They cut him down before he could
open his mouth
It was best they thought no one should hear what he had to say
So the only way he could speak
was through a puddle of his bloodHe shrieked!
spattered their faces
got
up in their hair and mouths
Yes
Thats how the truth tastes Hot and
bitter
Scorches unforgettably
like fire
and scars
Where did you get that
That was a story to tell
wasnt it
That was a crime to confess
But the only way it was ever
going to be heard was when their blood finally said
When their blood
was let
When their blood was let
he heard the fight from his
window that looked down into the alley that ran between the buildings
they were cast in the dim yellow light from
a distance streetlamp he could barely make out the people
darkened figures
one
faced five
he was cutoff from escape and
retreated into a corner formed by a dumpster and a brick wall
the five rushed at once
their weight and concussion moved
the stubborn dumpster
from above he could hear its
metal wheels grind groan
almost simultaneously they backed
away from the cornered man
who seemed smaller now
maybe smaller because he
slumped collapsed
though his shadow grew larger
No
not his shadow
his blood black on the sour pavement
the five laughed
and as they slowly backed away he
saw dull flashes where their hands were
knives
had to be
one lit a cigarette
they laughed again
they converged
they all lit cigarettes
they all lit cigarettes
they were waiting
he heard it now
a huff
a
thin whining inhale
a huff
a huff whine
huffhuff a rattle
huffhuff a rattle
a
prosaic
sigh
Gawddamn bout time uttered
they
laughed again
then a SHRIEK!the black
shadow of blood exploded
cigarettes and ashes spun like
fireflies
they retched
and
blinded rubbing their eyes with the backs of their hands they staggered into
each other the wall the dumpster
the far alley wall swearing cursing the dead
man
YasonofabitchYasonofabitch
then one by one they gathered
themselves from their spasm
THE FUCK
he
heard
then at a sudden they fled out
the mouth of the alley
their running footsteps echoing
like dull gunshots
he called the Police and went
down into the alleys mouth to wait for them
looking into the alley he couldnt
make out the body because it fit to the wall and the dumpster and because he
didnt want to see
and as he looked he saw a turning
a blackness hanging a slipping murmuration
then it was gone
he didnt want to share that with the
Police
1202, Day-between-Two-Ts, 23 9.
15
