When a car bomb blasted not one hundred meters from where he was standing, the first thing that registered in Kelley’s mind was that his eardrums must have been ruptured. He couldn’t process whether he was standing or sprawling on the ground; the world suddenly lost all sense of order while everything seemed to be moving in slow motion.
Kelley was lying flat on his belly on the ground. He covered his head with his arms to protect himself from peppering glass and metal and—he noticed when he looked up for a moment—from almonds and walnuts from a nearby stall. Pained cries and screams filled the air. Men, women, and children were stumbling like zombies amidst debris scattered on the street; blood streaked their faces, ran along their limbs, drenched their clothes. Kelley shook his head to c
