Playback Page #43

GORE:

(shaken)

That's pretty risky business,

Inspector.

KILLAINE:

Somebody did it twice last night--

in the dark.

He points down. Gore looks over the wall, downwards.

WHAT HE SEES.

Portion of Betty's balcony and the chaise almost directly

below him.

KILLAINE (O.S.)

Once to put that in the position

where it is now. And the second

time to move it where we found it.

TWO SHOT - KILLAINE AND GORE

On the balcony.

KILLAINE:

Not too hard, is it?

GORE:

(staring at him)

Maybe we've been pretty dumb--

KILLAINE:

(quietly)

There wasn't any motive...let's

try out the act.

Gore steps back. Killaine puts his hand in his pocket and

brings out a gun, which looks very like the death gun.

KILLAINE:

I have a gun. It's not loaded.

Pretend it is. I'm drunk. I took

the gun away from Margo West. Now

I've said something to you that

you don't like. I don't like the

look in your eyes, either. I've

pulled the gun. Take it away from

me. And while you're taking it

away from me, it goes off. Ready?

Gore nods.

KILLAINE:

Let's go.

Gore suddenly swarms him. There is a brief sharp struggle.

Gore gets his hand over the gun. It goes down as they

fight for it. Gore turns it in toward Killaine's body.

There is a sharp click. Gore steps back with the gun in

his hand.

KILLAINE:

Was that about the right angle?

GORE:

I think so.

KILLAINE:

Where's the shell?

GORE:

Should be over there.

Points to the angle of the wall.

KILLAINE:

Pick it up. Put it in your pocket.

Gore pretends to do so.

KILLAINE:

The same with the gun.

Gore puts the gun in his pocket.

KILLAINE:

You've got a dead man on your hands.

You killed jim--even if it wasn't

murder. What are you going to do

about it?

GORE:

If I've got any sense I'm going to

call headquarters.

KILLAINE:

They'll probably believe you. But

they'll want to know what you were

fighting about. Why Mitchell had

a gun. You'll tell them a simple

story. They'll pretend it sounds

all right to them. Now you're

headquarters. How does it sound

to you?

GORE:

Before I took the story and closed

the case, I'd want to know a lot

more about these people. I'd want

to know just about everything about

them.

KILLAINE:

(nodding)

Exactly. Now I'm the killer. And

there's something I don't want you

to know. Something that would

destroy my comfortable life, rob

me of my friends, my position.

GORE:

Such as?

KILLAINE:

Assume there is something to hid.

I go to a lot of trouble. What do

I do? What would you do?

GORE:

Do I know who lives down there?

KILLAINE:

You can find out.

GORE:

Do I know that she's out of the

room? Likely to be out of it for

some time?

KILLAINE:

You can find out the first part.

The second part you have to take a

chance on.

GORE:

Pretty big chance, huh?

KILLAINE:

You've got a dead man on your hands.

Like this.

He allows himself to collapse down on the floor, against

the wall.

GORE:

Right--

He bends down over Killaine, gets a fireman's lift on him--

get's him up, drapes him over the wall, half on one side

and half on the other, his head and shoulders on the inside.

He straightens up, takes a firm grip on Killaine's wrists,

and eases him down over the wall. Gore's head and shoulders

follow until he is lying across the wall on his stomach.

ANGLE UP - UPWARD REVERSE SHOT FROM BETTY'S BALCONY

Showing Killaine's body dangling directly over the chair.

Gore comes as far down as he can. Killaine has only a few

feet to fall. Killaine looks down, then up at Gore.

KILLAINE:

Let go.

Gore releases his wrists. Killaine sprawls down on the

chaise, almost rolls over it, saves himself, lies down on

his side. Gore climbs over the wall, lowers himself, hangs

by his hands, looks down, lets go with one hand, drops,

lands rather heavily on the balcony near the chaise, goes

down on his hands and knees. He stands up, dusts himself

off, lifts the chaise with Killaine on it, and wheels it

about six feet away to the position where it was found

with Mitchell's body. Killaine stands up off the chaise.

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