The Assassin
He hears vicious voices inside his head
“That self-serving sh*t would be better off dead,
so we can restore everything he has shred”
Vitriol breeds a new assassin
More murmurs encroach from his hand-held screen
puppets parroting all-too-familiar themes
archive footage recalls confrontational scenes
Stoking fires within an assassin
Frowning faces fixate – irritation takes root
fractious calls to engage (just not to shoot)
such detachment makes culpability moot
A sly nod to our would-be assassin
Shrill screamers now interrupt everywhere
salty signs juxtapose transcendental despair
day players filter in, fingers thrust in the air
Shadowy figures foment an assassin
Poets ponder resistance while writers emote
comics see how much of their jetsam will float
yet none worry when there is a ready scapegoat
All will say, “He’s a lone wolf assassin”
With a spot on a roof, or some well hidden nest
it is time to put planning and patience to test
then a quick counter round from one of the best
Infamy strikes the luckless assassin
Should he live, a dull jurist may heave a long sigh
cite his pain and his manifest alibi
but if in a hail the vexed varlet should die
Up will rise another assassin
© Copyright 2026 Baltimore Post-Examiner. All Rights Reserved
Anthony C. Hayes is an actor, author, raconteur, rapscallion and bon vivant. A one-time newsboy for the Evening Sun and professional presence at the Washington Herald, Tony’s poetry, photography, humor, and prose have also been featured in Smile, Hon, You’re in Baltimore!, Destination Maryland, Magic Octopus Magazine, Los Angeles Post-Examiner, Voice of Baltimore, SmartCEO, Alvarez Fiction, and Tales of Blood and Roses. If you notice that his work has been purloined, please let him know. As the Good Book says, “Thou shalt not steal.”