A Line Crossed

-A Line Crossed-
by Keaton Foster



Brutal
These hands
With malice
The plan
Payback
A correction
To the ledger
An eye
For an eye
A life
For a life
I won’t regret
What comes next
A line crossed
An ideal lost
I tried to forgive
I wanted to forget
But I cannot
So here I am
Gun in hand
Solid the plan
Two the chest
One to the head
Boom
Alive one second
The next dead
From me
He took it all
From him
I’ll take the same
Killer be kind
Not in this instance
Reciprocity
Demands nothing less
Then an equal sin
He must die
Because in every way
I am already deceased
When I was a kid
A defenseless being
He raped the life
From my very being
He took it all
And then
He slithered away
Lost to us
Hidden from justice
Until this very day
I’ve been watching
Planning everything
Missing nothing
The perfect killing
Is about to happen
I push the bell
A familiar voice
Says hello
A delivery sir
I’m not expecting
Anything today
I only reply
Yes you are
He rings me through
Come on in
Come on up
Apartment 3c
Down the hall
I make my way
His end in hand
He has no idea
But he should
He must know
In some small way
That I’m still out here
Existing in his world
Of hell on earth
He must be aware
That sooner or later
One day or another
That I would be here
What he did to me
How he did it
And why
Unforgivable
Unforgettable
Making him
And me
Unredeemable
He must know
He needs to pay
And he will
As I make my way
The fear of it all
Fades further away
I become numb
No longer stunned
I am ready
Justice in hand
For a second
I ponder to myself
Will he be aware
Ready to declare
Will he know
Why and how come
Such things
Matter not
A line crossed
I reach his door
Down the hall
Apartment 3c
I tap on the frame
Shallow the thud
He calls out
I’ll be right there
There is no turning back
No escape for him or I
This must be done
I’m his judge
His jury
And his executioner
The door slowly creeks
Opening full and wide
And there he is
He is much older
His face wrinkled
His hair all but gone
His hands bruised
Well-worn
I look deep
Into his stone-cold eyes
It’s all still there
Just like when I was his son
I see the monster he is
Not the old man
He has become
Before I lay waist
I say what I must
What I have rehearsed
A thousand times before
Father
Tormentor
It is me your son
Your truest victim
I’ve come because I must
You killed me once
Back when I was a kid
You raped my life away
Leaving empty
Leaving hollow
Since then
I have been incapable
Uninhabitable
I died back then
And you father
Escaped
Leaving me
In your wake
Well now I’m here
I found you
Just as I’m sure
You knew I would
I’ve come to kill you
An eye
For an eye
A life
For a life
I raise my gun
Just as I expressed
It’ll be
Two to the chest
One to the head
Instant his end
But mine
As it has
Will continue on
Before I pull the trigger
Before I claim justice served
He looks at me a says
Son, I’m so sorry
For all that I’ve done
Please don’t do this
Please don’t kill me
I want to live
I want to be forgiven
Please my son
Spare me this plan
Turn away
And forget this place
Forget my aged face
I don’t reply
I refuse
Because back
When I was his kid
I said those same things
A line crossed
Two to the chest
One to the head
Down he falls
Dead
No longer my father
No longer a threat
But in many ways
Still the monster
I will never forgive
Or forget…




A Line Crossed
Written by Keaton Foster Copyright © 2016/2017.