F/8 and Be There
by Damon Hubbs
At the corner of
the fat apple where a naked city reveals itself
In a liquor store parking lot with its squandered moonlight
and accidental grace
At the precinct where the
sheriff is studying a walnut
At the burning brownstone
with the comic strip punchline
Because he took his
last breath on the sidewalk
In the alley behind the Bowl-O-Drome
where they found a knife with a sweetheart grip
At the bus stop on West Main where Lisa lost her shoes
Under the sign that says no asses or glasses on the
pool table
In the nail salon
on Eighth St. where Ronnie broke it off with Marvin
At the luncheonette with whistle berries and Zeppelins in
the fog
Near
the bullet-proof window
Because of the Ping
Pong affair at the American Legion
During the peepshow
at The Squire
Behind the kitchen alcove
at 10 Rillington Place
In front of a skyline like
burnt lungs and typewriter ribbon
At
the Drug Store with bewitching appetites and a glass so
strong it can walk
In the laundromat where superfluous
words are removed
On the stairway of a triple-decker
in Fall River
Below the stoplight where
you wear a Mustang to match your lipstick
and
the warp and weft of blood on blacktop.
Girl, Killer
by Damon Hubbs
The girl was
found in the parking garage
The girl was a night waitress
in ’89
The girl was pulled from the weeds along
a highway in New Bedford
The killer buys a Diamond
Deluxe scratch ticket at the corner Mini Mart
The
girl had a blue bandana and a pair of Wrangler jeans
under her head
The killer drinks J&B at a bar near
the freight yard
The girl was the first victim in what became
known as the night of the double event
The girl’s
mouth was opened like a black umbrella
The killer reads The Philosophy of Composition
on his lunch break
The killer is intelligent
and organized and has dinner with many voices
The
killer put his boots on
The girl had a new tattoo
and minor regrets about an old boyfriend
The girl was
a lifeguard at Comins Pond
The killer has a lover
in Fort Lauderdale
The girl was found in a green garbage bag
submerged in the Brandywine
The girl was named Leda
The killer is the life of the party
The killer lives on the street of crocodiles
The
girl had expensive dental work and eyes the color of
robin’s eggs
The killer elicits a structure of sympathy
The girl was third in her class
The
girl was posed like a ballerina under the viaduct
The killer finishes his
pie and has another cup of coffee
The killer is not named
Henry
The girl was scrawled with Sharpie
The killer’s favorite film is Merci La Vie
The killer knows that a brothel is not a brothel unless
soup is served
The girl was found in an alley beside the
Rose Avenue automat
The killer leaves an empty
red bowl in the sink
The killer attends the Dahlia Club every
Thursday at the Episcopal Church
The police don’t
have a clue.
