Scene the 2^nd

The curtain rises on the same scenery, however it is now daylight, the stage is empty of cast.  Jack Patch enters stage right, and crosses to the middle of the stage—he looks toward the window, now unlighted, and then towards the trees, and back to the building.  He looks towards the audience, then again at the window.  As he stands there Decker Powell enters stage left looking quite happy he is carrying a newspaper and a bottle of pop with him as well as a small brown paper bag containing Moon Pies.

DECKER: Hi there Jack, if I’m not being to impolite?

JACK PATCH: Decker?  No, o course not…where the hell have you been?

DECKER: Been?  I went down to the corner for a paper.  But what brings you over here?

JACK PATCH:  Decker, Rhiannon and the sisters have been looking all over for you.

DECKER: Rhiannon?  She’s right inside, probably still sleeping.  I didn’t want to wake her…what do you mean looking for me?

JACK PATCH:  Decker, Rhiannon came back to the club earlier this morning, she said you’d vanished.

DECKER: That’s not possible.  She’s in there, I’ve only been gone about an hour.

JACK PATCH: looks at his watch, An hour?  The time’s just about right—but I wonder?  O well, look Decker, do me a favor, just check and make sure Rhiannon’s okay?  We’re old friends.

DECKER: I didn’t know that, but it doesn’t surprise me.  Sure I’ll wave from the window or something. Decker crosses to the door to the building and enters.  He emerges a few moments later with a stunned look on his face.

JACK PATCH: Something wrong?

DECKER: Everything’s wrong.  She’s not there, the furniture’s not there, there’s nothing there.  The whole apartment is empty, like no one lives there, not now, not ever.

JACK PATCH:  What? He runs over to the building, then back out.  Are you sure it’s the right..o, of course you are.  He looks at Decker who is standing head bowed, arms sagging, he is lightly sobbing.

DECKER:  Rhiannon?  O, my dear god, Rhiannon?  Jack?  Where is she?  What did I do?  What do I do?  What happened?  Did she just leave—was she real?  I love you Rhiannon, where are you? 

JACK PATCH:  Crosses to Decker, puts an arm around his shoulder and starts slowly to walk him away while talking to him assuringly.  Decker, she’s very real, and she loves you very much.  I don’t know what happened here, but I think we need some help and quickly.  Come with me, back to the club, we’ll try and sort this out.

DECKER: looking back to the apartment, Rhiannon?  It’s all my fault isn’t it?  I shouldn’t have touched her.  I’m too old, I’m to ugly, I’m too….

JACK PATCH: Decker, what ever happened here wasn’t anything you did.  Rhiannon’s a woman not a girl, she loves you very dearly.  What ever’s going on is not something she has anything to do with—at least not voluntarily.  They walk off stage Jack still keeping an arm on Decker to support him.  Decker keeps looking back at the apartment house.

The curtain drops and goes up at once to reveal the inside of the Devil’s Brew.  Decker, Host, and Jack are seated at a table drinking coffee

JACK PATCH:  Decker, lets go over this in detail.  I want you to tell me everything you remember.  Then I’m going to tell you what happened here.

DECKER:  I’ll try.  He has to fight his emotions as he talks.  Every now and then he stops and a sob escapes.  I remember leaving here with Rhiannon, we were in her car, that candy apple red corvette convertible, had the top down.  She looked so lovely with the light coming through the windshield just showing her the area around her eyes.  I told her I could write a poem about those eyes of hers.  She smiled and said I’d have plenty of time for pause, sobbing lightly,  and now there’s no time…O dear God what did you do to my Rhiannon?  I’m sorry…swallows hard to try and keep control of his emotions, anyway we got back to her apartment, and well.  It was wonderful, there’s never been a woman like her, ever pause, then anger,

Jack I’ll do anything to get her back.  Pause, then slower, if she wants to come back that is.

JACK PATCH: Decker, I’m telling you, she loves you, she adores you.  Who ever’s created this mess it wasn’t Rhiannon.  Trust me, Decker, I’ve known her almost since she was a child.  I’ve never seen her as happy as she is with you.  Aside to Host

She did a good job of altered memories on him too, I’ve never seen such care taken with a mortal’s mind.  She left nothing to frighten him at all.  He believes they went off in her car.

HOST: aside to Jack Patch, She’s had how many thousands of years to master the art?  But, yeah, she must really love this guy, for some reason.

DECKER:  We made love, I swear it seemed like forever, then she said we needed some sleep.  I know I slept pretty good, except for one nightmare about drinking again, but then the vodka turned out to be pink lemonade.  So I guess it wasn’t too bad a dream.  Anyway, we woke up a couple of times and well, it was just wonderful to be there and hold her next to me.  It was my most wonderful dream made perfect and a thousand times more perfect.  God, Jack?  What am I going to do?

JACK PATCH:  Keep going, Decker, tell me everything up to the point where I met you.

DECKER: Okay, the rest isn’t too bad, I guess.  I woke up, it was daylight.  She was still sleeping.  O, Rhiannon, you look as lovely asleep, no make up or anything, as lovely, lovelier, than any woman that ever lived, or ever will live.  How I love you Rhiannon.  I got up carefully, I didn’t want to waken her, and suddenly had an urge for an RC and some Moon Pies, so –I guess maybe it was stupid—I got up and went down to the store.  It’s only about a twenty minute walk.  Is that why she left me, Jack?  Because I didn’t tell her that…

JACK PATCH:  Decker, listen very carefully.  Rhiannon did not leave you.  A few minutes after you remember walking to the store she came in here demanding to know if we had seen you.  I was talking to Eillaine, Laural, and Host here when she came in.  She was terribly upset.  Speaking of the sisters, Host have they been back?

HOST: Jack, they never returned either.

JACK PATCH:  the three of them left here to try to find you, Decker.  They never returned.  I got a little concerned and walked over to your place to see what the heaven was going on.

DECKER:  I don’t understand?

JACK PATCH:  Decker, about an hour and a half before I met you—yes, by the way you had to have been gone at least two hours considering when Rhiannon arrived here—Rhiannon, Eillaine, and Laural left for her apartment to try and track down what happened to you.  That’s the last I saw of any of them.  If it weren’t for that cursed empty apartment I’d think they were all still looking for you.

DECKER:  The Rhiannon doesn’t hate me?  She really loves me?  This isn’t her doing?

JACK PATCH:  That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you.

DECKER: But what now?

JACK PATCH:  For once, in all my existence, I don’t have an answer.

DECKER: plaintively  Where’s my Rhiannon?

JACK PATCH: Decker, she’s missing, what’s the first step?

DECKER: I’m powerless over….I mean, I don’t

JACK PATCH: No, don’t stop—go on.

DECKER: I don’t understand?

JACK PATCH: Finish what you were saying.

DECKER: I’m powerless over alcohol—my life has become unmanageable.

JACK PATCH: So, you’re a friend of Bill W’s?

DECKER: Yes, but?

JACK PATCH: Expand that first step, look at today

DECKER: I’m powerless over Rhiannon’s disappearance—and it is making my life unmanageable, in fact a misery.  I’m powerless over people places and things.

JACK PATCH: Okay, that was your condition when you staggered into to recovery.  What’s the next thing?

DECKER: Came to believe that a power greater than myself could restore me to sanity.

JACK PATCH: Define sanity.

DECKER: Sanity means healthy, healthy in mind, body, emotions and soul.

JACK PATCH: Okay, work it through

DECKER:  I am powerless over what ever has happened to Rhiannon and the sisters, this is making me nuts—and

JACK PATCH: Go on

DECKER: Since only a power greater than myself can restore sanity to this situation the third step is what I need to look at…I need to turn this over to a Higher Power, don’t I?

JACK PATCH:  You got it.

DECKER: You don’t mean the cops either, do you?  And somehow, I don’t think you mean God in the ordinary sense either.

JACK PATCH: I don’t think the police would believe you saw a unicorn my young friend.  I doubt that God as people mean God out there would help much either.

DECKER: Then what?

JACK PATCH:  How about a lower power, in God terms only, in your terms still a Higher Power.

DECKER: like?

Jack stands up and is momentarily bathed in a golden red light, his face shows the characteristics associated with the devil, but not in an ugly or frightening way.

JACK PATCH: Would this do?

DECKER: Sure, if you weren’t as clueless as me.

JACK PATCH: sitting back down with a sheepish grin Oh.

DECKER: So, Mr. Higher Power, where’s my Rhiannon?

JACK  PATCH:  Decker, as you said, I haven’t a clue.  A small circle of light begins flitting around the room as they speak, then the sound of a song bird is heard.  The light “lands” on the table in front of them like a bird.  It’s song grows louder. Or, at least I didn’t.  What is it little bird? 

HOST: Maybe it wants us to follow it?

JACK PATCH: Shut up, Host!

HOST: Well, anybody got a better idea?

DECKER: looking at the bird We could try listening?  Jack, can you understand it…no wait Decker’s voice changes to one of calm confidence I can, of course I can.  I understand everything.  Little one.  Fly home, tell your mother I’ll be there as soon as I can.

JACK PATCH: Decker, you surprise me.

DECKER: Really, Jack?  Isn’t this your kingdom—the land where truth always arises from the lies.

JACK PATCH: Looking at Decker, Of course, and without Rhiannon or No Name here, there’s nothing to hold back your memories is there?  Jack rises and bows courteously to Decker, who now standing seems taller and stronger, his clothing appears to change to forest green, there is a sword tied around his waist.   Welcome  Lord Pwyll, your Lady is in grave peril.

DECKER/PWYLL: When isn’t she?

The room darkens, the curtain falls.

As the scenery is changed we hear Pwyll and Jack Patch talking.

JACK PATCH: Do you retain all of Decker’s memories?

PWYLL: Painfully so, I’m afraid. 

JACK PATCH: Then what happened this morning?

PWYLL: That will have to wait for another time Jack, we need to get moving, now.   If I remember correctly, your backdoor should get us where need to be quickly.

JACK PATCH: stands and the two men move  to the rear door, Host stand ready if we need you?

HOST: You got it boss.  O, What about the show tonight? 

JACK PATCH: Handle it, the show must go on after all, even when the gods go mad.

The two continue on out, there is a flash of light, and the sound of a heavy door closing.