Dagestan life today most closely resembles a bloody theater of the absurd

The famous blogger Abumuslimova was finishing her third cup of coffee, simultaneously trying to come up with the beginning of her review of Ariadne Mann’s new novel “Aladdin’s Magic Mountain,” when her friend, the famous blogger and journalist Nechiporuk Gadzhikhanova, knocked on her Skype.

Abumuslimova sighed - her friend had an excellent ability to bring unpleasant news right in the morning - but pressed the “reply” button.

The screen highlighted Gadzhikhanova’s workplace. The table was littered with papers, cups with leftover coffee and figurines of spotted cows, and Nechiporuk herself looked like a delicate violet in the gray cigarette smoke.

- Hello, what are you doing, but it doesn’t matter. Listen, I just got back from court. Do you remember the doctor who was pulled out of the operating room? Well, they left him in custody. And now he is not a “suspect,” but naturally an “accused,” Gadzhikhanova jabbered, flipping through her notebook at the same time.

“Oh,” Abumuslimova guessed, “so they proved that in his free time from operations the doctor killed security officials, right?”

“Nope,” said Gadzhikhanova, “it’s never like that.” First, they dramatically changed their charges. Now he sits with them with the wording “complicity in murder by providing professional assistance!”

“Cool,” Abumuslimova was surprised, “I’ve never heard of such formulations.” And what - there is direct evidence, right?

- Yeah. “A denunciation signed by some woman,” Gadzhikhanova coughed, “now we’re doing something like that!” But I’m not calling you for this, but to warn you!

- What is this about? — Abumuslimova asked with suspicion.

- But listen. There in court I met Arifatka Mogucheva, well, this lawyer, who is cool and like a bone in the throat of our law enforcement officers. And so - tomorrow she is considering the case of your classmate Kazym Mazymov. Well, the one who climbed naked onto the monument to Makhach Dakhadayev last month and from there shook his belongings towards the square.

- Yes, I remember... poor Kazik. I've always had a problem with my head; my mother dropped me a lot when I was a child. And what does Arifat have to do with it? Does she only take on serious matters?

- But besides! It turns out his case is serious. And the article is serious - “terrorism”, and “attempted murder” and God knows what, so this shaking of m..ds - it was all part of the plan, and not just a seasonal escalation!!! — Gadzhikhanova lit another cigarette.

“What nonsense,” Abumuslimova began eating a loaf of bread out of excitement, “complete nonsense.” And what do I have to do with it?

- And here we move on to the main part! - Gadzhikhanova said triumphantly, - many people have been tied up in this case. Firstly, two women at the market. The investigation established that they regularly sold him apples and candy. And the one next to them - she sold him the same gray sweatpants that he took off to climb the monument. Direct evidence of complicity through the provision of professional assistance. Another doctor was punished for failure to report. Three more girls who walked past the monument and waved to him and smiled - they say they followed them and all their relatives for a month, the evidence is ironclad: they regularly go there. There is a lot of evidence, there is also a bench.

- What? - Abumuslimova was stunned - what other bench????

— He sat on it regularly and thought!!! Everyone saw it - neighbors, pedestrians walking past (everyone was sitting too!). So she was arrested and handed over to evidence. Well, they took his mother, of course!

- For what? - Abumuslimova asked mechanically - for dropping it in it as a child?

- You are still a fool and a housewife! - Gadzhikhanova shook her head - the investigation was watching her! She regularly went to the market and all that. And the wording is the same - by providing professional assistance!!!

“I don’t understand,” Abumuslimova got angry, “what other professional help can a mother have???”

-Well... she gave birth to him, there! Okay, why am I calling you - they are now visiting all of Kazym’s classmates. Feel for underreporting. So I warned you! “Gadzhikhanova switched off, and Abumuslimova sat for some time, staring motionless at the screen.

Then she sighed and wrote under the words “Ariadne Mann’s story “Aladdin’s Magic Mountain”: Dagestan life today most of all resembles a bloody theater of the absurd. A new reality...”