Bare Knuckle Page #16

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CILLIAN:

I will not risk your safety.

He strokes her face.

CILLIAN (CONT’D)

I won’t allow you any more harm.

EMILY:

Then help me. Help me kill him.

EXT. KNOW NOTHINGS SALOON - NIGHT

Kieran stares up at Jack, his heart still melting.

BAD JACK:

Don’t cry now, I’m only fibbing.

I have a place all picked out for

Destine.

KIERAN:

When I win, she goes with me.

BAD JACK:

When you win? Don’t tell me you’re

starting to believe your own

legend? I piss on McCoole. He’s

nothing. The man killer ducked

every one of my challenges.

(MORE)

87.

BAD JACK (CONT'D)

I’m going to give you a beating you

will never forget.

KIERAN:

When I’m done with you, you’ll be

the one keeping your eyes to the

floor.

BAD JACK:

Enough talk, Connelly. Off with ya.

I’ve got a French slave who needs

whipping.

KIERAN:

This ends tomorrow.

INT. LESTER’S BEDROOM - NIGHT

Lester rouses from his slumber face to face with the barrel

of Cillian’s rifle.

LESTER:

You don’t want to be doing this boy-

CILLIAN:

Shhh.

Lester slowly reaches under his pillow.

CILLIAN (CONT’D)

Looking for this?

Cillian raises Lester’s pistol, now pointing two guns.

CILLIAN (CONT’D)

You’ve dug a hole there’s no

getting out of, Copper.

From a dark corner Emily steps out and buries a long knife

into Lester’s chest. Cillian rises to hold Lester down.

CILLIAN (CONT’D)

Deeper.

Emily uses all her might to sink the blade all the way to the

handle.

EMILY:

(to Lester)

That’s the great thing about skeevy

raping bastards. You can’t murder

them. You only bring them to

justice.

88.

She watches with great pride as the light indeed fades out of

Lester’s dark eyes.

Emily and Cillian share an intimate moment in the midst of

their murder. Their lips move closer, until over Lester’s

dead body they kiss in the darkness.

INT. KINGS HOTEL - NIGHT

Kieran sits in perilous thought. Cillian and Emily enter.

KIERAN:

I thought someone had gotten you.

EMILY:

Lester’s dead.

CILLIAN:

There’s no walking away now. Lose

and we’re all dead. Our fate lies

with your bare knuckles.

KIERAN:

The spectacle for rats is the only

door to salvation. After what I’ve

seen...what we’ve seen...maybe

pugilism is not the plague on

society I once thought. Maybe it is

a most graceful thing.

Cillian, with his arm around Emily, moves to the bed. Kieran

ponders the weight of tomorrow.

EXT. NEWS STAND - MORNING

Men in suits, newspapers in hand.

MAN 1

Who do you like for the fight?

MAN 2

The Lumberman can’t be stopped.

MAN 3

Bad Jack will fix it somehow. Five

dollars says he stays champ.

INT. BUTCHER SHOP - MORNING

A hearty butcher is chopping meat for his customers.

89.

BUTCHER:

Bad Jack wins inside of fifteen.

CUSTOMER:

You’re drunk. Connelly’s going to

best him. Five rounds at most.

EXT. FORREST - MORNING

Two Irishmen are sawing lumber.

IRISHMAN 1

The Lumberman’s the victor today.

IRISHMAN 2

First round.

IRISHMAN 1

One punch.

IRISHMAN 2

Out like a lantern.

EXT. PARADISE SQUARE - DAY

High class and low, men and women, cutthroats and royalty are

lined up for a mile in every street of the five points, all

out placing bets. The Know Nothings is in the background.

Kieran marches out with Cillian and Emily. The fanatics try

and touch their new hero. Kieran embraces them.

Destine sits in a steel cage high on the wall like a princess

locked in a tower. Kieran and Destine lock eyes. He tosses

his flat cap in the ring as Bad Jack walks out.

Jack’s Bowery Boys knock his fans out of the way clearing a

path to the ring. Grady and the Chichesters look on nearby.

Jack throws his top hat in the ring and the fighters strip

down.

Emily gets in Kieran’s ear.

EMILY:

Expect to be hit when your down,

have your eyes gouged, and God

knows what else.

KIERAN:

I’m ready for anything.

90.

EMILY:

Good will overcome. You believe it?

KIERAN:

Aye.

EMILY:

Then rip his f***ing head off!

THE RING:

Bad Jack strides confidently to Kieran.

BAD JACK:

Care to make a wager Irishman? Or

do you think I’m going to win as

well?

KIERAN:

You have no cutthroats to hide

behind. You finally face me on your

own. Nothing can save you now,

Jack.

The large referee steps in and draws the chalk line.

REFEREE:

To your corners gentlemen!

Jack backs up into his corner. Both fighters are ready.

REFEREE (CONT’D)

This is for the Championship of

America, so I don’t expect to have

to explain the rules. We go until

one man stops. Toe the scratch!

The crowd goes silent as each man makes his way to the line.

THEY TOE THE LINE. THE FIGHT BEGINS.

Kieran throws a hard right. Jack ducks under and slams his

fist into Kieran’s manhood. Kieran takes a knee.

EMILY:

HEY!

KIERAN:

No honor.

BAD JACK:

No need for it.

They return to the scratch. Jack, throws haymakers with full

power. Kieran evades and dodges, blocks and back-peddles.

91.

Jack is relentless, a machine. A few punches make it through

and smash Kieran’s left eye, opening up a cut. Jack hammers

his fist into the cut and blood sprays across the crowd.

Destine cries out at the gore.

Bad Jack smiles at the sight, but he needs his fix. He stops

his attack and sticks his chin in the air.

BAD JACK (CONT’D)

Hit me lumberman! Come on!

Kieran wastes no time. He winds up holding his eyes at Jack’s

face, but chops away at Jack’s lungs. Kieran pounds the

champions ribs until Jack grabs hold of Kieran.

Kieran throws Jack over his leg to the ground.

KIERAN:

Come on Bad Jack! Let’s see how bad

you are.

Emily grabs Cillian’s face and kisses him with excitement.

Destine nods up to God with thanks.

Jack gets up and walks to the scratch. Kieran rushes Jack

with a flurry of punches. Jack slips and moves out of the way

still getting his wind back.

Kieran punches upstairs causing Jack to cover his face, then

hits him downstairs with kidney shots. Jack goes down again.

Jack holds his side as he walks to the line. Again Kieran

gives chase and again Bad Jack moves swiftly escaping damage.

Then Jack stops and brings his arms down. Kieran punches away

at the body but is mostly hitting Jacks arms. He continues to

punch ineffectively to the ribs before finally throwing a

right hook to the jaw.

Jack falls down again and the crowd’s excitement mounts

seeing the challenger getting ever closer to victory.

Blood seeps from Bad Jack’s mouth. He licks his wound. He

gets his fix and rises a new man. A SAVAGE.

Jack puts his toe to the scratch. Kieran attacks with a fury

but Jack walks through his punches as if they were nothing.

Bad Jack returns fire and crushes Kieran’s nose with a right.

Then smashes a left into Kieran’s teeth sending him down.

92.

With no regard for the rules Jack jumps on top of Kieran and

rains down punches.

GRADY:

Bloody cheater!

Kieran kicks Jack off him and rises.

KIERAN:

Not gonna be that easy, Jack.

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