Taken by darkness

Taken by darkness - a quality
that lies not in force, but in the mind,

as when, for instance, she undresses
a completely counterfeit smile, which

seeks both to deceive and deny - it
is the meeting of harsh instruments

and flesh which challenges memories,
tells revelations of nakedness,

and soon shows the world, vivid, red marks,
which dwindle into transparency

with passing time. While recollection
of all the crying and the twisting,

fades; as do the streaked shadows of tears;
she surrenders, once more, to smiles with

their counterfeit force: but, in the mind,
she stays on fire, taken by darkness...