A DARK COMEDY IN TWO ACTS THIS BLOOD'S FOR YOU by DAVE CHRISTNER A PUBLICATION OF PLAYWRIGHT'S PLACE *** NOTICE *** The amateur, stock and professional rights to this work are controlled exclusively by the playwright through his agent, THE ROBERT A. FREEDMAN DRAMATIC AGENCY, without whose permission in writing no performance of it may be given. Royalty fees are negotiated individually by the playwright's agent. Royalty must be paid every time a play is performed whether or not it is presented for profit and whether or not admission is charged. For definition purposes, a play is performed anytime it is read or acted before an audience. All inquiries concerning performance rights should be addressed to THE ROBERT A. FREEMAN DRAMATIC AGENCY, 1501 Broadway, Suite 2310, New York, NY 10036. Phone (212) 840-5760 or to the playwright at (401) 849-3611. COPYRIGHT LAW GIVES THE AUTHOR OR HIS AGENT THE EXCLUSIVE RIGHT TO MAKE COPIES. 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CHRISTNER 1997 Printed in the United States of American All Rights Reserved (THIS BLOOD'S FOR YOU) THIS BLOOD'S FOR YOU by Dave Christner CAST OF CHARACTERS (4 women, 5 men with doubling) CHARLIE JAMES 43, a convicted killer PATRICK OLSEN 48, Warden of State Correctional Facility PATRICK, JR. 14, the warden's son FATHER JOHN 60, an Episcopalian priest VERLENE WASHINGTON 16, a troubled young black woman HANNA ECHOLS 55, Governor of the state where play takes place PETER RUDMAN 40, the Attorney General of the state SHERRY JAMES 58, Charlie's mother BEATRICE MOBLEY 57, the state Medical Examiner MACK DIAMOND 60, a trucker, doubled with Peter Rudman FATHER JAMES 60, doubled with Father John SURGEON 50, doubled with Beatrice Mobley The Setting Various location in a state correctional facility. Specific prison settings include a visitation area, the Warden's office and an observation room. Set should be functional and basically sparse; a modular set would be ideal. Lighting should be used to direct attention to portion of set in use. Degree of realism is dependent upon physical and fiscal resources of producing theatres, but the more barren, the better. The Time The present. The gift of life is, itself, life's most precious gift. THIS BLOOD'S FOR YOU by (c) Dave Christner 1997 ACT I, SCENE I: THURSDAY SCENE: LIGHTS COME UP on CHARLIE JAMES, 43, a convicted killer awaiting his execution on death row of a state correctional facility. He is a bright, gaunt, man with an keen mind, a quick wit and distant, disarming smile. He is certainly cynical, but not in the least bit mean .Sitting across a plain oak table from him in a special "room" set up for visiting is, 14-year-old, PATRICK OLSEN, JR., son of the prison's warden. He is well-mannered, a model student and the joy of his father's life. He is articulate; has an inquisitive mind and an innocent charm. Life is precious to him because a peewee football injury left him with a damaged kidney, and were it not for undergoing hemodialysis treatment three times a week, he would probably not live a week. The "room" is divided by the table and a Plexiglas partition. On the table a small tape recorder is running, and Patrick is taking notes in a notebook. CHARLIE So, kid, you don't have a cigarette do you? PATRICK I'm just a kid! CHARLIE How old? PATRICK Fifteen--almost. CHARLIE So you ought to have some smokes. I stated when I was 12; hell I was chain somkin' when I was your age! PATRICK I don't think that's anything to brag about. CHARLIE Well ... what'd I care what you think? PATRICK (shrugs, then) I dunno. (A beat.) Can't smoke in here anyway. CHARLIE Will you listen to this? (A beat.) Why the hell not? PATRICK Against the law. CHARLIE Smokin' is friggin' illegal now? PATRICK In state owned and state run facilities. CHARLIE Well I'll be goddamn! (Charlie flinches.) Sorry kid. (A beat.) But you shouldn't be in here anyway. This is no place for a kid--warden's son or not. Passed a friggin' law ... fuck me! Shit! Sorry. PATRICK It's okay. I'm not a saint. (A beat.) You shouldn't smoke anyway. CHARLIE Oh, yeah, now why's that? PATRICK It's bad for you health. CHARLIE Is that a fact? PATRICK There's a ton of medical evidence that says so. CHARLIE Hey, kid, I'm a condemned man. I'm a little past the point of worryin' about the long term consequences of smokin' cigarettes. If you can't get me some cigarettes, jist forget it. PATRICK Oh, I can get them, but you can't smoke them, at least not in here. CHARLIE (irritated) Jist forget it! I'm sorry I ever brought it up. PATRICK So, can we go on now? CHARLIE Go ahead. PATRICK So, what do you think you'll miss the most? CHARLIE When I'm dead.? PATRICK Yes sir. CHARLIE Don't call me, "sir." I told you already. You can call me Charlie; you can call me Pal, Number 704816, poor miserable son-of-a-bitch, anything but "sir." PATRICK Okay. Sorry. (A beat.) So what do think you'll miss the most when you're dead, you poor miserable son-of-a-bitch, assuming you can think at all? CHARLIE (smiles) Women! PATRICK Then what? CHARLIE Smokin'. The two go hand in hand if you know ... never mind, you probably don't. PATRICK Know what you mean? CHARLIE Yeah. PATRICK I know. I go to the movies. People smoke after having sex. CHARLIE Yeah, that's right. They do. What do you think about that, assuming you can think at all after seeing people having sex? PATRICK (thinks, then) I think it's dangerous to smoke in bed. CHARLIE Jesus Christ! You're startin' to piss me off, kid. Sometimes you come off sounding' like a goddamn preacher. PATRICK I don't think it's wrong to smoke in bed; I just think it's dangerous. (Charlie gets up and starts pacing.) CHARLIE So, what are you doin' with all this shit--writing a book or what? PATRICK Just a report. CHARLIE Well, it's gonna be one hell of a report; you been over here ... what ... three--four times now? PATRICK This is the fourth. CHARLIE That's what I mean--hell of a report! Fuck! I could write a report in one afternoon and never even consult a library. You don't havta do any research; just make some shit up. PATRICK Will you help me? CHARLIE Hell no! (A beat.) Hell, I am helping. I'm your subject matter. And that's the hardest part of writing any report is knowing what to write. I'm giving you that. (A beat.) So what kinda report is it? PATRICK Term paper, biggest project of the year for English class. CHARLIE And I'm your subject matter? PATRICK More or less. CHARLIE What the hell does that mean? PATRICK It's a generic report about capital punishment; it's not about you in particular. CHARLIE It may be generic to your ass, but it ain't to mine! PATRICK I see your point. CHARLIE So what's in for me? PATRICK I dunno. CHARLIE So if your report ain't about me, what'd gonna do with all this information? You got hours of tape here now. PATRICK It's jist ... background material. I have to get familiar with my subject. (Charlie looks into Patrick's eyes.) CHARLIE I don't want you writin' no friggin' book about me! PATRICK It's a report, not a book! CHARLIE No books! PATRICK I'm a kid; I don't want to write a book. I won't even want to write the friggin' report! CHARLIE Watch your language! PATRICK Look, I go to school. We have assignments; this paper is an assignment. I have to do what they tell me. CHARLIE Like shit! I didn't do what they told me. PATRICK (nods at the room) Well ... CHARLIE Don't get smart! I see your friggin' point. (A beat.) I'll help you ... under one condition. PATRICK (waits, then) You going to tell me the condition or do I have to guess it? CHARLIE You got spunk, kid. I like that. PATRICK You can call me, "Patrick." CHARLIE Look, kid, I can call you any friggin' thing I want, but the point is: I ain't exactly in a position to be forging any new friendships. So let's jist keep it impersonal. When I say bye-bye, I don't wanna have any adoring throngs out there goin' all to pieces over my dead ass. PATRICK I don't think you have to sweat the adoring throngs. CHARLIE Jesus! There you go again. You got a real knack for comedy, kid. Maybe you can get us a spot on Letterman or the Tonight show. The networks would love it; you could call it-- CHARLIE (continuing) Death Watch: The Surreal Thing. That way--all my friends would watch. And the whole country could see the closing chapter in the saga of Charlie James, cop killer. PATRICK (changing the subject) My dad says you should never pass up an opportunity to make a friend. CHARLIE Oh, that's what he says, huh? PATRICK Yeah. CHARLIE Well, lemme tell you something, kid. PATRICK Patrick! CHARLIE All right! What the hell--Patrick! Lemme tell you something, Patrick: Maybe your old man doesn't know as much as he thinks he knows, 'cause take my word for it, there's a few people out there that you hadn't ought to make friends with. PATRICK Is that how you got in trouble? CHARLIE Boys don't get, "in trouble,"--Patrick. That's for the girls. Boys just get fucked! PATRICK I thought that's how girls got in trouble. CHARLIE Son-of-a-bitch, if you ain't the cleverest little bastard I ever saw. You're right, of course. The girls git fucked; the boys git fucked. When it's all over we're all fucked--you, your friends, your enemies, your goddamn in-laws and out, every fuckin' body gits it in the end. So what'd you think about that? PATRICK If it's true I think it sucks. CHARLIE It's true all right. PATRICK You know you have a very cynical view of the world? CHARLIE I know it don't work right. (A beat.) So you must think your old man is pretty great? PATRICK He's got some problems, but I know he has my best interest at heart. CHARLIE And I'll bet you never disappoint him? PATRICK Sure I do--lots. His expectations of me are pretty high, maybe even unrealistic; that's one of his problems. CHARLIE You ever been in trouble? PATRICK Boys don't get in trouble. CHARLIE Did you ever fuck up then? PATRICK Yeah, I got a B in physics last semester. CHARLIE Jesus Christ! You'll probably do hard time for that. (A beat.) I mean trouble! Did you ever knock up some girl up or steal a car, say? PATRICK I wouldn't do that. CHARLIE Which? PATRICK Neither! CHARLIE Well if you did, what would your old man do? PATRICK I dunno. I can't even imagine because I wouldn't steal a car; I just wouldn't. And as for sex, I'm not very experienced. (A beat.) You stole a car and knocked up a girl when you were 14? CHARLIE Fifteen, almost. PATRICK What did your dad do? CHARLIE Mine? He didn't do a friggin' thing 'cause I hadn't seen him for ten years. But if he'd been there, he'd probably of beat the shit out of me, hoped like hell that the girl was half as hot as the goddamn car and kept both of 'em. PATRICK I'm sorry. CHARLIE That you asked? PATRICK No, that ... that's the way things were. CHARLIE It don't matter. I knew kids that were worse off. PATRICK So what happened? CHARLIE You wanna know what happened? I'm gonna tell you what happened-- PATRICK That's why I asked. CHARLIE The inevitable happened. (A beat.) I got caught; you always git caught. Remember that. They returned the car; girl got an abortion, and I went to form school. PATRICK Reform school. CHARLIE Who's tellin' this friggin' story--you or me? PATRICK You, but I thought you made a mistake. CHARLIE I did. Lots of 'em. That's the story I'm tryin' to tell you. PATRICK I'm sorry. CHARLIE I wasn't. That's why I went to form school. They didn't know what the hell else to do with me. PATRICK They should have put you in a foster home. CHARLIE Kid, where the hell do you think the car and the girl came from? PATRICK Oh! (A beat.) Where was you real mom? CHARLIE With one of about a dozen surreal dads--if you know what I mean? PATRICK Yeah, I think so; you don't have to explain it to me. (A few beats.) So you ended up in the joint. CHARLIE No! This is the joint. I was only 14. PATRICK Fifteen. CHARLIE (nods) Almost. I wasn't a fully formed criminal yet; that's what I learned in form school. When I got out I'd been formed into a hardened criminal; only then was I properly prepared for a life of crime. PATRICK I see. It was kind of like a finishing school CHARLIE Yeah, that's right. And now, I'm finished. (Laughs ruefully.) Graduated with a friggin' Ph.D. in criminology. When I got out I'd perfected the art of forgery, could hot-wire any vehicle on the road, by-pass the security system on a Caddy, and I knew where to get a new identity with birth certificate, social security card, driver's license and resume. I'd learned all there is to know about--I wanna put this delicately-- same sex relationships. And I could make one hell of a license plate. I was what you could call a real renaissance man. A sure nominee for an ignoble prize. PATRICK (moved) So you never had any formal education after you were 14? CHARLIE What do you mean by "formal?" PATRICK With a real teacher and classes. CHARLIE Sure, I did. First thing I did in the joint was get my GED--with friggin' honors, no less. Then I got two years of college credits, but had to quit the program 'cause I got released. PATRICK You're obviously a smart guy. Why didn't you finish on the outside. CHARLIE Kid--Patrick, you jist don't git it, do you? (Patrick shrugs.) In the first place: ex-cons aren't real high up there on the recruitment list for universities, and, second: college ain't cheap. And I wasn't exactly what you'd call scholarship material. So the only way I saw to finance my education was to knock off a few convenience stores. (A beat.) Which led directly to my second incarceration. PATRICK At least you could finish your degree. (Charlie just shakes his head.) CHARLIE Patrick, Patrick, Patrick-- you jist don't have any kind of an appreciation for how the criminal justice system works. Here's the way bureaucrats think: To punish me for knocking off the convenience store to get tuition money for college, they don't let me participate in the educational program in the joint. PATRICK That hardly seems fair. CHARLIE And they went to school to learn reasoning like that. Almost made me give up on the idea of education altogether. But I didn't. So, I figured the best thing I could do was to educate myself. So I get on the library staff in the joint and read everything I can get my hands on. (A beat.) And I learned a lot. PATRICK About what? CHARLIE Money! Cause that's what makes the world go 'round; I'm not the first one to say that. I studied economics, banking, finance, the stock market, mutual funds, security, public utilities, common stock, and I start playing the market in my cell--not with any money, but with money I got on paper. And it took me a few years, but I did all right. With an initial "investment" of 10k I made $137,000 over ten year period. PATRICK If you had $137,000, why did you stick up that bank? CHARLIE It wasn't real money, son, it was hypothetical dollars. It's what I would have made if I'd had the money to play the market for those ten years, which I didn't. So when I got out, I needed 10k real bad. I went to five banks; I had all the figures, meticulous records; I know more about money than most bankers. But would they give me a loan--with nothing but my no good name for collateral? No way! PATRICK So you robbed a bank? CHARLIE Where the hell else am I gonna get 10 grand? PATRICK But the inevitable happened--you got caught and you ended up killing a cop. (Charlie shrugs.) Jeeze, you should write the book! CHARLIE No friggin' books. I don't want anybody to exploit my misfortune. PATRICK (impulsively) Your misfortune? What about ... CHARLIE The cop? (Patrick nods.) His worries are over. PATRICK He had a wife and kids! CHARLIE Look, I never meant to kill no cop; that was an accident. Cheap friggin' Saturday Night Special had a hair trigger. Never use a cheap weapon to pull a job. Remember that! PATRICK Okay. CHARLIE So I run into Officer Sanchez in the parking lot; his weapon is trained on me; I knew it was over for me; his backup was on the way, but the friggin' gun went off in my hand. When I saw him, I tensed up, squeezed the trigger ever so slightly and the gun went off. End of story. I'm no Eagle Scout, but I never killed nobody until then. It was an accident PATRICK That's the story you should tell. My dad doesn't think you're a murderer; I know you're not. Maybe you could get a pardon or something. CHARLIE Patrick, accident or not, I killed a cop. The state wants retribution; the widow wants retribution; the family wants it; the right wing of God wants it. You kill a cop in this state, you go to the chair. That's the way it is. I got nine days. And that ain't time to write a book. PATRICK Then I'll write it for you! CHARLIE I told you: no book! I don't want any publicity. PATRICK I can't write it now! I'll write it later, when I know more. CHARLIE What difference will a book make then? PATRICK I dunno. To you, none. But--I think the whole idea of killing someone because they killed someone somehow doesn't make much sense to me. But I'm just a kid. I need time to think about it. CHARLIE Okay, here's the deal. You can tell my story under one condition. PATRICK Back to that. CHARLIE And I ain't doing this cause I'm any friggin' "goody two shoes." (A few beats.) If you make any money on the book-- PATRICK If I do write it. CHARLIE Why wouldn't you write it? PATRICK Life is an iffy proposition. CHARLIE Tell me about it. Anyway, if you do write it and if you do make any money on it, I want you to give the money to Sanchez's widow. Would you do that? PATRICK Okay. CHARLIE Give me your word. PATRICK Okay, you have my word. If I write the book, and if I make any money on it, I'll give it to Officer Sanchez's widow. CHARLIE And if you keep one nickel of it, I'll come back from the dead and haunt your little ass. PATRICK I gave you my word! CHARLIE Okay. Relax. PATRICK (tentatively) Charlie? CHARLIE (roughly) What? PATRICK I don't think you're a bad person. I just think ... CHARLIE ... that I had an unfortunate childhood. (A beat.) Spare me the bleeding heart bullshit, Patrick. Take my word or it: I'm a bad person. I'd screw your old lady without giving it a second thought, make off with your friggin' piggy bank, and kick your goddman dog if it got in my way. PATRICK Okay, you're a bad person! (A beat.) But you're not a killer. CHARLIE Tell that to the jury that convicted me. Tell it to Sanchez's widow. PATRICK Who's side are you on? CHARLIE You're the impartial observer. Who's side are you on? PATRICK I dunno. I think ... I just want to see justice served. CHARLIE What do you know about justice, kid? PATRICK Not much. That's why I'm doing the report. CHARLIE I thought you had to write this report. PATRICK I have to write a report about something. CHARLIE And you just had this morbid curiosity about inmates on death row? PATRICK No, it was my dad's idea. CHARLIE So it's your old man that has the morbid curiosity? PATRICK I don't know about that. He just suggested the subject matter and pulled a few strings so I could get in to see you. CHARLIE Pulled a few strings for his kid, huh? (A beat.) Maybe you can get him to pull a few more and get me off. PATRICK I don't think that's possible. CHARLIE Let me tell you something, Patrick: If you know the right people, anything is possible. PATRICK Dad says that too, but not the part about knowing the right people. He says if you believe in something and work hard enough for it, anything is possible. CHARLIE He's absolutely right! If you believe in it, work for it, and know the right people. PATRICK Do you believe in anything? (Charlie give him a look.) It's for the report. CHARLIE Yeah, I believe in something. I believe in the manifesto of the underclass. It goes something like this: * I believe the American Dream is a goddamn lie, * I believe in grabbing whatever you can get your hands on and * making it yours, * I believe in watching your back--and both sides at all times, * I believe in sleeping with one eye open, * I believe the goddamn tooth fairy trades ivory for copper, * I believe in the hardness of the human heart, * I believe in letting lying dogs sleep, * I believe God doesn't give a damn about His children, * I believe organized religion is the biggest racket to come down * the pike, * I believe life is unfair, * I believe in not picking up the soap if you drop it in the * shower, * I believe in taking care of number 1, and * I believe in praying for anybody but yourself. Put that in your goddamn report! PATRICK Maybe that will be my report. CHARLIE Good. Now git outta here. You're startin' to aggravate me, and you don't want to see me when I get aggravated. Guard! Kid's ready to go. (Patrick rises, pack his notes and tape recorder in a backpack and rises to leave as the LIGHTS COME DOWN SLOWLY.) ACT I, SCENE II: FRIDAY SCENE: LIGHTS COME UP the next morning on Charlie sitting in the same room set up for visiting as used in the previous scene. WARDEN OLSEN, 48, enters from a door somewhere upstage. He is a well-tempered, fit and has graying hair and some premature wrinkling on his face. He is a tough, principled moral man, and a fair prison administrator, who has, until now, played by the book. His position on capital punishment has been one of visible support in that he has been the overseer at more than one execution during his tenure as warden. WARDEN Good morning, Charlie. CHARLIE Precious Morning, Warden. When you only have eight left, they're precious. WARDEN Amen to that. CHARLIE Praise the lord! (A beat.) Didn't think you were a religious man, Warden. WARDEN Didn't think you were either. CHARLIE Am now! WARDEN I guess it helps to believe in something? CHARLIE Damn straight. What do you believe in, Warden? WARDEN (thinks, then consults a note) * I believe the American Dream is a goddamn lie, * I believe in grabbing whatever you can get your hands on and * making it yours, * I believe in watching your back--and both sides at all times, * I believe in sleeping with one eye open, * I believe the goddamn tooth fairy trades ivory for copper, * I believe in the hardness of the human heart, * I believe in letting lying dogs sleep, * I believe God doesn't give a damn about His children, * I believe organized religion is the biggest racket to come down * the pike, * I believe life is unfair, * I believe in not picking up the soap if you drop it in the * shower, * I believe in taking care of number 1, and * I believe in praying for anybody but yourself CHARLIE That's plagiarism. WARDEN If I tell ever tell anyone else I'll give you attribution. CHARLIE I'm actually more concerned with retribution than attribution, Warden. (A beat.) So, what are you doin'--proof reading the kid's report or tryin' to git further inside the criminal mind so you can become a more effective public servant? WARDEN A little of both. CHARLIE And how's it comin'? WARDEN Which? CHARLIE Both. WARDEN The paper's coming along. They're are some grammatical errors--Pat still confuses lie and lay ... CHARLIE Memory aid: you usually have to lie to git laid. WARDEN ... but his perspective is very refreshing. CHARLIE Innocent? Naive? WARDEN Yeah. The world through a child's eyes ... CHARLIE Kid probably has no real appreciation for the kind of human being it takes to kill another human being. WARDEN That's an argument some people would make. CHARLIE You? WARDEN I think it's more complicated than that. CHARLIE What's so complicated--an eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth. Live by the sword, die by the chair--I'm paraphrasing. Thou shalt not kill! Except in cases sanctioned by the state. WARDEN It's not my place to question the laws of the state. I just-- CHARLIE Execute them! (The wardens nods.) I thought so. Even when it means executing people--maybe people who are far from innocent, but not heartless killers. WARDEN If I didn't do it ... CHARLIE ... somebody else would. Besides, you're just ... what? Following orders? Is that what you're gonna tell Saint Peter at the doorway to paradise? (German accent.) I was only following orders. WARDEN I don't want to debate you, Charlie. You screwed up; you killed a cop. The state won't let that go. CHARLIE Blah, blah, black sheep have you any pull. No sir, no sir, gag's on full. None for the Governor, none for the game, none for the jury who dealt out the pain. (A few beats.) Warden, pardon me for asking, but what the hell are you doin' here? WARDEN (frankly) I need a favor. CHARLIE You need a favor? From me? (Warden nods.) You're gonna have to explain that to me, Warden. Because from where I'm sittin', I'm the one that needs the favor--real bad and real soon. Are you with me on this? WARDEN Yeah, I'm with you. (A beat.) One of the things my staff does in ... cases like yours ... CHARLIE I know what you mean. WARDEN ... is verify and review the subject's records--personal, medical, family, anything that might be of significance. CHARLIE So now you know all my secrets. WARDEN I doubt that, but one thing was brought to my attention that I found to be of interest. CHARLIE My baseball cards? WARDEN Your driver's license. CHARLIE I never got one! WARDEN It's with your things. CHARLIE I mean I never took the test. It's a forgery. (A beat,) Shit! Okay, you got me! I was driving without a valid license. You're already gonna kill me; what the hell else can you do? WARDEN (thinks, then) Were you aware that you had yourself listed as an organ donor on the back of your license? CHARLIE A what? WARDEN You had listed yourself as an organ donor in the space provided on the back of your license. (The warden hands him the license.) CHARLIE (looking) It's fuckin' forged; whoever made the damn things figured the cops might be more lenient on a bleeding heart organ donor. I don't give a shit. Only organ I'd donate is my pecker! And that to a porn star. WARDEN (incredulously) You never took the driver's test? CHARLIE Hell no! By the time I reached the age I needed one I'd already driven the getaway car for three road jobs. What the hell did I need to take a test for? WARDEN (woodenly, to himself) You were a good match. (The warden gets up to go.) CHARLIE What? WARDEN Doesn't matter. CHARLIE Maybe it matters! Good match for what? WARDEN Patrick. CHARLIE Patrick needs a pecker? WARDEN (explodes) He needs a kidney you son-of-a-bitch! It's not a joking matter. CHARLIE (coming back at him) Then you give 'em one! WARDEN I already did! (This sinks home, and there is a moment of quiet.) CHARLIE (looking for facts, without feeling) So what's wrong with the kid? WARDEN Do you care? CHARLIE Why should I? WARDEN Then why should I tell you? CHARLIE I didn't say I didn't care. I simply asked why I should. WARDEN That's a question you have to answer for yourself. All I can tell you is that the kidney I gave my son is failing. And a new kidney would make his life a lot simpler and probably a whole lot longer. CHARLIE So you figure, what the hell. Good old Charlie ain't gonna be needing his kidneys anymore. Why he'd probably be more than happy to donate a kidney to a worthy cause, that cause bein' your son. (A beat.) Is that what his report is all about? You just sent him in here to make friends with me so I'd give him a kidney. WARDEN Patrick doesn't know how bad off he is. I haven't told him yet. CHARLIE But you did send him in her for a kidney? That's what this report was all about! WARDEN Yes. CHARLIE Son-of-a-bitch! The things ... you civilized people do to git what you want never ceases to amaze me. WARDEN Everything I did was predicated on my belief that you wanted to donate your organs. That's what the license said. CHARLIE So you took the liberty of having someone at the lab analyze and compare my medical records with the kid's to see if I would be a good match? WARDEN When your son is dying you do some extraordinary things. CHARLIE Now I wouldn't know anything about that, would I? (A beat.) What extraordinary things do you think my old man is up to? Hell, I doubt if he even knows I'm dying, but if he did you can bet your sweet ass he'd let you have one of my kidneys ... for a price. My old man. WARDEN I have to go. CHARLIE (bitterly) Yeah, I do too. All kinds of shit to do back in my cell--fan mail to answer, massage, supposed to get Knighted by the fuckin' Queen, blessed by the Pope, whack off--do that on my own. All kinds of important shit to my mind off ... the business at hand. (The warden starts to leave.) CHARLIE Warden, is it jist me, or is somethin' wrong with this picture? The chief administrator of a the so-called State Correctional Facility is asking a condemned man to donate body parts to his son. (A beat.) What now? You going to the next cell to look for a donor? Gonna see if you can speed up the process so you can make a deadline for the recipient? What the fuck is going on? WARDEN Look ... this was entirely inappropriate. I'm ... sorry. CHARLIE Just git the hell out! I mean I got some reservations about the idea of dying itself; I don't need this shit on top of that. Git outta here! (The warden turns and storms out. The LIGHTS COME DOWN.) ACT I, SCENE III: SATURDAY SCENE: The following afternoon. LIGHTS COME UP on FATHER JOHN, 60, an Episcopalian priest and the prison chaplain. If he was fit for any other position in the church, he'd be something other than what he is, but an affinity for alcohol and parish wives has relegated him to the lowest rung of the ecclesiastical ladder. Still, he is a thinking, sensitive man with a no nonsense approach to religion. Father John is wearing a cleric collar, and is seated at the visiting table. A cell door CLANGS OPEN, and Charlie enters. CHARLIE Afternoon, Father! Whose neck brings you to this part of the woods? FATHER JOHN Yours. CHARLIE Just what I suspected. But I'm afraid you're a little late to save this one. FATHER JOHN I know I can't save your neck, so I thought I'd take a shot at your soul. CHARLIE Fire away; everybody else is. FATHER JOHN Yeah, but I aim to save it. CHARLIE So you want to save my soul, Brother. FATHER JOHN Father! (A beat.) I'd like to try. CHARLIE Why don't you start with saving my ass, and work up to a more lofty plain from there? FATHER JOHN (thinks, then) I've never saved anyone's ass before. CHARLIE You ever saved a soul? FATHER JOHN I like to think I have. CHARLIE But you don't know that you have--for sure? FATHER JOHN No, because you can't see a soul. CHARLIE That's why saving my ass would be so much more satisfying than saving my soul. You'd have something tangible to work with. FATHER JOHN Something I could get my hands on! CHARLIE In a pig's eye! Something some sweet thing in a roadhouse could git her hands on. If you know what I mean? FATHER JOHN I know all right. CHARLIE How 'bout it then? FATHER JOHN (regretfully) Charlie, I'm afraid it's too late to save ... anything other than your soul. (Charlie just snorts and nods.) FATHER JOHN Will you pray with me, Charlie? CHARLIE I don't see any point in it. FATHER JOHN Can't hurt anything. CHARLIE My knees. FATHER JOHN Pray with me, Charlie. CHARLIE Father, are you familiar with the phrase, "My ass is grass?" FATHER JOHN Are you familiar with the phrase, "It's never too late?" CHARLIE If you mean, "It's never too fuckin' late." Yeah, I'm familiar with it, but I don't put much stock in it. FATHER JOHN The point I'm trying to make is this: Your life doesn't necessarily have to cease with the physical death of your body. There is a way for you to achieve a kind of immortality that will give you life beyond your physical being. CHARLIE (thinks, then) Now you're not referring to the warden's little scheme are you? FATHER JOHN There was no scheme; the warden honestly thought you had voluntarily signed on as an organ donor. CHARLIE (incredulously) Father, how in God's name can you come in here and asked a condemned man to donate his organs so somebody else might live? FATHER JOHN I'm not doing this in God's name. I'm asking in the name of a child, Patrick. CHARLIE Who just happens to be the son of the warden of the facility where I'm goin' bye-bye. Doesn't that strike you as being a little--out of the ordinary? FATHER JOHN Whose child he is doesn't matter. CHARLIE Maybe not to you! (A few beat as Charlie paces nervously.) You're supposed to be concerned with my life, Father, not his. I could use a little somethin' to hang on to here. Or do you consider me a lost cause? And your job is just to git the protocol right; never mind the fuckin' morals. (A beat.) Jesus, this is the first time in my life that I'd rather see a lawyer than a priest. At least with the lawyer I'd know enough to bring the Vaseline. I don't know what the hell to do when a priest wants to cut my heart out with a Crucifix and serve it up on a platter for a greater good. FATHER JOHN Charlie, there just isn't anything I can do other than to assure you that you will be forgiven and received into the bosom of Abraham if you acknowledge and accept responsibility for your sins and seek God's mercy. CHARLIE Bosom of Abraham? Is that the best you can do, Father? FATHER JOHN This is no joking matter, Charlie. CHARLIE All right, I accept responsibility and acknowledge my role in the accident that killed Officer Sanchez, and for the sin of robbing that bank. And I believe in my heart that if there is a God, He will grant me mercy for both acts. It's the State of Florida not God, that refuses to show any mercy in this case. (A beat.) Let me tell you something, Father: If Sanchez's widow wants to put a bullet in my head, I'll load the gun for her. I grant her the right to take my life because I took the life of her husband. But if she can't or won't do it, then for an "impartial" jury to decide through the application of sound logic and legal reasoning that I should die, is the moral equivalent of premeditated murder in the first degree. The criteria is already in place for such a killing--you got motive and opportunity. The only thing missing is a blessing. That's where you come in. (A few beats.) Are you with me on this? FATHER JOHN Yes, I'm with you, but ... CHARLIE There's nothing you can do. FATHER JOHN Not now. CHARLIE Bummer. FATHER JOHN Are you ... afraid? CHARLIE I'm not crazy about the idea, but to tell you the truth, and I don't have any reason not to, there's not a whole lot I'm gonna miss. Never had a family or a girl, for more than one night. Only saw the streets-- shadows moving at night beneath street lights, dark places, blind alley's. What's to miss? (Father John shrugs and shakes his head.) CHARLIE I'm not afraid of death, but I'm am scared of dyin'. The process itself. Literally gittin' cooked in the chair; that's what happens you know. They let me read up on it so I'd know what to expect. Body temperature rises to something 138 degree F; your surface skin does literally turn brown from cooking; your bowels let go, and your eye balls pop out. That's why they have you wear the hood. That and so they can't see your face, so they have to remember your face. Medina's mask caught on fire, burst into flames while he was still kicking. Poor son-of-a-bitch. If I had my way, I'd just lie down and go to sleep and not wake up. But none of that chemical shit: I saw Dead Man Walking, and that sucked big time! I'd like to jist lie down, go to sleep and not wake up. FATHER JOHN There may be a way. CHARLIE Goddammit, there you go again, Father. Now I want you to concentrate on saving my ass not on consecrating my soul. FATHER JOHN I'm responding to your desire not to ... CHARLIE Die an agonizing death. FATHER JOHN Yes, that. (A few beats.) What if you were simply anesthetized, like you were going into surgery? CHARLIE I don't think I'm with you on this, Father. FATHER JOHN Charlie, are you familiar with he phrase: "It is more blessed to give than to receive."? CHARLIE Are you familiar with the phrase, "Kiss my ass."? FATHER JOHN Think about it ... CHARLIE Father-- FATHER JOHN A portion of you would continue to live on in another human being. CHARLIE My kidney lives on while the rest of my sorry ass lies in a cold, shallow grave. It's like I'd be a filter for somebody else's cigarette. Now how the hell can I pass up a deal like that? FATHER JOHN Patrick will die without a transplant. Did the warden tell you that? CHARLIE No, he jist said the kid was on the machine. What'd you call it-- dialysis. FATHER JOHN Yeah, has been for some time. More often now. CHARLIE His old man really gave him a kidney already? FATHER JOHN Couple of years ago. CHARLIE So what's the matter with it? FATHER JOHN They don't know. Complications. Sometime they just stop for no apparent reason. CHARLIE Too bad it wasn't the old man's that stopped working. FATHER JOHN It is the old man's. CHARLIE The one he's got left, not the one in the kid! FATHER JOHN We're all God's children, Charlie. CHARLIE Yeah, well I've seen about as much evidence of my heavenly father as I have my real one. Where are they now that I really need them? FATHER JOHN I think God is showing you a way to continue to live. CHARLIE Through the kid? FATHER JOHN He's a good kid. CHARLIE (bitterly) So he deserves better? (Father John looks away.) And the kids that aren't so good, the ones who are a little screwed up or lost somewhere out there in the system, don't deserve anything better. FATHER JOHN Of course they deserve better, but I don't know any of them that need a kidney. CHARLIE Or any who are in a position to extract one from the corpse of a new friend! Are you with me on this, Father? FATHER JOHN (thinking out loud) Charlie, yes I'm with you, and ... listen to this: What if I could find another kid that needed a transplant-- CHARLIE Will you listen to this? Hell yes, I got two kidneys! Why not? I'm sure as hell not gonna need them where I'm going. FATHER JOHN No, Charlie. Seriously. If I could find a kid--in need of some help and a kidney, would you do it? CHARLIE No. No! Father, I don't want to be carved up like a goddamn Christmas turkey with gifts for all. Now git the hell out. FATHER JOHN (leaving) Think about it. CHARLIE Hell, I ain't got time to think about it. I got funeral arrangements to make--flowers, music, gotta write my eulogy since nobody else is aware of my many humanitarian achievements, gotta contact a caterer for the post-execution feast and shop for a new suit--something in black. Hell, I ain't got time to think of anything but myself, and I don't have a lot of time to do that. FATHER JOHN I'll pray for you. CHARLIE Don't pray for me. Pray for rain. Short that mother-fuckin' chair right out! (Father John exits.) CHARLIE And say one for the kid! (LIGHTS COME DOWN slowly.) ACT I, SCENE IV: SUNDAY SCENE: LIGHTS COME UP on Charlie pacing in the visiting room. A door opens upstage, and Patrick enters. He's dresssed up for church. CHARLIE So, kid, what the hell kept you? PATRICK Church. CHARLIE It's not like a I got a whole lotta time to waste, if you know what I mean. PATRICK Yeah, I know. CHARLIE You don't either from what I hear. PATRICK What do you mean? CHARLIE You know what I mean? PATRICK (shrugs, then) It's not that bad. I just had to finish something. CHARLIE So, what'd you want, kid. PATRICK Patrick! CHARLIE Kid to me--as in kidney. (Laughs to himself.) Now what'd you wanna see me for? PATRICK To apologize. CHARLIE You didn't do anything. PATRICK For my father. CHARLIE Forget it. Wasn't your fault. PATRICK But it was my father. And what he did was wrong. CHARLIE Honest mistake. PATRICK Not the part about thinking you were an organ donor. The part about setting you up to feel something for me. CHARLIE I don't feel anything for you, kid. PATRICK Good. That will make it easier then. CHARLIE Make what easier? PATRICK For me not to feel anything for you. CHARLIE Good, 'cause that's jist the way I want it. No feelins 'cause they're gonna be jist as dead as everything else. PATRICK That's not so. Only half of them will die. CHARLIE I don't have time for this, kid. PATRICK The feeling you have will die, but the feelings other people have for you will live on. CHARLIE Yeah, that's right, assuming anybody else has any feelings for me, which is exactly what I'm tryin' to prevent. PATRICK Why do you want to prevent that? CHARLIE I told you, kid. There's no point in developing feelings for anybody when I'm about to go bye-bye. Are you with me on this? PATRICK Not on this, Charlie. CHARLIE Okay, so you wanna be Charlie's best friend or what? My friend for life? PATRICK Just a friend. I think you could use one. CHARLIE That's where you're wrong. Don't need anybody, never have. PATRICK But don't you want a friend? Whether you need one or not? CHARLIE What the hell do I want a friend now for? Think I can take you out to the ballpark or some shit? PATRICK I don't like competitive athletics. CHARLIE So what's a matter with sports? All kids like sports. PATRICK Nothing is the matter with them. There are just other things I'd rather do. CHARLIE Like what? PATRICK I like hiking and camping out. I like the mountains and fly-fishing. CHARLIE Great! Why don't you tell your old man I'd like to take you on a three- year trek into the Himalayas. They can fire up the chair when we git back. PATRICK (thinks, then) I just thought you might need somebody to talk to without it being for a report or some other ulterior motive. CHARLIE I got myself to talk to. And of course there's my spiritual advisor, Father John. As you probably expect he's been a joy and comfort in my time of need. He's even shown up sober a couple of times, so I know how seriously he's taking the salvation of my soul. Enough about me, kid. (A beat.) Now what's the matter with you? PATRICK I feel like shit because you won't let me do anything for you. CHARLIE I mean, what's wrong with your liver? PATRICK Nothing. CHARLIE Kidney? PATRICK One's dead. One's gone. And the one I got to replace the one that's gone isn't working right anymore. CHARLIE So what's this mean to you? How serious is it? PATRICK Just an inconvenience. CHARLIE So they gotta hook you up to the machine or what? PATRICK I do it myself. CHARLIE At home? PATRICK In my bedroom. CHARLIE How often? PATRICK As often as I need it. CHARLIE How often is that? PATRICK Pretty often. CHARLIE Jesus, kid, can't you give me a straight answer? PATRICK No. CHARLIE There you go. I knew you could do it. (A beat.) Now, no more bullshit! How often you git hooked up? PATRICK Everyday. CHARLIE For how long? PATRICK Doesn't matter. CHARLIE Then why not tell me? PATRICK Because I don't want your sympathy. CHARLIE I know. You want my kidney. PATRICK No I don't. CHARLIE How long? PATRICK Most of the day. CHARLIE And night? PATRICK All night. CHARLIE Bummer. (A beat.) What do you do for fun? PATRICK Watch re-runs of Star Trek and eat popcorn. CHARLIE What about girls? PATRICK What about them? CHARLIE You like them? PATRICK What's not to like? (A beat.) I like them fine. CHARLIE Got anyone special? PATRICK No. CHARLIE Why not? PATRICK Haven't met one that wants to go out with somebody who can't go out. CHARLIE That's too bad. Kid your age outta have a girl. PATRICK I don't need a girl. CHARLIE But you want one! (Patrick shrugs.) Huh? PATRICK Sure, but ... CHARLIE What's the point of havin' a girl friend if your kidney quits on you, huh? PATRICK Yeah, what would be the point? CHARLIE So you can understand now why I'm not interested in makin' any new friends. PATRICK Yeah, especially if they need a transplant. CHARLIE That's got nothin' to do with it. PATRICK Yeah, right. CHARLIE No, kid, you're all right. Honest. If I wasn't in the joint, I'd let you pull a job with me. PATRICK Thanks a lot. CHARLIE No, I mean it. I know I could depend on you. PATRICK I couldn't pull a job with you, Charlie. CHARLIE Why not? PATRICK I'm not a criminal. CHARLIE Course you're not. You're not a criminal 'til you git caught. PATRICK But you always get caught. You already told me. CHARLIE Yeah, but until then you're just another guy tryin' to make a livin' the only way he knows how. It's a job! PATRICK It's not a job! CHARLIE Sure it is, and it's not that bad of one either. You pick your own hours; you got no assholes lookin' over your shoulder every minute. Take a day off when ever you want. Get to drive any kinda car you want. PATRICK Get hunted by the cops; shot at; thrown in prison. CHARLIE No job is perfect. PATRICK Charlie ... it's wrong! CHARLIE Not where I come from. It's a way of life. (A beat.) What is wrong is killin' somebody. PATRICK But you did it. CHARLIE By accident. It was a job gone bad. If I'd had somebody like you there ... PATRICK For what? CHARLIE For whatever I needed. I can tell things about people. You'd never let ... PATRICK A friend? CHARLIE ... somebody down. PATRICK I'd try not to. CHARLIE That's what I mean. I could of depened on you. You've got a good heart. PATRICK But lousy kidneys. CHARLIE Can't have everything. PATRICK You know what I'm gonna do? CHARLIE I dunno. Go home, put on Star Trek, watch Uhura and whack off? PATRICK After that? CHARLIE Don't have a clue. PATRICK When my kidney fails--for good. I'm gonna donate my heart. CHARLIE What'd you gonna do that for? PATRICK I won't need it. CHARLIE Yeah, but why should you, if nobody's willin' to come up with a kidney for you? PATRICK I dunno. It just seems like the right thing. CHARLIE Look, kid, you ain't gittin' my sympathy, and you ain't gittin my kidney either. PATRICK I told you already. I don't want your damn kidney. Probably all screwed up from drugs and shit anyway. CHARLIE Watch your language! And I never used drugs; I mean I tried some--crack, LSD, heroine, even smoked a little dope, but I didn't exhale. PATRICK I don't care. I want a drug free kidney. CHARLIE There's nothing wrong with my kidneys. I was kiddin' about not exhalin'. I exhaled, and I never got hooked on anything, not even tobacco. I can take it or leave it. (A beat.) What happened to your kidneys anyway? PATRICK One of them never did work, and the I hurt the other playing football. CHARLIE So that's why you don't like sports? PATRICK No. I didn't like sports before I got hurt. CHARLIE Then what the hell you doin' playin' football? (A few beats.) Talk to me kid. PATRICK (reluctantly) My dad wanted me to play. CHARLIE Oh. (A beat.) Wanted you to play or made you play? PATRICK Encouraged me to play. I didn't have to. CHARLIE But you didn't want to disappoint him? PATRICK No. CHARLIE So you play football for the old man. Take a hit in the good kidney and the rest, as they say, is history. PATRICK Not yet. CHARLIE And your old man gives you a kidney because he feels guilty. PATRICK No! Because he loves me, not because he feels guilty. CHARLIE Yeah, well, I wouldn't know anything about that. PATRICK Guilt had nothing to do with it. He would have given me his kidney regardless of the circumstances. It was a gift of love. CHARLIE Yeah, sure, kid. I understand. PATRICK No you don't. I don't think you can. CHARLIE I understand one thing: in a capital offense the state simply assigns guilt; it doesn't feel any. PATRICK I'm not the state. CHARLIE You're old man is. He isn't gonna hesitate to pull the switch whenever the state tell him. (A beat.) What's that all about? PATRICK I don't know. I'm trying to ... figure it out. CHARLIE Do you wanna see me go bye-bye? PATRICK No! CHARLIE Then you keep thinkin' about what you can do about it. You think hard, but not too long, because good old Charlie ain't got much time left. Are you with me on this? PATRICK I'm with you, Charlie. CHARLIE Right, kid, till death do us part. (They stare at each other across the table as the LIGHTS COME DOWN SLOWLY.) ACT I, SCENE V: MONDAY SCENE: The following afternoon. LIGHTS COME UP on Charlie; he's waiting in the visiting room for Father John. The door opens upstage and Father John enters. CHARLIE What's this all about, Father? Gittin' me up in the middle of the day like I got nothin' to do! FATHER JOHN I have someone I want you to meet. CHARLIE If it ain't the Governor, a Supreme Court Justice, Liv Tyler or Jesus Christ I'm not interested. FATHER JOHN It's a kid in trouble. CHARLIE My middle name. (A beat.) What kinda trouble? FATHER JOHN Shop lifting, truancy, B&E. But she's a good kid at heart. CHARLIE She? (Father John nods.) Bring her in. (Father John motions to somebody upstage and the door opens. VERLENE WASHINGTON, 16, storms in and stands against the far wall away from Charlie and Father John. She is an aggressive, troubled black adolescent from a housing project. She is wearing jeans and a baggy T-shirt. VERLENE (entering) Keep your hands off me you son-of-a-bitch! FATHER JOHN (to Charlie) Sound familiar? CHARLIE (snorts) So what! FATHER JOHN This is the man I was telling you about, Verlene. VERLENE You dragged me all the way down here to meet his white ass? (A beat.) What for? FATHER JOHN Charlie James--Verlene Washington. CHARLIE My pleasure, Verlene. VERLENE Like hell it is! (A beat.) Father say they gonna cook your white ass in the lectric chair. That's some sorry shit, even for a white man. CHARLIE I appreciate your concern, Verlene. VERLENE I ain't concerned; I jist mad. That's all. CHARLIE About what? VERLENE Everything! CHARLIE At who? VERLENE Everybody! FATHER JOHN Come over and sit down, Verlene. VERLENE Don't you be tellin' me what to do, Father. I got my rights. FATHER JOHN I have no intention of abusing your constitutional rights, Verlene. VERLENE Ain't gonna abuse nothin' else neither, Father. (A beatl..) I got my guard up. I know the reason you the preacher in this joint is 'cause you got a fondness for the ladies. FATHER JOHN I drink a little too if the truth be known. VERLENE You be a bad one--a wolf sure enough in sheep's clothin'. CHARLIE Would you like to sit down, Verlene, so we can talk. Father John will leave us alone. FATHER JOHN I have to stay, Charlie, but I'll just sit here in the corner and pray. (He drags a chair to the corner and sits down. Verlene approaches the table reluctantly and finally sits down opposite Charlie.) VERLENE What you wanna talk about? CHARLIE I dunno. VERLENE I got nothin' to say to you. Father drag me down here so I git scared about goin' to prison, but I'm not scared. I be safer in here than in the neighborhood I live in. CHARLIE Where you live? VERLENE Projects. (A beat.) You know the projects? CHARLIE Oh, yeah. Some of my best friends come from the projects--all of them in fact. VERLENE Who'd you kill? CHARLIE Police officer named Sanchez. VERLENE Oh, you in some serious shit; no wonder they gonna fry your ass. Bet you wouldn't of killed no white police officer. CHARLIE I was actually lookin' for a black one, but there aren't any in this state. VERLENE Oh, you is so bad! (A beat.) I don't believe that. CHARLIE The fact is: I didn't want to kill anybody. It was an accident. VERLENE Yeah, and I accidentally walked outta J.C. Penney's with four blouses on too. CHARLIE Let me tell you something, Verlene. VERLENE You can't tell me nothin'. CHARLIE You're off to a great start, but, believe me, you don't wanna spend any time in this place. FATHER JOHN What he means is-- VERLENE I thought you was prayin'! I know what he means. Jist cause I skip school don't mean I'm stupid. CHARLIE World doesn't work right, does it? VERLENE It shore don't. It sucks the way it works--rich white people gittin' all the goodies. Nothin' but the droppins left for the rest of us. CHARLIE So you gotta grab your share, right? VERLENE Ain't nobody gonna give it to me. CHARLIE You got that right. (A beat.) Verlene, I think you and me has got lots in common. VERLENE What have I got in common with your white ass? CHARLIE A real bad attitude. VERLENE I am bad. CHARLIE I know you are. (A beat.) So am I. VERLENE (looking at him) You lookin' sad now, brother, not bad. CHARLIE So what's the matter with you? VERLENE Ain't nothin' wrong with me. CHARLIE Father John brought you down here because something's wrong with you. (A beat.) What is it? VERLENE Ain't nothin' wrong. CHARLIE Kidney? You need a kidney? VERLENE Not from you! CHARLIE Jesus! You're me 30 years ago. VERLENE 'Cept for being black and female. CHARLIE I don't mean physically. VERLENE There ain't nothing white about me. CHARLIE How sick are you? VERLENE What'd you care? CHARLIE I don't. I'm jist curious. VERLENE That what killed the cat. CHARLIE Not this one. The chair be killin' this cat. (Verlene looks at him for a long time.) VERLENE I real sick. Can't ford no operations anyway. Don't matter. CHARLIE Verlene, if I gave you a kidney, would you do something for me? VERLENE Why should I? CHARLIE Would you stay in school? VERLENE No! I don't like school, and I don't want no kidney from no white dude. CHARLIE Well, that's up to you. I won't be here to see you, but I'll know. VERLENE Know what? CHARLIE Whether you finish school or not. I'll be watchin' you. VERLENE Stop that now! I don't want you watchin' me. CHARLIE Too late. Father John! FATHER JOHN Yeah, Charlie. CHARLIE I've decided to give Verlene a kidney. FATHER JOHN And the other to Patrick? CHARLIE (nods) Under one condition. VERLENE I don't want no damn honkey kidney! FATHER JOHN No conditions! CHARLIE Then no kidneys. FATHER JOHN What condition? VERLENE Hey, is anybody listenin' to me? CHARLIE I don't wanna stop with the kidneys. I want to give it all--heart, liver, both kidneys, pecker, anything else they want. VERLENE Pecker! FATHER JOHN I'll see what I can do. CHARLIE Don't see. Do it! Work a miracle. FATHER JOHN I'll do what I can. (A beat.) Thank you, Charlie. Thank you! VERLENE Don't expect me to thank you. I don't want any damn kidney of yours. I'm doin' just fine on my own! (Charlie looks at her, seeing himself 30 years earlier and smiles.) CHARLIE I wouldn't want it any other way. (LIGHTS COME DOWN with Verlene staring at him defiantly. END ACT I.) THIS BLOOD'S FOR YOU by Dave Christner ACT II, SCENE I: TUESDAY SCENE: LIGHTS COME UP on Father John, the Warden, HANNA ECHOLS, 55, the Governor of the state, the state's Attorney General, PETER RUDMAN, 40, and DR. BEATRICE MOBLEY, 57, the state Medical Examiner. They are seated in the Warden's office; everyone is reading some kind of a report. The warden and Father John exchange a few anxious glances at one another as the other finish studying the report. Finally the governor looks up shaking her head incredulously. She is a strong woman, and a highly principled public servant. Peter is a young Turk with aspirations to a Senate seat. Beatrice is an overworked, extremely intelligent woman, with a wealth of medical and philosophical knowledge. HANNA Patrick, what in the name of Christ are you trying to do to me? WARDEN It's for my son, Governor. I'm trying to save his life. HANNA Yes, I understand that, Patrick, but Father John here is attempting to parcel out body organs like communion wafers--a heart here, a liver there, I don't know what the hell else. FATHER JOHN It's the only way Charlie will give Patrick a kidney--everything has to go! HANNA Everything has to go! It sounds like a damn warehouse sale. FATHER JOHN I don’t have recipients yet for everything. PETER Is it true he wants to donate his pecker? HANNA (to Beatrice.) His pecker? Is that possible? FATHER JOHN But only after we're sure he's left this world. BEATRICE I'm not aware of any pecker replace program, Governor. HANNA (hard) It doesn't matter, because this business is going to stop right here. Don't involve another soul in this fiasco, Father. We already have a media circus on our hands. (A beat.) Do we understand each other? FATHER JOHN I certainly understand you. HANNA I wish I could say the same about you. (A beat.) Okay, Peter, where does the state stand legally on this? PETER The problem for us, I believe, Governor, is more one of public perception and ethical considerations than it is a question of the legality of an execution. HANNA Really? PETER An impartial jury told the state to execute Charlie James. And we can do that tomorrow with no legal problems whatsoever. The problem arises from this scheme of his to donate his organs. WARDEN It's not a scheme! PETER Scheme or not, we cannot be perceived as an administration that uses death row as a potential site to harvest organs. BEATRICE This is undoubtedly going to provoke some comment from the ACLU. WARDEN We're not harvesting anything; Charlie has voluntarily decided to donate his organs. PETER Right, Warden ... to your son. How do you think that looks? HANNA Are we harvesting organs, Doctor? BEATRICE It certainly looks like it. PETER This is just a grandstand attempt to get a stay of execution or a pardon. WARDEN That's not what this is! PETER Warden, pardon me for being blunt, but your input in this issue is not pertinent. You just can't be objective. WARDEN I'm objective. The state has directed me to execute Charlie James, and I'm going to do it. So what's the problem? HANNA The problem is you want to kill Charlie so you can harvest his organs for your son! FATHER JOHN That is a problem, Patrick. WARDEN Charlie wants to give up his organs; I can't help it that my son is dying and needs a kidney. Maybe Charlie just wants to do something decent for once in his life. HANNA Or maybe he wants a pardon for his munificence. FATHER JOHN You can't pardon him now, Governor. HANNA Why the hell not? FATHER JOHN Because four other people will be counting on Charlie's death to give them a new lease on life. PETER What the hell! FATHER JOHN The organ recipients--a heart, a liver and two kidneys. HANNA Jesus Christ! How the hell did we get ourselves into this mess? FATHER JOHN I think it comes from playing God. HANNA You're the only one playing God! (A beat.) So I have to kill Charlie in this scenairo? PETER We'd already decided to kill him; that's not an issue. BEATRICE Maybe not to you. HANNA (reflects, then) I was actually in the process of reviewing his appeal. PETER Governor, if you don't execute that cop killer you'll never see a second term. You won't even be nominated. HANNA Which means we'll all be out of a job, except for maybe Father John. PETER Jesus! WARDEN Charlie's not expecting a pardon; he expecting ... the worst. He just wants to go out with a sense that his life was worth something. BEATRICE Did he tell you that, Warden? WARDEN Not in those exact words. HANNA What do you think, Father? You know him better than anyone. FATHER JOHN I think Patrick, Jr. knows him better than anyone. PETER Then by all means then, let's get the kid in here. He'll show us the way. HANNA Father? FATHER JOHN I think Charlie-- BEATRICE Do we have to call him "Charlie?" FATHER JOHN I think--the prisoner--would certainly appreciate a pardon, but doesn't see that as a real possibility, so he is pretty much resigned to his fate. And for that reason, I think he's motivated to do something for these kids because nobody ever did anything for him. WARDEN So there's not a problem! Char--the prisoner knows he has to pay for his crime; the state has told us to execute him; the execution date has been set. So we carry out the mandate of the court, just like we always have. BEATRICE There's another problem. (A few beats.) How do we execute him? PETER Chair has always worked before. BEATRICE That amount of electric current will cook the organs. PETER Injection! BEATRICE That will poison them. PETER Gas? WARDEN Too expensive. Got rid of the chamber. It was your idea. FATHER JOHN He wants to be put to sleep for the surgery and then ... just not wake up. HANNA So the surgery itself will kill him? BEATRICE Removal of the heart is invariably fatal. HANNA Where would that put us legally? PETER The state has been charged by the criminal justice system to execute this man for killing a police officer. They don't specify exactly how to do it, and there is no statue on the books that tells us how to do it. The means of execution is totally irrelevant; we can lop off his head or feed him to alligators. The state doesn't care. HANNA I'm the goddamn state, and I do care! BEATRICE You cannot execute this man surgically. The AMA will have no part of it. We have this bothersome little catch-all phrase in our code of ethics about preserving life whenever possible. (A beat.) I know it's a totally idealistic notion. FATHER JOHN (almost to himself) Peter's right, the methodology is beside the point. Why should we care how he dies? PETER So we bring in a doctor from Europe or Mexico. Get some marginal MD who will be damn happy he won't have to be concerned with losing the patient. BEATRICE Whoever you got would have to have a license to practice medicine. PETER This is not exactly practicing medicine. BEATRICE It's not exactly like carving up a Christmas turnkey either; it takes a skilled surgeon to harvest organs for a transplant. HANNA Okay, assuming we find a doctor with more skill than ethics who is able to--harvest--the organs successfully, will the doctors on the implant side be willing to use the organs from the victim of a state execution? FATHER JOHN That's a very interesting point. HANNA But it's a practical not a philosophical question. Beatrice? Peter? WARDEN Why wouldn't they use them? By this time the donor is already dead. He could just as well have been an accident victim. BEATRICE But he's not an accident victim! And some people in this state are still a little squeamish about killing a helpless man. PETER (thinking aloud) But ethically, and maybe even legally, they would be bound to preserve the lives of their patients by doing the implants. So they can't really refuse to treat their patients without risking a law suit. BEATRICE That's a pretty convoluted line of reasoning, but he's probably right. And with the likes of Peter on the other side of the courtroom ... HANNA (to Father John) What did you say about playing God? FATHER JOHN That it gets you in deep water, real fast. HANNA I can't pardon him. And I can't execute him in any of the conventional humanitarian means. So we have to find a doctor who will be willing to kill him surgically for us. WARDEN I wouldn't put it like that. HANNA How would you put it, Patrick? (He doesn't have an answer.) PETER What if we give him a lethal dose of the anesthesia, enough to put him out real fast, then we remove the organs before they are contaminated. That way, the anesthesia would kill him even if the surgery didn't, so the doctor is off the hook because the anesthesia, not the surgery is responsible. Is that a beautiful plan or what? BEATRICE I think that falls in the "or what" category. FATHER JOHN Let's remember we're not haggling about price with a hooker here. We're talking about a man's life here. HANNA Oh, we're way past that point, Father. You've got it set up now so that maybe we're talking about the lives of four people, two of them kids in addition to the life of the convicted which, of course, is of no value at this point except as a place to harvest organs. PETER The media is going to have a heyday with this one. BEATRICE They already are. I got a call from the New York Times this morning. WARDEN The good side is that this event will raise the public's awareness of the need for organ donors. PETER Maybe we could find a brain to replace yours, Warden, because the one you have has sure as hell stopped functioning. BEATRICE We need time, Governor. You could appoint a commission to study the matter. WARDEN There isn't time for a goddamn study! PETER Who doesn't have time--Charlie or Patrick? WARDEN I'm sorry, I ... HANNA Do you want me to execute Charlie James as a personal favor for you, Patrick? WARDEN Jesus, no! PETER That's not fair, Governor. Charlie is a condemned man; we have every right as well as an obligation to kill him. HANNA I told you I was reviewing his case. PETER And the records will show that Charlie James pulled the trigger that killed Officer Sanchez. HANNA I know that! (A beat.) Did you fire the weapon that killed Sanchez? PETER That's immaterial. HANNA Did you? PETER Yes, I fired it. HANNA So did I. (A beat.) A gust of wind would fire that weapon. PETER But it didn't. Charlie James did! And that's why the state is extracting such an awful price. HANNA (philosophically) Do you honestly think Sanchez's widow will be happier if Charlie James is dead? PETER That's not for me to say, Governor. HANNA Patrick? (He looks away.) Beatrice? BEATRICE I'll think she'll feel like justice was done for some period of time. Then ... I don't know. HANNA Father? FATHER JOHN (thinks, then) God does not condone killing in any context. In this case ... Charlie killed a cop, but he’s not a murderer. God will take care of Mrs. Sanchez. PETER All right, he isn’t the worst guy we’ve executed, but Sanchez is dead-- accident or not. And we are obligated to carry out the sentence handed down by an impartial jury in a fair trial. Cops on the beat need to know we take their lives seriously. HANNA And the only way we can show them that is to kill Charlie? PETER It’s not the only way, but it’s the best way. BEATRICE Didn’t the governor show her support by funding body armor for every law enforcement officer in the state? PETER That was a show of support, of course. HANNA And if Sanchez had been wearing his he’d be alive today, and we wouldn’t be in this goddamn mess. PETER Governor, you can’t put the blame on Sanchez; they’ll crucify you. HANNA I know. (A few beats. Then to Peter.) Get the Mrs. Sanchez on the phone; I want to talk to her. PETER Right now? HANNA Right now! (Peter goes to the desk and picks up the phone and speaks into it with us hearing him. He has to get the number and then dial it.) FATHER JOHN What do you hope to accomplish by talking to the widow, Governor? HANNA I don't know. (A beat.) I think I'm just trying to get a handle on how deep feelings against Charlie run. BEATRICE She's not the one to ask, Governor. PETER Governor, I have Mrs. Sanchez on the line. HANNA (gets phone, then) Mrs. Sanchez, this is Governor Echols ... I'm as well as could be expected. Thank you. I regret that I have to bother you, but, as a matter of course, I'm reviewing Charlie James' case and am considering a stay of execution or perhaps even a pardon ... yes, I'm well aware of that. That is why I'm called before I study the case any further. What I really wanted know is where you would stand on an lesser sentence of life without parole? (A few beats.) Yes, I can understand how difficult things are for your children, and ... yes, I know, life is unfair. I see ... yes, and I hope we can all put this behind us in the very near future. (A beat.) Again, I'm sorry I had to call you. And I appreciate your comments. God bless you. Good-bye. FATHER JOHN What did she say? HANNA (woodenly) That she won't be happy until Charlie James is dead. FATHER JOHN God have mercy on her. HANNA May He have mercy on us all. WARDEN We're going through with it then? HANNA I didn’t say that! (A beat.) Peter, just see if it's possible. Find a surgeon who will remove the organs, and see if it's really feasible to have four transplant teams in place for the other people. Get a handle on the logistics of the thing, and keep me informed. PETER I'll make some calls. Midnight Saturday, right? WARDEN Yes. Midnight Saturday. HANNA This is a lousy way to make a living. PETER Governor, put your motherly instincts aside and execute the law. HANNA The law is easy to execute, Peter. It's executing people that gets a little tough. Tell me: are you going to feel better with Charlie James dead? Safer? Do you think the state is going to be a better place to live because we kill one hard luck habitual criminal? PETER Don't get soft, Governor. The people won't like it. HANNA (snorts) Me soft? Don't be ridiculous. (A beat.) I have the heart of a killer! (LIGHTS COME DOWN SLOWLY TO END THE SCENE.) ACT II, SCENE II: WEDNESDAY SCENE: LIGHTS COME UP the next morning in the visiting room. Charlie is seated at the table across from Patrick. Patrick is dressed for school, and is carrying a backpack. PATRICK I can't stay, Charlie; I got to get to school. CHARLIE Sit down, kid; it won't hurt to be a little tardy once in your life. PATRICK No, I got to go, really. CHARLIE You're jist teasin' me then; you don't wanna be my best friend. PATRICK No, I mean, yes, I do want to be your friend, and no I'm not teasing you. I jist came by to tell you that Verlene thinks you're cool. CHARLIE Cool, huh? PATRICK I'm not supposed to tell you. CHARLIE So Verlene thinks Charlie's cool. (Patrick nods.) Well she looks pretty hot to me. PATRICK She's sixteen for crying out loud! CHARLIE I mean for you, not for me! Christ! PATRICK Oh, okay, then. CHARLIE What'd you think of her? PATRICK I though she was pretty hot--cool, I mean. CHARLIE I know what you mean. Maybe you and her could git hooked up on the same dialysis machine. (A beat.) You might like it. PATRICK I'm fourteen Charlie. CHARLIE So what? PATRICK So ... I have a natural curiosity about sex, but I'm not ready to try it. CHARLIE Who's talkin' about sex; I was talking about communal dialysis. PATRICK There's no such thing. CHARLIE Maybe you jist don't want any black blood running in your veins? PATRICK All blood is red, Charlie. CHARLIE (thinks, then) How'd you git to be so damn smart at fourteen? PATRICK Mostly by keeping my mind open and my mouth shut. But I have a hard time doing it with you. CHARLIE Why do you reckon that is, kid? PATRICK Because you bring out the worst in me! And go ahead, call me "kid." I don't give a shit. CHARLIE Sure, kid, whatever you say. And watch your language; I don't want your old man blaming me for your foul mouth. PATRICK You know, you can be a real pain in the ass? CHARLIE I've heard it said. PATRICK And to pay you back for it, I'm going to call my kidney "Charlie." CHARLIE What the hell you gonna do that for? PATRICK Just to piss you off. CHARLIE Now that's a good reason, kid, but by the time you git around to naming that kidney, I'll be way past the point of gittin' pissed off, however, if they can't keep those mongrel dogs out of the cemetery, there's a pretty good chance I'll be gittin' pissed on. PATRICK (ashamed) I'm sorry, Charlie. I didn't mean anything. CHARLIE I know that, kid; you don't have a mean bone in your body. (A beat.) Now git outta here before my mother shows up. I don't want her thinking I'm warping an impressionable young mind. PATRICK But you are. CHARLIE Damn right I am, but I don't her to know! (Patrick starts out then turns back.) PATRICK I didn't think you had a mother. CHARLIE Neither did I. PATRICK (exiting) See you tomorrow, Charlie. CHARLIE (quietly, after he’s gone) Sure ... Patrick. (Charlie sits down and starts reading the New York Times; after a few moments the door opens upstage. SHERRY JAMES, Charlie’s mother enters. She is 58, basically nice looking but a little rough around the edges. She has on lots of make-up, and is dressed in a way to make her look younger. For a boozer of her age, however, she looks pretty damn good. CHARLIE (incredulous) Ma! SHERRY Hello, Charlie. CHARLIE I can’t believe it’s you. SHERRY It’s me all right. CHARLIE You shouldn’t of come. SHERRY I had to come, Charlie. I wanted to see you before ... you know. CHARLIE Yeah, well ... how’d you find out? SHERRY Fanny Bostich down at the Starlight Lounge saw your picture in the paper. So she says to me, “Sherry, ain’t that your Charlie?” she says. I look and there your are--on the front page no less. (Charlie shows her the Times.) CHARLIE Get a load of this. SHERRY Oh my god! Imagine that: my Charlie making the front page of the New York Times. CHARLIE You gotta know somebody. SHERRY And they said you wouldn’t amount to nothin’. CHARLIE Everybody gits 15 minutes of fame, Ma. SHERRY Well, I hadn’t got mine yet, and as far as I can tell, it’s no where in sight. CHARLIE Hook you wagon to my star, Ma, I’ll take you to another world. SHERRY That’s nice of you to offer, Charlie, but I don’t think I’m ready for that world yet--fame or not. CHARLIE Then we’ll jist sit here quietly and reminisce. SHERRY Okay, Charlie. We’ll reminisce ... about what? CHARLIE Better times. SHERRY That won’t be too hard to do. CHARLIE I’m with you on that. (There are a few moments of uncomfortable silence.) CHARLIE Been a long time, Ma. SHERRY Has it? CHARLIE Fourteen--fifteen years. SHERRY That long? CHARLIE Last time you saw me I was in that medium security unit over in Winchester. SHERRY Gone big time now haven’t you, Charlie? CHARLIE Oh, yeah. Maximum security. Top of the line ... end of it too. SHERRY (awed) Maximum security. CHARLIE Yeah, I wanted to make you proud, Ma. SHERRY Front page, Charlie. CHARLIE So how are things, Ma? SHERRY Which things, Charlie? CHARLIE You still on the sauce? SHERRY I still enjoy a cocktail now and then if that’s what you mean. CHARLIE I guess that’s what I mean. SHERRY But it’s not a problem. CHARLIE Never was. SHERRY Don’t be critical, Charlie. I have ... pressures. CHARLIE Got a man in your life, Ma? SHERRY(thinks, then) I got one in my trailer ... which I suppose pretty much puts him in my life. He's no Prince Charming, but he's company, and I can't git him to leave. CHARLIE Does he treat you all right? SHERRY He’s never hit me. CHARLIE Keeps his weight on his elbows, does he? SHERRY (blushing) Charlie! CHARLIE Sounds like a real gentleman. SHERRY(a little reluctantly) Charlie, what’s this business about you donating your organs? CHARLIE Don’t believe everything you read in the paper. SHERRY What’s it all about, Charlie? CHARLIE It’s no big deal. (A beat.) A kid I know needs a kidney. That’s all. SHERRY Charlie, that’s awfully nice of you. CHARLIE I’m not doin’ it to be nice; I doin’ it for the kid. If I thought "nice" was involved I’d say to hell with it. SHERRY I read something about your heart and liver too. Some priest is lookin’ for recipients. CHARLIE That’s right. I think we got someone for my heart--a trucker. SHERRY A trucker. Imagine that. (A beat.) What about your liver? CHARLIE (starting to get it) Don’t have anyone yet. (A beat.) Why are you asking? SHERRY Do I look okay to you, Charlie? CHARLIE You look great. SHERRY Is my coloring all right? CHARLIE You look a little jaundiced, Ma, always have. I thought it was from the booze. SHERRY It is from the booze. It’s taken its toll, Charlie. CHARLIE What are you sayin’, Ma? SHERRY My liver’s shot, Charlie. CHARLIE Jesus Christ! SHERRY It’s been through a lot, Charlie. CHARLIE It’s been through a lot of booze is what it's been through! SHERRY I gave you life, Charlie! CHARLIE You want my liver! Is that why you’re here? SHERRY We’re practically a perfect match. CHARLIE Ma! SHERRY I carried you in my womb, Charlie. CHARLIE Did you ever carry me in your arms, Ma? SHERRY Of course, I did, Charlie. Whenever I could. You jist can’t remember. (A few beats.) I’ll be honest with you, Charlie. That is why I’m here--to ask you this favor. I didn’t even know where you were, whether you were even still alive or not. If it weren’t for the paper I wouldn’t even of known about--your situation. CHARLIE It's not a "situation," Ma. It's a death sentence. SHERRY I'm sorry. CHARLIE So you come in here after 15 years-- SHERRY Fourteen! CHARLIE (bitterly) --to asked me to give you my liver? SHERRY Why should you give it to a perfect stranger? CHARLIE You’re think you’re not a stranger to me? SHERRY Stranger or not. I’m still your mother. (A beat.) And I’m dyin’. CHARLIE Ma, this jist ain’t what I expected. SHERRY I’ll never git one from anybody else--too old, the damage is from drinkin’. They don’t care. CHARLIE I don’t know what to say, Ma. SHERRY Jist thought I’d asked. I know we’d be a good match. CHARLIE We were never a good match, Ma. SHERRY Yes we were, Charlie, when you were a baby. You jist don’t remember. I can hardly remember myself now, but it was lovely. Then ... we jist got steamrolled ... CHARLIE By what? SHERRY I dunno. Life? The system? Circumstances? All three I guess. Your father took off, and I lost you when I had to go to work jist for us to git by. CHARLIE I know you tried, Ma. SHERRY (breaking) You have no idea how hard. (A beat.) I’m sorry, Charlie. CHARLIE I am too, Ma. SHERRY (crying hard now) Guess I’d better go before I flood the place. I wish I could hold you, Charlie. CHARLIE Don’t cry, Ma. (She gets up to go.) SHERRY You’ll be okay, Charlie? CHARLIE Sure, Ma. Three squares a day and in bed by 10:00 every night. SHERRY Take care of yourself, Charlie. (She exits.) CHARLIE (quietly to himself) I always have. (LIGHTS COME DOWN SLOWLY to end the scene as we HEAR THE SOUND OF STEEL DOORS SLAMMING SHUT.) ACT II, SCENE III: THURSDAY SCENE: LIGHTS COME UP the next morning in the visiting room. Charlie is seated across the table from Father John. FATHER JOHN I understand your mother came by. CHARLIE Well I'm glad you understand it, cause I sure as hell don't. FATHER JOHN How long had it been? CHARLIE Half a lifetime. FATHER JOHN Parents. CHARLIE What the hell you gonna do with them? FATHER JOHN How is she ... adjusting? CHARLIE I hope you don't mean to life without me. FATHER JOHN I mean, how does she feel about ... CHARLIE Charlie goin' bye-bye? FATHER JOHN That's a very civil way to put it. CHARLIE Oh, I'd have to say she adjustin' just fine. What brought her to me in my time of need was her time of need. FATHER JOHN I don't understand. What does she need? CHARLIE If I told you, Father, you wouldn't believe me. FATHER JOHN There isn't too much in this world I haven't seen, Charlie. CHARLIE (thinks, then) Ever see a mother who wanted her executed son's liver? (Father John stares at him; he can't believe it.) FATHER JOHN Good God! CHARLIE What'd I tell you? FATHER JOHN (incredulously) Your mother came to see you because she wants you to give her your liver? CHARLIE Hers is shot to hell; I'm surprised it lasted this long. (There are a few moments of uncomfortable silence.) FATHER JOHN Charlie, I don't know what to say. CHARLIE Say that God works in wondrous ways His miracles to perform. (A beat.) Because I want her to have it! FATHER JOHN Oh, the governor's going to love this. (A beat.)And the media--Jesus! Are you sure about this, Charlie. CHARLIE You didn't find anyone else did you? FATHER JOHN No. A lot of people ... would prefer not to have ... CHARLIE The organs of a killer. FATHER JOHN That’s right. So ... I guess if you want your mother to have your liver, there's no reason she shouldn't have it. CHARLIE And I want you to promise me something, Father. FATHER JOHN Anything, Charlie. CHARLIE My mother ... make sure she's okay after the surgery. FATHER JOHN Of course, Charlie. CHARLIE She doesn't have anybody to look out for her. (A beat.) And try to git her off the sauce. FATHER JOHN Charlie, that's not my field. I have a little problem myself you know. CHARLIE Jist try! That's all I'm asking. Otherwise she'll jist start goin' through livers like she does men. FATHER JOHN I'll try. CHARLIE And take her to dinner. FATHER JOHN What? CHARLIE I know you have a fondness for the ladies. FATHER JOHN I'll see that she's taken care of after the surgery, Charlie. That's all! CHARLIE Okay, okay. (A few beats.) So, how are the--arrangements--comin' along? FATHER JOHN Things are falling into place rather nicely now. With the--liver matter settled, we passed the last major obstacle. CHARLIE Ain't that great? FATHER JOHN (doubtfully) Yeah, great. CHARLIE The well-oiled machine of the American Judicial System moving along without a hitch or glitch. It's a terrible beauty. (A few beats.) Tell me about the heart guy. Trucker, right? FATHER JOHN All his life. Followed in his father's--tread marks so to speak. Was conceived in a big Mack rig at a McDonald’s outside Tampa; that's how he got his name--Mack. CHARLIE For the truck or the burger? FATHER JOHN I don’t know; maybe both. But it was a long time ago. Got six grandchildren now, and he's still on the road. CHARLIE Too much coffee and too many donuts probably got his heart all clogged up. No exercise sittin' behind the wheel all day. Nothin' but deadlines and snarled traffic, backin' in to tight spots. That's no life; he was as much a prisoner in his rig as I am in here. FATHER JOHN Maybe. (A beat.) His family is moved by what you're doing, Charlie. CHARLIE He's a good man, huh, with a bad heart? FATHER JOHN That's right. CHARLIE Which makes me a bad man with a good heart. FATHER JOHN You're not a bad man, Charlie. CHARLIE This Mack Diamond doesn't mind having the heart of a killer? FATHER JOHN When you're in his shape, any heart will do. CHARLIE He does know doesn't he? FATHER JOHN I told him myself. CHARLIE (thinks, then) I figured some big shot would get my heart, some CEO with a lot of money and clout. FATHER JOHN CEOs already have the hearts of killers. CHARLIE Yeah, and they git the big bucks for them. Hell of a system. (A beat.) Verlene's taking the other kidney now? FATHER JOHN She'll take it. CHARLIE The kids with killer kidneys. Has a nice ring to it. FATHER JOHN To you maybe. CHARLIE Don't git soft on me, Father. This was your idea. FATHER JOHN I'm not getting soft, Charlie. I'm just ... having doubts. CHARLIE Gotta be hard as fuckin' nails, Father. Jist like Charlie. FATHER JOHN (not sure at all) Yeah. CHARLIE Say it, Father. Hard as fuckin' nails! FATHER JOHN I can't say that. CHARLIE Say it! FATHER JOHN (reluctantly) Hard as fucking nails, Charlie. CHARLIE (pushing) Louder. (Silence.) Say it! FATHER JOHN (yells, breaking) Hard as fucking nails! CHARLIE Again! FATHER JOHN Hard as fucking nails! CHARLIE All right. Now you're talkin'. Nail the bastards. FATHER JOHN (rises, screams) Nail the mother fuckin' bastards! CHARLIE Don't git carried away with the fuckin' program here, Father. FATHER JOHN (regaining control) Jesus, sorry, I don't know what came over me. (A beat.) I've been feeling a little stressed. CHARLIE I'm with you on that one, Father. (A beat.) Saturday, huh? FATHER JOHN Midnight. CHARLIE Hell of a way to spend a Saturday night. FATHER JOHN Can I get you anything, Charlie? CHARLIE A pardon. FATHER JOHN Anything else? CHARLIE Some smokes. FATHER JOHN Virginia Slims? CHARLIE Fuck you! Marlboros. FATHER JOHN Soft pack? CHARLIE Crush proof fuckin' box! (Father John is into it now.) FATHER JOHN All right My man, Charlie! Hard as fucking nails! CHARLIE You can bet your sweet ass on that one you pious son-of-a-bitch. FATHER Kiss my ecclesiastical ass you sorry sack of shit! CHARLIE Forgive me Father, for I know not what I have done.. FATHER JOHN You've created a monster, Charlie. (A beat.)Jesus, I'm sorry. But you manage to bring out the worst in me. CHARLIE That's my gift. Relax now, Father. FATHER JOHN (after a moment) So ... how are things between you and your Maker, Charlie? CHARLIE The Big Guy in the sky? FATHER JOHN Old Number 1. CHARLIE I have to admit that our relationship is somewhat strained. FATHER JOHN That's why I'm here, Charlie. CHARLIE To redeem my soul so I can meet my Maker and spend eternity in paradise? FATHER JOHN There are worse places. CHARLIE Father, you can't be serious. FATHER JOHN I'm dead serious. CHARLIE No, I'm gonna be dead. And you're seriously fucked up. (A beat.) You're not here for me, Father, you're here for them. To give this killing by the state some semblance of Divine justification. To remove their guilt, not mine. FATHER JOHN (quietly to himself) What? (Thinks, then) Oh my god. CHARLIE Do you think anybody who wants to see me dead really wants to run into me in paradise? "Hey, Charlie, my man. How's it going. Sorry about that execution thing down there, but CHARLIE (continuing) hey, you repented and here you are. Now we can be best friends. Why don't you come down and have some cocktails with me and Officer Sanchez." (A beat.) If they thought you could really save my soul, you wouldn't be here. FATHER JOHN (thinking aloud) Why would any of them want you to be saved? CHARLIE You're with me now, Father. FATHER JOHN I am here for them. My role is to sanctify the killing in order to give them a clear conscious. In their hearts they know it's murder. CHARLIE That's what I'm saying--premeditated and cold blooded. FATHER JOHN Charlie, I've done a terrible thing. CHARLIE Go tell it to a priest. FATHER JOHN To you! CHARLIE Well you ain't gittin' no virgin. FATHER JOHN Charlie, I can't go through with this. CHARLIE What? FATHER JOHN I'm ... part of the madness. I can't do it. CHARLIE What about the kids? FATHER JOHN I don't know. CHARLIE Do what you gotta do, Father, but if you git cold feet, they're jist replace you with somebody worse. I don't wanna die, but I was kinda gittin' used to the idea of helpin' the kids. And I sure as hell ain't gonna beg for mercy. FATHER JOHN I have to stop this if I can. CHARLIE You can't stop it Father. FATHER JOHN I started it. CHARLIE You didn't start it. The warden started it. Or my old man started it. Or the system started it. Or God started it. Who the hell knows or cares? The fact is: the state is gonna end it. FATHER JOHN (turning to go) I'm going to fight this thing, Charlie. CHARLIE Fight the good fight, Father. FATHER JOHN Damn right! CHARLIE Onward Christian soldiers! FATHER JOHN (as he exits) Fuckin' A, Charlie. Marching off to war! CHARLIE (smiling, after he's gone) Hard as fuckin' nails. (A BRIGHT SPOT ILLUMINATES Charlie momentarily as he sits smiling and nodding his head. Then we CUT TO BLACK TO END THE SCENE.) ACT II, SCENE IV: FRIDAY SCENE: LIGHTS COME UP the next morning in the visiting room. Charlie is seated across the table from the Warden. WARDEN Looks like everything is on track, Charlie. CHARLIE If you’re fishing for a compliment for all the effort you’re putting into this enterprise on my behalf, Warden, you’re talking to the wrong guy. WARDEN I don’t want a compliment, Charlie. I just ... CHARLIE Have a hard time finishing a sentence about Charlie goin’ bye-bye.? WARDEN I guess so. CHARLIE Why do you reckon that is, Warden? WARDEN Look, Charlie, what I want you to understand ... is that I truly appreciate what you’re doing for me. CHARLIE Wish I could say the same about what you’re doing for me. WARDEN (defensively) You think it’s easy, don’t you? CHARLIE Killing people? WARDEN Having this job! CHARLIE I don’t know if it’s easy or not. I never killed anybody except by accident. But I don’t suppose premeditated killing is ever easy. WARDEN This is not a premeditated killing! CHARLIE What do you call it? WARDEN A lawful execution of a criminal by the state. CHARLIE At midnight. On Saturday, April 26, 19--. If that ain’t premeditated I’ll kiss your as on the fifty yard line of the Orange Bowl on New Year’s day. (The warden stares at him; he doesn’t know what to say. Then, finally he goes on.) WARDEN I’m sorry, Charlie. But neither one of us is going to be at the Orange Bowl on New Year’s day. CHARLIE But at least you got a shot at it. WARDEN I’m sorry. But I didn’t pull that trigger. CHARLIE Everybody's sorry for Charlie. (A few beats.) You know, Warden, I’m sorry too. I’m sorry for Sanchez; I’m sorry for his widow; I’m sorry for his kids and parents and all his friends. But what I’m most sorry for is that he didn’t kill me instead of me killing him. Because he’d be a live hero instead of a dead martyr. And the whole goddamn thing would be over. (Silence. Again the warden is at a loss for words.) WARDEN Luck of the draw. CHARLIE Oh, that’s funny, Warden. From where you’re sitting. WARDEN I’m-- CHARLIE Sorry! Don’t even say it! WARDEN Look, Charlie, your only other option is life without parole. Do you really want to spend the rest of your life in this rat hole. CHARLIE You’re going to. Or one just like it. WARDEN I have a choice. CHARLIE You got me there, Warden. WARDEN What I’m trying to say, Charlie, is that ... maybe it’s better this way. CHARLIE For who? WARDEN Everybody concerned. CHARLIE And especially your son. WARDEN Patrick’s illness is beside the point. Your execution was scheduled before I brought Patrick into the equation. CHARLIE Is that what it is to you? A mathematical equation that simply needs a solution. Two negatives equal a positive! (A beat.) No wonder you can’t feel anything. WARDEN I feel plenty! CHARLIE Of what? Guilt? Gratitude? Relief? Pity? Piety? WARDEN All of those things! Charlie, this ... is as complicated as it is difficult. CHARLIE And you want so badly for me to tell you what you're doing is okay. You want Charlie to let you off the hook because you know in your heart that this execution is dead wrong. (A beat.) Well, Charlie ain’t gonna do it. WARDEN (seething) Why can’t you just go quietly? CHARLIE So you don’t have suffer? (No. answer.) No fuckin’ way, Warden. WARDEN Charlie, how the hell does someone as bright as you end up on Death Row? CHARLIE By tryin' to git a piece of the pie, Warden. Jist tryin' to git my piece of the pie. WARDEN Charlie, I can’t trade my son’s life for yours. You had your chance, and you blew it. I want to see that Patrick just gets a chance. CHARLIE With my kidney? WARDEN Or mine! CHARLIE What does that mean? WARDEN That if it ever comes down to it, I'll give Patrick my other kidney and go on dialysis myself. I'll do whatever it takes to see my son live! CHARLIE (easing up now) Years from now, Warden, when you’re an old man, and I’m nothing but a-- calcium deposit, and Patrick’s in the prime of his life, don’t forget what each of us did for him. And what it cost. WARDEN I won’t forget, Charlie. CHARLIE (smiles) Damn right you won’t. (A moment of silence. Then.) WARDEN You know for your last meal you can have anything you want. CHARLIE Yeah, I’ve heard that. Didn’t know if it was true or not. WARDEN It’s true. CHARLIE Anything, huh? WARDEN You name it. CHARLIE (thinks, then) Company! WARDEN What? CHARLIE I want company--Patrick, Verlene, my ma, Mack Diamond and Father John. WARDEN That’s impossible. CHARLIE Nothin’s impossible, Warden, if you want it bad enough, are willing to work for it ... and know the right people. WARDEN Where you hear that? CHARLIE You know where I heard it. Now I want it real bad, and I definitely know the right people. WARDEN (shaking his head) What do you want for the meal? CHARLIE Whatever the kids want. WARDEN They can’t eat before surgery. CHARLIE But I can? WARDEN With you it-- CHARLIE Won’t matter? Another unfinished sentence. WARDEN Yeah. Jesus! CHARLIE In that case, I want surf and turf--a 16 ounce T-bone, the biggest goddamn lobster you can find, four baked potatoes with a pint of sour cream--each, two quarts of fresh tossed salad, a devil’s food cake with double-chocolate icing and whipped cream filling, and quart of coffee and a nice bottle of wine for Father John, red. WARDEN Jesus, if this wasn’t your last meal, it would be your last meal. Anything else? CHARLIE Yeah, a fine Cuban cigar--from Havana, not Miami. If you don’t know where to git one let me know. I can help. WARDEN I’ll do what I can do, but don’t expect a miracle. CHARLIE I learned better that a long time ago, Warden. But puttin’ a meal together is no miracle. So just do this for Charlie. WARDEN You got it, Charlie. I’ve already broken every rule in the book for you. Why not a few more? CHARLIE Thank you, Warden. You’re a hell of a guy. WARDEN (exiting) Yeah, right, Charlie. I'm a hell of a guy. (LIGHTS COME DOWN TO END THE SCENE. ACT II, SCENE V: EARLY SATURDAY SCENE: LIGHTS COME UP on Father John, Charlie, Verlene, Patrick, Sherry and MACK DIAMOND seated at a U-shaped table facing the audience. Mack Diamond, 63, who resembles Peter Rudman physically (for doubling purposes) is seated opposite Father John at one end of the table. From left to right facing the audience are Verlene, Patrick, Charlie and Sherry, who is at the end near Father John. Sherry’s hair is done up in some elaborate “big” hair fashion. The meal is for the most part over, but there remains a bottle of wine and a layered chocolate cake on the table. Charlie pushes away from the table, satisfied, and starts to unwrap a huge cigar. CHARLIE Anybody mind if I light up? PATRICK In here? VERLENE That nasty thing? SHERRY When did you start smokin’, Charlie? MACK I’ll just step outside until you’re done. CHARLIE Okay, fine. Forget it! FATHER JOHN (pouring some wine) Have a glass of wine instead. SHERRY You didn’t even notice my hair, Charlie. CHARLIE I noticed it, Ma. SHERRY But you didn’t say anything about it. CHARLIE And you noticed that. SHERRY You bet I did! CHARLIE I love your hair, Ma. You look ... terrific. Don’t you like her hair, Father John? FATHER It’s very ... becoming. There's something ... very French about it. SHERRY (flattered) Thank you, Father. French. Hear that, Charlie? CHARLIE (to Patrick) You didn’t eat nothin’, kid. PATRICK Wasn’t hungry. CHARLIE Verlene? VERLENE I ate! CHARLIE Like a bird! (A beat.) MACK I don’t think any of us has an appetite, Charlie. SHERRY I ate, Charlie. CHARLIE You drank, Ma. It ain’t the same. SHERRY Don't start, Charlie! CHARLIE Will you listen to this? (A beat.) How ‘bout you, Father? You’re not scheduled for surgery. Won’t you break bread with Charlie? FATHER JOHN Charlie, I broke bread; I cut meat; I shelled lobster, shredded lettuce. I popped a cork! What else do you want? CHARLIE I want--everybody to have a good time, and ... a piece of that cake there. So you cut it up and I'll pass it around. (Father John starts cutting and serving the cake. They start eating the cake and the kids get chocolate icing smeared on their faces.) PATRICK This is great cake. VERLENE Better than my mama made, and that’s sayin’ somethin’. SHERRY Where’s you mama now, Verlene? VERLENE Oh, she gone, now. I mean during better times. (A few moments of silence.) CHARLIE What’s the best time you ever had, Verlene. VERLENE I don’t think I had it yet; ‘least I hope I ain’t. CHARLIE Father? FATHER JOHN (thinks, then) I was visiting this cathedral in Europe-- CHARLIE (cutting him off) I ain't got the time to hear about no cathedrals in Europe. (A beat.) Mack, you musta had some good times out on the road. All those truck stops ... so many hookers and so little time. SHERRY Charlie! The kids! PATRICK What’s the best time you ever had, Charlie? CHARLIE I thought you’d never ask. (He smiles fondly, remembering.) I’d just pulled this job in Naples--small bank, clean job, went like clockwork. Made off with jist shy of $63,000, mostly in small bills. Had a little charter boat set up to take me out into the Gulf. Ended up going all the way to the Yucatan. This was before it was ruined by all the development. Anyway, I lived like a king for seven months in a little coastal village nobody'd ever heard of. PATRICK If you’d invested that money, Charlie--in Mexico especially, you could have lived off the interest. CHARLIE Not the way I was livin’, kid! It was the most delicious and carefree time of my life--no obligations, no pressure. Jist the sun rising on a endless blue sea every mornin’, miles of deserted beaches to roam, a sky as big as Heaven itself and long afternoon siestas with my pick of the local senoritas, if you know what I mean. PATRICK (innocently) It's Spanish for an unmarried young woman. CHARLIE That's not what I mean! VERLENE (to Patrick) Oooh, I told you he was bad! PATRICK So why did you come back? CHARLIE Cash flow problem. (A beat.) Didn't have any more case to flow. SHERRY How could you spend it all, Charlie? CHARLIE This was before I learned the principles of sound financial planning, and ... I was very generous. SHERRY Did you ever have a girl, Charlie. CHARLIE Had dozens, Ma. SHERRY I mean one, someone special? CHARLIE Someone I could bring home for you to meet? FATHER JOHN She wants to know because she cares, Charlie. CHARLIE I’m sorry, Ma. (A beat.) Yeah, I had someone special. Remember that Robinson girl from the sixth grade? SHERRY (thinks) Jerry Ann? The athletic one? CHARLIE Yeah, Jerry Ann Robinson. I was madly in love with her. I can still see her face. MACK Should of run away and married her. CHARLIE I was 12-years-old, Mack. MACK Right, sixth grade. CHARLIE I discovered then what true love felt like, but I never felt it again. VERLENE That’s sad, Charlie. Your whole life is nothin’ but some very sad shit. And it ain't lookin' to git any better. FATHER JOHN Why didn’t you stay with her, Charlie? CHARLIE Because Jerry Anne eventually went to college and I went to the pen. (Mack lifts his wine glass.) MACK To true love! CHARLIE (lifting his glass) True love! (The others follow suit. The kids raise empty glasses at this point because they haven’t been served any wine.) FATHER JOHN & SHERRY Here! Here! SHERRY (tentatively) I loved you, Charlie, in my own way. CHARLIE I know you did, Ma. SHERRY I wish we could start all over again with you a little baby in my arms. CHARLIE It’s okay, Ma. You did your best. PATRICK What would you do, Charlie, if you had it to do all over again? CHARLIE (thinks, then) No banks; that’s for sure. And convenience stores are jist not worth the trouble, even for petty cash. I think I’d git into drugs-- ALL Charlie! CHARLIE Not into selling them, but into stealing money from the guys doing the pushing and distribution. That way I’m not robbin’ innocent people, and if somebody gits hurt--nobody would even give a damn. Cops won’t bother you because they don’t care if you’re stealing from scum, and with what I know about investing now, I could make one good hit last a lifetime. MACK Charlie, the drug dealers would be more likely to kill you than the cops. CHARLIE You gotta take some risks in any business. FATHER JOHN Did the idea of going straight ever cross your mind? CHARLIE (proudly) Hell no! FATHER JOHN Jesus Christ. CHARLIE Crime is all I know, Father. It's what I been trained for. VERLENE (to Father John) What you think someone from the Fortune 500 gonna hire his ass? (A beat.) Father, you gotta git real. Ain’t nothin’ left for people like us but shit work. They'd have Charlie’s ass out there pickin’ up dead animals and shit on the roadside. Nothin’ better. MACK I worked hard all my life behind the wheel of that rig, and that was damn sure no picnic either. But it was honest. VERLENE And what you got to show for it besides a bad heart and family you still don’t ever see nothin’ of? MACK It’s not that bad. And we all have to do some things we don’t like. Isn’t that so, Father? FATHER There is no doubt that we all have to do things we don’t like. (A beat.) But there is something I want to do before we finish and before Charlie lights up that Havana.(A beat.) I’d like to pray. VERLENE Come on, Father! CHARLIE Lemme get these kids cleaned up first, Father. (Charlie wets a napkin in a glass of water and wipes the faces’ of Patrick and Verlene clean.) PATRICK Thanks, Charlie. CHARLIE (as he washes Verlene) Devil’s food! VERLENE (licking her lips) Can’t git too much of a good thing! CHARLIE (sitting) All right, Father. Have at it. FATHER JOHN Let us pray. Our most gracious and loving Heavenly Father we thank the for the gifts of Thy bounty and today pray especially for the soul-- (Charlie clears his throat, and gives Father John a questioning look.)-- and ass of our dear friend, Charlie James. We pray Dear Lord to forgive his multitude of sins and to welcome him into the bosom of Abraham-- (Charlie clears his throat again.)--and whatever other bosoms you might deem appropriate. Charlie is your humble servant and is much in need of redemption for his manifold sins and transgressions against Thee and his fellow beings-- CHARLIE I am, real sorry, Lord. But Father John is paintin’ a pretty black picture here. I think we both know, that I never committed all that many sins. FATHER JOHN Will you just leave the praying to me, Charlie.? CHARLIE Sorry, Father. FATHER JOHN Dear Lord, please forgive Charlie’s variety of sins, and permit him to find comfort in your love. We pray as well Dear Father for Charlie’s friends gathered here, for the new life promised them through Charlie’s sacrifice. For these things and for these people gathered here, we asked the blessing of our most Holy Savior, Jesus Christ, who died on the cross so that we all might live. Amen. ALL (not necessarily together) Amen. Amen. (Father John gets up, takes the bottle of wine and pours everyone, including the kids, a splash of wine. He raises his glass and the other follow his lead.) FATHER JOHN Drink this in remembrance of Him. (They all drink. Then Sherry wraps her arms around Charlie and starts to cry. Patrick and Verlene embrace Charlie as well as he LIGHTS COME DOWN SLOWLY to END THE SCENE.) ACT II. SCENE VI: LATE SATURDAY We open in a dimly illuminated "observation" room with the entire cast assembled with the exception of Patrick, Charlie and Beatrice. Only those with speaking parts in this scene are in character. The others are just observers. All are seated with their backs to the audience and each person is dressed in dark clothing and all is wearing a black hood. A clock on the upstage wall shows a few minutes before midnight. The CLANG of a cell door opening is heard, and then Charlie appears, wearing a hospital gown. FATHER JAMES Does the prisoner have any last words? CHARLIE Who wants to know? FATHER JAMES Father James. CHARLIE Where is Father John? FATHER JAMES He chose not to come. CHARLIE Did he tell you why? FATHER JAMES Yes, he told me. CHARLIE Then what are you doin' here? FATHER JAMES Somebody has to-- CHARLIE Sanctify this sacrifice for the state! FATHER JAMES Do you have any last words? CHARLIE Yeah, I've got something to say, not that it's gonna do any good. (A few beats.) Again, I want to apologize to Mrs. Sanchez, her family and all of Officer Sanchez's friends for what I did. The fact that it was an accident isn't going to bring him back to life, but if my death gives you some sense of satisfaction, then I will not have died entirely in vain.(A beat.) If the state wasn't going to kill me, I'd like to say too that if given the opportunity, I'd dedicate my remaining years in this joint to trying to right the wrong I did. I know a lot about making money, and if I could help Mrs. Sanchez git by, to educate her kids, to help keep them off the streets so they don't end up ... hell with it,. It don't matter. (A few beats as Charlie gathers his courage and thoughts.) And for all of you good citizens out there who have somehow appropriated the right to play God ... This bloods's for you! (He turns and exits up stage. We hear the door CLANG shut. The clock strikes 12:00. This is a moment of silence then the door CLANGS open again. A SURGEON enters wearing a surgical gown and carrying a scalpel. The surgeon's head is covered with a hood) SURGEON Governor, I just received word that none of the transplant recipients haven't shown up to receive their new organs. We can't start until they do. PETER What? HANNA Haven't shown up? WARDEN Where the hell are they? PETER One of them is your son! How the hell should we know? SURGEON What shall we do, Governor? HANNA (takes off her hood) I ... don't ... know. (A door opens upstage, and young Patrick enters. He is not wearing a hood.) WARDEN Patrick, what are you doing? You've got to get ready! PATRICK (shaking his head) I can't go through with it, Dad. (A beat.) None of us can go through with it. WARDEN (desperately) Do you know what this means? PATRICK I know; we all know. WARDEN (breaking) Come here, son. (He runs to his dad, and they embrace lovingly.) Son, I just love you so much. PATRICK I know that, Dad. PETER This is all very touching, Governor, but we still have an execution to carry out. (A spot comes up on Hanna as she walks down stage and faces the audience. She drops the hood and stands in the white-hot light of the SPOT.) PETER They're waiting on your decision, Governor. (A beat.) All you have to do is give the word. (Hanna stands in the pool of white light, agonizing over her decision. BLACK OUT. END OF PLAY) Dave Christner 75 C Green End Avenue Middletown, RI 02842 Phone (401) 849-3611 email: dwcpwright@edgenet.net THIS BLOOD'S FOR YOU 41