Basic Page #11

EXT. LOUISIANA BAYOU -- CREEK BED -- NIGHT

West emerges from the bush at a sprint.

WEST:

What the f*** is going on?!

Mueller runs down the embankment toward him.

59.

MUELLER:

Don't know, sir, I-

Six feet away from West, Mueller suddenly raises his rifle

and PULLS THE TRIGGER.

EXT. LOUISIANA BAYOU -- EARLIER LAST NIGHT

Kendall and Childs, running in the direction of the grenade...

PIKE:

Childs' job is easy, he only has to

delay Kendall long enough for Mueller

to get away.

Suddenly MACHINE GUNFIRE shatters the night!

CHILDS:

GET DOWN!

He tackles Kendall into the mud.

EXT. LOUISIANA BAYOU -- CREEK BED -- EARLIER LAST NIGHT

Mueller, smoking rifle in hand, uniform covered in blood

stands over WEST'S DEAD BODY. He turns and runs off INTO

THE BRUSH. A moment later, Childs and Kendall come into

view at the top of the embankment...

PIKE (V.O.)

Now all Mueller has to do is get rid

of the evidence...

INT. CABIN -- EARLIER LAST NIGHT

Mueller, still covered in blood, enters the dark cabin. He

strips of his shirt and throws it in the fireplace. Striking

a match, igniting the bloody rag... .

PIKE (V.O.)

And wait for everyone else to arrive.

Mueller, watching the evidence burn...

INT. CABIN -- LAST NIGHT

Pike sighs, finished with his story.

DUNBAR:

I... I don't know...

PIKE:

What don't you know?

DUNBAR:

This is a lot of information to be

Getting... I have to think

60.

The hurricane outside GROWING LOUDER as the Cabin ROCKS again.

The sound of WOOD SNAPPING. Pike stares up at the roof.

PIKE:

There's no time to think, Ray, we

gotta get out of here! You untie

me, we grab the guns, get Kendall

and Nunez, and make a run for it-

DUNBAR:

No... no, we can just wait till we

get back and then tell the M.P.'s-

PIKE:

We wait and I'm a dead man. I got a

black face, a criminal record, and

over a hundred other cadets who'll

testify how much I hated West - my

court martial will take six minutes.

It's either me or them, Ray, and you

gotta decide right now.

The cabin SHIFTS again. Dunbar stares at him.

PIKE:

Untie me.

Dunbar doesn't move.

PIKE:

Untie me, Ray.

A long beat. The two men stare at each other.

And then Dunbar pulls his knife from his boot and leans down

to cut Pike's bonds.

PIKE:

Thank God. . .

MUELLER (O.S.)

What the f*** are you doing?

Dunbar freezes. Caught.

He looks to the open kitchen door where Mueller stands.

MUELLER:

Guys, get out here!

The others enter the room. Dunbar, kneeling there, knife

inches away from severing Pike's ropes.

PIKE:

This place is going, Mueller. We

gotta move

61.

MUELLER:

Shut the f*** up.

(to the others)

He was gonna cut him loose.

The others stare at Dunbar.

NUNEZ:

Why?

PIKE:

Cause I didn't do it.

Childs motions to Dunbar.

CHILDS:

Get away from there.

He’s serious. Dunbar moves away from Pike.

MUELLER:

We all know what you did, Pike. I

don't know what kind of n*gger voodoo

You been working in here, but-

PIKE:

Where's your shirt, Mueller?

MUELLER:

Used it to start the fire-

PIKE:

Still got mine on, not a speck of

blood on it. Not a bad trick for a

murderer- you said you burned yours?

The others begin to look at Mueller with new eyes.

MUELLER:

Was freezing from the hurricane-

KENDALL:

So you took off your shirt?

MUELLER:

To start a fire, goddammit!

(pointing to Pike)

What about him, huh? Maybe he offed

the Sarge and changed shirts, brought

an extra one in his pack. Y'ever

think of that? Go ahead, cut him

loose! First chance he gets, he'll

waste the rest of us, that's how

they work-

The hurricane, reaching FEVER PITCH outside as WATER begins

leaking in through the roof.

62.

PIKE:

Goddammit, Ray, we gotta get out of

Here-

MUELLER:

We’re not going anywhere.

PIKE TURNS TO MUELLER:

PIKE:

Cadet Michael Mueller, I hereby place

you under military arrest for the

Murder of Sergeant Nathan West-

MUELLER:

The f*** are you talking about-

PIKE:

You are to be stripped of all weapons

And placed under guard-

MUELLER:

Bullshit-

PIKE:

Until we return to base, and

ballistics can match your weapon to

the slugs in Sergeant West's body-

MUELLER:

Shut up!

Mueller pulls his SIDEARM and POINTS IT AT PIKE.

KENDALL:

Mueller, what the f***-

DUNBAR:

Don't do this-

Pike, EYES LOCKED with Mueller. Continuing:

PIKE:

A test will no doubt link you to the

Killing-

DUNBAR:

Put it down!

MUELLER:

Tell him to shut up-

PIKE:

-failure to comply with this arrest

is a court martialable offense in

and of itself

63.

KENDALL:

Pike, please-

PIKE:

Although that won't matter much when

Coupled with the murder charge-

MUELLER:

SHUT THE F*** UP YOU F***ING N*GGER-

Pike leans forward.

PIKE:

You stupid white trash motherf***er,

I saw you do it-

And Mueller FIRES.

Pike's head SNAPS BACK.

The gunshot, DEAFENING. Then, for an eternity, SILENCE.

Nobody moves. Nobody breathes. As if time has stopped.

KENDALL:

Oh.. . my God...

Mueller lowers his arm, the pistol clattering to the floor.

His face, as shocked as the others.

MUELLER:

He wouldn't... stop talking...

He takes a step forward towards Pike. A hole in the middle

of the black man's forehead.

DUNBAR:

(softly)

So you killed him?

MUELLER:

I. . .

Almost mechanically, Dunbar begins to reach for his own gun...

The unmistakable sound of a two rifles' magazines being RACKED

simultaneously. Dunbar turns to see Childs and Nunez, their

M-16's in hand. Levelled at him.

CHILDS:

Get that hand away.

Dunbar does. Looks to Nunez.

DUNBAR:

You too?

64.

CHILDS:

We can still come out of this okay.

Pike got free, he got a gun, he came

after us. That’s the story.

Mueller collapses on the ground. Head in hands.

MUELLER:

West was one thing, but this-

CHILDS:

Shut up, Mueller.

KENDALL:

You framed-him...

CHILDS:

None of that matters now. We got

two dead bodies and a story that

explains them. You're either with

us, or against us - which is it?

Dunbar and Kendall, looking at each other. It's clear what

the wrong answer will mean. A long beat, until

KENDALL:

Okay-

He is cut off as the WIND outside ROARS - the HURRICANE

mounting to it's FULL FORCE - and the WINDOWS BLOW INWARDS,

showering Childs, Mueller, and Nunez with glass!

Dunbar's hand flies to his pistol, PULLING IT...

Mueller, SCREAMING, trying to claw the glass from his EYES...

Childs, seeing Dunbar move, PULLS THE TRIGGER. .. .

And the cabin is filled with the THUNDER OF GUNFIRE as Kendall

goes down, clutching his ARM...

DUNBAR FIRES, hitting Childs directly in the chest...

Childs, still shooting, falls back, his random spray of

bullets PUNCHING INTO MUELLER who jerks like a marionette...

Nunez, drawing a bead on Dunbar, about to shoot, when...

A great CRESCENDO of WOOD SPLINTERING and SUPPORTS BUCKLING

overtakes them and the CABIN'S ROOF COMES DOWN ON THEIR HEADS.

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