A down-on-his-luck Ad Exec. devises a plan to prevent his wife from receiving alimony. |
INT. AVERY HOME - LATER A close-up view of sudsy water is shown. There is a rubbing sound in the background. Suddenly, the water becomes discoloured with red liquid that's being poured in. The red liquid slowly diffuses into the water and the water turns a dark pink colour. Pulling back, we see that John is scrubbing the ceramic floor near the front door of the house and ringing the bloody rag into the bucket of soapy water. John is wearing large yellow rubber gloves. MASTER BEDROOM John is soaking up the blood in the rug and scrubbing at it wildly. CUT TO: John is firmly scrubbing the wall of the bedroom, attempting to remove any trace of the blood splatter. STAIRS John is scrubbing the stairs frantically. MASTER BEDROOM John is back at the carpet, scrubbing wildly. There are cleaning products all around him now. GARAGE John is cleaning the cement floor of the garage with a mop. BASEMENT John is taking his clothes off and putting them in the washing machine. MASTER BEDROOM John continues scrubbing wildly. Even more cleaning products are littered around him now. He pauses briefly, and then throws up into the bucket. He continues scrubbing, more slowly than before. After several seconds, he realizes that he should probably get rid of the contents of the bucket. He picks it up and heads out of the room. SHOWER John is showering, the blood and grime is quickly swirling down the drain. He splashes water over his face and holds his hands there, covering his eyes for some time. EXT. AVERY HOME - MOMENTS LATER John is walking down the street in his heavy winter jacket with a key belonging to Dafino's car. John approaches a Ford Focus and attempts to open it. The key doesn't fit. He looks further down the street and sees a beat up old Ford Escort. John walks up to it and tries the key, looking around first to make sure no one's watching. The key fits. John gets in and drives the car around the block. He gets out of the car and walks back to his house. INT. AVERY HOME - EVENING DINING ROOM It's now dusk and the dining room is cast with an orange glow. John is sitting at the dining room table, now wearing different clothes. He is staring at the table and something unseen by the camera. Now from John's point of view, we can see that he's staring at the contents of Dafino's pockets, which are all laid out neatly in the middle of the table. The pile includes his cell phone, his keys, an after-dinner mint and a couple of receipts. John takes out his cell phone and tries calling Rachel. He gets no answer. Suddenly, there's the sound of a RINGING cell phone. John assumes it's Rachel calling him back, however he looks at his cell phone and there's no incoming call. The sound continues. It's Dafino's phone, the display reads "Blocked Number". John stares at the phone for several seconds, unsure of what to do with it. Eventually, he flips the phone open. JOHN AVERY Yes? ANTON BRODY Where have you been, Bill, I thought you said you'd call when you had it taken care of. Is it done? JOHN AVERY It's done. There's a moment of silence where neither men say a word. ANTON BRODY You alright, Bill? After a beat: JOHN AVERY Mmmhmm. Another awkward moment between the two men. ANTON BRODY So, I'll see you soon then. Wellington's. The call disconnects. John stares forward with a concerned look on his face. EXT. WELLINGTON'S PUB - LATER It's a crisp, cold night. No snow is falling and it's eerily quiet. The Wellington's pub fluorescent sign is BUZZING incessantly. CAR John is sitting in his car with his heavy winter jacket, gloves and winter hat. He's situated in the darkest corner of the parking lot. He's watching people entering and exiting the front door of the pub. The time on the radio says 5:52. John turns the radio on and Bohemian Rhapsody is playing, loudly. RADIO Oh mama mia, mama mia, mama mia let me go Beelzebub has a devil put aside for me John JUMPS, startled by the sudden noise. He turns the volume down and flips the channel several times, stopping on a talk radio station. RADIO (old man talking) Now, see, the prospects of the DOW are, in my opinion, directly related to the state of the economy. What's happening here, and, by all means, correct me if you think I'm wrong, but what's happening here is that the economy has been improving steadily enough for long enough that... John looks around impatiently as the old man on the radio mumbles about the DOW Jones. He turns the radio off. Panning up outside of the car, we see the moon, barely visible become more and more discernible as it races past the ever-brightening stars in the night sky. Back in the car, John is still sitting and waiting. His eyes are barely open and his mouth is ajar. His breath is creating puffs of vapour in the cold winter air. The clock in front of him now reads 12:54. John stirs in his drowsy state and rubs his face with his gloved hands. He stares forward for several seconds and then decides that it's time to give up and leave. He puts his keys in the ignition. Just at that moment, HEADLIGHTS fill his car and the first car in an hour enters the lot. It parks on the opposite end of the lot in a similarly darkened area. John is staring at the car with great interest. For the first time in hours, he's alert. Anton steps out of the car and looks around. He takes out his cellphone and looks at it for several seconds before walking towards the front door of the bar. Anton opens the door and steps inside. John's breathing quickens and his hands start to move quickly. He takes the gun out from his jacket pocket and checks that the bullets are still loaded, as if they somehow might have jumped out when he wasn't looking. He nods to himself and puts the gun back in his jacket pocket and removes the key from the ignition. John opens the car door and closes it behind him quietly. He begins walking slowly towards the building, trying to walk casually but instead walking with an awkward limp that would look strange to anyone watching. John approaches the front door of the bar and pulls it open. INT. WELLINGTON'S PUB - CONTINUOUS With his hands in his pockets, John walks slowly over to the booth where he met Anton previously. Anton appears to be sitting there with his back to John. John, with a look of fear on his face, standing over the man, fumbles around for the gun in his pocket. Suddenly, the man turns around. It's not Anton, but a man much younger. MAN (in a southern drawl) You got a problem, friend? JOHN AVERY No, I just...sorry. An awkward beat. ANTON BRODY Look who it is. Anton is standing behind John. John doesn't turn around. Four men are playing pool in the corner of the room. One of them loses a game. POOL PLAYER Are you kiddin' me?! Double or nothin'! The men start laughing very loudly. ANTON BRODY Imagine finding YOU here. For someone that doesn't drink, you're here more often than I am. I'm about to sit down for a drink with an old friend, but seeing as how he hasn't shown yet, how about you and I catch up? John turns his head to the side, seeing Anton with his peripheral vision, and lets out a stunted laugh. Anton walks past John and orders two beers at the bar. John stands still, staring at Anton. Anton stares back at John, never taking his eyes off him, while the waitress pours the drinks. POOL PLAYER (background) You fuckin' amateur, I knew you'd do that! The two men continue staring at each other. The waitress taps Anton on the shoulder and he pays her. Anton walks over to a booth near John and sits down. He sets one beer down in front of himself and one on the other side of the table. John slides slowly into the booth, his hands still in his pockets. Anton picks up his beer and raises it in the air. ANTON BRODY To new beginnings. John slowly raises his drink and Anton clinks his glass against John's. Both men take a drink. As soon as John sets his glass down, his hand goes back into his pocket. ANTON BRODY I really do care about her, John. I want you to know that. This isn't just some fling, it's real. And it was tough for me to come to you like that, on my hands and knees. I really wish we could have made a deal. We still can, if you want. JOHN AVERY Really. Anton takes a drink. ANTON BRODY That shiner's lookin' better. You put a steak on it yet? I hear that helps. JOHN AVERY You're not getting it back. ANTON BRODY I hope you change your mind. JOHN AVERY I won't. ANTON BRODY That's too bad. I don't know what I'll tell Rachel when she finds out. It's gonna be tough. John shifts in his seat. Beneath the table, John is slowly pulling out his GUN. Anton's eyes go down towards John's pocketed hand. His eyes wince and he takes another drink. ANTON BRODY This is your move, is it? John stares down Anton, his face going red. ANTON BRODY I figured you'd at least wait until I was out in the parking lot. Might be fewer witnesses that way. I'm sure you already thought of that, though. John continues the stare-down. ANTON BRODY Well, just go ahead and do it then if you're gonna do it. I don't know what you're waiting for. Aim for the stomach, one good shot and that's all it'll take...although I doubt you've ever fired that thing before. Bet the safety's still on, too. Come on, I want you to do it. I want you to take charge of the situation, show me who's boss. One good shot and it'll all be over, I'll be gone for good. BAM! Anton SLAMS the table as he says it, causing John to JUMP in his seat. Several bar patrons look over to see what the commotion is all about. Anton grins and takes another drink. John lowers the gun and quickly puts it back inside his jacket pocket. He gets up from the table, clutching the gun awkwardly inside his pocket. ANTON BRODY You know, it's weird, my friend is really late, I wonder where he could be? This isn't like him at all, I should give him a call. Anton gives John a knowing glance while he takes another swig of his beer. John walks away in a hurry, still awkwardly clutching the gun. ANTON BRODY Always a pleasure, John. Anton relaxes his right arm and we see that he was holding a GUN on John the whole time. Anton places the gun on the seat cushion next to him. He runs a hand through his hair and shakes his head. EXT. WELLINGTON'S PUB - CONTINUOUS John is SPEED-WALKING to his car, clutching the gun in his pocket. He nearly slips on the icy pavement as he walks, but manages to maintain his balance. CAR John gets into the car and lets out a primitive YELL. He takes the gun from his pocket and BEATS it against the steering wheel several times in anger and frustration. He SCREAMS again. After several seconds, the air bag INFLATES and fills the front seat. John struggles with it and eventually manages to DEFLATE it, though not without some effort. John starts the car feeling utterly defeated and pulls out of the parking lot. INT. CAR - MOMENTS LATER John approaches a red light at an intersection. He isn't paying attention and nearly hits an old lady crossing the street. He SLAMS ON THE BRAKES at the last second. The old lady looks extremely annoyed and gives him an evil stare, muttering to herself and shaking her head dramatically. John puts his hands in his head, and rubs his face. The light turns green. After several moments, the car behind John's begins to HONK. The driver gets impatient and drives around John, giving him the finger as he goes. John regains his composure and continues driving, more carefully now than before. EXT. AVERY HOME - LATER John is driving down a street in his neighbourhood, the same street where he parked Dafino's car. He drives by and notices a portion of the street untouched by snow. It's where Dafino's car was parked. JOHN AVERY What the hell... John pulls over suddenly and gets out of his car. He stares at the empty parking spot. After a beat: John runs down the street a ways, searching for Dafino's car. It's nowhere to be found. John puts his hands on his head and has a look of panic on his face as he scans the street frantically. John is now pulling into his driveway. He slides out of his car and approaches the front door in a hurry. He's about to insert his key when he pauses to think twice about it. John takes the gun out of his jacket pocket and walks around to the back of the house through the side yard. He peers in the windows as he goes. The house is pitch-black inside. John approaches the back door and very quietly opens it. The house is pitch-black and deadly quiet. He closes the door quietly behind him. INT. AVERY HOME - CONTINUOUS John walks into the kitchen and notices that the bloody rag is still in the sink from when he wiped his face with it. John lets out a deep sigh. JOHN AVERY Jesus. John takes the rag and throws it in the trash bin under the sink. John walks by the dining room table and notices that the contents of Dafino's pockets are no longer there. John's eyes go wide as he realizes that someone has been in his house. He raises the gun and points it forward as he scours the rest of the main floor of the house. As seen from the top of the stairs, John stares up to the second floor. After a beat: John walks slowly up the stairs, expecting there to be another intruder. Now on the second floor, he peers into each bedroom as he goes. John peers into the office and notices that the DVD and his laptop are both missing. Sitting in their place is a photograph. John walks over to the desk with his gun now down at his side. The photograph shows what appears to be divorce documents signed by Rachel with an empty spot for John to sign. On the papers is a section labelled "Fault Divorce" citing infidelity as the reason. John picks up the photograph and looks it over carefully. He flips it around. Written on the back in black Sharpie is the following text: "to new beginnings". John stares at it with an emotionless glare. After several moments, John begins to CHUCKLE. He slinks down to the floor and continues LAUGHING, the sound getting louder and more exaggerated. He tilts his head back and stares up at the ceiling, making a strange, giddy noise. There is a ceiling fan rotating quickly above, John stares at it as his laughter slows until all that's left is the sound of the fan WHIRRING overhead. FADE TO BLACK INT. AVERY ADVERTISING - DAY JOHN'S OFFICE John is staring up at the fluorescent lights above with baggy eyes. He seems mesmerized by it. The phone RINGS. John lazily looks down at it. After three rings, he picks it up. JOHN AVERY (monotone) Avery Advertising. John Avery speaking. The voice on the other end of the line isn't audible. JOHN AVERY Right. Yes, that's right. Well, we're working hard to get that done by the end of the week. Yes. Yes. All right, good. Thank you. John holds down the telephone hook for several seconds. He takes a moment to put on a fake smile and then dials a three digit extension. JOHN AVERY Hey. How are you doin'? That's good. Oh really, again? Geez. That's just...that's.... An awkward beat: JOHN AVERY I was wondering...are you busy tonight? No? Do you feel like grabbing some dinner with me? An excited tone can be heard on the other end of the line. JOHN AVERY Great, I'll pick you up around six? OK, sounds great, see you then! John's smile immediately disappears as he hangs up the phone. He leans back in his chair and closes his eyes. INT. SUPER 8 MOTEL - EVENING A door opens into a dark room, letting in the swirling snow from outside and the harsh light of a parking lot light fixture. Two figures are standing in the doorway. The intense WIND outside is causing the trash can outside the motel room to RATTLE violently in it's metal cage. John and Elizabeth enter the room. Elizabeth is laughing and holding John's arm. John flips on the LIGHT to reveal the cheaply decorated interior of the motel room. John takes off his heavy winter jacket and Elizabeth hands him hers. He places both on the chair next to the bed. John turns to face Elizabeth. She has a huge grin on her face. She RUNS over to John and starts kissing him, eagerly. She leans into him and they both FALL BACKWARDS onto the bed. Elizabeth starts unbuttoning John's shirt while they kiss. She unbuttons her own shirt as well, to reveal a red lacy bra underneath. ELIZABETH REISENFELD I've missed you so much. They continue kissing passionately. John squeezes her breasts and she moans. FADE TO BLACK John and Elizabeth are lying next to each other in the darkened room. Elizabeth has her eyes closed and John's are wide open, staring at the ceiling. JOHN AVERY Liz? John nudges her slightly. She doesn't respond. JOHN AVERY Hey, you awake? John nudges her harder. She opens her eyes slowly and smiles. ELIZABETH REISENFELD Hey, you. Oh my God, are you ready to go again already? She reaches down under the covers to grab John. He shifts his weight away from her. JOHN AVERY Actually, I'm still recovering from round one. Can I talk to you about something for a minute? Elizabeth sits up with a smile on her face. ELIZABETH REISENFELD What's up? JOHN AVERY I haven't told anyone this yet but...my wife and I...we're getting a divorce. Or...maybe a separation, I'm not sure what it is yet. After a beat: ELIZABETH REISENFELD I'm sorry. I'm not really sure what to say. I mean...I didn't mean for that to happen, you know that right? JOHN AVERY I'm not blaming you. I made the decisions that I made and...it's not like I would change things. It's complicated now though, because it seems like she might...try to use you. ELIZABETH REISENFELD What do you mean? Use me how? John shifts uncomfortably in the bed. JOHN AVERY I think she's going to get you to testify against me. ELIZABETH REISENFELD Testify? What does that mean, exactly, testify? About what, about us? JOHN AVERY Well, yeah, about us. See, she'll have a real strong case if she can prove that you and I were together. The laws, they're real strict when it comes to this sorta thing, so you have to promise that you won't-- ELIZABETH REISENFELD That I won't what? What are you asking? You want me to lie? To like, a judge or something? JOHN AVERY Hey, now, listen...I don't even know if it'll come down to anything like that. If it does though...there's only one way we can get outta this, we gotta be real certain we're on the same page here. ELIZABETH REISENFELD You want me to just pretend this didn't happen? I...I can't do that John. How am I supposed to do that? I'm not comfortable with any of this. JOHN AVERY I can't afford this right now, Liz. There's...just too much going on. You really gotta help me here. ELIZABETH REISENFELD Wait, wait, wait...is this why you brought me here tonight? To convince me to lie so you don't...fuck up your life even more than it already is!? You know what, you're a fucking asshole John. I should have seen it before. Elizabeth gets up from the bed. JOHN AVERY No! I-- ELIZABETH REISENFELD And here I thought you really wanted to see me again, I thought there might be something real here. I'm such an idiot, I should have known you'd do something like this. JOHN AVERY Liz, no. That's not why! Listen, I do have feelings for you, I just-- ELIZABETH REISENFELD You brought me here so you could FUCK me one more time and then convince me to help you win your fucking court case. This isn't my fault, OK, none of this is MY fault. Elizabeth finds her clothes on the floor and starts getting dressed. JOHN AVERY Liz come on. What are you doin' there? ELIZABETH REISENFELD I'm getting the fuck out of here, that's what I'm doing. Elizabeth is almost fully dressed when John gets out of bed and starts putting his clothes back on too. JOHN AVERY Hey, c'mon, can't we just stay a bit and talk about this? ELIZABETH REISENFELD There's nothing to talk about! John grabs his jacket and throws it on quickly. The gun slides out of his pocket and thumps against the dresser near Elizabeth. She stares it in confusion. ELIZABETH REISENFELD What is that, is that a gun? JOHN AVERY It's nothing. John quickly crosses the room and picks up the weapon, putting it back in his pocket. ELIZABETH REISENFELD You brought a gun. Is that for if I decide not to cooperate? That's your backup plan? JOHN AVERY No...Jesus Christ, no! I only have this because-- ELIZABETH REISENFELD Stay the fuck away from me! Elizabeth opens the door and storms out. Her shirt is half-buttoned up and she's struggling to put her jacket on as she runs. John starts to run after her. JOHN AVERY Liz! Wait! EXT. SUPER 8 MOTEL - CONTINUOUS Elizabeth is almost to her car when she SLIPS on the icy pavement and falls. John hears a loud THUD on the ice as she hits it, face first. John stops running and goes wide-eyed. JOHN AVERY Oh God! John SPRINTS over to her as fast he can on the icy pavement. Her nose and jaw are broken and there's blood SPURTING out and starting to pool all over the ice in front of her. ELIZABETH REISENFELD Don't....don't....stop.... She's coughing up blood as she tries to form words. John is hysterical. He has his hands over his mouth and his eyes are wide. He looks at Elizabeth and then back at the motel. No one is around, it's a pitch-black evening and the snow is falling quickly now. John takes out his phone and dials 9-1-1. 911 OPERATOR 9-1-1, what's your emergency? JOHN AVERY I'm...I need... John closes his eyes and tries to think. 911 OPERATOR I'm sorry sir, you'll have to speak up. Are you in trouble? John opens his eyes with a look of realization on his face. He disconnects the call and puts the phone back in his pocket. Elizabeth's eyes are barely open as she looks up at John for help. John takes his gun out slowly from his jacket pocket and looks down at it. His hand SHAKES as he holds it but he's not pointing it at her. ELIZABETH REISENFELD Call...help...call... Elizabeth is crawling towards his leg and grabbing at it with her weak hands. Blood continues pooling all around her. John slowly points the gun at her and squints his eyes. She doesn't react, she just stares back at him, MOANING. John pulls the gun back to his side quickly, his hand still SHAKING VIOLENTLY. He crouches down to steady himself, afraid that he might pass out. Elizabeth continues clawing weakly at his leg, grabbing at his arm now. ELIZABETH REISENFELD Phone... She's trying to reach into his pocket for the phone. John stands up again, causing Elizabeth to lose her grip and fall to the ground. She crawls forward again and tries to grip his legs with her weak hands. John puts his hand over his mouth to keep from screaming, aims the gun at her again and pulls the trigger. With a muted BANG, the sound lost to the wind, her body goes limp, lifeless. John stares at Elizabeth's body for several seconds, his hand still over his mouth. He slowly removes it after he finds that he's not making any noise. There is a look of numb horror on John's face. He's in complete shock. John stares at Elizabeth's body as the falling snow quickly begins to cover the evidence of what just occurred. John calmly turns around and starts to walk to his own car. He suddenly appears very calm and at ease. It's obvious by his body language and demeanour that he's not in the right state of mind. John gets into his car and drives off into the dark, snow-filled night. INT. AVERY HOME - LATER John is lying in his bed, staring at the ceiling with a dead look in his eyes. He doesn't blink. The moon outside goes down beyond the horizon and the sun begins to rise. John is still staring at the ceiling with the same look on his face. His alarm BEEPS and it seems to break him out of his trance. He turns it off and sits up, unusually alert for someone that hasn't slept a wink all night. |