DAVID RUSH
Writer
AT RISE: Two soldiers (JOSHUA and PETER JERRYWINKS are wrestling seriously. JOSHUA has JERRYWINKS in a deadly hammerlock at his neck)
JERRYWINKS
Alright. Alright. I give, I give, you fucking son of a bitch!
JOSHUA
Take it back.
JERRYWINKS
I take it back.
JOSHUA
My mother ain’t a whore.
JERRYWINKS
Your mother ain’t a whore.
JOSHUA
Yours is.
JERRYWINKS
Mine fucked the whole Union army. Sucked off General Grant for two bucks and cigars.
(JOSHUA releases his hold)
JERRYWINKS
Christ, you near to killed me, you son of a bitch. What the hell is wrong with you?
JOSHUA
Keep off my folks.
JERRYWINKS
I can’t insult Bobby Lee, I can’t badmouth Jeff Davis, I can’t muddy-up your Maw, You don’t leave me much.
JOSHUA
Then whyn’t you just shut up and leave a body in peace.
JERRYWINKS
You’ll get enough of that later, Harker; all the eternal heavenly peace in the universe coming out of your damn Rebel ass.
JOSHUA
I ain’t talking to you.
JERRYWINKS
Alright. I’ll just sit here by myself countin’ down the seconds. Let’s see, it’s about eight o’clock. We’re gonna get shot at 6. That’s 10 hours? 600 minutes. Thirty-six hundred seconds, although I already used up some so we’re down to say Thirty-five hundred and maybe what? 50? 49? 48? Thirty-five hundred and 47? 46? 45?
(JOSHUA opens a small bible and studies it while JERRYWINKS continues to count down to himself.
(JOSHUA puts the bible down and recites from memory, haltingly.)
JOSHUA
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he….damn!
JERRYWINKS
Still waters, Josh.
JOSHUA
Why can’t I remember it? I used to know it fine.
JERRYWINKS
Cuz you got something else on your mind a bit bigger. Like the end of your wee little life.
JOSH
I gotta have something in my head when it comes. I can’t be thinking about…
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