Through a veil of tears
and to the drone
of the solicitor’s voice
they watch him leave.
Silhouetted beside the custodian
linked at the wrist
with cold silver
bodies stiffly apart
at the shoulders
he walks the long corridor
to begin the six months
that feels
like a life sentence.
c. Kathryn Coughran
First published: 1994
In: Family Matters
(Kathryn Andersen)