Broken Protectors

Late in the evening,

Arturo was drunk over the counter of a dim, local bar, the kind of place where no one asked questions and the liquor burned like punishment.

Empty bottles stood around him.

His hands trembled violently as he poured another drink, missing the glass twice.

“Stupid, fuck…” he muttered, wiping his face with the back of his sleeve, smearing tears and rainwater together.

His vision