Eye In The Sky Page #15

---

180 INT. GROUND CONTROL STATION - NIGHT 180

STEVE and CARRIE, tense.

STEVE:

(on phone)

Yes Ma’am.

He puts down the phone. Looks at CARRIE.

STEVE (CONT’D)

It’s going up the kill chain.

181 INT. BEDROOM SUITE - HOTEL - SINGAPORE - NIGHT 181

KATE sees JAMES’ cellphone vibrating on a sideboard.

KATE:

Hello? ... He’s not available at

the moment... Yes, I understand

but he’s... I can’t interrupt him

right at this minute... He’s on

the toilet... Okay, I’ll see what

I can do.

She knocks on the toilet door.

YELLOW SHOOTING SCRIPT 12 September 2014 79.

KATE (CONT’D)

It’s Brian on your phone.

JAMES:

Brian who?

KATE:

Woodale.

JAMES:

What does he want? I can’t speak

to him now.

KATE:

He’s at Cobra and it’s urgent.

A moment -then JAMES grabs the phone from behind the door.

182

INT. PJHQ -LONDON - AFTERNOON 182

On a screen we see MUHAMMAD, RASHEED, DANFORD and AL-HADY

getting up.

POWELL watches, tense:

183

INT. AMADU’S HOUSE -AFTERNOON 183

ABADE leads MUHAMMAD and RASHEED, chaperoned by DANFORD and

AL-HADY, down the corridor and into the bedroom.

The young men are nervous. DANFORD and her husband are used

to this. Taking one each gently by the arm, they talk quietly

to keep the young men calm, steady and focused.

184

INT. PJHQ -LONDON - AFTERNOON 184

POWELL watches the live feed from the beetle in the bedroom:

ABADE lifts an unarmed suicide vest over MUHAMMAD’S head. He

and AL-HADY begin to carefully fill a dozen pockets in the

vest with cylinders of EXPLOSIVES.

DANFORD watches, like a caring mother.

POWELL texts BENSON: They’re arming up. I need an answer.

Now!

185

INT. BRIEFING ROOM A -WHITEHALL -AFTERNOON 185

BENSON, watching the feed from the beetle, sees the text.

LIEUTENANT-GENERAL BENSON

We need a decision Minister. Right

now.

WOODALE is about to speak but Jack bursts back into the room.

YELLOW SHOOTING SCRIPT 12 September 2014 80.

JACK:

I have the Foreign Secretary...

He hurries to his seat and patches the call through onto the

central speaker phone on the table.

186 INT. BEDROOM SUITE - HOTEL - SINGAPORE - NIGHT 186

JAMES is on the toilet, clutching the phone, unaware of what

everyone else is seeing on the screen.

JAMES:

Gentlemen, I cannot authorize a

missile attack on an American

citizen without the approval of the

US Secretary of State.

Cut between the two:

JACK:

Sir, the Secretary of State is in

China.

JAMES:

Then track him down.

LIEUTENANT-GENERAL BENSON

Foreign Secretary, General Benson

here. With respect, this has

already been cleared at American

Presidential level. We have a

situation that could result in

massive loss of life in the next

ten minutes.

JAMES:

Then use those ten minutes - and

get the Secretary’s approval. That

is my decision, General.

JAMES throws his phone back at KATE.

BENSON looks at JACK.

JACK:

I’ll get onto the Embassy in

Beijing.

JACK hurries from the room.

Back in Singapore:

YELLOW SHOOTING SCRIPT 12 September 2014 81.

JAMES:

(to Kate)

Get me linked in on my laptop.

KATE nods. JAMES slams the toilet door closed as his stomach

cramps again.

187 INT. HALL - SCHOOL - BEIJING - NIGHT 187

Rows of table tennis tables fill a large hall. Dozens of

Chinese adolescents in red training shirts are crowded around

a central table where KEN STANITZKE, the US Secretary of

State, is playing a friendly match with a CHINESE JUNIOR

OLYMPIAN PLAYER.

Despite the fact that he looks totally out of place the

students applaud his efforts to return the ball. As STANITZKE

lunges to return a shot, an aide - ESTHER ALVAREZ - hurries

toward him with a phone.

ESTHER:

Mr. Secretary...

STANITZKE swipes at the ball. A good return! Students cheer.

He’s pleased with himself.

ESTHER (CONT’D)

Mr. Secretary, I have Jordan

Ricardo on the line.

She whispers in his ear.

STANITZKE:

Who?

ESTHER:

Jordan Ricardo... From our Embassy

here in Beijing. It’s urgent.

ESTHER hands him the phone.

188 INT. GROUND CONTROL STATION - NIGHT 188

STEVE and CARRIE watch the live feed from the Reaper.

STEVE, his finger on the trigger, is more and more anxious.

189 INT. HALL - SCHOOL - BEIJING - NIGHT 189

KEN STANITZKE talks on the phone, trying to conceal his anger

from his hosts.

YELLOW SHOOTING SCRIPT 12 September 2014 82.

STANITZKE:

Why the hell are you wasting my

time referring this to me? ... No,

his citizenship does not protect

him. By joining Al-Shabaab he has

declared himself an enemy of the

United States... What?... Well, the

suicide vests are a bonus! Listen

to me! Tell the British that if

they really do have two, four and

five on the East Africa list in

their sights they have our full

support to strike... Yes, all three

are on the President’s kill list.

Tell them to take them out now!

He snaps off the phone and turns back to his Chinese hosts

with a smile.

190 INT. BRIEFING ROOM A - WHITEHALL - AFTERNOON 190

JACK comes back into the room. He glances at the screen and

sees MUHAMMAD, in his suicide vest, stepping aside to watch

as ABADE takes the second vest and begins preparing RASHEED.

JACK:

The Secretary of State has given

his permission.

WOODALE:

Thank you.

(a beat, to Benson)

You may proceed.

LIEUTENANT-GENERAL BENSON

Thank you, Minister.

ANGELA has run out of arguments for objecting: ON SCREEN, she

can see that ABADE has almost done wiring MUHAMMAD’S vest.

BENSON types a secure text to POWELL: “You have clearance.”

191 INT. PJHQ - LONDON - AFTERNOON 191

POWELL sees BENSON’S text pop up on her screen:

COLONEL POWELL:

(to herself)

Thank you...

She reaches for her secure phone to STEVE as she watches

RASHEED standing to begin having his suicide vest fitted.

YELLOW SHOOTING SCRIPT 12 September 2014 83.

COLONEL POWELL (CONT’D)

Lieutenant, you have clearance to

prosecute the target.

192 INT. GROUND CONTROL STATION - NIGHT 192

STEVE draws a breath. He’s tense but ready.

STEVE:

Yes Ma’am.

He clicks off the speaker phone and turns to CARRIE.

STEVE (CONT’D)

Prepare to launch a hellfire.

CARRIE is tense too, but through months of training she has

run simulations like this many times and knows what to do.

193 INT. BEDROOM SUITE - HOTEL - SINGAPORE - NIGHT 193

JAMES exits the bathroom, pale and drained. TOM has fired up

a secure laptop via a mini satellite dish. He and KATE are

watching the live feed from the Reaper and the beetle.

JAMES:

What’s happening?

KATE:

(tense)

The Secretary gave his permission.

JAMES stiffens.

TOM:

(getting up for James)

They have a Reaper at twenty

thousand feet and a micro RPA

inside the house.

JAMES watches the Reaper image and the Beetle feed as

MUHAMMAD steps aside in his fully armed vest, and AL-HADY

encourages RASHEED to step up and be fitted with his.

RASHEED is nervous. DANFORD watches in silence.

194 INT. ALIA’S HOUSE - AFTERNOON 194

Rate this script:5.0 / 3 votes