the shambles are in the freezer
blood dripping out the door
a bitter wine is brewing
much too strong to pour

night fell too far to break
a dawn in shades of grey
underground the air is damp
city on your back today?

glints of teeth and shards of glass
half shut eyes let in the breath
empty hearts and anguished sighs
paint your nails the stain of death

rumor has it talk is cheap
I'm here to avenge that lie
etch a dying hope in stone
A stranger's tongue, a wiser eye

June 96