S1.E4 In the Closet - Scene 2

Ritual S1 - Episode 4 - Scene 2

Marvin Tork's Film Set

Characters in this Scene

Denis O'Hare as Marvin Tork

Lady Gaga as Lilith Levay

Angela Bassett as Ronnie Dupree

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Marvin Tork is sitting in his directors’ chair, dark sunglasses on and wearing a beret. “Cut, cut, cut!” he screams as the actors stop mid-performance. “Just fucking awful, that will not do!” Marvin is feeling the stress of attempting to surpass the success of Alejandro Jodorowsky’s 1973 film The Holy Mountain. He jots down a few more notes he made for the script – just some minor adjustments.  The crew collectively groan about the constant changes, but Marvin ignores them. Those cretins don’t understand how the artistic process works he mutters to himself. One saving grace for this film was Lilith Levay, she knew exactly where to stand, exactly how to react, and exactly what was expected of her. What a godsend.

Lilith emerges from the make-up tent in a nun’s habit. She ascends the stairs of the elaborate set, smoke machines are going off, and performers are writhing around in a rhythmic dance under a heavy rope net. Some break free of the net, and they assist her into an Iron Maiden device, locking her in. A screen behind flashes with lightning and to the right an assistant re-creates the sound of thunder by banging a thin metal sheet with a mallet. When she emerges, her habit is changed. The wimple she wears is now bright red, and she is naked apart from thigh high red boots, a red thong, and red tape across her breasts in the shape of crosses. She opens her palms to reveal stigmata wounds.

Ronnie Dupree is watching from the sidelines, trying to blend in with the catering crew, gofers, and production assistants.  “What sort of fuckery is this?” she says not realising it was out loud.

 “It’s radical man. Marvin is a genius, and Lilith is his muse,” a man to her right responds.

Ronnie shakes her head and decides to poke around the tents and trailers while all hands are on deck. She stumbles upon one tent set up as an altar, there is a dead goat with flies buzzing around it on the table and a bucket of blood at the base - she wasn’t sure if it is legitimate, or whether it is just part of a set. Either way it is enough to send the producer to court, but it is not what she came for. Ronnie walks down the row of trailers, and something catches her eye, a crucified kewpie doll stuck to a door. Underneath was a name tag Lilith Levay. “Bingo!” Ronnie takes out her lock pick, but it is not necessary, the door is already open. She looks over her shoulder making sure she is not seen and slides inside.

Inside, the place looks like a cross between a shrine and an apothecary. There are different labelled bottles with coloured solutions and herbs, a mortar and pestle, candles, and a skull among other things that Ronnie could not even begin to describe. “This bitch really is a witch!” She pokes around further, not really sure what she is looking for, just something that can connect Lilith to Lorraine Jaxon. Lilith Levay enters her trailer and silently approaches Ronnie as she is rummaging in drawers and opening closets.

“Can I help you?”

Ronnie abruptly spins around to face Lilith; it’s not often people get the jump on her. Lilith is back to wearing the traditional black and white nuns’ habit, Ronnie is silently grateful it is not the other costume which would have made questioning just plain awkward.

“I’m thinking you can,” Ronnie tries to recover from her surprise and appear menacing.

“You’re a police officer” Lilith says matter of fact, not as a question but as a statement.

“What, did my gun holster give it away?”

“No, your aura.”

“My what?”

“Your aura, the energy field around you. It’s filled with danger, ambition, and violence.”

“Don’t pretend you know me.”

“I’m not pretending.” Lilith gives her a hard stare. “You would like to ask me some questions, what do you want to know?”

“All right, what were you doing at the Los Angeles Medical Centre impersonating a nun?”

“I was visiting a friend. As you can see, I was in costume, after the shoot. I was about to give my name, when the receptionist asked if I had come from St Aloysius of the Innocents. Of course, the method actress in me replied yes so, I put myself down as ‘Sister Immacolata’ on a whim.”

That makes perfect sense, Ronnie finds herself thinking a thought that is totally out of character for her, she shakes her head and continues with her questioning. “So, how are you acquainted with Lorraine Jaxon?”

“She is just a waif that I befriended. She would sometimes come to some of my performances; and she often goes to Klub Kaos.”

Ronnie makes a note. “You do know that she has gone missing, right after you visited her.”

“I do, poor girl. I don’t know how she disappeared, that is even a mystery to me, but I can tell you she was troubled. She came to me for a reading.”

“A reading?”

“Don’t tell me you have never had your tarot read.”

“Well, let’s just say it’s not something I have on my bucket list.”

“Sit, please.” Against her better judgement, Ronnie finds herself sitting in the chair opposite Lilith Levay as she unwraps a deck of tarot cards bound in a red silk scarf.  She instructs Ronnie to shuffle, cut and select four cards from one of the piles. “I’m just going to look at your immediate future, what is surrounding you now.” Lilith turns over the first card and smiles. “The Hanged Man – indicates discontent with your current situation, beware of risks, in other words don’t go poking in places you shouldn’t go, and you will be alright.”

Ronnie is unimpressed. “You have literally just described my job. What’s the next one?”

“The Ten of Swords – another warning card for you.”

Ronnie didn’t care much for the imagery of the man lying face down with a bunch of swords in his back. “Do you have any good cards? What’s this one mean, am I about to get killed?”

“Not necessarily, this is a metaphor for treachery. Someone will stab you in the back, you are about to be betrayed.” Lilith flips over the next card. “The Devil – this means entrapment caused by your own nature. Quite often we are trapped by our own desires, our own ambitions and ego. You are in danger from your own patterns of behaviour.”

“I’m not following you.”

“Think of it like the curiosity that killed the cat. Your desire to know everything may put yourself and others in danger.” Lilith turned over the last card. “The Magician – you will cross paths with a powerful man, and you will be no match for him.”

Ronnie scoffed.  “Ok, well, if there is anything else you can think of, please get in touch.” She hands over one of her business cards. Ronnie is about to exit the trailer but pauses and asks, “What about her cards – you said Lorraine Jaxon came to you for a reading. What did her cards say?”

Lilith smiled, “This might seem like a strange coincidence, but she drew exactly the same cards as you Detective.”

Ronnie turns and leaves; she suspects that Lilith Levay is just fucking with her. This wasn’t how things were supposed to go. Ronnie is an expert in shaking people down; she can tell when people are holding out but she could not get a clear reading this time. It was the same feeling she had after taking happy gas at the dentist. Ronnie never used to get the giggles like most, but instead she had the most unpleasant feeling of not being in control of her body or thoughts. This Levay woman had gotten under her skin, almost as much as Lorraine Jaxon had when she had encountered her in the holding cell that day with Celia Grey.

Ronnie’s pager suddenly goes off. It’s the station, the Chief wants to talk to her. She finds a pay phone and makes the call. On the other end of the line, she can just hear yelling and profanities, she takes the receiver away from her ear, but she can still hear the Chief clearly.

“Dupree! You have blatantly disobeyed my orders. You are suspended as of right now, get down to the station and hand in your badge immediately!”

“Fuck!!” Ronnie smashes the phone against the receiver in rage. Someone had cottoned on to what she was doing and must have ratted her out to the Chief - but who?

Thank you, more scenes to come - I hope you are enjoying the season so far, feel free to comment on my Instagram page or Facebook as well, and follow along for updates.