Sherlock Holmes Page #4

SUPERIMPOSE:
THREE MONTHS LATER

FROM A RAVEN'S POV

We FOLLOW a lady, MRS. HUDSON, walking down the street

with the day's shopping. She picks up a paper with the

day's headline "BLACKWOOD HANGS TOMORROW: CLAIMS PACK

WITH THE DEVIL." She continues down the street until

arriving at 221 Baker Street. A raven lands on the entry

gate, she shoos it away, walks up the steps, and inside.

12 INT. 221 BAKER ST. - WATSON'S APARTMENT 12

Watson takes a blood pressure cuff off CAPTAIN PHILIPS,

an OLDER GENTLEMAN who sports an array of medals. The

room is a tribute to military and medical order -- all is

neat and tidy, everything in its place.

WATSON:

71 over 104... very good, Captain.

CAPTAIN PHILIPS:

Me nerves are the best they been

in years, thanks to you.

(CONTINUED)

11aA.

12 CONTINUED:
12

Watson is pleased by that.

CAPTAIN PHILIPS:

Tell me something -- your new

offices. There won't be so many

stairs, I hope?

WATSON:

No -- ground floor. And there'll

be a woman's touch, too.

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)

11A.

12 CONTINUED:
(2) 12

WATSON (CONT'D)

I think we can start to wean you

off the medicine --

BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG! A dozen GUNSHOTS O.S. Captain

Philips hits the floor, terrified.

Watson suppresses extreme irritation, writes a

prescription on a piece of paper, then helps Captain

Philips to his feet.

WATSON:

Let's give it a little longer,

just to be safe.

(beat)

I'll be right back.

(CONTINUED)

12.

12 CONTINUED:
(3) 12

He heads out, letting his aggravation show once his back

is turned to his patient.

13 INT. 221 BAKER ST. - HALL 13

As Watson exits his apartment and moves down the hall,

MRS. HUDSON, his landlady, shoots up the stairs with the

paper. Her nerves are almost as bad as Captain Philips'.

MRS. HUDSON

(panting)

I won't go in there by myself, not

while he's in this state.

WATSON:

You're not going in at all.

Which is a relief to Mrs. Hudson.

MRS. HUDSON

What will I do when you leave?

He'll burn the house down around

me. What will he do? Couldn't

you have a longer engagement?

WATSON:

He just needs a new case, that's

all.

Captain Philips emerges from Watson's apartment, heads

towards them.

WATSON:

I smell burning.

Mrs. Hudson's already-frayed nerves take a turn for the

worse. Watson takes the newspaper from her.

WATSON:

Why don't you take Captain Philips

and give him a nice cup of tea.

MRS. HUDSON

Come on, Captain, let's go down.

It'll be quieter.

WATSON:

(as they leave)

And perhaps some tea and bread up

here when you can.

Watson heads down the hallway to the last door. A

tendril of smoke wafts out from under it. Urgent.

(CONTINUED)

12A.

13 CONTINUED:
13

Nonetheless, Watson stops, takes a deep breath, gathers

himself. Something like this has happened before (is, in

fact, Holmes' usual brand of chaos) the difference being,

now, that Watson is sick to death of dealing with it.

Which doesn't mean he won't.

Newspaper in hand, Watson opens the door, pokes his head

in, cautiously. He sees --

14 INT. 221 BAKER ST. - HOLMES' APARTMENTS 14

Watson squeezes through the doorway to find that the

obstruction is Holmes who is sitting in the dark on a

chair, blocking the door, aiming a gun (with an odd

contraption fastened on its barrel) at the wall.

Unadulterated chaos. A series of FLAMING BULLET HOLES

blasted into the wall in the (ragged) initials "V.R."

WATSON:

May I join you in the armory?

HOLMES:

Please... Watson, I've been

working on a device which will

suppress the sound of a gunshot.

Watson heads towards the conservatory.

HOLMES:

Please... Don't, don't, don't...

Watson pulls open the curtains allowing the light to pour

in.

WATSON:

It needs work. May I see?...

Watson passes him heading to the other side of the room

(possibly grabs the gun) picking up a pile of open

letters from a table.

HOLMES:

Gently, gently, Watson...

Watson whips open more curtains and opens a window.

Holmes crawls on his hands and knees over to a table

where he finds his sunglasses and puts them on.

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