MY NAME IS MERCY BUT YOU CAN CALL ME FURY

MY NAME IS MERCY BUT CALL ME FURY

(Drama)

Open scene 1

Today is Saturday, July 21, 2006, the same date as the bride‘s birthday. The event is a wedding between Emma and Troy. The venue is the old family barn that has been in Troy’s family for generations. It also happens to be where Troy was born 28 years ago. The family used to be farmers that dealt mostly in bull breeding but over the years, they have become more involved with real estate business and other types of business ventures but they have kept the family barn. By the side of the barn, outside is a large pear tree that was planted by the great grandmother of the family. It is also decorated in preparation for the wedding reception. It is a large tree, by pear tree standard, almost taller than the barn. It is enough to provide shade for the 150 guests in attendance for the wedding.

(It is a happy day as anyone can tell by the ecstatic expressions on everyone's face, especially the bride who cannot stop smiling into the eyes of her groom. It is entirely too romantic and oh so touching. The overly tall young man conducting the ceremony does not expect any reply at this stage of the ceremony. His name is Chad and he is Troy’s cousin.)

: Open scene:

Chad: (with a big smile on) if anybody has a reason why these two should not be together, speak now or forever hold your peace.

(Enter a strange angry woman through the barn door that ajar)

Stranger: I do. I object to this marriage

(The woman is heavily pregnant and looks to be in her early 20s. She also looks prepared for war. Lots of whispering starts going through the guests who did not expect such dramatic interruption)

Norma: (Stands up slowly from her front-row seat. Points her thin cane at the offending stranger. She is Troy’s grandmother) who are you, young lady and what objections do you have to my grandson getting married? I suggest you leave us in peace.

Stranger: (shouting) you know who I am. You can deny all you want and pretend that I am a stranger but you know who I am. (Beats her chest to emphasize her point)

Emma: (already close to tears) who is she, Troy? do you know that woman?

Troy: (shakes his head with his hands up in denial) I swear baby, I don’t know who she is. I have never met her.

Archie: (Troy’s father stands to his feet in anger, obviously fed up with the interruption and plans to put an end to it) Will someone please remove this lady from here? She was not invited and she is not welcome.

Stranger: (laughing a little crazy) oh but I will remove myself when I am ready sir. (She moves closer to the stage where the couple stood under the arched ring is decorated mostly with flowers like marigolds, roses and tulips) You see, you may pretend not to know me but I know you are. You are a family of evildoers. You deserve neither joy nor happiness and I am here today to ensure that no young lady is sentenced to life with you. (She looks at the groom at the end of her speech)

Emma: (actively cries) why are you trying to ruin the best day of my life? What exactly is your objection? Is Troy the father of your baby?

Stranger: (looks at the bride in white with pity) you poor poor child. I am trying to save your life, trying to save you from a lifetime of misery, from making the worst mistake of your life and you will thank me later.

(At this point, the guests are getting restless and a lot of whispering speculations are circulating amongst them)

Guest i: I think Troy got her pregnant. Why did she wait so long to confront him? And why today of all day?

Guest ii: she obviously has no shame. What does she plan to accomplish with this foolishness?

Guess iii: you don’t know what happened so don’t Assume anything. All I know is that men are animals. I feel bad for Emma. How will she recover from this?

Guest IV: we don’t know the whole story so let’s just settle down.

Emma: what do you mean?

Stranger: I mean that at your engagement party eight months ago that took place at the main house, Troy and his friends raped me in this very barn.

(She points at Troy with eyes cloudy with tears and rage)

(A collective gasp goes through the barn as if the guest had rehearsed their reactions to such news. Some guest cover their mouth in shock)

Emma: (wide-eyed and unbelieving) you lie. Troy would never do that to me, to anyone.

(Looks at Troy to back her up and deny the accusation)

Troy: (shakes his head widely with a hint of desperation in his eyes) she is lying. I swear I don’t know this woman. She is a liar.

Archie: (taking a hold of the stranger’s hand, starts to turn her towards the exit) Enough. I think you have wasted our time enough for the day. You obviously have an agenda with your lies. It’s time for you to go.

Stranger: (tries to break free of the hold Archie has on her) Not until I have said all I came to. Deny it all you want but that man, (pointed Troy) the man standing by his side, (points at Steven, Troy’s college best friend) and the tall one conducting the ceremony raped me in this very barn right by that corner.

(She points to a corner of the barn where the hay and a particularly ugly bull painting used to be. The bull had to be removed because Emma did not like the look in the bullseyes.)

(More gasps and whispering ripples through the guest as if they cannot believe she repeated herself again)

Guest i: I swear I did not see that coming.

Guest ii; this is so much worse than I expected.

Guest v: maybe she is crazy or on drugs. Her tales are outlandish. Troy loves Emma.

Guest IV: Will you bet your life on that?

Guest v: that’s a little ……

Guest IV: then don’t jump to conclusions. You are not a frog.

Norma: We might as well put an end to the ceremony. This young lady is clearly delusional and needs our help. We will continue another day.

Stranger: (shakes her head from side to side still wearing a crazy smile on her face) Oh no, grandma. I will not fall for that again. I came to you that very night after they left me in the cold. I use my last energy to walk to the main house, to ask for help, to call the police but you were there. (Screams on top of her lungs in Norma's direction) YOU KNOW WHAT YOU DID!!!!

Norma: (looks away before looking back at the lady) I don’t know what you’re talking about. Archie, please remove her from my presence.

Archie: (starts dragging her away again but is careful not to hurt her or her baby) Time is up. You need to get off my property because you’re upsetting my whole family.

Guest IV: (stands up from his seat to approach Archie and the struggling lady) maybe I can be of help. Sorry to introduce myself in such conditions. My name is Officer Sway. My wife is the manager of your branch in New York and I’m here with her today.

Archie: (visibly grateful to have an officer in attendance but a little withdrawn at the same time) thank you for coming. Can you possibly assist in this situation? I want her off my property.

Officers Sway: that’s why I’m here. Now, the young lady has made a very serious accusation against your family and I cannot let that stand but….

Stranger: (interrupt the officer, still trying to get free) I don’t lie. I would never lie about anything like this. This is a hurt I have kept with me for a long time and I would never lie about it. You have to believe me.

Officer sway: (gives her a look to show he does not appreciate being interrupted) But in order to do that, I need to hear what she has to say. I have also called for backups and I assure you, an arrest will have to be made for this unrest.

Norma: I don’t see why you need to waste good men's time on made-up stories. Just escort the lady of the property.

(She is angry and that is clear from her tone but at what or at whom)

Officer: I know hers is an outlandish story but she has laid a very serious accusation on your family and just now, she was about to tell us what she claimed you did. But before you say anymore, young lady, (raises his voice so he can be heard by everybody in the barn) May I ask everyone to please leave the barn. The ceremony is obviously over for today and the family needs some privacy. Thank you for coming.

Archie: (addresses everyone) Thank you so much family and friends for attending this important family event. We really appreciate your taking the time to come and be with our family on this special occasion. We will be in touch with an update and possibly another date for the wedding. Have a safe trip home.

(The guests stand up and reluctantly exit the barn. Some of them shamelessly try to linger longer. At last, only the bride, the groom, Chad, Troy’s best friend Steven, Archie, Norma, the officer and the stranger are left in the barn scene)

Officer: now tell us what happened that day.

Stranger: (slowly walks over to a chair and sit down) it was my last delivery for the night. I work at the pizza place downtown. Someone, a lady had ordered pizza to be delivered to the house. I was almost at the main house when the customer called to redirect me to the barn. The barn did not look far away and the call was from a girl so what do I have to be suspicious of? I drove over to the barn, thinking there was another side party there. I was right. There were four people there drinking and smoking weed. The girl was friendly at first. She invited me to join the party after she had collected the pizza. I politely refused. That was when everything changed. Someone suddenly grabbed my hair and yanked me out of the car before I could react. I started screaming, fighting to get free, (looks at the officer with tears in her big brown eyes)

I really fought. They forced me to the ground after dragging me into the barn and poured something foul-tasting down my throat. Then they took turns raping me. It started with him, (points at Chad) he was the one that dragged me out of the car. Then it was his turn. It felt like it would never end but when he finished, (points at Troy‘s best man) he took over. Then it was his turn again, (nods towards Chad) after that, I lost consciousness but the pain in my back woke me up soon after I think. When I woke up, my whole body was afire with pain, I was cold and numb at the same time and I could barely see anything. I did see the green lights that were coming from afar. My car keys were in the car but my battery had died because it was left running. The green light I saw was coming from the main house. It was the garden light at the entrance of the house. I could see nothing else so I figured I could get help and call the police if only I could make it to the house. All I had to do was follow the green light.

I walked over to the big house with my last drop of energy and knocked on the door. (Points at a Norma) she answered the door. I was so relieved to see an elderly gentle face that I just collapsed. I kept telling her I needed help. I told her this exactly, ‘I have been raped. I need to call the police. I have been raped by three men, one too tall with a scar on his face, one a little fat and another college Troy. A girl was there. I have been raped, I need to call the police. I have been raised by three…’ I repeated this over and over to her. Those were all the information I recalled from my attack.

She told me to calm down, offered me hot chocolate. Then said I needed a hot bath too. She was right. I was too cold and filthy and I felt dirtier than a pig so I was grateful she was kind enough to offer me a bath. I let her prepare the bath but I never stopped telling her I needed to call the police. She kept changing the topic. Insistent I needed to bathe first since I smelled and no one would want to listen to me looking the way I did. I still suspect she drugged me or whatever they gave me never wore off but I felt tired and defeated more than before. I could not object to her to even save my life even though I knew having a bath was not the right thing to do but I really did feel very dirty. She helps me wash my hair and did my nails and dried me up. Yes, she cut my nails. She helped me wash off the evidence. (stares daggers at Norma and adds in a whisper) go ahead. I dare you to deny it!

Archie: mother, is this true?

Emma: that is horrible, Norma. How could you do such a vile thing?

Norma: (turns away from everybody) I will not dignify any of that with an answer.

Officer: what happened after that? Did you make a report?

Stranger: no. I slept after the bath and when I woke up. When I woke up, she was there. She told me calling the police would be stupid at this point. She told me I had no evidence of what happened. She said the fact I slept peacefully in the place I claimed to have been raped would make the police dismiss my case. She suggested I should just go home, get tested and move on with my life. She said I was alive and that was all that mattered. She said many other things that convinced me that I missed my window to report the attack. I swear I hated her then more than the men that had raped me. I went home, took the test but six weeks, later, I found out I was pregnant, I waited until I can safely do a paternity test for my unborn baby because I knew my only evidence lied within me. I have my evidence.

(They hear the sirens and trying to watch the sound. The men she accused of rape are now sweating and distressed. They know there is no way they can escape justice this time. Even Norma slowly walks over to a chair to sit down in defeat)

Stranger: why don’t you ask Troy if I lie for even as he claims to have never met me, I have the test result here that says he is the father of my unborn baby and I have a video confession from the lady who ordered the pizza? So why don’t you ask Troy?

(Upon hearing this, the bride faints away. Her sudden drop to the ground shocks everybody but they know that Emma is prone to spontaneous fainting so nobody that knows her panicked)

Chad: what have you done with Ella? What have you done with my girlfriend?

Stranger: I don’t know who you speak of but I am sure she’s very sorry for what she did that night.

Chad: (turns to the police officer) you have to find her. She must’ve done something to her.

Officer: one case at a time. The police are here so let’s move this to the station.

Stranger: (gets up from the chair, goes over to the officer and presented her hands to be cuffed) I think I’m ready to be arrested now.

(At this point, the two police cars pull in front of the barn entrance, the same exit spot her car was parked eight months ago on that fateful, terrible night)

Officer: there will be no cuffing going on but we are all taking a trip to the station so we can get to the bottom of this. Now is a good time for everybody to call the lawyers and get their story straight. But before we can go what is your name, young lady?

Stranger: (smiles sadly) my name is Mercy but you can call me Fury.

(Exit everyone from the barn into the waiting police car. No one looks back at the bride in white who lies tragically and still on the barn floor in a dead faint. They have just changed the history and reputation of an innocent barn)

Lights out