Stook griiind, stook griiind:
the pulse extends
waves to thrust air
down her throat
into wizened lungs.
Her brain sucks
oxygen for its miserly self
storing it
for her last memory of
Shang-A-Lang.
It robs muscle
so she is still,
it thieves liver
so she pees brown,
it purloins kidneys
so toxins thrive.
Her mobile shrills:
Agadoo doo doo.
The nurse answers,
‘Yes, I’ll tell her.’
‘The Sassenachs send love.’
Her hand on the blue
waffle blanket flexes.
Her mouth moues
breathless unsound;
meaningless and true.