Passage
The dark doors rise round us
like a wall
It’s an old scam
we have to ask this man
to open them for us
and give him a tip
The old man does it
at a pound or two
though it’s
not cheap
it’s what we’ve got to do
But those were the inner doors
there’s more to come
a second set before us
and a younger man
in a light suit
who’s arrived alongside them
he’ll expect to be paid
if we want to get through
I take out my purse with a forced smile
like the party-giver faced with
an unwelcome request
who knows there could be trouble
from the secretly-armed guest
I give him
two pound coins
one brand new
(the best part
of the money that I’m carrying)
He pulls back the bolts
the essence of urbanity
we walk out into neutral light
as fast as we can
without actually running.
Page(s) 22-23
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