Season 2, Episode 7

The Sins of the Father

[An old DVD. The Frankenstein/Lavenza house, 2015. Elliot sits in the living room when his phone begins to vibrate. When he answers, he is audibly worried]

ELLIOT

H— Hey, how– how’s he doing?

HENRY

Hello to you, too.

ELLIOT

Not now, Henry. How is he?

HENRY

...Not good. I’m not even sure if he even really knows I’m there. Just keeps staring into space, talking to himself. Crying. Sometimes he sleeps, but never for long.

ELLIOT

God, I-- I should be there, I--

HENRY

It’s okay, Elliot. I know you love him, okay? But like I said, he probably wouldn't even realize the difference right now. And even if he did… I’m not sure he’d want you to see him like this. I mean, obviously I don’t wanna freak you out, but he’s… he's fucked, man. But if you’re sure you wanna come up here, I can pick you up on Friday for the weekend and bring you back for Monday.

ELLIOT

That’s four six-hour trips.

HENRY

I don’t care. Your car's even more of a garbage fire than mine, I don't think it could handle it. And all this shit has been wicked hard on all of us, driving helps me relax, you know that. 

ELLIOT

Right.

HENRY

How's Al holding up?

ELLIOT

As best he can. I give him space when I feel like he needs it, but mostly I'll just hang out in the room. Help keep Billy occupied when I can.

HENRY

What'd you guys tell him?

ELLIOT

Not sure. Al said he talked to him about it, but I'm not sure he really understands what it all means. He's still asking when he's coming home next, if we're ever gonna go visit.

HENRY

And Evelynn? Still being weird?

ELLIOT

Yeah. Doesn’t even wanna talk about any of it. Saying she doesn’t want anything to do with him, that he’s a criminal….

[Beat.]

God, Victor’s a criminal, isn’t he?

HENRY

We don’t know exactly what happened. 

ELLIOT

I know, but-- There aren’t many ways to spin this, are there? Even if the fire was an accident, he’s still gonna have a trespassing charge on him. And I doubt they’ll let him go back to school, his whole career is--

HENRY

Listen to me, Elliot. Whatever happens, we’ll deal with it, okay? All of us. And hopefully, sooner rather than later, he’s gonna be back home, and we’ll go from there. ...I’m beat, I’m gonna lie down for a bit. But you call me if you need anything, got it? 

ELLIOT

Well, I could go for some water.

HENRY

[Laughs]

All right, asshole, I’ll get right on that.

ELLIOT

[Laughing as well]

Talk to you tomorrow?

HENRY

Yeah, call me when you get out of class.

ELLIOT

Can do.

[He ends the call, takes a moment, and lets out a long breath. We hear the front door open and shut]

ALPHONSE

Was that Henry?

ELLIOT

Yeah. 

ALPHONSE

How are they?

ELLIOT

[Lying through his teeth]

Fine. Victor’s doing well, I guess. Oh, and Justine called, she wanted to see if you wanted her to take Billy for a few hours on Tuesday.

ALPHONSE
That’s kind of her. But… I think I’d like to spend the day with my son.

ELLIOT

[He makes a small sound of understanding]

I'll let her know. I'm gonna finish up my homework in my room.

ALPHONSE

Of course. 

ELLIOT

And I’ll make dinner tonight. I’ve got this new recipe I’ve been wanting to try. I--

[He is cut off as we hear the light start flickering before it shatters]

Huh. Didn’t you just change that a couple weeks ago?

ALPHONSE

[Slightly worried]

...Yes. Yes, I did.

[Elliot makes an “I dunno” sound, then we hear him climb the stairs up to his bedroom. After a beat, Alphonse lets out a breath]

ALPHONSE

...Timing never was on our side, was it, Caroline? All those years of hiding away, and now, at the worst possible moment…. [He sighs] Or, perhaps I’m looking too deeply into it. A man can only hope. This family does not need any more tragedy.

ALPHONSE (Cont.)

...If you could see your children, my love. Evelynn sold her first painting this past autumn. A rendition of Lake Geneva, with delicate brush strokes the likes of which I could never manage. Her skills, her attentiveness to every detail, awe-inspiring. She brought home a girl last week. Alice, was her name. A classmate of hers, she told me. She is quiet, but with an imagination you would have loved. Evelynn claims that there is nothing going on, but… I gave them their privacy. 

ALPHONSE (Cont.)

 William has taken a liking to looking through photographs of our wedding, and more often than not, I find him focused on you. As if trying to burn your image into his mind. I wonder how much he will remember as he grows older. And if he knows just how much he looks like his mother. He’s got your eyes, your hair, your insatiable desire to understand the world. Not unlike his brother.

ALPHONSE (Cont.)

[With an audible smile]

Our eldest. Our son, not our daughter, as we once believed. Victor, is the name he’s chosen for himself. The name of my uncle’s son, coincidentally. It’s a fine name, for a fine young man. [Beat.] He is… not the same without you. He is as lost as I am. He hides away, busies himself with nothing but his studies. His smiles are a rare sight, and they lack the spark of life they once held. ...I worry for him. The state he is currently in, I…. I fear that perhaps he discovered something. Something of your… specific expertise. I tried to steer him away from the risk, but he is as stubborn as always. If he has found something, if that is the reason for his current condition, I have no idea how to stop what will inevitably follow. I pray that I am wrong, but… luck never has served our family well in this regard. So I have been doing my best to remember all you told me.

ALPHONSE (Cont.)

Your warnings, your lessons. Your desperate attempt to teach me your life's work in mere months, all while your health was failing. I tried to learn all I could. But despite my best efforts, my mind wandered into other thoughts. Am I at fault if all I could focus on was how much I couldn't bear to lose you? And now I have. And I very well could be losing our son. 

ALPHONSE (Cont.)

...If I am correct, if what I think is happening is true, then I swear to you, Caroline, I will do everything in my power to protect our family. Regardless of what it takes. I would sooner dig my own grave than let them ruin what you and I worked so hard to gain.

[The video ends, and we’re back to modern-day]

HENRY

...Jesus.

CHRISTINE

...That was a lot.

HENRY

Looks like the camera was set up in the corner of the living room. Doubt they even knew it was there.

CHRISTINE

Laura?

HENRY

More than likely.

CHRISTINE

Why would she care about that, though? And why send the DVD?

HENRY

To freak Victor out? To brag? I don’t know. But what I do know, [He ejects the DVD] is that he is never seeing this. 

CHRISTINE

You don’t think--

HENRY

He’s got enough to worry about without A: Watching a video of his dead father and boyfriend talk about that time he was all but catatonic, or B: Having actual physical proof that at one point, there was at least one hidden camera in his house.

CHRISTINE

Okay, yeah, you got me there.

HENRY

I’ll go over while he’s at therapy tomorrow and look around, make sure nothing’s still there. 

CHRISTINE

You gonna be okay to do that?

HENRY

Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?

CHRISTINE

I mean, his ceilings are pretty high. And if you have to stand on a chair or something to look around and lose your balance--

HENRY

[A bit agitated]

I will be fine.

[Beat. Then calmer]

...I’ll be fine. I’ll manage.

CHRISTINE

…Henry? Victor's dad, who do you think he was talking about? Who's "Them"?

HENRY

No clue. But I sure as hell don't like the sound of it.

[Later that night. Christine pulls her keys out of her pocket, dropping them on the pavement]

CHRISTINE

[Muttered to herself]

Goddamn it….

[She bends to pick them up, taking a sharp inhale of surprise as someone speaks]

RUTHVEN

Something on your mind?

CHRISTINE

[Annoyed, but sounding as though she’s spoken to him before]

What do you want?

RUTHVEN

Just to see how you've been… adjusting. What, I can't check up on my favorite--

CHRISTINE

I'm fine, thank you. Though I'd be better if someone kept their side of the deal.

RUTHVEN

Oh, let's not rush things. We'll get there.

CHRISTINE

Okay, but when? I don't work for free. I told you the conditions.

RUTHVEN

And they were very reasonable. But I have my own business to attend to, as well. Personal things, you understand. Things I'm not quite comfortable… "sharing".

CHRISTINE

Fine, whatever, you do you. But for fucks sake, give me something. 

RUTHVEN

Soon, don't you worry. But in the meantime, I need a favor.

CHRISTINE

[Her tone shifting immediately to one of anxiety and reluctance]

Where?

RUTHVEN

I'll get you the address.

CHRISTINE

And who?

RUTHVEN

None of your concern. How does tomorrow night work?

CHRISTINE

...Sure. Fine.

RUTHVEN

Excellent. I'll keep in touch.

CHRISTINE

I'm sure you will.