The Salton Sea Page #6

DANNY:

It's a long story. Maybe I'll tell

you all about it some day.

Garcetti emerges from the men's room, zipping up.

DANNY (cont'd)

Hey, Garcetti ... You ever get

confused and try to flush yourself?

Garcetti

(all business)

You tell him?

TANNER:

I was getting to it.

DANNY:

(to Tanner)

Tell me what?

GARCETTI:

I'll tell him.

DANNY:

(worried)

Tell me what?

Garcetti sits down next to Danny. Sighs.

GARCETTI:

(mock concern)

Danny, it's really pains me to have to

tell you this, but do you remember

DOMINGO, that wetback you helped us

put away for trafficking a few months back?

DANNY:

Yeah. What about him?

GARCETTI:

Turns out he's connected.

DANNY:

To who?

GARCETTI:

The Mexicali Boys

DANNY:

And what does this have to do with me?

Garcetti puts his hand on Danny's shoulder, really playing it up.

GARCETTI:

He knows somebody ratted him.

DANNY:

What?!

GARCETTI:

And he's making a lot of noise about

having his homies hang a Colombian

necktie on whoever it was.

Garcetti leans in close

GARCETTI (cont'd)

You know that thing where they slit

your throat and pull your tongue out

of the hole.

Danny knocks Garcetti's hand away and stands up. Garcetti stalks him.

GARCETTI (cont'd)

Apparently they call it a necktie

because it hangs down about yay long

and looks very similar to a tie.

Isn't that weird, Danny? Isn't that

weird?

DANNY:

Shut up, Garcetti!

Danny turns to Tanner

DANNY:

If he finds out it's me, I'm a dead man.

TANNER:

Danny, he isn't gonna find out it's

you. Domingo was a slinger, he must

have sold to hundreds of different people.

Danny paces back and forth.

TANNER (cont'd)

And if you're that worried about it,

maybe you ought to get out of town.

DANNY:

How the hell am I gonna do that? You

guys are still stringing me a long on

that possession charge.

GARCETTI:

(mock surprise)

You mean that hasn't been cleared up yet?

Garcetti chuckles at Danny's fear

DANNY:

F*** you, Garcetti. I been at this

for almost a year. I've done

everything you guys have asked of me.

GARCETTI:

Anyone ever ask you to be such a

disrespectful smart-ass all the time?

TANNER:

Look, we'll talk to the A.D.A.

DANNY:

When?

TANNER:

Soon. I promise. We'll get the

charges dropped and you can

disappear. In the mean time, trust

me, he has no idea that you ratted him out.

EXT. CEMETERY - NIGHT

Danny sitting cross-legged in front of a gravestone.

A PICKUP TRUCK slowly winds its way up the access road towards Danny.

Danny stands up. Dusts his pants off.

The truck stops nearby. The strains of GARTH BROOKS from inside.

Danny approaches. The passenger's side window rolls down revealing ...

... A BAD-ASSED ASIAN DUDE behind the wheel. He wears a cowboy hat and

a rodeo belt. He looks like the Chinese Marlboro man. This is BUBBA.

An AIRBRUSH painting on the door panel - a bad likeness of Bubba

astride a horse, dressed as a cowboy with a huge-breasted Pamela

Anderson-type on the saddle behind him.

DANNY:

(checking out the painting)

Ride 'em cowboy)

BUBBA:

(southern twang)

You like that?

DANNY:

Who wouldn't?

BUBBA:

First rate, ain't it?

DANNY:

It's downright classy is what it is.

Bubba fires up a cigarette, revealing a pock-marked face. He carries a

gun in a tooled leather shoulder holster.

DANNY (cont'd)

You consider my presentation?

BUBBA:

Get in, hoss. We'll talk it over.

Danny climbs in. The window goes back up. As the care pulls away, we

...

... MOVE back over to the gravestone.

The stone reads:
"ELIZABETH VAN ALLEN. BELOVED WIFE"

EXT. THE CINDER BLOCK BAR - NIGHT

A non-descript. cinder block bar. No windows. No frills.

INT. CINDER BLOCK BAR - SAME

Danny sitting at the bar, nursing a drink. He looks nervous, eyes

darting around for potential assassins.

He has nothing to worry about with this crowd, harmless alcoholics all.

Jimmy The Finn enters and approaches Danny. Danny signals for Jimmy to

go to the back, then gets up and follows him, carrying two beers.

DANNY:

Jimmy, you don't look so hot.

Jimmy has dark circles under his eyes.

JIMMY:

I'm hurting.

DANNY:

You on a roll?

JIMMY:

Was. I'm on the f***ing ghost train

right now, man. You got anything for

me?

DANNY:

Sorry.

JIMMY:

Why does it have to feel so bad?

DANNY:

You're brain is in reverse mode ...

cutting off your supply of dopamine.

Here. Have a beer.

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