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Alexandra's Wreck

What are the minnows sewing
as they swim back and forth between
the rotting boards?
These boards that have lain on the ocean
bed for days on end
welcoming sand and algae
like long lost friends.
Their rotting innards hold the key --
the secret questioned in a landlubber's court
when her bones were found under the sea.

Only 3 - three passengers according to
the boards, though only 2 - two made it
home that night in December when the
air was chilly, the seawater cold.
The 2 - two men with their lips sealed;
silent like fish - deadly as sharks
have never told the entire fisherman's tale.

The boards of the rotting boat they know
the intricate story and whether the ending
was accidental as the tale was told.
The boards they know the impossible --
the words spoken in shock or as clever
plans in a love triangle built for 3 --
three notes played -- suddenly a song out of tune.

If you want to understand you must be able
to hear the music of the water and then know
if she slipped and fell, 
or if the 2 - two men banished her
into the sea.

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