Who was it said, fortune awaits?
Who chewed on greed so long, he spat honey?
And what will the yellowing pages of the history book
reveal?
A desecrated boneyard? A patchwork of skull caverns,
their sockets blinking reptiles? No heroes here.
Teeth cut lip. Eyes devour the thoughts behind them.
Toe crumples into hair. Stomach snaps like violins.
Hisssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss.
Serpents slither around ankles, glide up to trembling
knees.
Between toxin and terror, blanched man, coral skin.
Oh the mouth, sharp and sudden. And the patience, three
coils deep.
And sacred stones, chilled with the next swarm.
Snakes are the answer. But whoever asks this question
in the steam of darkness. One man screams so hard,
his head blows out before his lamp does.
“In The Snake Pit” was printed in Ditch'em, No. 7 of Inwood Indiana. Pick up the paperback from Prolific Press; the stories and poems published online are free to read here.
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