A Night of Screams by Richard Z. Santos

Author:Richard Z. Santos
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Arte Público Press
Published: 2023-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

A Night of Screams in Austin, TX

Adrian Ernesto Cepeda

We sat on the couch, in Elsa’s house in the middle of north Austin, passing the bong and seeing the hazy mota clouds hang in the air. Since there was no TV, we were all high, mesmerized and gazing at the living National Geographic special that was the glowing fish tank in the corner. Richie sat next to me.

We had driven from San Antonio to hang in his old hometown. Everywhere we went—bars, taco dives, bookstores, record shops—everyone knew Richie. I don’t remember how we ended up at Elsa’s house, I recall being fascinated at all the receipt tape poems hanging around the house. The poems all had themes of death and murder. The one that stood out ended with the lines:

as I swallowed him

on the back of the Circle K,

with each suck of life. With

each mouthful I tasted his little

death muttering illicit night

shadows screams while

shuddering as he slowly fell,

smiling almost satisfied pale

spread leaving him there

abandoned in a chalk outline

pose on concrete. As I sauntered

away, all I wanted: a Big

Gulp sip to wash down

his last sticky taste of life

out of my mouth.

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