The Nights
Maryam Alabi hot summer nightsnightmaresthe nightingalenight wing
until you see the thing they set up.
It's a single wire-thin, sharp, almost invisible if you're not looking for it-stretched tightly from one side of the street to the other. They tie it high enough to meet a standing person right at the neck. It doesn't look like much, but that's the point. It's not just any wire; it's steel, sharpened until it's like a blade. Under the sunlight, it has this tiny silver glint, but most times it just blends into the air, waiting.