The Highwayman
Catacomb-like sewer system
ran like veins underneath the skin of the highway.
Dark tunnels warped vision,
fear made visions appear.
Scurrying vermin and droplets of water
provided eerie soundscapes.
Anyone brave or stupid enough to venture in
always remarked on how extra footsteps could be heard.
Though skeptics immediately echoed, “It was just an echo.”
The Highwayman, as he’s known,
made his home in the sewer.
Senses, adjusted to the darkness,
permitted him to emerge in the cover of night
and stalk his prey on 279.
He would retire to his dwelling and string up bodies,
blood dripping from them,
the sound being confused for water droplets
by curious explorers
who inexplicably came across his trophies
and then became them.
Missing kids were thought to have been collected.
Despite our protests, parents and police never checked.
They told us no one could survive in there,
but we knew…
He was far from human.
Maybe he inhabited the bodies of others
to escape the sewer; to convince people to explore,
saying, “The Highwayman is only a myth.”
Joe Szalinski is a writer/performer from Pittsburgh, PA. His writing has appeared in various lit mags and anthologies. In addition to writing, he also acts, makes music, and performs spoken-word and comedy. Last summer, Joe released his debut poetry chapbook, Nondescript Other Such. He regularly posts cartoons and videos to his Instagram account @poetry_hugger.