PLOT SYNOPSIS
EPISODE 2.5: REACTIVE AGENTS (WEBISODE)
Dr. Dennon has an interesting and very revealing breakfast meeting with the young contessa Giuletta Nefaria and her intimidating bodyguard.
Also, Delroy gets in a quick workout before breakfast.
COLD OPEN
We see Sheri Dennon and Giuletta Nefaria sitting in the restaurant of a high-end, 5- star hotel. Guiletta’s bodyguard, Grigori Sovchenko, is seated nearby drinking a small coffee and intently watching the women. A sign on the door of the restaurant lets any would-be customers know that the place is closed for a private party. A young waiter pours water and tea for the ladies and tells them that he will return after they have had more time to go over the breakfast menus. Giuletta is all smiles and charm while Sheri is cautiously nervous. Neither of the two pick up their menus and Giuletta moves straight into the reason for the impromptu breakfast meeting.
Giuletta Nefaria: “So, I’m sure that you’re aware that my father and your company are in the beginning stages of going into business together.”
Sheri Dennon: “Only vaguely, Ms. Nefaria. For the most part…”
Giuletta Nefaria: “Please, call me Giuletta.”
(We see a quick-cut/flashback of Sheri remembering how, just a few hours ago, Delroy made a similar request of Sheri in a cramped “no-tell-motel” room.)
Sheri Dennon: “Ummm….okay. Giuletta. Like I was saying, I’m only vaguely familiar with the fact that your father and Triune are planning on doing business. I’m just a researcher….I don’t really deal with that part of my company’s….functioning?!?!”
“Honestly, I’m not in the loop when it comes to things like boardroom deals...”
(Sheri nervously chuckles as Giuletta silently allows her to continue.)
“Portfolios… Stocks.... Bonds...”
(Sheri pauses, hoping that her admissions will give her an out from whatever off-the-record corporate play that Giuletta is hoping to involve her in. )
(Giuletta continues to look at Sheri with a slightly amused look on her face. Sheri quietly continues.)
“Bears… Bulls...”
Giuletta Nefaria: “Am I making you nervous Dr. Dennon? I’m sorry I promise you that I’m only...”
Sheri Dennon: “Please, call me Cherry.”
(Sheri closes her eyes in embarrassment then quickly corrects herself.)
“Sheri! I meant...Please, call me Sheri.”
(Giuletta offers up a warm smile and continues.)
Giuletta Nefaria: “Well, Sheri, I promise you that I didn’t invite you to breakfast this morning on behalf of my father or his company or anyone else for that matter. So if you’re worried about that, please don’t be. ”
(Sheri begins to laugh at how nervous she is and sips on her tea in an effort to relax.)
(Giuletta also smiles and laughs then waves the waiter over to their table.)
Giuletta Nefaria: “Can you get my friend Sheri here the Brioche French Toast with fresh berries and brandy barrel maple syrup. And I’ll have the smoked salmon with the chef’s specialty garnish and a whole wheat bagel. Thank you.”
(Giuletta looks at Sheri, gently removes the menu from the doctor’s hands, and gives it to the waiter.)
“Trust me, you’ll thank me later.”
(Over the course of the meal we see a short montage of Giuletta and Sheri talking and getting to know each other. We even hear a bit of one of their conversations, where Giuletta and Sheri realize that they both love classic films from Hollywood’s “Golden Era” and that they are both fans of actress & scientist Whitney Frost despite her criminal past. After a few moments and a few mimosas, Giuletta steers the breakfast back to business..)
Giuletta Nefaria: “So, why are we here this morning? Well, the short answer is ‘because I need your help’. What I’m about to tell you is a pretty well kept bit of information and it’s not something that I share with you lightly.”
Sheri Dennon: “Oooookaaaaay…”
(Giuletta takes a moment to collect herself before continuing)
Giuletta Nefaria: “Near the end of my mother’s pregnancy with me, she was attacked by a man that my father had crossed during one of his earliest business ventures. Due to the...unconventional... means of the attack, my mother was gravely injured and later on, she died while giving birth to me.”
(Sheri - who is understandably thrown for a bit of a curve by the opening lines of Giuletta’s latest story - sets her mimosa down and listens intently to the young woman.)
“While the weapon that was used on my mother took an unbelievable toll on her physically, I was left relatively unharmed by the whole ordeal. Well, that is until I started to become a woman. In my mid teens I started suffering from excruciating migraines that seemed to be triggered by everything from bright lights and loud noises to the smell of spicy food and perfumes.”
“By my 21st birthday, the migraines also started to bring crippling muscle pain and severe asthma attacks with them. I mean these things would hit me like a Mack truck then just fade away after about an hour or so. And every time one of them hit me, it was terrible and scary and made me feel like I was on the brink of death. But they were also relatively short-lived and infrequent. So after awhile I just made up my mind that it was just something that I had to live with, you know?”
(A sad smile beams on Giuletta’s face)
“By the time I was 25, the muscle pain became an ever present shadow over my world. So much so that it required a unique form of treatment just to keep me from becoming a full blown pain pill addict.”
(Giuletta discreetly reveals that beneath her stylish outfit is a high-tech looking body suit that resembles the classic black and white Madame Masque outfit. )
“And last year, for my 30th birthday, things decided to get REALLY interesting.”
(Giuletta looks at Grigori and nods her head slightly. The bodyguard steps over to where the waiter and the bartender are talking and asks them to step back into the kitchen so that the ladies may have a little privacy.)