INTERMISSION II

Interior. An empty jail cell. The cell door opens slowly and a man and a small boy look inside.




MAN: See, Jacob? This is where bad people go. You don't want to be bad or else you'll end up here.


BOY: I told you, I didn't do it.


MAN: Now, I thought I taught you not to tell lies. This is where liars go, Jacob.


BOY: I'm not lying, Dad. Please, believe me.


MAN: I can tell you're lying. Do you know why? Because I've been a cop for a long time, Jacob. I can just tell when people are lying.


BOY: But I'm not!


MAN: It doesn't matter. Even if you're telling the truth, you need to know this. This is where liars and killers and bad people end up. You don't want to end up here, Jacob. I'll show you why.


The man leads Jacob inside the empty cell and then leaves and closes the door.


BOY: Dad! Lemme out!


MAN: No, Jacob. I'll let you out in one hour, you understand? One hour. That'll teach you how horrible this place is. Do you understand?


BOY: No!


MAN: You will. One hour, Jacob. Just one hour.




The man's footsteps fade away and the boy is left alone. He starts crying. He wipes away a trail of snot on his sleeve and takes a look around the cell. There is one bed, one sink without a mirror, one toilet.




On the concrete wall, something is written. The boy slowly goes over and reads it:




FERRATUS, HIS FETTERS FRESHLY FORGED,
FINDS OUT THAT HE CAN ONLY BE GORGED
ON THE FEAR AND BLOOD AND TERRIBLE PAIN
OF THOSE WHO ARE CAUGHT IN HIS SEARING CHAIN.




The boy reads this poem with curiosity, but he cannot forget where he is. He sits on the bed and cries until one hour has passed and his father returns for him.




Afterwards, he forgets the poem entirely.