Prisoners Page #9

He spots Nancy and Eliza and goes to them.

NANCY:

Hi.

He takes her hand, then Eliza’s...

NANCY (CONT’D)

(whispers to

Franklin)

Where have you been?

He doesn’t answer. All the lights are making him

nauseous.

NANCY (CONT’D)

Franklin?

FRANKLIN:

The woods, searching.

The lights are unbearable. He lets go of their hands,

reeling a little.

NANCY:

What is it?

FRANKLIN:

Nothing, I’m OK. Just need to sit

down.

As his wife and daughter walk after him, he sits down on

someone’s lawn and tries not to throw up.

Across the way we see Loki watching. He turns --

scanning the crowd --

Loki’s POV -- somber, candlelit faces, breath showing in

the cold, standing like a choir; all facing the same

direction...

Except for A TALL MAN, who’s staring at the Birches...

Loki starts carefully moving through the crowd...getting

a better view of the Tall Man: pudgy, baby face, partly

obscured by the hood of his parka --

Loki bumps into a woman -- knocks the candle from her

hand --

WOMAN:

Watch it --

Loki looks over at the Tall Man -- their eyes lock --

81 CONTINUED:
81

(CONTINUED)

The Tall Man turns abruptly, starts weaving out of the

crowd -- heads are turning -- a quiet commotion building

when --

Loki gives up trying to be gentle -- shoves his way out

of the crowd -- breaking into a run, the Tall Man about

thirty yards ahead --

LOKI:

Stop right now! Police!

Loki’s POV as he chases the Tall Man -- the Tall Man runs

down into a ditch lining the roadside. Loki sprints down

after him -- losing sight of him when the Tall Man clears

the other side --

Loki gets to the top of the slope, sees the Tall Man

running between two houses --

Loki gives chase as the Tall Man runs out on to another

street --

Loki’s POV as he chases The Tall Man down the middle of

the street -- the Tall Man veers off, runs up a hilly

front yard and disappears behind a house --

Loki hits the hilly yard -- runs around the other side of

the same house --

Loki peers around the corner of the house at the backyard

-- nobody there. Then he sees the motion lights come on

next door -- hears a dog barking --

Loki draws his gun, heads to the chain link fence

dividing the two backyards, steps over it, sees the

leashed guard dog across the way, barking at something --

The dog notices Loki -- wheels around and charges him --

until its leash goes taught and snaps it back --

Loki breathes out, scans the yard. No sign of the Tall

Man. Then --

Something falls down to the ground beside Loki. An

icicle. He looks up --

Icicles hanging off the bottom of a tree house. There

could be someone up there -- it’s hard to tell from the

ground -- it’s about ten feet up. Loki aims his gun up

at it...

LOKI (CONT’D)

Hello? You don’t come down on

three, I’m gonna start shooting.

One, two...three --

81 CONTINUED:
(2) 81

(CONTINUED)

Nothing. Loki breathes out, considering as the motion

lights go dark --

A shape drops down from the tree house, Loki fires BANG,

misses -- THUMP -- a boot hits his face, he falls back

into the snow -- lights come back on as --

Loki scrambles up -- he dropped his gun -- sees the Tall

Man is climbing over a wooden fence across the way --

Loki looks around in the snow for his gun -- there, grabs

it -- aims -- the Tall Man is going over the fence --

LOKI (CONT’D)

STOP!

The Tall Man keeps going --

LOKI (CONT’D)

Son of b*tch!

A:

81 CONTINUED:
(3) 81

(CONTINUED)

Loki runs to the fence -- climbs -- falls into a snow

drift --

THE DIN OF ENGINES, CARS BLASTING PAST -- HE’S ON THE

SIDE OF A HIGHWAY --

Loki peers through the blur of speeding cars to the other

side -- no sign of the Tall Man.

Struggling to catch his breath, Loki turns around,

scanning, scanning --

Nothing. Loki’s about to loose his mind -- so f***ing

close.

82 INT. TV ROOM - THE BIRCH’S HOUSE - MORNING 82

The Birch’s TV: a news report -- a police sketch on

screen. A fairly accurate rendering of the Tall Man --

NEWS CASTER:

--who police are saying is a

person of interest in the

investigation of the two missing

girls --

Angle widens to reveal Franklin watching -- Nancy asleep

on the couch. The room hasn’t been cleaned since

Thanksgiving.

Someone beeps their horn out front, startles Franklin --

he looks out the window. Keller’s truck just pulled up --

83 EXT. APARTMENT HOUSE - MORNING 83

Franklin follows Keller up the front stairs, they’re in

the midst of a hushed argument --

FRANKLIN:

Why would the police be looking

for him if he didn’t --

KELLER:

They did it together -- they know

each other. I told you, Jones

looked me in the eye and told me:

they only cried when I left them.

He knows where this guy is.

81 CONTINUED:
(4) 81

(CONTINUED)

Franklin tries to swallow that, but it’s not going

down... Keller leaves him on the stairs and disappears

inside...

Franklin considers darkly...then after a moment he

follows Keller inside, looking like he’s being led to the

gallows...

84 INT. CAPTAIN’S OFFICE - POLICE STATION - DAY 84

Loki walks in and drops something on O'Malley's desk.

A little dog collar with ID tags on it.

LOKI:

Holly Jones’ dog. Car hit it on

Southworth Street. Turns out

Jones took it for a walk the night

before last and didn't come back.

His aunt didn't tell us until we

called her about the dog this

morning -- said she didn't want to

get him in trouble. I thought we

were gonna keep him under

surveillance.

CAPTAIN RICHARD O'MALLEY

You said the runner at the vigil

is our guy. I don’t have money in

the budget for watching innocent

people.

O’Malley sees a sliver of doubt in Loki’s eyes before

Loki can conceal it. Loki opens the door, and as he

exits --

LOKI:

I just like knowing where

everybody is --

85 INT. MEDIA ROOM - POLICE STATION - DAY 85

Loki sits in a broom closet of a room, stocked with

outdated equipment. He’s watching surveillance video

from when he questioned Jones in the interrogation room:

LOKI:

Did you park your RV on Fairmount

Circle yesterday?

JONES:

I don’t know the names. The

street names, I don’t look at

them.

83 CONTINUED:
83

(CONTINUED)

Loki shows pictures of Anna and Joy to Jones.

LOKI:

Have you seen these girls before?

Jones’ face as he looks at the pictures, unable to

answer. Nothing telling in his expression. Just a man

lost in his own world.

A CLERK opens the door, awakens Loki from his trance --

CLERK:

Loki, you got a call.

86 INT. DISCOUNT DEPARTMENT STORE - DAY 86

Christmas music squawks as Detective Loki stands in the

check-out line talking to JILL, 16, working the register.

JILL:

I called as soon as I saw the

sketch on TV. He comes in here

every week almost and buys kids

clothes, but he’s always buying

stuff in different sizes. Caught

him messing around with the

mannequins once.

LOKI:

How did he pay?

JILL:

Cash.

LOKI:

Here’s my card. If he comes back,

call me.

87 INT. SECOND FLOOR APARTMENT - NIGHT 87

Franklin, shivering in his underwear fumbles in his

backpack for clean clothes. He’s crying silently, wiping

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