PERMANENT INTERESTS - EPISODE 18
Uh Oh ….
EXT. STREET SEQUENCE - NIGHT
The cab pulls away from the curb, heads down the street...
CAR #1 - at the cross street, turns left behind the cab as it passes through the next intersection...
THE CAB - turns right. CAR #1 heads on, straight...
DOWN THE BLOCK - CAR #2 pulls out of an alley as the cab passes and takes up position...
THE CAB - goes through the intersection on a yellow...
ANNE - looks around for Vic's car but doesn't see it...
CAR #2 - behind stops, signals for a left turn as...
CAR #3 - turns from a cross street in behind the cab...
INT. VIC'S CAR - NIGHT
A bus pulls out and blocks David's view.
RADIO VOICE
The concert ends with Ravel.
VIC
The municipal park. Let's go!
EXT. BANDSTAND - MUNICIPAL PARK - NIGHT
The cab driver opens the rear door and motions Anne out.
ANNE
What am I...
She realizes he's wearing a Frankenstein's Monster mask!
ANNE
(cheering herself up)
Trick or treat.
Frankenstein's Monster gets in the cab and drives off.
INT. VIC'S CAR - NIGHT
The Driver pulls to the curb as...
ANNE (from radio)
(sotto)
I'm near the bandstand. Nobody's here to --
MALE VOICE FROM RADIO
Hands on top of your head, Mademoiselle.
EXT. BANDSTAND - MUNICIPAL PARK
Anne drops the portfolio and raises her hands.
EXT. VIC'S CAR - NIGHT
David jumps out, pistol in hand. Vic's out of the car too and motioning to those in the two cars behind him.
EXT. MUNICIPAL PARK - BY THE BANDSTAND - NIGHT
Anne, hands atop her head, turns to confront...
"Dracula." Streetlight glints off the SILENCED PISTOL he aims at her. Dracula picks up the portfolio and gestures toward the trees beyond the bandstand.
Anne walks toward the trees with Dracula behind her.
ANNE
What do I do when I get to those trees over there beyond the bandstand?
EXT. MUNICIPAL PARK - NIGHT
Vic and David crouch behind bushes and listen to the radio.
DRACULA (from radio)
You will see your friend soon.
Vic and David run, crouched, through the trees. Other SHADOWS move with them. Vic sees the HEADLIGHTS of a car parked beyond the trees. The lights turn on, off, then on.
EXT. KIDNAPPER'S CAR - NIGHT
"Casper the Friendly Ghost" emerges from the car, opens the rear door. Dracula pushes her inside and climbs in after.
A BLOCK BEHIND - Car #1 follows without headlights.
INT. VIC'S CAR - NIGHT
David watches the kidnappers' car, down the street in an immigrant neighborhood.
Vic's Driver holds a small electronic dish antenna out the window, aimed at the car. He listens on headphones.
DRIVER
The number's 2-7-6-5-3-2.
DAVID'S POV
The kidnappers, without their masks, hustle hooded and handcuffed Anne out of the car and into the run down tenement, past ARAB IMMIGRANTS who pay them no mind or deliberately get out of the way. ARAB MUSIC PLAYS (O.S.)
INT. APARTMENT ROOM
George Fremont is duct-taped to a chair, a hood on his head.
The door opens. Casper and Dracula shove Anne inside. Her hands are cuffed behind her back, a rope around her neck secures the hood over her head. She falls near George.
GEORGE
Who's there?
ANNE
George? It's me.
GEORGE
Ah, shit! Goddamnit. Goddamnit!!
Anne struggles to her knees.
ANNE
What've they done to you?
GEORGE
So far, nothing.
INT. APARTMENT - BY THE FRONT DOOR
The Young Woman Assassin brings the Guard Turkish coffee.
Frankenstein's Monster, mask pulled up to reveal a young skinhead, drops on the battered couch and cradles his AK-47k in the seat.
The cell phone in Frankenstein's jacket pocket BUZZES. He answers in SERBO-CROAT.
INT. VIC'S CAR - NIGHT
Cell phone to his ear, Vic SPEAKS QUICKLY IN SERBO-CROAT. David watches, not understanding what he's saying.
INT. BEDROOM - KIDNAPPERS' APARTMENT - NIGHT
Anne and George lean together.
GEORGE
Sorry I couldn't warn you.
ANNE
It wouldn't have mattered.
GEORGE
They've worked Paul over.
(shakes his head, shivers)
Hearing's worse than seeing.
(leans close)
Listen up. You need to know this, just in case: Howard Lewis is Assistant Director of the Defense Security Assistance Agency.
ANNE
Bingo! Moving the Phantoms.
FOOTSTEPS beyond the door. George whispers.
GEORGE
No. DSAA's job is keeping nukes away from the crazies.
EXT. KIDNAPPER'S APARTMENT BUILDING - NIGHT
Casper and Dracula, unmasked, get in the car and drive away.
INT. APARTMENT BEDROOM
The door opens. Frankenstein and the Young Woman Assassin drag in Paul, bruised, bleeding, and unconscious. They dump him on the bed and kiss before they leave.
GEORGE
Paul?
Anne hears Paul's rasping breath. She contorts to slip her feet past the handcuffs and get her hands in front of her, then she goes to Paul but slips in his blood and falls.
ANNE
He's here.
GEORGE
Is he...is he alive?
She feels the sticky wet stuff, then crawls over to George.
ANNE
It's blood. They're going to kill us, Papa Bear.
GEORGE
They won't, we...
ANNE
They will. They're all the same. They were going to kill us in Nagorno-Karabakh because we didn't have our passes updated...
GEORGE
What? Why didn't you tell me?
EXT. STREET - NIGHT
Vic turns to David as his men gather.
VIC
Stay here.
David pulls out his 9mm Beretta from the small of his back.
DAVID
The hell you say.
A moment. Vic nods. They move quickly down the sidewalk.
DAVID
What'd you say to make them leave?
VIC
His old grandmother had a heart attack out at the airport.
Preposterous. DAVID looks at Vic, who shrugs.
INT. APARTMENT BEDROOM
Anne looks around - what she "sees" inside her hood has nothing to do with what's in this room.
ANNE
I'm not the type who likes to admit I was peeing my pants, George.
(she's "there" as...)
We were all alone...I told Dan not to look because I didn't want the little shits to know how fucked up we were.
(shakes her head)
All I could think of was I was going to end up face down in a muddy ditch and the only ones who would care would be you... mom...David, and...and I didn't want to die all alone. All the things I'd done... it all added up to being there. Nowhere. Dead. For nothing.
INT. HALLWAY - RUN DOWN TENEMENT
The Young Skinhead Guard slings his weapon and bums a light from a SHUFFLING OLD MAN. The Old Man disappears into the far bathroom. Bored, the Young Skinhead Guard hears FOOTSTEPS in the stairwell and becomes alert.
Vic acts like a drunk as he staggers up the stairs, SINGING A GERMAN DRINKING SONG.
INT. BEDROOM
As before...
ANNE
I hated David when he quit, he told me he'd seen too many friends killed by kids who used a gun bigger than they were and didn't know diddly.
(leans on his shoulder)
When you told me you'd got me Paris, I didn't want it. I wanted to keep doing what I know...only the truth is, I want to be away from them...all the crazies.
(plaintive)
I can't live like that anymore, but I don't know what to do.
INT. HALLWAY
The Young Skinhead Guard watches contemptuously as Vic staggers toward him and then...
Vic whips him around and cuts his throat!
The others silently climb the stairs. David stares down at the dead guard, whose blood pools on the hall carpet.
The TOILET FLUSHES (O.S.), the Old Man starts out of the bathroom. One of Vic's men quickly shoves him back inside.
INT. BEDROOM
Anne rocks back and forth...
ANNE
I haven't even been able to tell any of this to David...
(angry with herself)
I'm such a fuckup!
INT. HALLWAY
David backs up, trips on the worn out carpet and knocks over a bicycle...
It CLATTERS down the stairs!
EVERYONE in the hall holds his breath...
INT. LIVING ROOM - KIDNAPPERS' APARTMENT
Frankenstein reacts to the noise. He gestures to the Young Woman Assassin.
INT. BEDROOM
Anne's body language conveys real anger.
ANNE
All I wanted to do was find out what happened to an old friend. I'm through with the bullshit, Papa Bear. I'm gonna nail the bastards.
INT. LIVING ROOM
The Young Woman Assassin pulls out her Tokarev pistol and guards the bedroom door.
FRANKENSTEIN
Joseph?
VIC (O.S.)
(softly from other side)
Dreißig Januar, drei-und-dreißig.
Frankenstein opens up and...ZFFT! ZFFT! He crumples.
TWO OF VIC'S GUYS are through the door, and a SILENCED UZI BURST cuts down Young Woman Assassin before she can fire.
INT. BEDROOM - KIDNAPPERS' APARTMENT
FOOTSTEPS SOUND in the hall. David and Vic open the door.
ANNE
Who's there?
David reaches down and pulls off her hood. She looks up at him as Vic unhoods George.
ANNE
Oh, God! David! David...
She hugs him close as he pulls her to her feet.
She looks over at Paul as Vic's men lift him.
Her eyes go hard.
They leave the room.
INT. FRONT ROOM
Anne hesitates when she sees the body of the Young Woman Assassin and remembers the "Young Mother."
ANNE
I know her.
She reaches down and...
ANNE
She let me hold her baby outside Pierre Fontaine's house.
She lifts the Young Woman Assassin's hand to reveal the sign of the hawk. She looks at Vic.
ANNE
Explain this.
Vic shrugs, but he takes the woman's hand and pulls off the hawk-talon ring.
VIC
Quickly now.
They leave.
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I'm the movie watcher who often has no idea what's happening, but loves the action. I'll be re-reading from the start once we arrive at the final scene. And I'm going to make post-its for every character (like I was taught to when reading Dickens in high school), annotated to indicate ring/no ring.
And thanks for killing off some bad guys.
Gotta ask. How many episodes are there? Ok. I'll know when you are done. Never read a script before. Don't answer. Keep writing.