To the Wedding

26

The signalman wriggles out of the sleeping bag whilst the boys are still asleep. John the Baptist lies naked on a mattress in the corner, his sex like a fledgling on a black nest. Outside in the early light it’s impossible to see the other side of the Po. Jean pushes his bike off its stand, opens the choke and presses the start button. He follows the track where last night he took the boys up and down for rides, until he gets to the ferry, then he takes the road for Ferrara.