Hush

By Isaac Rathbone

Isaac Rathbone
336 78th Street
Brooklyn, NY 11209
516-359-9742
www.IsaacRathbone.com
ICRathbone@gmail.com
©Isaac Rathbone

HUSH
By Isaac Rathbone

Characters:
WALLACE, a down-on-his-luck engineer, mid-40s. His suit is
a bit disheveled and he wears an ID tag for Hudson Space
Industries.

AGENT, calculating and observant. Able to quickly switch

personas. Should appear to be the same age as WALLACE. Any
gender.

BARTENDER, sweet talker but with some very sly qualities.

She is younger than WALLACE.

Setting:
A DIVE BAR.

Time:
The Future

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LIGHTS- WALLACE sits at the bar. The

BARTENDER approaches him.

BARTENDER
Can I get you another drink?

WALLACE
That would be great. Thanks.

BARTENDER
I’ll make sure to put extra ice in your glass.

WALLACE
I’m crunching it, aren’t it? Sorry about that. It’s
probably driving you crazy.

BARTENDER
Everyone’s got a nervous habit.

WALLACE
I have an important business meeting.

BARTENDER
A business meeting for Hudson Space?

WALLACE
Yeah. How’d you know?

BARTENDER
You’re ID tag.

WALLACE
Whoops. Forgot I still had this thing on.

BARTENDER
Hudson people don’t swing by this bar too often anymore. At
least for any business meet-ups.

WALLACE
You probably see a lot of them meet up with their…trysts,
right?

BARTENDER
Hey, if the tips are good, I’ll never tell.

WALLACE
Hush-hush, right?

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BARTENDER
This drink’s on me. So why have your meeting here?

WALLACE
It’s quiet. Off the beaten path. I guess I’m just an old
fashioned kind of guy.

The AGENT enters the bar.

BARTENDER
I can tell.

WALLACE
Oh really? How?

BARTENDER
Your watch. Is it an antique?

WALLACE
I wish. It’s a replication. The gold is real. And I still
have to wind it.

BARTENDER
Wind it?

WALLACE
You see this small knob? You have to wind it every day to
get it to work. The tension it creates inside keeps the
hands rotating at the right speed.

BARTENDER
Isn’t that’s the point of modern technology? To free us of
the tension?

The AGENT approaches WALLACE.

AGENT
Mr. Wallace? Is this seat taken?

WALLACE
It is not. Let me get you a drink.

AGENT
Nothing, please. I’m on the clock.

WALLACE

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Could I get another one of these, for my associate? Thanks.

The AGENT settles in.

AGENT
I had a hard time finding this bar. Quite the ambience.

WALLACE
It feels the way an old bar should. Besides, I know they
don’t use androids for their bartenders. She’s the real
deal.

AGENT
She certainly appears to be.

WALLACE
Gives us a little more security. Hudson has synthetics
everywhere. What about you guys? Does Fulton spy on their
employees?

AGENT
We have our own security protocols. But not as aggressive
as Hudson’s. So I’ve heard. So, what is this rot-gut you’re
drinking?

WALLACE
It’s an off-world bourbon. They collect and purify the
water from Enceladus; you know the moon with all the ice
volcanoes that orbits Saturn? No? Anyway, they start the
distilling process during the flight back home.

AGENT
Never heard of it.

WALLACE
Everybody drinks it at Hudson. I guess out of pride.

AGENT
(softly)
Do you have what I need?

WALLACE takes out a journal from his pocket

and slides it towards the AGENT.

AGENT
What’s this?

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WALLACE
Everything you wanted. Schematics of the new deep space
telecom system. Flight plans. Maps. Inventories. Everything
you wanted. Go on. See for yourself.

The AGENT picks up the journal and flips

through the pages.

AGENT
You transcribed all of this yourself?

WALLACE
I didn’t want to take my chances. What your company wants
is very classified at Hudson. Any strange tampering with
those files, red flags start going off.

AGENT
How did you do it?

WALLACE
Stayed late after everyone left. Lied to my boss and told
him I was putting in extra hours. A lot of it I did at
home. From memory.

AGENT
Some memory.

WALLACE
I’ve been on this project a better part of five years. You
guys don’t have much time. The proposal is being sent to
the Defense Ministry in about six months. There’s no way
Hudson won’t get that contract.

AGENT
Amazing work. And you wrote this all down with a…pen?

WALLACE
Do you know hard it was to find one of those? And that
notebook?

AGENT
Real paper. Very hard to track down, I imagine. And
expensive.

WALLACE
Well, I don’t have to worry about that now, do I?

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The AGENT sets down the journal and produces

a very small black cylinder and sets it on
the bar.

AGENT
You’ll find the codes on this to access any travel
documents or accommodations within the resources of Fulton
Interstellar. And the amount you requested. 60,000.

The AGENT makes a motion to the cylinder.

WALLACE takes it and looks it over.

WALLACE
24 years never seemed so small.

He puts the cylinder in his pocket. The

AGENT puts away the journal and raises a
glass.

AGENT
Cheers.

WALLACE downs his while the AGENT slowly

lowers their glass.

AGENT
Fulton won’t contact you at any point in time after this
conversation. Unless this data is faulty.

WALLACE
Don’t worry. It’s all there.

AGENT
Then as far as we’re concerned, you are completely
anonymous.

WALLACE
I’m used to that sentiment. (to the BARTENDER) Could I get
another, please?

AGENT
I do have a personal question for you. You don’t have to
answer if it makes you uneasy.

WALLACE
Go ahead.

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AGENT
Why did you do this? Were you slighted or passed over for
promotion? Do you need the money? I’m just curious.

The BARTENDER brings WALLACE his drink.

WALLACE
When I was a younger man, I wanted our civilization to go
advance. I see potential in the human race. We are capable
of so much. And here we are, a species of unlimited
abilities confined to one of the smaller planets in the
solar system. This is the nostalgic cornball in me talking,
but do you remember the old Hudson ads when we were kids?
With the family on the camping trip looking up at the
constellations?

AGENT
Who could forget those?

WALLACE
“Hudson Space Industries has only one goal for your
family.”

BOTH
“Bringing you closer to the stars.”

They both chuckle.

WALLACE
God, I loved that! I wanted to help those families go up
there and see everything in the stars. So I worked my ass
off through school, nailed my interview with the Hudson
recruiter, got my entry-level assistant position and…

AGENT
And?

WALLACE
And in 24 years I’ve seen a lot of greed, waste, mistrust,
laziness and…some other more scary stuff. Maybe it’s the
same at Fulton, I don’t know. But Hudson?

AGENT
They let you down.

WALLACE

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For a company that’s done so much on other planets, they’ve

got a lot to learn about what happens on this one.

WALLACE drinks.

AGENT
What does Mrs. Wallace think?

WALLACE
There isn’t one. Work, career, all that. Couldn’t find the
right person.

The AGENT motions to the BARTENDER.

AGENT
You’ve got a lot of options now. You never know what or who
is out there.

WALLACE suddenly becomes a little woozy.

WALLACE
No, I don’t.

AGENT
There are a lot of new worlds to explore.

WALLACE
Wow. She really makes these strong.

AGENT
And they keep getting closer and closer to us.

WALLACE
This is…this is…

AGENT
Thanks to brilliant minds like yours.

WALLACE
Is your drink really…?

AGENT
Thank you for your 24 years of service, Mr. Wallace.

WALLACE
You haven’t even touched it.

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AGENT
I’m on the clock.

WALLACE
You’re a synthetic. How did you…?

The BARTENDER comes over and stands in front

of WALLACE.

BARTENDER
Hush-hush, right?

WALLACE collapses onto the bar. The AGENT

suddenly changes his demeanor; laughing and
making light of the situation.

AGENT
Uh-oh! Tough day at the office for this guy. Hey, buddy!
We’re get you a cab, okay?

The AGENT deftly reaches into WALLACE’S

pocket to grab the cylinder. The BARTENDER
picks up the AGENT’s drink and playfully
swirls it.

BARTENDER
Some people just can’t hold their liquor. Especially when
it comes to this trendy off-world stuff.

She knocks the drink back with ease. The

AGENT slides the cylinder across the bar to
the BARTENDER and switches demeanor
immediately from gregarious to serious.

AGENT
You’ll find the codes on this access any travel documents
or accommodations within the resources of Hudson Space
Industries. And the amount you requested. With an
additional sum that has been deemed a reward of sorts.

BARTENDER
How much in total?

AGENT
60,000.

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BARTENDER
Even the synthetics know how to tip at Hudson.

She rolls the cylinder in her fingers and

then places it in her bust.

AGENT
He’s in a state of paralysis right now. His heart will
slowly come to a stop in approximately three minutes. The
majority of the toxin you administered will escape his body
post-mortem after his bowels and bladder void themselves.

BARTENDER
I better get a mop ready.

AGENT
My estimates give you about 36 hours. That is if anyone
sees the need to investigate. You won’t be contacted by
Hudson at any point in time after this conversation. As far
as we’re concerned, you are completely anonymous. Is there
anything else to discuss?

BARTENDER
I want his watch.

AGENT
Having one of his personal items in your possession might
jeopardize your relationship with-

BARTENDER
I’ll gladly take it. But we both know that Hudson cleverly
engineered you to have untraceable fingerprints.

There is a silent stand-off between them.

The BARTENDER reaches towards WALLACE’S
wrist. The AGENT stops her.

AGENT
I’ll retrieve it for you.

The AGENT takes off the watch and hands it

to the BARTENDER.

AGENT
Hudson Space Industries thanks you.

HUSH 10
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The AGENT stands and quickly exits. The

BARTENDER looks down at WALLACE.

BARTENDER
You should have picked a different bar, Mr. Wallace. I’m an
old fashioned girl myself.

She slowly winds the watch.

BLACKOUT

END OF PLAY

HUSH 11
Isaac Rathbone