SCENE ONE
(Zandra and Nova walk in the living room and zandra turns on the light to find David standing facing a different direction. They could only see his back)
ZANDRA: (screams) Mom there’s a man in the house
(David turns and face their direction)
NOVA: (shocked) What are you doing here?
ZANDRA: Dad!
DAVID: (puts one hand in the pocket) I’m pleased to finally see the both of you this close. I have been watching you from a distance
NOVA: You were watching us? No, you were not watching us. That’s called stalking. You stalked us for how long?
DAVID: Full two years. I have been looking after you guys since the day I escaped from jail.
NOVA: (furious) What?
DAVID: I’m protecting you. I have been protecting the both of you. All these years I have been having your backs.
NOVA: (confused) Protecting us how?
(Mr Smith walks in from the kitchen holding two glasses of whiskey)
MR SMITH: Well, well. I have just blew my cover
ZANDRA: Dad, Mr Smith, what is going on? Mr Smith what are you doing here?
NOVA: The two of you start talking and start by telling me how you got into my house.
(Mr Smith and David keep quiet while drinking whiskey)
ZANDRA: Dad, you have been protecting us from what? From who? Why didn’t you come home after escaping from jail? You could have at least visited.
DAVID: Oh Zandra, visit how when police are looking for me everywhere? Me being here now it’s a risk. A huge risk! I’m tired of running and I’m tired of hiding. I miss my family, I miss my daughter and I miss my wife.
NOVA: (interrupts) Ex wife
DAVID: Escaping jail is no child’s play. I stay in hiding and the only time I get freedom it’s at night. Then the chances of getting caught are slim.
NOVA: Enough about your sob story. What is your relationship with the detective?
DAVID: He works for me. Every time you are in trouble with the law he comes and saves you. This man right here helped me escape jail. He is my right hand man. I’m nothing without him. He had played a huge role in our lives.
NOVA: (tries to speak but words are not coming out)
ZANDRA: Wait! Wait! So the plan of framing Tom came from dad. Mr Smith you work for dad?
MR SMITH: (nods)
ZANDRA: No! No! You framed Casey Rogers. (shocked) Detective you framed Casey to protect me.
MR SMITH: I knew the first time I got the case that you are the suspect. But I made sure that you stay out of the case as possible. I knew you killed him.
ZANDRA: (nods) Makes sense now. You targeted Selina and Casey to keep me out of the picture.
MR SMITH: I did everything in my power to protect you even at times it didn’t seem so. I couldn’t afford to blow my cover. Me and your father have been behind you since day one.
ZANDRA: So the plan was to get Casey arrested?
MR SMITH: We had our own plans. The plan was to one shift the focus to Casey then after that the plan was to steal the docket and the case would disappear into thin air.
ZANDRA: (shocked) But Casey kept digging. Had she not done the digging we would all be free from this whole mess including Tom?
MR SMITH: Correct! It doesn’t matter now because the “killer” is now arrested. As for you Nova I have lost count how many times I rescued you.
NOVA: Rescue me how?
MR SMITH: I work closely with Skhumbuzo. Skhumbuzo your right hand man. I always get tip offs’ about your company then I will inform Skhumbuzo that we are coming so that evidence can be hidden.
NOVA: What? All this time I thought Skhumbuzo had connections but no… so the real connection is you and David?
DAVID: Yes, Yes Nova. We are behind you 100% but on the serious note though that business of yours has to stop. Can’t you sell hair, eye lashes, make up or something?
NOVA: (laughs out loud) You better go back to your hole if you are going to detect how to live my life. The business puts food on the table. That business is the reason I live in this mansion (points) All the luxurious things in this house are because of my hustle.
DAVID: Lay low for a while then.
NOVA: You want me to stop working? That business pays Zandra’s bills. You left us stranded. That business has workers and if I don’t operate what will my workers eat? Use your brain.
DAVID: If you continue with drug trafficking unfortunately I will not rescue you anymore.
NOVA: (mumbles) I never asked for your help
DAVID: (furious) What did you say?
ZANDRA: Uhm thank you dad for helping us. Thanks Mr Smith for having my back. I wouldn’t have been out if it wasn’t for you
DAVID: (annoyed) Let’s go detective.
(Nova opens the door for them as they approach the door)
ZANDRA: Wait Dad, when will I see you again?
DAVID: (smiles) Soon
(Nova closes the door and heads upstairs to her bedroom without saying anything to Zandra)
SCENE TWO
(Casey slowly opens her eyes and finds herself tucked snugly in Bob’s strong arms. She looks up to find Bob staring at her smiling. Casey closes her eyes and inhaled the familiar scent of Bob’s cologne. Bob holds her tight not wanting to let go)
BOB: Good Morning beautiful
CASEY: (smiles) Good Morning handsome
BOB: How did you sleep Princess?
CASEY: I slept like a baby and you?
BOB: Don’t even ask (smiles) Yesterday night was wild
CASEY: (laughs shyly) I blame the wine
BOB: No! No! Don’t blame the wine. You only had one glass
CASEY: (laughs) What does that have to mean?
BOB: You are a pro in bed. No one has ever made me feel like that
CASEY: I don’t want to talk about last night. I’m leaving.
BOB: (holds her tight) you are not going anywhere. Let’s continue where we left off.
(Bob rolls over Casey and kiss her passionately)
SCENE THREE
(Nova and Zandra are seated silently around the kitchen table, eating their breakfast of warm oatmeal and toast. The morning is cold and rainy. Zandra is still in her pyjamas while Nova is in her formal clothes)
NOVA: (clears throat) Just because your father looks out for us doesn’t mean that you will do as you please and deliberately involve yourself in trouble.
ZANDRA: I will stay far away from trouble
NOVA: Good! I want your father to see that he doesn’t need to stalk us anymore and that we are trouble free. Eventually he will stop stalking us.
ZANDRA: But the nature of your business will not allow you to stay out of trouble.
NOVA: And I’m not stopping. There is a demand for drugs all over the world. I will never stop running my business. My business will close when I die or arrested.
ZANDRA: Never! I will run your business. I think it’s about time I learn how the business operates. I’m your only child and it makes sense for me to take over your business should you die.
NOVA: (sighs) I really didn’t want you to be involve in this type of a business. My wish for you was to get a job, marry and have family. It’s not an easy business to run. You have to worry about the police and the competitors. You always have to watch your back and you have to trust the people you work with. It’s easy for one to betray you.
ZANDRA: Mom, let’s be honest. Have you seen the unemployment rate? I don’t want to be part of the statistics. You can trust me mom plus working in your company will help me stay out of trouble.
NOVA: I refuse. You can’t work in my company. The environment is not good for you. I can’t let you tap into the drugs industry. You won’t get out or worse it won’t end well for you.
ZANDRA: (begs) Please! Okay let’s say you get arrested or die, Skhumbuzo will take over your business? All your sacrifices, all your sweat to someone you don’t know?
NOVA: You are right. Are you ready for the pressure?
ZANDRA: (smiles) Yes. So how does the business work? You sell drugs on the streets or?
NOVA: (laughs) Streets? Come on that’s low class. There’s no money there. We are focused on shipping drugs to international countries.
ZANDRA: (shocked) Oh “Saturdays are for exporting”. You always say that.
NOVA: Correct! Now let’s get to work, we can’t waste any more minute. I have a huge work of teaching you how everything works.
(Nova stands up and takes a bag that is placed on the vacant chair)
ZANDRA: Come on, Mom! I’m eating and I still have to bath.
NOVA: Hurry up! We don’t have the whole day.
SCENE FOUR
(Casey creeps into the living room hoping not to draw any attention to herself. Suddenly she notices Mr Rogers seated on the couch reading a newspaper)
MR ROGERS: Don’t even try that
CASEY: (stops) I’m sorry Dad. I thought you are at work.
MR ROGERS: (closes the newspaper) You are not sorry. You could have called to say you are sleeping out. We waited for you last night like fools.
CASEY: (looks down) It will never happen again
MR ROGERS: It better. Next thing I will hear that you murdered your boyfriend or you are pregnant.
CASEY: Dad! We used pro…
MR ROGERS: I don’t want to hear it. I don’t care about your relationship. There are two things that I want. One, I want to meet the person you are dating and two, inform us when you are sleeping out. It’s that simple!
CASEY: I hear you.
MR ROGERS: Again, you should focus on your school work (stands up and hands Casey a newspaper) read page 3, you might be interested in the online school that is featured there.
CASEY: Thanks.
(Casey heads straight to her room and lay on her stomach on the bed reading the newspaper. She saves the number of the school on page 3 on her phone and continues paging through the newspaper and pauses on page 7. The heading of the article catches her attention and in shock in closes the newspaper and takes her phone to search for Selina’s number. She calls Selina and she answers)
CASEY: (shouting in fear) She is out, she is out. Zandra is out of the jail
SELINA: (shocked) What? You are joking right?
CASEY: How can I joke about something like this? It’s in front of me. THE DAILY NEWS covered the story.
SELINA: Are they after us again?
CASEY: Tom is arrested. Tom killed Alex that is according to the newspaper.
SELINA: There’s no way Tom killed Alex. Why would he kill Alex? Are you thinking what I am thinking?
CASEY: Zandra framed Tom like she framed us
SELINA: Shit! Tom is in trouble.
CASEY: (now pacing up and down) We need to prove that he is innocent. We need to fight for Tom.
SELINA: Are you out of your mind? I’m not going back to that route.
CASEY: Please! He has no one to save him. Selina lets help him.
SELINA: No! Count me out. And never call me again. I’m not your friend and I have no desire in becoming a detective.
(Selina hangs up)
CASEY: Hello, hello, Selina, can you hear me?
(Casey continues to pace up and down her phone still on her hand. She is scared and mad at the same time)
THE END!