Implied Consent: Act III, Scene VI

This is a part of Mr. Stolyarov's play, Implied Consent. To navigate through the various parts of the play, go here.

(This scene takes place the next morning. MARK is in his house, drinking tea. On one side of the stage is the entrance to the house, including a door. On the other side of the stage, separated from the entrance by several walls, is an open window. Beside it stands MARK's hovermobile.)

MARK (to himself and audience): Today shall be the day that fallacies are toppled. I am quite pleased to be able to play a hand in this.

(Suddenly, several TAX AGENTS enter the stage, their faces masked by shadows, and knock furiously at MARK's door.)

MARK: Who could that be this early in the morning? Victoria would not knock with such fury, and Mr. Neville should likely be in court already, making final arrangements for today's presentation.

TAX AGENT (shouts in a grim, menacing voice): Open up, Mr. Mark! This is the Internal Revenue Service!

MARK (rushes to the door, in shock): (To himself) Surely, this is some sort of misunderstanding. (Opens door). Hello...

TAX AGENT: Mr. Mark, the IRS will conduct an audit of your income. We demand all your income records, going back six years. We expect the records to be given to us right away.

MARK: Sir, I am certain that you have the wrong man. I have always paid my taxes and filed my returns. I may dislike taxes severely, but I pay them nonetheless, hoping rather to reform the system from within.

TAX AGENT (sternly): This mentality of yours, Mr. Mark, borders on subversion. Any truly loyal American would be happy to pay his taxes and contribute to the strength of his government. Your shameless displeasure with the tax system further suggests the need for us to inspect your records.

MARK: Are you certain that it is proper procedure to immediately rush into a man's home and demand his files, without any regard for his privacy or any other activities he may be engaged in at the time? Is it not more professional to issue a written warning first, and request the files within a certain timeframe?