Fargo Page #7

BO:

Ya. Shame. That’s a big policy.

(lowers his voice)

Murder, they’re sayin’. Stabbed ta

death is what I heard.

(off Lester)

You okay there, Lester?

LESTER NYGAARD:

Oh sure. I, uh -- you know I went

ta high school with him.

42.

TV Calling - For educational purposes only

BO:

Ya don’t say. Well, anyway. I need

ya ta pull the policy. Gotta get

on the phone with his wife later.

Bo walks away. Lester stands there, feeling both terror and

a peculiar elation.

CUT TO:

INT. ARBY’S. SAINT CLOUD, MINNESOTA - DAY

Lorne Malvo sits at a formica table, finishing his meal.

Lester comes in, hat on, agitated. Malvo recognizes him.

MALVO:

Lester.

Lester comes over.

LESTER NYGAARD:

Did you -- geez.

(leans in)

Did you really kill him?

(almost can’t say it)

Sam.

MALVO:

Oh my god. Is Sam dead?

(off Lester)

How do you feel about that?

LESTER NYGAARD:

I mean, of course. It’s -- ya

know, tragic --

MALVO:

Then why’d you kill him?

LESTER NYGAARD:

(too loud)

Now hold on a second.

Lester looks around, sits.

LESTER NYGAARD (CONT’D)

(quiet)

I never --

MALVO:

You did actually. Remember? Yes or

no.

43.

TV Calling - For educational purposes only

LESTER NYGAARD:

(hisses)

I never said yes.

MALVO:

Well, you didn’t say no.

Beat. Lester is tied up in knots.

LESTER NYGAARD:

Now, that’s not -- that won’t -- in

a court a law -- that won’t --

MALVO:

(dangerous)

Who said anything about a court of

law?

LESTER NYGAARD:

No. I just mean -- Aw geez. He had

a wife. And those boys.

MALVO:

He put you in a barrel and rolled

you in the road. Your problem is,

you lived your whole life thinking

there are rules. There aren’t. We

used to be gorillas. All we ever

had was what we could take and

defend. The truth is, you’re more

of a man today than you were

yesterday.

LESTER NYGAARD:

How do ya figure?

MALVO:

It’s a red tide, Lester. This life

of ours. The sh*t they make us

eat. Day after day -- the boss,

the wife, etcetera -- wearin’ us

down. If you don’t stand up to it -

- show ‘em you’re still an ape

deep down where it counts -- you’re

just gonna get washed away.

Off Lester:
this resonates.

CUT TO:

INT. NURSE’S STATION. EMERGENCY ROOM. SAINT CLOUD, MN - DAY

Molly enters, approaches the nurse’s station. SUE ROUNDTREE

(30s), the same nurse from earlier, is working.

44.

TV Calling - For educational purposes only

MOLLY:

Slow day.

SUE ROUNDTREE:

Bars just opened. Wait an hour.

Molly takes off her gloves and hat.

MOLLY:

How’s the Hess boy?

SUE ROUNDTREE:

The which now?

MOLLY:

Brother attacked him with a hockey

stick.

SUE ROUNDTREE:

Oh, Sure. Outta surgery. Doctor

had to drill holes in his head, on

account of the swelling. May have

some brain damage is what I heard.

MOLLY:

That’s a shame. With their dad

dead and all.

SUE ROUNDTREE:

Family.

MOLLY:

Ya.

Beat. Small talk over, Molly gets to the real reason she

came.

MOLLY (CONT’D)

Say, while I’m here -- we found a

car wreck out by Moose Lake

yesterday morning.

SUE ROUNDTREE:

Icy out there.

MOLLY:

Sure is. Here’s the thing though.

The windshield was cracked. There

was blood and all, but no driver.

So I’m wondering -- you see any

head injuries in the last day or

so, coulda been caused by those

circumstances.

45.

TV Calling - For educational purposes only

SUE ROUNDTREE:

There was this one fella.

MOLLY:

Oh ya?

SUE ROUNDTREE:

Ya. Looked like he banged his head

real bad, but wouldn’t give ID. So

we couldn’t treat him.

MOLLY:

Can you describe him?

SUE ROUNDTREE:

Real intense. Average height.

Brown pants, if that helps.

Molly takes out her notepad, writes.

MOLLY:

Brown pants. Anything else?

SUE ROUNDTREE:

Just real intense. His eyes, ya

know?

(beat)

Oh, and he was talkin’ ta this

other fella.

MOLLY:

Other fella.

SUE ROUNDTREE:

Ya. Here for a broken nose. Looked

like they were maybe havin’ an

argument.

MOLLY:

Ya don’t say.

Sue looks through her files.

SUE ROUNDTREE:

Lester Nygaard. He was here around

four in the P.M.

MOLLY:

You remember what they were arguing

about?

46.

TV Calling - For educational purposes only

SUE ROUNDTREE:

Well, ya know, it’s funny, but I

wanna say they were arguing about

that dead fella.

MOLLY:

Who?

SUE ROUNDTREE:

Hess.

MOLLY:

(that’s interesting)

Really.

SUE ROUNDTREE:

(nodding)

Ya. Heard ‘em say his name. Is

that, like, a lead?

MOLLY:

Oh ya.

Molly nods absently for a moment, thinking jackpot.

CUT TO:

INT. SAINT CLOUD POLICE STATION, SAINT CLOUD, MN - DAY

Vern sits in his office, eating take out. DEPUTY BILL OLSEN

knocks.

BILL:

Phone call, chief. It’s the wife.

Vern picks up the phone.

VERN:

Hey hon.

INTERCUT WITH:

INT. THURMAN HOUSE. SAINT CLOUD, MINNESOTA - SAME TIME

Ida is in the kitchen.

IDA:

White.

VERN:

White what?

47.

TV Calling - For educational purposes only

IDA:

I decided. We’re gonna paint the

nursery white.

VERN:

It’s already white.

IDA:

White on purpose.

VERN:

New coat.

IDA:

Yah.

VERN:

Any particular shade?

IDA:

What do ya mean?

VERN:

Well, ya got yer bright white, yer

snow white.

BILL:

(hasn’t left)

Eggshell.

VERN:

Right. There’s eggshell.

IDA:

Oh. Hadn’t thoughta those.

Vern realizes he’s opened a whole other can of worms.

VERN:

Tell ya what. Why don’t I stop at

the Home Depot, pick up some

different shades and we’ll figure

it out tonight?

IDA:

We’re havin’ a baby, Vern.

VERN:

That’s true.

IDA:

No. I mean, it’s finally sinkin’

in. We’re gonna have a baby.

48.

TV Calling - For educational purposes only

VERN:

(beat, happy)

I can’t wait. See ya soon.

He hangs up.

CUT TO:

INT. VERN’S CAR (TRAVELING). ST. CLOUD, MINNESOTA - NIGHT

Vern pulls into the Home Depot parking lot. His radio

squawks.

MOLLY:

Come in, Chief.

Vern picks up the handset.

VERN:

This is Vern, go ahead.

INTERCUT WITH:

EXT. HOSPITAL. ST. CLOUD, MN - SAME TIME

Molly stands beside her prowler outside the hospital.

MOLLY:

Chief, I’m over at the hospital. I

was checkin on the Hess boy and --

VERN:

How is he?

MOLLY:

Uh, he’s, uh -- you know, there

could be some brain damage.

VERN:

That’s a shame.

MOLLY:

Ya. Hey, so I got ta talkin to Sue

Roundtree, and I asked her if

they’d had any head injuries lately

-- ya know my theory about the

driver in that wreck -- and Sue

says they did yesterday. A

peculiar fella, she says. Real

intense. And here’s where it gets

interesting. Cause she says the

fella with the head injury was

talkin to another fella. About Sam

Hess.

49.

TV Calling - For educational purposes only

VERN:

Oh yeah?

MOLLY:

Yessir. Says the two was thick as

thieves. So suddenly I’m thinking,

maybe these two cases, maybe

they’re connected, huh?

VERN:

(impressed)

Could be. She say who the other

fella was?

MOLLY:

(looks in her pad)

Lester Nygaard.

VERN:

Really.

MOLLY:

You know him.

VERN:

Sure. I know Lester. Sells

insurance over at Bo’s shop.

MOLLY:

Ya. I called over. They’re closed.

So I was gonna go by Lester’s

place.

VERN:

No. I know Lester. I’ll do it.

You call it a day. Good work.

CUT TO:

INT. KITCHEN. NYGAARD HOUSE. SAINT CLOUD, MN - NIGHT

Pearl comes home, sees Lester’s coat.

PEARL:

Lester?

LESTER NYGAARD (O.S.)

(calling)

In the basement.

CUT TO:

50.

TV Calling - For educational purposes only

INT. BASEMENT. NYGAARD HOUSE. SAINT CLOUD, MINNESOTA - NIGHT

Pearl comes downstairs. Lester has his tool kit out. He’s

trying to fix the washing machine.

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