In The Territory Of

Kat wants to be free. Free from her tent pissing husband's infidelity. Free from her ability to forgive him. From her reasoning. From everything that grips her existence into complacency. Free from her life.

And the moonlit night is warm. Smells like a campfire. Tastes of rum and genocide cola. Wants the wilderness. Walks the trail. The lake's motion is inviting. Strips naked on the beach. Goosebumps where it matters. A skinny dip. Her friend Gibral follows. Across the lake. His body against her body. An ancient pier. A moment of molasses drips release. Bare feet on prickles. Exploration. A woodpile. The silhouette of a wretched old cabin. Eyes watch from the depth beyond the open door. The myth of a poisonous porcupine which once killed a Kodiak. Gibral's corpse. Quills cover her face. Trees like lassos and scourges entangle her ankles. The flesh of a burnt skull peels like curls of paper. An old man screams. His well and good voice shits its language like an owl at a trespasser in the territory of...