100-Word Fiction: ‘The Unexploded Bombs’

The parcel bombs did not explode. They were discovered on p7, right next to Tom Jones. They were defused with only fifteen lines headed ‘Crime’, buried beneath news of Carlos Acosta dancing and a powerboat accident (p6), teenage choristers (p5), loan sharks (p4) and a BBC sitcom (pp1-2). The bombs made no sound. They were intercepted in London, one addressed to MI6 and one to Downing Street. The word did not spread. Message not received. No TV news item showed that terrorists had targeted the heart of the state. But then the postcode on the packages was Caernarfon, not Islamaville.