At the end of the night when all is said and done when the blood has dried and I can still smell the burning and I can still taste him on my lips and I can still taste iron on my tongue and I can still hear the screams and I can still hear the laughter I ask my mother to hold me and there’s a dagger in my back I ask my mother to hold me and I can smell the blood again which is where it all started because mother told me it was dirty mother told me it was wrong and I learned the truth but no one told me I just wanted the blood off me I just wanted to stop hearing the laughter but my mother was right they laughed and laughed and if they hadn’t laughed then no one would have died and I should have known but I wanted to believe in magic I wanted to and I did for twenty minutes I did I ask my mother to hold me and there’s a cross on the wall I ask my mother to hold me and the house is on fire the house is burning and we are burning with it burning like the pits of the alleged Hell
About the Author Dana Scott is a Chicago-based writer who has been recognized for work in creative nonfiction, fiction, poetry, and screenwriting. Her work has previously appeared in The After Happy Hour Review. About the Artist From Troy, Michigan and currently in Chicago, Sammy Loree is a visual artist and creative writer with focuses in surreal portraits and fiction. Updates and more art can be found on her Instagram @artsamloree.
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