In the Heart of Every Man
Scene begins with just a metal table and two uncomfortable chairs on either side of it. It is clearly a visiting area at a juvenile hall. ROSALIE TAYLOR is sitting in one of the chairs, leaning back casually, while the other chair is empty. After a few moments, SISTER EMMA enters the room, standing uncomfortably in the doorway for a few moments before sitting down across from ROSALIE
ROSALIE: Sister Emma! Come back again to save my soul?
EMMA: I hear you're getting out today.
ROSALIE: puts her feet up on the table and folding her arms across her chest Yep. Good behavior and whatnot. Isn't that just peachy?
EMMA: I had to see you one more time before you left. I still think you're a good person, Rosalie, but you're harboring such bitterness and hatred in your heart. If you don't let go of that, it will tear you apart on the inside.
ROSALIE: Did you practice that or did the good Lord bless you with just the right words to say, on the spot?
EMMA: Rosalie, please…
ROSALIE: Alright. Alright. If I say that I've seen the light, will you leave me alone?
EMMA: I'm not amused by your comments, nor am I intimidated. The fact is, you've been walking around with a chip on your shoulder for three years now and I'm just trying to figure out why.
ROSALIE: You've read my file. I'm sure you have your theories.
EMMA: Regardless of what I think, I want to hear it from you.
ROSALIE remains silent)
EMMA: Is this about your father?
ROSALIE: (snorts) Hell no. If he wants to disappear without a trace, that's his own damn business.
EMMA: You think it's possible that you resent him for taking off and leaving you with his friend….Bobby? How do you feel about him?
ROSALIE: Bobby has nothing to do with this. He's great.
EMMA: Then what?
ROSALIE: (Takes her feet off the table)You believe in God, Sister. Does that mean you also believe in evil?
EMMA: Of course. Evil dwells in the heart of every man.
ROSALIE: That's not the kind of evil I'm talking about.
EMMA: I'm not sure I understand.
ROSALIE: (leans forward, becoming more intense)I'm talking about demons, ghosts, vampires.
EMMA: Rosalie…
ROSALIE: When you're sleeping soundly at night, Sister, it's people like me, Bobby, and my father that make sure you're safe.
EMMA: What exactly are you trying to say?
(There is a long pause and ROSALIE stares off into the distance, seeming to go back to the night in question.)
ROSALIE: About eight years ago, when I was maybe seven or eight, my mom started acting weird. I couldn't put my finger on it but something about her just didn't seem right. One night I came into her room when I heard her crying. I can remember it clearly to this day. I was just standing there, in my footsie pajamas, staring at her. I'd never seen my mom cry before and it was just so unreal. When she saw me standing in the doorway, though, she started screaming at me. And-and changing.
EMMA: Changing?
ROSALIE: Yeah. She-her eyes were yellow and her teeth…they were so sharp. I don't really remember much after that. My dad ran in with a silver knife from the kitchen and the next thing I knew…
EMMA: He killed her?
ROSALIE: My mother suffered from lycanthropy. (Notices EMMA's questioning look.) Sorry. She was a werewolf, sister. She made my father promise that if ever I came into danger because of her affliction, he was to protect me at any costs. (Suddenly glaring at EMMAAfter that day, my father threw himself into this obsession of destroying any evil creature he came into contact with. It was a way of…paying penance for his own sins, I guess. So, if I have a bit of an attitude problem, I believe it's well-deserved. Don't you, Sister?
EMMA: Enough, Rosalie! Enough with this ridiculous story!
ROSALIE: Perhaps it's a story. But will you ever have a good night's sleep again?