I cant see the horizon through the trees 

shoving me from behind Walk!  blunt nose of his revolver bangs my backbone black and blue 

No sweat huh  Soon you aint seein nuthin 

old growth trees

more dense

not me

dimly occurring that maybe the woods might take a bullet for me

one might buy me just enough

outside fifteen feet hed be lucky to hit me through vertical blinds

so why worry the horizon

inside the trunk I was aware we rode uphill

what goes up must come down

were walking uphill

Thump! another welt rising on bone

a big bore

he might be able to shoot through a tree 

underfoot  little tangle 

I cant see the hori . .

You said

dumb luck

all in the timing

football spin as he jabbed

heavy elbow to the temple

broken field run downhill

physics pulling me

slicing sidewise between spaces in trees

face whipped by boughs naked fingerlings

BLAM! sounded bigger

than the explosion of splintering wood behind me

still intact

churning

hurtling

praying the woods might take two

MUTHAFUCKER! bigger than the BLAM!

never send an oaf to do an elfs job

suddenly airborne

falling

not too far

keep balance

soft earth landing

cut road

downhill

off road

MUTHAFUCKER!

gaining ground

big forest

he aint no bloodhound

aint either of us going home

legs and lungs are screamin

letem scream

letem bitch an bellyache

means were alive on fire

somewhere high above me a car engine starts coughs ought to do something about that cough sputters stalls really ought to have done something about that

MUTHAFUCKER!

HA! sucks not to be me

lactic acid fire

a snatch of a cramp in my ham

Drop

talkin to myself

Ill listen to me

I drop

spittle runs spiderwebs across my face

hawk up a chunk of lung

spit

suck air

first time I glanced over my shoulder

trees

I cant see the horizon for trees

thinkin

slow  heart

thinkin

slow  breath

buyin time

slow it all d  o 

                 w

                     n

slowing

gobble up a look from where I am 

no track

fat man aint no Daniel Boone

fat man would make plenty of noise as he came

I hoped the car croaked

with him piggybacking another human being of fat I liked my odds more and more

Craaaank

dead car

tally

he dont walk out

one dead urban oaf

maybe a dead black and blue backbone

water

a bladder of piss

hold it

canteen

wont get snagged in the trees and brush

Up!

yeah me

bossy muthafucker

or so Im reminded

up

ham aint tight

sore

Go

feel a disembodied finger at my spine ready to dig at a mewling vertebra

were going

if it aint as long as I walk as I think it is Ill poach him

Shaddup

Enough

yah

okay

focus

walk

deliberate

quiet

listen

birds roosting

night soon

fingers crossed I cross the road

switchbacks

lots

sudden bench

green

sunset

horizon smiles

there you are

smiles bigger

I smile

nice to see ya again

between the benchs toes

road

black ribbon and a bow 

2131,  Thursday,  13  12. 12