God Awful Things

M4W:

Listen, I’m gonna be honest with you, I’m a loose cannon, and I play by my own rules. I’m an Assistant District Attorney for the city whose been put on the case of bringing MegaCorp International down. I was thrust into this position after another ADA “committed suicide”, but I don’t buy it.. He was a good man, he only wanted to speak for the victims, and now it’s up to me to speak for them… and him.

This is where you come in. I need someone who is willing to purger themself on the stand, I know this is highly unethical, and completely illegal, hell, they’ll probably revoke my licenses to practice if they ever find out, but sometimes you’ve got to do the wrong thing to make things right. You see, MegaCorp Intl. has been poisoning the ground water by dumping mercury upstream from this small town. I’ve seen the internal memos, they know what they did would cause irreparable harm to hundreds of men, women and children, but they didn’t care.. All they cared about were profits.. I wouldn’t be asking you to do this if it wasn’t the only option..

Now don’t worry, I’ll coach you on your answers and we’ll practice with mock trials down at the courthouse. I’ll tell you how to speak, how to respond, the eye-contact with the jury, even what to wear, you’ll need something slightly seductive but not sexual, we want the jury to like you and believe you, but not be jealous of you. This will take days, maybe weeks as we prepare our case. 16 hour days of practice to make sure they can’t break you during cross examination, and I apologize now for how hard I’ll have to be on you, we just have to make this stick.

The last day before the trial during our last hour of practice, in order to break your concentration I will eventually question you with “Do you find me attractive?” and “May I take you out to dinner?” Blushing, you will accept.

I will take you to a fine hotel restaurant downtown where you can ask me personal questions about my past and I can quip things like “Hey, who’s on trial here?” Despite the trial starting the next day, we will go up to my loft, while I change, feel free to look around.. you’ll probably notice the gold zippo lighter on the dresser, that was from my dad, he gave it to me on his death bed.. he died of complications caused by mining, they didn’t obey all the safety protocols and a half dozen men died because of it.. I keep that lighter to remind me that someone has to make them pay.

When I return, we will drink some wine until the sexual tension is too strong, I will make my move, you will say “I object” and I will reply “Overruled” and we fall to satin sheets and the scene will blur to the full moon outside. In this crazy world turn upside down, we will find the one thing we weren’t looking for… love.

I’m afraid here comes the bad news. You see, the next morning as we approach the court house, a car will most certainly come around the corner, I won’t see it, I’ll be talking to my assistant, or maybe the press, but you will, it will seem like slow motion, you turn and notice the car, the window slowly rolls down, then appears a gun barrel, for a second you will think it’s pointed at you, but it’s not.. it’s pointed at me, the shot rings out and you have but one moment to react, you jump in front of me, taking a slug to the chest. People will scream and run from the court house steps, but not me, I will hold your head in my lap gently rocking back and forth saying “No no no no!” patting your cheek trying to get a response..

In the last moments I will open my brief case and bring out a flower I was going to give you after the trial, you will blink slowly and smile with blood in the corner of your mouth. I will rock back and forth slowly as the ambulance arrives too late.

But I want you to know, your death wont be in vain. I will never stop, I will never relent, and never give up, it’s what I do, I will make them pay.