Doubt Came for Me Today

Doubt came for me today

Dark as my mind on the nights I can’t escape my thoughts with

Venom drops dangling fat from teeth bared

Close to my face, close enough spittle collected

On my cheeks as it spoke.

“Do you really think you are worthy?”

Its voice an unholy cross between a cat’s seductive purr

And chittering of insects that feed on corpse flesh

“Do you think you deserve this?”

I looked into mud-black eyes that held warmth for no living thing

Least of all me

Cleared my throat

Wiped salvia from my face, and with a grin that matched Doubt’s own rictus

Replied, “I don’t know, but to tell you the truth,

I’m gonna chase it anyway.”

When the screaming stopped and the wind died down

I opened my eyes

To stare at the pile of ashes and empty bug casings it had left behind.

– Sara Myriad