the red dress

they steal her car,
the white BMW that she left
running in front of
a 7-11 as she ran in to get coffee
and a Danish before work.
they use her car
to rob a bank and be chased
throughout the day,
being shot at and cornered
outside of town where
the woods meet the river.
she hears it all on the radio,
calling her sister
to tell her that her car
is in a high speed chase
with bank robbers at the wheel.
I have my favorite dress
in the back seat, she says.
the red one that I love.
I just picked it up from
the dry cleaners.
the robbers are never found,
but her car is. the engine
still running, not worse
for wear, no bullet holes,
no signs of who was there.
only the dress is gone, these
two men, these bank robbers
have decided that perhaps one
of their wives or girfriends
might look nice in a red
dress like the one
they found.