Alex, resting on the riverbank, revives. It is amazing what a short rest and soaking in cool water can do for the feet. Circulation returns. Alex’s shrivelly, wrinkled, pruney and whitened feet become firm and rosy again.
A river snake glides along among the reeds behind Alex. Alex hears nothing, sees nothing, and suspects nothing. Alex’s focus is on the musical glints of each ray of sun twinkling off the tiny riffles of the rapids of the river.
This river snake is Slade.
It is a good thing Slade is no stranger.
Slade and Alex are frenemies. They are close, so close they are close frenemies. Very close. Yet, alas, the one is suspicious of the other. A little on edge. The river snake keeps a close eye on Alex; the swamp rat keeps a close eye on the river snake.
It is a shame we have to eat. It would be a much nicer and friendlier world if we never had to eat. Sometimes we have to eat what is close at hand. It is better if that is an enemy; a little less so if a frenemy; and a terrible nightmare if that is a friend.
Slade hated anything threatening him. Alex threatened him.
Alex hated like the devil he threatened Slade. It didn’t make it much better Slade threatened him, too.
Alex had eaten at least fifteen river snakes. He liked the taste– a lot like chicken. The close range speed of a swamp rat is surprising. Prey is seized with a darting snap. That’s what it takes to kill a snake. Alex had that way of seizing the snake “by the throat”, if we can say snakes have throats, just behind the skull, when with getting the satisfying severing crunch of cervical vertebrae, devastating.
Alex ate cervix, too. Swamp rats “ate it all”, including the asshole, the armpit, all the hair, or feathers, as the case might be. Scales, as the case might be.
Slade had quite a few swamp rats under his belt, if we may say snakes have belts.
Stealth was Slade’s technique. Stealth, and a potent poison, and that was that. What Slade would do is sneak up behind the target swamp rat, close the distance, and wham! This is precisely what Slade was doing on this day with Alex, and it would have worked, except by some mysterious force in the universe Slade had close control over his instinctive behavior.
Alex had never been bitten by a river snake. Testament to this was Alex still being alive. One river snake bite and Alex would be a goner. Bye bye die. Of this, Alex and Slade are keenly aware.
“You have to grip me behind the skull, and crunch. You’d rather have a mouse than a snake, but we all make do. I prefer mice, myself. If we saw a mouse, would we compete? You don’t see snakes as competitors. Me, likewise. Yet snake is a way to bake.”
“Snake, shake, and bake,” said Alex, slightly more worried now. Why was Slade telling him how he might kill him?
Playing off Alex, Slade insinuates,
“God I hate it when those people– thankfully there aren’t that many in New Orleans– who go off on all that ranting crap about natural harmony. Living in perfect harmony, and so on. The worst are the ones who believe that natural harmony is the reality of here and now.”
“It is crazy, Slade, it really is. Yet admit it: deep down we all long for this harmony and it would be especially nice if it was natural. Natural, meaning it came easily, effortlessly. The natural harmony would come as a beautiful gift being given to us. Neatly wrapped in the most beautiful gift wrapping. With the most gorgeous rose-red bow.”
The lion would lay down with the lamb. The swamp rat would not exactly lay down with, but would get real close, to the river snake.
Alex is so glad Slade has joined him on his journey.
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