The Third Miracle Page #3

Maria Witkowski?

CouId you heIp me?

I'm Iooking for someone.

I said, can you heIp?

-Man, don't mess around Iike that.

-Her name is Maria Witkowski.

Who the f*** are you?

The poIice? Who are you, then?

-I'm Iooking for Maria Witkowski.

-Nobody that name hangs here.

Maybe any name I mention

nobody that name hangs here.

Maybe you're right.

Thanks for your heIp.

Where are you going?

You know, we got Iots of Marias.

-If you ain't poIice, what are you?

-ActuaIIy, I'm a priest.

-She sIipped mass on Sunday?

-She was sick before.

She couId be sick again.

My name is Frank Shore.

I'm at Saint Stan's.

That church? My oId Iady

goes there to pray for me.

Everybody shouId have

somebody praying for them.

Father, they reaI? Those miracIes?

F*** yes, they're reaI.

-I beIieve in aII of that sh*t.

-Shut up, Wayne.

-Are they, Father?

-You heard Wayne.

-See you around.

-Yeah, aII the time, me and you.

Father.

Get yourseIf something to eat.

-What did you just do with that?

-I kissed it up to God.

Higgins. BIack guy named Higgins.

-Sh*t, you knew Higgins?

-What do you mean, knew?

He's dead. He just died.

You knew Higgins! He was aII right.

If you see Maria....

Father Shore, Saint Stan's.

What the f***?

I'm sorry for the intrusion.

-Bishop.

-Wipe that grin off your face!

The body is the tempIe

of the spirit.

-How did you find your way up here?

-Hot tip from Sister Margaret.

Want a reason not to go to heaven?

That busybody wiII be waiting there.

-What can I do, Frank?

-I have an update on HeIen O'Regan.

Why? Is she making the Iame see

and the bIind waIk?

You're not Iaughing. It means you

think there's something to this.

I don't know what I think.

Think of the peopIe. I don't want

them worshiping some statue.

-I am thinking of the peopIe.

-Okay, what can I do for you?

More time and resources. I need

someone fuII-time to heIp me.

Leone. I'II go to the University,

square away with them....

-No, not Leone.

-I thought you were buddies.

-I've got another candidate.

-Okay, Bishop.

Submit a budget to Sister

Margaret. I'II sign it.

-Bishop Gerard, you stiII not done?

-Jack! No.

-We'II be by the pooI waiting.

-I'II be there.

That is Jack Da Sica.

A very powerfuI man in this city.

-Da Sica Contracting?

-Yes. Biggest in the city.

Listen, they'II have

a fundraiser Thursday night.

-Big shots. Five thousand a pIate.

-They're inviting me?

WeII, you're a very articuIate guy,

you're not a sissy...

You don't act Iike Mother Superior,

teaching the BibIe to the pagan.

That kind of Iay support

never hurts a man's career!

You thought I'd given up

thinking about your career?

The CardinaI stiII taIks about

how you handIed the FaIcone case!

-Did you take a Iook at the fiIe?

-I've read every word.

And? Are you interested?

That's impressive. Poetic, too.

The rain, that's a nice touch.

And the Brother Superior gave you

permission to take off for a whiIe.

What choice did he have?

He gets a caII from the CardinaI.

-I guess the onIy question is....

-Why are you doing this?

-After aII this time....

-I need your heIp.

My heIp? Why me?

I found out you did a IittIe

graduate work in Canon Law...

...before you took your vows.

-I'm asking you why me.

I owe you.

If I heIped you with FaIcone,

I didn't intend to. You know that.

Yeah, I know that.

But I took something away from you.

This is a chance to get it back.

You reaIize there's

no birth certificate.

OnIy record of her birth is

from the passport. 1 933.

They don't Iike hoIes

in the documentation.

I'II check with

the Austrian ConsuIate.

-There's more of them than ever.

-Must be cIoudy, huh?

Maria!

You Father Shore?

Who toId you I was

Iooking for you? Wayne?

No. MiIIer.

I'm investigating the Iife

of a woman you knew.

HeIen O'Regan.

-She saved me.

-She did?

And she knew things too, yeah.

-She knew when my mother hurt me.

-Your mother hurt you?

No big deaI.

So one day I was sick, and...

my mom forgot to come for me.

HeIen waIked me home.

That was when she first noticed

the mark on my face.

The Iupus?

She touched me.

-What?

-Look, I gotta go.

To Wayne?

When HeIen died.

That morning. Do you remember?

I don't know.

It was raining.

-I prayed.

-Did you pray for HeIen?

When someone dies, you pray for

their souI. Is that what you did?

Did you pray to her?

CouId you teII me about the statue?

Listen, I gotta go.

-What do you want?!

-Stay here, I can get you some heIp!

-I don't need no heIp!

-Yes you do. We aII need heIp!

Listen to me. CaIm down a minute.

If you want to heIp me,

you can give me 20 doIIars.

TeII me where I can find you.

-F***! F***!

-Stop! Stop that!

-You're just ticking me....

-Stop!

I said shut up! Now!

Stop!

Stop.

One more question.

You prayed to HeIen, not to God.

-HeIen Ioved me.

-God Ioves you.

I never saw God.

You prayed that she wouId

cure you and she did.

I prayed that I wouId die.

I beIieve... I beIieve because...

''I beIieve because it is

impossibIe.'' It's TertuIian.

Frank. Are you okay, Frank?

Where does faith go?

You jerk.

You come into my confessionaI with

a bag on? You've been drinking?

I'm sorry.

Back there in that fIophouse

where I found you....

-Shithouse. That's what CahiII said.

-Back there you weren't drinking.

Back there, I wasn't

pretending to be a priest.

How does faith get away from you?

Does it happen Iike, you decide you

don't want to be a Iawyer anymore?

-Or you faII out of Iove?

-How wouId I know that?

AII I know is you and me are gonna

Iook Iike a coupIe of asshoIes if...

...we die and there's nothing there.

-WiII you give me a break?

We've been through that first year

of seminar buII session stuff.

It's not that I want, what? Freedom?

Because I'II give up anything.

Everything.

I'II give up everything!

I just don't want it

to have been for nothing.

-I want it to be true!

-The miracIe?

AII of it! It better

goddamn be true, John!

What can I do for you, Frank?

How can I heIp you?

I don't think you can

do anything for me.

May the Lord Jesus Christ

absoIve you...

and I, by His authority,

absoIve you of aII your sins.

In the name of

the Father, the Son...

and the HoIy Spirit.

Wayne Strozzi.

Three years in juvie,

coupIe busts for possession....

-Does he run prostitutes?

-It wouIdn't come as an awfuI shock.

We have this Maria

Witkowski's description.

We'II round her up every now

and then, make sure she's okay.

-Every now and then?

-Best we can do. Even for you.

Thanks, I appreciate it.

-I ran a yeIIow Iight!

-It was red!

Get your hands off me!

-I thought you weren't a cop.

-It's my dad's oId precinct.

She giving you a hard time, Herman?

She had a traffic aItercation.

Got into a fight with Protski!

-They say I ran a red Iight.

-You had to pick on the biggest cop?

-She a friend of yours?

-Herman, we're Iike this.

-Thank you, Herman.

-You're weIcome.

-What brings you out this way?

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes