COP: You killed a homeless old lady in a wheel chair  
KID: I know, I was there…  

he grabbed her
stabbed her  
slashing her again and again,
downward through hot flesh to cold bone  
like she was some mattress filled with money
in her pockets were slips of paper
with hopeful, hopeless scribbles,
cigarette butts and
two dollars and seventy-six cents,
all in change,  
which he exchanged for Skoal
or maybe…Red Man  
the **** colored juice from this bounty
dripping from his grinning mouth
when the cops cuffed him  
and shoved him into their cruiser  

he confessed, over and over  
like he wanted to have one confession
for each slice of the blade  
for each wound he made
for every other silent sin he saw
an acknowledgement
of his petty part  
in the fall  
he wanted her last sight
to be of him shutting her eyes,
muting her cries
to him, luring lullabies    

the judge would not put him to death,
though he would have liked to  
even with his own hand, he mused  
for who could be so joyously jaded  
at the slaughter of another  
instead
he again asked, why?

KID: I made ME immortal in her sight
JUDGE: Your eyes will close a final time as well
and nobody will be there to tell
KID: I know
JUDGE: Do you?