Woodbine

Summary

Things are shifting, the ground is soft underfoot. You can’t trust where you’re stepping, and collapse is imminent. But what does it mean to collapse? To fall, to crumple to the ground? To relax against someone, exhausted and needing that weight against you as comfort? To lose something intangible, something you didn’t know was so integral to your very ability to stand on your own? To pull away the thing holding an entire place up, just to watch it crumble? Bea, Grace, Hollis, and Lennox are now faced with what it means to collapse. What waits for them on the other side?

Content Warnings: violence (described and experienced), blood, death, gore (described), torture, abuse

Transcript

[SFX: Bea is outside Lennox’s place, it’s pouring rain. She bangs on the door]

 

BEA_NARRATION: This is a mistake.

BEA: [yelling from the walkway] LENNOX! [SFX: DRAMATIC THUNDERCLAP]

BEA_NARRATION: What am I doing here? I should leave. I should leave! I should go home. Fuck. FUCK. [pause, deep breath] This is a bad idea. I am standing here in the thematically appropriate rain outside of this nightmare man’s house and I should go but I know I won’t because I don’t know where else to go. I need to figure out what to do about Grace, I need help, I shouldn’t be here. But fuck, fuck.

LENNOX: [SFX: from an upstairs window] You look terrible.

BEA: Let me in.

LENNOX: Ask nicely.

BEA: Never mind. Bye!

LENNOX: Come now, I was only joking. But if I let you in and you continue with that attitude, I’ll have to do something drastic-

BEA: [SFX: stops walking away, turns around] You’ll eat me or kill me or grind my bones to make your bread? Whatever.

LENNOX: You’re a guest. Be respectful.

BEA: [quietly mocking him] bE rEsPeCtFuL. [she takes a deep breath, talking to herself] Don’t push your luck. [SFX: the door opens]

LENNOX: Good evening.

BEA: How long were you considering making me wait in the rain?

LENNOX: Less time than you’d imagine. You may enter.

BEA: You can just tell me what to do out here on the steps, that’s fine.

LENNOX: It’s sheeting down. It’s cold. I know those facts don’t mean a lot to you now but you’re not immune to looking like a drowned rat. Come inside.

BEA: Are you going to say that you don’t bite?

LENNOX: Well, that would be a lie, wouldn’t it?

BEA: Fangs to yourself, buddy. [SFX: she enters]

LENNOX: To be fair, I know Grace is the only one on your mind right now. [SFX: he closes the door] I’ll leave it unlocked.

BEA: How do I deal with Hollis? Or get Grace away from them? Because it feels like she’s being… mind controlled or-

LENNOX: Or that’s she’s turned her back on you.

BEA: Yeah… fuck. I should go.

LENNOX: Go where?

BEA: … I don’t know.

LENNOX: Sweet Bea.

BEA: [annoyed] I came here because I…

LENNOX: Because you don’t know what you’re up against with Hollis.

BEA: [sigh] I don’t… I don’t know where else to go.

LENNOX: [continuing onwards] Or because you want to talk to someone who understands Grace.

BEA: I guess.

LENNOX: Because you want to know if this is vampire magic made into a weapon to tear your heart in twain… or maybe she’s just like this.

BEA: Is she?

LENNOX: [sigh] I don’t know.

BEA: [sigh] Fuck.

LENNOX: You’ve seen versions of her. Small pieces of her past. Her now. What do you think?

BEA: Something feels wrong. I don’t think it’s just her. I think it’s Hollis. But…

LENNOX: Doubt.

BEA: Yeah, doubt. And I don’t want to doubt.

LENNOX: So what if it is Hollis? What’s your endgame?

BEA: How can I fight back?

LENNOX: You think you’re strong enough to stop them from getting what they want? Good luck.

BEA: Is that all you have to offer?

LENNOX: [gives her a long hard look] You’re here begging me to give you answers for how to wrench your girlfriend back from the claws of that hellhound. Is anything outside of hand-to-hand combat going to satiate you right now?

BEA: There has to be something.

LENNOX: Hm. Have you been practicing with Grace?

BEA: Sometimes, but we’ve been busy-

LENNOX: [laugh] Bea, I’m not your dentist. I’m not going to nod and pretend like I believe that you’ve been flossing since your last appointment. If you want to have any sort of chance dealing with Hollis, with anything, you have to be preparing yourself. Whatever they’re doing, whatever has led them to hoist this small torture onto you, that’s their prerogative. They’re strong and ruthless and you… you can’t underestimate that. But hey, if it makes you feel any better, I blame Grace just as much as I do you for her dereliction of duty as your creator.

BEA: Then tell me what to do, because no one else can!

BEA_NARRATION: Lennox is… imposing, in the way that someone’s stern dad is, or a particularly cold manager. In my mind, he’s always in a suit, but I realize that… I’ve never seen him in one. He’s dressed sharply, but it’s like my brain fills in a gap somewhere, gives him the accoutrements I would think he would have. But I’ve never seen him in a tie. He’s in a thin cashmere sweater, a deep rich navy against grey pants. Clothing that feels like it’s either too expensive to ever have a stray thread, or that’s too afraid to.

LENNOX: What do you want, Bea? I want to hear it.

BEA: … I need your help. Please.

LENNOX: [amused] I’ll see what I can do.

 

[SFX: transition, walking through a quiet hallway at the office]

 

GRACE: This better be worth it.

HOLLIS: It’s going to be fine. Just stick to the plan.

GRACE: How are you confident that they aren’t going to flip on us during the vote? You think they’ll actually follow through and not panic?

HOLLIS: Yes.

GRACE: [sighs] I should call Bea.

HOLLIS: No! Focus. Stop worrying about your damn girlfriend and worry about the man who’ll destroy her if you don’t start the immediate breakdown of his power structures.

GRACE: I know, but… I left her behind.

HOLLIS: She’s an adult. She’ll figure it out.

GRACE: I’m just worried about what Lennox will do if he knows she’s alone.

HOLLIS: It’s a risk you have to take. Tonight is our best chance to knock him off his tower. Let’s go over the talking points again.

GRACE: Fine.

 

[SFX: transition. Lennox’s house]

 

LENNOX: If you want to know the truth about Grace and Hollis, then you need to come with me.

BEA: You must have a parlour or something around. Come on.

LENNOX: I have something I would like to show you first. Come. [SFX: starts walking]

BEA: Don’t talk to me like I’m a dog.

LENNOX: [from down the hall] Here girl!

BEA: [SFX: she starts walking to catch up] Fuck you. And stop being cryptic. Just… tell me.

LENNOX: [pause] How much has Grace told you about Vivian?

BEA: Not a lot, but I can’t say I asked. Especially with… how it ended.

LENNOX: Let me start: You don’t look like her. You don’t act like her. You don’t sound or feel or [sniffs] smell like her. But you carry the same curse.

BEA: What, the spooky ability or the relationship with Grace?

LENNOX: Don’t get spiteful just yet.

BEA: What was she like to you?

LENNOX: [amused at the way she worded the question] Sweet. Small. Delicate. I don’t doubt that Grace loved her fiercely. I don’t doubt that she loved Grace back just as hard. But she was never meant for this. She was shatterable. Grace just didn’t realize how hard she hit.

BEA: But why? WHY did she lose it?

LENNOX: She didn’t practice. She made some mistakes and they broke her. She was never meant for this kind of thing. She should’ve stayed human and faded away.

BEA: And why haven’t I?

LENNOX: I don’t know. You’re, as I have said before, an anomaly. In more ways than one, I suppose. But I want to see something. Do a little… stress test.

BEA: Don’t like that.

LENNOX: You’ll be fine. [SFX: walking down a long hallway] So, what do you think?

BEA: I think the interior decorating is fine but the ambiance leaves something to be desired.

LENNOX: Yes, you seem on edge.

BEA: Wouldn’t you be?

LENNOX: Excellent point. I need you to understand something about this place. I, much like many people in this city, have done some… extensive renovations to my lodgings over the years. I can’t say I’m much of a trend follower, although I’ve made a few… questionable decisions in my time-

BEA: I noted the grotto, it’s garish.

LENNOX: I was a younger man then, much more flexible. [they linger in that moment as they walk] How much do you know about the particulars of adhesives?

BEA: … not as much as I’m wishing I did, right now.

LENNOX: That’s fine, few do. Have you ever heard of blood albumin glue?

BEA: Can’t say I have.

LENNOX: Again, not many outside of certain careers have. It’s made with serum albumin derived from blood, hence the name. Now, usually it’s done with blood from livestock. What to do with a stuck pig other than continue to bleed it?

BEA: I can appreciate the commitment to using every last drop but-

LENNOX: What does this have to do with the house?

BEA: No, I was going to ask where we’re going.

LENNOX: A question I will answer shortly. But, to continue, this is used for many purposes including… [he stops, gestures outwards] building.

BEA: [looking around] … the walls are held together with blood.

LENNOX: From plaster to glue, it’s in there. You can feel it, I know you can. It seeps into your spirit once you enter. [he takes a deep breath] Ahhh, invigorating! Come, come come. [SFX: starts walking again]

BEA: Why did you have so much animal blood?

LENNOX: [gets very close to her] I didn’t have animal blood.

BEA: Right.

LENNOX: Don’t furrow your brow like that, they were already dying! But I try to avoid waste where I can. Besides, some people just taste… bad. Skunky, in a sense. Not worth it. Doesn’t mean I should throw them out. First off, it’s incredibly messy.

BEA: You killed them, you took their blood and you used it for… building materials. You lined the walls with death.

LENNOX: Well, not just that. And it’s great! It’s my best idea. Who needs feng shui when you have such effervescent vibrations echoing throughout?

BEA: Fang shui.

LENNOX: Shut up.

BEA: Does Grace know?

LENNOX: [scoffs] Grace put the wallpaper up. You have such a Pollyanna-esque idea of her sometimes. Get with the program.

BEA: Sorry that I keep trying to think the best of people. I’ll change that. Oh, Lennox, this is creepy and bad and so are you.

LENNOX: You are such a pain. [SFX: stops] Here, I wanted to show you this.

BEA: … an empty room?

LENNOX: Look closer.

BEA_NARRATION: The room is tiled with large, scuffed, rough looking squares on the floor, surrounded by bare brick walls. It looks… unfinished, or like it was once finished and then stripped down to the studs. I half expected to see manacles or a portal to another world or something, anything, but it’s just… an unfinished room. There’s a thin, scuffed stool covered in chipped mint green paint off to the side, clearly something once used by a contractor to stand on. Not a good contractor, mind you.

There’s a drain in the middle. I don’t like that detail one bit.

BEA: Do you want design ideas? I suggest drywall. Maybe a painting or two. Bean bag chair. Lava lamp. [SFX: Bea touches the wall and gasps, horrified]

BEA_NARRATION: And then the moment I put my hand on the wall, everything changes. Touching it causes my entire body to fill with something closer to nightmares that burn. The blood in the wall becomes needles, like a thousand tiny points of pain, and I am filled with pain, pain, pain pain pain pain: a woman being torn by wolves, a man having his throat slit, people being drained of their blood while still alive, Grace gleefully tearing at someone’s neck, Grace cutting another vampire open, Grace and Lennox, Hollis and Lennox, Grace and Lennox and Hollis covered in blood, gleeful in a cherry red hellscape that I cannot unsee, it burns into my eyes and sears itself onto my brain and I can barely pull my arm back.

BEA: [pulling back, panting, terrified] That’s…

LENNOX: [SFX: he pulls her close, running his hand through her hair, trying to soothe her] Shh, shhhh, it’s ok! It’s alright. I mean it’s not, but shhhh…

BEA: No, no, I have to get out of here, I have to go- [SFX: tried to pull away but he keeps her close]

LENNOX: Just a second, Bea, you’re experiencing something truly awful. I had my concerns about your abilities, but this confirms it. That would’ve broken a weaker vampire, just a touch, but you… oh, sweet Bea. [he strokes her face] I’m so sorry. That must’ve been awful for you. But you survived!

BEA: Lennox, no I need to go-

LENNOX: Now, how much of that do you think you could take?

BEA: I can’t, [SFX: he grabs her] I couldn’t-

LENNOX: Ooh, wrong answer.

BEA: No… no! [SFX: trying to pull away]

LENNOX: [SFX: pulling her close, mean] I said you could come in. I didn’t say you could leave just yet. Sometimes practice is small exercises, sometimes it’s the hardest thing you’ll ever do. [SFX: he shoves her into the room and slams the door] Let’s see how you fair.

BEA: [SFX: she hits the ground, letting out a horrible noise]

BEA_NARRATION: The ground… the concrete itself, it’s imbued with the blood of those torn apart and emptied and turned into powders and potions and masonry and plaster… their pain, all of this pain, it hits me like a freight train. I am reduced to dust under the weight of it, hundreds of voices screaming out and begging for mercy. I watch so many people die. And I can see Grace’s smile.

BEA: [SFX: panicking, dragging herself to the stool]

BEA_NARRATION: The floor is lava, the walls are lava, they are blood, they are pain, it is all pain and pain and I can’t stop it, I can’t stop it I have to get out of here, I have to get away from the floor, I can’t be here I can’t I need help, help please help.

BEA: [SFX: she pulls herself up onto the stool, panting and in distress]

BEA_NARRATION: I am trapped here on a rickety stool, in the middle of a sea of death only I can see.

 

[SFX: transition. Office]

 

GRACE: [lets out a little noise of discomfort]

HOLLIS: Shh.

GRACE: Sorry.

HOLLIS: You are not allowed to have a heart attack right now.

GRACE: It’s fine. [rubs her chest] Just something bothering me. It’s nothing.

 

[SFX: transition. The room]

 

BEA_NARRATION: Every stone is inlaid with plaster mixed with blood and bone. The bodies of those killed.

I have been studying the room. Dragging the stool behind me and feeling my way around until I can barely stand it anymore, then resting until I can get my senses back in order. It’s not easy. Clearly it was once some sort of… torture room. Or sex dungeon. Or combo thereof. There are chains still in the wall. Rings, bars. I guess it’s good that I wasn’t lashed up. There’s also a drain off to the side. If I had to guess, this was, until recently, a laundry room. That would explain the empty detergent container in the corner. I keep trying to put my feet on the floor, but even through my socks, I can still feel the pain in these floors. It’s overwhelming. Some parts, they’re a cacophony, death upon death upon death layered into each other, I can’t pull them apart. But… in some spots, as I gingerly try to find safer spots to move to, there are clearer, single stories I can witness. A man, shaking hands with Lennox, having his arm broken. A business partner? A friend? A lover? I don’t know. He dies shortly after, throat torn out. Grace, cornered in an alleyway. The person who does it – another vampire, skin white as snow, teeth too long – is ripped apart before they can make another move. There’s almost a pattern here, a path for me to follow. I don’t think it’s intentional, but there are sections that were clearly laid at different times. The clothing changes. The hair. The smell of the air in the dream, they all feel like dreams, like nightmares, like memories… gauzy, filmy, harsh, sad. I move around as if the floor will burn me, and it does, but I’m trying to see if there is anything, any sort of thing here that will tell me more, more about these people, more about this world. And all I see is violence. Is that what I will become? Is that why I’m here?

All I can do is move around the room hoping I find something to cling onto, then retreat back to my little island, praying the reprieve will keep my mind from chewing its way out of my skull.

 

[SFX: transition. The office. Grace’s phone buzzes]

 

GRACE: Shit. It’s Lennox.

HOLLIS: Shit. Don’t tip him off.

GRACE: [SFX: getting up] I won’t. [SFX: walks away to another room, answers call] Lennox?

LENNOX: [phone] Grace, hi.

GRACE: I’m busy.

LENNOX: [phone] Your point being?

GRACE: Don’t even start.

LENNOX: [phone] I’m only calling to say that Bea came by-

GRACE: She came by YOUR place?

LENNOX: [phone] Oh, well, she’s in a bit of a tizzy-

GRACE: My god, ok, well that’s just great!

LENNOX: [phone] She’s very worried.

GRACE: So she comes to YOU, of all people!

LENNOX: [phone] Who else is she supposed to talk to? Clearly you’re… preoccupied with an old friend.

GRACE: If you say “friend” like that again I’ll compel you through the phone to chew your cuticles until you are biting through bone.

LENNOX: [phone] They’re bad enough as is, thanks to her. If you’d like to see her again, I’d recommend you come by soon.

GRACE: … Lennox, what did you do?

LENNOX: [phone] She wanted help, I took her up on her request. And I wanted to see how she’d do in… worse conditions.

GRACE: No, no, Lennox-

LENNOX: [phone] You’re welcome to come by, if you like.

GRACE: You put her on the phone RIGHT NOW.

LENNOX: [phone] She’s busy.

GRACE: Fuck, fuck! [SFX: she moves the phone down, takes a deep steadying breath] Ok. Ok. Fuck.

LENNOX: [phone] Grace? Everything ok?

GRACE: You piece of shit, if you don’t let her out now I am going to come down there and break through the wall.

LENNOX: [phone] She’ll be fine. She’s definitely… stronger than the last one.

GRACE: … you didn’t, you didn’t!-

LENNOX: [phone] Tell you what: I’m going to go check on her in a few minutes, and if she’s really doing bad, I’ll send her your way, alright? Then you two can have some time together to hash things out.

GRACE: Don’t do this to me, not again.

LENNOX: [phone] You should’ve listened to me the first time this happened. Oh well. I’ll let you know how things go. Have a good night.

GRACE: Lennox! [SFX: he hangs up] Fuck! [SFX: leaves the room]

HOLLIS: [SFX: bumping into her as she exits] Grace, Grace, Grace, what’s going on?

LENNOX: Lennox has Bea.

HOLLIS: Hm. Well, at least we know he’s distracted.

GRACE: No, I’ve got to-

HOLLIS: You’ve got to stay here. You go over there, and he traps you both. Bea will be fine.

GRACE: Do you honestly believe that?

HOLLIS: Sure! Look, we’re going in there shortly. As soon as this is done, you can run off to get her. For now, I need you and I need your votes.

GRACE: I-… [SFX: rubbing face] Ok. Ok. Fuck.

HOLLIS: Pull yourself together. … Do it for Bea, if that helps.

GRACE: [sighs] Ok. Alright. Ok. She’s going to be fine. She’s going to be fine.

 

[SFX: transition. The room, we hear measured breathing]

 

BEA_NARRATION: I don’t know how long I’ve been here. Even the air hurts to breathe. Maybe it’s psychosomatic, but it’s all imbued with violence, as if I could smell the scent of blood on it. Being in this space feels like the walls are pushing in on me and everything aches.

I am learning, though. I’ve found little islands of space where I can find single stories, lone voices in the din. And I know what I am searching for now. There are so many anonymous tales, small pieces of lives I will never know more of, people whose names I will never find out. I am hearing stories of the dead. With every touch another piece of a life becomes mine.

They are gone. And I will not forget them. And I will carry them with me.

And I search. Because over and over again, I have found pieces of Grace in these walls, in the floors, in the grout and in the dust. And while every single step feels like a nail being dragged across the worst sunburn I have ever felt in my life, I am trying to push past it and compartmentalize and keep focused. Find something grounding in the noise. Find what I know can give me… well, it’s certainly not peace, but at least something to hold onto. And I find her. Grace. Her story.

She is younger. Or the same age. She feels younger, though. She looks different and there is a ruddiness to her skin that I only see in humans now. I could never imagine her this… wild looking anymore. Hair frizzy, lips chewed on the edges from… stress, I assume. And Lennox is there, offering… a hand. She’s not tired. She’s not frail. She is… determined. And she takes it. And I watch as his teeth cut into her and she looks… ready. She knew what she was getting into. There is no regret in her face as the change overwhelms her. Her blood spills onto the floor, and I realize that I’m in an earlier version of this space, before the walls went up, before the place was even fully built. How long has her blood filled this space? Forever, maybe.

And I have worked my way back through her story. I have watched her fight, kill, the ruthlessness that was in her at one time, a version of her I never knew. And how that slowly was built. As she learned. As she fought. As she was pushed. Lennox was right. She was honed like a knife. And she was sharp.

And I don’t know what to do with this. I’m kind of into it. Maybe that’s weird. Every part of me feels like it’s hurting right now. Maybe I just want her to put me out of my misery and maybe I just want that strength in this moment and maybe I want to put my own pain in here and to get revenge on those who led me to this spot.

But I move around the room still. It is awful, it is making my brain feel like it is going to rupture the further I go and my muscles ache and twitch from the stress. But I’m searching, I want to know, I need to know. And I find her.

Vivian. I see her.

 

[SFX: transition. Grace is leaving a message while hiding in a broom closet at the office]

 

GRACE: [voicemail] Bea, hey, please, if you get this, please call me. I know you’re at Lennox’s and it’s ok, I swear, just please, please call me, I just need to know you’re ok. I’m sorry, I should’ve brought you with me, I should’ve told you, I’m sorry, please just call me, or text me, anything to let me know you’re ok. And if you’re not, please, I’ll come get you, I’ll come help. Call me.

 

[SFX: transition. The room, but an earlier version of it, barely built. We’re in a memory]

 

BEA_NARRATION: Wild eyes and wild hair, Vivian stands before Grace, face and hands stained with blood. Lennox, off to the side, quietly smoking.

LENNOX: You are so sweet. But you suffer so much.

GRACE: What did you DO?

LENNOX: I let her explore the place. And she took a wrong turn.

GRACE: You…

LENNOX: You can’t turn someone this fragile, Grace! You CHILD, dragging your toys along with you-

GRACE: Vivian, Vivian, come here-

VIVIAN: No! No one touch me! No, no no!

GRACE: … who’s blood is that?

LENNOX: I found her working her way through some of the staff. Apparently she’s not a fan of her own kind.

GRACE: Oh, oh Viv, no…

LENNOX: She’s a liability. Always was.

GRACE: No…

LENNOX: She can’t be kept around.

GRACE: No! Let me help her! Vivian, let’s go- [SFX: she moves towards Vivian and touches her, but that causes her to pull back]

VIVIAN: MURDERER, FILTHY MURDERER!

GRACE: … No, Viv, I swear-

VIVIAN: YOU DID THIS TO ME!

LENNOX: Grace, I am so sorry-

GRACE: No you’re not.

LENNOX: I just had to make sure she was… worth keeping around.

GRACE: Did… did you do this to her? Did you push her?

LENNOX: Well, I may have given her a bit of a stress test, but-

GRACE: You MONSTER. [SFX: she storms over and shoves him, starts slapping at him] YOU BROKE HER JUST TO HURT ME-

LENNOX: [SFX: grabbing her wrists to stop her] You should’ve thought about this! You should’ve KNOWN! And now you pay the price! Well… I guess she does as well.

GRACE: No.

LENNOX: Yes.

GRACE: NO-

 

[SFX: transitions out, Bea is on her hands and knees on the floor]

 

BEA_NARRATION: I don’t know Vivian. I don’t think I ever will. But I know how she got to where she did. And I know why I’m here.

 

[SFX: transition, Hollis sits in their office]

 

HOLLIS: Michael?

MICHAEL: Yes?

HOLLIS: Is everything ready?

MICHAEL: It is.

HOLLIS: Are you sure?

MICHAEL: Yes.

HOLLIS: Great. You keep everything under control. And if I say the word…

MICHAEL: Yeah. I’ll open the doors.

HOLLIS: Thank you. [pause] You can go.

MICHAEL: Yeah. Yeah. [SFX: he leaves]

 

[SFX: transition. The room. There’s a gentle knock at the door]

 

LENNOX: [SFX: the door opens a crack] Knock knock! [SFX: he walks in] How’s my little stool pigeon?

BEA: [tired and sullen] That’s not even the correct usage of that term.

LENNOX: Apologies, it was too tempting.

BEA: I don’t want to be here anymore.

LENNOX: Have you gotten the chance to… take a look around, as it were?

BEA: Yes. And I don’t need to see anything else.

LENNOX: Poor girl. Here, let me take you somewhere more comfortable.

BEA: This feels like a newer, worse trap.

LENNOX: I’ve had my fun. For now, at least. Let’s get you out of this room.

BEA: You put me in here.

LENNOX: And I’ll rescue you, if you’ll let me.

BEA: What, you want to give me a piggyback ride out?

LENNOX: This isn’t the county fair, we’re not trying to win a blueberry pie. [SFX: very close] You deserve better than that. And you look so tired-

BEA: I’ll show myself out, thanks-

LENNOX: No, allow me. [SFX: he scoops her up and carries her out]

BEA_NARRATION: In a movement that feels too natural, not practiced but honed, Lennox scoops me off of my perch and into his arms, carrying me through the room as if I was a rescued damsel or a swooning bride. My immediate reaction is to strike, to launch myself up at his neck and turn his flesh into a paste in my rage, but the moment I am no longer tensed on my precarious ledge, my whole body fills with a fatigue I cannot stop. I ache in corners I forgot existed. For the moment, my muscles feel like overcooked pasta. And he knows this. He carries me gently in a parody of affection, as if he cares. I know that he holds me close not because he wants to keep me safe, but because he wants me to know that I cannot escape.

He’s doing it because he can.

Being this close to him causes images, dreams of past deeds to swim and swirl on the edge of my vision. I am too tired to focus on them. It’s like trying to look through a pool at night, find an object on the bottom. There is so much violence within him. I could drown in it. But looking up, he’s… amused. [SFX: a gentle chuckle and a patronizing ‘shh, it’s ok, we’re almost there’ from him]. He smells lightly of tobacco, leather, flowers, earth. He carries me like I’m nothing. But that’s what I am to him: Weightless, worthless, nothing.

He is stronger than I thought, I can feel it in his arms. What did Grace say? Violence smells like freshly cut metal, sharp and biting. There is an edge on his breath, his face close to mine. Metal, blood, sharp, mean.

I think about Grace. I can only imagine what she would do if she was here. [smiles] What a lovely thought.

LENNOX: The colour is returning to your face. I’m pleased.

BEA: Bully for you.

LENNOX: Do you ever lighten up?

BEA: Do you honestly expect me to?

LENNOX: I could bring you back down there-

BEA: No! … No.

LENNOX: Alright, I would only ask that you offer a little more respect. You are a guest, after all.

BEA: Oh, pardon me, sir.

LENNOX: [amused] Much better.

BEA_NARRATION: We’re in a small but beautifully decorated room somewhere deep in the house. A reading room. Books line the walls, some bound in colourful leathers and gold filigree, but an equal number appear to be mass-market paperbacks. There is a surprising number of dark romance novels on one wall. Leaded glass windows rest high up on the wall above the shelves, letting in the faintest hints out of the outside. He places me gently on the couch and touches my cheek with soft fingers. Instead of the sweet, glittering static that is Grace’s touch, his fills me with an electrical buzz that verges on unpleasant. It is warm and I want to peel the skin off his arm.

LENNOX: There’s some drinks over there in the globe. It’s refrigerated, don’t worry.

BEA: Again, it feels like a trap.

LENNOX: You’re a little paranoid. … You’re right, can’t fault you for that.

BEA: You’ve had your fun. Can I go?

LENNOX: Grace will be here soon I’m sure, I’d like to see her as well. [a pause, Bea clearly thinking] Little bird, what’s on your mind? [SFX: tiny shimmer of a compel] Ask.

BEA: … What else can you do?

LENNOX: Excuse me?

BEA: [shaking it off] Don’t compel me for such small things, jeez. You’re powerful. You can walk in dreams. But that can’t just be it, that’s not enough. What else can you do? What else have you taken from others?

LENNOX: Clever girl. You know, it’s generally not in a vampire’s best interest to share those qualities.

BEA: So I’ve heard.

LENNOX: Well, you know that Grace is… very persuasive. She definitely got that from me. Do you think you could handle that?

BEA: I’ve been practicing.

LENNOX: Cute! But again, you’re up against people much stronger than you. Hollis was never as… adept at these things as myself or Grace, but they didn’t need to be.

BEA: I have been able to resist Grace.

LENNOX: Then she’s holding back on you. She could force rain back into the clouds.

BEA: And you’re hot shit?

LENNOX: A magician never exposes his secrets… but what’s the harm in a little taste. [SFX: the sound in the room dulls, only Lennox’s voice becomes the focal point, warm and shimmering] My dear, go to the globe and open it.

BEA_NARRATION: [SFX: she walks over to the globe, the audio in the narration starts to fuzz out, distort] Suddenly, I am numb to the world. He opens his mouth and I feel my body be taken away from me. Need, need and want, all I want is to listen, I need to listen. I must. I want to. [SFX: it opens with a gentle hiss]

LENNOX: Good girl. You’ll see there’s an ice pick there, beside the tumblers. Pick it up.

BEA_NARRATION: Resist, hard.

LENNOX: Ah, ah, no. [SFX: he walks over and takes her hand] I see your hand shaking. You’re fighting back! And doing better than expected, I might add. s. But Grace hasn’t been practicing either. A dull blade. But me? I know the value in a whetstone. [SFX: the audio dulls again] Now pick it up before I push even harder and shatter what little will you have left.

BEA_NARRATION: [SFX: distorted, panicking] Grace, I need you here now- [SFX: the internal narration fuzzes out completely and cuts out hard, she picks up the ice pick]

LENNOX: Very good. Ok, my dear, do you trust me? Say yes.

BEA: Yes.

LENNOX: I assumed. You’ll talk when I ask you to talk. Now, please take the ice pick – carefully, it’s quite sharp! – and I want you to place the point over your heart. Right… there. Now, I want you to push it ever so slightly into your skin. I want to see what beats within.

BEA: [SFX: Bea breathing hard, shakily]

LENNOX: [SFX: sits down, leans forward] I know this is hard for you, I can only imagine the trauma is this… reawakening. But you asked what I could do. And I’m teaching you a lesson. Don’t pry in places you’re not wanted. Now, push.

BEA: [SFX: Bea takes a gasping breath as the point punctures her skin]

LENNOX: Not too far! I’m not going to kill you, Bea. But I’m not letting you pull it back just yet. It’ll be up to you to do that. Ah, I shouldn’t leave you in silence. So, how’s it going?

BEA: Stop this.

LENNOX: Say please.

BEA: PLEASE stop this.

LENNOX: No. But thank you for asking nicely.

BEA: You fucking asshole-

LENNOX: [quietly forceful] Push it in further. [SFX: Bea cries out] Watch your mouth.

BEA: I get it! I get it!

LENNOX: Excellent! You’re learning your lesson. Grace is a terrible teacher, though. I should talk to her about that.

BEA: I’ll make note- [SFX: pained]

LENNOX: You can make this stop. You just have to find the strength to. Pathetic. [SFX: he stands up and walks over and circles around her, slowly. He gets very close to her ear] Why am I doing this, Bea?

BEA: Because you’re a fucking asshole-

LENNOX: Shhhh. Shhh shhh shh. [SFX: Bea breathing heavily] I don’t want to do this-… you’re right, I’m… lying at least a little. But this would be a lot easier for both of us if you stopped being so rude. I just want you to answer my question. So, let’s try this again. Why am I doing this?

BEA: Because you are trying to break me.

LENNOX: Oof, harsh. I like to think of it as training. If Grace had any sense she would’ve pushed you harder to be able to better resist such compulsions. But you’re right, sounds like something I would do, if that’s how you perceive me.

BEA: You did this to Vivian.

LENNOX: Unfortunately, yes. You’re doing much better, though.

BEA: You don’t want anyone going near Grace. You’d rather her be alone than to love someone else and you destroyed Vivian. Not even to get her out of the picture, but to punish Grace for caring for someone else.

LENNOX: I never set out to harm Grace-

BEA: Liar. LIAR. Vivian was a tool, an object. She wasn’t even worth you laying a hand on her. You used her until she broke and it was just because you wanted Grace to suffer because you can’t handle that she didn’t need you anymore.

LENNOX: You think I needed her?

BEA: You are consumed, Lennox. Pathetic.

LENNOX: [furious] [SFX: big angry magic] PUSH THAT POINT IN UNTIL I SAY STOP. 

BEA_NARRATION: [SFX: fuzzy, quiet and far in the background, struggling] RESIST. RESIST UNTIL YOUR BONES BREAK.

LENNOX: [SFX: go big or go home magic time] DO IT.

BEA: NO. [SFX: he’s tackled by her, landing on his back, her on top of him, point to his neck] Hello Lennox. I think I’ve found my ability to push past it!

LENNOX: [struggling] I have to say, you’re doing better than Vivian.

BEA: Oh for cryin’ out- I’M SELF-ACTUALIZED, you ABSOLUTE JACKASS. You know how much fucking THERAPY went into THIS? Maybe your tactics worked better in the 1800s or whatever but I have been WORKING ON MYSELF since 2010 and I will NOT backslide because some COMPLETE DIPSHIT like you comes in and tries to BREAK my BRAIN.

LENNOX: And this is healthy?!

BEA: NO! BUT THAT’S ON YOU!

LENNOX: [trying to stay calm] If you let me up-

BEA: Give me one reason why I shouldn’t gut you right now. THIS COUNTS AS SELF CARE AS FAR AS I’M CONCERNED!

LENNOX: Because if you do, then you’re all alone with Hollis. And who knows whose side Grace will take?

BEA: I don’t believe you.

LENNOX: Then kill me.

BEA: I bet you’re too much of a wimp to compel me to do it.

LENNOX: If you’re going to talk such a big game then rip my throat out RIGHT NOW. You KNOW that you’re completely out of your DEPTH here! YOU’VE NEVER KILLED AND YOU ARE TOO MUCH OF A COWARD TO EXPERIENCE THAT THRILL.

BEA: … Fuck- [SFX: she relaxes a little and he takes the chance to just body her across the room]

LENNOX: [a laugh] Sentimentality is a weakness. You know that, sweet Bea…

 

[SFX: transition, Rhys is walking down the street, on the phone, it’s ringing, Grace picks up]

 

GRACE: [phone] Rhys?

RHYS: Grace, hey, do you know where Bea is? I’ve been trying to find her but her phone keeps going to voicemail.

GRACE: [phone] I know, I know, I’ve been trying to get ahold of her too, she’s at Lennox’s.

RHYS: Ahhh shit. Where are you?

GRACE: [phone] I’m at the office.

RHYS: With Hollis?

GRACE: [phone] Did they tell you?

RHYS: They let a few things slip. Or… maybe it was calculated? I… I wouldn’t put it past them, now that I think about it.

GRACE: [phone] I don’t want to get into that right now. Fuck. Ok. Just… Can you come here? I might need you to run and find Bea as a moment’s notice, ok?

RHYS: Want me to just go to Lennox’s?

GRACE: [phone] That is too dangerous.

RHYS: Oh, and going to his office is? With 80 jillion vampires who are all watching us with teeth readied?

GRACE: [phone] Fuck. Ok, go… go there. Don’t go in. Just see if you can… find any sign of her, ok? Don’t do anything stupid.

RHYS: You’re not the boss of me.

GRACE: [phone] Yes I am.

RHYS: Whatever. I’m going to go see if I can find her and not get killed. That was my new year’s resolution: don’t get killed.

GRACE: [phone] Please, just… tell me if you find her.

RHYS: Ok. On it.

GRACE: [phone] Good luck, Rhys.

RHYS: Yeah, you too. I’ll see you soon.

 

[SFX: transition. Lennox has Bea pinned by the neck to the wall]

 

BEA_NARRATION: There is a hand at my throat. Anger radiates off Lennox like the sun, but his body is still. Nothing spare. Nothing unneeded. Taught like a bowstring pulled back and ready to release. I am too weak to push him away.

LENNOX: Now let me ask you this: why shouldn’t I gut you right now?

BEA: [struggling] Because it would really piss Grace off?

LENNOX: Wouldn’t be the first time. Look, if I were smart, I would chain you up in that room and drain your blood for my own use.

BEA: I would prefer it if you didn’t.

LENNOX: I don’t think you’d have much choice in the situation. But you are right, it would certainly… turn Grace against me permanently.

BEA: Yeah, and what a shame that would be. All this work for nothing.

LENNOX: Hm. You raise a solid point.

BEA: Damn. I was going to use that line.

LENNOX: What?

BEA: [SFX: she stabs him in the arm with the ice pick] You forgot I still had the ice pick. [SFX: he drops her, she coughs] Motherfucker.

LENNOX: Oh, you’ve done it now.

BEA: Whatever. I’m leaving, ok? We can continue to kick the shit out of each other or you can just let me walk away and we can continue seething from a distance. It certainly would result in fewer ruined shirts.

LENNOX: Do you even know where Grace is? Shocked she’s not here banging down my door.

BEA: She’s off doing whatever it is with Hollis.

LENNOX: Never a good combo. [he gives her a long, hard look, mulling over his options] And I shouldn’t let your intrusion here cloud my perception. Those two together at this point? Dangerous. But not for you. Excuse me. [SFX: he goes to leave] Ah ah ah, I’m going to need you to sit tight for just a little longer.

BEA: I’m leaving.

LENNOX: [SFX: big compel] YOU WILL NOT. Wait a while. I’ll be back. And if you don’t want to stay here, I can put you downstairs. You seemed so… comfortable down there.

BEA: [SFX: magic, uncomfortable] Fine. Whatever.

LENNOX: Very nice. I’ll be back shortly. I have some business to attend to. Oh, and I’ll take this. [SFX: he takes the ice pick] Ruining my shirt, you know this was a gift, right? No respect at all as a guest… [SFX: he walks out, closing the door and locking it]

BEA: Shit.

 

[SFX: transition. Office]

 

HOLLIS: Meeting’s starting. You got everything?

GRACE: Yes.

HOLLIS: Still panicking about Bea?

GRACE: Yes!

HOLLIS: Push past it. We’re almost done.

MICHAEL: They’re ready for you.

HOLLIS: Ok. Grace?

GRACE: Just… feels like we’re heading into a whole new world of shit.

HOLLIS: Well, at least it’ll be new. Come on. {SFX: they walk in, you hear them through the door] Members of the board, hello, thank you for joining us tonight on such short notice. We’re here to speak to you on the motion to remove Lennox from the head of the company, effective immediately.

[end]

 

Credits

Featuring the voices of:

Emily Kellogg as Grace
Alex Nursall as Bea
Ian Boddy as Rhys
Rob Deobald as Lennox
J Strautman as Hollis
Kat Letwin as Vivian
and Shaun Oldfield as Michael

Woodbine is an original podcast created, written, and produced by Alex Nursall and Emily
This episode was written and directed by Alex Nursall
Production and promotion by Emily Kellogg
Engineering and sound design by Ian Boddy
Theme by Phil Wright
Music by Phil Wright and Ian Boddy
Recorded at Pirate Sound
Artwork by Andy Kelly
Distributed by Realm