Miller's Crossing Page #20

He glances around the room. Verna is backing around the

couch. Bluepoint continues to follow her.

. . . What business d'you have with Tom Duchaisne?

Verna

None.

She continues to back away; Bluepoint continues to follow.

Bluepoint

You're Leo's twist, right?

Verna

Me and Leo are through.

She picks up her purse from the sill behind the couch and

rummages. Bluepoint doesn't seem to mind.

Bluepoint

Yeah? So you're sluttin' around with Tom now,

huh?

Verna has taken a gun from her purse; she levels it at

Bluepoint.

Verna

Get outta here.

As he continues to stride towards her:

Bluepoint

Okay, see ya later. . .

His hand shoots out in a flash--he has grabbed the gun with

one hand, her arm with the other.

. . . Before I go, what's your boyfriend up to?

Verna is stuggling in his grasp to no effect.

Verna

Nothing I know about.

Bluepoint drags her close, nose to nose:

Bluepoint

Yeah? It doesn't figure for me, your dumping

Leo for the guy who put a bullet in your brother.

Verna stops resisting and stares at him.

Bluepoint stares back at her, thinking.

. . . Didn't tell you, huh?

We hear a footstep offscreen.

REVERSE:

Facing the door, from behind Bluepoint and Verna.

Bluepoint wheels, swinging her body in front of his as two

topcoated men enter, guns drawn.

Both intruders hold fire, their shot blocked by Verna. The

gun in Bluepoint's hand barks once.

The lead man pitches forward, his gun clattering away.

His partner is ducking back out the door.

Verna still struggles futilely; Bluepoint keeps his gun,

peeking out from behind Verna, trained on the empty

doorway.

The man an the floor, still alive, has started clawing

himself towards his gun, a few paces away.

Bluepoint ignores him. He stares at the open door.

After a silent beat, from the hall:

Man In Hall

. . . Let her go, Bluepoint, there's nothing you

can do. Leave by the fire escape. There's more

of us on the way--

BANG--Bluepoint fires.

Wood splinters in the door, which shudders back a few more

inches towards the wall. The voice from the hall has

stopped short.

After a short silent beat, we hear a gun clattering to the

floor outside in the hall.

We hear fabric drag across wall, and then see the dead man

drop to the floor just outside the door.

Bluepoint tosses Verna away and saunters unhurriedly over

to the first man, who has almost reached his gun.

Just as the man's hand closes over it Bluepoint, in stride,

steps onto the hand and gun. Most of his weight is on it.

Head cocked, he looks down at the man in front of him.

Bluepoint

. . . You Leo's?

Man

Yeah. He wanted her looked out for.

Bluepoint

Well you did a bang-up job; I'll be sure to tell

him. Where is Leo?

Man

. . . If I tell you, how do know you won't kill

me?

Bluepoint

Because if you told me, and I killed you, and you

were lying, then I wouldn't get to kill you then.

Where's Leo?

The man is sweating.

Man

. . . He's--he's moving around. But tomorrow

night he's getting his mob together at Whiskey

Nick's.

Bluepoint points his gun at the man's head.

Bluepoint

You sure?

Man

Check it. It's gold.

Bluepeint

You know something, yegg? I believe you.

BANG.

Bluepoint straightens up from the body and turns.

LOW AND WIDE ON BLUEPOINT

One corpse an the floor beside him, the other corpse in the

doorway behind him.

He absently wraps one hand around the warm barrel of the

gun, then brings the hand up to blow against its open palm.

Bluepoint

Go ahead and run, sweetie . . .

HIS POV THE WINDOW

The main zoom is now empty. Sheers billow at the window,

now open, that let's out on the fire escape. Off:

Bluepoint

. . . I'll track down all a you whores.

50. DISSOLVE THROUGH TO:

WINDOW NIGHT:

Sheers billow in the breeze.

TOM:

Sitting up in bed, smoking a cigarette, thinking. The

bedroom is dark.

There is a knock at the apartment's front door. Tom

reacts, but does not immediately rise.

The knock is repeated.

Tom finally throws the covers off and swings his feet

around to the floor.

But the knocking stops and another sound brings him up

short:
The person at the door is now playing with the

lock.

Tom sits motionless, listening.

After some rattling we hear the lock spring, then the door

swinging open, then shut again. We hear footsteps cross

the main room, and then the squeak of chair springs.

Silence.

Tom rises and walks to the living room doorway. He leans

against the jamb.

51. HIS POV

The windows throw moonlit squares onto the floor. We can

see only the legs of someone sitting in the armchair.

Tom

'Lo, Bernie. Come on in, make yourself at home.

Bernie turns on the lamn on the table at his elbow. He

holds a gun casually in his lap.

Bernie

'Lo, Tom. Thought I'd do that, since you didn't

seem to be in. Figured it was a bad idea to wait

in the hall, seeing as I'm supposed to be dead.

Tom

Mm.

Bernie

How'd you know it was me?

Tom

You're the only person I know'd knock and break

in.

Bernie

Your other friends wouldn't break in, huh?

Tom shakes his head.

Tom

My other friends wanna kill me, so they wouldn't

knock.

He crosses to the chair facing Bernie's.

. . . What's on your mind, Bernie?

Bernie

Things. . . I guess you must be kind of angry.

I'm supposed to be gone, far away. I guess it

seems sort of irresponsible, my being here. . .

Bernie leaves room for a response but Tom is only listen-

ing.

Rate this script:5.0 / 2 votes