The third man

The third man
The first by my right
The second a little behind
In the middle I walked 
Like a sheep to be slain

Around and around, I stared and stared
Plea in my eyes, distress in my heart
‘There’s three of us!’, The first declared,
‘Pay all you have, Or this syringe goes in’

Around and around, I checked and checked
For a third man, that had so been announced 
The syringe I didn’t mind, for his pressing arm I never cared
But only for him, the third, my trouble 

Shaken and rattled, I stood like a twig
The streets raced by, the two they left
My pockets empty, I’d given all I had,
For fear of a third man, whom I never saw.
                                            James Kaluna 

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