[EXT. LAS VEGAS CITY (STOCK) - NIGHT]
[INT. WAREHOUSE]
(A young woman is held captive with her wrists tied high above her head. Off screen, she hears faint slicing, and gurgling. She screams.)
(Blood squirts on her face and in her mouth. She coughs. Yuck.)
(Behind her, a man hacks off a dummy's head.)
Zack Putrid (director): (o.s.) Cut!
(She continues to cough.)
Zack Putrid: (o.s.) Cut! Damn it!
(The bell rings and overhead lights turn on. The director, Zack Putrid, gets out of his chair.)
Zack Putrid: Can somebody please get her a glass of water?! (He walks up to the actress.) What happened? Babe? What are you doing? Are you choking on the blood?
(She nods.)
SFX Guy: I did what you told me to.
Zack Putrid: Yeah, but this time, get it on her face, not in her mouth.
SFX Guy: The mouth is part of the face.
Zack Putrid: Yeah, I know, I know. But hit her from the side, from the side. And get plenty on the rack.
(The SFX guy turns and leaves. We hold on the two actors dressed as doctors - one giant man and Dickie Jones.)
Giant Doctor: We're dying here.
Dickie Jones: I'm going to go ring it.
Giant Doctor: All right. Hey, grab me a bear claw.
(Dickie Jones heads off the set. He walks past Zack Putrid talking with the cameraman who is wearing a red baseball cap.)
Zack Putrid (director): How long have I known you, huh? This is you and me. Get the shot -- not too tight. Wide enough to fit in the fun bags.
(The director turns back to the actress, who is still tied up with her arms over her head as the fake blood is being wiped off her. Her make-up is being retouched.)
Zack Putrid (director): Baby-cakes ...
(The actor playing the killer interrupts them.)
Killer Actor: (to the director) Where was I? Want me to laugh?
Zack Putrid (director): Don't laugh. You were scary. Get away.
(The killer leaves.)
Zack Putrid (director): Honey, this time, don't inhale the blood, okay? All right, let's get her cleaned up. Let's shoot this bitch.
(He heads back to his chair. The actress gasps loudly.)
Actress: (o.s.) Oh ...
Zack Putrid (director): Not you, baby. The shot. The shot's a bitch. I love one-ers. And you know what else I love? I love sushi. Me, too. Do you want to go for sushi?
(In the background, Stanley Vespucci leads Brass through the set. Nick follows them.)
Stanley Vespucci: Our lead actress, Weatherly Adams, had her dressing room violated last night.
Brass: So she's the one you suspect is missing?
Stanley Vespucci: She missed her call this morning. The woman is nothing if not professional. She's predictably precisely 35 minutes late every day. You could set your watch to it. She's already ... three hours late and still no sign of her.
(He looks at his watch.)
(A light blows out as they pass.)
Stanley Vespucci: Nothing to worry about, gentlemen. It's just a bad bulb. If you will, please, follow me.
(He leads them out.)
[INT. WEATHERLY ADAMS' DRESSING ROOM - CONTINUOUS]
(He opens the dressing room door.)
Stanley Vespucci: Here we are.
(They walk in.)
Stanley Vespucci: Check out the flowers in the vase.
(Nick looks at the note on the flowers.)
Nick: "Congratulations on your last film." Any idea who sent her these, Mr. Vespucci?
(A framed photo of a pretty blonde-haired woman is on the dressing table next to the flowers.)
Stanley Vespucci: (shrugs) Stalkers, creeps, cranks, nut balls, degenerates -- we get them all here. Weatherly attracts them like flies.
(He shows them a stack of letters.)
Stanley Vespucci: These are ... uh ... some of the guys we've had trouble with in the past.
Brass: I'll take that.
(Nick continues to look through the dressing room.)
Brass: When was the last time you saw her?
(Vespucci takes his phone out and dials.)
Stanley Vespucci: At wrap yesterday. We shot all night, finished about 4:00 in the morning.
Brass: Did anyone see her leave the building?
Stanley Vespucci: Her car's still parked out back.
(Nick holds a purse.)
Nick: This hers?
Stanley Vespucci: Yeah.
Weatherly Adams: (recording) Hi, it's Weatherly. Leave a message or I'll scream. (giggles)
(Nick turns the bag over, the contents spilling out onto the sofa.)
Nick: Wallet, keys, and cell phone still in there.
Stanley Vespucci: Still no answer on her home phone.
Brass: I'll send a patrol car to her house. You said there was a break in. Why don't you show me?
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES -- BASEMENT]
(Down in the basement, various items are stored - dress dummies, rolled-up carpets and a VORTEX OF EVIL movie poster hangs on the wall just below the ceiling light.)
Stanley Vespucci: Ah, Weatherly ... how has she died for us, let me count the ways.
(Stanley Vespucci leads Brass and Nick down through the basement.)
(They walk past posters of the movies Weatherly made - NIGHT SHIVERS, INTO THE MOUTH OF HELL, and CAN I LICK THE SPOON?.)
Stanley Vespucci: Bludgeoned, boiled, filleted, defenestrated, decapitated, disemboweled, oh, yeah, and strangled with her own intestines. Autopsied while still alive.
(They walk into the large storage area.)
Stanley Vespucci: Made to eat her own liver, fed slowly through a tree chipper, roasted and served on a bed of Belgian endive. When Weatherly Adams dies, it's money in the bank.
(He shows them the open window.)
Stanley Vespucci: Here you are, gentlemen.
Nick: Looks like somebody broke the glass, reached in, unlocked it and opened it.
(Nick looks around the area.)
Stanley Vespucci: Yeah, that's the way I found it when I got here this evening.
(Nick finds some blonde-haired stuffed dummies on the furniture. Among the dummies, he finds the real Weatherly with an axe stuck in her back. Flies buzz around the dead body.)
Nick: Uh, Jim ... I got her.
(Nick kneels to look at the body. Jim and Stanley Vespucci join him. Vespucci gasps.)
Nick: And I believe she's died for the last time.
FADE TO END OF TEASER ROLL TITLE CREDITS
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES -- BASEMENT]
(A movie poster, I HAVE TO AXE MY MOTHER, hangs on the cement post. The main photo is of Weatherly in red with an axe stuck in her head.)
Nick: Whoever stuck her under this poster was trying to send a twisted message.
(Weatherly's dead body is also in red with an axe stuck in her back.)
Catherine: Either that, or the killer's got a wicked sense of humor.
(Catherine puts her gloves on. Nick snaps a photo as David Phillips turns the body to look under it.)
David Phillips: Lividity is fixed along the anterior aspect, and ... she is still in full rigor.
(Nick checks his watch.)
Nick: She was last seen alive about 15 hours ago.
David Phillips: No panties. I'll do an SAE kit.
(David pauses and looks up where he sees the movie poster.)
David Phillips: (inflecting) "The horror."
(He chuckles and looks at Catherine and Nick. He does it again.)
David Phillips: (exaggerating) The horror ...
(Catherine smiles.)
David Phillips: Huh? Huh? Bra-Brando? (normal voice) Brando from Apocalypse Now?
Catherine: Oh, yeah, yeah. I know, Dave. Everybody knows that.
David Phillips: (deflated) Oh. I'll get the gurney.
(David leaves. Catherine notices Weatherly's broken shoe.)
Catherine: Looks like the Lady lost a heel.
Nick: There's a whole lot of something here, but it doesn't really look like blood to me.
(Nick indicates the blood under the body. Catherine dusts the axe handle.)
Catherine: No, it's ... uh ... it's the wrong color. It's too red.
Nick: Smells sweet. Karo syrup and food coloring -- it's prop blood.
Catherine: And I am not seeing any prints. It's been wiped clean.
Nick: The question is, where does the fake blood end and the real blood begin?
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES - MOVIE SET]
(The actress in pink wails and cries. The actor playing the killer cries.)
(Brass talks with the cast and crew.)
Brass: Now, I know this may come as a shock to most of you, and I'm sorry for your loss. I understand that Weatherly Adams was a long-time member of this company ...
(The midget, Dickie Jones, looks around, then turns and hugs the pretty actress in pink.)
Zack Putrid (director): Well, do you have a suspect?
Brass: Uh, sir, we just found the body about an hour ago.
(Dickie Jones hugs the actress, then squeezes her butt.)
Brass: We're just beginning our investigation.
(The actress pushes Dickie Jones away.)
Zack Putrid: Yeah, I get it, I get it. I mean, it could be anyone.
(He turns and looks around - just as the other cast and crew members look around at each other.)
Brass: Now, I'm going to have to look at your IDs and I'm going to take statements and fingerprints from all of you. And I thank you in advance for your cooperation.
Stanley Vespucci: Anything we can do to help.
(Brass turns and heads up the platform stairs.)
Zack Putrid: So what am I supposed to do today?
Stanley Vespucci: Edit.
(Stanley Vespucci catches up with Brass.)
Stanley Vespucci: Excuse me, Mr. Brass. Do you think that it would be all right if we were to ... continue to shoot ...
Brass: No.
Vincent Lafoon: I want that little twerp Zarco found and locked up.
Brass: Uh, who are you?
Vincent Lafoon: Vincent Lafoon. This is my brother Mason. We own this place.
Brass: Who's Zarco?
Vincent Lafoon: Oliver Zarco. He used to work here. He had a thing for Weatherly, and then he got hurt, blamed it on us, went a little nuts.
Mason Lafoon: He was the one who got ...
Vincent Lafoon: (interrupts) He was the one who sent the flowers and the note.
Brass: So he's done this before.
Mason Lafoon: Yeah, like, three times.
Vincent Lafoon: (irritated) Would you shut it? (to Brass) Three times. He's your guy.
Brass: Do you have video surveillance by any chance?
Vincent Lafoon: Yeah, only on the exterior, but the video system's been on the fritz lately.
Stanley Vespucci: I had it repaired three days ago-- I'll get the tapes.
Vincent Lafoon: Oh, good. (Vespucci leaves.) (to Brass) Look, just find Zarco, okay?
(Vincent leaves. Mason lingers.)
Killer Actor: Everyone come together.
Mason Lafoon: Um, I can't, I still can't believe she's gone. I mean ... she was a ... she was a real beautiful lady.
(Everyone gathers on the set.)
Killer Actor: Let's form a circle and touch hands with someone you care about.
(Mason turns to join the others.)
Killer Actor: Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me. Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me ...
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES -- BASEMENT]
(Nick swabs the "blood" and tests it. It doesn't work.)
INTERCUT WITH:
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES - DRESSING ROOM]
(Catherine is in Weatherly's dressing room. She dusts the green vase.)
(She stops when she doesn't find any prints.)
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES -- BASEMENT]
(Nick goes over to the window. He sees the security camera outside and measures the distance. He notes it on the sketchpad.)
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES - DRESSING ROOM]
(Catherine snaps photos of Weatherly's dresser and open drawer.)
(She opens the top drawer and snaps a photo of it. She takes out a notebook and looks inside. She finds dates, times and numbers.)
(Nick walks in.)
Nick: How's it going in here?
Catherine: The vase is clean. I've got a spiral notebook filled with dates, times and weights. Looks like she was a bit concerned about her size.
Nick: Actors.
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. CSI - FORENSIC AUTOPSY]
(Robbins and David are working on removing the axe from Weatherly's back.)
David Phillips: (appalled) You really don't recognize her?
(David holds the body down while Robbins pulls on the axe.)
Robbins: (grunts) No.
David Phillips: You've ever seen Chop Chop, Fizz Fizz?
Robbins: No.
David Phillips: Can I Lick The Spoon?
Robbins: Please, David.
David Phillips: They're classics.
Robbins: Those are not classics.
(The axe pops out.)
Robbins: The Exorcist. The Shining. Rosemary's Baby. Those are classics.
(David washes the body.)
David Phillips: You know what I loved about her? She really made you feel the terror. When she was scared for her life, I was scared, too.
(Robbins holds the axe cut open as David washes it out. He sees something.)
Robbins: Interesting.
[SCENE_BREAK]
[EXT. LAS VEGAS CITY (STOCK) - DAY]
[INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - INTERVIEW ROOM - DAY]
(Brass talks with Oliver Zarco.)
Brass: Mr. Zarco ... tell me about you and Weatherly Adams.
Oliver Zarco: It was the happiest time in my life. I had realized my dream.
FLASHBACK TO: The set is busy.
Oliver Zarco: (V.O.) I was working in the movies. Though I was only in an entry-level position, Weatherly and I were already an item.
(Weatherly and Zarco are kissing in the back.)
Oliver Zarco: (V.O.) Just like ...
END FLASHBACK.
Oliver Zarco: ... Julia Roberts and what's his name.
FLASHBACK TO: They're filming on the set.
(Weatherly takes the burning meat out of the oven and puts it on the table. The meat is smoking.)
Oliver Zarco: (V.O.) We were in love.
Weatherly: (smiles) Hi.
(Zarco is on the side with a smoke machine, adding to the smoke. He blows her a kiss. Filming continues.)
Oliver Zarco: (V.O.) And then it was all over in an instant.
(The smoke machine blows up and bursts into flames in his face. Zarco screams.)
Oliver Zarco: Oh, God!
(Zarco's face is on fire. He gets up and runs around the set.)
Oliver Zarco: Oh, my God!
(Finally someone with a fire extinguisher puts the fire out.)
END FLASHBACK.
(Zarco's face is scarred.)
Oliver Zarco: I was in rehab for six months. That slime ball Lafoon convinced me not to file a Worker's Compensation claim. He said that he'd take care of me.
Brass: And you trusted him?
Oliver Zarco: Yes. And then, when the deadline passed to file my claim, Vincent offered me two grand, take it or leave it, and then he fired my ass. And I could have lived with that, but ...
Brass: But what?
Oliver Zarco: Weatherly ... dumped me. She felt we were no longer compatible. The truth was, she couldn't stand to look at me. She cried when she told me. Actresses can do that. The smell of her skin ... like fresh lemon poppy seed scones baking in the oven. Gold flecks that danced like Valkyries in the emerald depths of her eyes. Her hair-- oh, God ... Her hair ...
Brass: So you started stalking her.
Oliver Zarco: I brought her gifts from time to time, to let her know that I still loved her. Is that against the law?
Brass: It is if you break in to do it.
Oliver Zarco: They wouldn't let me in the front door.
Brass: So you came in through the window. Only this time, you got caught. You argued. She told you where to shove your flowers, and you thought to yourself, "You know, do I really need this aggravation?" So you killed the bitch. I think you killed the bitch.
Oliver Zarco: Why would I kill her?
Brass: How should I know?
Oliver Zarco: Do I know you?
Brass: Listen, Zarco, you whack job, you'd better focus! You focus.
Oliver Zarco: I'm trying to explain to you. I haven't been near that place in over a year. You got the wrong guy. I don't do that anymore. I'm in therapy now. Lots of therapy. Freudian, Jungian, Gestaltian -- all that crap. I've let go of my anger.
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. CSI - GRISSOM'S OFFICE]
(Grissom is in his office when Wendy appears in the doorway. She's carrying some test results.)
Wendy: Have you seen Catherine around?
Grissom: No, why?
Wendy: 'Cause I just got the DNA results for Weatherly Adams, and the skin under her nails and the semen from her SAE, they both belong to Vaughn Krunty.
Grissom: Who?
Wendy: Vaughn Krunty, aka "Zack Putrid."
Grissom: Who's that?
Wendy: (amazed) The Titan of Terror, The Sultan of Slash. He's the movie director. I just ... I found him in CODIS for a statutory rape charge in Laughlin when he was 18 and the girl was 16. Can you believe that?
Grissom: What's the matter with you?
Wendy: Nothing.
Grissom: Go tell Catherine what you found, make sure that you pull all the old evidence out of storage in case she needs it.
Wendy: Okay.
(Wendy looks at the results, turns and leaves the office.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES - EDITING ROOM]
(Zack Putrid is reviewing the footage shot that day.)
Zack Putrid: Please. That looks pretty stupid, doesn't it?
Editor: Well, you could cut out earlier, maybe go to a wide exterior shot, you could carry the scream over a big flock of birds taking off.
Zack Putrid: Yeah?
(Putrid kicks the editor's chair.)
Editor: Or ... yeah ...
(He picks up the golf club and hits the table, smashing whatever is on it.)
Editor: (mutters) Or not. Or not, just ... bad idea. All right, okay.
(Putrid turns around and sees Brass leaning against the door frame watching him. Putrid chuckles.)
(Putrid chuckles)
Zack Putrid: Detective Brass.
(He points to Brass, turns and chuckles at the editor.)
Zack Putrid: Man, I love that. Detective Brass. You're a detective, and your name is Brass. I mean, I can use that. That's like a cop named Officer Copper. Or a tin horn sheriff named Sheriff Tin. You cannot write that stuff.
Brass: Listen, buddy ...
Zack Putrid: Dude, I know why you're here, okay? Weatherly and I, yes, we were knocking boots, man.
Brass: So, you acknowledge having s*x with her?
(Brass walks in and heads toward the editor's table where he looks at the latest "star" covered with fake blood.)
Zack Putrid: Well, yeah, I just said I had s*x ... Why would I deny it? Hey, I bang all my stars. It builds trust. It's part of my process.
Brass: We found traces of your skin under her fingernails. Maybe she wasn't into your "process," so you raped her.
(Putrid chuckles.)
(Brass turns and looks at him.)
Brass: You find that funny?
Zack Putrid: Dude, you gotta see this. You're gonna love it. (to the editor) Bring up Double D.
Editor: Yeah. Here goes.
(The editor switches tapes and shows a recording of Weatherly wearing a pink dressing gown in her pink dressing room.)
Weatherly Adams: (on tape) Hi, baby. Hi.
(On the tape, she blows a kiss to the camera. A man off screen laughs.)
(Putrid whacks Brass on the arm and indicates the monitor.)
Zack Putrid: Check it out.
(On the tape, Weatherly opens the dressing gown and shows the camera her boob job.)
Zack Putrid: (on tape) Money. Money.
(On the tape, she giggles.)
(Putrid turns and looks at Brass.)
Zack Putrid: Oh, yeah.
Zack Putrid: (on tape) You're a star. WEATHERLY ADAMS: (on tape) Oh, ba-by. Oh, ba-by.
Editor: (groans) I can't believe this is my life.
Zack Putrid: (on tape) Oh, man, oh, man...
Weatherly Adams: (on tape) Come over here, baby.
(On the tape, they start kissing as the camera rolls.)
(Zack Putrid puts a hand on Brass's shoulder and smiles proudly. Like a little kid, he points excitedly to the monitor.)
Brass: This what you do all day?
Zack Putrid: Look, does that look like a woman being taken against her will?
Brass: That still doesn't explain how your skin got under her fingernails.
Zack Putrid: Weatherly was ... how can I put this delicately? She was an ass-scratcher, man. She liked to scratch my ass. She wasn't pushing me away, man, she was pulling me in.
(Putrid puts his pants down.)
Zack Putrid: Brass, look at my ass.
(He shows Brass his ass.)
Zack Putrid: Freaking claw marks.
Brass: Are you trying to make me throw up, Mr. Putrid?
(Putrid purrs.)
(HOLD on Brass.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. UNKNOWN HALLWAY]
(A woman walks down the hallway. She glances over her shoulder and continues walking quickly down the hallway.)
(We see the woman is WENDY SIMMS. She glances behind her again and speeds up a little. She turns the corner and glances behind her. She starts running.)
(The camera follows her.)
(She comes to the end of the hallway and tries opening the doors. The first one is locked. The second door is locked. She hurries to the third door. It opens.)
[INT. UNKNOWN ROOM - CONTINUOUS]
(Wendy enters the room and shuts the door. She cowers and waits.)
(A chainsaw engine revs. The double doors open and a bearded man in a hooded raincoat carries a bloodied chainsaw.)
(Wendy screams.)
REVEAL:
[INT. CSI - BREAKROOM]
(Henry Andrews, Hodges, Sara and Wendy are watching a video.)
(On the monitor, Wendy runs and the man with the chainsaw cuts her. She spits out blood and some really bad EFX has her top half fall to the floor while her bottom half remains in a standing position. After a beat, the bottom half falls to the floor as well.)
(Henry laughs.)
Henry Andrews: Oh, my God. No way!
(Hodges jaw drops.)
(Sara closes her eyes.)
(Wendy smiles and pauses the tape.)
Henry Andrews: That is so cool. I can't believe you worked for Repulsion Pictures.
Wendy: Well, I did it on a whim. I was supposed to be an extra, but then they liked me, so they gave me this whole featured bit. I got 600 bucks for that. What? What? I was fresh out of college. I really needed the money.
Ronnie Lake: I don't get it -- what's the thrill here? It's always hot babes with huge breasts falling out of their shirts, getting hacked up ...
Wendy: I don't have huge breasts. Mine are kind of ... medium.
Hodges: But perfect ...
(Wendy turns and glares at Hodges.)
Hodges: --ly adequate. Better, in fact.
(He turns and looks at Sara.)
Sara: Okay. Uh, I'm out of here.
(Sara leaves.)
Henry Andrews: Hey, let's watch it again.
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. CSI - FORENSIC AUTOPSY]
(Robbins shares his findings with Nick.)
(TOP VIEW DOWN of the BACK with an IMAGE of the AXE.)
Robbins: (V.O.) When I removed the axe, --
(The AXE vanishes and CGI VIEW of the inside of the WOUND.)
Robbins: (V.O.) I noticed that the dermis along the margin of the wound showed no vital response, except in a small area on both sides of the center of the track.
(MOVE in CLOSE TO VIEW.)
Robbins: (V.O.) The cause of death was perforation of the liver, spleen, and pancreas.
(A CGI pointed object jabs into wound.)
BACK TO SCENE.
Robbins: But the injuries are inconsistent with the position of the axe wound.
Nick: The axe isn't what killed her.
Robbins: Exactly. The perforation was caused by a sharp, hollow, cylindrical object entering through the lower back, and then passing upwards into the organs.
Nick: Like a spear, or a pipe of some kind?
Robbins: Perhaps.
Nick: If the axe was planted in her back postmortem to conceal t original puncture site, then ... we don't have a murder weapon.
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. CSI - A/V LAB]
(Archie goes over the video with Catherine.)
ON THE COMPUTER MONITOR is the footage dated 11/07/07 at 05:22 A.M. of someone in a baseball cap opening the window to the warehouse.
Archie: The only thing I found on the surveillance tapes was this.
(He pauses the video.)
Catherine: That guy looks familiar. Oh, that's Vincent Lafoon. He and his brother own the place.
Archie: Well, here's where it gets a little weird.
(Archie resumes the tape. Vincent opens the window, then backs away and leaves.)
Catherine: He's trying to make it look like somebody broke in. I think he's framing Zarco.
Archie: If he owns the place, he must have known about the surveillance cameras. Right? (Catherine nods.) Why would he let himself get caught on tape?
Catherine: I don't know, but according to Brass's notes, he thought the system was down. So, we found no physical evidence linking Zarco to the scene. Vincent knew he had an easy fall guy. He's been playing us the whole time.
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - HALLWAY]
(Brass is sipping a cup of coffee as Vincent Lafoon is escorted in by an officer.)
Vincent Lafoon: Hey, you're making a big mistake; you got the wrong dude.
Brass: Yeah, a lot of guys tell me that.
Vincent Lafoon: But I didn't do anything. Why would I kill Weatherly? She was my company's best asset. Plus, I liked her. She was my friend.
(They turn and continue through the hallway just as Oliver Zarco turns into the same hallway.)
Vincent Lafoon: That's him. That's Zarco. That's your guy.
Oliver Zarco: What happened, Lafoon? She get too old, so you killed her for real?
(Zarco walks past him and heads out.)
Vincent Lafoon: Where's he going?
Brass: I don't know. Probably out for a nice dinner.
(Brass sits down. Zarco stops walking and turns to watch.) )
Vincent Lafoon: You're letting him go? Are you out of your mind?
Brass: We've got nothing on him.
Vincent Lafoon: But I'm the one getting set up here, me! Don't let him go-- I'm telling you-- you'll regret this.
(Zarco walks up to Lafoon.)
Oliver Zarco: I never touched her. You know it, I know it, and they know it. You killed her, and you're going down.
(Zarco turns to leave again. Lafoon lunges at Zarco. The officer holds Lafoon back. Brass sits on the chair, sipping his coffee and watching the show.)
Oliver Zarco: Can I go now?
Brass: Yeah, get out of here while I'm still in a good mood.
(Zarco smiles.)
Oliver Zarco: So long, Lafoon. I hope they tear you a big one.
(Zarco chuckles as he leaves.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
[EXT. LAS VEGAS CITY (STOCK) - DAY]
[INT. CSI - LOCKER ROOM -- DAY]
(Sara sits in the locker room when Greg appears in the doorway.)
Greg: What's up?
Sara: You know, in the slasher movies, when they go after the dark-haired girl, she always dies?
(Greg walks in.)
Greg: Yeah. And the blond always lives. (He sits down.) Aren't you glad it wasn't a movie?
(She giggles at the irony.)
Sara: I think, um ... I think I am sick of having my face shoved in death every day. The murder rate has gone up every year since I've been here. It's totally out of control, and ... we're not even slowing them down.
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. CSI - HALLWAY -- DAY]
(Nick walks and talks with Catherine.)
Nick: After examining the crime scene, I determined there were between 200 and 300 milliliters -- that's less than a cup -- of Weatherly's actual blood outside of her body. Originally, we had assumed that the axe blade had sealed the wound, that the position of her body had caused her to bleed internally.
Catherine: But if she had been gored first by another weapon and then axed, there would have been a lot more blood.
Nick: Right, right. So, I compared the initial coroner's report with the last entry in her weight loss journal -- which was taken no more than an hour or two before her death. And guess what?
Catherine: Her body came up light?
Nick: Six pounds light. That's six pints of blood at a pound each nowhere in or around the body. She was moved.
(Quick flash to: Someone drags a tarp with Weatherly's body on it through the hallway. End flash.)
(Hodges joins them.)
Hodges: Hey. The trace from the puncture wound came back. It's zinc, which is electrically coated onto steel to make galvanized pipe.
Catherine: Well, we should go back, expand the search perimeter, try to find the actual murder site.
Nick: Okay. I'll get a hold to swing. We're going to need some help.
Catherine: Okay.
[SCENE_BREAK]
[EXT. REPULSION PICTURES (LOT) - WAREHOUSE -- DAY]
(Dark clouds roll across the sky. Stanley Vespucci steps outside and looks up at the sky.)
(He sees the CSI SUV roll in and park. Catherine, Nick and Ronnie carry their kits and meet up with him.)
Stanley Vespucci: I hear you're holding Vincent Lafoon on suspicion of murder. His lawyer called me. I'd be surprised. Yes, the guy is a bit rough around the edges, but I don't think that he..uh ... Hello.
(He turns and looks at Ronnie.)
(Nick and Catherine both turn and look at Ronnie.)
Catherine: Nick. Why don't you ... uh ... take the offices, and Ronnie and I will start in the storage area.
(Nick heads into the warehouse. Catherine and Ronnie turn and head inside, too. Vespucci turns toward Ronnie.)
Stanley Vespucci: My name is Stanley. (Catherine and Ronnie head inside, ignoring him.) But you call me Stan.
(Stan waits outside.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES -- OFFICES]
(A NIGHT SHIVERS poster hangs on the wall. Nick walks into the offices. He puts his kit down and starts looking around.)
(Up on the bulletin board are lots of WORK-SAFETY notices. There are fake body parts on the shelves. Nick finds a really large pair of slippers under the desk. He looks over and finds a red baseball cap on the wall hook. He notes the cap-size band has been adjusted.)
(Quick flash of: Someone adjusts the size of the red baseball cap to make it fit a bigger head. End flash.)
(Nick takes his phone out and makes a call.)
INTERCUT WITH:
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES - WAREHOUSE - DAY]
(Catherine and Ronnie are walking around the building.)
Nick: (from phone) Hey.
Catherine: (to phone) Hey, Nicky, what do you got?
(Ronnie splits apart and enters a side room while Catherine continues to talk on the phone.)
Nick: (from phone) I've got the hat Lafoon was wearing in the surveillance video. The wear on the strap indicates that it's been set larger ... like it was adjusted for somebody with a bigger head or something.
(Catherine walks across the warehouse.)
Nick: (from phone) So I'm going to get it back, see if I can get some prints off it.
Catherine: (to phone) Okay, I'll ... uh ... meet you back at the lab.
(Catherine hangs up.)
(She stops and looks around and doesn't see or hear Dickie Jones approach.)
Dickie Jones: Howdy. Dickie Jones. And you are?
Catherine: Busy.
Dickie Jones: How about after your shift, I take you out for a cup of coffee? And I could tell you my whole life story.
Catherine: No, thanks.
Dickie Jones: It's just a cup of coffee, doll. I'm not asking you to make love.
(Catherine rolls her eyes and turns to the side. Dickie eyes her behind and hisses his appreciation.)
Dickie Jones: (under his breath) Not right away, anyway.
(Catherine kneels and puts her goggles on.)
Dickie Jones: You know, I could open up new worlds to you. Have you ever had the back of those thighs kissed by a man ... who's standing up?
(Catherine turns her head as she starts laughing. She gets to her feet.)
Dickie Jones: So you find dwarves funny?
(Catherine laughs.)
Catherine: Sometimes, yeah.
Dickie Jones: Come on, what do you say? Is it because of my receding hairline?
(Catherine stops laughing.)
Catherine: I don't go out with persons of interest in an ongoing investigation.
Dickie Jones: Well, I just think you might be missing out, pookie.
Catherine: Don't call me pookie.
(Catherine stands up with her kit.)
Dickie Jones: But you haven't told me your name.
Catherine: Catherine.
(He walks over to her.)
Dickie Jones: Catherine.
Catherine: Catherine.
Dickie Jones: Catherine. Well, Catherine, we little people see things from a different perspective -- things other people might miss.
(Catherine puts her case down.)
Catherine: If you're implying that you know something about Weatherly's death, and you're not giving it up, that makes you, at a minimum, an accessory after the fact, --
(Stanley Vespucci walks in.)
Catherine: -- and that buys a long stretch for a stubby guy.
Dickie Jones: I'm just talking, doll-face.
Stanley Vespucci: Dickie. Why don't we leave the nice woman alone to do her work?
Catherine: Here's my card.
(She gives him her card.)
Catherine: If there's anything that you want to tell me as it pertains to the case ...
(Dickie takes the card from her and kisses the back of her hand.)
Catherine: Uh ... call me.
(Dickie backs away as Stanley walks over. Catherine turns and leaves.)
Dickie Jones: What are you doing?
Stanley Vespucci: Don't complicate things, Dickie.
Dickie Jones: I'm just trying to work--
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. CSI - PRINT LAB]
(The red baseball cap is in the fumer.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
(Nick removes the red baseball cap from the fumer. He looks for prints and puts it down when he doesn't find any. He runs a computer search on CASE FILE NO. LVPD 07 11 08 - 1078 GG.)
(He pulls up the MDV licenses.)
(He turns and looks at the sketch with the notation 5'02" near the window. He looks at the screen cap of the man in the baseball cap. He pulls up the driver license for VAUGHN KRUNTY (aka Zack Putrid). He notes the height: 5'10".)
(He pulls up the driver license for VINCENT LAFOON. He notes the height:
(He pulls up MASON LAFOON'S driver license. His height is 6'3".)
(Nick again looks at the video capture.)
(He gathers the file folder with the pictures and heads out.)
[INT. CSI - A/V LAB - CONTINUOUS]
(Nick heads over to Archie.)
Nick: Hey, Archie, could you bring up the surveillance video from Repulsion Pictures, please?
Archie: Yeah, got it over here.
(Archie plays the video.)
Nick: What's the best you can get me on the face?
(Archie enhances the image without success.)
Nick: He seems to be deliberately looking away from the camera. Take him to the window.
Nick: Freeze that. Zoom in on the sleeve. Does that jacket look a little small for that guy to you?
Archie: Maybe.
Nick: I measured the height of the window. It's five feet. How tall is the guy?
Archie: Well, he's a head taller than that window.
Nick: Vincent Lafoon's only five-foot-ten. This guy's six-foot-two, six-foot-three, easy. And a lot rounder. The only guy that big in the bunch is Mason.
(Nick makes a call.)
Nick: (to phone) Catherine, it's Nick. Listen, the surveillance video footage is a fake. I think we got the wrong brother in custody. I think Mason set up Vincent to set Oliver up. It's getting complicated.
[SCENE_BREAK]
[EXT. LAS VEGAS CITY (STOCK) - NIGHT]
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES - WAREHOUSE -- NIGHT]
(Thunder rumbles and lightning flashes. Catherine has her goggles on as she looks around.)
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES - SET -- NIGHT]
(Ronnie is inside the set looking around with her flashlight.)
(Catherine is on the other side looking at the bloodied dummies with her ALS.)
Catherine: (calls out) Hey, Ronnie, anything?
(Ronnie walks through the set.)
Ronnie: No. This place is creeping me out.
Catherine: It's supposed to.
(Catherine turns and looks over at the shelves with extra body parts.)
(Lightning flashes and thunder rumbles outside. Catherine walks over to one of the props. She checks it and finds blood. In one of the pipes protruding from the prop, she finds more blood.)
(Catherine turns her ALS off and goes to her kit to take a sample.)
(Meanwhile, Ronnie continues to make her way slowly through the dark, creepy aisles.)
(Catherine takes a swab sample off the pipe and tests it. It comes out positive. Ronnie joins her.)
Catherine: I think we just found our murder weapon. Hidden in plain sight.
(Ronnie sees something on the side.)
Ronnie: Catherine? I've got something else here.
(Ronnie photographs it and pulls it out of the rolled up coils on the shelf.)
Catherine: Looks like Weatherly's missing heel.
(Quick flash to: Weatherly struggles with someone. She backs up, trips and falls backwards. End flash.)
Catherine: This is where she died.
(Lightning flashes and thunder crashes. The overhead lights go out completely.)
Catherine: Ah, damn.
(The generator lights turn on.)
Catherine: Oh, good.
Catherine: Auxiliary generator just kicked in.
(Catherine checks her phone.)
Catherine: And I don't have any service.
(Ronnie checks her phone.)
Ronnie: Mine's dead, too.
(Ronnie puts her phone down on the shelf.)
Catherine: I'm going to get a dolly for you to move this thing. Photo it and get it back to the lab.
(Catherine heads out.)
Ronnie: Okay.
[SCENE_BREAK]
[EXT. LAS VEGAS CITY (STOCK) - NIGHT]
(Its pouring.)
[EXT. CAR (MOVING) - NIGHT]
(Ronnie is driving. She glances down at her fuel. It's nearly empty. The message on the dash reads: FUEL RANGE LOW.)
(Ronnie turns into the nearest gas station to fill it up. The attendant, dressed in a raincoat and hat, runs out. Ronnie gives him the money.)
Ronnie: Here you go. Thanks!
(He turns and heads back inside. She fills the SUV and reaches for her phone. It's not there.)
Ronnie: Damn it.
(Ronnie opens the car door and takes out the radio.)
Ronnie: (to radio) Control, this is C-147 Lake for C13 Willows.
Dispatch: (from radio) Copy, C-147. Stand by. C-147, you have C-13. Over.
SPLIT SCREEN WITH: [INT. CATHERINE'S CAR]
Catherine: (to radio) This is Catherine.
Ronnie: (to radio) Hey, Catherine, I left my cell phone at the studio. I need to go back and get it.
(Ronnie finishes filling her car.)
Catherine: (to radio) Yeah, you'd better. They're department issue. And if you lose it, you replace it.
Ronnie: (to radio) Does that include the cost of the contract?
Catherine: (to radio) Oh, yeah.
Ronnie: (to radio) Damnit. I'll see you later.
(Ronnie goes back into the car, puts her seatbelt on and leaves the gas station.)
(As she pulls out, a woman with short blonde hair watches her. Lightning flashes.)
(Ronnie's SUV heads back to the studio.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. CSI - HALLWAY - NIGHT]
(Catherine returns. She's on the phone with Brass.)
Catherine: We found the pipe that killed Weatherly. It's in the print lab being processed. She was killed on the soundstage and then dragged over.
Brass: (from phone) We've got a warrant out for Mason Lafoon. We're looking for him now.
Catherine: (to phone) Okay. Let me know what you find out.
(She hangs up. Another call comes in. It's DICKIE JONES.)
(Catherine sighs and heads into her office.)
Catherine: (to phone) What do you want?
Dickie Jones: (from phone) Pookie, it's me, Dickie.
Catherine: (to phone) I know.
Dickie Jones: (from phone) I've got information I think you might be interested in.
Catherine: (to phone) Okay, shoot.
Dickie Jones: (from phone) No. It has to be in person.
Catherine: (to phone) Where are you?
Dickie Jones: (from phone) I'm at the studio.
Catherine: (to phone) I thought there was no phone transmission from there.
Dickie Jones: (from phone) There wasn't. Now there is. That's how it is with phones and electrical storms. Look, it's urgent. Get down here as soon as you can.
Catherine: I just came from there. Why didn't you tell me then, you annoying little man?
Dickie Jones: (from phone) The situation is evolving.
Catherine: (to phone) If you're screwing with me, I will to string you up and beat you senseless.
INTERCUT WITH:
[EXT. REPULSION PICTURES]
Dickie Jones: (to phone) I look forward to it. Just hurry.
(Thunder cracks. Dickie Jones hangs up.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - INTERVIEW ROOM -- NIGHT]
(Brass puts a photo of Mason opening the warehouse window down on the table.)
Brass: That's you, Mason. All six feet, three inches of you impersonating your brother, which makes you good for Weatherly's murder. You did that one, too, didn't you?
Mason Lafoon: No, no, no. Nobody killed Weatherly, okay? She killed herself.
Brass: Oh, really? What, she axed herself in the back?
Mason Lafoon: No, you don't understand. She ... she ... It was an accident. She tripped.
(Quick flashback to: Mason Lafoon and Stanley Vespucci are talking as Weatherly says good night to them.)
Mason Lafoon: Good night, Weatherly.
Stanley Vespucci: Good night, kid.
Mason Lafoon: Yeah, great stuff tonight. Have a good night.
Stanley Vespucci: All right.
Mason Lafoon: See you tomorrow.
Weatherly Adams: See you tomorrow. Okay.
(Weatherly smiles and waves to them as she backs away. She trips on the rolled up hose on the floor, falls off the set stage, and ... SQUISH!)
(Mason and Stanley rush over to check on her. They find her impaled and dead on the prop below.
Mason Lafoon: (shouts) Call 911! Call 911!
(Mason reaches for his phone. Stanley stops him from dialing.)
Stanley Vespucci: Wait, let's think about this.
Mason Lafoon: No, but Stanley ...
Stanley Vespucci: Mason, she's dead! This time she's not coming back. We've got so many health and safety violations. If we report one more set-related accident -- especially one resulting in a death -- we will lose our bond, our liability insurance, OSHA will shut us down, we'll get our asses sued for wrongful death, and that will be the end of Repulsion Pictures! Is that what you want? Is that what you want?!
Mason Lafoon: (shouts) No!
BACK TO SCENE.
Mason Lafoon: He ... he said "the show must go on," th-that Weatherly ... would have wanted it that ... I don't ... we ... we didn't kill anybody.
Brass: But you made it look like a murder, and then you framed your brother.
Mason Lafoon: Well, he's been treating me like crap my entire life.
(Brass chuckles.)
Brass: Yeah, but for that, you're going to send him to jail for the rest of his life?
Mason Lafoon: This was all ... this was all Stanley's idea.
Brass: Do you realize how much trouble you're in?
Mason Lafoon: Look, Stanley was the one who wanted to frame Vincent, okay? All I was supposed to do was clean up the accident scene and pretend to be Vince and buy the roses and that was it. The rest was him. If you don't believe me, talk to the dwarf.
(Brass sits down.)
Brass: Why? What did he have to do with it?
Mason Lafoon: Dickie saw the whole thing.
(Quick flashback to: Stanley and Mason talk. Dickie Jones is in the back of the set watching ... and hearing them.)
Stanley Vespucci: ... and that will be the end of Repulsion Pictures. Is that what you want? Is that what you want?!
Mason Lafoon: No!
Mason: (V.O.) And he's been trying to shake down Stanley ever since.
BACK TO SCENE.
Brass: Well, that would explain the animosity.
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES - SET -- NIGHT]
(Ronnie returns to the warehouse. She wipes the rain from her forehead as she heads to the back to get her phone.)
(Thunder rumbles. Lightning flashes. The lights are on. Ronnie enters the room. She grabs her phone off the stage and turns around to leave. She stops at a fresh pool of dripping blood on the floor.)
(She looks up and finds Dickie Jones hanging from the overhead beams upside down. He's dead.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
[EXT. STREET -- NIGHT]
(The CSI SUV turns on the road.)
[INT. CATHERINE'S CAR (TRAVELING) - NIGHT]
(Catherine is driving.)
Catherine: (to radio) Control, this is C-13 Willows, trying to contact C-147 Lake.
Dispatch: (from radio) C-13, Control. Copy. Stand by.
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES - SET -- NIGHT]
(Ronnie is on her phone.)
Ronnie: (to phone) Hello, Dispatch?
(She doesn't get a response. She shakes her phone.)
Ronnie: (to phone) Hello?
[INT. CATHERINE'S CAR (TRAVELING) - NIGHT]
Dispatch: (from radio) C-13, Control. C-147 is not responding.
Catherine: (to radio) Okay, thanks. Over and out.
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES - SET -- NIGHT]
(Ronnie's phone beeps as it disconnects. She looks around. Two gunshots fire.)
(She heads out to the door.)
(She stops when a WOMAN in a long gown, high spiked heels and a short blonde wig walks across the far entryway. The WOMAN looks like it might be Weatherly.)
(Ronnie's phone rings.)
(She ducks quickly to the side to hide. She reaches for her phone to turn the ringer off. But the WOMAN turns around and looks at Ronnie. Ronnie runs back to the set.)
(She ducks into the corner and crouches against the wall. She opens her phone and makes a call.)
SPLIT SCREEN: [INT. CATHERINE'S CAR]
Ronnie: (to phone) (whispers) Catherine, it's Ronnie. I'm stuck at Repulsion Pictures. I need backup.
Catherine: Ronnie ...
Ronnie: (to phone) Hello?
(Ronnie looks at her phone.)
Catherine: (echo-y) ... uh ... I'm, I'm coming.
Ronnie: (to phone) Hello?
Catherine: Just ... just stay on the line.
("Weatherly" turns and heads back toward the set where Ronnie is.)
Ronnie: (to phone) Hello?
Catherine: Ronnie?
Ronnie: (to phone) Hello?
Catherine: Ronn-
(The line goes dead.)
Ronnie: (to phone) Hello?
(Catherine's phone beeps. She picks up the radio to call dispatch.)
Catherine: Dispatch, this is C-13 Willows requesting backup to meet me at Repulsion Pictures.
(Catherine turns the sirens on.)
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES - SET -- NIGHT]
(Meanwhile, Ronnie looks out the window. Lightning flashes and the woman's figure passes by the window, her heels clacking on the floor.)
(Ronnie reaches over and picks up the toilet tank cover. She backs away from the door.)
(She turns around and ZACK PUTRID is standing there.)
(He falls to the floor with a THUD. He grabs Ronnie by her ankle.)
Zack Putrid: (gasps) You gotta help me. I'm shot! I'm shot! You gotta get us out of here.
(Ronnie puts the cover down and applies pressure to the wound in Zack's back.)
Ronnie: (quietly) It's gonna be okay. Keep your voice down.
Zack Putrid: (gasping) Do you know how many people I've killed in this place?
Ronnie: Shh!
Zack Putrid: The irony is exquisite, but the pain is more formidable, you know? I think the pain is preventing me from enjoying the irony.
(Ronnie covers Zack's mouth to stop him from talking.)
Ronnie: Shh! Shut up!
(She removes her hand and he starts talking again.)
Zack Putrid: But I ...
Ronnie: For the love of God, stop talking.
[EXT. STREET - NIGHT]
(Catherine's SUV turns onto the road, sirens wailing.)
[INT. REPULSION PICTURES - SET -- NIGHT]
(Zack coughs blood.)
Zack Putrid: Oh, that's not good. (coughs) I should really stop talking and-and try and relax.
OTHER POV: Someone watches them.
Ronnie: That's good. Yeah, stop talking.
Zack Putrid: But I can't stop talking. I've got that thing that ... It's a syndrome. It's a word ... There's a word for it.
Ronnie: Shh-shh-shh!
Zack Putrid: People have it. It's a syndrome. I can't stop talking.
Stanley: Zack.
(Ronnie looks up and sees Stanley Vespucci standing up on the mezzanine level above them. He's carrying a gun and raises it at them.)
(Zack turns and looks at Stanley.)
Zack Putrid: Stanley ... Stanley, don't shoot me again. I don't want to die, okay? You already shot me twice. I learned my lesson, okay?
Ronnie: Sir, I'm a CSI. Think about what you're doing.
(Thunder rumbles.)
Ronnie: Put down your weapon.
Stanley Vespucci: I'm sorry, I don't think I can do that.
(He cocks the gun. Zack sobs.)
(Suddenly, Stanley gasps. He staggers down the stairs with an axe in his back.)
(He falls to the floor in front of Ronnie and Zack.)
(Behind him, Oliver Zarco is dressed in a blue sequined gown and is wearing a short blonde wig. He's looking a lot like "Weatherly.")
(Ronnie looks at Zarco.)
Oliver Zarco: Are you okay?
Ronnie: (nods) Yeah.
(Oliver gulps and sits down hard on the steps. He removes the blonde wig.)
(The approaching sirens grow louder.)
Oliver Zarco: I really loved her.
(He buries his face in the wig and cries.)
(Ronnie lets out a shaky breath.)
Catherine: (o.s.) Ronnie!
(Catherine enters the room with two officers behind her. Their weapons are out.)
(Ronnie sits down on the floor.)
(Catherine sees the bodies on the floor - and Zarco sitting on the steps. She looks up and sees Dickie Jones hanging from the ceiling beams.)
[SCENE_BREAK]
[BLACK SCREEN]
Zack Putrid: (V.O.) I'm editing late, like I always do, and I hear a shot.
INSERT: FLASHBACK
(Stanley is turning the crank that raises Dickie Jones up to the ceiling beams by his feet.)
Zack Putrid: (V.O.) So, I go outside and check it out.
(Zack walks in and sees him.)
Zack Putrid: Stanley!
Stanley Vespucci: You gotta help me hide the dwarf before the cops come back. Dickie was blackmailing us about Weatherly's accident. He wants to bring the whole company down.
Zack Putrid: But you killed him! You killed Dickie!
Stanley Vespucci: What's it gonna be, Zack? (He points the gun at Zack.) You gonna help me here or what?!
WHITE FLASH TO:
[INT. HOSPITAL - ZACK'S ROOM]
(Zack talks with Ronnie.)
Zack Putrid: Next thing you know, I'm running for my life. And the nut job is chasing me. He shoots me, and then I see the hot ... you. And all I can think the whole time is, "Man, this is great. I could use this stuff." I mean, this is life imitating art imitating life. You are so beautiful.
(Ronnie starts to smile.)
Zack Putrid: You are ... Your, your face is so expressive. It-it emotes. You do terror so good.
Ronnie: I wasn't acting.
Zack Putrid: I know.
Ronnie: I'll see you.
(Ronnie turns to leave.)
Zack Putrid: Well, hey, listen. If you ever get tired of fighting crime, you know, there's always a future for you in the horror business. I mean, I'll take you there.
Ronnie: Thanks, but I like what I'm doing.
Zack Putrid: Oh, hey, the offer's still good.
Ronnie: Okay, thanks.
Zack Putrid: No, I'm serious. I could build an entire franchise around you.
Ronnie: Bye.
(Ronnie leaves.)
Zack Putrid: (shouts) Seriously. Give me a call.
[SCENE_BREAK]
[INT. CSI - HALLWAY / FORENSIC AUTOPSY]
(We move through the hallway, past a dead body on a gurney. We turn the corner and enter Forensic Autopsy.)
(We hear music and screaming - men screaming, maniacal laughter and a woman screaming.)
(We see a dead body on the autopsy table and hear horror movie climax music playing. A man laughs. A door hinge creaks loudly.)
(Robbins and David Phillips sit at the desk watching a horror movie and eating popcorn.)
Robbins: That is impressive. As the woman's throat is being slashed, you can actually see the entire transverse view of the trachea.
David Phillips: That's all you've got to say?
(Robbins puts his glasses on and sits forward.)
Robbins: I believe I can see the epiglottis.
David Phillips: Epiglottis? What about the pathos? I mean ... what about the humanity? This may be Weatherly's finest performance.
(Robbins stares at David.)
David Phillips: Oh, just watch the movie.
(A woman screams. They go back to the popcorn and the movie.)
SLIDE TO BLACK.
(A man laughs maniacally.)


[PREVIOUSLY_ON]
Ihab: This act will be remembered as the first great act of defiance.
(crowd chanting)
Jamal: Ihab Rashid is behind all this.
Samira: I'm done wishing for change.
I am making it happen.
Jamal: The wedding night is very special. It's important to be pure.
Molly: It's not safe for you to be there.
Barry: It's not safe for anyone there.
(thumping)
Jamal: Run them down!
Leila: Go!
Jamal: Tomorrow, there will be only pigeons in the square.
Barry: What is it you want me to do?
Fauzi: I want you to get your hands dirty, to go against your family.
Barry: I asked Fauzi Nidal to set up a meeting with Ihab Rashid.
Jamal: The man who would have all our heads?
Barry: You can go down in history as one more brutal dictator, or you can be remembered as the leader who had the courage to listen to his people.
Who do you want to be?
Ihab: Jamal has asked me to gather you, the leaders of the various factions who fill the Plaza, to meet with his American brother. This is the second time the Palace has come to me. The agitation in the Plaza, the galvanizing of the people, ooh, has them running scared. It's poker. Right now we have the winning hand. Why negotiate? Hmm? Nobody negotiated with Mubarak. No, no, no, no, no, no. When this Amriki walks in, I'm going to tell him exactly what it will take for us to clear the Plaza: his brother's resignation. Jamal Al Fayeed... he can, uh, take his blood money, go to... go to Paris. (laughter) Or go to London. Spend the rest of his days writing his memoirs.
Farah: But what if he's actually willing to offer us something?
Ihab: No. His father betrayed my father. I'm not about to let him do the same thing to me. The only offer we will take is for Jamal Al Fayeed to leave Abbudin.
Fauzi: You sure about this?
Barry: I'm sure of one thing. A narcissist with a messiah complex is not about to negotiate with me. Look, I'm betting Ihab told everyone in earshot that an Al Fayeed asked to sit down with him. He said yes so quickly, 'cause he wants to tell me where to go in front of an audience, but now he's gonna have to explain why he's sitting at the table alone. For my plan to work, I have to take him down a notch. Make the call.
Samira: Father, where are you? Everyone's here, and they're... Okay. Okay. It's my father.
Ihab: You are late. What do you mean you are not coming?! That is bullshit!
(chuckles)
(engine stops)
(Barry sighs)
Barry: Thank you, my friend.
Fauzi: You know, I'm worried for you, Bassam.
Barry: (chuckles) Been a while since anyone called me that.
Fauzi: You know this game you're playing, it's a dangerous game.
Barry: I don't see another option.
I have to clear the Plaza before Tariq does.
John: The garage meet. Classic. This is insane. Why set a meet with Ihab so you can stand him up?
Barry: Ihab's having his moment. He was never gonna bargain. So I had to take the wind out of his sails. Ihab's a boy. I want to see his father, the man who almost made peace with my father. I was here, Tucker, okay? I saw it. The people adored him. I need an hour with Sheik Rashid.
John: So, you want to use Sheik Rashid to do an end run around Ihab? I mean, what... what happened to the nice family doctor from Pasadena?
Barry: Don't screw me around, John. The U.S. brokered Sheik Rashid's asylum 20 years ago. I need to talk to him, and you know where he is.
John: Does your brother even know you're here?
Barry: I didn't say anything, because he'd never give me this much rope.
John: Well, if you want to hang yourself with it, be my guest. Don't expect me to build the gallows.
Barry: Tucker, I'm just trying to keep America's ass from landing on the wrong side of history.
John: Uh-huh. Which doesn't involve turning you into another Daniel Pearl. My job is to protect American citizens, not serve them up. You end up dead in the desert in a trail that leads back to the U.S. Embassy...
Barry: What do you want? In return, what do you want? An inside seat? A heads up on what's happening as it happens? (John sighs)
John: Are you offering to spy on your brother?
Barry: I have 24 hours. You have less.
Tariq: I need to speak to the president.
Secretary: Uh... But he-he isn't... Shall I leave him a, um, message?
Leila: Who drowned your puppy?
Tariq: Have you seen your husband?
Leila: I'm not his keeper.
Tariq: At least tell me why he ordered me to stand down. I was about to send two brigades to the Plaza, and all of a sudden, he changes his mind with no explanation. He won't take my calls. He's cancelled his meetings for the day.
Leila: The president isn't required to consult with his wife on every decision he makes.
Tariq: But as his wife, you should know. If Jamal isn't prepared to defend the regime, there are others who will.
Leila: I hope, for your sake, you're not threatening my husband.
Tariq: On the contrary, I'm trying to protect him.
(crowd clamoring over video)
(rapid gunfire over video)
Ihab: Now these Al Fayeeds, they want to give us platitudes.
Leila: He's a parrot.
His mouth moves, but other people's words come out. La Boétie, Guevara and his father, the Sheik.
Ihab: As men and women of...
Leila: But you, you are in the position to make your own history.
Jamal: Start with a compliment, end with an ask. What do you want?
Leila: Yesterday in the Plaza, they nearly killed you.
Jamal: You exaggerate.
Leila: No, I was there, Jamal. Three weeks, and the people are already questioning your leadership. Now is the time to be firm, to show them that you are in control. Why are you holding back Tariq?
Jamal: Why? For you.
Leila: For me?
Jamal: If I move against the Plaza, ten times as many will rise up against me, against my family. This is certain, Leila. So what do I do? I wait until tomorrow. Maybe these clouds will bring a storm. Or maybe something will happen to clear them.
Leila: Is this you talking? Or is it Bassam? Maybe Ihab is not the only parrot in this country.
Jamal: Don't make the mistake of getting between me and my brother.
Molly: Reema, what are you doing?
Reema: I was just straightening up.
Molly: Hold on. Let me see what's in your pocket.
Reema: I'll be in the servants' quarters until the police arrive.
Molly: Just wait. First tell me why you need Vicodin.
Reema: Not me. My brother Salam.
Molly: What's wrong with him? Reema...
Reema: He broke his arm. He was fixing the roof and he fell.
Molly: Well, if his arm is broken, he needs a doctor to set it. You have to take him to the hospital.
Reema: No hospital.
Molly: Why not?
Reema: Please, ma'am.
Molly: Okay, tell you what... You take me to see your brother, and this stays between us.
Reema: You will tell no one?
Molly: No.
Ahmed: Where's the fire?
Nusrat: You smell like tequila. I have to help your grandma with seating arrangements, okay?
Ahmed: Baby, it's been a month and we still haven't... I didn't get married to take care of my own needs!
(door slams)
Jamal: Mother, this is really beautiful.
Amira: Not nearly as beautiful as your daughter-in-law.
Jamal: Yes, Ahmed is a lucky man.
Is this my grandson I feel in there? Bassam is waiting for me.
Amira: Your father would be so happy to see his two sons working together like this.
Jamal: He would have been.
Amira: Are you all right, Nusrat? The ambassador is deaf in his left ear, so I'm going to put you on his right side.
Jamal: So... when am I sitting down with this asshole?
Barry: I'm still working out the details.
Jamal: What details? He shows up when and where we say!
Barry: Yeah, it's not... it's not quite as simple as that.
Jamal: It is simple. Who's the president, me or him?
(groans)
What aren't you telling me?
Barry: Nothing. He's just, uh... the guy's playing hard to get.
Jamal: Hard to get? Maybe he will play nicer with electrodes on his balls.
Barry: Can you please just give me a little more time?
Jamal: How much time do you think I have? I've already got Leila crawling up my ass. While you are out buying flowers for this shitball, I'm starting to look like some pussy who can't pull the trigger.
Barry: Jamal, I'm working on it.
Jamal: Working on it? Well, stop working on it and get it done.
(crowd clamoring)
Ihab: Abbudin!
Crowd: Abbudin!
Ihab: He humiliated me.
Mohammed: Relax, relax.
Ihab: No, no, no, no, no! I'm not going to relax.
He can't do this. It makes me look like a fool. That was the point, wasn't it?
Mohammed: Take the mic, paint him as the liar he is!
Ihab: Oh, and look like a child who dropped his ice cream, huh? No, no, no, no, no, no, no. What is the game he's playing?
Samira: Same game as you are. You were only there to tell him off to his face.
Ihab: You... you knew all along Bassam was going to blow me off.
Samira: What?! No! No!
Ihab: You set the location, set the time.
Samira: Ihab, stop! You're letting your anger get the best of you at a time when the people need your leadership. People are trusting you with their lives. People I know! My friends!
Ihab: You don't think I know that, little girl? Hmm? I am not here by accident.
Crowd (chanting): Free Abbudin! Free Abbudin! Free Abbudin! Free Abbudin!
Ihab: Abbudin!
Barry: Jamal's given me 24 hours to see if I can clear the Plaza peacefully.
Molly: What are you gonna do?
Barry: Tucker is reaching out to Ihab's father, the Sheik, to try and arrange a meeting. Before my father launched the attack on Ma'an, he and the Sheik sat down for peace talks. Rashid was prepared to negotiate a peaceful solution.
Molly: Yeah, and then he bombed the Palace.
Barry: An army barracks. And it was his followers, not him. Look, 20 years ago, Rashid was prepared to negotiate with my father. Despite what happened, me sitting down with him now is the only hope we have to stop this blowing up in our faces.
Molly: Who's going with you?
Barry: I don't know all the details yet, okay? Tucker's gonna call me back. Until then, I'm going to go for a run, okay?
Molly: So it's a suicide mission.
Barry: That's blowing it out of proportion. And Molly, really, I don't have another choice here.
Molly: Of course you have another choice. You also have two kids and a wife. I mean... you're gonna get yourself killed, Barry.
Barry: Honey, we're not at home listening to this on NPR, we're in it. And I can do something my father couldn't... I can end this peacefully.
Molly: That's Jamal's job, not yours. Why are you putting your life on this line for this?
Barry: 'Cause my name's not Smith or Jones!
(Molly scoffs)
Molly: If I didn't know you better, I'd say you were starting to get off on this.
Ahmed: Hakim, I know Nusrat is here.
Hakim: Now is not a good time. She's upset.
Ahmed: Which is why she should be with her husband and not run to her parents like a child!
We had a thing this morning, now she's not returning my calls.
Hakim: I swear I'll talk sense into her. You have my word. Do have any idea what position you are putting our family in? Everything we have, it's all from Al Fayeeds!
Nusrat: I want a divorce.
Hakim: Don't be stupid. Why did you agree to marry Ahmed if you don't love him?
Sofia: Tell him.
Hakim: Tell me what? Tell me what?
Nusrat: It's not Ahmed. It's Jamal.
(phone vibrating)
Barry: Yeah.
John: Barry, it's Tucker.
The person you wanted me to reach out to agreed to meet.
Barry: Okay. I'll go back and tell Molly...
John: You can call Molly from the road. I'm about to jump in the car. Meet me outside the gate.
Barry: I'm on my way. All right, guys, that's it for the day.
[SCENE_BREAK]
John: Thank you for arranging this meeting with your father. Namir Rashid... Bassam Al Fayeed.
Namir: Okay, come with me. Oh, no, no... you stay here.
John: No, no, no, no, that wasn't the arrangement.
Namir: I told my father we should kill him right here, but this is his wish. Turn around, Al Fayeed.
Barry: It's okay.
Namir: Do it.
Ihab (recorded): When this, uh, Amriki walks in here, I'm going to tell him exactly what it will take for us to clear the Plaza: his brother's resignation.
Tariq: Our security forces track Ihab Rashid's movements. Imagine their surprise and my embarrassment upon learning he was meeting with your brother.
Jamal: Bassam is working for me. He is meeting Ihab Rashid on my orders.
Tariq: Bassam's been nowhere near Ihab in the last 24 hours.
Jamal: That is wrong. That is wrong! I spoke to Bassam right after their meeting. He looked me in the eyes and told me they are ironing out details.
Tariq: Then he lied to you! He's had no contact with Ihab. As a matter of fact, Bassam ditched his security. He is nowhere to be found.
Leila: This is why you refuse to clear the Plaza? Bassam... doesn't keep his promises.
Jamal: How the hell would you know?
Barry (recorded): Hi, you've reached Barry Al Fayeed. Please leave your name and...
Tariq: Sir, at least allow me to move my forces into position.
(Jamal sighs)
Jamal: Fine.
But they stand down until I give the order.
(coughing)
Sheik Rashid: My lungs...
(clears throat)
A souvenir of the day your father gassed Ma'an. You met my son, Namir.
Barry: Yeah, he, uh... he drove me from the border. The hood kind of limited the conversation.
Sheik Rashid: You understand our precautions.
Barry: Yes.
Sheik Rashid: I have always been curious about Khaled's American son.
(gunshot)
Man: Death to the Al Fayeed!
(grunts) Death to the Al Fayeed! Death to the Al Fayeeds!
Sheik Rashid: I apologize for his actions, but his anger is understandable. His family was wiped out by yours. Bassam Al Fayeed, yesterday you were my enemy, but today you are my guest.
Barry: Sheik Rashid, I need to talk to you about...
Sheik Rashid: That's not the way it's done. First, we eat.
Hakim: Mr. President, you are too kind, taking time away from important issues of state to deal with a personal matter.
Leila: To what do we owe this pleasure?
Hakim: Marriage... it's a complicated proposition, and Nusrat has always been... fragile. Overly emotional. My wife and I are to blame. We coddled her.
Jamal: Cut to the chase.
Hakim: We ask for nothing, just a quick and quiet dissolution of the marriage.
Leila: Divorce? On what grounds? Tell me, Hakim. We have welcomed your daughter to this family as one of our own. Ahmed is my son. I demand to know what this is about.
Hakim: Please, ma'am, are the details really important?
(Jamal groans)
Jamal: Will you wait for me outside?
Hakim: Sure.
(door closes)
Jamal: I will fix this.
Leila: You'd better.
We can't afford another humiliation.
Jamal: I said I will fix this.
(gunshot)
Your turn.
Hakim: I'm no match for you.
Jamal (chuckles): Yeah. That's true. So, tell me, Hakim, what is this nonsense about a divorce? Your daughter has everything a woman could want. Why you don't talk sense to her?
Hakim: Believe me, Mr. President, I have tried.
Jamal: "Tried." Well, not hard enough. My father gave you the telecommunication franchise in this country. Now, your family has everything it has because my family gave it to you.
Hakim: And I'm forever in your debt.
Jamal: Then act like it.
Hakim: Please, I beg you. There is no talking sense with a sleepwalker. She's in a doctor's care. He prescribes therapy, medication. My daughter is weak, and your son did his best.
Jamal: "Did his best"? Are you saying this is Ahmed's fault?
Hakim: No, of course not.
Jamal: Then what are you saying? What reason did she give?
(chuckles)
Hakim: I swear, she will go to the grave with her secret.
Jamal: Tell me what she told you.
Hakim: Uh, it doesn't matter.
Jamal: You know what, you are right.
It doesn't matter.
(muffled screaming)
There will be no divorce, Hakim.
(Hakim groaning)
Your whore of a daughter is going to crawl back into my son's bed! She will bear him children. As many as he wants.
Hakim: Mr. President, please! Please, sir!
(gunshot)
(screaming)
Molly: It's not just his arm.
He fractured multiple ribs when he fell. His pulse is racing and weak. He's anxious. (sighs) Reema, with this kind of injury, he could be bleeding on the inside. It's okay, it's okay. We're gonna get you to a hospital.
Reema: I said no hospital.
Molly: He wasn't fixing a roof, was he?
Reema: He was in the Plaza. When the president's motorcade came, people, they start pushing. He is innocent, but the camera, they saw him. If he seeks help now, they'll arrest him.
Molly: He'll die if he doesn't.
Reema: Better to die here than live through what they will do to him. His friends in the Plaza, they tagged a street sign with "free Abbudin" and were arrested. When their father went to the police, begged for his children, he was told to make new ones. Salam is my only family. Please, help us.
Emt: What's his name?
(indistinct radio transmission)
Reema: Salam.
Salam Halabi.
Molly: Radial fracture, multiple broken ribs, suspected hemothorax from intercostal hemorrhaging. We need to throw in a chest tube.
Emt: I'm sorry, but you can't take this man. He is wanted by the authorities. We have to alert the police...
Molly: He'll die if you wait.
Emt: Before we admit him to the hospital. Then he'll die.
Molly: No, he won't. I won't let him.
Emt: And who are you?
Molly: Dr. Molly Al Fayeed.
Emt: We were just following the law. A thousand pardons.
Molly: You don't... you don't need to apologize to me. Just get him to the hospital. You know what, why don't I come with you and make sure no one else makes the same mistake.
Namir: Bless Allah for protecting us and for all that we have.
Sheik Rashid: Alhamdulillah.
All: Alhamdulillah.
Sheik Rashid: I see you are anxious to talk.
Barry: Yes.
Sheik Rashid: Walk with me.
(Sheik Rashid coughs)
You made a long trip to avoid the more obvious choice.
Barry: Ihab doesn't want to talk. He wants his turn, and that's not going to happen.
(Sheik Rashid laughs)
Sheik Rashid: You must be worried.
Otherwise, you are not here.
Barry: I'm worried about the price we'll have to pay for either side to win. There's a book I-I read about apartheid in South Africa. A white man says about the blacks, "my greatest fear" "is that by the time we have come to love," "they will have come to hate."
Sheik Rashid: Have you come to love?
Barry: I've come to talk. You and I have more in common than anyone else in this. We're both exiled... for different reasons... by force or by choice. But we both have the advantage of an outsider's perspective.
Sheik Rashid: You came back. Why?
Barry: To try and keep my brother from making my father's mistakes. Finish with my brother what you started with my father. Negotiate a political solution.
Sheik Rashid: This is a young man's fight.
Barry: And I need an old man to be my partner. Someone who wants nothing for himself.
Sheik Rashid: You think that's me?
Barry: Well, I think we both have a second chance here to make this right. You and I both know history. If we don't try, then your son or my brother and so many people along with them will be consumed by this. Imprisoned, exiled... or dead within a year.
Sheik Rashid: Death doesn't scare me... Bassam Al Fayeed. I've seen too much of it.
(Sheik Rashid coughs)
Barry: I don't believe you. w After 20 years, you're still alive.
I'm a doctor. I believe that life itself is hope. And I think that you do, too.
[SCENE_BREAK]
John: You didn't close the deal.
Barry: Thought it was going in the right direction.
He... just said he needed to sleep on it. But when he woke up...
John: Well, you may have failed, but, uh, the reach... It was impressive. Get in. I'll take you back to the Palace.
(crowd clamoring over video)
(rapid gunfire over video)
Jamal: General... (sighs)
Clear the Plaza.
(crowd clamoring) (whistle blowing)
Ihab: They're moving into the Plaza.
Mohammed: After your speech, there's a van waiting for you.
Samira: Ihab.
So, when they start shooting, you won't be standing with the people?
(whistle blowing)
Crowd (chanting): Free Abbudin! Free Abbudin!
(chanting, clamoring continues)
(helicopter hovering overhead)
Fauzi: Samira.
Let's go before it's too late.
Samira: I'm not leaving.
Fauzi: You would die for him?
Samira: Ihab may be trying to replace one tyranny with another. But the people... they won't let him. And I'm standing here with them.
Fauzi: I'll stand with you.
Leila: Thank you for coming.
Sofia: How can you do this? You're feeding her to the wolves.
Hakim: It's not like we have a choice.
Sofia: She's our daughter.
Amira: Hakim. What happened to you?
Hakim: It's nothing. A hunting accident.
Amira: And yet you're here. What one does for family. Nusrat.
Leila: Beautiful as ever. It's all for you. Everything here... Is all for you.
Ahmed: Nusrat.
Nusrat: Everything's going to be okay.
Ahmed: Come. Let's greet everyone.
Nusrat: Okay.
Leila: Enjoy the party.
(Jamal sighs)
Jamal: Look at the newlyweds.
Leila: What a persuasive man.
(both sighing)
Barry: You were right.
Why did I think I could come here and do something my father couldn't? Thank you... for putting your life on hold for me. Being here with me.
Molly: I think I really needed to hear that.
Crowd (chanting): Free Abbudin! Free Abbudin!
Ihab: Raise your phones! Record this moment in history! As long as we have a camera, the revolution continues!
(crowd cheering)
And if... if we are the first martyrs to liberate Abbudin, then so be it!
(crowd cheering)
I stand with you, my brothers and sisters.
Crowd (chanting): Free Abbudin!
Ihab: I stand with you, united... united... unite...
(crowd quiets)
[SCENE_BREAK]
(applause)
Sheik Rashid: Brothers... and sisters.
20 years in exile, but I have come home. (crowd cheering)
Tariq: Your brother is back.
Jamal: Excuse me. Liar. You told me you were going to meet Ihab Rashid. I trusted you. You are my blood, and you betrayed me.
Molly: Jamal.
Jamal: No, Molly. If your husband is a traitor, I need to know.
Molly: He's not a traitor.
Tariq: He deceived the president. Threatened our national security.
John: Mr. President. General. Uh, you need to see something.
Sheik Rashid: Willing to put aside the atrocities of the past, to join our cause. I demand to sit down with president Jamal Al Fayeed. (crowd cheering)
Jamal: He demands?
Sheik Rashid: Free Abbudin!
Crowd: Free Abbudin! Free Abbudin! Free Abbudin!
(chanting continues)
Barry: This is it.
You can finish something our father couldn't. Pardon the Sheik and sit down with him.
Tariq: This is insane. Our soldiers are in place, awaiting your order.
Barry: Then stand them down. Jamal, you can end this without firing a shot. This is what you wanted.
Jamal: Is it?
(breathes deeply)
(chanting continues over TV)
General, tell your men to stand down.
Tariq: But, Mr. President...