Screenplay: Harvest Killers

WGA # 873784
Harvest Killers
A Screenplay
By Nina Tryggvason
Logline: An international multi-level marketing style conspiracy of murder for black market organ transplants.

EXT. CITY STREET. NIGHT.
DARYL HAEBLER (26, well dressed) walks nervously down the
street. OTHER PEOPLE walk by.
Daryl takes a drink from a bottle in a paper bag.
EXT. DARYL’S IMAGINED CITY STREET. NIGHT.
The SOUNDS OF THE STREET DISTORT. Colours change. As the
other people pull even with him, their faces distort and
change to hostile, hard, jeering looks, their VOICES LOUD AND
MENANCING.
MAN
Daryl want a dick?
WOMAN
Are you a faggot, Daryl?
EXT. CITY STREET. NIGHT. (AS BEFORE)
The image of the street returns to normal. A SECOND WOMAN
walking with her YOUNG DAUGHTER. The daughter glances over
her shoulder, looking back at Daryl.
EXT. DARYL’S IMAGINED CITY STREET. NIGHT. (AS BEFORE)
The second woman’s face appears large, forcing the child’s
face off screen.
SECOND WOMAN
Suck it, Daryl, suck it or I’ll
kill you.
The image of the street returns to normal. Daryl shrinks
against the building.
DARYL
(moaning)
Noooooooo!!!!
SECOND WOMAN (OS)
Kill you. Kill you. Kill you.
A MAN AND WOMAN stop, concerned. The man kneels in front of
Daryl.
MAN IN COUPLE
Are you alright? Do you need help?
Honey, get the cell…
(CONTINUED)
Daryl swings his arms ineffectually.
DARYL
Don’t touch me! Please, just leave
me alone!
The second man protectively grabs his wife, and leads her
away. Daryl staggers to his feet.
WOMAN IN COUPLE
Drugs. Must be drugs. What can you
do?
MAN IN COUPLE
We offered to help, we offered.
Reassured that they tried their very best, the couple exit
around a corner.
Daryl shivers, holding himself, sits in the middle of the
side walk.
PEOPLE detour around him. ONE WOMAN drops some coins in front
of him. No one looks at him.
Daryl becomes aware of LOUD MUSIC from across the street.
Daryl looks up and down the street and sees a bar. He looks
at the money. Slowly and by denomination, he picks it up. He
stands, and pulls himself together.
He stacks the money in a pyramid on a newspaper box,and
abandons it there.
He crosses the street to the bar. A car SCREECHES to a stop,
barely avoiding Daryl. Daryl doesn’t notice.
EXT. OUTSIDE BAR. NIGHT.
LOUD MUSIC, flashing lights and wafts of cigarette smoke pour
through the open bar door.
The BOUNCER smiles at Daryl. Daryl walks hurriedly past the
bar, half a block.
He stops, takes another drink, finishing the bottle, then
walks back towards the bar, past the bouncer.
He leans against the wall, and closes his eyes, praying.
2.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
DARYL
Please, God, please forgive me. You
know I am weak. I try, but this is
the way you made me. Please.
Daryl pushes away from the wall and walks determinedly past
the bouncer.
There is no line, the night is early still. The bouncer lets
him pass.
INT. INSIDE BAR. NIGHT.
LOUDER MUSIC, flashing lights, heavy cigarette smoke.
Daryl tries not to look at the men’s bodies. (The camera
shots should focus solely on the men, not yet revealing the
women.)
Daryl bumps into a man dancing on the floor and he flees in
terror to the safety of the bar.
Glancing over his shoulder to see if he is being pursued
(he’s not), he turns to the bartender.
SHELLY (early 20′s, slinky red dress, attractive in a fresh
way that is out of place with the dress) is sitting beside
Daryl. Shelly looks Daryl over like he was a desert cart at a
Jenny Craig convention.
SHELLY
Scotch neat?
DARYL
Beg pardon?
SHELLY
You look like a Scotch drinker.
Daryl looks up and down the bar, not quite convinced that the
woman is talking to him.
DARYL
Um, are you offering to buy me a
drink?
SHELLY
Is that so odd, a girl can’t buy a
guy she thinks is cute a drink? Or
are you the old fashioned type? You
could buy me one if you prefer.
3.
CONTINUED:
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
Or have I already blown it by being
forward?
Daryl’s hands are trembling. He smooths his hair and clothes,
trying to be more presentable.
DARYL
No! No, you haven’t blown it, I
mean, I was just surprised, I don’t
get approached by women a lot,
that’s all.
(a beat)
Especially not pretty ones.
Daryl turns and looks around, the bar is clearly a straight
bar. Daryl turns back to Shelly, relieved.
DARYL (CONT’D)
I just wasn’t sure what bar I had
walked into. Sure, Scotch neat
would be great. It’s my favourite,
how’d you guess?
SHELLY
I just looked at you and “Scotch
neat” popped into my head. Don’t
you ever just look at someone and
have a really clear idea about
them? I mean, I don’t mean ESP and
psychic and all that, Daffy Duck
woo woo woo, I can see your future,
stuff. I mean just inklings. What
brand?
Daryl is overwhelmed by her bubbly, talkative easy manner.
DARYL
There’s brands of ESP?
SHELLY
No, silly, what brand of scotch?
Johnny Walker? J&B? Glen?
DARYL
Whatever kind you have, I don’t
have a preference.
Shelly waves the BARTENDER over, and points to her drink and
indicates two more. She swallows the last of her drink.
Daryl watches uncomfortably, not sure what to do with
himself.
4.
CONTINUED:
SHELLY (cont’d)
(CONTINUED)
SHELLY
So. What’s a nice guy like you
doing in a hotel bar like this?
Daryl jumps as if hit by electricity.
DARYL
Are you saying that I don’t belong
here?
SHELLY
No, silly, for one, this isn’t a
bad place. And, like, I’m here. Do
I look like I would be in a bad
place? It was supposed to be a
joke. Are you okay? You seem
nervous.
DARYL
No, I, uh, I just, I guess I am
nervous. I’ve never met a girl like
you.
(a beat)
So, you, uh, live around here?
The bartender delivers two scotches, and picks up Shelly’s
money.
SHELLY
I did the first icky pick up line,
so now it’s your turn? I’m here for
a convention. Hotel. Hotel Bar. Not
from here.
Daryl picks up the Scotch and takes a sip, disappointed.
DARYL
Oh, I get it. Look, you’re nice,
and thanks for the drink. I just,
I’m just having a bit of an off
night. It’s busy at work, and my
head is kinda all over the place.
SHELLY
I, uh, have a hotel room.
Daryl chokes on the Scotch.
DARYL
Oh.
5.
CONTINUED: (2)
(CONTINUED)
Shelly slides her hand up Daryl’s thigh. Daryl almost jumps
off the bar stool in shock. Shelly backs off a bit and looks
around.
SHELLY
Look, this is my last night in
town. I just wanted to do something
out of character, but if you’re not
into it…
DARYL
No, no, I’m into it, really. I just
never met anyone like you before.
You’re a real dream come true.
SHELLY
Well, darlin, follow me, because I
am going to be sooooo good to you,
that you’ll hate every other woman
that touches you.
Daryl manages to nod his head “yes”.
Shelly smiles, and quaffs the rest of her drink.
Daryl picks up his glass, closes his eyes and downs the rest
of the drink. He opens his eyes slowly, as if not expecting
to see Shelly still there. He smiles, nervous and pleased all
at once.
Shelly holds her hand, with the room key, out to him. He
slips his hand into hers. His hand trembles. They exit.
INT. LOBBY TO ELEVATORS. NIGHT.
Shelly kisses Daryl on the cheek. He closes his eyes. His
face is flushed and he is BREATHING HEAVILY.
OTHER HOTEL PATRONS pay no attention to them.
SHELLY
Are you okay?
Shelly seems suddenly different – more like a doctor than a
woman out on the town. She reaches up and touches his
forehead. She then checks his pulse.
DARYL
I’m fine, it’s just warm in here.
From outside, it was cool. I was
walking for a long time. Before I
came to the bar.
6.
CONTINUED: (3)
(CONTINUED)
Shelly is placated and slips easily back into Bimbo mode.
SHELLY
If you say so.
They get on the elevator.
INT. ELEVATOR. NIGHT.
Shelly pushes a button. She turns to Daryl and smiles.
SHELLY
I just remembered, some of my
friends, at the convention, are
having a party in their room. I
promised I’d have a drink with
them. We’ll be quick, and then I’ll
make it up to you. You don’t mind,
do you?
Daryl recoils a bit, then warms to her.
DARYL
No, it’s okay. Drinks with friends
are okay.
His face is returning to a more normal colour and he stops
sweating so badly. The elevator stops and they get off.
INT. HALLWAY. NIGHT.
Shelly leads Daryl down a hallway. She pauses at a door. She
lightly kisses Daryl, and then kisses him deeply. He responds
slowly, then melts into the kiss.
SHELLY
Buddy can be really pushy, but one
drink and we’ll go to my room. Your
really swell. I, oh, this is
embarrassing. What’s your name? I
have to tell my friends something.
DARYL
Daryl Haebler. What’s yours?
Shelly glances up and down the empty hallway.
SHELLY
Shelly.
DARYL
No last name?
7.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
SHELLY
What do names really matter, lover?
Shelly opens the door.
INT. HOTEL SUITE. NIGHT.
BUDDY POWELL (early 20′s, oversized jock version of Howdy
Doody, ringleader, greedy, good at manipulating people,
sociopath, uses sex as a tool, does the anesthetic), MARK
(blonde, third generation doctor, cracking under pressure,
beta male, easily bends to strong personalities like Buddy’s,
med student – surgeon), and DOROTHY (mid level med student,
needs to be accepted, attractive) are in the room.
Dorothy and Mark are on the bed and fully clothed.
The door to the bathroom is closed. There are a lot of full
sized liquor bottles on the dresser. The MUSIC is fast but
not loud.
BUDDY
Hi, I’m Buddy. Can I fix you a
drink? If we don’t have your
poison, we can call it up from room
service.
DARYL
Daryl, scotch, neat.
Daryl smiles at Shelly. Buddy turns to the dresser and fixes
Daryl’s drink.
Mark and Dorothy continue with the light petting.
Daryl tries not to notice them, and he focuses too intently
on Buddy.
DARYL (CONT’D)
Shelly said you’re all in town for
a convention.
Daryl looks at Shelly, she leans in close as if to kiss him.
He closes his eyes.
SHELLY
Daryl, you know the rules, no
personal information.
Buddy smiles indulgently and hands Daryl a drink.
8.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
BUDDY
Here, try this, Daryl. Shelly, you
don’t have to be such a stickler.
Daryl seems like a very lickable,
sorry, it’s the drinks, I meant
likeable sort.
Buddy smiles at Daryl. Daryl swallows a deep sip of his
drink, his hand twitches slightly. Daryl nods.
DARYL
Yeah, I’m cool. Whatever. Tell me,
don’t, it doesn’t matter.
BUDDY
We’re here for a medical
convention. Maybe you can help us
with a little experiment we were
planning.
DARYL
Oh, what’s that?
Daryl sips the scotch. He glances at Dorothy and Mark on the
bed.
Buddy moves to the bed and sits on it.
He draws a finger up Dorothy’s leg, moving her dress up
slightly. He lets his finger slide on top of the fabric,
passed her hip and over to Mark’s pants. He undoes the button
of Mark’s pants, and then stops. He looks back at Daryl.
BUDDY
We were trying to figure out how
many adults could fit together on a
hotel bed before the legs gave out.
Daryl swallows again, he can’t take his eyes off of Mark’s
undone pants. Daryl is highly aroused.
SHELLY
Hey, Buddy, I never said I wanted
to, I mean, I found Daryl.
Shelly sidles up to Daryl and kisses him on the cheek. She is
not able to distract him.
Buddy waves Daryl over to the bed. Daryl walks over. Buddy
stands up and sits Daryl down, making sure to maximize body
contact with Daryl.
9.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
BUDDY
Shelly, you can’t go. Daryl’s not
even finished his drink. And
Dorothy needs a playmate on this
side of the bed.
Daryl quickly gulped the scotch. Buddy takes the glass and
set it on the end table. Daryl’s head is swimming, everything
is happening too fast.
Dorothy’s hand roams over Daryl’s shirt, undoing the buttons.
Mark slides off of the bed and disappears into the bathroom.
Shelly squeezes onto the bed, forcing Daryl into the middle
between herself and Dorothy. They take turns kissing him.
Buddy stands at the foot of the bed, he toasts Daryl with a
fresh drink.
BUDDY (CONT’D)
Go Daryl, you lucky stiff. I think
they like you.
Daryl lays back on the bed, partly to give the blonde women
better access, partly because his head is spinning. He feels
like he is floating.
He looks at the Bible on the bedside table, the painting of
sailboats on the walls. SOUND OF HIS ZIPPER BEING UNDONE. He
lifts his head and sees Buddy leaning over the bed. DARYL
MOANS in anticipation, he is overwhelmed.
The room is spinning and goes dark for Daryl.
BUDDY (CONT’D)
He’s out cold. Mark, you ready?
Mark opens the bathroom door. There is a DEAD MAN (fully
dressed in the bathtub. Mark is dressed in surgical garb and
he has three more garments.
Buddy reaches under the bed and pulls out a small double
oxygen–anesthetic tank and mask. He puts the mask over
Daryl’s mouth and secures it.
The two women suit up quickly.
BUDDY (CONT’D)
Ready doctors?
The other three nod. Buddy turns the knobs on the tanks and
then pulls the gown over his clothes.
10.
CONTINUED: (2)
EXT. STREET OUTSIDE HOTEL. DAY.
Police Detective RALPH “ICEBERG” BERGMAN (late 30′s, Tom
Berenger type, slightly rumpled) pulls up in front of the
hotel (the bar was a side entrance). There is a NEWS CAMERA
CREW blocking the entrance. Reporter PAULINE VERSHER descends
on Iceberg through the crowd of ONLOOKERS.
PAULINE
Detective Bergman, have you
identified the bodies? Is it really
a gay SM murder scene? Or a murder
suicide?
ICEBERG
Haven’t seen the crime scene yet,
so there’s just not much I can tell
you, Pauline. As far as I know, the
bodies have not been identified,
and any speculation as to the
motive is premature.
PAULINE
I know there’s two men and that one
was cut back pretty bad and the
other one overdosed. I need to
bring something back for the noon
hour.
ICEBERG
Don’t you ever watch the TV cop
shows? No news until the body’s
ID’ed and the family is notified.
PAULINE
Give me something, Iceberg, this
could break me into the National
desk. Give a girl a bone.
ICEBERG
Keep talking like that, and I’m
gonna think reporters have worse
gallows humour than cops.
PAULINE
We both make our living off the
worst people can dish out. It’s
bound to affect you.
11.
(CONTINUED)
ICEBERG
I’ll see if Detective Gerrard has
something she can tell your
viewers. She’s in charge of this
investigation.
Iceberg shoulders his way through the last of the crowd and
into the secured lobby.
Pauline looks at the camera man.
PAULINE
Ralph Bergman heads major crime
task forces, doesn’t he, Eddie? If
he’s been called in, it’s big. We
gotta get into that hotel room.
EDDIE
Staff entrance?
INT. HOTEL LOBBY. DAY.
HOTEL STAFF are escorting the FEW GUESTS away from the police
secured elevator. MAVIS (early 30′s, Native, short hair,
lesbian) is waiting impatiently for Iceberg. She is visibly
relieved to see him.
ICEBERG
Gerrard, hellova present to welcome
me back from vacation with.
MAVIS
Sorry, didn’t have time to wrap it.
Good vacation? Pauline Versher’s
still outside?
ICEBERG
I hate going on vacation. Yeah,
Pauline wanted a quote, I told her
that I’d give her a bone and send
you out.
MAVIS
No thanks. Besides, junior grade
reporters trying to cut their teeth
on my ass give me hives. I’m not
sure this is connected to the other
two, it’s different.
ICEBERG
How gory is it?
12.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
MAVIS
Actually, it’s not gory at all.
That’s the problem
ICEBERG
Ooooo. Mysterious.
Mavis leads Iceberg to the elevator. She flashes her badge
and they move past the two officers guarding the elevator.
INT. HOTEL ELEVATOR. DAY.
ICEBERG
Who’s the victim?
MAVIS
Two victims. Our local one is Daryl
Haebler, 26, single, middle manager
at a local software company. And
our visitor victim is Roger Baker,
from Olympia Washington. According
to the Hotel Manager, he’s a
dentist in for a convention.
Mavis holds up a baggie with Daryl Haebler’s wallet, driver’s
license showing.
ICEBERG
Haebler’s the one who’s been cut
up?
MAVIS
Yeah, Baker’s not touched.
The elevator stops and the doors open. They step out into the
hallway.
INT. HOTEL HALLWAY. DAY.
A UNIFORMED OFFICER stands near a door down the hall.
Iceberg and Mavis walk towards him. Gerrard looks to make
sure that there are no reporters or civilians before
continuing to speak.
MAVIS
That’s the weird part, nothing.
Baker’s in the tub, dressed, and
likely overdosed. The tox screen
will tell us what killed him,
probably heroin and drano by the
looks of him.
13.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
ICEBERG
What else ya got?
MAVIS
The bartender saw each of the men
leave with a woman, different
women. Except for the room, there
doesn’t seem to be a connection
between them.
ICEBERG
Got to be something.
MAVIS
Well, the first officer on the
scene thought it might be an SM
scene gone wrong, but there wasn’t
any gear and Haebler doesn’t have
any marks on him to indictact
restraints or any sort of beating.
Then there’s the matter of the
woman or women they were seen
leaving with.
ICEBERG
Maybe she was a dom, Baker wanted a
third and things got out of hand?
MAVIS
Again, no SM signs, no whip marks,
no bruises from beatings or rope
ties. No blood splatter, which, if
the scene went bad, there would be.
No, this is surgical. Haebler looks
like he’s been autopsied already.
The Officer guarding steps aside for the two detectives.
ICEBERG
Let’s assume that these murders and
the two others we already have are
related. So, three murders where
the victim’s organs are surgically
removed is a little too
coincidental. My gut feeling is
that Baker was likely in the wrong
place at the worst time. We need to
know what was different about him
that his organs weren’t taken, too.
14.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
MAVIS
Maybe he was just killed for the
room?
ICEBERG
(to the officer)
Lost the coin toss?
GUARD OFFICER
I saw inside, I won the toss.
Mavis holds the door open.
Ralph reaches into his coat pocket and pulls out a pack of
spearmint gum. He unwraps a piece and chews it thoughtfully.
He drops the wrapper into a pocket.
INT. HOTEL ROOM. DAY.
MAVIS
After you, Bergman.
They enter.
The hotel room is clean, the walls freshly washed. The bed
covers were not disturbed and there is a plastic sheet over
them. The bed has been made with hospital style corners.
The body is on the plastic sheet, under a white sheet. There
is only minimal wound seepage on the shroud sheet.
An OFFICER with a camera is taking pictures. TWO FORENSICS
OFFICERS are working the room, one is dusting for prints, the
other using a small vacuum for fibers. The vacuuming Forensic
Officer empties the vacuum bag into small baggies every few
feet and writes a locator on the baggie.
ICEBERG
How’s it going?
FORENSIC ONE stops and stand up and stretches.
FORENSIC ONE
You could eat off the carpet in
there. They washed down the room,
industrial cleaners by the smell.
We’ve taken some swabs, figure out
which one. We’ll do the mattress
after the body’s gone, but it’s not
looking good.
15.
CONTINUED: (2)
(CONTINUED)
FORENSIC TWO keeps dusting, desperate to find anything,
however small.
FORENSIC TWO
I’ve never seen a crime scene so
clean. How many people must have
been in here in the past week, and
we can’t even find a toenail
clipping.
FORENSIC ONE
Coroner should be here soon to take
the body, maybe we’ll get lucky
with the bed.
OFFICER
The chambermaid said they don’t
hospital corner the bedspreads.
Iceberg moves in closer around the room.
ICEBERG
So our killers are neat freaks or
just paranoid?
FORENSIC ONE
You’d have to ask a profiler, I’m
strictly a what you get is what you
can find kinda guy.
OFFICER
The room had a cleanser smell.
Smelled like a hospital when we
first came in. Not much blood, they
drained Haebler. We found Baker in
the tub, and there wasn’t blood or
water on him.
Iceberg walks over to the bed and pulled the sheet back to
expose Daryl Haebler. His torso is bare, and his pants are
around his ankles, drained of blood, and looks already
autopsied.
ICEBERG
Hole in his arm like an IV needle
would leave. Medical training of
some sort. Precise cuts,
controlled.
Mavis moves into the room.
16.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
MAVIS
The chambermaid found him like
that, they even laid the sheet on
top of him.
Iceberg leans closer to examine the body.
FORENSIC ONE
I’ll take an old fashioned serial
killer who takes orders from his
breakfast cereal over this freaky
shit any day.
Iceberg replaces the sheets. He appears wholly unaffected,
but he smiles at the officer’s remark.
ICEBERG
Me too, they tend to be sloppier
and leave clues.
Mavis starts backing out the door.
ICEBERG (CONT’D)
I’m not waiting for the autopsy
report, I’m sure we can add
Haebler, and Baker, to our Project
Harvest list of victims. I’ve got a
couple more teams assigned, we’ll
have a team meeting tomorrow.
MAVIS
So, think it’s a neo-Jack the
Ripper gang?
ICEBERG
Guess I’m just old fashioned and
more comfortable with murder for
money than deranged cults.
CORONER TED and CORONER ASSISTANT BILL appears in the
doorway.
CORONER
Somebody call for a pick-up? Hey,
Iceberg, been a couple of weeks.
Iceberg shakes the Coroner’s hand.
17.
CONTINUED: (2)
(CONTINUED)
ICEBERG
Ted, I’ll pull my boys out to the
hall or do you want to start in the
bathroom. We’re done in the
bathroom, right?
FORENSIC TWO
Yeah, it’s been swept and photo’ed.
Coroner Ted and Coroner Assistant Bill exit to the bathroom.
ICEBERG
So, we’ll leave you guys to finish,
report to the Project Harvest task
force room with the evidence list
and your reports when you’ve got
them written up.
MAVIS
Thanks guys.
Mavis and Iceberg exit.
FORENSIC ONE
Know why they call him Iceberg? I
heard that he and his first partner
were in a car chase, the partner
was driving and got shot, killed
instantly. Iceberg grabbed the
wheel in one hand, and shot through
the bullet hole in the windshield.
He shot out both back tires of the
get away car.
OFFICER
That’s a crock, Iceberg’s first
partner’s still alive. It is
because he’s cool under fire
though, it’s from when he worked
the drug squads, he was in a stnad
off with two armed dealers, and he
pegged them both.
FORENSIC ONE
Whatever, get aload of Ms
Detective. Employment Equity crap,
lots of good guys getting passed
over for promotions, just so the
diversity program looks good to the
ledger and the public.
18.
CONTINUED: (3)
(CONTINUED)
FORENSIC TWO
Can we just get this finished?
Iceberg, however his got his little
nickname, and Gerrard, however she
got made detective, are gonna be
back in an hour, and I don’t care
to be here to watch him strut his
over hyped ass around here.
He just got a lucky break on a
couple of high profile cases. He’s
no better than any other cop. And
don’t get me started about dykes.
OFFICER
Well, he did make detective young.
FORENSIC TWO
Yeah, and he’s been resting on his
fat ass laurels ever since. One of
these days, someone is going to
show him up but good.
(a beat)
Maybe it’ll be her.
The Officer and Forensic One exchange looks, shake their
heads, and get back to work.
INT. PROJECT HARVEST ROOM. DAY.
Iceberg is studying the cork board. One third is a map of the
city, with labeled photos on it: Baker, Haebler, GILL (young
East Indian woman), and COLLINS (10 year old girl).
The second third is partitioned with facts listed, victim
type, organs removed, found location, etc. The last portion
is labeled “TIPS” and it is empty.
Iceberg’s and Mavis’ desks face each other in the centre of
the room. There are four other desks around the walls. Two of
these desk are bare.
There is a table near the door with a coffee machine and
cups. There is a wall-mounted television above the coffee
machine. It is tuned to a local news station and the sound is
off.
Iceberg’s desk is a cluttered mess and has a dominating photo
of himself and CLARE (6, daughter, deceased) in a rowboat,
fishing. There is a school photo of Clare with a missing
tooth stuck into the frame.
19.
CONTINUED: (4)
(CONTINUED)
Mavis’ is organized and there is a framed picture of her and
her partner, KATHY (30′s, white, Chemotherapist). Mavis is
sitting at her desk, pouring over reports.
GRACE (the unit steno, 45ish, physically prim in dress and
poise but with an earthly sense of humour) brings in a pot of
fresh coffee. Iceberg leans over with his cup. Mavis’ empty
cup is perched on her desk edge.
ICEBERG
Grace, you are a lifesaver. I was
just thinking that there was
getting to be too much blood in my
coffee stream for me to be able to
think straight anymore.
GRACE
I thought you were looking a little
pale, Bergman. Detective Gerrard,
coffee?
Mavis peeks over the report in her hands, and edges her
coffee cup closer to Grace with her foot.
MAVIS
Thanks, Grace. Have you got the
results back from the FBI and RCMP
queries? Any news on if we got
Brooks and Raiki for the task
force?
GRACE
Be fresh off the copier in a few
minutes, along with the coroner’s
faxed autopsy report on Haebler.
The original and colour photos
should be here within the hour. And
yes, the Chief has approved the
budget for a six person task force.
If more bodies stack up, I’m sure
the purse strings could be loosened
a bit more, public pressure and all
that.
MAVIS
The reports must be bad if you’re
making copies already and not
telling us anything.
20.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
GRACE
The FBI reports that there have
been similar murders in Portland,
Oregon and Tacoma, Washington. The
two Portland murders are a year
old. Tacoma had one six months ago.
The RCMP report shows no similar
cases. The copies should be done.
Grace exits.
ICEBERG
So much for our quiet resident
local psycho theory.
MAVIS
You thinking some kind of new cult
that selects its victims? But on
what basis? There’s no common
thread between them. And if it is
random, why wasn’t Baker harvested,
too?
ICEBERG
Doesn’t make sense.
Grace re-enters with file folders full of paper. She puts
them on Bergman’s desk.
He picks up a file and starts skimming the material. Grace
looks at Mavis and then exits.
Mavis looks at the framed photo of Kathy, and stews at the
snub for a moment. She reaches for a file and starts reading.
INT. TASK FORCE ROOM. LATER DAY.
DETECTIVES BROOKS (late-20′s, white, grunge looking) and
RAIKI (late 20′s, Japanese, corporate looking) enter. They
are each carrying a box of personal desk effects.
Iceberg approaches the two men to shake hands, although with
boxes in their hands, it is difficult.
ICEBERG
Brooks, Raiki, welcome aboard. Pick
either of the two clean ones.
Meyers and Johnston started this
morning. Thanks for joining us,
too. Looks like we’re in for a
bumpy ride, so you’ll need to get
up to speed really fast.
21.
CONTINUED: (2)
(CONTINUED)
MAVIS
Johnston and Meyers will be
returning from Haebler’s apartment
soon, they’re talking with his
roommate and their landlord.
Brooks and Raiki exchange looks, then they each move to a
desk. Leaving the boxes, they return to the central hub.
Raiki examines the Board.
BROOKS
Project Harvest?
MAVIS
The only connection we have between
three of the victims is that organs
had been harvested. My partner’s a
medical technician and the lingo
rubs off. The fourth victim was
found with the third harvested
victim, but was not harvested
himself.
RAIKI
Oh. Three harvested victims and no
connection at all? Why wouldn’t the
fourth one have been harvested,
too?
ICEBERG
That’s the million dollar question.
RAIKI
I thought it was $64,000.
ICEBERG
Inflation, that Regis blew all the
old standards away.
BROOKS
Thanks for picking us, it’s an
honour to work with you, Detective
Bergman.
ICEBERG
It’ll go better if you call me
Iceberg. It’s just as much a
pleasure for me to work with you.
Grace enters with stacks of photocopies. She puts them down
near Iceberg.
22.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
ICEBERG (CONT’D)
Well, just in time. Thanks, Grace.
Brooks and Raiki get coffees and then settle down to be
briefed.
MAVIS
Daryl Haebler is the third harvest
victim in this city. Roger Baker
was found in the same hotel room,
overdosed. We’re accepting theories
as to why he wasn’t harvested.
RAIKI
This city? This is a widespread
killing spree? The media and the
newsgroups have been awful quiet.
Mavis nods grimly and continues speaking.
MAVIS
The first victim found was a 10
year old black girl, Letticia
Collins. Her kidneys and lungs were
removed. Sanga Gill was a 23 year
old college student. She was
murdered first, but her body wasn’t
found until after Collins. Gill was
missing her pancreas and liver.
Both female victims were missing
bone marrow.
(a beat)
Haebler and Baker were white and
male. Haebler had everything that
is possible to transplant removed.
Baker was a heroin overdose.
Iceberg gets up and moves near Mavis.
ICEBERG
The FBI report says that Portland,
Oregon and Tacoma, Washington have
had similar murders, but were full
harvests from the beginning. Looks
like our local killers weren’t as
confident. But we are looking at a
network using the same MO.
Brooks, you’re our liaison with
those state forces and the FBI. And
keep in touch with the RCMP.
23.
CONTINUED: (2)
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
Just because Vancouver’s the only
Canadian city so far, doesn’t mean
that it won’t spread here too.
Iceberg looks for a report on Baker. He hands it to Brooks.
BROOKS
Right.
ICEBERG
Also, find out who Baker’s
associates are in Olympia. I want
to determine whether he’s involved
or just really unlucky. Raiki, I
want you to do some research. I’m
not sure if we are dealing with a
kind of new cult or what we have on
our hands. Find out everything you
can about transplant surgery. I
want to know the minimum time and
number of people needed to do
harvests like these. And check the
Police Information Databases for
any similar M.O.’s. And anything
else you can think of.
Grace returns with the copies. She hands them out and exits.
RAIKI
Is there any pattern between the
abductions? Say, every two weeks
someone gets killed?
Raiki picks up an autopsy report. Some photos fall out of the
folder. He looks intently at them.
MAVIS
No, there’s no time pattern. No
ritualistic mutilation of the
bodies and no trademark items left
at the scene. No messages scrawled
in blood, each victim found so far
has been wrapped in plastic or a
tarp, and cleaned thoroughly.
RAIKI
So are we talking medical training?
A doctor or a veterinarian? Or just
someone with anatomy knowledge, a
coroner? Or less skilled, like a
butcher?
24.
CONTINUED: (3)
ICEBERG (cont’d)
(CONTINUED)
ICEBERG
How clean are the cuts, hacked out
or transplant quality?
MAVIS
The autopsies concluded they were
clean, near surgical quality cuts.
Someone with skill, but not worried
about keep the patient alive.
BROOKS
So, all we have right now are that
bodies missing organs.
ICEBERG
Baker’s a big question. Was he just
in the wrong place and time, or was
he part of the killing team that
they didn’t need anymore?
Iceberg moves to a flip chart and picks up a felt pen. He
starts to chart out possible team configurations on the paper
as people speak.
ICEBERG (CONT’D)
We need to figure out the minimum
number of people who could possibly
be involved. We know about when
Haebler left with the blonde and
we’ll get a time estimate of his
death. How many people in a
surgical team to remove that many
organs, and transport the
containers out of the hotel in
under 5 hours.
Everyone leans back in their chairs, thinking. Raiki leans
forward first. He stands up and moves around the room.
RAIKI
Fewer than an actual surgery, since
they aren’t sweating the patient
surviving. The woman could have
picked up both men and either been
the helper or had a helper for the
surgery. My guess is two at a
minimum, probably three given the
speed and timing. One woman to act
as a lure, her and someone else to
do surgery, a third person as a
lookout slash driver probably.
25.
CONTINUED: (4)
(CONTINUED)
MAVIS
Let’s go with the one woman to pick
up both men. If she gets a
chambermaid cart or a laundry cart
and a uniform, they could have
removed organ containers that way.
They need them fresh, so it’s bulky
containers. They’d need a couple of
chambermaid carts to move it. Or
luggage.
MEYERS (mid 30′s, female) and JOHNSTON (late 40′s) enter.
MEYERS
Let’s hope that the organs are
trophies and not for eating or
transplants.
All heads turn to see the newest arrivals.
RAIKI
Why?
MEYERS
We just talked with Haebler’s
roommate. He was recently diagnosed
with AIDS.
RAIKI
If Haebler was gay, why was he
picked up by a woman?
MAVIS
AIDs doesn’t equal gay.
RAIKI
Sorry, I know that worldwide, more
straights have AIDs than gay
people, but usually, in North
America, it’s gays.
MAVIS
The biggest growth group for HIV in
North America is straight women.
MEYERS
Um, Haebler’s roommate, Donna, said
that Haebler was tormented by his
sexuality. She said he was gay
trying to be straight.
26.
CONTINUED: (5)
(CONTINUED)
Raiki and Brooks look surprised and uncomfortable. Iceberg
smiles at Gerrard.
MAVIS
Haebler wouldn’t be the first gay
person trying to convince themself
that they’re straight. Gays can be
homophobic, too, y’know. Only in a
homophobe’s case, sexual feelings
become self-loathing hatred.
Directed inward for those of us who
know we’re gay. Gay bashers tend to
be latent, can’t cope with what
they know themselves to be so they
take it out on those who are. Can’t
stand in others what they know
themselves to be.
BROOKS
Haebler picked a bad night to go
straight.
ICEBERG
I think the night picked him. The
killers took his organs, not
Bakers. They had to be looking for
something specific, otherwise, why
not Baker’s organs, too?
BROOKS
What the hell was Haebler doing,
getting picked up like that when he
knew he has AIDS? Didja find any
condoms on him?
ICEBERG
Maybe he wasn’t planning to get
picked up? Doubtful that they got
that far.
MAVIS
Maybe he was mad at the world for
him getting ill and he didn’t care
anymore. Remember that hooker, last
year?
ICEBERG
You’re asking me about hookers from
a year ago?
27.
CONTINUED: (6)
(CONTINUED)
MAVIS
The one charged with manslaughter
for having unprotected sex when she
knew that she had AIDS? Her defence
was that the Johns knew it was a
possibility, and they turned down
the offer of a condom, so it was
their own fault.
ICEBERG
Yeah, right, and, as I recall, the
judge agreed, but decided against
her anyway.
SHOT OF TASK FORCE OFFICE WALL TELEVISION: Pauline Versher is
doing a streeter in front of the hotel.
MAVIS
Meyers, can you turn that up?
Meyers increases the TV volume.
PAULINE
… found this morning by a
chambermaid.
The two men in the gay murder
suicide are Daryl Haebler, a local
man, and Roger Baker, a dentist
from the Olympia, Washington area.
Baker’s wife was unavailable for
comment. Neighbours expressed
shock, saying Baker seemed like a
devoted father and family man.
Haebler was described as a quiet,
troubled man. Considered by
coworkers at a local software
company to be a walking time-bomb
and a loner. Action News brings you
these exclusive pictures from the
hotel room.
The images changes to hand held camera shots of the hallway
and the coroner wheeling the body out.
The Guarding Officer blocks the camera.
The image reverts back to Pauline outside the hotel.
28.
CONTINUED: (7)
(CONTINUED)
PAULINE (CONT’D)
Police did not allow our crew into
the room, but anyone with
information is asked to call the
Action News Hotline at the number
on your screen.
This is Pauline Versher, Action
News.
ICEBERG
Shit.
MAVIS
Chalk up one more for quality
investigative reporting and
noninflammatory reporting. What an
unappetizing, but fortuitous,
diversion.
INT. MEDICAL CENTRE LOBBY. DAY
The lobby is lavish with comfortable chairs, artwork and
plants. The reception station blends into unobtrusiveness.
DR. KELSWORTH (50′s, athletic, handsome) is speaking with
MARJORIE HUGHS (50′s, Matronly) and her son STEVEN (late
teens, in wheelchair).
MARJORIE HUGHS
Thank you Dr. Kelsworth, I don’t
know how to thank you enough.
If you hadn’t found an organ donor
in time…
DR. KELSWORTH
Your thanks and Steven’s recovery
is enough. And by paying my bill,
of course.
Marjorie Hughs LAUGHS, despite Dr. Kelsworth not being
particularly funny.
MARJORIE HUGHS
Oh, Doctor, my husband handles
those matters. I know it’s against
the rules, but I would like to
thank the donor who saved my
Steven, just a small gift, or a
letter from Steven, it would make
me feel so much better to know that
the kidney came from good stock.
Dr. Kelsworth becomes withdrawn and authoritative.
29.
CONTINUED: (8)
(CONTINUED)
DR. KELSWORTH
I’m afraid that won’t be possible,
I’m not supposed to say, but the
young man died in a car accident.
But at least, with Steven being
well, it wasn’t a total tragedy.
MARJORIE HUGHS
A contact in the family then,
perhaps I could make a donation to
the young man’s favourite charity,
or something.
Dr. Kelsworth tries to soften his tone, and to gently move
Steven and Marjorie Hughes out the doors.
DR. KELSWORTH
It is really not permissible, the
family has the comfort of knowing
that their son’s death saved not
only Steven, but many others. It’s
sad when a young person dies, but
the continued existence or improved
lot of others is a comfort.
Marjorie clutches Kelsworth’s arm for a moment, and then lets
go.
MARJORIE HUGHS
Thank you, Doctor. Thank you for my
son.
DR. KELSWORTH
Steven, you get plenty of rest and
only moderate to light exercise.
Dr. Kelsworth awkwardly pats Steven on the shoulder.
STEVEN
Thanks, Dr. Kelsworth.
Dr. Kelsworth becomes warmer as he sees the end of this
ordeal.
DR. KELSWORTH
Your father’s just pulling up now,
I’ll see you at your appointment
next week.
Marjorie wheels her son towards the door.
30.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
Through the glass, Kelsworth watches the father get out of
the car and run around to open the passenger side front door.
He sighs with relief and then turns to leave the lobby before
Steven is even bundled into the car by his doting parents.
INT. PATIENT ROOM IN MEDICAL CENTRE. DAY.
A lavish patient room, with art and flowers and a single
occupant. A NURSE sits at a desk in the corner that is
obscured from the patient’s view by a Japanese screen and
plants. The centre clearly provides a one nurse to one
patient ratio.
MR. ANDREWS (mid 40′s, grey, just recovering from surgery)
lays in the bed, just waking up. DR. TAYLOR (early 40′s,
worry lines and hair turning grey) moves closer to the bed.
Dr. Taylor genuinely cares about his patients, there is
nothing phony or condescending in his manner with them.
DR. TAYLOR
Just take it easy, Mr. Andrews.
You’re experiencing some
grogginess. You’ve just come from
surgery. Do you remember?
Andrews nods slightly.
DR. TAYLOR (CONT’D)
Throat hurts? Yes, it will, it’s
from the ventilator. You probably
feel nauseous — that’s the
anaesthetic and that will wear off.
Nurse, can you get Mr. Andrews some
ice chips?
NURSE
Yes, Doctor.
She exits. Dr. Taylor watches appreciatively her as she
leaves.
DR. TAYLOR
I know you have questions, but you
need rest. I’ll just say the
surgery went well and that you have
a young and healthy new heart. It
looks very good. Now we wait and
you rest. You nurse will be back
and she will feed you some ice
chips. Don’t swallow them, just let
them melt in your mouth.
31.
CONTINUED: (2)
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
I’ll be back tomorrow, and the
nurse will be here all night if you
need anything.
Mr. Andrews nods and doses peacefully off to sleep. Dr.
Taylor watches him a few moments.
Dr. Taylore moves to the window and looks down at the people
on the street below. He looks back at the sick man in the
bed, and shakes his head sadly.
INT. DOCTOR’S OFFICE IN THE MEDICAL CENTRE. DAY.
The office is very expensively and tastefully decorated.
There is a desk in the corner for doing work. DR. ROBINEAU
(50′s, distinguished looked, very authoritative) and MRS.
CORVAIR (60′s, well dressed, air of old wealth) are seated on
comfortable elegant couches around a coffee table.
Dr. Robineau pours tea from an antique silver tea service.
DR. ROBINEAU
It’s a new technique to allow for a
greater range of possible donors,
Mrs. Covair. What it means is that
we no longer need to have an exact
match, just someone in your general
category, Caucasian, female.
MRS. COVAIR
Explain it to me again. I don’t
understand why you don’t need as
close a match as possible. Won’t
the organ be rejected by my body?
DR. ROBINEAU
The basis for organ ‘rejection’ is
immune incompatibility between
donors and recipients. Your immune
system views the transplanted organ
as a foreign body and sends certain
cells to destroy it.
Dr. Robineau gives Mrs. Covair his number 2 “Caring Doctor”
facial expression.
DR. ROBINEAU (CONT’D)
What we do is to use a low dose
radiation or chemotherapy on you to
destroy some of your bone marrow.
We transplant the organ and donor
bone marrow.
32.
CONTINUED:
DR. TAYLOR (cont’d)
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
This new marrow results in
tolerance between a donor and a
recipient while avoiding major
immune reactions. Your body
recognizes the similarity between
the new organ and the marrow, which
is considers safe, and therefore
will not attack the transplanted
organ.
Dr. Robineau gives Mrs. Covair his number 1 “Caring Doctor”
facial expression. Mrs. Covair is swayed.
MRS. COVAIR
And doing this means the donor does
not have to match as closely as
they would have had to ten years
ago?
DR. ROBINEAU
That’s right. By developing these
types of technologies, we can make
better use of the available donor
pool in that we won’t need exact or
even close matches between donors
and recipients. The waiting lists
for transplant surgeries will
become shorter and there will be
fewer drugs to take post surgery.
Dr. Robineau pauses to make sure that Ms. Covair is
enraptured in this utopian dream. She isn’t.
DR. ROBINEAU (CONT’D)
Post surgical Immuno-suppressant
drugs can cost up to $7000.00 all
by themselves. By preparing your
body before surgery to accept the
transplanted organ, we can avoid a
lot of that expense and improve the
success rate of the transplant.
Mrs. Covair is sold, and Dr. Robineau looks less like his
Caring Doctor expression and more like a high class used car
salesman.
MRS. COVAIR
When? When can I expect a donor
organ? I can’t be on a waiting list
for a year, not at the prices you
charge.
33.
CONTINUED:
DR. ROBINEAU (CONT’D)
(CONTINUED)
DR. ROBINEAU
Mrs. Covair, I certainly would not
leave an esteemed client like
yourself waiting. A few weeks at
most. My clinic offers the finest
service and the fastest turn around
times in the country.
Dr. Robineau leans in conspiratorially.
ROBINEAU (CONT)
What we do here is cutting edge.
Pardon the pun. We have opted for a
more reliable source than most
hospitals draw from.
Mrs. Covair leans forward, as if about to share a secret.
MRS. COVAIR
Not some third world poverty
country serving up its citizens? I
want a healthy heart. I’ve heard
people who’ve had transplants
having dreams or almost memories
from the donors. Changes in
personalities. I don’t want to pay
you good money just for me to want
to become some sort of bushman.
DR. ROBINEAU
Certainly not, Mrs. Covair, you
understand the confidentially of
our sources and our need to protect
our donors identity, but I assure
you that it is nothing as sordid as
taking advantage of the poverty in
other countries, or harvesting
from, as you say, less than healthy
people abroad.
MRS. COVAIR
So then, when can we get started?
DR. ROBINEAU
I will have your nurse call our
donor registry contact and phone in
your basic stats – ethnicity,
gender, blood type, that sort of
thing, we like to start with a
match in the general vicinity of
the recipient.
34.
CONTINUED: (2)
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
Once we have identified a donor,
your nurse will contact you to come
in for your first chemo session.
MRS. COVAIR
Splendid, Dr. Robineau, splendid.
But, will I have to lose my hair?
DR. ROBINEAU
Mrs. Covair, think of all the
marvellous hats. You’ll be a
fashion trend setter.
MRS. COVAIR
Of course, I hadn’t thought of it
that way.
EXT. AQUARIUM/ZOO. DAY.
GAIL THOMPSON (late 20′s, white, middle class) is watching
the otters playing. She has been crying. BUDDY (early 20′s,
jock, looks like a grown up Howdy Doody, GAP clothes) passes
her a kleenex.
GAIL
Were your parents big time Buddy
Holley fans?
BUDDY
My Mom was. Buddy really is my
name, but my Grandmother insisted
on calling me Robert.
GAIL
Is Robert your middle name?
BUDDY
Nope, don’t have one.
Buddy is doing his best “big and dumb nice guy” routine.
GAIL
What was your Dad?
BUDDY
A marine biologist. Probably why I
like aquariums so much. In the
blood, so to speak.
GAIL
I meant what music, but is that why
you went into the sciences?
Medicine.
35.
CONTINUED: (3)
DR. ROBINEAU (cont’d)
(CONTINUED)
Buddy drops the act in surprise.
BUDDY
How did you know? Do I have that
doctor bedside manner about me
already?
GAIL
No, it’s the university hospital
pin on your pocket.
Buddy twists the shirt pocket to see it.
BUDDY
I forgot I had put it there.
Explains the clinking in the
laundry machine. Are you here
alone, Gail?
GAIL
Yeah, I had an argument with my,
uh, roommate. Over laundry. I like
to watch the otters. No matter how
I feel, they make me feel better. I
like animals, they’re better than
people.
BUDDY
Yeah, they’re purer somehow. Their
motives are their own survival.
It’s more honest than people.
GAIL
Why do you ask?
BUDDY
Well, it’s just that usually the
otters cheer me up too, but today
they don’t seem to be working and I
thought that maybe we could go and
catch a matinee movie, maybe
something romantic that would make
us both cry our eyes out.
GAIL
Are you psychic or do you always
know the exact right thing to say?
BUDDY
I just think that maybe we both got
dumped and we’re wearing that
walking wounded look.
36.
CONTINUED:
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
Sometimes it’s easier to cry at a
movie than your own problems.
Sometimes it’s better just to move
on to someone new. Let your hair
down and say ‘what the hell.’ Take
a chance on something wild and
crazy. I don’t know you and you
don’t know me, but you seem nice,
and I’m willing to take a chance.
Buddy steps back and holds his hand out to her.
Gail looks at him surprised, and then she really give his
body a once over. Her look changes from one of comparison to
lust. She reaches for his hand and clasps it.
GAIL
Buddy, when you’re right, you’re
right. Only, let’s do something
really wild, and skip the movie. I
don’t live that far from here.
Walking distance, really.
Gail trails her hand down Buddy’s chest to his pants zipper.
BUDDY
If you’re sure, we have just only
met…
Gail kisses him. Carefully at first, and then full tilt.
She runs her hand over his chest. The pin comes off in her
hand, not wanting to break the kiss, she absentmindedly
pockets the pin and keeps kissing him. They break for air.
GAIL
Be wild, besides, anyone who likes
otters can’t be all bad. Could I?
BUDDY
Gail, I have a van, I shouldn’t
leave it in the parking lot. I
might get towed.
GAIL
Well, we wouldn’t want you to get
towed away. Lead on, MacDuff!
Buddy takes her hand and walks away from the otter habitat.
37.
CONTINUED: (2)
BUDDY (cont’d)
(CONTINUED)
BUDDY
So, did you take lit in college or
are you one of those arty people
who read Shakespeare for fun?
GAIL
For fun. I thought today was going
to be a tragedy. I found out my
boyfriend, who’s a real shit,
cheated on me and now I meet you. I
think you’re a sign that I have to
change my life. Life’s a comedy. A
situation comedy and you just have
to roll with the punches.
BUDDY
You just never know where the day
will take you.
They arrive at the parking lot.
EXT. AQUARIUM/ZOO PARKING LOT. DAY
Buddy’s van is full sized, blue and clean. There are no
windows and a curtain divides the driver’s compartment from
the back of the van.
GAIL
A real van and not those mini-van
sport utility things. A rare item,
indeed. No mural of semi-nude
women? I hope it has an excellent
speaker system.
BUDDY
As long as you don’t mind 8-tracks.
GAIL
8-tracks? Those dinosaur cartridges
from the 70′s? You’re kidding.
Vaguely recall my Dad having some.
You don’t really have those?
Buddy unlocks the door and opens it with a flourish, bowing
deeply.
BUDDY
You’ll have to get in to find out,
Gail.
Gail SQUEALS like a teenager at a sock hop and then climbs
in.
38.
CONTINUED: (3)
(CONTINUED)
Buddy closes the door and walks to the front of the vehicle.
He hits the hood twice with his fist, and then gets in the
driver’s side.
INT. VAN. DAY.
There are little green and tan army guys glued to the
dashboard and hanging from the rear view mirror – which has
no mirror in it. There is an 8-track player with 8 track
cassettes of 70′s bands.
Gail picks up an 8 track and examines it. She sticks it in
the player. MUSIC PLAYS.
GAIL
I haven’t heard this in years! Turn
this puppy on and crank it!
BUDDY
Safety first, can’t start the
vehicle until everyone’s buckled up
nice and safe.
Amused, Gail buckles up her seatbelt.
GAIL
1970′s taste in vehicles and music,
but a 1950′s sense of chivalry.
What other surprises do you have in
store? Cute army guys. My younger
brother used to melt them on the
BBQ. My dad had a fit.
Buddy smiles mischievously and starts the engine. The 8-track
player roars to life with a HEAVY 1970′s METAL GUITAR.
BUDDY
Well, the surprise will be at your
place, and it sounds to me like me
and your little brother would get
along really good. My army guys had
epic battles all over the
neighbourhood.
INT. BACK OF VAN. DAY.
The back of the van is set up like an ambulance, complete
with gurney.
Shelly opens a bottle of chloroform and pours some on a
cloth.
39.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
Carefully re-capping the bottle, and placing it in a holder,
she creeps forward, keeping her balance in the moving
vehicle.
GAIL (OS)
Turn here, go left for three
blocks, then right for one and…
BUDDY (OS)
Let’s just take one corner at a
time. Like most men, I’m terrible
at directions. Well, street
directions.
Shelly makes a face and carefully moves the curtain aside.
They are on a quiet residential street. She quickly pushes
through the curtain and clamps the cloth over Gail’s face.
INT VAN – DRIVER’S COMPARTMENT. DAY. (AS BEFORE)
Gail tries to scream.
Buddy calmly turns down an alleyway and drives away from
Gail’s neighbourhood.
Gail tries to pull Shelly’s arm, but only manages to scratch
her before the chloroform takes effect. Shelly leaves the
cloth over Gail’s face for longer than necessary.
SHELLY
I outta suffocate you right now,
you cheap whore! The bitch
scratched me. Pull over and help me
get her back to the gurney. I want
to start the I.V. and make sure she
stays out.
BUDDY
I thought we were supposed to knock
her out at her apartment.
SHELLY
Explain how then, Mr. Romantic,
were we supposed to get her out of
her building unconscious? People
would notice. Besides, this way,
everyone saw her leave once, alone.
No tie to us. We can’t process her
in her apartment. What if she lives
with someone?
40.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
BUDDY
I think she had a boyfriend and she
was mad at him. Wanted to use me to
get back at him or something.
SHELLY
You can get laid off duty. We’ve
got to get her to the warehouse for
processing. Dorothy and Mark are
waiting for us.
BUDDY
You’re really professional and no
nonsense, Shel. You’ll a good
doctor someday. You are just so on
the case.
SHELLY
Stop smoozing me and find somewhere
to pull over here and help me get
this bitch on the gurney.
Buddy hunches down and the van swerves.
BUDDY
Yes, Doctor. Igor obey. Don’t beat
me again, Master.
SHELLY
This isn’t a game, Buddy! Stop it!
We’re gonna have an accident or get
pulled over! This is serious and
we’re in too deep.
Buddy sits up and takes care and control of the vehicle
again.
BUDDY
We won’t get pulled over. Besides,
we’ll just say she’s drunk.
Buddy rolls down a window to let some air in.
BUDDY (CONT’D)
I know more than you that it’s not
a game. I’m the team leader,
Shelly. Ted recruited me. Not you.
I recruited you. I offered you an
opportunity to not have to wait on
tables to get yourself through
university. A chance for some real
hands on training.
41.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
SHELLY
And you’d just let me walk away?
With what I know now. Would Ted let
me do that?
BUDDY
Why would you walk away? You’re
pretty happy on payday. You don’t
need those student loans anymore.
Your grandmother doesn’t have to
sweat out her next mortgage
payment.
SHELLY
It’s just that. . . we’re training
to be doctors, and we’re talking
lives.
BUDDY
So we’re helping other people.
People die all the time, plane
crashes, car accidents. We all die.
There’s so many people on the
planet, what a few more or less?
Buddy pulls a green army guy off the dashboard and chucks him
out the window.
BUDDY (CONT’D)
These people, the targets lists
that we get, are they more
deserving of life than the people
who are getting their organs? Or
the people who will benefit from
the research on the tissue that we
are helping to provide? The
government is cracking down so hard
on research, everyone is so afraid
of cloning that they are forcing
researchers to go underground. What
we’re doing won’t have to be done
in the future.
These people are paving the way for
organ cloning techniques. In the
future, no one will have to be on a
transplant waiting list, or have
compatibility problems or anything.
And, we have an organization that
we can move up into. You’re my best
friend, and I will take you with
me. There are research jobs in our
future, clinical cutting edge work!
42.
CONTINUED: (2)
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
Think of the good that you can do
later. This is a small but
necessary evil that we are doing
for the greater good.
Shelly looks at Gail’s peaceful sleeping face and Buddy’s
zealot expression. She is hesitant at first, but is swayed,
again, by Buddy’s fervor.
SHELLY
I guess, when you put it that
way…
BUDDY
There are over 6 billion people on
the planet, Shel, 6 billion. You
telling me that every single one
matters?
No one cares about anyone else,
look how mad you got when that guy
ripped your grandmother off for her
life savings? Those savings that
were supposed to pay off her house?
That guy deserve to keep drawing
breath? Ripping off old and lonely
widows?
Shelly is taken aback by his fervor. He doesn’t seem like the
Buddy she knows.
SHELLY
No, I suppose he doesn’t. But this
woman…
BUDDY
Was gonna fuck a guy she met at the
zoo because she was mad at her
boyfriend. Nice lady. Don’t feel
sorry for them. Just think about
you. For a change, Shel, put
yourself first. Here’s a good spot,
let’s get her on the gurney and
over to Mark and Dorothy. Don’t
feel bad for her Shel; it’s
survival of the fittest.
In this case that means smart. How
smart is it to go off with a
stranger, who’s bigger and stronger
than you? Simple Darwinism at work.
Isn’t it cool when you can apply
stuff you learn in the classroom to
life?
43.
CONTINUED: (3)
BUDDY (CONT’D)
(CONTINUED)
Shelly is afraid of Buddy, but he’s too busy looking for a
place to pull over.
SHELLY
Yeah, real cool.
Buddy pulls into an empty industrial park parking lot. They
pull Gail out of the reclined seat and into the back.
INT. BACK OF VAN. DAY. (AS BEFORE)
They quickly lay her out on gurney and Buddy straps her into
place while Shelly inserts an IV needle and start a drip bag.
Buddy picks up a roll of duct tape and lays several strips
over her mouth and one each over her eyes.
BUDDY
I know that you’re giving her
enough to keep her out, but I don’t
want her to scream or die in her
sleep before we get to Mark and
Dorothy.
SHELLY
You’re the leader. Let’s roll.
Buddy pulls out some bandages and antiseptic.
BUDDY
You should clean those scratches,
you don’t know where she’s had her
hands.
Shelly takes the supplies and starts cleaning the scratches.
Buddy puffs up, confident in his abilities to charm or
control everyone around him.
EXT. BACK YARD AT MAVIS & KATHY’S HOUSE. NIGHT
Mavis is BBQing burgers. Iceberg and KATHY (30′s, blonde,
tidy, works in radiology) are sitting at a picnic table.
KATHY
How goes the task force?
ICEBERG
Sorry, I’d tell you, but then
Gerrard would have to kill you. She
made me promise no shop talk.
44.
CONTINUED: (4)
(CONTINUED)
KATHY
Gee, relating to people outside of
a work context. Not sure I can. I
spend so much time at the hospital,
I forget about socializing
behavior, I only ever get to flex
my bedside manner patter.
MAVIS
Oh, yeah, if you like your burgers
rare, Iceberg, you’ll be outta
luck. We only cook’em well done. E
coli, it’s fun being married to a
medical person.
KATHY
Just make sure you use a different
spatula for my veggie burger, you
carnivore.
MAVIS
Don’t worry, I got the veggie stuff
on the top rack and all the meat
below so it doesn’t drip. Or was
that the other way around?
ICEBERG
Mavis didn’t tell me you were a
vegetarian.
KATHY
Mavis didn’t tell me why she calls
you Iceberg.
ICEBERG
Everyone does.
KATHY
Why?
ICEBERG
I guess you’re not going to let me
be coy?
KATHY
You’re off duty and don’t have to
impress me.
45.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
ICEBERG
Point taken. There’s a lot of
stories floating around the station
about me doing incredible feats of
shooting or driving or keeping my
cool, one day, I’ll collect’em all
in a book. But really, I don’t want
to talk about it.
Ralph smiles and Mavis laughs.
They enjoy each other’s company for a moment. Ralph looks out
over the back yard. He looks sad suddenly.
ICEBERG (CONT’D)
Cecile, my ex-wife, would have said
that the nick name stemmed from my
personality, but, it wouldn’t have
been true before our daughter Clare
died. I never imagined how much it
would change me, any more than I
could have imagined surviving
Clare’s death.
Ralph smiles and shakes his head, pulling himself back
together.
KATHY
Ralph, Acute Lymphoblastic
Leukaemia is not caused by bad
parenting or not loving your kid
enough.
MAVIS
You can really tell from those
photos on your desk how much your
little girl loved and relied on
you. Children are a precious gift,
and sometimes, they are the gift of
quality, the specialness of the
time, not the length.
ICEBERG
I know it, I can say it, and I can
almost believe it. But you never
forgive yourself, and I guess the
worse part is that you never
forgive your spouse, either. Or
them you. It’s not really
surprising when an already shaky
marriage doesn’t survive the death
of the only child.
46.
CONTINUED: (2)
(CONTINUED)
Kathy touches Iceberg’s shoulder. He leans a little towards
her, and then pulls himself together.
Mavis sticks a meat thermometer into the burgers to test
them.
MAVIS
Dinner’s ready.
ICEBERG
Sorry, I’m not usually like this,
it’s this case. I guess it’s the
Collins girl. Clare would have been
10, the same age. I can handle
adults getting killed; it’s
children that bother me. I guess
talking to the parents of the
adults bothers me too, because all
they see is their child, no matter
how old the person is who gets
killed. Victims are always
someone’s baby.
Iceberg shakes his head and pulls himself together, just a
little embarrassed by his emotional display. Kathy gets up
and gets a plate, and prepares two buns with condiments.
KATHY
Oh, speaking of victims, that
reminds me, after we eat remind me
to show you this junk e-mail I got
today.
MAVIS
Why would you want to show us junk
e-mail?
Mavis moves the veggie burgers from the grill to a platter,
careful to not mix up the two separate spatulas. There is a
platter for veggie burgers and a separate platter for meat
burgers.
KATHY
It made me think of your case. It’s
really stupid, I thought you might
get a laugh about it. It’s quite
the persistent urban legend.
Mavis turns away from the grill to face Kathy.
47.
CONTINUED: (3)
(CONTINUED)
MAVIS
Okay, a very little bit of shop
talk. Don’t keep us in suspense.
KATHY
Okay, it’s been thoroughly debunked
on a variety of the urban legends
websites. The e-mail subject line
reads “Another Reason Why Not to
Party” and it goes on about a U of
Texas student who gets picked up in
a bar by some hot woman who takes
him to a party. He drinks and does
some drugs and wakes up the next
day in the hotel bathtub in ice
water, with a stool and a phone
beside the tub. There’s a note by
the phone that says call 911 if you
want to live. To make an already
long story short, his kidneys are
missing. The e-mail then urges you
to forward it to everyone and to
call 911′s National office for
confirmation.
Iceberg and Mavis exchange “consideration” looks.
ICEBERG
Wouldn’t someone in a tub of ice
water die of hypothermia? And still
bleed to death?
KATHY
Yeah, that’s part of what is
stupid, but the dumber part is that
the kidneys were allegedly taken
for black market transplant.
Kidneys are supposed to be worth
$10,000 US each. I mean, the cost
of setting up an operation to do
that wouldn’t make just taking two
kidneys cost effective, you’d have
to do a whole harvest.
Iceberg LAUGHS.
ICEBERG
I got this image of a guy in a
trench coat, holding it open,
‘Pstt, buddy, need a spleen?’
Iceberg rubs his eyes dry. Mavis & Kathy LAUGH.
48.
CONTINUED: (4)
(CONTINUED)
ICEBERG (CONT’D)
Sorry, too little sleep. But,
realistically, how would you have a
market for the organs? I mean, how
many doctors are gonna buy black
market organs? It’s not likely to
be a donor to randomly kill people
from bars. There’s no way to
guarantee the person in a bar is
healthy; they could have
transmissible diseases – like
Haebler had AIDS. You can’t just
transplant it.
Mavis moves away from the grill, and takes Kathy’s seat
beside Iceberg. She’s excited by this turn of events.
MAVIS
But what if the people aren’t
random? Haebler and Gill were organ
donors. I mean, this is the part
that’s been bothering me. Same
M.O., no relationship between the
victims. And, who’s getting the
organs? Transplants are done in
hospitals, there’s records.
Kathy puts one veggie burger on each bun.
Mavis takes a plate and puts some condiments on her burger.
She avoids the ketchup.
Iceberg takes his and uses only ketchup.
They eat as they talk.
KATHY
In the States, private clinics and
hospitals can do transplants. I
mean, I had only mentioned the email
to sort of lighten up the mood
a bit.
I didn’t think it would turn into
anything, but if you think about
it, really think about it, a
private clinic somewhere in the
States that doesn’t answer to
anyone. Who would suspect anything
given that you can buy organs from
third world countries.
49.
CONTINUED: (5)
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
No one asking questions if a clinic
isn’t draining available organs off
the National registry. There’s not
really a monitoring system,
everyone is just happy to get their
organs in their turn.
ICEBERG
The Collins girl was 10, she could
not have been on a donor list. And
there’s still the matter of the
transplant. I can’t take Mavis’s
kidneys and stick them into the
next door neighbour. There’s
rejection and compatibility issues,
right, Kathy? you work in…
KATHY
Nuclear medicine, but actually, I
just read an article in the
American Medical Journal about
Allogeneic bone marrow
transplantation has brought
transplant technology forward to
the point that a rough match
between donors and recipients.
Sorry, I’ll do the layman version.
What we can do now is to harvest
bone marrow and donor organs
together. While the organs are sent
directly to a hospital for
transplantation into a waiting
patient, the marrow is processed
for certain types of cells to be
made into a bone marrow graft.
The resulting graft product, a cell
composition enriched for stem cells
and facilitating cells, is capable
of engrafting while not causing a
serious immune reaction in the
recipient. As a result, neither the
host body or the donor organ reject
each other. You can basically
transplant between any two people
on the street. You could probably
shorten the amount of time between
the marrow implant and the organ
implant by adding anti-rejection
drugs to the mix, ensuring a
sterile environment post surgery. I
could give you a copy of the
article, it’s kind of technical.
50.
CONTINUED: (6)
KATHY (cont’d)
(CONTINUED)
They all sit in stunned silence for a moment, reeling in the
implications.
Iceberg takes a slow and deliberate bite of his burger and
chews it very thoroughly before speaking.
ICEBERG
So, if I’m understanding you, if
the transplant technology is
available to transplant organs
between any two people, a really
unethical couple of doctors could
be heading an organ procurement
ring murdering people for organs.
We need to know what companies are
at the forefront of the technology,
and who their clients are. I’ll get
Raiki working on that angle.
Mavis puts her food down.
MAVIS
Maybe the Collins family are organ
donors. It’s the only connection we
have to go on between Haelber and
Gill, but it would mean that
someone at the organ donor registry
is a part of this…
ICEBERG
Plus a private medical clinic,
probably in Seattle since it’s the
closest major US city to Vancouver.
Plus someone to hire locally. But
who? Doctors? Is there enough money
for a doctor?
KATHY
Coroners could do it. Or their
assistants. Medical students – they
have a lot of loans to pay off. And
there’s still the transporting.
Organs have a short shelf life.
MAVIS
Too risky to cross the border and
go through customs. Flying? Private
planes? There would have to be
flight plans filed. And you’d still
have customs to deal with.
51.
CONTINUED: (7)
(CONTINUED)
KATHY
I would find it unbelievable to be
practising doctors. I mean, it’s a
personal bias because I work with
doctors all day, but I mean, I
suppose people who make good money
are always on the look out for ways
to make more, but doctors do work
in medicine to help people, not
kill them. It could be anyone with
enough anatomy training and skill
with a knife.
ICEBERG
It’s too big and complex. Too many
people, and no slip ups? We better
have Brooks run this past the FBI,
RCMP, Customs, and what’s that US
home defense department?
INT. DR. ROBINEAU’S SEATTLE CONDO. NIGHT
The condo is immaculate but coldly decorated, all chrome,
glass, black, white and silver. It has an excellent view of
the Seattle skyline.
Dr. Robineau is pouring drinks, Drs. Taylor and Kelsworth are
in the condo looking out the balcony glass doors.
Dr. Robineau brings their drinks to them. Dr. Kelsworth is
more relaxed and personable in the company of his fellow
doctors.
TAYLOR
I’m only four or five transplants
away from owning my condo. My wife
thinks it’s too small, and she
wants to sell already, but I don’t
think I want a bank making
inquiries into my salary just yet.
Besides, I think she just likes
your view better and there’s at
least four year waiting list for
this building. The Seattle skyline
is tremendous to see on such a
clear night.
KELSWORTH
I’m picking up my boat next Friday.
Why don’t we take’r out for a
little fishing R&R?
52.
CONTINUED: (8)
(CONTINUED)
ROBINEAU
Sounds like a plan to me. To the
lucrative nature of transplant
surgeries.
They raise their glasses in a toast.
TAYLOR
Industrial espionage.
KELSWORTH
Partnership.
They drink, then move to the couches.
KELSWORTH (CONT’D)
The time has come to discuss
expansion. The more legitimate
cover we can get, the harder it
will be for anyone to detect our
source activities. The launch of
our sister clinic in Philadelphia
next spring will draw a lot of
press, which we need if we want our
clinics to be a world class
transplant centre.
Taylor hesitates before speaking, closes his eyes and plunges
forward. He speaks a little too fast from nervousness, but
slows down when he sees that the other two men are listening.
TAYLOR
Which brings me to my concern,
maybe we should start buying third
world organs, the more attention we
draw, the more someone is going to
wonder why we can treat people so
quickly. Third world organs are
cheap, and people are pre-screened,
and it would probably cost less on
a per-organ basis, but more
importantly, there is way less risk
to us personally and to the clinic.
Robineau dismisses all the arguments with a wave of his hand.
ROBINEAU
The time for reservations has
passed. Third world organs are
harder to procure, there’s waiting
lists, and the concern for the poor
nutrition of the general populace.
53.
CONTINUED:
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
Plus, many activists are beginning
to cry that people are not giving
up their organs freely or getting
paid the right amount if they do.
And there is the matter of the
marrow. Transportation, shipping
fees? No. It would not be cost
effective to go through regular
channels. Besides, there are many
political lobbyists who want to
terminate those Third World
sources, crying exploitation of
poverty. It’s too complicated. Our
way is neat and tidy, and we use
everything. Much more resource
conscious.
Kelsworth is the mediator between the two men.
KELSWORTH
It’s easier to deal with a Canadian
product. We can recruit qualified
people to obtain the organs, get a
healthy product and the exchange
rate means we’re paying less than
if we had field operatives locally.
Besides, we can’t cut corners when
it comes to our patient’s health.
You don’t know what kind of
diseases are floating around out
there in those third world
countries. Our whole operation
would come crashing down if someone
we transplanted got a disease from
the transplant. This way, people
are on the donor registry list, so
they’re pre-screened for diseases.
If any of them got a transmittable
disease, they’d take themselves off
the list. Donors are responsible
people.
ROBINEAU
Exactly, we do have one problem;
however, in the transport phase.
Those cowboy ultra light pilots.
They know who the harvest team and
the pick up team is. We need to
have a more secure means of
transport. One of those flyboys
didn’t show up for the drop off.
54.
CONTINUED: (2)
ROBINEAU (cont’d)
(CONTINUED)
TAYLOR
At least he crashed on his way to
the pick up, it would be really
hard to explain how the ultra light
crashed with medical containers on
board.
ROBINEAU
At least he died in a crash before
a pick up. Who knows what he would
have babbled in a hospital.
KELSWORTH
Either way, nice and neat and safe
for us. Marcus recruits the
regional people under him, and he
handled all that industrial
technology theft. The harvest teams
and their recruiters have no way of
identifying us. The ultra-light
pilots think they’re smuggling
drugs, our donor registry contact
is my sister, so she’s reliable.
The regional people that Marcus
recruited don’t know us or each
other. And we’re careful to spread
the target around so no one area is
over harvested.
ROBINEAU
And if there gets to be a problem,
Marcus eliminates the regional
coordinator and the harvest team
takes the fall. It’s foolproof.
TAYLOR
You’re right, I’m just… worried
about…
Taylor he changes his mind about what he was going to say.
TAYLOR (CONT’D)
I guess I’m just jittery about my
upcoming high school reunion. It’s
stupid, I mean, I’m almost 40 and I
can still hear them taunting me,
calling me names, like it was this
afternoon.
55.
CONTINUED: (3)
(CONTINUED)
KELSWORTH
Ah, nothing to worry about, you’ve
already shown all the little local
yokels who’s their better. You’ve
got an excellent job in a high
profile transplant centre, you’ve
published two papers, you’ll have
your own condo paid for before
you’re forty. Much more successful
than your former classmates. You
just need to stop worrying.
A firm KNOCK at the door. Robineau gets up to answer it. He
lets in MARCUS (early 30′s, street looking).
Marcus sizes up the room, but only Taylor is unable to look
him in the eyes.
ROBINEAU
Drink?
Marcus goes to pour himself a drink and then joins Taylor on
the couch.
Kelsworth get up and heads for the door. He picks up his
briefcase and retrieves a piece of paper. He brings it back.
KELSWORTH
This is a list of what we’ll need
in the next two weeks, and three
targets. I think we need to let
Vancouver, British Columbia settle
down.
Marcus takes the paper, folds it without reading it and puts
it in a pocket.
MARCUS
We haven’t been to Portland for a
year. That investigation’s been
back burnered. Vancouver’s getting
hotter. Don’t worry, I’m going up
to see Ted. I won’t let him become
a problem.
ROBINEAU
Excellent. Better to switch around,
don’t want to rattle the local
police cages too hard. How’s the
development of Philly’s source
teams going?
56.
CONTINUED: (4)
(CONTINUED)
MARCUS
Promising. But I’ve been thinking
we need to get into more rural
areas, easier to hide bodies.
ROBINEAU
Yes, we’ve been thinking on that
matter as well. We are thinking of
expanding our operations to include
a specialty airline. Specializing
in medical transport. It would
actually service hospitals and
other clinics with standard
transplant deliveries, but also
provide excellent cover for our own
operation.
KELSWORTH
And, we could use it to airlift
bodies. Take them out of their
source location. Make it harder to
connect anything. People disappear
all the time and never get found.
No body and no way to connect them
to each other. Better if the bodies
don’t get found.
MARCUS
I have a cousin who runs a
crematorium.
TAYLOR
What are we going to call the
airline, CorpsAir?
ROBINEAU
More like DonorAir or Organ
Express. The name’s not the
important part, it’s the media
coverage and increased profile.
More prestige for our eventual
chain of centres. Let’s discuss the
crematorium idea next meeting. Find
out how, sympathetic, your cousin
would be.
MARCUS
I’m sure my cousin would be very
sympathetic to fellow businessmen
with a problem. I’d recommend Air
MediPort.
57.
CONTINUED: (5)
(CONTINUED)
KELSWORTH
Excellent. Air MediPort, it works
on many levels for me. See, Taylor,
Marcus solves yet another dilemma
for us. There’s nothing to worry
about.
EXT. PARK – FOREST AREA. NIGHT.
Yellow police tape has cordoned off an area thick with
underbrush. Gail Thompson’s body, wrapped in a tarp, lies in
the underbrush. Her feet are visible.
Meyers and Johnston are in the background, conducting a
ground search.
Iceberg and Mavis wait for the POLICE PHOTOGRAPHER to emerge
from the thicket.
A FEW OFFICERS stand just outside the yellow tape, keeping
the FEW SPECTATORS and Pauline Versher and Eddie at bay.
PAULINE
Eddie, roll the tape and keep it
rolling. I want a shot of the body
as soon as you can get a clear one.
Officer Bergman! It’s Pauline
Versher, Action News. What can you
tell us now? Is this related to the
Daryl Haebler murder? Or your
Harvest Killer?
Iceberg goes over to Pauline like a shot. Some SPECTATORS
MURMER at the “Harvest Killer” implication.
ICEBERG
Ms. Versher, I’m not sure what
you’re talking about. I wouldn’t
generally recommend giving killers
cutesy names; it just encourages
copycats or the killer to outdo
himself.
Mavis looks over, and seeing that Iceberg is busy and that
the photographer has emerged and given her the nod, she pulls
on gloves and heads into the thicket.
PAULINE
If it’s not a serial killer, why do
you have a Project Harvest,
Detective Bergman?
58.
CONTINUED: (6)
(CONTINUED)
ICEBERG
The victim in this particular crime
has not yet been identified, so it
is inappropriate for you to release
any video from the scene, in
deference to her family. I’m asking
you to turn off the camera and turn
over the tape for review, pending
the identification of the victim.
The tape will be returned to your
station after it has been reviewed
for potential evidence gathering.
Iceberg motions to an OFFICER on the spectator side of the
yellow tape. The officer moves in close to Eddie and the
camera.
PAULINE
Evidence gathering? From behind the
yellow tape? How junior cub
reporter do I look to you?
ICEBERG
You may have caught something on
your way over here, a wider view of
the scene that we have.
PAULINE
Keep taping Eddie. Tell us about
the Project Harvest, Detective
Bergman.
Eddie leans over the line to try to get an angle on the
thicket. Iceberg moves to block his view.
ICEBERG
The Project Harvest has been set up
to test some new investigation
techniques, to cultivate certain
types of criminal cases in a joint
effort between municipal and
federal police forces. Project
Cultivate sounded funny, so we
picked Harvest. Not really that
complicated.
Eddie makes no move to stop taping.
Iceberg signals an officer to come over.
59.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
ICEBERG (cont’d)
Keep them on this side of the
yellow line.
The officer nods to Iceberg.
Iceberg heads into the thicket.
Pauline looks at Eddie.
PAULINE
We’re onto something.
INT. THICKET. NIGHT.
Gail Thomspon’s body is naked, pale and looks like is has
already been autopsied. Her face is bruised from where Shelly
had held the cloth against her face.
Mavis is holding her hand just above the bruise, comparing
the relative sizes, to determine the cause.
Iceberg crawls into the thicket.
Mavis looks at him grimly.
ICEBERG
Anything?
MAVIS
Her name is Gail Thompson, her
boyfriend called her in a missing
person a couple of days ago.
Apparently, they had had a fight
and she went to the Aquarium. He
said that it’s where she liked to
go to think. When she didn’t come
home, he went to the Aquarium and
asked around. Apparently the staff
know her, she goes there when she’s
upset. She was seen leaving with a
tall, red-headed man.
ICEBERG
So, Haebler, Baker and Thompson
were definitely picked up by
prospective dates.
60.
CONTINUED: (2)
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
Gill was probably hit on and picked
up, and since the Collins child was
too young to be dating, was
probably lured with a help me find
my lost cat or some other crap
story that gets used on kids.
MAVIS
Got a couple of breaks here though.
ICEBERG
Saving the best for last?
MAVIS
Forensics took fingernail
scrapings, and got some skin, and,
in her pants pocket, there was a
University Medical Department Pin.
Thompson wasn’t a student.
ICEBERG
Well, how many tall, red-headed,
male medical students in all of the
current classes and the last two
grading classes can there be?
MAVIS
Sometimes, it’s really hard to tell
when you’re joking.
ICEBERG
Well, be expecting a call from
Pauline Versher’s lawyer. I took
her videotape.
MAVIS
Ralph, Ralph, Ralph. Bad cop, no
donut.
ICEBERG
She’s found out about our task
force. I don’t think we’re gonna be
able to hold the lid on this much
longer.
MAVIS
Well, we have some witnesses around
Thompson and the Haebler murders.
Maybe we would benefit from some
press. Let’s set something up with
her.
61.
CONTINUED:
ICEBERG (cont’d)
(CONTINUED)
ICEBERG
Okay, but I just sort of lied about
the task force, I said it as a
multi-force exercise in work
procedures.
MAVIS
So, let’s get out of here to talk.
INT. FOREST – CRIME SCENE (AS BEFORE). NIGHT.
They emerge from the thicket. Iceberg waves to the coroner’s
people to move the body.
Pauline is watching them intently.
ICEBERG
Well, we can hardly talk to her
today. Let’s wait until the lawyer
calls. Then we’ll give her the
goods.
You’re right tho’, maybe some press
on this case would bring some other
witness’ forward. I just didn’t
want a panic. Or gung-ho tabloid
journalist descending on the city
and spooking the killers. I want
these people, more than I’ve ever
wanted to catch anyone.
MAVIS
Then we’re gonna have to enlist
Versher and keep her on a very
tight leash.
They both smile really friendly smiles at Pauline and Eddie.
INT. BUDDY’S APARTMENT. EARLY MORNING
The two-bedroom apartment is bigger than a medical student
living by himself should be able to afford. The rooms are not
decorated, but there is a variety of very expensive
entertainment and sports equipment strewn throughout the
apartment.
The furniture is all-new. The few decorations are brightly
coloured, red predominating. There are two framed posters of
Samurai and a replica Katana sword on the wall.
One decorating element that’s a hold-over from childhood, is
a full set of green and tan army guys. Some have been melted
or had limbs amputated.
62.
CONTINUED: (2)
(CONTINUED)
They are everywhere, but in a clear and organized pattern.
Nothing is randomly placed in the apartment; everything lines
up in symmetry.
Buddy, Shelly, Mark and Dorothy (early 20′s, plain looking)
are sitting in the living room.
There is a briefcase by the table and $40,000 counted out in
four equal stacks, each moved towards one of the team
members. The stacks make a neat square when looked at from a
bird’s eye view.
SHELLY
I don’t understand why only you get
to know Ted.
DOROTHY
Yeah, Buddy, it’s not like you’re
the only one taking the risks here,
doing the deeds.
BUDDY
You’re getting paid, in cash, tax
free and upon delivery! And paid
the same as me with less risk!
What’s the problem?
MARK
How do we know we’re getting an
even cut? We see you come in with a
briefcase and we see you count out
$40 grand in equal shares, but how
do we know that that’s the amount
Ted gave you?
DOROTHY
Yeah, how do we know that you’re
not skimming?
BUDDY
Mark, Dorothy, we’re in this
together. What would be my
advantage in screwing you guys
over? We’re a team. We’re The Team.
Ted told me that we were the
fastest procurers. How can you
think I’d steal from you?
MARK
Well, gee, let me think, we’re
hunting and killing strangers for
money. How much worse can stealing
from your friends be?
63.
CONTINUED:
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
I mean, really, Buddy, you tell me.
How much?
BUDDY
Those are like two totally
different things.
Buddy looks at their unconvinced faces. He turns to Shelly
for help and sees the same mistrust on her face.
BUDDY (CONT’D)
Look, if you can’t trust me, maybe
you should just leave the team. You
were all told the deal when we
started. It’s to protect everyone.
No one knows more than one person
on each level. We don’t know
anything about any person other
than Ted.
They look unconvinced. Buddy becomes more charming.
BUDDY (CONT’D)
It starts with you guys. You guys
know me. I know about you and Ted.
Ted know me, but nothing about you.
And he knows the next guy above
him. And so on up the line. No one
knows more than they need to, so
there’s a built in protection is
any one person gets caught. Minimal
exposure risk.
Shelly starts to waffle.
SHELLY
Maybe if one of us could go to the
next meeting you have with Ted…
BUDDY
No, forget it, you guys just don’t
understand. Forget it, take your
money and get out, If you don’t
want the money and everything else
that’s on offer, then just forget
it.
Buddy gets up and goes to his bedroom.
INT. BUDDY’S BEDROOM. EARLY MORNING.
Buddy stands in front of a mirror, his expression is blank,
but his voice is choked with emotion as he yells.
64.
CONTINUED: (2)
MARK (cont’d)
(CONTINUED)
BUDDY
Just take your money and get out.
He practices a few “hurt” facial expressions quickly, forcing
tears. He moves to the bed once he’s satisfied.
INT. BUDDY’S LIVING ROOM. EARLY MORNING. (AS BEFORE)
None of them move for a moment. Shelly stands, she moves over
to the bedroom and tries to hear what Buddy’s doing. She
doesn’t hear anything. She moves closer to the living and
snaps at Mark.
SHELLY
I hope you’re happy Mark. You
really hurt Buddy’s feelings. Don’t
forget to drop your money in your
safety deposit box. It’s not safe
to carry that much cash in the
city. Have a nice life, Mark.
Shelly exits after Buddy. Mark reaches over and takes his
share of the money, but he doesn’t pocket it. Dorothy looks
pointedly at the remaining money and not at Mark.
INT. BUDDY’S BEDROOM. EARLY MORNING. (AS BEFORE)
Shelly creeps into the bedroom and is shocked to see Buddy
crying. She sits on the bed and rubs his shoulder.
BUDDY
Go away.
SHELLY
I won’t, I’m sorry. I’m sticking
with you, no more questions.
Buddy brightens up slightly. He sits up and dries his face.
BUDDY
I want Mark to go away.
SHELLY
We need him, he’s the cutter. I’ll
work on him.
BUDDY
No, he’s got to want to stay.
Shelly rubs Buddy’s back seductively.
65.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
SHELLY
I can make him want to stay.
INT. BUDDY’S LIVINGROOM. EARLY MORNING (AS BEFORE)
Mark and Dorothy speak softly, so as not to be overheard.
MARK
Stay if you want, I won’t turn you
in or anything.
DOROTHY
You can’t, you’d be implicating
yourself. Even turning evidence,
you’d get some jail time. And any
hope for a medical career would be
over. Before Buddy and Shelly came
along, I didn’t have any friends,
you didn’t either.
Mark, we can’t just leave now, we’d
have nothing, no one.
MARK
When Buddy first started being
friends with me, I thought it was
for a gag. I mean, he’s a jock and
I’m a geek. I was so pathetic and
grateful for his friendship, that
at first, I never thought about
what he asked me to get involved
in.
I’m training to be a surgeon, to
help people. I’m the third
generation in my family to be a
surgeon.
DOROTHY
And you will. Mark, you were the
best cutter in our class before all
of this, and even the profs have
noticed your technique has
improved.
It’s not the money for me, I mean
that’s great, but I don’t want to
lose the friends that I’ve made
through Shelly.
MARK
You mean you don’t want to lose
Buddy.
66.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
DOROTHY
You either. Let’s just hear him
out. All the way. Let’s just hear
him out, and if you still want to
leave, then do it. I won’t stop
you.
MARK
Will you still see me? If I leave
the team?
DOROTHY
No. I don’t think I could. It would
be too complicated.
Dorothy goes to Buddy’s room.
Mark looks at the other three stacks of money, then at the
one in his hands. He carefully places his stack back on the
table, but it doesn’t form the perfect square that it had
when Buddy had separated it.
INT. BUDDY’S BEDROOM. EARLY MORNING (AS BEFORE)
Buddy, Shelly and Dorothy are sitting on the bed like a
litter of kittens, all entwined in a sexually joyous, not
serious manner, when Mark appears in the doorway.
Buddy is happy, holding court like a kid with a lot of new
and shiny toys on Christmas. They were clearly waiting for
and expecting Mark, but Buddy is holding court for just the
girls. Their hands explore over each other’s clothes as they
talk, this has the torture effect on Mark that is intended; a
sort of look what we can do together.
BUDDY
It’s like a pyramid scheme,
multilayer marketing, and Ted sort
of leaked it to me that there’s
ways to move up.
He’s not supposed to say, but he’s
in line for a promotion, so that
means we all move up with him. I
mean, the organs gotta be being
used for research, maybe even
cloning. Imagine figuring out how
to clone organs for transplant.
SHELLY
Imagine being in on the ground
floor like that. Kicks stem cells
out the door, don’tcha think?
67.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
They all “suddenly” become aware of Mark in the doorway.
Buddy cruises Mark and then gives him a business look after
Mark’d body is aroused by the scene in front of him.
BUDDY
In or out?
MARK
Depends on your answer.
BUDDY
To what?
MARK
Who are you loyal to: Us or Ted?
BUDDY
I am committed to my team’s
success. Where I go up in the
organization, you go too.
MARK
You still want me?
BUDDY
Of course, Mark, of course.
Buddy moves over to make room for Mark in the middle. Mark
steps forward and halts.
MARK
Then I don’t need to go meet Ted.
Buddy looks very solemn and serious.
BUDDY
I will take the fall for all of
you. If we’re really friends, you’d
do it too. It’s my code.
MARK
Friends?
Shelly sits seductively back on the bed, running her hand on
Buddy’s thigh.
BUDDY
Be friends with us, Mark.
Buddy smiles and leans over to kiss Dorothy. Shelly gets up
and walks towards Mark. She slides her arms around him,
kissing him.
68.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
Mark looks over her shoulder at Buddy and Dorothy making out
more seriously. He gives into the kiss. Shelly gently leads
him back to the bed.
INT. PROJECT HARVEST OFFICE. DAY.
All the team members and Grace are present. The desks have
been re-arranged into a inward facing circle. Each person has
a thick binder with colour tabs sticking out. Everyone has
big mugs of coffee.
Iceberg is standing by the board.
BROOKS
Portland police reported another
victim. After a year of nothing,
another one has turned up. It could
be the same group, since the victim
was taken after Gail Thompson. Once
we connected the various forces
together, it looks like the theory
about black market organs is
holding together. The newest victim
has also had all their organs
removed, like Haebler.
RAIKI
Grace has put these evidence
binders together. Under tab 14, is
a list of the client clinics and
hospitals for the one company that
does the bone marrow processing.
Two of these client clinics are in
the Seattle area.
ICEBERG
You’re just focussing on the
clinics?
Iceberg makes some notes on a flip chart as people toss out
ideas.
RAIKI
My thinking is that a privately
owned clinic doesn’t have to answer
to any administrators. It means
that all the doctors operating out
of the clinic would probably be in
the know, or at least the top
doctor. I would imagine that it
would be harder to get away with
organ smuggling in a hospital.
69.
CONTINUED: (2)
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
I mean, explain why your patient is
getting a new heart when the
patient next to them is higher on
the list and more critical.
MAVIS
Excellent point. A clinic is most
likely.
BROOKS
The FBI is already looking into it,
they were the ones who gave me the
company’s client list. None of the
clinics or hospitals have an undue
number of marrow processing orders.
They all seem to be fairly stable.
We’ll have to wait to see what the
FBI can shake loose from the
clinics. If they aren’t cranking
transplants out, they may know of a
clinic not on this list that is. I
guess a clinic could have its own
processing lab, although the
process is patented and tightly
controlled.
ICEBERG
So you’re suggesting that on top of
the black market transplants, we
either have industrial espionage or
a clinic trying to replicate the
process, with who knows what
success rate.
RAIKI
Basically, yeah. I provided the FBI
with DNA samples of our victims.
None of their organs have been
processed through the official bone
marrow processing lab. The clinic
must have its own lab, or someone
at the company is working unlogged
overtime. They can’t have someone
in their pocket at every facility
or organization they’d need to be
in contact with. That’s too many
people.
70.
CONTINUED:
RAIKI (cont’d)
(CONTINUED)
MAVIS
Point taken. Brooks, see if the FBI
can find out if any of the
researchers on the marrow
processing technique have left the
research field for private
practise, or Seattle vacations,
conventions whatever in the last
year, year and a half. Meyers?
Brooks writes a note.
MEYERS
On the beat work side, we’ve talked
to Gail Thompson’s boyfriend and
the ticket taker at the Aquarium.
We’ve got a sketch of the redhaired
guy all ready for public
release
JOHNSTON
And when we got the sketches of the
blonde and brunette, it’s fairly
clear it’s the same woman wearing a
wig at least once.
MEYERS
The organ donor registry as the
possible source has also panned out
– the Collins girl was a registered
recipient, on a heart waiting list.
I guess the rest of her organs were
good enough. Lungs and kidneys,
wasn’t it? Sick.
But we still don’t know if the
registry contact for our killers is
American or Canadian.
MAVIS
I’m sure that we share our donor
registries; so they’d have access
to the same files. Wonder if
there’s any way we can find out
who’s queried the files of the
victims?
RAIKI
I’ll find out. My feeling is that,
if the doctors are American,
probably the donor registry contact
would be too. It’s like, keeping
your head office all together.
71.
CONTINUED: (2)
(CONTINUED)
ICEBERG
Raiki, excellent thinking. I have
another research job for you.
Brooks, you liaise with the
National Donor Registry. The
student registry of medical
students. Our killers are in there.
RAIKI
You’re kidding, student mug shots?
ICEBERG
Start with the last years grads and
two more years. It’s someone with
enough years to be skilled at
cutting, but still needing the
money. And it should be on the
computer. Student ID cards are
digital now; it’s not like looking
through punch cards.
RAIKI
Sure, I’ll make like Commander
Data.
ICEBERG
It’ll only be a few thousand pieces
of hay and two needles. For now,
let’s assume everyone doing the
harvesting is in med school. Right
now, Raiki, you got the best shot
of any of us. Actually, take some
of the Crime Stoppper posters and
spread’em around campus. We’ll hold
off on the mug shots until after we
get some tip calls coming in from
the campus. The students are our
most likely pool of informants.
MAVIS
Hospitals, too. The killers might
be residents.
EXT. CITY STREET – WINDOW OF STORE. DAY
A bank of televisions in a window display is tuned to the
noon news. PEOPLE are watching and passing by.
PAULINE
Detective Ralph Bergman had
announced the formation of the
Project Harvest.
72.
CONTINUED: (3)
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
The force is an united effort
between local police, RCMP, the FBI
and the US State Police in
Washington and Oregon to catch a
possible gang of serial killers.
Images of Daryl Haebler, Roger Baker and Gail Thompson appear
on the screen. Pauline’s voice softens to a caring tone, as
if she had known the victims. But she has no quiver or tears
in her voice.
PAULINE (CONTINUED) (CONT’D)
The Vancouver victims have included
the recent murders of Gail
Thompson, Daryl Haebler and Olympia
resident, Roger Baker, found with
Haebler. Gail Thompson was last
seen at the Vancouver Aquarium with
a tall, red-haired man, and Daryl
Haebler and Roger Baker were last
seen in the company of woman who
wears a blonde or brunette wig.
The image changes to the composite drawings of Buddy and
Shelly. Pauline’s voice returns to professional reporter
mode.
PAULINE (CONT’D)
Police are asking viewers to
contact them if you are able to
provide tips.
Police sketches of the two suspects
are on your screen now. The woman
is shown with both hair colours.
Please call Crime Stoppers or the
Action News tipline. Action News
urges viewers to be careful when
you are approached by strangers.
Following tonight’s broadcast, I
will be hosting a one-hour long
special, “Keeping Safe.” We’ll be
talking with experts on how to keep
your children safe from abduction,
and outlining some abduction
tactics that may be being employed
by the Harvest Killers for adults.
Stay tuned after “Keeping Safe” for
the Harvest Killer News Update.
We’ll be reviewing the case as it
has unfolded, showing you police
composites of the woman last seen
with Haebler and the man last seen
with Thompson.
73.
CONTINUED:
PAULINE (cont’d)
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
The special will also include an
Action News exclusive investigation
into other missing persons who may
be victims as well. You won’t want
to miss the Action News footage of
the Haebler crime scene that was
returned by police to Action News
just this afternoon. Again, please
contact Crime Stoppers or Action
News directly. This is Pauline
Versher, Action News. Back to you,
Peter.
The crowd disperses as the news cast ends. People MURMUR
shock at the idea of a serial killer in their midst.
INT. TED’S HOTEL ROOM. NIGHT.
Marcus takes a drink from TED (late 30′s, confident,
corporate looking).
MARCUS
How’s the recruiting going?
TED
The Vancouver Team is up and
running efficiently. Back on track.
I’ve had a talk with Buddy, the
team leader, about disposal
practices. So far the police have
only found four, but, from the
media reports, they haven’t got a
clear pattern.
MARCUS
Why’d they find any bodies? Have
they been connected to Portland or
Tacoma?
Ted backs away from Marcus a little, puts some furniture
between them as if on an instinctive animal level he knows
Marcus is dangerous.
TED
The news reporter said the Project
Harvest was working with police in
Oregon and Washington. I think
what’s thrown them is that one of
the victims was found with a body
that was not cut up. And none of
the reports have linked the first
two targets here, just the last two
kills.
74.
CONTINUED: (2)
PAULINE (CONT’D)
(CONTINUED)
MARCUS
You do something about the body
disposal, and make sure that they
don’t make any more connections. In
fact, make them change their MO.
Carve some religious prophetic
thing about doom to sinners into
the flesh.
TED
I think the Vancouver team leader’s
a bit of a thrill seeker. That
would really appeal to him. But
I’ve put him in his place. Implied
that there’s no room for rogues to
move up the ladder. Get him to play
by the rules. Our rules.
Marcus is clearly annoyed at this turn of events.
MARCUS
There is no moving up for the
harvest teams at all, we’re not
that kind of organization.
Ted tries to placate Marcus.
TED
I know, I know. It’s something to
keep him on a leash. When the time
comes, it’ll look like an accident,
or suicide. People would believe it
of him: he’s big, and a jock trying
to learn to be a doctor. His grades
aren’t the best, but he’s a
charming SOB. Good for picking up
the targets. I think he’s a
sociopath myself. Maybe too
charming, and, of all the team
leaders I’ve recruted, he took to
the idea a little too easy.
MARCUS
Are you saying that you’re not
comfortable with what we do?
TED
I didn’t say being a sociopath was
a bad thing.
Marcus looks at Ted with narrowed eyes. His face returns to
blank/normal as he speaks.
75.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
Ted hasn’t noticed that he’s been sized up and found lacking.
But he has noticed that Marcus isn’t mad anymore, so he calms
down. Ted moves closer and sits on the couch.
MARCUS
What about the other teams? The
doctors are about six months away
from opening the new clinic.
They’re thinking about starting a
dedicated organ transplant airline.
It would do legit transports, and
ours would just be some
unmanifested containers. There’s
concerns about the harvests being
in a small ring around Seattle.
TED
Where’s this airline gonna fly
from?
Marcus plays on Ted’s greed for an expanded territory.
MARCUS
Oh, Vancouver for sure, Prince
George, Edmonton, Calgary,
Portland, Olympia, Tacoma, Salem,
and Pendleton. That’s to start. The
transport side has always been the
weakest link. The ultra-lights
we’re using now aren’t safe to fly
in moderately bad weather. Crashes
are too risky. We’ll get the kids
some medical-courier looking
uniforms and have them take the
containers right to the airport.
They can get their next target list
and their cash when they drop off
the containers.
TED
Speaking of the target list, do you
have it?
MARCUS
Here, and no more bodies. I don’t
care what they do with them.
Marcus hands Ted piece of paper.
76.
CONTINUED: (2)
INT. UNIVERSITY BOOKSTORE. DAY.
Buddy is standing at the counter waiting for the sales clerk.
He RINGS THE BELL. The sales clerk, DONNA WALKER (late 40′s,
stodgy) comes from the back room.
DONNA
Yes, can I help you?
BUDDY
I need a Department of Medicine
pin. There aren’t any in the
display.
DONNA
No, they’re back ordered. We have
lots of the University pins though.
Buddy’s charm slips as his temper flares.
BUDDY
I’m in the medical department, I
want a medical department pin.
Donna gives him a hard, bureaucratic look.
DONNA
The best I can do, young man, is to
take down your name and hold one
when they come in. Should be the
next couple of days. We don’t
usually take orders for the smaller
items, but it seems very important
to you.
Buddy calms down right away when he sees she can’t be
intimidated. She is holding a pen and has the order book
ready.
BUDDY
Buddy Powell. Medical Department
pin. Thank you.
Buddy stomps out. Donna puts the order book under the
counter.
INT. REGISTRAR’S OFFICE. DAY.
Detective Raiki is at the registrar’s window. Behind him in
line are TWO FEMALE STUDENTS, who are chattering away about
inconsequential things.
77.
(CONTINUED)
Raiki’s nerves are getting thinner, as he waits for the
counter clerk to get the supervisor.
The SUPERVISOR (50′s, female) comes out a side door, into the
waiting area.
SUPERVISOR
Detective Raiki?
Raiki gratefully moves away from the window and the two
students.
RAIKI
Yes, I need to get these posters
put up around the campus. I was
told to see you.
He holds up the two Crime Stoppers posters.
SUPERVISOR
You don’t think those awful killers
are students here, do you?
RAIKI
Ma’am, they are young people. We’re
hoping that they might be known.
The two female students come over to see the posters.
STUDENT ONE
He’s cute. What are you looking for
him for?
RAIKI
He’s a person of interest in a
murder investigation. He was the
last person seen with the victim.
Does he look familiar? Or her?
They recoil a bit.
STUDENT TWO
A little, something about the eyes
and the hair. She doesn’t though.
Of course, I mostly just have eyes
for men.
Student Two gives Raiki a flirty look. Her friend nudges her.
The two girls giggle.
78.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
SUPERVISOR
I can take a couple for here. Every
student passes through here at some
point. They both look familiar to
me, but after all these years, the
faces begin to get much younger and
blurrier.
RAIKI
Thank you.
STUDENT ONE
I’d put them up in the bookstore.
Everyone goes through there, even
people who aren’t students.
They nudge each other again, each trying to be the closer one
to Raiki.
STUDENT TWO
Yeah, the Student Union Building.
STUDENT ONE
If you give us your card, we could
put some posters up for you, and
call you to let you know we’ve done
it.
RAIKI
I think I can find the bookstore,
but thank you for your help.
They look disappointed. He relents and hands them each one
poster and a business card.
RAIKI (CONT’D)
Perhaps you could do the Student
Union Building for me.
The two girls scurry away. Raiki looks at a campus map on the
wall in the registrar’s lobby.
INT. BOOKSTORE. DAY.
Donna is restocking some shelves. Raiki enters.
RAIKI
Hello, do you work here?
Donna straightens up.
79.
CONTINUED: (2)
(CONTINUED)
DONNA
Yes, I’m Donna Walker, I’m the
manager.
RAIKI
Excellent. I’m Detective Raiki, and
I need to put up these posters…
DONNA
Is it for student events? Because
that board has been moved to the
Student Union Building.
RAIKI
No, Mrs. Walker, this is a police
Crime Stoppers poster. I’m with the
police, Detective Raiki? We believe
that the two individuals are
students here.
DONNA
Sorry, so many of the students come
in here, from theatre class or
playing some game. Let me see the
poster. I see every student sooner
or later, and usually at their
worst.
Raiki holds out the poster. Donna examines each one
carefully.
DONNA (CONT’D)
Well, the girl looks familiar, in
the brunette picture, but no one
that stands out.
Donna returns the poster and takes the second one. She
examines it for a moment.
DONNA (CONT’D)
Detective Raiki, was it?
RAIKI
Yes, Mrs. Walker?
She hands him back the poster and walks to the counter.
DONNA
Detective Raiki, today is your
lucky day. That boy was in this
shop not one hour ago, trying to
order a new medical department pin.
80.
CONTINUED:
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
He’d gotten quite snappy that there
weren’t any in stock. Lots of
students buy the medical department
pins to help them pick up girls.
Raiki is almost bursting with excitement.
RAIKI
Did he leave his name?
Donna is looking under the counter for the book.
DONNA
Let me just find my order book. I
don’t think it’s his real name, not
the first one anyway. Buddy. He
said his name was Buddy. Not very
imaginative. Now where, oh, it
fell.
Raiki is hard pressed not to rip the order book from her
hands as she emerges from below the counter. Slowly she flips
the pages. She finds the page, and points triumphantly.
RAIKI
Buddy Powell. Thank you, Mrs.
Walker.
Raiki races out of the store. Donna looks at the floor where
the posters are laying.
DONNA
Wonder if he still wants those up.
INT. RAIKI’S CAR. DAY
Raiki pulls his cell phone out. He dials.
ICEBERG (PHONE)
Project Harvest, Bergman speaking.
RAIKI
Iceberg, I got an ID. The book
store manager, Mrs. Walker, says
the guy is a Buddy Powell.
ICEBERG (PHONE)
Excellent. Where are you now?
RAIKI
I’m heading back to the Registrar’s
office to pull his class schedule.
81.
CONTINUED: (2)
DONNA (cont’d)
(CONTINUED)
ICEBERG (PHONE)
Not without a warrant. I’ll have
Grace start the papers, and get a
warrant.
Raiki deflates.
RAIKI
Of course. You’re right. I just got
excited.
ICEBERG (PHONE)
It happens. Stay chilly. We’re
closer, I told you you’d have the
best shot. I’ll have Grace type up
the Information for the Warrant.
You get your butt to the
Registrar’s Office and I’ll have
Brooks bring over the signed
warrant as soon as it’s faxed back
to us.
Raiki guns the motor of the car.
RAIKI
I’m on my way.
He turns the cell off and drops it on the passenger seat. The
car races away from the curb with the sirens blasting.
INT. MEDICAL CENTRE LOBBY. DAY.
Marjorie Hughs is in the lobby with her LAWYER (mid 40′s,
sharp suit, male). A RECEPTIONIST (young, female, attractive)
is nervously dialing the phone.
RECEPTIONIST
Dr. Kelsworth? Can you come down to
the lobby, Mrs. Hughs is here.
KELSWORTH (PHONE)
Her son doesn’t have an appointment
today, does he?
The receptionist looks fearfully at the lawyer and Mrs.
Hughs.
RECEPTIONIST
She’s not here with her son. She’s
here with her lawyer.
82.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
KELSWORTH (PHONE)
What?
RECEPTIONIST
She says that Steven has AIDS.
Because of the transplant.
KELSWORTH (PHONE)
I’ll be right down.
INT. DR. KELSWORTH’S OFFICE. DAY.
Dr. Kelsworth’s office is just as expensive as Dr.
Robineau’s, but is more masculine/sports decorated.
Dr. Kelsworth sits down very hard in his chair. Kelsworth
hangs up the phone. He is pale and trembling.
He gets up to get a drink to try to settle himself, but he
can barely pour, his hands are shaking so bad.
He sits back down in on his couch and looks around the room,
all the expensive things and the expensive view.
He looks down at his doctor’s coat and finally at his hands.
His trembling hands.
He gets up, determined, resolved, peaceful. He get ups,
dreamlike and moves to his desk.
He opens a drawer and pulls out a prescription pad. He
scrawls, in barely legible writing “repent.” He leaves the
pen and pad on the desk and opens a second drawer.
He pulls out a gun.
INT. MEDICAL CENTRE – HALLWAY / NURSE’S STATION. DAY.
A GUNSHOT. TWO NURSES jump and run down the hall to Dr.
Kelsworth’s office.
Drs. Robineau and Taylor emerge from their offices.
A nurse reaches the door to Kelsworth’s office. She opens it
and screams.
Robineau and Taylor reach the door, pushing the nurse aside.
Taylor rushes in.
TAYLOR
Get a crash cart up here! Stat!
83.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
The phone RINGS at the Nurse’s station. Robineau moves to the
station and picks up the phone.
ROBINEAU
Robineau speaking.
RECEPTIONIST (PHONE)
Dr. Robineau, this is Janine in
reception. A patient of Dr.
Kelsworth is here. It’s urgent.
ROBINEAU
Dr. Kelsworth is indisposed. Can I
help?
RECEPTIONIST (PHONE)
She says her son Steven had a
transplant here and that he has
AIDS. She’s brought her lawyer.
ROBINEAU
Give her our lawyer’s number and as
soon as she leaves, call him. Tell
him, I need to speak with him
urgently. Do not give her any other
information and have security
escort her out. Call the police if
you have to.
RECEPTIONIST (PHONE)
Yes, Dr. Robineau.
Robineau hangs up and walks to Kelsworth’s office.
He pauses at the door as an ORDERLY rushes out of the
elevator with the crash cart.
ROBINEAU
Take it back to the surgery. Dr.
Kelsworth is quite beyond help.
A nurse breaks down crying.
The orderly turns around.
Kelsworth’s body is on the floor and Taylor is trying to
resuscitate him.
Robineau walks in and closes the door behind him.
84.
CONTINUED:
INT. DR. KELSWORTH’S OFFICE. DAY AS BEFORE.
ROBINEAU
Don’t waste your time, Taylor.
TAYLOR
What?
Robineau looks at Kelsworth’s desk and finds the note. He
tears off the top four sheets from the pad and pockets them.
ROBINEAU
One of his patients has caught
AIDS. The mother is downstairs with
her lawyer. We have preparations to
make. The police will be here
before the close of business today.
We have to make it all him. We were
dupes; we thought he was buying
legally from third world countries.
TAYLOR
What about the marrow lab? How do
we explain that?
ROBINEAU
The police know nothing about
medicine. They aren’t going to ask
us about that. Kelsworth said you
were a worry wart. Pull yourself
together, man. We must make plans
to save ourselves. Let him go; he’s
already made his choice.
Taylor looks down at Kelsworth. Taylor is covered in
Kelsworth’s blood. He stands up, still looking at the body,
fascinated.
He looks at Robineau, and then down again.
TAYLOR (QUIETLY)
What do we do?
Taylor looks up at Robineau like a errant child called on the
carpet.
ROBINEAU
We wait for the police. See what
they know or suspect. You call our
lawyers to get here now.
85.
INT. POLICE CAR. NIGHT.
The sirens are on. Mavis is driving. Iceberg is watching all
the cars not moving out of the way. Mavis’ cell phone rings.
MAVIS
Can you get that? I’m busy.
Iceberg takes the phone from her jacket pocket.
ICEBERG
Hello? Detective MAVIS’s phone.
KATHY (PHONE)
Ralph? It’s Kathy. I saw him, I saw
the guy. His name is Buddy Powell,
and he’s just come on shift at the
hospital.
Iceberg sits up stock straight in the seat.
ICEBERG
Are you sure?
KATHY (PHONE)
Mavis gave me a couple of posters
to put up, I’m sure. I almost died.
I came around the corner and
crashed right into the bastard.
Charming as hell. Just get here. I
think the woman is here too, Shelly
Weeks, only she has green hair.
ICEBERG
This phone is nuts. Did you say
green?
KATHY (PHONE)
Yeah, it’ll be easy to find her.
Just get here.
Iceberg hangs up.
ICEBERG
It was Kathy, Powell’s working at
the hospital. Turn around.
Mavis does a dangerous turn in the almost still traffic.
ICEBERG (CONT’D)
Calm down, Kathy’s not in danger.
Buddy has no clue.
86.
(CONTINUED)
MAVIS
Okay, okay.
Mavis does not ease up. Iceberg picks up the police radio.
ICEBERG
Dispatch, this is Iceberg. My
suspect has been located at St.
Paul’s Hospital.
DISPATCH (RADIO)
Copy, Iceberg. Will send back up.
INT. HOSPITAL. NIGHT.
Iceberg and Mavis pull up, silent running with lights on.
They enter through the ambulance entrance.
FIVE UNFORMED OFFICERS and Raiki and Meyers are waiting. They
head to the emergency nurse’s station. All detectives flash
their badges.
ICEBERG
Can you page an intern named Buddy
Powell, or tell me where he is?
EMERGENCY NURSE
Sure.
Emergency Nurse picks up the intercom.
EMERGENCY NURSE (CONT’D)
Dr. Buddy Powell to Emergency. . .
INT. SUPPLY CLOSET. NIGHT.
INTERCOM/EMERGENCY NURSE
Dr. Buddy Powell to Emergency.
Buddy disentangles himself from a NURSE’S AIDE in a state of
semi-undress. He pulls his own clothes together.
BUDDY
Duty calls. Probably just another
drunk. Why don’t you wait for me?
She giggles.
INT. NURSE’S LOUNGE. NIGHT.
Shelly is reading a magazine. She gets up and stretches, then
notices the two Crime Stoppers posters.
87.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
For a moment, the posters don’t register. Shelly yawns,
adjusts her clothes and lays down on the couch.
INTERCOM/EMERGENCY NURSE
Dr. Buddy Powell to Emergency.
Suddenly the posters swing into sharp focus. Shelly runs from
the lounge.
INT. EMERGENCY ROOM. NIGHT (AS BEFORE)
Buddy enters from around the corner, right into the knot of
police.
Mavis holds up the baggie with the medical department pin.
MAVIS
Look familiar?
Instinctively, Buddy touches his collar where the pin
normally is.
Raiki steps forward.
RAIKI
Buddy Powell, you are under arrest
for suspicion of murder. It is my
duty to inform you that you have
the right to counsel and that you
have the right to consult with
counsel in private.
There is a 24-hour phone service
available which with provide you
with a legal advice and this advice
is given free of charge. The lawyer
will explain the legal aid
services. I can provide you with
the phone number. Do you
understand? Do you understand?
Buddy smiles blankly at Raiki.
BUDDY
Yes.
Two uniformed officers flank Buddy.
RAIKI
Do you want to call a lawyer?
BUDDY
I’m sure not talking to any of you.
88.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
RAIKI
You are not obligated to say
anything at this time, anything you
say can and will be held against
you in a Court of law. Do you
understand?
Buddy just nods and then the two flanking officers cuff him.
They take a few steps towards the exit. All eyes, police,
staff and patients are on Buddy’s removal.
Shelly is standing in the hallway, watching. She sleepwalks
toward Iceberg.
SHELLY
Officer?
Ralph doesn’t turn around.
ICEBERG
Sorry miss, there’s an information
officer over there if you have
questions. The hospital is
arranging for crisis counsellors.
SHELLY
No, please, you have to arrest me
too.
The two officers holding Buddy hesitate.
The emergency nurse tries to back Shelly away.
EMERGENCY NURSE
You’re just in shock.
SHELLY
You don’t understand, we did it.
Buddy tries to get back into the Emergency Room. The two
officers struggle with him.
BUDDY
Shut up, Shel! Shut the fuck up!
Everyone turns around to face Shelly. Iceberg takes in her
panic look and her green hair.
The world slows down, as Iceberg turns, Shelly lunges for his
gun.
89.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
Mavis, Raiki, Meyers and the remaining UNIFORMS all draw
their guns.
The uniforms holding Buddy throw him to the ground and cover
him.
Iceberg stands in shocked stillness, unable to react.
Shelly fumbles the gun, but releases the safety. The GUN
FIRES, but hits the wall above Iceberg’s head.
Mavis is fastest, her THREE SHOTS hit Shelly in three tight
hits in the chest.
Shelly’s body jerks, dances in the air a moment, and then
falls.
Shelly hits the ground a moment before Iceberg’s gun hits the
floor with a loud CRASH.
The world resumes its normal pace as the gun slides a few
inches before settling.
The emergency staff respond quickly. Shelly is picked up and
taken into surgery.
INTERN
Get me a crash cart and 3 units of
blood, STAT!
INT. INTEROGATION ROOM. DAY.
Buddy is sullen, unshaven.
Iceberg and Mavis sit across from him.
On the table are Buddy’s pin in a baggie, and Gail Thompson’s
autopsy report. Photos of the other victims are also visible.
MAVIS
Okay, Powell, we know there’s more
bodies out there. Make it easier on
yourself. Do the right thing and
let the families out there have
closure. Let them bury their dead.
BUDDY
You got nothing.
Mavis looks pointedly at all the reports, photos and
paperwork she’d carefully crowded the table with.
90.
CONTINUED: (2)
(CONTINUED)
MAVIS
Crown Counsel will have a different
opinion. We have your pin from a
victim. We have fingernail
scrapings from Gail Thompson that
match Shelly Weeks’ DNA. We have
her confession, which implicated
you, which many officers and
hospital staff heard.
Iceberg pushes the autopsy photos a little closer to Buddy.
Buddy looks but is not at all affected by the images.
ICEBERG
Make it easy on yourself, we know
it wasn’t just you and Shelly.
We’ll find out; we’ve got officers
all over the hospital and the
university, asking who your friends
were, who you hung out with most.
Buddy just looks at them. They stare at each other for a
moment, Buddy smiles when Mavis begins speaking, as if he’d
won something.
MAVIS
What did you want with the organs?
How did you pick your victims?
BUDDY
You think you can find out on
campus, go ahead. No one knows
anything because I didn’t do
anything. Those pins can be bought
at the bookstore, could be
anyone’s. So, you got Shelly’s DNA.
Not mine. Shelly confessed to being
the killer, her and some unknown
people. It’s not like you can
question her now about who else she
meant. I want to call a lawyer.
Iceberg gets up and opens the door. An OFFICER peeks around
the corner.
ICEBERG
Take him to a phone; he wants a
lawyer. I want him on suicide
watch.
The officer nods and enters the room. He leads Buddy away.
91.
CONTINUED:
EXT. STREET – STORE WINDOW WITH TV SETS. NIGHT
PAULINE
I’m Pauline Versher, reporting live
to you from Vancouver with this
news update. After a shoot out at
St. Paul’s Hospital earlier today,
police have arrested Intern Buddy
Powell. A second suspect, Intern
Shelly Weeks was killed in a gun
battle with police.
Police have not issued any
statements regarding why the pair
committed the murders. We’ll take
you now the Action News Studios,
where we have Daryl Haebler’s
mother, Anne Haebler and Gail
Thompson’s sister, Joyce Carson.
This is Pauline Versher, Action
News. Back to you, Peter.
INT. CONVENIENCE STORE. NIGHT.
Ted is at a store. He has a carton of milk.
A STREET PUNK enters.
As Ted moves to put the milk on the counter, the Street Punk
moves in close behind him.
The street punk pulls a gun and shoots Ted point blank in the
back of the head.
Ted and the milk fall to the floor in a flood of liquid, as
the carton breaks on impact.
The CLERK opens the cash register.
CLERK
Take it, take the money, please
don’t shoot.
The clerk is piling the money on the counter.
The street punk grabs only some of the money, and then runs
out to a waiting car.
The clerk grabs the phone.
92.
(CONTINUED)
CLERK (CONT’D)
Hello 911? I’ve just been robbed, a
customer got shot. I think he’s
dead. Please help.
INT. PAYPHONE ACROSS THE STREET. NIGHT
MARCUS
It’s not a problem. I’ll be back in
Seattle tonight.
INT. INTEROGATION ROOM. DAY.
CROWN COUNSEL LAWYER (40′s female) is sitting with Mavis and
Iceberg.
Once again they have spread out the same reports, pictures,
Buddy’s pin and a photo of Shelly. Buddy looks sullenly at
it. BUDDY’S LAWYER (30′s male) is not impressed.
LAWYER
Do these really have to be here?
MAVIS
It’s what we’re here to talk about.
LAWYER
Let’s hear your offer.
CROWN COUNSEL
It depends on the quality and
quantity that your client has to
offer. I want the org chart.
LAWYER
My client needs certain protections
before we tell you anything.
CROWN COUNSEL
How much is your client willing to
explain? We know that he had to
have other accomplices than Ms
Weeks. We’ve pulled Mr. Powell’s
school records, from the reviews by
his professors, Mr. Powell does not
possess the surgical skill for the
surgeries performed on the victims.
Although, his skill did noticeably
improve over the time period of the
murders.
93.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
LAWYER
My client was not a willing
participant. Shelly Weeks was the
ring leader. She had my client
under her sway by influence of
money and sex, for starters.
Crown Counsel looks at Buddy.
CROWN COUNSEL
Big, strapping lad like him under
the sway of a small woman who was
described by her roommate as…
She looks through the papers to find the report that she
knows exactly where it is.
CROWN COUNSEL (CONT’D)
Here it is: “Fun to party with, but
not much of a conversationalist”?
We know about the many purchases
Buddy made, Ms Weeks paid off her
grandmother’s mortgage. Can’t do
that on student loans and no job.
In case you want to know, Mr.
Powell, her grandmother had a heart
attack. Too much grief to lose her
only family. She’s in St. Paul’s
doing well physically, but you can
imagine the damage this has done.
LAWYER
Hardly appropriate. Mr. Powell
naturally is concerned about his
friend’s grandmother, but he is in
no way responsible. You still
haven’t said your offer.
CROWN COUNSEL
You haven’t given me much to give
you an offer for.
LAWYER
Let me confer with my client.
CROWN COUNSEL
Certainly.
Iceberg, Mavis and Crown get up and leave the room.
94.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
LAWYER
You’ve got to tell me everything,
I’m trying to save you here.
BUDDY
Forget it. I was their leader; I
promised to protect them. Did you
get ahold of Ted?
LAWYER
No, that e-mail address you gave me
came back as undeliverable.
BUDDY
I can’t believe that Ted would just
abandon me.
Buddy slumps down, as if the impact of everything was
suddenly overwhelming him.
BUDDY (CONT’D)
Just plead me guilty. Guilty to
whatever they want to charge me
with. I’ll tell them everything in
exchange for them not going after
the other two.
LAWYER
I don’t think that that’s in your
best interests.
BUDDY
I don’t care. They’ve probably got
a wire tap in the room anyway. Who
cares. Just do it. Or I’ll get
another lawyer. Cheap suit. Last
week, I bet I made more money than
you.
The lawyer can’t repress a disgusted look at Buddy. He gets
up, quickly, to bring the others back.
Crown Counsel, Iceberg and Mavis re-enter the room and take
their seats.
The Crown spreads out the victim photos: Collins, Gill,
Haebler, Baker and Thompson.
CROWN COUNSEL
You were involved with the murders
of all of these people?
95.
CONTINUED: (2)
(CONTINUED)
Buddy doesn’t even look at the photos.
BUDDY
Yes.
CROWN COUNSEL
Why did you kill them?
BUDDY
I was hired by a guy named Ted. Ted
offered me lots of money if I could
procure organs for a clinic in
Seattle. He said I’d get an
residency there, shorter hours and
more money than anywhere else I’d
get. And, in time, a research
position, doing work in cloning.
CROWN COUNSEL
Cloning’s illegal and immoral.
Buddy looks at the Crown patronizingly.
CROWN COUNSEL (cont’d)
Which clinic?
BUDDY
I don’t know which Clinic.
CROWN COUNSEL
But, this one victim, Baker, he
didn’t have anything removed.
BUDDY
Duh, we needed a room in the hotel
that wasn’t linked to us. It was a
trap for Haelber. We knew that he
went there every Friday night.
Shelly picked up the guy in the
bar, and we followed them up
stairs, and we got him out of the
way so we could set up for Haebler.
CROWN COUNSEL
Who is “we”?
BUDDY
I’m not giving up my team, I
promised them. My word means
something to me; and that’s all I
have left. So, you’ll just have to
throw the book at me.
96.
CONTINUED: (3)
INT. PROJECT HARVEST OFFICE. DAY.
The office has been dismantled. Most of the materials are
gone. It looks like a new task force has started moving in.
Iceberg cracks a bottle of champagne. Grace holds out two
glasses as he pours.
Meyers, Johnston, Raiki, Brooks and Mavis all gather around
to get their glasses. When everyone has one, they toast.
ICEBERG
To a great team. Let’s hope we
don’t have to work together again
for a long time.
ALL
Hear hear!
They drink and then move around the room a bit. The Board is
cleared of photos and everything.
BROOKS
Our counterparts in Washington
state cracked the other end. They
nailed the clinic where the organs
were going. The four people who got
organs from Haebler all developed
AIDS.
Some of them glance at Mavis for a reaction. She is stoic.
BROOKS (CONT’D)
When one patient’s mother brought
in her lawyer, the doctor – a Dr.
Kelsworth – shot himself.
MAVIS
Funny how one man’s tragedy ends up
stopping more deaths occuring. If
Haebler hadn’t gotten AIDS, it
would have been harder to trace the
organs to the end destination.
ICEBERG
Now it’s up to the RCMP and FBI to
track down all the middle men.
GRACE
If they can. It was quite the set
up. Several layers only knowing the
one above and below. Almost worked.
97.
(CONTINUED)
ICEBERG
You sound like you admire them,
Grace.
GRACE
Well, not as such. Admire? No. But
there was a certain sensibility to
the architecture of their
organization. They just fell into
the trap that all criminals do
eventually.
MAVIS
And that is?
GRACE
They got greedy.
Iceberg moves to the edge of the party. Mavis watches him and
then moves to the corner with him.
ICEBERG
Thanks, for… covering my back. I
was…
MAVIS
It’s what partners are for. You had
your back to her, don’t beat
yourself up. You didn’t see her
coming. It was unexpected.
ICEBERG
I just can’t believe that – I froze
like that. She could have killed
me.
MAVIS
Iceberg – Ralph – you pulled
through. Hell, if you had moved, I
might have hit you. I had a really
narrow sight line to her.
ICEBERG
So, how are you doing, I mean, I
know cops do their whole thirty
years and never draw their gun on
duty.
Mavis’ eyes tear a little.
98.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
MAVIS
I’ve never taken a life like that,
it was just so fast. I’m going to
take some time off. A few weeks,
maybe couple months. I have a
counseling appointment tomorrow. A
sweat lodge this weekend.
(a beat)
It’s not what I signed up to do,
shoot people, but I need to move
through this so I can get back to
my job, that I still love.
Intellectually I know these things.
Right now, I’m having a hard time
looking in the mirror.
ICEBERG
We’re gonna need you, Gerrard.
Okay, I say, we take off for the
rest of the day. Hey, call Kathy,
tell her to take the rest of her
shift off and the three of us go
hit the lesbian bars!
Mavis looked at him in shock.
ICEBERG (CONT’D)
There’s got to be some open minded
bisexual women there who wouldn’t
mind slumming for a night.
MAVIS
Ralph, you are definitely a catch.
You might get thrown back, but
you’re definitely a catch. I’m not
up to it.
ICEBERG
Okay, if you take me to a lesbian
bar, I’ll tell you how I got my
nickname. It’s the least I can do
considering you’re the reason I’m
still able to tell it.
Mavis picks up the phone.
INT. LESBIAN BAR. NIGHT
Kathy, Mavis and Iceberg at seated at a back table, away from
the speakers and pool tables.
99.
CONTINUED: (2)
(CONTINUED)
The bar is NOISY, smokey, and LOUD QUEER CLUB MUSIC is
playing.
KATHY
So, Mavis says we finally get to
know the origins of your nickname.
Iceberg smiles, teasingly.
ICEBERG
I guess it’s only fair. There’s a
lot of stories floating around the
station about me doing incredible
feats of shooting or driving or
keeping my cool, one day, I’ll
collect’em all in a book. But
really, it’s embarrassing.
KATHY
No backing out!
MAVIS
Pony up, Iceberg!
ICEBERG
Okay, I won’t drag it out. It stems
from my training days, when I was a
know nothing recruit. I
accidentally backed a patrol car
into a produce truck and buried the
car and myself in…
KATHY & MAVIS
Iceberg lettuce!?
They all laugh. Mavis just shakes her head at Iceberg.
ICEBERG
You can’t tell anyone, you’ll blow
my reputation. Mind you, I think my
freeze at the hospital did that.
MAVIS
Bergman, Ralph. It’s long passed
the time you needed to put that
reputation to rest. Maybe,
somewhere in the back of your mind,
that’s why you couldn’t react. You
knew I had your back.
ICEBERG
I could have been killed.
100.
CONTINUED:
(CONTINUED)
MAVIS
I had your back the whole time,
partner.
Mavis and Iceberg smile at each other.
The SONG CHANGES.
KATHY
I think that this is our song,
partner!
Kathy and Mavis get up and head for the dance floor.
Iceberg watches them for a moment. He pulls out his wallet,
opens it and looks at a picture of Clare. His fingertip runs
over her cheek. He puts the wallet away.
Iceberg picks up his drink and looks around the bar, at the
DYKES enoying life, dancing, playing pool, talking, laughing
and drinking.
An attractive WOMAN smiles at Iceberg. He smiles back. She
walks over to his table, with a mischievous smile on her
face.

read also:

the original three day novel contest entry that the script is based on

http://dykewriter.wordpress.com/2013/07/06/three-day-novel-1998-harvest-killers/