Lone Star Page #17

CLOSER:

Sam pulls out an old holster, a sheaf of real estate and

insurance forms, a couple of old paperback Zane Grey westerns.

He pulls out a cracked leather pouch, turns it over -- letters

fall out. He examines an envelope -- no stamp or postmark --

pulls a letter out, reads--

SAM:

"Dearest Buddy--"

He puts the letter down for a moment, thinks. He needs to

know. He picks the letter up again, reads.

INT. OTIS'S HOUSE -- EVENING

Carolyn crosses the living room to answer the RING at the

front door. Del stands there--

CAROLYN:

Hey, it's the General.

DEL:

Colonel. Is uhm--is Otis in?

CAROLYN:

Come on in--

DEL:

If it's too late--

CAROLYN:

Come on in.

Del enters the house as if walking into an AMBUSH--

INT. OTIS'S LIVING ROOM -- EVENING

Carolyn sits back in the couch, drink in hand, checking Del

out--

CAROLYN:

Otis sittin' up with some people

at the club. I don't think he'll

be long.

CU DEL:

Uncomfortable, sitting at the edge of an easy chair. He

looks at a mounted magazine photo of Otis smiling as he pours

hot sauce on a rack of ribs--

CAROLYN:

His hot sauce recipe won a contest

last year. They sellin' it far

away as San Antonio. He got a

lot of talent, your father.

Del squirm a bit at the word "father" --

DEL:

You've been in this house for a

while?

CAROLYN:

I been here with him eight years

now. He built it when he was

with Leora.

DEL:

I never met her.

CAROLYN:

There was a bunch of 'em You never

met. Me neither.

Del looks around the living room--

CAROLYN:

Let me show you around--

INT. DEN -- PHOTOGRAPH

A blowup of a photo of a squad of Buffalo Soldiers is mounted

on the wall--

CAROLYN (O.S.)

He got into all this cowboys and

Indians stuff awhile back. Spend

half his time pokin' around in

the library way up to Austin.

CU DEL:

He looks at something below --

DEL'S POV -- CLIPPINGS

We PAN slowly over laminated newspaper clippings mounted

behind a picture of young Del in a track uniform, holding a

vaulting pole. The clippings are about Del making honor

rolls, winning a Silver Star in Vietnam, graduating from

Officer Candidate School, being named head of this and that

in the Army--

CAROLYN (O.S.)

Kind of like a shrine, isn't it?

DEL, CAROLYN

Carolyn stands behind, watching Del's face as he looks at

the stuff--

DEL:

Where'd he get all this?

CAROLYN:

Your mother got a brother--Alphonse--

DEL:

Uncle Al--

CAROLYN:

Otis stood on good terms with the

man. Whenever you do something

makes the news, he sends it on.

When they made you General, Otis

just about drove away all our

customers going on about it.

DEL:

I'm a colonel.

CAROLYN:

Yeah, I know--Man made me memorize

the whole damn Army chain of

command before he'd marry me. So

this is a big deal, commander and

all?

DEL:

It's a small post and they're

phasing it out in two years, but

I moved up in rank and--well, a

command is a command.

CAROLYN:

Otis went on like you were that

guy who won the Gulf War. Colin

whatsit.

DEL:

My mother said he never asked

about--

CAROLYN:

He never asked her.

It's a bit too much for Del--

DEL:

Listen, I uh--tell him I came by.

Thanks--

We HOLD on Carolyn as he hurries out. She salutes--

CAROLYN:

Catch you later, Colonel.

EXT. RIVER -- NIGHT

PEOPLE, crouching low, wade across the river toward us.

When he gets close enough to us, we recognize Enrique,

nervously leading a group of Mexican men, women and children

to the U.S. side. They are spaced out in the dark, loosely

holding the line Enrique made in one hand and holding their

bundles high away from the water with the other.

Enrique turns as he hears a WOMAN'S CRY. The line goes slack,

then NESTOR steps out of the darkness to join him--

ENRIQUE:

Que paso? [What happened?]

NESTOR:

Anselma cayo en las rocas. Creo

que la pierna ha sido roto--

[Anselma felt on the rocks. I

think her leg's broken--]

Two men struggle forward supporting Anselma, trying to hold

her leg out straight in front of her. She is in a lot of

pain--

NESTOR:

No podemos alcanzar el camion

llevando a ella. Hay lugar para

esconderla? [We can't reach the

truck if we're carrying her. Is

there somewhere to hide her?]

Enrique thinks, trying not to panic, as the others come up

around him--

ENRIQUE:

Conozco solamente una persona con

casa-- [I only know one person

with a house--]

ANSELMA:

(In pain)

Esta lejos? [Is it far?]

EXT. PATIO -- NIGHT

Mercedes sits on her recliner, drink in hand. An old RECORD

plays from inside. She is startled by the voice from the

dark--

ENRIQUE (O.S.)

Senora Cruz?

MERCEDES:

(Standing)

Quien es? [Who is it?]

ENRIQUE:

Soy yo, Enrique! No tiene miedo--

[It's me, Enrique. Don't be

afraid]

Enrique steps out into the light. His pants are wet and

he's scared--

MERCEDES:

What are you doing out there?

Are you crazy?

ENRIQUE:

Hay pasado un accidente muy grave--

[There's been a bad accident--]

MERCEDES:

In English, Enrique. We're in

the United States--

ENRIQUE:

I have some friends who have had

a accident--

MERCEDES:

You have somebody else out there?

ENRIQUE:

We was by the river? And I hear

my friend callin' for help, and I

look and she has falling in the

water--

MERCEDES:

Don't tell me lies, Enrique. Que

paso?

ENRIQUE:

We was crossin' the river--

Nestor appears in the light now, supporting Anselma, who

hops awkwardly to move forward--

MERCEDES:

Enrique! Quienes son estos? How

could you bring them here?

ENRIQUE:

They need help. Jaime, Anselma--

esta es mi jefa--

NESTOR:

Senora--

MERCEDES:

I'll call the Border Patrol,

they'll get her to the hospital.

ENRIQUE:

No! No puede hacer esto-- [You

can't do that-]

MERCEDES:

You think you're doing these people

a favor? What are they going to

do? Either they get on welfare

or they become criminals--

ENRIQUE:

No es la verdad-- [That isn't

true--]

NESTOR:

Con permiso, Senora, la muchacha

tiene mucho dolor-- [Please,

Senora, the girl is in a lot of

pain--]

Mercedes grudgingly indicates the lounge chair--

MERCEDES:

Sientase. [Sit.]

NESTOR:

Es muy amable. [You're very kind.]

He and Enrique help Anselma into the chair. The Girl looks

up at Mercedes, frightened--

ANSELMA:

Ayudanos, Senora, por favor No

podemos regresar-- [Help us,

Senora, please. We can't go back]

Mercedes looks at ANSELMA disapprovingly. The girl can't be

more than 14--

MERCEDES:

This girl is a friend of yours?

ENRIQUE:

Es mi novia. [She's my

girlfriend.]

MERCEDES:

I thought you were married!

ENRIQUE:

I am marry to the cousin of a

friend--but only to be able to

live here. This is the mother of

my child--

MERCEDES:

This girl has a child?

ENRIQUE:

We have a daughter.

MERCEDES:

(Scornful)

Tipico.

EXT. HOUSE -- NIGHT

Sam stands at the front door of a house on the lake, banging

on the door--

SAM:

Hollis? You in there? Hollis?

EXT. RIVER -- NIGHT --

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