Business meeting
by Chancie Chou
I shook his hand
fourteen years ago
brief, our initial rendezvous
yet a pact forged for eternity.
A simple covenant made,
a forbidden word on our tongues,
a shard of tacit knowledge
never to be spoke of again.
But our promise never fades
stored in the abyss of his world
an indelible threat waiting.
encrusted by time waiting.
For a deal with the Devil
is one I must keep
and perhaps someday
his terms will come to an end.