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for spoken word...Routine InvestigationAs we stood around the grave‘fore dirt hit the coffin lidI pictured the past few days and what hearts kept hidHalf pint in my pocketI’d found Snook on Hollywood pierWashin’ dishes at the Fish StickWinston tucked behind his earWith Cheatem gone he was my best informantAlthough years of snitchin’ had left his conscience dormantWe stepped outside, he bummed a lightI said, “didja hear about Cheatem last nightHe floated back in and snagged his pants on some pilingsMusta thought seawater was a Salty Dog Cos that dumb bastard was smilingSnook said, “whaddaya askin’ me forI ain’t seen him in a week or more”I said, “take it ez SnookThis case is 12 hours oldThis is just routine…when his stone is setThis case’ll be stone cold”Snook growled, “the last time he came inHis brains were scrambledBelly bulgin’…skin yellow as a urine samplePlus every Joe and his mama knowsHe banged girls and ordered ‘em on the phoneLike DominoesMaybe after all those years of livin’ hard and liquorA hard on was hard on his tickerAnd it’s just a suggestionBut maybe he was spent, he came n wentAnd some gal dumped him to avoidLotsa fool questions”I said, “hang on a second, I reckon you know You lost a pile o’ doughYou got gypped when he stole your tipOn that meth sale in the valley40 grand worth in a van outside a monster truck rallyAnd hell it’s just my point of view but for a dish jockey like youThat reward woulda been quite a score”He handed back my matchesAnd like the wind took his ashesIt took his smoky alibi of bein’ home alone watchin’ CSII thanked him for his timeAnd asked where I might findMattie this time of dayWaved the smoke from my eyes and was on my wayI drove across townDozing at long red lightsSince my divorce, it’s been rough on the forceI ain’t been sleepin’ nightsDidn’t tell the department shrinkHow I’d poured my Doris a drinkSmacked her a good one in the eyeWhen she told me about the other guy How she’d left her drink therePacked a bag cos mom’d sent busfareNow she’s waiting tables back in OklahomaAnd I’ll bet her 36 Cs get her bigger tipsAt Tony Roma’sI ain’t slept a full night sinceAnd my shrink is convinced I’d sleep If I counted sheepTook warm baths to soothe my musclesOr did word puzzles in my bed aloneLike Jumble, anagrams or palindromes…but fuggit…I’d stuck it out this long on brandyAnd eatin’ No Doz like hard candyWell, I found Mattie at homeHer green eyes were grave blankets Over a bottomless abyssAll those years of hookin’ n crookin’Treated her soul Like a razor treats a wristShe’d made lotsa money but paid a heavy priceFor lettin’ losers wipe their lonelinessOn the throw rug between her thighsI said let’s take a ride, she had nuthin’ to hideTold her I’d by her a Grand SlamWith an extra slab of ham at the local Denny’sShe sat there dishin’ on customer’s clothesDated knock-offsRuns in the waitress’s hoseWith the burning passion of a flamer judging fashionAt the Emmy’sI said, “shweetheart, what about Cheatem”She stuck a fork in her face pit and said“Honey, you know himHe liked it up n durtyI’d give him what he liked for another thirtyYou know what I meanCos he liked it stanky n bloodyBalls deep in the big muddyOh what a sceneHe’d be groanin’ n moanin’I’d have the tv onWith one eye on Leno or ConanBut hell…I don’t know what got him deadBut I’ll bet sleeping aroundMade him that hard pine bed’Then she wiped grease from her cheek…and said, “hey things’ve been slow this weekI could use a ten for maxi-pads”So I slipped her a twenty and said that was more'n plentyplus enuff fer a taxi-cabI had a bite to eat, called the lieuAnd said I had some leadsBut no solid proofKnowing where law is concernedProof has little to do with the truthHe sad he had the tox screenCheatem drank poisoned Jim BeamBut there was nothing at the sceneHe suggested I invite the suspectsTo the funeral todayCos how they act might give something awayA victim goin’ in the groundMight uncover motive buried deep downSo there we were…me, Snooker n MattieGrass green enough for an eternity of holesWith the devil as a caddyIt took Snook three tries to get his Winston litHe blew smoke at the skyThen tapped some ashes on the coffin lidThen Mattie looked at meAnd looked in the holeTossed an old copy of “Shaved” in Cheatem’s graveWith her in the centerfoldThen I looked at her And thought of love n lust n sinThen tossed that half pint of poisoned bourbon inWell, my lieu closed the caseWhen I said my overtime’d been a wasteI went home and my mind slowly went morbidI couldn’t sleep thinkin’ how life is cheapBut death is cheaperAnd even I could afford itI laid there alone and thought of palindromesAnd how countin’ sheep wasn’t for my brand of manThought of my ex…thought of the deadWrote “a slut did Tulsa” on a pad by my bedAnd drifted off peaceful as a lamb©2007 Robert George