Content Warning: violence, death, blood
Jane Spray – The Revenge of Herodias
After a painting by Juan de Flandes
I trumpet-blared the truth – it is my habit
to be outspoken, my prophetic due.
You must not marry. But they didn’t buy it
even when I told them straight, the one who
comes after me will weigh you on the scales.
She set her strumpet daughter on the matter,
demanding, after her enticing veils,
the head of John the Baptist on a platter.
Now Herod’s always looking over his shoulder
for higher comeback, divine firepower will -
but all we hear from her is spiteful laughter.
She prods my tongue to make sure it is still.
This fine dish is best served cold, she claims.
Blood cools, congeals in pools, from out my veins.
Note: Herodias was King Herod’s second wife, and John the Baptist believed their marriage was unlawful.
The painting may be viewed here
Jane Spray’s poems, several prize-winning, have appeared in Mslexia, Fourteen Magazine, Madrigal, Wildfire Words, Blithe Spirit, Allegro, The Haibun Journal and New Chan Forum as well as in many anthologies and other publications. She belongs to four writing groups in the Forest of Dean, including Poets in Progress, and sometimes also writes in her wood in Gwent.
Photograph: Perch by Sylvia Santiago
Sylvia Santiago creates with words, images, and combinations of the two. Her work appears in Cutbow Quarterly, Ellipsis Zine, Harpy Hybrid Review, and elsewhere. Find her on Twitter: @sylviasays2