A gunshot
splits the air

resounding
whip-like across
the back of morning,

milling rooks
erupt in flight
exploding out
the tall, thin, tree

assurance
has been tangled with,

a rabbit scarpers
for the warren ,
breaking, frantic
to evade
those hands
that shatter peace.

Those nameless
hands that claim the day
that rob the complex
of its store,

Those heartless
eyes that aim out life
that blackened eye
that flames the roar

What vow
knows iron twinned
with flesh,

what conscience
has this beast.

adept
in deprivation are

The hands
that shatter peace