Retreat, I call to her. Come close to me.
No mercy, she says. There’s no such thing.
Nc3 Bc5
A white Rastafarian to the Upper East Side and I send Finger to the East Village. He is strong now with his money and child, a tough son with his mother’s eyes. Tuesday is everywhere. She’s always on time.
Nd5 Qxb2
A kid named Choker goes to Union Square. Darling to Harlem.
Are we winners or losers, Eli?
Pointless question, you say.
Do you see five moves ahead?
Yes.
And do we win?
Pointless question.
I get high alone. The sky is a boring blue.
Bd6 Qxa1+
They move a bipolar girl in overalls to Little Italy. Darling takes a runaway and Cataract’s in check. I see flashes of Mississippi. Long afternoons with Wise Jane and Willie. It can be strawberries and weed and daisies. I’ve got a good girl with her heart in the fight. No time for nostalgia. The jig is almost up.
Ke2 Bxg1
Cataract moves to lower Harlem and I send Finger to capture the ex-model in Morningside Heights.
My mind is on autopilot. The moon, Eli. Remember. The tides?
Dark matter, you say. Antimatter. Visible matter.
Who says?
They.
We’re all the they there is now.
e5 Na6
Cataract moves up a break-dancer to Soho and I call Hal Malchow to the Lower East Side. I’ve got a head full of flowers but I am sane. I scale a co-op. It is nice, the warm night, seasons grinding out. Good night to the rich and poor. Social justice is absurd compared to the universe. We are battle ready. The end is nigh.
Nxg7+ Kd8
A Knight puts us in check. You move over to Chinatown.
I know this game, you say, Eli. He’s already won.
Qf6+ Nxf6
Nono moves to Soho. A blunder. Tuesday captures her.
Be7#
Checkmate.
13
Cataract paces in the jail hallway. He smells of sage and masturbation. Some silver light enters through the window and the jailer whistles “2 Legit 2 Quit.” Tuesday and Finger make out. Al and Hal play thumb war. Eli, you let Darling sleep on your shoulder.
I have a vision of losing battles fought only in dimensions and time. We were two soldiers, Eli, but now we are prisoners of war. The killers and victims unite in forgiveness. The heavens and the earth cleft from each other. We are all truly made from the same stuff. Ashes to ashes. Dust to dust.
Jailer, I call. She’s going into labor. Jailer rolls his toothpick.
Bullshit, he says.
Her water’s broken, see for yourself.
When he opens the cell door and comes to her I hit him over the head and take his gun. Another guard sees us and Finger slams him. Al and Hal take out another.
Snowball will be here in five, I say. Just like we planned it.
I have to find Nono, you say.
There’s no time, I say.
I’m going into labor, says Darling.
You don’t have to pretend anymore, I say.
I’m not, she says.
I touch her belly.
I’m going to find Nono, you say, Eli.
See you on the roof, I say. The helicopter’s waiting.
Maloney, Darling says. It’s happening.
We run through the maze of halls. A rookie stops us and raises his gun.
Get out of here, kid, I say. I’ll spare you.
The rookie gets off two shots and I pop one in his leg. We’re up the stairs and more cops are close behind. I can hear the helicopter blades from the roof. I feel a sting on my back and I fall.
Maloney, you say, Eli. You’re hit.
Where have you been?
I found Nono. She’s on her way.
Help me up, I say and we run out the door. The helicopter is in the air. Nono comes running and at the last moment grabs your hand.
Can you forgive me, I say to Nono.
Namaste, she says.
Cataract comes out shooting blindly and the SWAT team’s close behind. We head up and out over the water into the black night.
They call out a chopper of their own. Snowball maneuvers best he can.
I’ve got to put her down, he says.
Get us to the Statue of Liberty, I say.
We won’t make it, he says. Not all of us.
We’re going down fast. I see the statue from the corner of my eye. We get on the rope to go down.
Steady, I say.
The police helicopter is landing on the other side of the island. The whole SWAT team runs out, guns firing.
I slip and fall out into the darkness.
When I come to, I’m on your back, Eli, and you’re carrying Darling in your arms up the statue stairs. The cops are close behind.
I can’t wait any longer, Darling says.
We climb and climb, the thunder of boots behind us.
St. Darling’s blood fills the floor of Lady Liberty’s crown. A full moon is peeking in. Her eyes close as our daughter’s first cries echo into the night.
I love you deep as an ocean, I say.
At Wise Jane’s we are all around the warm table. Finger and Tuesday, Al and Hal, you and Nono, Darling and I. Willie dog is at our feet. There is corn and fresh tomatoes. Wise Jane passes the wine. Boom and White Mike Johnny play dead man’s chess. John Lennon and Elvis are warming up in the lounge. We go to the cotton field and pass the moonshine and howl. There are birds everywhere. Birds of sapphire, birds the color of wild sunflowers. Sophia is born on a Sunday, a star that burns forever in the sky.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Michael Bible is originally from North Carolina. His work has appeared in Oxford American, The Paris Review Daily, Al Jazeera America, ESPN: The Magazine, and New York Tyrant.