THE DEAD ARE AMONG US

Characters;

The judge.
Mrs Rowland's (The accused).
Mr Davies (The murdered boss)
The court clerk.
Two policemen.
Audience.

Miss Rowlands was charged to court for the murder of her boss, she stabbed the man twenty-five times on the face until he gave up the ghost.
When she was questioned by policemen on the scene, she claimed the man killed her first. A statement she has not stopped making and that's yet to be deciphered by medical and legal people.
Mrs Rowlands has already been labeled a ghost by numerous news outlet but why will a ghost go to court or how did the handcuff even stay on her hands?

Act One Scene One

Blackout on stage, the shuffling of feets and the sound of wooden objects can be heard in the background.
After some minutes, the stage lightens up and a typical court setting is revealed: a judge sitting at the front, the clerk, the prosecuting lawyer, the culprit and the audience.

The Judge: Miss rowlands, it's surprising that you are not showing any remorse for your grave offence, you know the end product of judgements for a crime like yours is not always lenient and since you've refused yourself the services of an attorney I don't know how you can prove to us that you ain't guilty.

Mrs Rowlands: I'm still not guilty my Lord

The judge: Then I adjourn this case to the thirtieth of this month."

Clerk: Court

(The Audience stands up as the policemen accompany miss Rowland's out of the court.) Light fades out.

Act One Scene Two.

(The stage is set like the previous scene.)

The judge: Miss Rowlands, the decision of this court will be pronounced today.Do you plead guilty?

Miss Rowland's: I'm innocent my Lord

The Judge: You are yet to convince us why

Miss Rowland's: I'll tell you now but before I do that, I want you to know I enjoyed killing that man and I don't want to go unpunished.

Judge: what?

Miss Rowland's: As you read from my file, I was the secretary to mr davies. On that fateful day, he, Mr davies forced himself on me and raped me. That was the first day my hymen would be broken and after doing that, he still went ahead to choke me until I gave up the ghost. I only came back to murder him.

The judge: so you are not human?

(Before miss rowland's could talk, someone from the audience interrupted the court proceedings.)

Unknown person: objection my Lord.

The Judge: you have no right to object to anything here. Who are you by the way?

Unknown person: I'm Mr davies, the man she murdered. She brutally mutilated my face and it's spoilt beyond repair so I had to borrow my friend's own and yes, she's lying. She seduced me, that's why I raped her. She wouldn't stop walking provocatively around the office.

(As the light fades on them, a burial procession song can be heard in the background and the court is now in disarray, people are seen running around in a bid to escape from the court.)

The end.

©Akinwole John Akintayo.