Securing the Line

A sudden midday gust rattled the wire trellis on the balcony railing, threatening to snap a brittle dried vine I use as an emergency ascent route. I slipped through the lower door vent and traversed the rough brick ledge to the planter box. The galvanized iron tie wire was loose, its twisted tail fluttering in the draft. Bracing my combat boots against the weathered terracotta rim, I wedged a discarded brass key into the loop to gain leverage. With two steady, calculated turns, the slack vanished. The trellis locked tight against the iron bars, anchoring the perimeter line. Playmates Angelina Lara, custom