Signs Page #20

GRAHAM YELLS. HE JOLTS UP. HIS HEAD HITS THE SLANTED TABLE

HARD.

FOUR LONG FINGERS AND CLAWS, THE EXACT COLOR OF THE WOODEN

FLOOR REACH OUT AND MISS HIS FACE BY A FRACTION OF AN INCH.

GRAHAM REACTS. THE BUTCHER KNIFE COMES DOWN FAST AND HARD ON

THE PROTRUDING WOOD COLORED FINGERS. SLAM!

WE HEAR AN UNBEARABLY HIGH-PITCHED INHALE SOUND FROM INSIDE

THE PANTRY.

CUT TO:

EXT. STATION WAGON - DAY

The station wagon knocks over the "Ray Reddy" mailbox as it

turns sharply onto the road.

Graham picks up speed as he passes the wall of crops on his

right.

THE STATION WAGON SUDDENLY BRAKES.

Two black skid marks form on the road as the station wagon

comes to a fast stop.

Beat. Graham gets out of the car. He walks a few feet ahead

of the station wagon. He bends down in the middle of the

road.

A BIRD lays limp on the asphalt. Its head is crushed.

Graham gazes at the still pile of feathers. Beat.

Graham turns and looks straight up at the BLUE, CLOUDLESS

SKY above him.

GRAHAM:

(soft)

Douche bag.

CUT TO:

INT. HESS FAMILY ROOM - DAY

Graham enters his front hall. He closes the door and locks

it behind him. He turns and looks into the family room.

Morgan and Bo and Merrill are seated together on the sofa.

All three are wearing foil helmets. Beat.

MERRILL:

Their skin changes color. That's why

we couldn't see him that night.

Graham stares at his family huddled on the couch. Beat. Graham

takes in the news as he moves to the stairs. He takes a seat

on the second to last step.

He sits obscured by the balusters. Beat.

GRAHAM:

Tell me something Morgan. In that

book of your, did they happen to

detail what would happen if they

were hostile?

MORGAN:

Yes. They would invade us using only

ground tactics. Hand to hand combat.

They wouldn't use their technology

or fight an airborne battle, because

they would know we would eventually

use nuclear weapons and the planet

would be useless to them.

MERRILL:

I'm sorry, what book is this?

GRAHAM:

Did they say what our chances would

be if they did invade?

MORGAN:

They said one of two things could

happen. One, they fight and are

defeated and leave to return again

with full forces hundreds or even

thousands of years later.

GRAHAM:

What's two?

MORGAN:

They win.

The words hang in the air. Graham sits quietly on the second

step of the stairs.

GRAHAM:

What do you think about the idea

that they don't like places near

water, and we might be safe from

them near a lake or something?

MORGAN:

Sounds made up.

Beat.

GRAHAM:

We can choose to believe it and pack

up and leave.

(beat)

Or we can stay here. Board up this

house. Hide inside our home and wait

it out. Either way, at least we'll

be together.

(beat)

All those in favor of the lake, raise

your hand.

No one raises their hand.

GRAHAM:

All those in favor of home, raise

your hand.

All four put their hands in the air. Beat. They lower them

and sit in silence.

MERRILL:

How do we know boards will do

anything?

Beat.

GRAHAM:

(soft)

Because, they seem to have trouble

with pantry doors.

CUT TO:

EXT. HESS HOUSE - AFTERNOON

WE ARE WATCHING THE HOUSE FROM THE CROPS. We see Graham inside

the house, closing the window shutters in one room after

another.

WE SEE a stack of wooden boards on the porch.

OUR VIEW MOVES to the barn where Isabelle is tied. She is

not pacing. She is not barking. She sits staring right at

us. She is shivering.

OUR VIEW MOVES to the garage building where we see Merrill

carry a huge pile of his clothes and things down the stairs.

He's moving into the main house.

Merrill walks across the yard. His eyes look around carefully

as he moves.

Part of the pile in his arms falls to the grass as he crosses

the lawn. He stops walking and starts to gather up the fallen

things. He picks up a couple shirts and two baseballs encased

in glass cases.

The glass encasing one of the souvenir baseballs, has cracked.

He takes the ball out. Stares at it.

We watch from the crops as Merrill puts down his pile of

clothes and things on the grass. He looks around and finds

what he's looking for. A rake.

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