The Doll Light Zone : Veronica

Narrator: Say hello to Mr. Kenneth Worthington. Kenneth is a busy man, he makes loans to people who could not otherwise obtain a loan. He also is very set on getting his money back in a timely manner. Years ago, he would be called a Loan Shark, but today's lending practices let him open up his own legitimate office. Mr. Worthington came here today to collect on the balance of an overdue loan, and he expects to get repaid. What he does not expect, is to take a trip into...

The DollLight Zone.

Scene :Inside the house, an older man comes to the door. He peeks outside,and begrudgingly opens the door. He shrugs and says, “Mr.Worthington, I am sorry. I have no money.”

Mr.Worthington offers him a brief smile. “But you DO have this house,” he says glancing about approvingly. “Not in the best shape, needs paint and some other work, but it will do.”

“It's mortgaged to the hilt,” the man says sadly.

Mr.Worthington frowns at him. “Mr. Hartly, to obtain a lien is costly, and would not be very satisfying for either of us. I could get that lien, but I doubt I'd see any money for quite a while. Where do you work?”

“I'm retired.”

“You get a pension, correct?”

“Social Security yes,”

Mr.Worthington huffs. “Well then, we have a bit of a dilemma. I loaned you four thousand dollars on good faith. To date, you have only repaid nine hundred, fifty two dollars of that....”

“I've made three thousand dollars in payments!” Mr. Hartly cries.

“I am talking only the principle,” Mr. Worthington says tightly. “The rest was interest. Since you refused to answer your phone, I was forced to come here in person, which carries an eight hundred dollar charge. I will be compensated today, Mr. Hartly.”

The old man shrugs. “I have no money, no car you can take, nothing!”

Mr.Worthington pushes into the door and looks around. “It would be a pity, and costly to me, if I have to take drastic measures. Say buy the mortgage on your house, then foreclose on it...”

Mr.Hartly's eye go wide. “You can't do that!” he cries.

Mr.Worthington speaks calmly as he searches the old furniture for something of value. “Yes I can, and I will unless we reach an agreement today. What a pity it would be if you had to spend your remaining days in some homeless shelter. I hear the old folk's homes are full.”

Mr.Hartly balls his fists, then says in a hard tone, “What do you want me to do?”

Mr.Worthington eyes him, and says, “By my calculations, you owe me three thousand, eight hundred forty eight dollars. If you have something worth at least that much, minus the cost of reselling the item, then your account will be paid in full.”

“You BASTARD!”

“I am a businessman, Mr. Hartly. If you could not afford to do business with me, that is not my fault.”

In a hard tone, Mr. Hartly says, “My grand-niece needed surgery, what was I suppose to do? Let the child die?”

Mr.Worthington gives Mr. Hartly a bow. “That is very commendable of you to make that sacrifice. Now, it is time to pay up for your generosity.”

Mr.Hartly glares at Mr. Worthington. “Fine,” he snaps. “Look around, if you see something you want we'll settle on a price.”

“If I see something suitable, I will name the price,” Mr. Worthington says.

Mr.Hartly follows Mr. Worthington around as he frowns at the worn living room furniture, then does a scan of the kitchen. Wandering down the hallway, Mr. Worthington pauses at each room briefly. Spying an ornate dresser, he steps into a bedroom.

Scene :A woman's bedroom. The bed is made with fresh sheets and a colorful blanket and ruffled pillowcases. The dresser bears a mirror in a frame carved to resemble leaves. The jewelry box Mr. Worthington eyes from the doorway is solid wood with carved and painted vines trailing up on the edges.

Mr.Worthington goes in and lifts the lid to see the top is full of shiny jewelry. In one small drawer, gold and silver rings are seated on cushions. “Any of this real?” he asks.

“The gold diamond is, the rest is costume,” Mr. Hartly says flatly.

“Hmmm, I'd guess this is only worth maybe five hundred,” Mr. Worthington says as he picks up the ring.

“It cost me six hundred, thirty years ago,” Mr. Hartly grates. “I'll settle for nothing less than two thousand for it.”

Mr.Worthington drops the ring on the night stand. “Because I want to get this over with, I'll allow one thousand,” he says curtly. As he speaks, he sees a young woman sitting in a stuffed chair in the corner, eyeing him. “Hello, Madam,” he says in the same tone.

“That's Veronica, this is her room.”

Mr.Worthington waves a hand at the blonde, and says, “Sorry to bother you, but....” His words fall off as he eyes Veronica closely.

“Don't EVEN think about it!” Mr. Hartly warns.

“That's a doll,” Mr. Worthington says in disbelief.

“Yes,and she's not worth anything, except to me,” Mr. Hartly says.

Mr.Worthington frowns in thought. He steps closer and studies Veronica closely. “Very realistic, her eyes seem to look right through you. You know, I've seen these on TV, and I hear they go for seven thousand, right around thirty five used...”

“NO Absolutely NOT!” Mr. Hartly yells.

“And she appears to be in excellent shape...”

“I SAID NO!” Mr. Hartly screams, and steps in front of Veronica.

Mr.Worthington steps back, then his face becomes grim. “Listen, Mr.Hartly, you are hardly in a position to negotiate. You own me four thousand dollars, and I want it.”

“So,the bill keeps going up, huh? How many other people have you stolen from?”

“Only the foolish ones who do not pay me what I am due. Do you have anything else of value, Mr. Hartly? From what I've seen, this doll is the only thing you have that is worth anything.”

Red faced, Mr. Hartly thrusts an arm at the door. “GET OUT you thief! Get out of my house!”

“If I do, it won't be your house much longer,” Mr. Worthington says matter of factly.

“Screw you and your greed! Now GET OUT!”

Mr.Worthington turns on a heel and marches out. Mr. Hartly follows him to the front door. When Mr. Worthington leaves, he slams the door shut.

Mr.Hartly watches him go, then sags down into a chair and sobs.

Part 2

Scene :Mr. Worthington's office. Mr. Worthington is sitting behind his large maple desk, with his chair turned toward the window that gives him a panoramic view of the city.

From the speaker phone, an agitated male voice says, “Mr. Worthington, I have told you that the payment will be there on Friday.”

Looking out over the city, Mr. Worthington says, “And by Friday, you will accumulate fifty dollars more in late fees. I am trying to help you out here. Send the money by fax, hire a messenger, or bring it yourself. It will be much less expensive for you.”

“I do have other bills, Mr. Worthington.”

“As do I. You have until five to get the payment to this office. Goodbye,” Mr. Worthington says, then spins around and stabs the button to disconnect the call.

A knock sounds at the door. A female voice says, “Mr. Worthington, I have a new loan you need to approve.”

“Ahh, a new fish to fry,” Mr. Worthington says quietly, then announces,“Come in.”

A comely redhead with long shapely legs walks in and lays a loan form on his desk. She points to it and says, “You said you want to personally approve any loan over ten thousand dollars. This one is for thirty thousand.”

Mr.Worthington sits up and grabs the application. He scans it over and musses, “Thirty thousand for a term of seven years... hell, this is defiantly considering.” He scans farther down, then says,“Veronica Pastori ... And Idea who this woman is?”

“No sir, a man dressed as a chauffeur delivered the application. I verified the address, it's a penthouse apartment uptown.” the redhead tells him.

Mr.Worthington rubs his chin. “I'll call Miss Pastori, thank you Betty.”

Mr.Worthington punches the number up as Betty walks out. The phone rings three times, then a female voice answers.

“Hello?”

“Is Veronica Pastori there?”

“This is she.”

“I am Mr. Worthington, I believe you filled out a loan application with us?”

“Yes,I requested thirty thousand. I was going to do only twenty five, but due to circumstances, I went for thirty. It's for consolidation. Your mailer says 5.91 percent interest, correct?”

Very softly, Mr. Worthington says, “Per week,” then he says loud enough for her to hear, “Yes, that is correct. You want to carry this loan for... seven years?”

“Yes,sir.”

“It says here you own your apartment, and your car is paid for?”

“Yes,the '07' Mercedes limo is paid for, we have one payment left on the BMW.”

Mr.Worthington breaks out into a smile. “I see, so what is it you are consolidating?”

Giving a light huff, Veronica says, “My credit cards. My husband wants me to dump them for a single payment.”

“That is very wise of him, Mrs. Pastori. I will cut you a check, you can pick it up tomorrow.”

“Mr.Worthington, if you would, please just place it into my bank account,here is the numbers you'll need...”

Mr.Worthington grabs a pen and writes the numbers down, then repeats them back to her. They exchange 'Pleased to do business with you”greetings, then Mr. Worthington hangs up. He then calls the bank and verifies her account, and the fact she could cover a hundred thousand dollar check. Siting back, he grins at the numbers in his hand.

He chuckles as he says, “Well now, Mrs. Pastori, thank you so much forgiving me guaranteed payments … and the ability to take the balance any time I feel the need.”

Scene : Mr. Hartly's back patio. Wearing a light sun dress, sunglasses and a wide brimmed hat, Veronica is siting in one of two lawn chairs as Mr.Hartly kneels by the edge of the patio, planting flowers. He takes the watering can and gives the freshly planted flowers some water,then goes over to sit beside Veronica. He blows out a tired breath, admiring his work.

“There we go, hon. Aren't they pretty?” he asks her. “But not quite as pretty as you,” he adds with a wink.

A neighborhood boy comes around the corner of the house and waves to them. “Hey, Mr. Hartly! I see you and Veronica have been doing some gardening.”

Mr.Hartly waves back to him. “Hello Chip. Yes, we needed something to spruce up this old patio. Can I help you with something, Lad?”

Chip points to the front. “I saw the for sale sign on your lawn mower. How much?”

“Fifty bucks, you can take the gas can too.” Mr. Hartly tells him.

“Does it run OK?”

“Sure,fire it up yourself. In fact, if you'd do the lawn back here one last time, I'll knock off twenty bucks.”

Chip sports a wide grin, “Deal! My mower died, and I can't make any money without one.” Chip goes to leave, then asks, “Hey, you want me to grab the mail for you?”

“Thanks Chip,” Mr. Hartly says. He watches the kid go, then says to Veronica, “He's a god lad, hard working and polite. I'm sure he'll do just fine when he grows up.”

A few moments later, Chip comes back, pushing the mower while carrying a handful of mail. He gives the mail to Mr. Hartly, then pulls the cord on the mower. Two pulls, and it fires up. Chip starts cutting the grass.

Mr.Hartly opens a couple letters, then cringes as he sees one from Mr.Worthington. He opens this one with a look of distaste. Upon reading it, his face turns hard. He then balls it up and throws it down. “I could KILL that greedy asshole!”

Scene :the camera pans down to the crumple letter. The visible part of the large letters read:
Balance of mortgage due upon receipt
Foreclosure proceedings to begin in seven days

Scene: The camera pans back up to Mr. Hartly, who's eyes are brimming in tears. He gets up and goes into the house.

Part3

Scene: Mr. Worthington is walking down the street, notepad out as he searches for an address. Following slowly behind him, a black limo keeps pace. Suddenly, the limo cruises up just ahead of him and stops. Two well dressed, burly men jump out, grab Mr. Worthington roughly, and toss him in, then jump back into the car. The car speeds off.

Scene: A flustered Mr. Worthington sits in the back seat bracketed by suited men with hard looks on their faces. He faces an older man who is also in a business suit.

The older man eyes Mr. Worthington, and asks, “I understand you deposited a sizable sum of money into my daughter's bank account. Feeling generous, are you?”

Mr.Worthington glances at the men beside him, and swallows nervously. “Sir, I make many loans, who are you referring to?”

“Veronica Pastori, my youngest daughter. I have to ask myself why she would bother to get a loan from you.”

Mr.Worthington shrugs, and says, “I don't know. Perhaps she can tell you.”

The old man rubs his nose, then glances at the scenery going by. They are passing through a chain mesh gate and onto a dirt road. “My Veronica called me and said someone put thirty thousand into her account, and then thanked me for the gift. I became curious who her benefactor was. Now, I am curious only about how you managed to get her account numbers.”

“She gave them to me.” Mr. Worthington said, noting they were passing large sand piles.

“Ahh, yes, and you just happen to have a loan contract with her name on it?”

“That's right,” Mr. Worthington said defensively. “I've done nothing illegal.”

“Keep believing that, Mr. Worthington,” the old man said ominously. “But I can guarantee you will not be stealing anyone else's account numbers, or their money.”

Mr.Worthington's eyes grow wide. “Wait! I've done nothing wrong! Your daughter came to my office!”

The car stops. The old man gives him a crooked grin. “Really, that is quite a trick, since she has been in France the last three weeks. Goodbye, Mr. Worthington.”

Scene: Mr. Worthington begs and pleads as the men drag him from the car towards a new foundation framed out to be poured. The cement truck and few workers are waiting for the men dragging a kicking and pleading Mr. Worthington over to them.

The old man watches this as he picks up his cell phone and dials a number. His voice is pleasant. “Hello Donald! How's my retired accountant? … Yes the family is just fine. Veronica is having a grand time in Paris. How's the copy of her doing? … Oh, tell her not to worry about being foreclosed on. Do you really think I'd let that happen to you, Donald my friend? … I know, but no need to worry, trust me. You just make sure your Veronica doesn't stay out in the sun too long, that silicone skin of hers may get damaged....right, right, I should know you'd never let that happen. Hey, she's not the real Veronica, but I bet you love her just as much, huh? …I figured as much. Look, I'll send a car by later on to take you to your appointment, so don't go taking the bus. Feel free to use the driver for the rest of the day … You're welcome, old friend.”

Scene: The old man looks out the window as a muffled 'pop' is heard. Mr.Worthington falls into the foundation framing.

“Donald,you can call your problems a 'dead issue' now. I'll be buying your mortgage. You and your Veronica will always have a home … any time my friend. Have a good day, Donald.”

The old man glances at the driver as he folds up his cell phone. “Ahh, Donald was always a bit off, but he was always loyal to the family. I'm glad he tipped me off about that scum bag.”


Scene: Mr. Hartly's living room. Mr. Hartly is on the couch beside Veronica. He hangs up his phone. Mr.Hartly turns to Veronica and gives her a hug. “Your plan was perfect, my dear.” He then puts his thumb on her chin, and moves her mouth like she's talking. In a feminine voice, he says, “Of course, Donny, did you think Daddy would ever let us down?”

Mr.Hartly kisses her cheek and sits back with a relieved sigh. “Of course not, my dear.”


Narrator: Mr. Worthington loved to push the limits of the law to get his profits. Unfortunate for him, he did not count on retribution from...


The Doll Light Zone