To Grieve My Brother

Microfiction by Rukman Ragas that deftly gets at the shared experienced of disparate individuals.

Thank you for your service, they say. Discharged with honor, they whisper. Would you like a discount? they ask. The man smiles at them, responds with a nod, takes the discount, and goes back to his home. To his ghosts.

Every night, when he tries to sleep, he doesn't dream of his laurels for being a good killer. He sees my brother, whose blood had seeped …