Lone Star Page #15

PALOMA:

She finally got in--

PILAR:

It's Saturday.

PALOMA:

You got in late last night.

PILAR:

Yeah. I had uhm--school business.

Paloma gives her a look, then holds a fashion page up for

her to see--

PALOMA:

Can I get this?

PILAR:

Nobody really wears that stuff,

Paloma.

PALOMA:

I could name five girls at school

who have one just like it--

PILAR:

Enough with the clothes--

PALOMA:

just 'cause you went to Catholic

school and wore a uniform.

PILAR:

I only went for my last two years.

PALOMA:

How come?

PILLAR:

Oh, my mother wanted to keep me

away from away from boys.

PILAR steps out into the sun--

PALOMA:

Did it work?

INT. CAFE -- MORNING

Hollis is sitting alone in a booth, working on some heuvos

rancheros. Sam slides in across from him--

SAM:

Morning, Hollis.

HOLLIS:

Sam! Quite a do the other day.

It meant a lot to folks that you

said something.

SAM:

You thought any more about our

murder?

HOLLIS:

We have a murder?

SAM:

Charley Wade.

HOLLIS:

I wish I could tell you I

remembered something new, but I

can't.

SAM:

I got an idea what happened.

HOLLIS:

Do you?

SAM:

I think somewhere between Roderick

Bledsoe's club and his house,

Wade ran into Buddy Deeds. I

think Buddy put a bullet in him,

waited for him to die, threw him

in the trunk of the Sheriff's car

and drove him out by the Army

post, I think he buried him under

four feet of sand and never looked

back.

Hollis sits back to look Sam in the eye--

HOLLIS:

You lived in the man's house what--

seventeen, eighteen years? And

you didn't get to know him any

better than that?

SAM:

I got to go see somebody in San

Antonio today. Your memory gets

any better, I'll be back tonight,

Sam stands and walks away. We HOLD on Hollis, his appetite

gone--

EXT. BIG O'S --- MORNING

Chet steps around to the side entrance--

INT. BLACK SEMINOLE EXHIBIT --- DAY --- CU STATUE

We start on a statue of a BUFFALO SOLDIER made from spent

bullets and shell casings, then PAN to another, then WIDEN

to see Chet as he pokes his head in, the BELL of the door

ringing. He steps in cautiously, looking around the room.

On the walls there are photo-blowups, some artifacts,

handlettered information on cardboard. Chet stops to look

up at a picture of a barechested Black man with a couple of

feathers stuck in his headband

OTIS (O.S.)

That's John Horse.

Chet turns to see Otis standing back by, the door from the

bar--

OTIS:

Spanish in Florida called him

Juan Caballo. John Horse.

CHET:

(Looks at picture)

He a Black man or an Indian?

OTIS:

(Steps in)

Both,

Otis crosses to the poker table, begins to clean up--

OTIS:

He was part of the Seminole Nation,

got pushed down into the Everglades

in pioneer days. African people

who run off from the slaveholders

hooked up with them, married up,

had children. When the Spanish

give up Florida, the U.S.Army

come down to move all them Indian

peoples off to Oklahoma--

CHET:

The Trail of Tears.

OTIS:

(Smiles)

They teaching that now? Good.

Only a couple of 'em held out-

this man, John Horse, and his

friend Wild Cat, and a fella name

of Osceola. Army put all of them

in prison and Osceola died, but

them other two escaped and put

together a fighting band and held

out another ten, fifteen years.

Beat Zach Taylor and a thousand

troops at Lake Okeechobee.

CHET:

So they stayed in Florida?

OTIS:

They got tired of fighting, went

to the Indian Territories for a

while. But the slave-raiders

were on 'em even there, and one

night they packed up and nearly

the whole band rode down to Mexico.

Crossed at Eagle Pass.

They move on to some photos of very African-looking people

dressed in beautiful Seminole clothing--

OTIS:

Men worked for Santa Anna down

there, waited out the Civil War.

The land wasn't much to feed people

on, so in 1870 they come north

and put up at Fort Duncan and the

men joined up what was called the

Seminole Negro Indian Scouts.

Best trackers either side of the border. Bandits, rustlers,

Texas rednecks, Kiowa, Comanche--

CHET:

They fought against the Indians?

OTIS:

Same as they done in Mexico.

CHET:

But they were Indians themselves.

OTIS:

They were in the Army. Like your

father.

CHET:

(Surprised)

You know who I am?

OTIS:

I got a pretty good guess.

CHET:

That guy who got shot--

OTIS:

You didn't go telling your father

you were here?

CHET:

Are you kidding? And face a court-

martial?

OTIS:

(Smiles)

He's a pretty tough old man, huh?

CHET:

No sports if I don't keep a B

average, no TV on school nights,

no PDA's--

OTIS:

PDA?

CHET:

Public Display of Affection.

Every time he moves up a rank,

it's like he's got to tighten the

screws a little more--

OTIS:

Well--

CHET:

I mean, just 'cause he didn't--

you know--

OTIS:

Didn't have a father?

CHET:

(Shrugs)

He's still pissed off about it,

OTIS:

When you're his age you'll still

be pissed off about him.

Chet nods, looks around--

CHET:

So how come you got into all this?

OTIS:

These are our people. There were

Paynes in Florida, Oklahoma,

Piedras Negras-couple of 'em won

the whatsit--Congressional Medal

Of Honor--

CHET:

So I'm part-Indian?

OTIS:

By blood you are. But blood only

means what you let it.

CHET:

My father says the day you're

born you start from scratch, no

breaks and no excuses, and you

got to pull yourself up on your

own.

OTIS:

(Sad)

Well, he's living proof of that,

son. Living proof.

INT. DEL'S OFFICE -- DAY

Athena stands at attention as Del sits at his desk, reviewing

her record. He lets her stand for a long time before speaking--

DEL:

Private Johnson, are you unhappy

in the Army?

ATHENA:

No, sir--

DEL:

Then how would you explain the

fact that out of one hundred twenty

people we tested, you're the only

one who came up positive for drugs?

ATHENA:

I'm sorry, sir.

DEL:

When you were given the opportunity

to enlist, a kind of contract was

agreed upon. I think the Army

has honored its part of that

agreement

ATHENA:

Yes, sir--

DEL:

Do you believe in what we're doing

here, Private Johnson?

ATHENA:

I-I can do the job, sir.

DEL:

You don't sound too enthusiastic.

ATHENA:

I am, sir.

DEL:

What exactly do you think your

job is, Private?

ATHENA:

Follow orders. Do whatever they

say.

DEL:

Who's "they"?

ATHENA:

The--the officers.

DEL:

And that's the job? Nothing about

serving your country?

Athena is confused, hesitates to speak--

DEL:

These aren't trick questions,

Private. You'll be given an

Article 15 and be going into the

ADCAP Program one way or the other.

What happens after that is up to

you. I'm just trying to understand

how somebody like you thinks.

Silence--

DEL:

Well?

ATHENA:

(Hesitant)

You really want to know, sir.

DEL:

Please.

ATHENA:

It's their country. This is one

of the best deals they offer.

Del knows he asked for it, but doesn't like the answer--

DEL:

How do you think I got to be a

colonel?

ATHENA:

Work hard, be good at your job.

Sir. Do whatever they tell you.

DEL:

Do whatever they tell you--

ATHENA:

I mean, follow orders, sir.

DEL:

With your attitude, Private, I'm

surprised you want to stay in the

service.

ATHENA:

I do, sir.

DEL:

Because it's a job?

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