crackle of commentary
Between gulps of tea
In transit between cardinal points
of north and south
This man from the North,
with a hint of Prabharkaran
smelled like a descendant of a war
that ended in 2009
A man yearning to suggest something
but exercising painful restraint
Trying to decipher
an uneasy chemistry,
compounds of energy
inexplicable paths and
a strange cartography
And what of you, madam,
suddenly silent?
No sounds now from
the hallways that echoed
with language of your wars
Have you no riposte?
about how,
like a pendulum,
you swung
between joy
and gloom
About how
you could start
a bitter argument
in an empty room?
Play is drawing to a close, Inspector.
Unless you have anything further…
Kamal K. Jabbar is a lawyer and bestselling author based in Dubai. His poetry and prose explore love, loss, travel and transcendence. In his spare time, he explores consciousness, speculates about lost civilisations, and works on his tennis serve.
Rabia S. Akhtar is a Pakistani visual artist based in Karachi. She received her BFA from the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture in 2015, with a focus on miniature painting. Represented by Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, Rabia has showcased her work at spaces including Saatchi Gallery (UK), Asia Now (France), the Ministry for Gozo (Malta) and Abu Dhabi Art (UAE). In 2025, her work was presented in Harper’s Magazine. In 2023, she received the Nigaah Art Award in the category of ‘Emerging Artist’. In 2020, her artist book Bogus Villa Buds was displayed at Focal Point, an annual art book fair by the Sharjah Art Foundation. Rabia has taken part in residencies including a collaborative AiR program by the Valletta 2018 Foundation and Fondazzjoni Kreattività, as well as Locating Word 2020 and Taaza Tareen 12, initiated by Vasl Artists’ Collective. She has also written and researched for various platforms, including ArtNow Pakistan and the Karachi Biennale Trust.
A deeply atmospheric piece that beautifully captures the stifling tension and unspoken history between the characters, creating a compelling psychological map of suspicion. Speaking of spotting hidden motives and investigative tension, I’ve been completely hooked on That's Not My Neighbor lately—it’s a brilliant social deduction game where you play as a doorman trying to detect doppelgangers and fakes, making it the perfect way to unwind after diving into such a captivating narrative.