Chapter one
Darkly cold the man walked down the road. Puffs of dusky dirt marked theboot scuffs on the yellow orange plain. A wind rose. The bitter sweet
tang of flowers under layed with a bite. The bite of death, slow, sweet, and
intoxicating.
Far ahead across the chasm yellow lights flashed in the humid night.
The bite and the walk through the dust was hard unyeilding but with that sweet
taste, the taste of money. Trousers and feet in a cloud of dust; dark shirt
stained yellow grey across the armpits. Hat rode like a slouched cowboy across
the acrid brow, pony tail and all. Sweat the taste of aluminum. Lights
calling.He walked and walked but never down, the hole of machines and the need
of aluminum wasn't what he wanted. Song burst from glimpsed star of
candle as the
scuffs moved on their own. The road was his, the harbor, the airport,
the pit that brought yellow ore from the ground to the furnaces.
The smell had acclimatized him. The powder was the bones and the raw
hole his head. Growl of a motor as the Bedford deuce and half growled up
the hill.
Night run. Gold must be trading well for mutton on the river.
Never leave the bauxite, the mercury or the hydraulic blasting or
rebels take
it all.
He walked like a shadow as the truck roared past.
Miles across and many more around the hole he walked, dogs didn't bark,
night birds were quiet.
The lights grew bigger, sounds of singing heard.
The collection of "approved" buildings grew closer.
His feet scuffed the hard yellow poison soil.
A dark square ahead.
Yellow light on each side.
Simple push on the door...
As all sound and motion stopped; he saw the trouble...
The Old Man
Faster than thought the flame leapt, singeing his head
the trouble was over.
Page one
A dark spot, a flash, almost commet in the night brakes squealed through cloud colored sky on road…truck slid……..
Squealing hi and then low slow stopppp
Hoofs BOUNCED in front and across flash of brown white tail
As we swirled squirreled skidded danced and bopped to a stop
She bounded right into steel, soft and firm, into hard and unyielding
Slow slow slow
Careful
Watch
As slid to side and off
She was dancing,
Bouncing, rebounding from hard steel and rubber band unflexible barbwire
I stopped hard FAST and shut down
Bouncing to the dance fast back and forth fast
Back and forth
Not quite high enough to jump the fence or leap the ditch
Chased by a two legged maniac
Zagged zinged heart beating POUNDING
As I walked calmly mouth opened to claim the air
cornering her last breath
She moved
As eyes stared into mine….. run run Run RUN
But fast as sun and slow as moon
I danced closer
Her breath rumbling my heart pounding
Slow as what it was
Cold eyes on panting breast
Her last try
EXPENDED as she ran toward and away switchback…
Landed and felled my weight pulled her down
Her hard me soft-cushioned by the meat on her bones
Legs straddled hands and arms searching
For the final embrace hugging her tight around the neck
I rested holding her breath with my arms and whispering softly to let her sleep
Whispering rest rest rest sleep sleeeep
As I felt her calm and settle
Brother walked to me asking, whispering….
“Do you wanna borrow a knife?”
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