michigan

I had never been to Michigan before
It’s cold there
which is maybe why you chose
to work in the middle
Of nowhere?
 
Or you just liked the sound of a great lake
too far for someone to swim across
even if they knew the task
 
Michigan gets more snow than, say, 
Connecticut
Of course
and the avalanches that fall from your roof
can suffocate anyone
trying to help you clear it
 
But the quantity of snow
wasn’t important
 
You could kill someone
with a snowball
if you threw it hard enough
It didn’t matter what
state
you were in
 
But maybe it was easier to obscure
your crime in Michigan though
And blood-caked footsteps
would melt
before anyone could blame you
 
I’d need a heavier coat
if I were to come visit you
Of course
and gloves
lots of layers
 
We had that in common
The layers
 
And your story
got more complicated
with each new question I asked
 
Until we disagreed on the time zone
you lived in
and whether you intended to bury me
in that person-shaped hole
you had freshly dug
5 years earlier