TODD'S RETURN - PART SIX

PREVIOUSLY

Todd: (Wearily:) I'm heading out for the night, Briggs. Beep me if you need me.

Briggs: Everything ok, Todd?

Todd: Just tired. Night. (Exits the office, leaving his doors open.)

Briggs: (Watches Todd leave.)

[Scene ends.]

*****************************************************************************************************

[Scene: Club Indigo, crowded night. Jazz playing in background. Todd enters, crosses to the bar, orders a beer. The bartender is also waiting tables, they're short-handed tonight.]

RJ: (A little leerily:) Todd.... What brings you here?

Todd: (To RJ, wearily:) Beer, please. Draft.

RJ: (A little irritated, to Todd:) Oh, hello, RJ. How are you, RJ?

Todd: (Distractedly looks at RJ.) Sorry. Not in a talking mood. (Goes to an empty table, dimly lit, by the wall across from the bar, and sits.)

RJ: (Brings the beer to Todd's table, sets it down in front of Todd.) Here. (Looks Todd over.) Do you sleep?

Todd: (Looks up at RJ.) No.

RJ: That explains a lot.

Todd: (Drinks beer fast.) Get a lot done if you can't sleep. (Gulps down rest of beer, hands it to RJ, saying:) Another, please.

RJ: (Goes to the bar, refills glass, returns with it, hands it back to Todd. As he does so, Bo enters the Club. RJ indicates trouble approaching to Todd by a small head nod (like Hank's) and the direction of his glance toward Bo.)

Todd: (He sees RJ's warning and tenses, following RJ's glance. He nods his head slightly to RJ. Drinks fast.)

RJ: (Returns to bar, uneasy. Watches from the bar, as he serves another patron.)

Bo: (Appears in front of Todd, intones.) Manning.

Todd: (Puts his glass down, empty, swallows the last of his beer, wipes his mouth with the back of his hand, braces. Looks up at Bo, his expression weary and blank. He almost looks resigned.)

Bo: (As Todd swallows, he begins:) This is for Nora. (Grabs Todd by the lapels and bodily lifts him from his chair. He offers no resistance. Bo hits him in the face and bloodies his nose, bruising Todd's cheek.)

Todd: (Touches his nose and wipes away blood. Looks briefly at his hand, impassively. Looks at Bo, indifferent.)

Bo: (In Todd's face:) Nothing to say, Manning? I know you're faking DID.

Todd: (Drops his hand to his side. Looks wearily at Bo.)

Bo: (Hits him in the stomach. Todd slumps, gasping.) You're not wanted here, Manning, and by the time I'm done with you (draws his fist back) you will have nothing left. (Punches Todd.) Nothing to say for yourself, Manning? You usually have so much to say. Viki's not here to protect you now, I can do (punches Todd in the stomach hard, Todd makes a noise and tries to double over, but Bo still has his jacket in his left fist and holds him semi-upright now) what I want (punches him in the stomach again.) to you.

Todd: (Makes no attempt to defend himself except to double over and stumble. He twists in Bo's grip, exposing his right side.)

Bo: (Contempt, shouting:) Still nothing to say, Manning? (Todd slumps lower, Bo still holding onto his jacket. Bo knees Todd in the ribs and Todd groans loudly, involuntarily with each impact. The last time, Bo's grip on Todd's jacket slips and Todd begins to sink to the floor.)

Todd: (He falls to the floor on his left side, coughing a bit, and begins to curl up in pain, trying to protect himself, as Bo loses his grip on Todd's jacket completely.)

[Camera shows Bo kicking him in the stomach on the floor almost under the table, also kicking Todd's arm, the pain clearly evident on Todd's face through his hair.]

Joey: (Enters the Club, and sees Todd falling. Rapidly works his way through the crowd to them, arriving at the same time as RJ. Grabs for Bo.)

Bo: Kicking you out of the Country Club just scratched the surface, Manning!

RJ: (Yells at Bo, as he comes around from behind the bar and crosses the floor:) Knock it off, Bo! (Makes a grab for Bo, but his grip is poor, scrabbles to get to Todd, who is now balling himself up, gasping, on the floor.) Back off, man! (Gets between Bo and Todd, finally.) Just back off, Bo! You've done enough damage. (Shoves Bo away roughly.)

Bo: (Shoots RJ an angry look.)

Joey: (Grabs Bo off of Todd and restrains Bo. Gets in Bo's face:) Stop it, Uncle Bo! Now! This does nobody any good!

Bo: (Tries to get free of Joey, RJ pushes him away from Todd, Joey drags a very angry Bo back out of range.) Get out, Manning! You should be in the loony bin right now! Or in prison, for a looong time!

Todd: (Is now balled up on the floor, almost under the table. Pain apparent on his face, one arm across his belly and chest, the other around his head.)

RJ: Stop it, Bo! He's done nothing to you, tonight! (Props Todd up on the floor and looks him over.) You ok, man?

Todd: (Gasping and holding his belly, one leg folded under the knee of the other.) Think so. (Winces hard, exhales painfully.)

Joey: (Dragging Bo away:) There's no reason to be doing this here, Uncle Bo. Move it! (In Bo's face:) NOW, Uncle Bo! (Turns Bo and shoves him ahead of him through the crowd.)

Bo: (Turns around, tries to dodge Joey, who blocks him. Over Joey's shoulder:) You're not wanted here, Manning! I'll see that you're driven out of this town! (Tries to turn around and say something else to Todd.)

Joey: (Grabs him harder by the arm, and forcibly turns him around toward the entryway.) CAN IT, BO! (Shoving him up the step and to the left down the foyer:) He's my Uncle, too, Bo! Move it!

Bartender: (Comes to RJ's side and looks at Todd:) Is he ok?

RJ: Cover for me. (Lifting Todd, and escorting him to his office in the back of the Club. To Todd:) I'm calling your wife.

Todd: Don't tell my sister. She'll have a fit.

RJ: Why would I?

[They enter RJ's office.]

Todd: (Sits in a chair across from RJ's desk, head in hand, elbow on knee, an arm across his ribs.) Viki was meeting me here.

RJ: She was? This hardly seems her kind of place.

Todd: You don't know my sister.

RJ: (Shoots Todd a look. Puts phone to ear, dials.) Yeah, Tea? RJ. Fine. Listen, Todd's here. Yeah.... no. Bo came in and picked a fight with him and Todd's been beaten pretty badly, looks like...(listens) uh-huh..... in my office. Sure. (Hangs up. To Todd:) You stay here. I've got a business to run. (Leaves office, closes door.)

Todd: (Puts his head in both his hands now, his breathing ragged.)

[Scene ends.]

[Scene: About 20 minutes later. RJ's office at Club Indigo. Tea enters, and sees Todd still sitting with his head in his hands.]

Tea: (Alarmed, concerned:) Cara?

Todd: (Sits up immediately.) Huh?! (Winces, face still bloody.) Tea: (Soothing:) It's me, Todd. (Brushes his hair off his jacket gently.)

Todd: (Trying to hide physical discomfort.) Sorry.

Tea: (Checks him over.) You should get checked out. C'mon, we're going to the hospital.

Todd: NO! I'm ok.

Tea: Bo really hit you, you should see your face. (Digs in purse for compact to show him his face in its mirror. Holds it up.)

Todd: (Pushes it away.) Don't want to see. Don't need to go to the hospital.

Tea: No! You're going, and that's that!

Todd: I'm fine! (Winces, holds arm against ribs. Rubs left forearm painfully.)

Tea: You've just been beaten up, ok? You are not fine.... Do your ribs hurt?

Todd: (Tries to breathe, finds it painful, winces.) Some.

Tea: See? Bo really did a number on you. You should press charges.

Todd: Yeah.

Tea: So, we go to the hospital, and there's a record of your injuries, ok?

Todd: Ow. Yeah.

Tea: We take pictures. Then we file charges against Bo.

Todd: (Grins nastily.) Sounds good.

Tea: That's my boy. (Smiles at him sweetly.) Let's go. (Takes his hand.)

[They leave RJ's office, cross the bar. Everyone seems to be watching and whispering about them. They leave, holding hands, Todd insisting on not leaning on Tea. RJ watches them go. Scene ends.]

TO BE CONTINUED