book covers

the paperback book cover i remember is the one
that scared the shit out of me
it was my maternal grandmother's book
in a stack of paperbacks
a history of the salem witch trials
the cover art: a pair of soldiers
each grasped the arms
of an older woman
as she stood before a judge
in court
the way the scene was drawn
the isolation of the woman
in court
& the isolation of the book
among the other paperbacks
illustrated the great crimes
of humanity
how i wish i remembered the name
of the author
or the artist who brought
that scene alive to me
it's frightening here-now-this