Thin Line at the County Line

[Verse 1 - Female]
Blue lights in my rearview
Mud blood on my boots from the pasture
He hit me first, I hit back faster
Now I'm prayin’ that the law drives past here
Mama said, “baby, do the right thing”
But right feel wrong in the midnight rain
Hands still shakin’ on the steering wheel
If I turn myself in, does that make it real?
[Chorus - Both]
It's a thin line at the county line
One wrong step, you cross that sign
Halo hangin’ on a rusted nail
Good heart beatin’ in a state jail
One side savior, one side sin
Same gun, same grin, same skin
Tell me, Lord, when the smoke blows in
Who's the hero, who's the villain?
[Verse 2 - Male Rap]
I was twelve when my old man swung
I learned quick where the hurt came from
Now I'm grown, got a badge on my chest
Tellin’ every lil’ boy “you deserve better than this”
Pull a truck over, see your face in hers
Fear in your eyes, knuckles on his shirt
I could walk away, write it up, stay clean
Or drag him out the cab, let the dirt judge me
Cuz I been fist for the weak, wolf for the weak too
Good deed, bad rage, they bleed the same hue
If I break his jaw, am I savin’ her life?
Or just my younger self from another night?
[Chorus - Both]
It's a thin line at the county line
One wrong step, you cross that sign
Halo hangin’ on a rusted nail
Good heart beatin’ in a state jail
One side savior, one side sin
Same gun, same grin, same skin
Tell me, Lord, when the smoke blows in
Who's the hero, who's the villain?
[Bridge - Duet]
[Female]
I got his blood on my Sunday dress (oh)
You got his name on your paper desk
We both stand in the same dim room
Judge lookin’ down like he can’t choose
[Male]
You call it self-defense, I call it fate
We both know hurt can masquerade
We ain’t that different, you and me
Just two cracked mirrors in the same jury
[Chorus - Both]
It's a thin line at the county line
One wrong step, you cross that sign
Halo hangin’ on a rusted nail
Good heart beatin’ in a state jail
One side savior, one side sin
Same gun, same grin, same skin
Tell me, Lord, when the doors swing in
Who's the hero, who's the villain?
[Outro - Both]
[soft, almost spoken]
Last light on the prison wall
Same prayer in a motel drawl
We all fall, we all crawl in
One breath from hero
One breath from villain

rap, Dark, cinematic country-rap duet over roomy drums and twangy guitars; male and female vocals trade verses like a tense conversation, with half-sung, half-rapped cadences. Sparse piano and steel guitar drift in the background, bass warm and heavy. Choruses bloom with stacked harmonies and long reverb tails, then fall back into tight, close-mic verses; final hook drops instruments to almost nothing so the last line lands like a confession., slow, country