No 12907, Saturday 11 Apr 2020, KrisKross

Day 18 of 21 Stay safe at home

ACROSS
1   Crush fruit (6) SQUASH (DD)
4   Meditates in secret, about controlling conflict at heart (8) REFLECTS {SECRET*} around {conFLict}
10 After that, idiot carrying present reaches hotel (9) THEREWITH {T{HERE}WIT}{H}
11 Zulu chased by wild bear and another animal (5) ZEBRA {Z}{BEAR*}
12 By entering US state without visa, finally make a discovery (7) UNEARTH {U{NEAR}TaH}
13 Restaurants abruptly drop/withdraw orders (7) BISTROS {BIt}{SORTS<=}
14 Some operas said to be very musical (5) ASSAI (T)
15 Modern Indian state, now reduced toxic emissions primarily (2-2-4) UP-TO-DATE {UP}{TO DAy}{Toxic}{Emissions}
18 She gives a lecture — one essentially about a musical composition (8) ORATORIO {ORATOR}{I}{abOut}
20 Very fit but lax (5) VAGUE {V}{AGUE}
23 Vehicle out at sea, subjected to endless mishandling (7) AUTOBUS {A{OUT*}BUSe}
25 Briefly leave bar, beginning to edge towards the beach (7) INSHORE {IN SHORt}{Edge}
26 Group without legendary leader is lost (5) BLANK {B{Legendary}ANK}
27 Send back additional diet supply (9) EXTRADITE {EXTRA}{DIET*}
28 Stitching coat — need yarn (8) ANECDOTE {COAT+NEED*}
29 Cattle respectfully addressed by Spooner in English and Hindi (6) JERSEY Spoonerism  of {~ SIR JEE }

DOWN
1   In Lhasa, must a saint raise oranges? (8) SATSUMAS (T<=)
2   They transport waste from say, your dirty street, mostly (7) URETERS {UR}{STREEt*}
3   Herb quietly visits ruined minarets (9) SPEARMINT {P} in {MINARETS*}
5   Public showers? (14) EXHIBITIONISTS (CD)
6   After extraordinary zeal, son does nothing (5) LAZES {ZEAL*}{S}
7   Court accepts a pure form of entertainment (7) CABARET {C{A}{BARE}T}
8   Picks up notices about a herbarium’s top tree (3,3) SEA ASH {~SEES} about {A} {H}
9   Humbly we stretched up in order to welcome head of Italy (4,3,7) WITH DUE RESPECT {WE+STRETCHED+UP*} around {Italy}
16 Boyfriend holding sweetheart’s huge sack (9) DEVASTATE {D{swEet}{VAST}ATE}
17 Church to measure yard for burial ground (8) CEMETERY {CE}{METER}{Y}
19 Read regularly and plan — it’s a tough competition (3,4) RAT RACE {ReAd}{T RACE}
21 Girl passes, receiving spectacles as gifts (7) GOODIES {G}{OO}{DIES}
22 Doctor makes an incision in boy, near a point in the skull (6) LAMBDA {LA{MB}D}{A}
24 Fried a kebab for starters in garden (5) BAKED {A}{Kebab} in {BED}

Reference List

Hotel=H, Indian state=UP, One=I, Very=V, Bar=T
Quietly=P, Court=Ct, Church=CE, Yard=Y, Girl=G, Spectacles=OO, Doctor=MB

Colour/Font Scheme

Definition, Solution, Component letters, Embedded links, Theme word,  Anagram Indicator, C/C indicator, Reversal Indicator, Hidden word Indicator, Letter Pick indicator, Deletion Indicator, Homophone Indicator, Movement Indicator, Positional Indicator, Substitution, Indicator, Opposite indicator, Link/Connector, Extraneous

Dr RKE's TalePiece

An ANECDOTE of an agent

Marco Bartoli, an agent with the Italian Secret Service, was sent to Genoa to UNEARTH a drug cartel, as he was UP TO DATE with the low-down on the cocaine lords. He was dressed in a ZEBRA striped JERSEY, that made him look like a casual reveller. He took an AUTOBUS to reach the SEA ASH lined beach road, where located INSHORE were many night spots. Marco chose a window seat in a BISTRO. He would have loved to order chilled coke and fries, but he had recently had stones in his URETERS and so he had to settle for a SQUASH of SATSUMAS, flavoured with SPEARMINT and some BAKED potato. There was ear-shattering music from the CABARET in the adjacent room, where a buxom woman, quite an EXHIBITIONIST, was doing her act.  Being a cultured man, Marco would have preferred an ASSAI andante ORATORIO but you couldn't get that in a nightclub, right? 

Marco spotted the boss of the drug ring in a remote corner of the restaurant.  Just as the don was to hand over the GOODIES to his street agent, Marco snapped a picture of them with his pen camera.  The henchman of the don recognised Marco and hit him on the LAMBDA with a barstool, causing him to go BLANK.WITH DUE RESPECTS to the presence of mind of the agent, I must tell you he also gave a signal THEREWITH to the local police waiting outside just as he snapped the picture. The police rushed in and arrested the whole gang. The photo shot by Marco, though somewhat VAGUE, was enough proof to indict the drug lord and the judge sentenced him to be EXTRADITEd. The drug business was DEVASTATED by the absence of the boss. There was a RAT RACE among the second line in the mafia to take over the business. Poor Marco, who  LAZES around after recovering from his head injury now REFLECTS on his active days as an agent.