The Nesting Page #5

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At the house near Estes Pond.

That girl again?

- Don't you like her?

- Like her?

What the hell difference

does that make?

Do you know anything

about her, who she is?

Now, Grandfather, you're not gonna

tell me she's royalty, are you?

I'm serious, Daniel.

There's no time left for jokes.

You know where she came from,

what she wants?

Mark. Mark, where are you?

You've seen me before.

But where?

Perhaps in your dreams.

- But how could I?

- There's no way you could have understood.

Come with me.

Perhaps now you will.

Yeah, what Abner

told you yesterday was no lie, son.

Your mother did run off

with another man...

...soon after Leland

was sent overseas.

Then you're not really my grandfather.

Oh, you're the closest thing

I had to a relative.

That's why I wanted you to come home.

- Did Leland know about me?

- No.

When he came back from the war,

she was gone.

What about the house?

What did Abner mean about the house?

I was so alone.

Then I met Florinda.

Rented her that goddamn house.

If I hadn't,

...things might have turned out

differently for Leland.

Hey, Florinda,

...is Princess Rose working tonight?

Mm-hmm. Sure. She's upstairs with

her steady beau. Didn't you know?

Ooh, my, my.

Lucky Leland.

Hey, hush up,

you jealous b*tches.

- What we got to be jealous of?

- I'll tell you what, honey pie.

Leland wants to marry her.

Take her away

from the good life.

Well, he is a regular

Prince Charming.

Mm-hmm. And you're

gonna marry me, ain't ya?

Like hell he is.

He ain't that stupid.

I always had big plans for Leland.

When he came home,

...well, I could see

he wasn't the same.

Never would be.

He'd been badly wounded.

Came back with a metal plate

in his head.

Just hung around the house.

Did nothing but sit

and stare into space.

No ambition, nothing.

I guess it was my fault

because I sent him to Florinda's..,

...put some spunk back into him.

Seemed harmless enough.

Well, I heard he'd gone...

...and got infatuated

with one of the girls.

I damn near keeled over...

...when he came and told me

he intended to marry her.

He didn't even care

she was a whore.

He loved this Rose Henderson.

That's all that mattered to him.

Grandfather?

Oh, he was my only son.

Try to understand.

I couldn't let him go

and marry a whore.

And they were also familiar?

All of them.

I've seen all of them in my dreams

ever since I got here.

Hey, wait a second.

I'm just dreaming again.

Of course I am.

This is exactly the same.

I'm just having

another one of those dreams.

Are you?

Wasn't something different?

Think, Lauren.

I don't know.

Maybe... Maybe a little.

What is going on anyway?

What was it, Lauren?

What was different?

All right.

Someone was missing.

Who? Who was it?

Why are you bothering me? Why

don't you just leave me alone?

Of course I'm dreaming.

Oh, Leland, that fool of a boy.

He went and got Rose pregnant.

And Florinda came to me.

Begged me to allow the marriage,

and I wouldn't hear of it.

I told her to get rid of the girl

or I'd close down the house.

Well, she refused.

She swore if I tried,

...she'd drag the name of LeBrun

through the mud.

And she would have too.

So I had Leland committed

for psychiatric treatment.

And Rose?

Well, Rose had her baby, a girl.

When Leland was released,

...he still insisted on going

through with the marriage.

Begged me to relent...

...and accept the marriage

and my granddaughter.

But the very thought of that bastard...

...carrying the name of LeBrun

drove me wild.

Well, Leland was furious with me.

He was living in that house

with that girl,

...hating me

and getting ready to marry.

The war had just ended,

and the whole town was celebrating.

But there was no joy

in this godforsaken house.

I hired three of the town's

toughest boys to kidnap the baby.

Who were they?

Abner Welles, Frank,

...Earl Harris.

Those stupid, senseless boys.

- Where's the baby, Florinda?

- Get out of my house.

We don't want no trouble with you.

Just give us the baby and we'll go home.

Never! Get out of this house!

This is none of your business!

We're making it

our business.

Rose! Leland!

Rose! Leland!

- Wake-up time.

- Come on!

Come on, Leland.

Open that door, Leland.

Open this

goddamn door, Leland.

Rosie!

Open the goddamn door

or we'll break it down!

The baby stays here!

She's not going anywhere.

So you just get

the hell out of here!

Come on, Rose!

We ain't gonna hurt you.

We just wanna take your baby

on a little trip.

And you tell my father

if I ever see him again...

- Open the door, Leland.

- I swear I'm gonna kill him!

Come on, Rosie.

We got a message for you.

Who's out there?

Who's out there?

What is it?

Oh, my God!

Please, no! Don't shoot!

Oh, my God.

You bastard.

Those crazy boys didn't know

what they were doing.

When I got there,

...there was nothing but blood

and the screams of that baby.

And Leland?

I killed him.

I killed my own son just as surely

as if I'd shot him myself.

Well, I took the baby.

Told Frank and Abner

to clean up the house...

...and dump their bodies in Estes Pond.

Right there,

I swore them to secrecy.

Promised to reward them well

if they never mentioned a word of it.

There were no survivors.

But the baby.

I...

I placed her in a home for foundlings.

Your own granddaughter.

Yes.

But that girl,

...that Cochran girl,

...it's she.

It's got to be.

She's come back.

All these years,

...I've tried so hard

to remember you,

...to imagine who you were,

what you look like.

And even now, when I began

to dream in this house,

...still I couldn't make it real.

I could see all the other people,

but not you.

I could never see

your face.

Mama.

Mama!

Mama. Mama!

You can't touch your mother,

not now, not ever.

She's... She's gone.

And now that you understand,

...you must leave this house

and never come back.

- But I want my...

- No, Lauren, it's impossible.

We've avenged our deaths

through you.

And now you're free

to live your life,

...so... so go now and...

...and let us rest.

No. I won't.

I won't leave my mother.

Mama?

Mama.

Mark? Daniel?

Mark?

Daniel?

We've avenged our

deaths through you.

And now you're free

to live your life,

...so go... go now...

...and let us rest.

No, Lauren, you are

not going crazy.

Gone, dead, murdered, killed.

Rejection by your mother.

Lauren, it is curable.

Let us rest.

As long as I have been a real estate agent,

I have never yet encountered a ghost.

You must leave this house

and never come back.

And now you're free.

And let us rest.

And now you're free.

Go now. Be free.

And now you're free.

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