COLD

Part one

An Original Screenplay
By
Jack Bush

Copyright © Jack Bush 2004

 ACT I

The screen is black. We hear a voiceover. It belongs to David Reid.

DAVID (v.o)
The last thing I ever wanted to
do with my life was kill
people. Now... that's all I
want do.

EXT – ALLEY – NIGHT

The alley is gloomy in the darkness of night. The moonlight casts

shallow light into the murky back street. Some of the sheet metal
doors have bar lights above them, but not many. A cat rummaging
around in a dustbin dives for cover as one of the metal doors fly
open. The man exits the doorway in mid-air, he crashes into the
dustbin just vacated by the feline. He rebounds off the alley wall
and falls to the ground with a grunt. He is in his middle thirties,
dressed in suit trousers and blood stained white shirt. Laying
there, he looks up at the door he's just left behind, fear in his
eyes. A man in black appears in the doorway. Black suit, black
shirt, black tie. His name is David Reid. He stands, glaring down
at the prong figure before him.

DAVID
Where are they?

The man on the ground has no energy to talk. His battered face
contorts an expression that resembles a smirk. A mistake. David's
eyes narrow with anger at the man’s defiance. He opens his jacket
and takes a gun out of a shoulder holster. The smirk on the
grounded man’s face has vanished. David walks to him and grabs him
by the shirt collar, pulling him into a sitting position. David
aims the gun at his face, the barrel of the snub nose revolver
millimeters from the man’s forehead. The man opens his mouth, the
smirk appearing again in his eyes. David lowers the gun and rests
it on the man’s bottom set of teeth. The man closes his mouth
around the barrel. He looks David straight in the eye and then
slowly closes his eyelids, the edges of his mouth creasing upwards
into a final smile. David retracts the gun barrel. The man opens
his eyes in confusion. Holding the gun in one hand, with the other
hand still holding the man up in a sitting position, David tosses
the gun in the air, flipping it over and catching it by the barrel.
The man now stares at the butt of the gun aiming at his face. It's
David's turn to smile.

DAVID (cont’d)
You didn't think I'd make it
quick, did you?

David raises the gun butt, as if ready to hammer in a tent peg. The

2
 man gasps.

The butt of the gun connects with the bridge of the man’s nose. The
bone shatters. Blood explodes from the broken appendage like a
charge has been set off in the middle of the man’s face. David
raises the bloody butt twice more, one hit caves in a cheek bone.
The other bursts an eyeball. David raises the gun again and the
whole scene goes into freeze frame. A commentary by David runs over
the still picture of violence.

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

A man once told me that revenge
is a dish best served cold. The
only downside to that statement
is, that to wreak revenge,
wrong must first be wreaked on
you. I have all but cried my
tears of sorrow. This is my
time now. And no-one's going to
stop me!

FADE OUT:

FADE IN:

INT – HOUSE – EVENING

David is standing in the livingroom of his house. The room is a

shambles. The television is over turned and smashed, furniture has
been ripped open and the stuffing is hanging out. Broken ornaments
lay in pieces on the blood stained carpet. At David's feet is the
body of a woman, naked. She has a knife sticking out of the side
of her neck and a trickle of blood coming from the corner of her
mouth. The blood has long since stopped flowing. She has been
badly beaten and also has blood smeared down her inner thighs. Her
name was Michelle Reid. David's wife. He gazes down at her with a
blind stare on his face, a single tear rolling down his cheek. His
voice- over continues.

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

Michelle and I were married
June 29th. It was the second
happiest day of my life. She
was the only woman I had ever
loved. Everything was great,
our social life, our love life,
even to sit in silence in each
others company gave me the
deepest feeling of contentment
I still to this day can't
explain. If there ever was such
a thing as a sole mate, I had
been lucky enough to find
mine... On the day I found her,

3
 she had been beaten, raped and
murdered. Inserted in her
vagina, was her own severed
tongue.

CUT TO:

INT – HALLWAY – CONTINUOUS

David stands looking at the closed door of his son's bedroom. A

name plate on the door says “Peter”. Above the name on the plaque,
is a cow jumping over the moon. Bloody hand prints are scattered
over the upper and lower door panels of the white finish. On the
wall beside the door, crudely written in blood, is the word,
“CUNTS”. David’s voiceover continues.

DAVID (v.o)
The birth of our son, Peter,
was number one on the list of
my happiest days. Born August
2nd. He weighed 7 pounds 4 ounces
and didn't stop crying till he
was put in his mothers arms.
Once there a smile beamed
across his face that made me
weep with a joy I had never
felt before and knew I would
never feel again once the
moment was gone. As we sat
there, Michelle, little Peter
and me, nothing was said, words
were inadequate. The slightest
sound would have spoiled the
whole passing of time. We were
in the presence of our own
family history in the making
and we were absorbing ever
second of it to memory.

David slowly open the bedroom door. He stands there gazing into the
room at a site we thankfully do not see. Voiceover.

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

The image of Peter's discovery
is a vision I will never
forget. He had been used like a
human football, cigarette burns
decorated his tiny frame, both
his arms and legs had been
broken, and his dummy tit had
been inserted into his anus...
He was two days away from his

4
 first birthday.

David falls to his knees at the threshold of the door and screams
at the top of his voice.

DAVID (cont’d)
Noooooooooooo!!!

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

At this point, the thought of
the culprits still being in the
house didn't concern me in the
least. Death was all I had to
look forward to, my life had
already been taken away.

The shadow of a small group of people appear behind David. He

senses there presence and turns, still on his knees with tears
streaming down his face. He looks up at the men that we do not
see.

DAVID (cont’d)
Why?!

A baseball bat smashes into his up-turned face. Freeze frame.

Voiceover.

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

Then all I saw was darkness.
And all I felt was pain. But it
didn't last forever. Nothing
ever does... The only mistake
they made that day, was not
killing me. Instead, I was
reborn... And not in a good
way.

FADE OUT:

FADE IN:

INT – CAR – DAY

David is driving the car, dressed in casual shirt and trousers.

Michelle is in the passenger seat, a thin white blouse and skirt is
her choice of clothing. In the back of the car, in a baby seat, is
Peter. He has a bemused look on his little face as he stares out of
the side window at the world going by. Michelle turns in here seat
to check on her son. He looks at her, a little gurgle building in
his throat. David glances in the rearview mirror at the child in

5
 the baby seat. He smiles. Michelle faces front again and gazes at
the side of her husbands face, she puts her hand on top of his
which is on the gear stick. David's voiceover returns to us.

DAVID (v.o)
The day was beautiful. It was
the first time we had all gone
away together. Peter's
beginning of many planed
outings. If I'd only known the
purpose of the day that fate
had arranged for us, we
would’ve never left the
house... But that's life in a
nutshell, isn't it?... Who
knows what the next corner will
bring.

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

If each one of us knew our
destinies, life wouldn't be
lived. It would be feared...
Our Journey began at dawn.

EXT – HOTEL – DAY

David steers the car into the car park of the hotel. The building
itself stands as an old castle renovated into a hotel. A stones
throw from the edge of the car park is a roaming hillsides that
lead down to Loch Ness. Voiceover.

DAVID (v.o)
The great stretch of water
known as Loch Ness has always
had a fondness in my heart. As
a child, my parents had taken
me to this place many a time.
Never had a summer holiday
taken a turn for the worst
while I spent it in the company
of the Loch. The place was more
then peaceful, it was tranquil.
It was something that I wanted
to introduce to my son at the
earliest of ages.

The car parks and David and Michelle get out. Michelle opens the
back door of the car and releases Peter from his baby seat. She
hugs him into her chest and David closes the door. They walk to the
front of the hotel and enter.

INT – HOTEL – CONTINUOUS

6
David walks up to the reception desk and Michelle takes a seat by
the door, cradling Peter in her arms. The man behind the desk
greets David. He is a big built, tall man, dressed in a suit. His
name is Mr. Foyers.

MR. FOYERS
Mr. Reid, it's great to see you
back again.

DAVID
It's great to be back again.

Mr. Foyers looks over David's shoulder and sees Michelle

with the baby.

MR. FOYERS
And if my eyes don't deceive
me, I think we have a new
arrival?

David turns and smiles at his wife and son.

DAVID
That's Peter. Peter, this is
Mr. Foyers.

The baby stares aimlessly at his father and the new face.

MR. FOYERS
He has the look of his Mother.

DAVID
Thank God for that!

Both men laugh.

MR. FOYERS
So, you'll be looking for a
family room then?

DAVID
That would be about right.

MR. FOYERS
We have an excellent one at the
top of the building. Breath
taking views of the Loch.

DAVID
Sounds perfect.

MR. FOYERS
Would you like a hand with any
bags you have?

7
 DAVID
Don't worry about that, I'll
take care of them. What you
could do for me, is tell me if
there’s any of your staff that
would be up for a bit of over
time, baby sitting little
Peter. Just for a couple of
hours this evening.

MR. FOYERS
I'm sure I can take care of
that. What rate will I tell
them it's going for?

DAVID
Whatever they get here an hour,
they can double it.

MR. FOYERS
No problem, Mr. Reid. A porter
will show you to your room.

DAVID
Thanks.

INT – HOTEL BEDROOM – MOMENTS LATER

A porter enters the room followed by David and family. The porter
goes about his business, showing them all they need to know about
the room and the hotel. We hear nothing that is said, as David's
voiceover returns.

DAVID (v.o)
This was it. This was my life.
And I was so happy with it. We
were the proper family unit. We
never argued, I never got drunk
and played away from home.
Michelle was the most caring
and loving mother and wife I
have ever heard of. She adored
her new son and she adored her
new role as head of the family.
I was the bread winner, but she
was the head of the family,
there was no question about it.
She had her head screw on, mine
was merely placed... Come to

8
 think of it, what you're seeing
here is pointless. The sole
reason of this is to establish
that we were nice people. That
my wife and son should never
have died the way they did.
Take my word for it, we were
nice.... Now there's just me.
And I don't do “nice,” anymore.

EXT – SHORES OF LOCH NESS – NIGHT

David and Michelle are standing on the pebbled shore looking over
the ripple free surface of the great stretch of water. Michelle
starts skipping a stones over the water. David counts the skims.
Behind them we see a tent has been pitched on a grassy area, with a
little fire burning in front of it. Cue David's voiceover.

DAVID (v.o)
Little Peter had taken quite
well to his babysitter. A young
girl called Lindsay, very
polite. So Michelle and I could
nip off for a couple of hours,
have a little bit of
togetherness. The first time we
made love was at this very
site. I'd been bugging her to
come camping with me.

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

The main reason being, she
would have to sleep with me. In
saying that, I don't mean she
would have to have sex with me,
don't get me wrong. I mean we
would have to spend the night
under the roof of the same
tent. That was good enough for
me. For her to be the last face
I saw at night and the first
one to see in the morning, that
was all I needed. That did it
for me. We're talking true love
here...! Just pay attention,
this is where it all begins.

Michelle skims a stone, David counts.

DAVID (cont’d)
Seven!

9
 MICHELLE
No, that was eight.

DAVID
Behave, it was only seven.

MICHELLE
Was not.

Michelle turns on David, with a sly grin on her face. She grabs
him by the arms.

MICHELLE (cont'd)
Just because you hold the
record, and eight beats it.

DAVID
That's right, eight does beat
it. That's why it was only
seven.

MICHELLE
You may be a lot of good things
David Reid, but your not a good
loser.

DAVID
Hey, you just can't count worth
a shit.

Michelle laughs and pulls David to her. They kiss. David breaks the
kiss and pulls back.

DAVID (cont’d)
Ok, here's the deal. If I agree
it was eight, can we do the
kissing thing quite a lot
tonight?

MICHELLE
How about making it nine?

DAVID
I don't know if my blood
pressure could take that!

MICHELLE
I think we can chance it.

Michelle pulls him close again. Their lips connect. Both of them

10
slowly lower to the ground. In the background, someone cries out.
Not a shout for help. More a war cry of a command for something to
begin. David and Michelle both break the kiss and look in the
direction of the sound. They see, in the distance between the
trees, a small explosion of light, as a fire is lit in a not too
distant field.

DAVID
What the hell?

David gets to his feet, followed by Michelle. Both have their eyes
glued to the far off fire in the middle of an empty field.

MICHELLE
What is it? David, what they
doing?

DAVID
I don’t have the first idea.
But lets take a closer look.

David looks at Michelle and gives her a wink. His eyes twinkle
with mischief.

MICHELLE
How old are you?

DAVID
I'll be twelve and a half on my
next birthday.

Michelle shakes her head at him, with a bemused smile on her face.
She chuckles at her husbands childishness.

DAVID (cont’d)
Come on, it could be an orgy!

Michelle punches him on the side of the arm playfully, then

follows him as he walks to the tree line, separating them from the
field beyond. As they stare through the branches for a better
view, they see a single tree in the middle of the field.

It looks like it’s died a death years ago. Savage branches stick
out at odd angles. It's completely bare of leaves. In front of the
tree the fire has been lit. A group of around twelve men surround
the over-sized campfire, all have on black robes with hoods up.
David and Michelle gaze at the sight in wonder of what they're
seeing. The man at the head of the fire, wearing a red robe,
raises his arms and says a single word that has no place in the
English language. It's similar to the cry that got the fire lit.
At that signal, every other man in the group shrugs off the black
robe. Eleven men now stand there, naked.

MICHELLE

11
 Holy shit, It is an orgy!

David puts a hand over his wife’s eyes.

DAVID
Why couldn't it be women?!

Michelle pulls his hand away and continues to stare at the sight
before them.

MICHELLE
You'd love that, wouldn't you?
Besides, none of them are
really putting you to shame.

DAVID
Nice to know you're looking so
closely, dear.

MICHELLE
Purely on a professional level.
I don't think they would be my
type anyway. Maybe it's just
me, but a dozen naked guys in a
field... I don't think they'd
be into women some how.

DAVID
I'll tell you one thing, if
they all turn to the right and
start playing stationary leap
frog, we're leaving.

MICHELLE
I never thought you were
homophobic?

DAVID
I just don’t see it as a
spectators sport, that’s all.

Michelle laughs quietly at David. David starts to stare more

intently at the scene before them.

DAVID (cont’d)
Something’s happening.

They watch as the only man still in his red robe, at the head of
the fire lifts up a pot that was on the ground, hidden by the
flames of the fire until now. He raises it over head, then lowers
it and passes it to the first naked man to his left. The man takes
the pot, without looking inside, takes out what looks like a small
chunk of bread, and holds it in the air. He then passes the pot on
to the next man, who does the same. This continues with every man

12
doing the same thing till it gets back to the dressed man at the
head of the fire. He then lowers the pot out of sight again and
seems to survey the raised balls of dough. He points at a man
who's bread looks darker in colour to the rest of them and lets
out the war cry again. All men then lower their morsels of food
and eat. When finished, the man who was pointed at, walks to the
head of the fire and nods to the dressed man. He then turns his
back on him and closes his eyes. The red robed man reveals a
length of pipe and swings it at the back of the man’s head. Even
in the distance between them, David and Michelle hear it make
contact with the rear of the man’s skull. The man drops out of
sight behind the fire.

MICHELLE
Oh my God!

The man in the robe now takes out a length of rope from under his
garment. The remaining ten naked man all walk to the head of the
fire. Two pick up the unconscious man. One takes the rope from the
dressed man and puts it round the unconscious man’s neck, he then
throws the other end up and over one of the jagged limbs of the
dead tree. The others catch the slack as it come down the other
side. They all begin to pull on the rope. The man raises off the
ground. Once his chest is about head hight, his ascent is stopped.
The rope is then tied off at the base of the tree. All men gather
at the swing feet of the hanging man. The man in the robe has one
more thing to reveal. He takes the sacrificial knife from a sleeve,
reaches up and slashes the man’s throat, severing the carotid
artery. Blood jets out of the dying man’s neck, splashing onto the
men below. All of the naked men begin to chant.

NAKED MEN
Give joy, give joy, give joy,
give joy, give joy, give joy.

David glances at Michelle, with a look of disbelief and horror on

his face. His wife meets his gaze with the same expression.

DAVID
I think it’s time we got the
hell out of here.

MICHELLE
No shit!

They turn and come face to face with a shaggy looking German
Shepard, who has obviously been standing there some time watching
them. It's mouth turns into a snarl and the faint sound of a growl
starts to build in it's throat. Freeze frame on the dog. David's
voiceover returns.

DAVID (v.o)
Because of this mutt my wife is

13
 dead. My son is dead. Where it
came from, I don't know. Where
it went back to, I don't know.
I think sometimes, things just
appear. There is no reason for
them being there, but they just
are. Like this dog, in the
middle of nowhere, in the
middle of the night. With no
other purpose, than to fuck up
my life.

The scene goes back into motion. David holds Michelle's hand.

DAVID (cont’d)
Don't make any sudden movements
and whatever you do, don't...

The dog barks, breaking the silence of night. The chanting in the
field stops. David and Michelle look over their shoulder. Every
man is staring at the area of trees they are standing at. The man
with the robe points at them and lets out the war cry. Every naked
man starts running towards David and Michelle. They both turn back
to face the dog. It's gone. David says one word.

DAVID (cont’d)
Run!

David bolts into action, dragging Michelle away from the danger by
the hand. They charge back through the borderline of trees and into
the clearing of their campsite. With no time to stop and collect
anything, David swoops down as they race past the campfire and
grabs up the hatchet he had used earlier to chop some wood. They
start to run up a grassy incline, leading them to their parked car
in a lay-by. They are half way up when Michelle slips on the dewy
grass, her hand is wrenched from David's. She lets out a yelp as
she starts to slide back down the small hillside. David turns and
is about to give chase when his feet give out beneath him too.
David lands on his butt with a grunt and starts to slide. He sees
one of the naked men appear, about twenty feet from the bottom of
the hill. Michelle is ten feet away and still sliding. David has
only one option. He tosses the hatchet. It flies end over end and
the blade catches the approaching man on the side of the head,
shearing off one of his ears. The man stops and screams in pain,
throwing his hands up to the bleeding side of his head. Michelle
lands at the bottom of the hill and desperately tries to get back
on her feet. David slides in beside her a second later, he dashes
to the man and pushes him out of the way and retrieves his hatchet.
Just as David turns back towards the hillside and sees Michelle
making her way back up the slope, another man appears and lets out
a scream of anger. David spins round blindly and swings the blade
of the small axe at the naked man’s mid-section. The sharp edged
metal makes the connection with the tip of the man’s penis, slicing
off the appendage of limp flesh. The man cups himself and falls to
his knees. Shocked into total silence, he falls on his face. Then
the scream comes. A shriek of pain through his grass filled mouth.

14
 David hears the approach of the rest of the men and turns tail and
heads for the slope. As he glances up, he sees that Michelle is
nearing the top. He thrusts a hand into his pocket and pulls out
the car keys, he shouts to his wife.

DAVID (cont’d)
Michelle!

Michelle turns her head and looks down at her husband. David
launches the keys up the slope towards her. Michelle puts a hand
out to catch them. David's throw is a couple of inches short, the
keys fall in front of Michelle, landing on the grassy slope. Before
they have a chance of skidding away, Michelle hook her foot down on
top of them. She bends down, grabs them and continues to the brim
of the hill. Michelle stops at the top and looks down at her
husband. He is just passing the half way mark, with four naked man
about fifteen feet behind him. David glances up and sees his wife
waiting. He shouts at her again.

DAVID (cont’d)
Don't wait for me! Start the
car!

Michelle dashes out of sight, beyond the top of the hill. David
chances a look over his shoulder. The four men behind him have a
look of pure anger on their faces. The one who had his ear sliced
off is also getting to his feet to rejoin the chase. David grunts
in panic as he puts all his energy into getting to the top of the
hill. He reaches the summit on hands and knee and jumps to his
feet. He sees his car no more than thirty feet away and rushes to
it. As he nears it he looks confused as to why it's not running
yet. David glimpses Michelle in the driver’s seat franticly
turning the ignition key. He reaches the passenger door and tugs
it open.

INT – CAR – CONTINUOUS

David throws himself into the passenger seat and slams the door
closed. Michelle is still turning the ignition key to no avail.

DAVID
You've got to be kidding me!

MICHELLE
The guy at the garage said he'd
fixed it!

David slams his hand on the dashboard.

DAVID
Fucking cowboys!

David glances out the side window and sees the first naked man

15
reaching the summit. He jumps to his feet, as David did no more
than thirty seconds ago. David turns back to Michelle, a crazed
look in his eyes. David talks again with more of a softness in his
voice, more to the car than to Michelle.

DAVID (cont’d)
Come on baby.

Michelle turns the keys again. The car bursts into life. She floors
it. David looks back out the side window at the man running at the
car. As the car pulls away he makes a dive at it and smashes
through the back passenger window. Glass tears into the man’s
flesh, but it seems not to bother him. Michelle screams but keeps
driving, David turns in his seat and tries to fight the man off and
put him back out the window his legs are still hanging outside of.
The man makes a grab for the back of Michelle's head and shouts.

NAKED MAN
I'm going to eat your cunt!!

David blocks the man’s advancing arms and hits him on the bridge of
the nose, the man screams in anger and blindly throws a forearm in
David's direction, it hits him at the top of his forehead and skids
away. The man loses his balance of being half in and half out of
the car and start to topple out. The man nearly falls back out the
window, but as he's almost disappeared from sight, his hand catches
hold of the safety handle inside the car above the back door. The
man screams from outside as he's pulled alongside the car. David
looks at the hatchet on his lap, then to Michelle. She looks back
at him.

MICHELLE
Do it!

David swings the small axe round and connects it with the man’s
wrist. The scream heightens from outside. The blade has gouged half
way into the man’s wrist, blood is spraying onto the white ceiling
of the car but still the man doesn't let go. David swings again.
The man disappears out of sight. The severed hand remains tightly
gripped to the safety handle above the door. David turns to face
front again and winds down his window. He leans out and vomits.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
Jesus Christ, I can't believe
this. Did you hear what he said
to me?!

David, finishes throwing up and closes the window again.

DAVID
I heard him, Michelle, I heard
him. If it's any consolation, I
can't believe this either.

16
Michelle glances at him, taking her eyes off the road for a
second.

MICHELLE
Are you ok?

DAVID
I'm guessing you're meaning
that in the rhetorical sense.

DAVID (cont’d)
We're running for our lives
from about a dozen naked guys
who just killed someone. Being
ok is something I'm not going
to be till we get Peter and get
the hell out of this whole
area.

MICHELLE
I'm asking about your health,
David. You just chucked out the
window.

DAVID
I'm fine. Just don't look in
the back seat.

Michelle cranes her neck round and has a quick look. She looks at
the actual seat and not the safety handle. She whips her head back
round.

MICHELLE
There's nothing there.

DAVID
What did I just say!?

MICHELLE
Hey, you tell someone there's
wet paint, the first thing they
do is touch it! Tell me what
I'm looking for, I'm still in
shock, nothings going to freak
me out more than I am
already... Tell me!

DAVID
The safety handle, above the
back door.

Michelle slowly takes her eyes off the road and prepares to turn.
David puts a hand on the steering wheel. Michelle looks. She sees
the severed hand and the jet splash of blood that is spurted on

17
the ceiling of the car. Michelle puts a hand to her mouth and
stiffens, forcing her foot down on the pedal. The car bursts
forward with the sudden extra surge of acceleration. David
struggles with the wheel.

DAVID (cont’d)
Jesus shit, Michelle!

Michelle whirls round and goes to grab the wheel again. Headlights
appear in front of them, speeding round a sharp corner. The car is
in the middle of the narrow road. Michelle screams, David lets out
a yelp of fear and grabs the wheel again and tugs it towards him.
The car, just feet in front of them, swerves at the last moment.
David pulls up the hand brake.

The car goes into a skid, the back end fish tailing onto the grass
verge at the side of the road. The back wheels slip into a ditch
and the whole car begins to slide side ways alone the verge,
heading straight towards a telegraph pole. David sees it coming.

DAVID (cont’d)
Oh shit!

They brace themselves for impact, but with only about ten feet to
go, the wheels of the car are caught on the undergrowth and it
flips onto it's side and the roof crashes into the pole caving it
in down the middle. The dent inside has bent the metal roof down
to the top of the head rests. With the drivers side now being up
in the air, Michelle is thrown on top of David. David grunts
underneath the added weight as the broken glass from his window
digs into his side. The car stops moving. Everything goes still
and silent. David groans, Michelle tries to pull herself up off
the top of him.

MICHELLE
Are you ok?

DAVID
There’s that question again.

MICHELLE
I'll take that as a yes. Give
me sec.

Michelle pulls herself up towards her side of the car, which is in

the air. With her drivers side window broken too, she pops her head
out. The night is quiet. A sight fog is rolling in through the
darkness.

DAVID
Anything?

MICHELLE
Thankfully, no. We're going to

18
 have to get out of here.

DAVID
You think I don't know that?
Those guys could come round the
corner at any moment.

MICHELLE
Don't say that.

DAVID
I just did. And even if I
didn't, it wouldn't make it
anymore untrue.

MICHELLE
Jesus, you've nearly got us
condemned already.

DAVID
If we don't get out of here we
will be!

Michelle sighs down at David, then pulls herself out of the car.
David hears her jumping off the side of the car and hitting the
ground.

DAVID (cont’d)
You ok?

MICHELLE (o.c)
Yeah, your turn.

David pushes himself off the side of the car where the broken
glass is grinding into his ribs. He grunts and groans as he gets
himself into a standing position along the front of the car. He
reaches up to the driver’s broken window and begins to climb up
the seats as Michelle did.

CUT TO :

EXT – DARK LONELY ROAD – CONTINUOUS

David gets out onto the side of the car and jumps down to join his
wife. Michelle looks at the blood on the side of his shirt.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
Oh God, are you ok? Does it
hurt?

DAVID
Only when I laugh.

19
David forces a smirks at Michelle.

MICHELLE
This is no time for jokes David
Reid!

Michelle puts a hand onto David's shirt to feel the wound. David
shouts in pain.

DAVID
What the hell are you doing?!

MICHELLE
Seeing if you're hurt!

DAVID
Don't you see the blood?!

MICHELLE
Don't you get snappy with me.

DAVID
Michelle, this is no time for a
domestic.

DAVID (cont’d)
We need to get the car back on
the road. We could still be in
deep shit if those guys do turn
up.

MICHELLE
So what do you suggest?

They both turn to look at the car resting on it's side, wedged
against the telegraph pole. David dashes behind it and starts to
push on the bonnet, trying to get in back on to it's wheels. It
starts to sway, but not enough. He looks round from behind the car
at Michelle, she is standing watching him.

DAVID
A little help?

MICHELLE
Right, sorry.

Michelle runs round and starts to push on the boot. David joins in
and the car starts to rock with more strength. It swings back down
onto it's wheels with a bang of crunching metal. David runs round
to the driver’s side, throwing Michelle a glance.

DAVID
I'm driving.

20
 MICHELLE
Be my guest.

They both get into the car and David turns the key. It starts
first time.

DAVID
Thank you God.

David steps on the pedal and the car shoots back onto the road,
tires burning rubber as they go.

EXT – HOTEL – MOMENTS LATER

The Reid's car comes racing into the carpark and skids to a stop at
the front door of the hotel. David and Michelle both get out in
such a hurry that David nearly falls on his face, he drops the car
keys but keeps on running. Michelle scoops them up as she hurriedly
follows her husband into the building.

INT – HOTEL – CONTINUOUS

David and Michelle dash into the hotel's reception area. Michelle
doesn't stop and heads for the stairs and takes them two at a time
as she makes her way towards baby Peter.

David stops at the reception desk, where a young woman is now

sitting with bemused look on her face as she turns back from
watching Michelle run up the stairs. Her name badge says “Susanne”.
David slaps his hands on the desk right in front of her and almost
shouts his words.

DAVID
You have to call the police!

SUSANNE
I'm sorry sir, what's wrong? Is
there something that I could
help you with?

DAVID
There's twelve men with
erections chasing us, what
d'you suggest, open your legs!?

SUSANNE
Sir, I will have to ask you to
leave if continue with that
line of abuse.

21
 DAVID
Just call the fucking police!
We just saw a man murdered!

David turns away from the girl before she can answer and runs up
the stairs after his wife. The receptionist picks up the phone.

SUSANNE
(into phone)
Yes, police?... I'd like to
report an abusive guest... I'm
afraid he might become violent.

CUT TO :

INT – HOTEL CORRIDOR – MOMENTS LATER

Michelle is still fishing a hand in her bag for the room key when
David comes rushing round the corner.

DAVID
What's going on, why aren't you
in?

MICHELLE
I can't find the keys.

DAVID
Shit, you didn't have them, I
did.

David looks in his pockets and finds nothing.

DAVID (cont’d)
Oh no.

MICHELLE
What?!

DAVID
I've lost them... I lost them
falling down that hill.

MICHELLE
If they've picked them up....

DAVID
... They'll know where we are.

David and Michelle gaze at each other in a silent stare that speaks
volumes. Their room door opens. They turn and look at the young
girl that stands in the doorway. She is in the hotel housemaids

22
 uniform. Her name badge says “Lindsay”.

LINDSAY
Mr and Mrs Reid, I thought I
heard someone out here.

DAVID
Lindsay?... Lindsay! Jesus, we
forgot you were here. We've
lost our keys. Get inside
quick.

David and Michelle barge into the room, forcing Lindsay backwards
into the room herself.

CUT TO :

INT – HOTEL BEDROOM - CONTINUOUS

David slams the door behind him and faces Lindsay. Michelle rushes
over to the baby cot that houses little Peter. David puts his
hands on Lindsay's shoulder and stares right into her eyes.

LINDSAY
You're scaring me Mr. Reid,
what's going on?

DAVID
Lindsay, we saw something
tonight, something we weren't
suppose to see. Now those men
are after us. We have to get
the police and we have to get
out of here. We lost our room
key and we think that the men
that are after us could have
found it. If they have, they
could be here any minute.

LINDSAY
I'll phone down and get Susanne
to call for help.

Lindsay breaks out of David's hold and goes towards the phone.

DAVID
I've already told her.

LINDSAY
I'll just make sure she's done
it.

Lindsay picks up the phone and dials for reception. David goes to

23
Michelle who now has Peter in her arms. David takes Peter from her
as she starts trying to pack up their belongings. Lindsay hangs up
the phone with a confused look on her face.

LINDSAY (cont’d)
That's strange.

David turns to look at her. Peter is almost nodding off in his

Father's arms. Michelle has stopped packing for a second as she
also looks at Lindsay.

DAVID
What's strange?

LINDSEY
It's engaged.

DAVID
Well that's good. It probably
means she’s calling them right
now.

LINDSAY
No, there's seven separate
lines into this hotel. The
chances that they're all busy
at this time of night are slim
to none.

David looks at Michelle. She has the start of a pained expression

coming over her face. She edges over to the window that looks out
over the front of the hotel carpark down below. Michelle looks out.
She see, parked beside their car, a big black van that wasn't there
when they arrived not ten minutes ago. Michelle turns to tell David
what she sees.

MICHELLE
There's a big black v...

The phone rings. Everyone in the room stops and stares at each
other. The shrill of the phone echoes round the room like a wailing
banshee. Lindsay, looking at the ringing device, subconsciously
backs away from it. David passes Peter back to Michelle, he then
begins to slowly venture towards the phone.

Michelle's eyes are welling up with tears. David is now standing

over the phone and staring down at it as if trying to work out the
caller before picking up. He extends his arm and snatches it up,
mid-ring. David puts it to his ear and listens. Silence. He
hesitates.

DAVID
... Hello?

24
Silence. Then a voice shrieks through the ear piece at him.

VOICE
GIVE ME BACK MY FUCKING EAR!!

The phone goes dead. David stands with a dazed look on his face.
He drops the phone.

MICHELLE
Who was that ?... David, was
that the police ?

David turns to face his wife. He doesn’t trust himself to say

anything. David then snaps into action and rushes over to the
window by Michelle. He has a look out and sees the van. Michelle
grabs his arm.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
David, who was that on the
phone?!

David turns to face Michelle. They stare deep into each others
eyes.

DAVID
They're in the building.

MICHELLE
What?!

LINDSAY
Who’s in the building? The
people who’re after you? Is
that why reception didn't
answer the phone.... Oh God,
Susanne!

Lindsay dashes to the door of the room. David gets there before
her and blocks the way out.

DAVID
What you doing?

LINDSAY
I have to get down there. I
have to see what's happened at
reception.

DAVID
What we've seen of these men
already, I can tell you it
won't be pretty.

25
 LINDSAY
I have to. That's my sister
down there!

Lindsay pushes David out of the way and is gone, slamming the
door closed behind her. David looks to Michelle, a expression of
despair on his face.

MICHELLE
We've just killed everyone in
this hotel, haven't we?

All David can do is stare at his wife.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
What do we do?

Behind the door, a distance gunshot rings out.

DAVID
We don't leave by the front
door.

MICHELLE
Oh Jesus, we have to get Peter
out of here, I don't care what
happens to me.

DAVID
Don't be stupid, we're all
getting out. The three of us.
There should be a fire escape
or something on this floor.
It's the top floor, there must
be something.

MICHELLE
I'm sure there is, but it's not
in this room and I don't want
to know what's happening out
there!

Michelle nods towards the door.

DAVID
Give me a second.

David goes to open the door.

MICHELLE
What the hell are you doing?!

26
 DAVID
I'm going to take a peek. If
there is a fire door I might be
able to see it from here.

MICHELLE
We didn't see one when we were
standing outside.

DAVID
We weren't looking for one,
that's why. Calm down,
Michelle. We'll be fine. Do you
trust me?

Michelle stares deep into her husbands eyes.

MICHELLE
I've always trusted you David.

DAVID
Then trust me now.

David opens the door a crack. Through the small gap he sees at the
end of the corridor, a fire door marking the end of the hallway. He
softly closes the door again and turns back to Michelle.

DAVID (cont’d)
We're in luck.

MICHELLE
Luck is not a word I would
choose to use, given the
situation at hand.

DAVID
Michelle, forget what's going
on. Our only concern is getting
Peter out of this building in
one piece, that's it! People
are dying, yes, but it's not
us, and it won't be us if we
focus on our goal. All we have
to do is get from here to the
fire door and we're home free.

MICHELLE
And then what? The car's out
front. How the hell are we
suppose to get to it?!

DAVID
Let's just take things one step
at a fucking time, shall we?!

Michelle eyes her husband and is about to something about his tone

27
 of voice, but changes her mind.

MICHELLE
You're right, I'm sorry.

DAVID
Don't be sorry. Just get
yourself out of here in one
piece.

MICHELLE
That's my plan. Let’s do it.

Michelle hugs little Peter to her chest and tries to give David a
brave smile, it comes off more of a grimace. She nods at him to go
for the door. David puts his ear to the door and listens for a
second, then tugs it open. He exits. Michelle follows.

CUT TO :

INT – HALLWAY - CONTINUOUS

David dashes as quietly as he can along the hallway towards the

fire door. Michelle, with Peter in her arms, is only one pace
behind him. A voice coming up the stairs stops them in their
tracks.

VOICE (o.c)
The cunts are in room 417, then
we torch this place!

David and Michelle look from each other to the door they just left
behind. On the plaque in the middle of the wooden frame is the
number 417. In a hushed voice, David says one word.

DAVID
Run!

Michelle doesn't need to be told twice. They both race along the
corridor towards the fire door. David reaches it first and slam
the palm of his hand against the middle of the horizontal bar
going across the door. It flies open. An alarm blares into life.
Michelle gasps at the sudden noise but neither stops running.

EXT – METAL FRAMED FIRE ESCAPE STAIRS – CONTINUOUS

Michelle being the last out, slams the fire door behind her. The
alarm continues to blare. David is already half way down the first
flight of stair, Michelle making haste to keep up with him.

MICHELLE
They're going to hear that

28
 alarm!

DAVID
Tell me something I don't know.

David points down at a tree line that starts just at the back of
the hotel and leads into a thick forest.

DAVID (cont’d)
We just have to make it down to
the trees and they won't see
us.

MICHELLE
Well get your finger out!

David tries to pour on more speed.

DAVID
Are you ok with Peter?

MICHELLE
Don't worry about me, just
move!

David and Michelle clamber off the ground flight of stair and make
a dash for the woods. The fire door at the top of the building
flies open as the alarm is silenced, and a figure looks over the
side of the railing just as Michelle, with Peter in her arms,
disappears into the trees. Once in the cover of the woods, David
stops, trying not to make anymore sound to give their position
away. Michelle is about to say something, David clamps his hand
over her mouth. They both turn and look through the branches at the
top of the building. Watching the man searching for them. He turns
round and says something back through the open door way. He's too
far away for us to hear, but he points down at the tree line.
Michelle and David stiffen. The man at the top of the fire escape
is thrown something from an unseen person. He catches it and holds
it in his hands, it's about the size of a football. He turns back
to look down at the area that David and Michelle are standing in.
Then he throws the shape towards them. They are frozen in fear.
They don't move. The “thing,” hits the branches above them and
snaps through, landing about a meter from David's feet. Michelle
nearly screams, David holds his hand more firmly over her mouth as
he himself can feel the terror creeping up the back of his neck.
Staring back at them from the ground, is Lindsay's severed head.
David looks back up again at the man at the top of the fire escape.
Even in the darkness, he seems to be smiling. David begins to walk
slowly backwards, taking Michelle with him, his hand loosening over
her mouth. He doesn't take his eyes away from the form at the top
of the stairs. Little peter begins to wake up and a sob is heard in
his throat.

DAVID

29
 Oh no.

The baby begins to cry. The noise seems amplified in the silence of
the woods. The shape at the top of the fire escape looks over the
railings more intently. He then shouts down at the area of trees
David and Michelle are backing away from.

MAN
Now we've got you, you pair of
cunts!

The man turns and shouts at someone we can't see through the open
fire escape door.

MAN (cont’d)
They're in the woods, set the
fucking dogs on them!

David takes his hand away from Michelle's face and grabs her hand.
Peter is now in full swing with his crying. David turns and runs,
taking them both with him. As they run through the dark woods,
David's voiceover returns.

DAVID (v.o)
Now I understood where the dog
came from. But for one dog to
just appear then disappear into
thin air was bad enough, the
thought of a pack of the
bastards coming after us didn't
hold too well with me at all. I
realised then that our night
for survival was just
beginning. Getting out of the
hotel was the easy part. We now
had to get to the car. And then
we still had to get out of the
area. Proper fear is an emotion
that very few people experience
in their life. I'm talking
real, “turn your hair grey,”
fear. This night, Michelle and
I were two of the few. Little
peter was crying because all he
wanted feed!... Ignorance is
bliss.

The sound of barking dogs can now be heard coming through the
branches of the trees. David now has a desperate look on his face
as he continues to lead Michelle as quickly as he can through the
maze of foilage and undergrowth. Michelle is hugging Peter tightly
to her chest. The small boy is beginning to cry more out of

30
confusion and fear now. By the expression coming over David's eyes,
he know they can't hide from the dogs if the crying is kept up. He
slows his pace and pauses to pick up a thick branch about the
length of his forearm and twice as thick. He turns to Michelle, who
has also stopped.

MICHELLE
What you doing?

DAVID
Keep going.

MICHELLE
What?!

DAVID
We're not going to get away
from the dogs with Peter crying
like that. I'll hold them back,
then catch up with you.

MICHELLE
Are you out of your mind?!

DAVID
Michelle, there's no other way
out of this, now don't argue.
Go!

David tries to push her away. She doesn't budge. Fresh tears are
beginning to well in her eyes.

MICHELLE
I can't leave you.

DAVID
Then Peter will die. Michelle,
just go. I'll be fine. It's
just a couple of dogs. Go, now!

David pushes her again, this time she goes. Walking backwards,
with tears streaming down her face.

MICHELLE
I love you.

Michelle turns and runs. David smiles at the back of his retreating
wife, then turns to face the sound of the dogs. He says under his
breath, more to himself than to Michelle.

DAVID

31
 I love you too.

David stands holding the branch like it's the best weapon in the
world. He awaits the appearance of the dogs. He doesn't wait long.
They come out of the darkness like ghosts into the real world.
Three of them. The first one, at the head of the small pack, jumps
at him. David swings the branch at the head of the beast, and
misses. Instead, the thick wooden limb smashes into the side of the
dogs ribcage. Bones are shattered as the side of the animal is
caved in. It lets out a single yep and falls to the ground
squirming in pain. The second one catch David high on his forearm
and latches it's teeth deep into his flesh. David screams in agony.
The third one bites into his lower shin a second later causing a
fresh wave of pain to engulf his body. The pain now turns into rage
as David swings his dog infested arm at the nearest tree. The dog
is pulled off it's feet such is David's strength and it hits the
tree with a sickening thud, but the dog keeps a hold of his arm. He
then pokes the branch at it's under belly, the point of the thick
stick breaks the skin and enters the stomach of the mutt. It lets
go and drops to the ground with a groan. With just the dog on his
leg now, David raises the branch for the last time and brings it
down on the top of the final dogs skull.

The branch snaps in two, the end of it twirling away into the
darkness. The dog does not let go. With only half a branch now,
with an ugly spike at the end of it, David forces it into the
animals face, grounding the splintered end of the stick into the
dogs eye ball. It pops like a liquid balloon. David pushes the
stick further still when the beast still won't let go. When the
branch goes far enough in to reach the dogs brain, the animal drops
like a stone. David stands, exhausted. He drops to his knees and
puts a hand to his bleeding forearm. David looks at the dogs. The
one with the shattered ribs is still whimpering. He crawls over to
it and takes it head in both his hands. In one swift movement he
twist the head ninety degrees. The sound of the breaking neck
echoes round the woods. In the distance David hears voices, we
can't make out the words but they're getting closer. David gets to
his feet and staggers off in the direction of his wife.

CUT TO:

EXT – WOODS – MOMENTS LATER

Michelle is running along holding Peter to her chest, who has now
ceased crying. The sound of the dogs have stopped. She slows her
pace and comes to a halt. Michelle slowly turns round and peers
through the darkness in the direction she just came. The woods are
now silent but for her heavy breathing and the blood ringing in her
ears. In front of her, just beyond her field of vision, footsteps
approach. She gasps and turns to run again. A voice stops her.

DAVID (o.c)
Michelle!

32
Michelle whirls back round at the sound of her husbands voice.
David staggers out of the darkness and into the arms of his family.

MICHELLE
David, I thought I'd lost you.
I thought I was all alone.

DAVID
Like I'd do that to you.

MICHELLE
Are we safe?

DAVID
From the dogs, yes. But we'd
better keep moving, these woods
must end somewhere.

Michelle notices David's wounds on his forearm.

MICHELLE
Oh my God, you're bleeding!

DAVID
Don't worry about it baby, we
got to keep moving.

A beam of light shoots through the night as they are illuminated

by a torch in the distance.

DAVID (cont’d)
Shit! Come on.

David takes a hold of Michelle and they begin to run. A voice

reaches them through the trees. The same one David heard on the
phone in the hotel room.

VOICE
(shouts)
You killed my dogs, cunt. Now
we kill you... Slow!

David and Michelle, with Peter clutched to her chest, run for all
they're worth. Amazingly, peter stays quiet, as if he now knows the
penalty of noise. As they run, Michelle starts to ramble in panic.

MICHELLE
I don't believe this is
happening. This can't be
happening to us, this kind of
thing only happens to other
people!

33
 DAVID
Michelle, calm down. If they
were going to get us, they
would have got us by now. We're
not going to get this far and
fall at the final hurdle, now
come on.

As they get further away, the noises of their pursuers are all but
gone. They still continue to run. Then Michelle begins to slow her
pace. David notices and stays level with her.

DAVID (cont’d)
You ok?

MICHELLE
I don't know how much longer I
can keep this up.

DAVID
Look, I'll take Peter.

David reaches over. They have now slowed to a jog. Michelle holds
the little boy more firmly to her chest.

MICHELLE
No, he stays with me. What if
you have to fight again? What
happens to Peter?

DAVID
I won't have to fight again.

MICHELLE
With or without Peter, my legs
are like lead. You know, I
thought when you were running
for your life, you'd have
endless energy, but that's
bullshit, I'm nearly dead, and
that's before they catch us!

DAVID
They're not going to catch us,
Michelle. I swear to you, they
will not put a hand on you or
little Peter.

David starts to survey his surroundings as they jog along. He sees

a tree with low hanging branches. David grabs Michelle by the
shoulder and gently pulls her off of the straight line they've
been running in.

DAVID (cont’d)

34
 Over here.

David leads his wife and baby Peter over to the tree. All three
look up at it. Michelle looks back at David. He points upwards.

DAVID (cont’d)
Up.

MICHELLE
Are you insane! They'll see us.

DAVID
It's the only place they won't
see us! Please baby, don't
argue, we don't have the time.

David take Peter from his mothers arms. Michelle rubs her hands
together in preparation to begin climbing. She lunges at the lowest
branch and grabs it with both hand, hooking them over the top and
begins to try to pull herself up. Once her feet are at shoulder
hight, David walks under her. Michelle accepts the gesture and puts
her feet on each of his shoulder blade and gives herself the boost
she was needing. She manages to throw her legs up and hooks her
feet round the branch as well as her hands. Michelle then shimmies
towards the body of the tree. She find a hollow in the center of
the structure of wood, just at the point where all the branches
reach out. She get herself settled then reaches down for little
Peter. David stretches up as far as he can and hold Peter out for
Michelle to reach down and grab him up to safety. Once little Peter
is nestled back in his mothers arms, it's David's turn for the
climb. He jumps at the same branch Michelle did a minute earlier,
swings for a second, then kicks his legs up and bumps his body
along to join his family. Once there, they cuddle and don't say a
word. The look of love mixed with desperation in their eyes says it
all. After no more than a minute, footsteps can be heard, heading
in there direction. David and Michelle subconsciously hold their
breath. Even the baby has a look of alertness on his face.

Torchlight appears through the trees as four figures come into

view, weapons can be seen in their hand as they get closer. One has
a machete, the other an axe. The other two are armed with shotguns.
As the foursome get close to the tree, they stop. David leans back
from his vantage point and closes his eyes in dread. We hear the
men speak but don't see them. We stay with David, Michelle and
little Peter.

MAN 1(o.c)
This is becoming a joke, where
have the fuckers gone!?

MAN 2 (o.c)
We've got to find them.

MAN 2 (o.c) (cont’d)

35
 Those cunts can't get away,
they've seen too much.

MAN 3 (o.c)
How long do we look for them?
We could be here all fucking
night!

The fourth man swings his axe at the tree. We don't see it but a
thud hits the tree, he screams in anger as he does it. Michelle
puts a hand to her mouth, as if scared that she can't trust herself
enough not to scream. The man below them begins to rant.

MAN 4 (o.c)
Then we stay out here all
fucking night if that's what it
takes. They saw what we did.
And then they killed my fucking
dogs...! You hear me pigs?! You
killed my fucking dogs! You
stick your finger in my pie.
That was a big mistake! You'll
never see daylight again!

The footsteps begin to recede, as the men start walking away from
the tree and farther into the woods. Soon the forest is silent
again. Michelle looks to David, with hopefulness in her eyes. They
whisper back and forth.

MICHELLE
Do you think they're gone?

DAVID
If they are, it won't be long
before they're back. If we're
going to make a move, we're
going to have to do it now.

MICHELLE
I don't know if I can move.
I've never been this scared in
my life.

DAVID
You and me both, honey. But all
we have to do is get back to
the car, then we're out of
here. Ok?

Michelle takes a deep breath and nods to her husband.

MICHELLE
Ok.

36
 DAVID
I'll go first.

David starts to maneuver himself into a position that will lead him
feet first back down the trunk of the tree. The growl of a dog
stops him dead. He stares at Michelle in a stunned expression,
which pretty much says, “What the fuck?” David slowly turns his
head to look beneath his feet. At the base of the tree stands the
dog. The dirty looking German Shepard gazes up at David. With the
help of Michelle, David gets himself back into the sitting position
he was in a minute before hand.

DAVID (cont’d)
Shit. Where the hell did that
come from, I thought I'd got
them all!

MICHELLE
That's it, we're fucked!

DAVID
No we're not. It can't get to
us.

MICHELLE
Maybe so, but with that thing
there, we can't get down
either! Can we?!

David looks back down at the dog. It stares right back at him. It
seems to smile at him. He turns his head back to Michelle.

DAVID
We'll give it five minutes; if
it doesn't go away I'll think
of something.

A sound from the base of the tree catches David's attention, like
claws on bark. David turns his head back towards the dog. His eyes
widen in disbelief at what he's seeing. The dog is beginning to dig
its claws into the thick stump of the trees trunk and pull itself
up. David turns back to Michelle.

DAVID (cont’d)
Ok, we could be in trouble.

MICHELLE
What?!

DAVID
It's coming up.

MICHELLE
What do you mean, it's coming
up?!

37
Michelle glances over the side of the tree herself and sees the dog
slowly making its way up the trunk using its claws like climbing
spikes. She jerks her head back in shock.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
No, no, no, dogs can't do that!

DAVID
Well someone’s taught this one
a new trick.

MICHELLE
What are we going to do?!

DAVID
I don't know, but we've only
got a short time to do it.

Michelle hugs little Peter more tightly. David watches his two
person family in front of him. A tear wells up in the corner of his
eye. He makes a decision.

DAVID (cont’d)
I love you.

Michelle turns to David and is about to say something, but she

doesn't get the chance. David throws himself over the side of the
tree. Michelle puts a hand to her face in fright.

MICHELLE
No!

As David falls down the side of the tree, he grabs the mutt on his
way down, ripping it off the trunk. Man and beast twist in the air
on their way to the earth of the forest floor. The dog lands on top
of him and instantly starts snapping at his face. David grabs the
dog by it's jowls with lightning speed and holds it at bay. He
manages to force it over on to its back, its claws scratching up
into his chest, tearing fresh wounds into his already scared body.
David has no other option. With his hands of no more use than
holding down the beasts grabbing jaws, David bites down. Forcing
the mutts head over to the side, he sinks his teeth as hard as he
can into the hairy flesh of the German Shepard’s neck. Blood spurts
out of the side of the wound; it also fills David's mouth. He tries
not to gag and bites down even harder. David snaps his head back
away from the neck wound, a lump of dog flesh hanging out of his
mouth. Blood jets out of the animals raw gash but soon diminishes.
The dog goes limp. Its bladder gives out with the noise of a
balloon deflating. David spits out the hairy mound of bloodied
flesh. He vomits on the still warm dead dog. David himself, now
slumps over onto his side.

Exhausted. We stay on David. Then Michelle's soft whisper can be

38
 heard through the silence of the night.

MICHELLE (o.c)(cont’d)
David...? David, are you Ok?

David pushes himself up onto one elbow and looks up at his wife.

DAVID
What d’you say we get the fuck
out of these woods?

Michelle smiles down at her husband.

EXT – TREE LINE BORDER OF THE WOODS – MOMENTS LATER

David and Michelle gazes out of the mangle of trees into the car
park at the back of the hotel. Michelle still holds Peter close to
her chest. David scans the whole area. At the top of the fire
stairs, the door still stands open. A rectangle of light beyond,
but no movement. David tugs on Michelle's sleeve to follow him.
They walk slowly round the perimeter of the car park, keeping to
the shadows of the forest. The front of the hotel comes into view.
Their car is still there. The big black van is gone. Michelle looks
at her husband with hope in her eyes.

MICHELLE
D'you think they're gone?

David surveys the area again.

DAVID
Don't know... It doesn't make
sense. Four of them are still
in the woods. Why would they
leave without them?

MICHELLE
Maybe they're trying to find
us. Figured we wouldn't be able
to double back past the others.
But we did.

DAVID
Yes, we did.

MICHELLE
I think we should just go for
the car and get out of here.
The longer we hang about, the
more chance they might come
back.

Michelle goes to make a move towards the openness of the car park.
David holds her back.

DAVID

39
 Wait. It could be a trap.

MICHELLE
David, how are we going to know
if we don't go for it?

DAVID
I don't want us to have come
this far only to get caught.

MICHELLE
You think I do?! I just want to
get home, hug our son and put
him to bed.

DAVID
Me too.

David has a last look round.

DAVID (cont’d)
Ok, lets go.

With David leading the way, they dash into the car park. David
reaches the car first and pulls open the driver’s door. Michelle
enters the passenger side.

INT – CAR – CONTINUOUS

David rummages in his pockets for the keys. Michelle holds Peter to
her chest as he begins to get a bit active and the start of a cry
can be heard building in his throat. Michelle tries to comfort him.

MICHELLE
Please, not yet Peter. Give
Daddy just two minutes and you
can cry your heart out.

DAVID
Where's the fucking keys?! I
don't have them!

Michelle stares at her husband, fear coming back into her face.
Then something dawns on her.

MICHELLE
Wait, you didn't have them. You
dropped them. I’ve got them!

Michelle puts a free hand into one of her side pockets and takes
out the car keys. She dangles them in front of David. He smirks at
her and snatches them out of her hand. He jabs them into the
ignition and turns. It starts first time.

40
 DAVID
Now, we're out of here!

The body of Mr. Foyers crashes onto the bonnet of the car, having
being dropped from the roof of the building.

His head shatters the windscreen and his forehead connects with the
top of the steering wheel causing the skull to fracture and split
open. The contents of the broken head bursts into the interior of
the car. Blood, bone and brains scatter everywhere. David yelps in
shock, Michelle screams in terror and little Peter begins to cry.
All three of them have been streaked red and gray, with blood and
brain matter. From above the car, on the roof of the building come
the screams of madmen. Amongst the noise, David makes out two
words.

VOICES
Give joy!

David slams his foot down on the accelerator and the car wheel
spins out of the car park. Mr. Foyers mangled body falls off to the
side and disappears into the night.

INT – HOTEL – CONTINUOUS

The reception desk is covered in blood. The receptionist,

“Susanne”, lays face down; blood is pooled around her head. The
back of her skull is missing. We see people milling about, but only
see their mid-sections. No faces. A hand lifts a slip of paper from
a drawer.

VOICE 1 (o.c)
What room were they in?

VOICE 2 (o.c)
417.

VOICE 1 (o.c)
Got it right here. Room 417,
Mr. and Mrs. Reid, 107
summerhill drive, Aberdeen,
Scotland. They've even put on
the post code. Maybe we should
just send them a threatening
letter.

Some of the men laugh.

VOICE 1 (cont’d)
No, I didn't think so... Now
let’s torch this fucking place!

41
 ACT II

INT – CAR – LATER

David is driving. He is focused on the road ahead. Michelle sits in

the passenger seat, staring out of the side window in a kind of
daze. Peter sleeps in her arms. The night passes by outside almost
unnoticeable. David's voiceover returns.

DAVID (v.o)
It would have been almost a two
and a half hour drive home. But
with the darkness and the bad
roads, it was going to take
closer to three. We hadn't even
been on the road for an hour.
Already it felt like I'd been
driving for an eternity. Since
leaving the hotel neither of us
had said a word. What was there
to say, after the initial,
“Thank fuck we're out of
there!” We just sat in silence.
Peter soon fell back into a
sleep. What kept me awake was
the wind whistling through the
broken windscreen. But then if
I was honest, I would tell you
that it was the fear of
something digging away at me,
telling that there was no way
that this thing was over.
That's what was really keeping
me awake. Probably Michelle
too. What I should have done
was gone straight to the
nearest police station. But I
didn't. They would have got us.
That's what I thought. Michelle

42
 must have thought that too. She
knew I was heading straight
home, she never said a word. We
had both been shocked into a
reality where true evil
existed. Where the bad guys
win, and the good count for
nothing. Our world had been
turned upside down... And it
hadn't even begun yet.

Something catches David's attention. He looks in the rearview

mirror. The road behind is in darkness. He looks in the wing
mirror. Still nothing. David strains his ears to listen. He can
hear nothing over the noise of his own car.

David looks over to Michelle who is still staring out of the side
window.

DAVID (cont’d)
Can you hear something?

Michelle turns from her vigil at the side window. Her expression
tells she was miles away.

MICHELLE
Huh?

DAVID
I said, can you hear something?

Michelle becomes instantly alert. Fear coming back into her face.

MICHELLE
What! Where?!

DAVID
Can you see anyone behind us?

Michelle turns in her seat and glares out of the rear window. All
she sees is the dark road leading away behind her. There's no other
vehicle in sight. She turns back to David.

MICHELLE
There's no-one in sight. Don't
do that. You scared me.

DAVID
Michelle, are you sure?

MICHELLE
David, its dark but I can still
see the road. There's no-one
there.

43
 DAVID
Oh, no.

MICHELLE
What d'you mean, oh, no? I
thought that was good news...
What?

David takes his eyes off the road for a second and looks his wife
in the face.

DAVID
I think there's someone in the
boot!

EXT – QUEIT COUNTRY ROAD – CONTINUOUS

The car pulls over to the side of the road and comes to a stop.
David gets out of the car and looks up and down the road. He sees
nothing but the darkness of night. David closes his door and
stands there. The passenger door opens and Michelle gets out, a
worried look on her face. She looks over the roof of the car at
her husband. David turns round and looks at her.

MICHELLE
What you going to do?

DAVID
I'm going to have to look.

MICHELLE
But there could be anything in
there!

DAVID
That's why I've got to look.
Would you like us to take
whatever's in there back to our
house?

MICHELLE
Of course not.

DAVID
Well then, I've got to look.

David walks to the end of the car. Michelle follows from the other
side of the car.

44
 DAVID (cont’d)
Where you going?

MICHELLE
I'm looking too. You're not
doing a solo. I'm not being
left alone again.

They get to behind the car and face the boot. David holds the keys
in his hand.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
What d'you thinks in there?

DAVID
We'll find out in a minute.

David puts the key in the key hole. Michelle grabs his hand.

MICHELLE
What if it's a person? One of
those man that are chasing us?
He could be getting ready to
jump out on us.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
Then what do we do?!

DAVID
We defend Peter.

MICHELLE
With what?!

David thinks for a second.

DAVID
Two minutes.

David walks away from the back of the car, leaving Michelle staring
at the keys dangling out of the key hole. Michelle reaches a hand
to the keys and grips it by her thumb and forefinger, holding them
in place in case they will some how open the boot on their own
accord if left unattended. She glares intensely at the boot, as if
trying to see through the metal of the car. She's startled back to
reality by David's return.

DAVID (cont’d)
What you doing?

Michelle lets go of the keys and steps back from the car.

MICHELLE

45
 Panicking! What do you think!

David stands there with a torch in his hand. Michelle looks down
at it.

DAVID
It's the best thing we have.

MICHELLE
What about the hatchet?

DAVID
Gone.

MICHELLE
That's not good.

DAVID
I know, so here.

David hands her the torch.

MICHELLE
What am I suppose to do, shine
them to death!

DAVID
No. If someone comes jumping
out of here, you whack them
over the fucking head, ok?

MICHELLE
Oh God, this is a nightmare.

DAVID
No shit. But the difference in
a nightmare is you're normally
alone. We hold it together and
we'll get out of this.

Michelle nods at David in agreement and hefts the torch above her
head, ready to strike. David takes hold of the key in the hole. He
gives Michelle a final glance.

DAVID (cont’d)
Ready?

David twists the key and throws up the boot and takes a quick step
back to allow Michelle to bash off an attack. The attack never

46
 comes. David and Michelle both stand frozen in position. Michelle
still with torch over head, they try and see what's in the boot of
the car. With night upon them, all they can see is a hole of
darkness. David takes the torch from Michelle and aims it at the
blackness of the boot. He turns on the light. Michelle whirls away
and vomits. David stares on in bewilderment at what he's seeing.
One of the dogs he killed is laying there with it's guts hanging
out. It's head is missing. In it's place is the severed head of
Lindsay, the housemaid. Sticking out of her dead mouth is a room
key. The number 417 can be seen on it. David puts his free hand to
his mouth and jerks the gaze of the torch away from the sight
before him. As he does, he see writing on the underside of the boot
lid. David aims the beam of light back onto the writing, being
careful not to illuminate the sight beneath it. The words are
written in blood. He reads them word by word by the torchlight. It
reads, “Don’t... Look... Behind... You!” David freezes in fear. He
turns off the torch. Without turning round, David talks to
Michelle, who is just finishing her wrenching at the side of the
road.

DAVID (cont’d)
Michelle, get in the car. Don't
talk, just do it.

MICHELLE
What's wrong.

DAVID
Please Michelle, just trust me.

Michelle walks back to the passenger side of the car without a word
and gets in. David closes the boot and starts to walk slowly to the
driver’s side. As he opens the door to get in. He can't help it. He
looks over his shoulder.

No more than thirty meters behind the car, a pair a headlights

burst into life followed by the roar of an engine.

DAVID (cont’d)
Shit!!

INT – CAR - CONTINUOUS

David throws himself into the driver’s seat, thrusts the key into
the ignition and turns it. Nothing.

DAVID (cont’d)
No fucking way!

MICHELLE
What's wrong?!

47
 DAVID
I looked behind me.

David tries the keys again. Still no joy.

MICHELLE
You looked behind you?

Michelle turns round in her seat and looks out of the back window.
She sees the headlights. Michelle spins back round in her seat.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
No fucking way!

David tries again. It splutters then dies.

DAVID
I'm going to fucking kill that
mechanic!

Michelle looks out the back again. The car behind is making no
attempt to come up behind them.

MICHELLE
Why aren't they moving? Why are
they just sitting there?

David looks in the wing mirror at the stationery headlights behind

them. He realizes something.

DAVID
Bastards.

MICHELLE
What?

DAVID
They don't want to just catch
us. They want to hunt us!

David turns the key again. The car comes to life. David looks in
the wing mirror again and talks to Michelle as he does so.

DAVID (cont’d)
Is Peter tightly in the baby
seat?

Michelle turns and looks at their son. He sits in his baby seat,
fast asleep. Michelle turns back to David.

MICHELLE
He's fine.

48
 DAVID
Ok... Fasten your seat belt.

David throws the car into gear and stamps down on the accelerator.
The car shoots forward.

EXT – DARK COUNTRY ROAD - CONTINUOUS

The wheels of the black van spin wildly on the asphalt as it gain
purchase and take up the pursuit.

INT – CAR – CONTINUOUS

Michelle turns and looks out the back window. She sees the van
gaining on them. David is looking in the rearview mirror. He too
sees it getting closer.

MICHELLE
It's coming in fast, David!

DAVID
I know, I can see it. Watch
Peter, these bastards are going
to ram us!

MICHELLE
What are we going to do?!

DAVID
Go faster!

David throws the car into fourth gear and punches the pedal again.
They surge just that little bit farther ahead. The black van keeps
up without to much trouble.

MICHELLE
It's still with us... Shit,
hold on!

The van slams into the back of the car. David fights to keep
control of the steering wheel. Little Peter wakes and starts
crying. Michelle climbs into the back seat to comfort him. Her butt
restricts David's view of the road for a second.

DAVID
Jesus Christ, Michelle, what
you trying to do?!

David pushes her, sending Michelle into the back seat with less
grace than she was intending. She lets out a little yelp as she
lands beside Peter in the baby chair.

49
 MICHELLE
Are you trying to kill me?!

David glares at her in the rearview mirror.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
Sorry.

The back of the car is charged again. David holds the wheel this
time with more ease. He looks again in the rearview mirror and
shouts.

DAVID
What the fuck do you want from
us!!?

In the back seat Michelle covers Peter's ears. He continues to

cry.

MICHELLE
What're we going to do?!

DAVID
Well, going fast doesn't seem
to be working.

They are buffeted again by the van behind.

MICHELLE
Oh my God...! So what do we
do?!

DAVID
Maybe we should just stop.

MICHELLE
What?! Are you out of your
fucking mind?! If we stop, they
kill us!

DAVID
Get back in the front. Take
Peter with you.

MICHELLE
David Reid, you are not going
to stop this car!

DAVID
Michelle, get back into the
front seat and take Peter with

50
 you. If you don't, we will die.
That's a fact.

MICHELLE
But...

DAVID
Now!

Michelle takes Peter out of his baby seat, at the same time, trying
to comfort his tears to a stop. She manages to get into the front
seat, with Peter held to her chest. David glances over at them for
a second, not daring to take his eyes off the road for a moment
longer. A desperate expression is now etched on his face.

DAVID (cont’d)
Fasten your seatbelt.

MICHELLE
What are y...

DAVID
Just do it!

Michelle latches the belt across her chest, resting Peter on her
knee for the briefest of moments. Once done, she snatches him up
again and holds onto him tight.

MICHELLE
Ok, now what?

DAVID
Do mine.

David hooks his arm over his shoulder and grabs the belt and pulls
it so far over his chest. Michelle reaches over and finishes the
task. Once the belt is clipped into between the two front chairs,
Michelle looks at David for the next instruction. He gives her it.

DAVID (cont’d)
Now, hold the fuck on!

With a worried look on her face, Michelle jams her legs straight
into the foot well of the car. David stamps on the brakes. The
screech of the tires is nearly enough to drown out Michelle's
screaming, but not quite. David looks in the rearview mirror and
watches as the van tries to swerve out of the way of the sudden
stop. It fails. The van goes into a full side-ways skid and crashes
into the back of David's car. The momentum of the van tips it over
the car and causes it to barrel-roll the full length of the
vehicle, it comes smashing onto the bonnet of the car and keeps
rolling onto the road. After another three tumbles, it comes to a
stop on its side. The roof of David's car has been dented in that
little bit farther, but not too much as they're hurt. The bonnet
has been crumpled but the engine is still running.

51
 David turns to Michelle, a look of disbelief on his face.

DAVID (cont’d)
You don't see that every day.

MICHELLE
Holy shit!

David slowly drives towards the wreckage of the van. As he gets

parallel, he stops. Petrol is streaming out of the side of the van
from a ragged gash down the metal body work that conceals the
petrol tank. Out of the buckled back doors, a hand appears trying
to open them, in an attempt to escape.

DAVID
Time to go.

MICHELLE
Quickly!

David steps on the gas and they take off, leaving the scene of
carnage behind. David watches the overturned van in his wing
mirror, as it gets smaller in the distance. He sees a figure
emerge from the back of it.

DAVID
Oh, oh.

MICHELLE
What?

Michelle turns round in her seat and sees the figure. She turns
back to David.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
Oh no. You don't think he’ll
follow us again, do you?

Before David has a chance to answer, the van explodes, engulfing

the figure in flames. David glances at Michelle, with the slightest
of smirks on his face.

DAVID
No.

They disappear into the night.

INT – CAR – LATER

David and Michelle are still on their journey home. Neither are
speaking, both their faces set in hard lines as they stare out into
the blackness of the night ahead of them. Peter, in the back seat
again, is sleeping. David's voiceover comes back to us.

52
 DAVID (v.o)
On the way home there was no
shouts of joy at our escape.

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

No conversations about the
brutality of our past pursuers.
No talk at all. We both sat and
tried to get straight in our
own heads what had happened to
us that night. It was like
something out of a Richard
Laymon novel. That stuff isn't
supposed to intrude into
reality; it's more enjoyable
when read from the pages of a
book. To live it is
indescribable. But it was
over... Or so we thought. My
only concern was getting us
home in one piece, considering
I was now driving a car that
would be more at ease in a
circus. After a while Michelle
too fell asleep, off to join
our son in the land of nod. How
she accomplished that after all
we'd be through, I'll never
know. Sleep was something I
knew I'd never have again. Not
proper sleep anyway. Not the
kind you yurn for so much that
when you go to bed you have a
stupid smile on your face. My
life already was in tatters.
Looking back now, all I had
done was got the easy part out
of the way. If I'd known the
pain I still had to suffer, I
would've driven us off the
nearest cliff!

INT – CAR – LATER

David is still driving along the narrow twin lane road; he glances
up to the night sky and catches sight of the full moon that is
casting the only other light on the tarmac apart from his
headlights. He looks in the rearview mirror and sees Peter in the
reflection, head drooping over to the side and a trail of
glistening drool running down from the corner of his mouth, the
baby continues to sleep. David grins to himself. Turning his head,
he takes in the sight of Michelle. She sits with her arms crossed
just under her chest and her head hanging straight down. Were her

53
eyes to be open you’d think she was trying to look down her own
top. The slight noise of a raising snore is starting to make it
volume heard as she falls into an even deeper sleep. A small
tangle of hair has fallen down the side of her face, masking her
eyes from David. He reaches over with his right hand and gently
tucks it behind her ear. The simple connection between them causes
her to stir in her sleep. She groggily opens her eyes and squints
over at David.

MICHELLE
Hello.

DAVID
Hello to you too.

MICHELLE
We nearly home?

DAVID
Still about sixty miles yet.

MICHELLE
God, it feels like I’ve been
asleep for ages.

DAVID
Hasn’t even been half an hour.

Reality comes crashing back into her at what they have been
through tonight. A panicked look comes over her face and she jerks
her head back to gaze at little Peter. She turns back to David
with a pleading look as if she’d like him to tell her that it’s
all been a bad dream. All she has to do is look at the crumpled
roof of the car to realize otherwise.

DAVID (cont’d)
He’s ok. He’s been sleeping
longer than you.

MICHELLE
How’s he ever going to forget
this?

DAVID
At his age, I doubt he’s been
able to take much of it in. But
when we get home we make sure
we spoil him rotten. With a bit
of luck we can force it out his
psyche with chocolate.

MICHELLE
And what about us?

54
David has no answer for her.

DAVID
At least we got away.

MICHELLE
But we’ll never forget, will
we?

DAVID
No, but that’s a small price to
pay compared to what could have
happened.

MICHELLE
I still don’t believe it
actually did happen.

DAVID
It’s true what they said.
Factual events are always a lot
more fantastic than fictional
ones. I mean really, who could
make up what has happened to us
tonight?

MICHELLE
He’d be one sick puppy. Like
those guys you read.

DAVID
Which one? Hutson?

MICHELLE
Is that the guy who’s not
scared to write about anything?

DAVID
That would be Hutson.

MICHELLE
And that Laymon guy’s not much
better.

DAVID
Michelle, you have no idea when
it comes to authors. Laymon and
Hutson are two of the best
horror voices of the 20th and
21st century.

David gives Michelle a devilish grin.

DAVID (cont’d)

55
 They’d have a field day with
our story, that’s for sure!

MICHELLE
Maybe you could give them a
phone when we get home.

DAVID
Yeah, straight after the
police.

Michelle slouched back in her seat and lets out a loud sign. David
glances over to her.

MICHELLE
I just can’t believe it’s over.

DAVID
Remember and touch wood when
you say that.

Michelle reaches a hand over and taps on David’s head. David

laughs at her.

MICHELLE
Best I could do. The inside of
this car seems to be made of
plastic.

DAVID
Hey, do you mind! This car was
top of the line at the time of
its release.

MICHELLE
And when was that?

DAVID
Just after Jesus was born.

Michelle smiles at her husband and puts a hand out to him. David
takes it in his and rests it on his knee.

MICHELLE
I love you, David Reid.

David turns to her and gives her a gently smile.

DAVID
Right back at you, you are the
only one I ever wanted…. Even
more than her from check-out 5

56
 at Safeway!

Michelle squeezes his hand. David puts on a faked pained

expression.

DAVID (cont’d)
Just kidding.

The car splutters and jerks forward a little, then calms back to a
normal speed. David glances at Michelle and makes a face.

MICHELLE
What was that?!

DAVID
That can’t be right.

MICHELLE
What?

David looks at the petrol gage. The arrow is approaching the “E”
for empty. David grimaces.

DAVID
No, no, no. That can’t be
right!

MICHELLE
What?!

David turns to Michelle with a strange look on his face.

DAVID
According to the dial, we’re
almost out of petrol.

MICHELLE
No way! You filled it up!... No
wait, I filled it up! What’s
going on?!

DAVID
Could be a leak in the tank?

MICHELLE
You think?

DAVID
Oh no.

MICHELLE
You don’t think…?

DAVID

57
 Yeah.

MICHELLE
They siphoned the petrol?!

DAVID
Fuck!!

David slams his hand on the steering wheel.

MICHELLE
Why didn’t they take it all and
to hell with us?!

DAVID
‘Cause the bastards are still
playing with us.

MICHELLE
But their van blew up!

DAVID
We’ve no idea how many of them
were in that van. Could’ve been
only two. Maybe even one!

MICHELLE
You mean they could still be
following us?!

Michelle strains her neck round and stares out the back window.
All she sees is darkness.

DAVID
Michelle, I’ve got no idea. But
one thing’s for sure, we need
to get a top up.

Michelle looks out the windows at the desolate landscape moving

by.

MICHELLE
From where?!

DAVID
Maybe we’ll get lucky; there
must be a petrol station
somewhere near.

MICHELLE
I haven’t seen one yet.

58
 DAVID
That’s why there must be one
coming soon.

MICHELLE
God, I hope you’re right.

David’s expression sets into hard lines as he himself begins to

scour the bleak landscape as Michelle continues her vigil in her
own personal pursuit of salvation in the form of a petrol station.
The tension in the car grows as they drive in silence, both have
resorted back to the fact that the night will not be over till
they are literally walking over the threshold of their own
dwelling. Even though David knows there is no car behind him, he
glances in the rearview mirror out of old driver’s habit. His
heart begins to sink at what he sees. In the reflection, in the
distance behind the car, a pair of headlights appear as twin pin
pricks of white in the otherwise dark mirror. David groans.
Michelle shoots her head round to David, on hearing her husband
making the defeated noise. She sees him still looking in the
mirror and turns in her seat again to peer out of the back window.
She sees the headlights in the distance.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
Oh please, no!

DAVID
Stay calm.

MICHELLE
Stay calm? How am I supposed to
do that?!

Michelle reaches into the back seat and unhooks Peter from his
baby seat. The little man still sleeps. She gently takes him in
her arms and faces front again, hugging the baby tight to her
chest. More for her own comfort than the sleeping child’s. David
continues to glare in the rearview mirror as he drives the car
alone at a steady speed.

DAVID
They’re catching up.

MICHELLE
What d’we do?

DAVID
Baby, I don’t know. If we try
and outrun them we’re just
going to run out of petrol
sooner. Then we’re sitting
ducks.

MICHELLE

59
 We have to do something!

David searches the road ahead with his eyes, praying in his head
for some kind of solution to their problems to produce it’s self.
He sees it in the form of a lay-by, just about twenty yards ahead
of them.

DAVID
Yes!!

MICHELLE
What? Where?

DAVID
Hold on.

David flicks a lever on the underside of the steering wheel and

the headlights go out, the outside world is plunged into darkness
as they cruise alone the road. Driving with just the shallow light
of the moon for guidance, David sees the opening of the turn for
the lay-by and jerks the wheel, swerving the car into the stop-
over area. He drives as far as a clump of bushes that is large
enough to mask the car from the road. He turns off the engine and
exits the car, snapping a quick command to Michelle.

DAVID (cont’d)
Stay here. I’ll be right back.

MICHELLE
David, where you goi…

Before she can finish her sentence, the door has slammed and he’s
gone, into the darkness of night. She twists in her seat, trying
to catch sight of him. She sees his silhouette darting towards the
cover of the same bush that’s hiding the car.

CUT TO:

EXT – LAY-BY - CONTINUOUS

David tries his best to stay hidden behind the bush as the
headlights of the approaching car near him. He crouches and peers
through the thicket of twigs and leaves. The car glides by without
the occupants even giving the lay-by a second glance. David can
just make out the people in the car and no more. He lets out a
short grunt of laughter as the old couple drive on along the road
and shakes his head to himself. He turns and makes his way back to
his own car.

CUT TO:

INT – CAR - CONTINUOUS

60
Michelle watches David’s silhouette come back towards the car. She
stares at him, wide eyed as he slumps back into the driver’s seat.
He turns and grins at her.

MICHELLE
Well?

DAVID
It’s fine.

MICHELLE
Who was it?

DAVID
Well I never stopped them to
ask, but I’m guessing it was
someone’s grandparents.
Defiantly no threat to us.
They’d be more scared to bump
into us I would think.

MICHELLE
Thank god for that.

DAVID
Yeah, well, it’s better to be
safe than sorry. We’ll give it
another couple of minutes to
make sure no-one else is close
enough behind to give us
another heart attack, then
we’ll make a move again.

MICHELLE
Don’t you think we should just
go? Hanging about could be a
bad idea.

DAVID
Michelle, there’s no way they
can know we’re here. But if
they are trying to catch up to
us, they’re not going to be
checking out every lay-by from
here to Aberdeen. If anything
we’ll see them speeding past.

MICHELLE
Are you sure?

61
 DAVID
I’m sure. Come here.

David stretches out an arm towards Michelle. She leans into him
and he cuddles her, careful not to squash little Peter who is
still in her arms. David looks down at his sleeping son.

DAVID (cont’d)
I can’t believe he’s still
sleeping.

MICHELLE
Be thankful for small mercies.

DAVID
I am. I just wish it was me.

MICHELLE
You and me both, mister.

David kisses Michelle on the forehead then rests his head against
hers as they both gaze down at their son cradled in Michelle’s
lap.

EXT – QUIET ROAD – LATER

The road running past the lay-by is silent in peaceful darkness.

As the moonlight casts a cold white glow over the asphalt, a small
shape appears at the side of the road. The hedgehog doesn’t have
the common sense to look both ways before crossing; it just begins
to amble across without a care in the world, with no real idea why
it has to cross the stretch of road in the first place. As if that
very thought passes through it’s mind, it gets to the central
line, then makes an about turn and begins to make it’s way back to
the grassy verge at the side of the road again. It’s no more than
two inches from safety when a car speeds past, buffeting the small
creature with a gust of wind. It tucks its limbs and head into its
body, turning itself into a ball of spikes. It spins on it’s back
for a few seconds, still recovering from the not so friendly blast
of cool night air, then uncurls and scurrying back into the
undergrowth from where it once came.

CUT TO:

INT – CAR - CONTINUOUS

David is still sleeping. His back straight against the seat, arms
behind his back. Michelle is no longer in the passenger seat
holding Peter. Other than David, the car is empty. The sound of

62
his driver’s door opening is heard. His hair is teased by the
fresh night air. A fist slams into the side of his face, crushing
his cheek and rocking his head over to the side, spittle flying
from his lips. The sudden assault shocks David awake. He looks in
the direction of the open door with confusion and fear flashing in
his eyes. A masked man leers in at him from the doorway of the
car. A huge frame of a man. The man cocks his arm back readying
himself for another strike. David tries to raise his arms to
defend himself, and realizes he can’t. His hands are cuffed behind
the driver’s seat. The man lowers his arm and smiles an evil smile
in at David. David stares up at the man.

DAVID
Where’s my wife and son?

MAN
Where indeed.

The man stands back from the door and swings his arm behind him
like he’s introducing something David might appreciate. As the man
walks out of the way, David see where Michelle and Peter are, and
he wished he hadn’t. His stomach drops and his heart sinks.
Standing in front of him are another four masked men standing in a
line. Michelle is on her knees at their feet, her head bowed and
softly weeping. At the right hand side of the men is a German
Shepard dog. Hanging in its drooling jaws, by the scruff of his
neck, is baby Peter. For some odd reason, Peter is smiling, like
he’s almost ready to start laughing at the predicament that he’s
found himself in. The dog snarls at David as it stares right at
him. David tries to get up from the seat in anger at what he sees
before him. His locked arms behind the chair snap him back into
place; he winces as the cuffs dig into his wrists.

DAVID
Let me out of this fucking seat
you cowardly bastards!!

The man, who punched him, approaches again. David shrinks into the
seat fearing another strike. The man’s hidden face almost comes
nose to nose with David’s.

MAN
You’re going to fucking love
this. Things are about to heat
up around here.

The man backs himself out of the car again. Once again, David sees
the other men standing behind his wife. But something is
different. One of them now holds a petrol can. All four smile at
David.

DAVID
Don’t you dare, you bastards!

63
 Don’t you dare, please! Don’t,
I’ll do anything!

David starts to sobs as he watches one of the men begin to douse

petrol over the top of Michelle’s head. It instantly darkens her
hair and shoulders of her clothes as the liquid flows down the
rest of her body, pooling round her knees. Still, she doesn’t look
up at David. She seems to be mumbling something to herself. David
catches a couple of words and realizes it the Lords prayer. As the
petrol can begins to empty, the pourer tosses it over his
shoulder. The man next to him produces a box of matches. David
starts franticly shaking his head from side to side.

DAVID (cont’d)
No, no, no. Please, don’t do
it. We’re not going to say
anything. We’re not going to
tell a sole.

The man with the box of matches takes one out and strikes it. It
flares into life illuminating the head of the balaclava covered
face like a Halloween ghoul. The man looks into David’s tear
streaked eyes.

MAN 2
We know you won’t.

He touches the live match to Michelle’s hair. Her head goes up

with the sound of a soft whoomph. David screams in emotional pain
and agony.

DAVID
Nooooooooooo! Arrrrggggghhhhh!

The flames race down the arms of Michelle’s clothes. Within a

second, her whole body is alight. She screams in a high pitched
squeal. She finally raises her head and stares at David. With her
face ablaze she tries to say something, but no words come forth,
as her lips have already been burnt off and flames are beginning
to bubble her tongue. Michelle tumbles forward and thuds onto her
face as flames continue to consume the remainder of her body. The
German Shepard lets out a bark and somehow manages to keep Peter
in its jaws. David looks at the dog just as it swings it head in
the direction of the burning pile of flesh and clothes that was
once his wife. It releases its grip on Peter’s collar, sending the
baby skywards. He arcs in the air and drops into the flames that
Michelle’s body still cascade into the night. David’s eyes widen
in pure horror, shocked and stunned into silence. He takes large
gulps of air trying to stop himself from convulsing at the sights
he has just witnessed. The man who had punched him, comes towards
him again. He leans into the car and laughs.

MAN
Bet you were wondering what
happened to all your petrol.

64
 MAN (cont’d)
Hope that answers your
question.

A hand shoots round from behind David’s seat, grabbing him round
the chin and forces his head backwards, exposing his bare neck to
the chuckling man.

MAN (cont’d)
Now it’s your turn.

The man lifts a chisel into view and holds it in front of David’s
face for him to see it. David glances at it and tries to struggle
with the hand holding his chin back. He tries to catch the
reflection of his backseat perpetrator in the rearview mirror, but
has no luck. The backseat looks empty. The man now raises a hammer
into view. The hand holding David’s chin forces some fingers into
his mouth and pushes up his top lip, to expose his teeth, making
David look like a snarling dog. The chisel begins to hover over
his top two teeth. David guesses what’s coming and tries to free
his head from the phantom hand but can’t overpower it. He open his
mouth for a moment and one of the fingers slip between his teeth.
David bites down for all he’s worth. He feels the finger break in
his mouth and his teeth sinking into the flesh. He bites down
harder still, the hand pulls back stretching skin and escapes
David’s mouth, but leaving the severed digit behind resting on
David’s tongue. Strangely no sound of pain comes from the
backseat. David is about to spit out the finger when the man with
the chisel clamps his hand over his mouth.

MAN (cont’d)
You bite it, you swallow it!

The man then grabs David’s nose and pinches it closed. With mouth
covered and nose closed, David has no option. He swallows the
finger. The man takes his hand away and David gasps for breathe,
forcing his head forward. The hand still holding his chin from
behind comes too, it drops down his shoulder and lands in his lap.
David stares at the severed hand that was somehow holding him from
behind. The man laughs again.

MAN (cont’d)
My friend would like that back
at some point.

David looks at the man as he nods behind him, to the men standing
over Michelle’s body. One of the men raises an arm in a waving
gesture. But his arm comes to an abrupt halt at the wrist, as the
hand itself is missing. Blood begins to spurt from the severed
wound. The man smiles at David. David looks back to the hand on
his lap. It suddenly jumps onto the end of each finger tip, like a
spider ready to pounce. As all the men begin to laugh, it lunges
at David’s face.

65
CUT TO:

INT – CAR – NIGHT

David is shocked out of his nightmare with a gasp of terror

escaping from his throat. He sits there stunned as Michelle is
staring into his eyes, hands on his chest. He looks down at her
lap and sees little Peter smiling up at him. He glances up to
Michelle and hold her in a sorrowful gaze, tears have welled up in
his eyes.

MICHELLE
Are you ok?

David smiles at her and lets out a small laugh of relief. His face
then goes solemn again.

DAVID
We’re out of here!

David reaches forward and twists the keys of the ignition and the
car grumbles, then starts. He steps on the gas and guides the car
out of the lay-by and onto the deserted road. He gives his rear-
view mirror a check as if looking for something in the back seat,
he sees nothing there. Michelle sees him looking and glances over
her shoulder. She looks back to David.

MICHELLE
David, you sure you’re ok?

David reaches over and tickles Peter on the tummy. He smiles at

Michelle.

DAVID
Next stop, home.

MICHELLE
What about…?

Michelle nods at the petrol gage.

DAVID
Via a nice friendly petrol
station.

MICHELLE
I like the sound of that.

They drive off.

EXT – DESERTED ROAD – MOMENTS LATER

66
 The Reid’s family car comes cruising down the middle of the empty
road. The only sound is that of the motion of the wheels grounding
over the surface of the tarmac. Once the car has passed, the road
is desolate again. Then, just off in the distance, headlights
appear on the horizon.

ACT III

INT – CAR – CONTINUOUS

David seems more relaxed as he drives the car alone at a steady

speed. The wind rushing through the broken windscreen help fight
off the feeling of tiredness that itches away behind his eyes.
Michelle reaches over and turns on the radio. The soft mellow tune
of an Eva Cassidy song fills the interior of the car. Michelle
sinks back in her seat, Peter again, fast asleep in her lap. She
sighs at the sound of the long time gone diva while she listens to
her rendition of “Time after time.”

MICHELLE
God, I haven’t heard that one
for a while. I used to love Eva
Cassidy.

DAVID
I still do. She has a very
special place in my heart.

MICHELLE
Really?

DAVID
Don’t you remember?

MICHELLE
Should I?

DAVID
About nine years ago.

MICHELLE
Nine years ago?! We’d only just
got together about nine years
ago!

DAVID
I know. The first time I heard
this song was the night we met.
You were in the middle of

67
 telling me a story about your
childhood when this song came
on in the background. Even
since then, whenever I think
about the night we met, I
remember two things. This song,
and the way you looked that
night.

David glances over to Michelle. She is staring at him, doe eyed,

tears welling up in the corners.

MICHELLE
You never cease to amaze me,
David Reid.

DAVID
What can I say? Love at first
sight is a hard thing to
forget. I could even tell you
the scent of your perfume that
night.

MICHELLE
You are kidding?!

DAVID
No.

MICHELLE
What was it?

DAVID
Er…. Old Spice, wasn’t it?

Michelle blurts out a horrified laugh at David’s statement and

playfully punches him in the arm.

MICHELLE
You were doing so well. You’ll
never change.

David laughs too. Then he stops and says, while staring at the
road ahead.

DAVID
It was Pink Plume fragrance.

Once again, Michelle is stopped in her tracks. Stunned, she looks

at the side of David’s face. He glances at her. She sees a deeper
love in his eyes than she’s ever seen before.

MICHELLE

68
 I don’t believe you said that.
How could you remember that?!
That’s amazing. After all these
years.

DAVID
It’s not only ever the bad
things that people remember.
Some good things hang around in
the mind too.

MICHELLE
I love you so much, you know
that, don’t you?

DAVID
And you know that I….

David notices the headlight behind them in the mirror. Michelle

sees his expression change.

MICHELLE
What?

Michelle twists in her seat and looks out the back window, she
sees the lights approaching them.

DAVID
Probably just another pair of
old foggies.

MICHELLE
You think?

DAVID
Yeah. Don’t worry about it.

Michelle faces forward again. David continues to watch the lights

in the mirror. As they begin to get closer, they separate, like
the car behind has split in two.

DAVID (cont’d)
What the hell…?

Then he hears the roar of the motorbikes as they race towards the
car. One coming along the right side and one to the left.

DAVID (cont’d)
Uh oh.

Michelle has turned again in her seat at the sound of the revving
engines. She sees the bikes racing to flank the car on either
side.

69
 MICHELLE
No!!

David is watching both bikes approach in each wing mirror. The

bikes are now only about ten feet behind the car. An abject seems
to be getting swung over the head of one of the riders. David
doesn’t understand how that can be possible as the rider has both
hands on the handle bars. Then he realizes that there’s a second
person on the back of each bike. The object being swung over head
is a length of chain.

DAVID
Shit!

MICHELLE
What?

DAVID
There’s two on each bike. I
think the ones on the back have
weapons.

MICHELLE
Oh no, they’re going to get us
this time, I can feel it!

DAVID
Honey, if you’ve nothing
constructive to say, keep it to
yourself, please!

MICHELLE
I’m sorry, but what d’you
expect!

David ignores the comment and eyes the bike coming along his side
of the car, chain swinging.

DAVID
Keep a tight hold of Peter.

The chain comes smashing into the side of the car, its end licking
at the corner of David’s already broken window ledge. David jerks
away from the attacking metal with a yelp.

DAVID (cont’d)
Jesus Christ!

MICHELLE
Get us out of here, David!

DAVID
If I floor this thing, we’re
going to run out of petrol

70
 sooner than we’d hopped! Then
we are in trouble. We have to
lose these guys quick.

MICHELLE
How?!

DAVID
I’m working on!... Watch out!

The other bike has leveled itself at Michelle’s side and the man
on the back is trying to make a grab at the side of the car. David
jerks the wheel, swerving away from the attempt to board the
bodywork of his car. The swing of the vehicle causes the bike on
David’s side to clatter against the bodywork of the automobile; it
then veers to a safer distance, but stays parallel.

MICHELLE
If we run out of petrol now,
we’re stuffed!

DAVID
Not going to happen.

David glances over to the bike at the passenger side of the car.

The rider on the backseat has a whip as opposed to the chain

welding psycho on his side. A thought rushes through David’s mind.

DAVID (cont’d)
We need to swap bikes.

MICHELLE
What?!

DAVID
I want the biker with the whip
on my side.

MICHELLE
You think I want to trade for
the fucker with the chain!?

DAVID
Trust me.

MICHELLE
And how do you plan to get them
to change sides. Will I ask
them nicely through window for
you!?

DAVID
Don’t lose it baby.

71
 MICHELLE
Do you blame me?!... What are
you doing?

David has put his foot down on the pedal. The car has begun to
speed up.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
We can’t outrun a pair of
motorbikes! What about the
petrol!?

David gives Michelle a sly look and a reassuring smile.

DAVID
Time to hold on again, baby.

MICHELLE
Oh, Jesus.

David smashes his foot on the brakes, bringing the car to a

screeching halt. Both motorbikes on either side go zooming by,
being caught out by the sudden stop. David thrusts the car into
reverse and jolts his family back the way they’ve came from. The
two bikes have come to a stop, and have begun squealing they’re
back tires, as they wheel spin in a sharp turn. David, watching
them turn, spins his own steering wheel. The car whirls round in a
backwards turn and lands up pointing the opposite direction.

Once again, facing away from the bike, who are now starting after
him again. As David throws the car into first gear, he glances
into the wing mirror to see that the one with the whip is now
coming up fast on his side.

DAVID
Ok, cross your fingers.

MICHELLE
We’re going back the way we
came! David, what are you
doing?!

DAVID
Praying!

The bikes have now managed to level themselves along either side
of the car again. David looks out of his broken window at the
riders at his side. The man on the back thrashes the whip at him,
it licks at the edges of his window. David swerves slowly towards
the bike. David mumbles to himself.

DAVID (cont’d)
Try again, dick-head.

72
David puts his hand on the door handle. The man on the back of the
bike whips at him again. As David sees the man’s arm cocking back,
he opens his driver’s door. The man cracks the whip at him. Just
as the tongue of it is reaching towards David’s face, he slams the
door, catching the end of the whip in the closed door frame. David
floors the car once more, looking out the window and sees to his
surprise that the man has had the handle of the whip wrapped round
his wrist to stop him from losing it. As David conjures more speed
from the car, he swerves away from the bike, tightening the slack
that the whip had. The man is ripped off the back of the bike and
falls to the side of the car with a clatter, followed by screams
as he’s torn along the tarmac of the road. David jerks the wheel
again, once, in the direction of the screaming man. The back of
the car bumps as his body is caught under the back wheel. The
screaming stops. David grimaces over to Michelle. She shouts in
shock as the man with the chain on her side of the car, thrashes
out at the automobile, the wing mirror flies off into the night.
David swerves the car over at them in a sharp turn. The bike
crashes off the side of the bonnet as both riders fall from the
machine. The one on the back is flipped over the driver and slams
onto the metal work of the car. David, slams on the brakes and
once again throws it into reverse and floors it. The man on the
bonnet rolls off. David stops and puts it back into first. The man
on his knees in front of the car looks at David through the
brightness of the headlight. The noise of the wheels of the car
spinning almost drowns out the shout of terror from the man. But
not quite. The car bumps again. The other man that was on the bike
makes a grab for the side of the car from his prone position on
the side of the road. David sees him at the last minute and veers
over to him. His head goes under the rear wheel and bursts like an
over ripe egg, crushing even the crash helmet. David continues to
speed on.

Michelle now has her eyes closed, trying to shut out the horrors
of the outside world. Her hands still embrace little Peter, who
unbelievably still sleeps. The last remaining bike keeps up the
chase, but hangs back, being the final man left. Michelle opens
her eyes and looks to David.

MICHELLE
Is it over?

DAVID
One left.

MICHELLE
Is it nearly over?

DAVID
Lets not hold our breathe.
Counting chickens will only get
us in the shit. It’s already
been proven this isn’t our

73
 night!

MICHELLE
You trying to make me feel
better?!

DAVID
Just trying to levitate things.

MICHELLE
Don’t levitate, kill this
bastard and get us home.

DAVID
I don’t believe we’re at the
stage where we’re talking about
murder like it’s a daily chore.

MICHELLE
Tonight it is!

David checks the rearview and sees that the man is sticking with
them, about ten feet behind the car, keeping up without too much
problem.

DAVID
Any ideas?

MICHELLE
Don’t ask me. You’ve done quite
well on your own so far.

DAVID
Why don’t we just stop and
drive away when he gets off his
bike?

MICHELLE
I don’t know if I like the
sound of that.

DAVID
Honey, we don’t have the fuel
for harder thinking.

MICHELLE
David, you know I trust you.
Whatever you do now, I’m with
you. What d’you want me to do?

DAVID
You just keep Peter safe,
whatever happens.

74
 MICHELLE
Ok.

David smiles at her.

DAVID
I love you.

MICHELLE
Just get us home, baby.

David begins to slow the car to a stop. The bike behind slows too,
keeping its distance. Once the car has stopped, David looks in the
mirror and sees that the bike has stopped a good twenty feet
behind them. The rider stays on the bike. With both modes of
transport stationary, the two parties stare at each other. The
rider glares straight ahead, David watches for movement in the
rearview mirror.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
What’s he doing?

DAVID
Just sitting there.

MICHELLE
He’s not coming towards us?

DAVID
Not yet.

MICHELLE
He maybe knows what we’re
planning.

DAVID
Maybe. But we can’t sit here
all night.

Cyclist and driver continue to stare at each other for a small

amount of time.

Enough for David to realize that the rider is not going to

dismount his bike.

MICHELLE
This isn’t going to work, is
it?

DAVID
It’s not looking too good, no.
The bastard won’t get off his
bike.

75
 MICHELLE
Shit, so what now.

DAVID
We’re going to have to keep
going and see what happens. We
need a petrol station. If he’s
just going to hang back, we’d
be just as well looking for
one.

MICHELLE
With him following us?!

DAVID
Tell me what to do then?

MICHELLE
I don’t know, David!

DAVID
Then we just keep going.

David put the car back into first gear and steps on the gas. And
stalls the car.

DAVID (cont’d)
Shit.

David cranks the key in the ignition. Nothing.

DAVID (cont’d)
Oh, Jesus no!

MICHELLE
Don’t tell me!

DAVID
We really need petrol.

MICHELLE
Are we out?

DAVID
No, the gage isn’t completely
in the red. We should still get
a good couple of miles out of
it.

76
 MICHELLE
So what’s the problem?!

DAVID
It’s just struggling. Give it a
minute.

MICHELLE
We might not have a fucking
minute!

David tries it again. The car coughs then dies. David checks
behind him. The man is getting off the bike. He stands by it and
opens his jacket and takes out a machete. Holding it down by his
leg, the blade reaching down past his knee, he begins slowly
walking towards the prone car. David stares opened mouth at the
riders approach.

DAVID
Jesus fucking Christ!

Michelle looks behind and sees the man approach. She also sees
what he’s holding down the side of his leg. She throws herself
forward again and grabs David’s nearest shoulder.

MICHELLE
We have to go… Now!!

DAVID
You think?!

David tries the car again. Again it splutters and dies. The man is
now only a few feet from the back of the car. He shouts at then
through his helmet.

RIDER (o.c)
Get out the car!

David ignores him and tries the ignition again. Nothing. The man
now stands at the rear of the car. He has stopped just at the
boot. He raises the machete and swings it down onto the metal work
of the back area. Paint’s chipped off and the blade squeals on the
metallic surface.

RIDER (o.c) (cont’d)

GET OUT THE FUCKING CAR NOW,
CUNTS… Your fuel is gone. You
ain’t going anywhere now. If
you’re lucky I’ll make it quick
for you both… Well, maybe not
the lady.

RIDER (o.c) (cont’d)

77
 But if you’re a good boy, I’ll
let you watch. Think I’ll save
the little baby cunt for
desert.

The last statement from the man kicks David in the guts. He comes
to a decision in his head. He reaches for the handle of the car
door and turns to Michelle.

DAVID
Whatever happens, don’t get out
this car.

MICHELLE
Are you out of your mind,
you’re not going out there!?

DAVID
I’m not letting him come in
here to get you and Peter.

MICHELLE
David, please!

David grabs Michelle and kisses her on the mouth then whispers in
her ear.

DAVID
It’s going to be ok. Ok?

Michelle softly nods her head against his shoulder then turns her
head away. David turns back to the door and pushes it open.

CUT TO:

EXT – DESERTED ROAD - CONTINUOUS

David slams the door and stands staring at the crash helmet clad
man who glares at him from the end of the car.

DAVID
What do you want?

The man laughs inside of the helmet.

RIDER
Isn’t that becoming a bit
obvious?

He raises the machete and point the blade at David’s chest.

RIDER (cont’d)
You… And the pair in the car…
But we’ll get to them. Or
should I say, I’ll get to them!

78
The rider walks towards David. David takes a step back then thinks
better of it and holds his ground. Both men stop, no more than two
feet separate them.

RIDER (cont’d)
Now, what you going to do?
There’s no such thing as a hero
in the real world. You’ve seen
too many movies you fucking
civilian… It’ll only hurt for a
second.

The rider raises the machete over head and is about to thrust it
down towards David’s skull, when David throws a punch at the man’s
helmet. His knuckles clatter off the darkened visor. The head of
the rider jerks back a few inches, then straightens again.

RIDER (cont’d)
You are a fighter, aren’t you?

DAVID
Just let us go… Please!

RIDER
Don’t whine, it’s over.

The man thrusts the machete again at David’s head, but not the
blade. The handle of the large blade crashes off the side of
David’s temple, opening a gash just above his ear. David drops to
the ground. The Rider looks down at him and shakes his head.

RIDER (cont’d)
Looks like all the fight has
gone from you. Didn’t take
long, did it?

The rider now raises the blade for the last time, the sharp edges
of the steel aiming at David useless body on the tarmac. As David
looks up, all he can do is feebly shield his head with an arm. The
man is just about to let loose with the blade.

MICHELLE (o.c)
HEY!!

The rider whirls his head round at the sudden sound of Michelle’s
voice behind him. Michelle stands with the torch clutched in her
hand. As the dark head of the helmet comes round to look at her,
she whips it’s forward into the tinted glass visor. The connection
shatters it and sends the shards inwards to the man’s eyes. He
screams and drops the machete. He throws his hands up to his head
and tries to pull off the crash helmet. Michelle then takes the
chance to power in foot up between his legs. Kicking hard enough
for the tip of her shoe to make contact with the man pelvis. The

79
 rider lets out a whimper and falls to his knees. David, coming
back to his senses, grabs the fallen machete and pushes himself
back onto his feet. He stands over the man who is still on his
knees hold his groin.

David puts the flat of his foot on the man’s back and thrusts him
forward. His hands stay on his ruined groin and falls face-first
onto the hard ground. The noise of the helmet’s metallic crash on
the asphalt echoing round the deserted road. David looks to
Michelle. Michelle looks at the length of blade in his hand.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
Do it!

David raises the blade above the man’s head. He looks again to
Michelle.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
He’ll kill us both if you
don’t.

David swings the blade down, catching the man in the neck, just
below the lip of the helmet. The machete doesn’t sever the head.
The blade gets stuck halfway and sticks. Blood begins to pool
round the dying man. A soft expel of gas can be hear as the man’s
bowels give out and his sphincter muscle fails. David stands back
in shock at what he’s been forced to do. He looks to Michelle.

DAVID
You ok?

MICHELLE
I am now.

She looks down at the man.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
Think we can get the car
started?

DAVID
I hope so.

INT – CAR – MOMENTS LATER

David is cranking the key in the ignition to no avail. It’s dead.

He slams the steering wheel with the heal of his hand.

DAVID
Balls!! We’re going nowhere!

MICHELLE

80
 We can’t just sit here!

DAVID
Tell me something I don’t know.
Shit, there must be way out of
this.

MICHELLE
Yes. Petrol!

DAVID
I’ve got a petrol can in the
boot, and we don’t want to go
in there! It’s empty anyway.

MICHELLE
Maybe there’s a farmhouse close
by.

DAVID
Yeah, but in which direction?!

MICHELLE
We could split up.

David gives her a look.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
Yes, I know. Bad idea. I’m just
thinking out loud.

David scans the countryside that surrounds the car. He looks over
the field they’re parked beside. At the other side of it he sees a
building in the darkness silhouetted by the moonlight.

DAVID
What d’you think that is.

MICHELLE
Where?

David points into the darkness in the direction of the building.

Michelle scrunches up her eyes as she tries to figure out what it
could be.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
Not too sure, but you know what
it kind of looks like?

DAVID
What?

MICHELLE

81
 A petrol station!

DAVID
I doubt it, we’re not that
lucky.

MICHELLE
It’s about time we had some
though.

DAVID
Only one way to find out.

David opens his door and looks to Michelle.

DAVID (cont’d)
You in the mood for a hike?

MICHELLE
If it is a petrol station, I’ll
go through hell to get there!

DAVID
We already have.

CUT TO:

EXT – DESERTED ROAD - CONTINUOUS

David gets out the car, followed my Michelle at the other side,
Peter cradled in her arms. When they get to the fence that borders
the field, David climbs over and turns so Michelle can hand him
little Peter. He takes his small son in his arms and at the same
time tries to assist his wife over the fence. Once both on the
other side Michelle takes Peter back and holds him close to her,
making her feel a little more secure. They begin to walk through
the field, both focused on the dark build in the distance. Once
getting to such a position that they can work out what the
building is, David recognizes that it is a petrol station.

MICHELLE
Yes!! David, I could kiss you!

DAVID
Nothing gets past these
peepers.

Michelle laughs at her husband and kisses him. Neither of them has
noticed the black van that is pulling to a stop beside their
abandoned car in the darkness behind them.

82
EXT – DESERTED ROAD – CONTINUOUS

Four men get out of the van. Two out the back, two out the front.
All wear ski-masks. They stand and look down at the dead form of
the rider who was once a member of their group. They then look at
the wreck of a car.

MAN 1
Where the fuck are they!

MAN 2
Can’t be far. Not if they’re
going by foot.

The third man has crouched down by the dead rider and is putting
his fingers in the pool of blood round his head. He brings his
hand up and looks at his stained digits through the eye holes in
the mask.

MAN 3
They haven’t been gone long.
Blood’s still warm.

MAN 4
What do we do with him?

The fourth man nods down at his dead comrade.

MAN 2
Fuck all. He’s dead, fuck ‘im.
Should have been more careful.
To get taken out by civilians
is a disgrace. He stays here to
be found. He has nothing on him
to indicate who he is. No-one
will come looking for us, we
know that for a fact.

The group laughs at the statement.

MAN 3
Maybe we should each take a
different direction. North,
south, east and west. We’ve
must get our hands on the cunts
soon, and before daylight! No
witnesses. There hasn’t been
one in over fifty years and
we’re not going to let our
generation fuck that up. Not
for a pair of cunts like that.
Whoever finds them, don’t waste

83
 time, kill them. We meet back
here in two hours regardless…
Oh, and whoever does get to
them… Take the baby alive. The
Master would quite enjoy that.
Haven’t had a little cunt for
some time now. Right, let…

In the distance, some light burst forth from a building at the far
side of the field they are standing beside. The other men follow
the third man’s gaze. All men stare at the building. The lights go
off again.

MAN 3 (cont’d)
Why would a petrol station
that’s closed for the night
have lights going on and
off?... I think someone just
fucked up. Follow me.

EXT – PETROL STATION – MOMENTS EARLIER

David and Michelle have just emerged from the field and are
approaching the front of the station.

David is first to round the corner of the building to find that

it’s closed. He turns to Michelle as she joins him.

DAVID
I thought as much, it’s closed.

MICHELLE
So what now?!

DAVID
At this point, a closed door is
not going to stop us. We
haven’t committed a petty crime
all night. It’s about time we
started. Look around for a
decent sized stone.

MICHELLE
What you going to do?

DAVID
Smash in the door, what d’you
think.

MICHELLE
That’ll make a helluva noise.

David looks around at how isolated they are.

84
 DAVID
Who’s going to hear it?!

MICHELLE
We should know better by now
not to take chances.

David sees a good sized stone and walks towards it.

DAVID
Yeah, you’re right.

David picks up the stone and holds it between his knees as he

starts to take off his jacket.

MICHELLE
What you doing now?!

DAVID
Quit asking question. I wasn’t
always so law abiding when I
was young. I learned a thing or
two.

David walks over to the glass door of the station. He tries to

push it open. It doesn’t budge. He looks over his shoulder at
Michelle.

DAVID (cont’d)
Well, you don’t know till you try.

David then holds his jacket flat against the glass, then punches
the stone into the middle of the fabric, smashing the glass behind
but not making nearly as much noise if he’d done it without the
jacket acting as a silencer. David drops the rock and puts his
jacket back on. He then reaches through the jagged hole he has
created and finds the lock. Two seconds later, he’s pushing the
door open. He waves in a sweeping gesture towards the entrance,
indicating for Michelle to enter.

DAVID (cont’d)
Ladies first.

MICHELLE
Please, I insist.

She waves David in first.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
Knowing our luck, there’ll be
guard dogs, and your better

85
 with dog then I am.

DAVID
Don’t mention dog, honey.
That’s not even remotely funny.

MICHELLE
I wasn’t looking for a laugh.

David enters the gloomy station, Michelle, with Peter still

sleeping in her arms, right behind him. Once inside, the door
swings closed. Swallowing them in darkness.

CUT TO:

INT – PETROL STATION - CONTINUOUS

Everything is dark. David feels the way with his hands. The
moonlight coming through the windows shows him the way to the
counter. Michelle is following by having her free hand on his
shoulder.

DAVID
Right, we need to find the
control switch that’ll turn the
pumps on. Then all we have to
do is find a petrol can and
we’re out of here and homeward
bound.

MICHELLE
Sounds simple enough. Give
yourself a minute and our eyes
should adjust to the gloom.

DAVID
Yeah, if you look round the
shelves to find a can, I’ll
check round the back for some
switches. They must be round
there somewhere.

MICHELLE
Ok.

Michelle venture away from David and begins squinting her eyes as
she searches the shelves. David goes to the end of the counter to
find a locked door that must lead behind the cash desk and onto
behind the scenes of the station. David softly shoulders the door,
it doesn’t seem too strong.

DAVID
Michelle, I’m about to make a

86
 noise, don’t worry I’m just
breaking down a door.

MICHELLE (o.c)
Ok. Try not to be too loud.

DAVID
I’ll try.

David steps back a couple of feet and rams his shoulder at the
door, it gives way under the pressure and flies open. David
stumbles through and goes sprawling onto his face with a grunt.

MICHELLE (o.c)
David! You ok?

DAVID
I’m fine

David pushes himself to his feet and begins to search. He’s in a

corridor. A door to his left must lead behind the desk. That’s the
one he tries. It’s not locked. He pushes through and searches
under the counter. Not being able to see much, he grabs a lighter
from the display of cigarettes behind him. He sparks it and looks
under the counter again. David’s confronted with an array of
switches and buttons. He mumbles to himself.

DAVID (cont’d)
Jesus Christ… Michelle, how you
getting on?

MICHELLE (o.c)
Nothing yet… hold on, here we
go. Got one. I’ll take two just
in case.

DAVID
Good idea.

MICHELLE (o.c)
Need a hand?

DAVID
I think so.

Michelle comes round to behind the desk, two cans clasped by the
handles in her free hand. She bends down and looks at the switch
that are in front of her husbands face. Then she does a double
take at the lit lighter in his hand.

MICHELLE
You think that’s a good idea in

87
 a petrol station?!

DAVID
You broke our torch, remember?

MICHELLE
Are you complaining?

DAVID
No chance. But this is the best
I could do.

They look back at the switches.

MICHELLE
Just flick them all.

DAVID
You think?

MICHELLE
Yes, what’s the worsted that
could happen.

DAVID
True.

David flicks them all. The lights in the shop burst into life.

DAVID (cont’d)
Holy fucking shit!

David flicks them off again.

DAVID (cont’d)
That’s the worsted that could
happen.

MICHELLE
Did the pumps go on?

DAVID
No, these are all lights. Must
work everything in the shop.

MICHELLE
So, where would the pump
switches be.

DAVID
There’s another door through
there.

88
 David point alone the counter and out the door. A closed door
faces there.

MICHELLE
I’ll check.

DAVID
Yeah, come on.

David lets the lighter die and follows his wife through the
counter door and to the other one. Michelle tries the handle and
it opens. It a small room with a couple a levers on the wall.

MICHELLE
This looking promising.

DAVID
It does that.

David pulls them both. He flicks the lighter again and stares at
the levers. They now both point down. Just level with them, a sign
on the wall reads, “ON”.

DAVID (cont’d)
I think we’re in business, come
on.

David leads his small family back into the front of the station
and out the door back to the forecourt.

CUT TO:

EXT – PETROL STATION FORECOURT - CONTINUOUS

David pulls one of the pumps out of its holder. He puts the
lighter in his pocket and takes one of the cans from Michelle. He
presses the trigger and the flammable liquid gushes into the
container. He beams a grin at Michelle, Michelle returns the
expression. Once the first one is full, he lays it on the ground
and takes the other one from his wife and fills that one. David is
just about to put the pump back into its holder when a voice
catches them both off guard.

MAN 1 (o.c)
So close, but yet so far.

David and Michelle jerk their heads in the direction of the voice.

Four figures have rounded the corner from behind the station and
are walking towards them. All wear ski-masks. The married couple
are shocked into stunned silence. The four men stop about fifteen

89
feet from their foes.

MAN 1 (cont’d)
You didn’t think you’d get away
from us did you?

MAN 2
Now, we’re going to have some
fun with you. Or more to the
point, your cunt of a wife, but
we will make sure that you die
slow. As for the child, well, I
suppose it’s a blessing it’s
sleeping. It won’t be for long.

The men start laughing and begin to advance. David aims the pump
at them and pushes the trigger again. The petrol flies out and
soaks the men, David douses them like he’s armed with a machine
gun. The men stop and try to cover their faces from the onslaught
of the fluid. David releases the trigger. The men stand and stare
at him.

MAN 2
You cunt! Now you’ll fucking
suffer!

David fumbles in his pocket for the lighter. The men begin to
charge. David turns and shouts to Michelle.

DAVID
RUN !!

David flicks the lighter in his hand and pushes the trigger of the
pump again. The petrol gushes out again. David touches the tip of
the flame to the spurting liquid. With a roar it ignites, turning
the pump into a poor man’s flamethrower. In seconds the charging
men are human torches, screaming and writhing in pain. Three of
them fall to the ground, the final one tries to make a run at
David, but collapses in pain before reaching him. David drops the
pump and picks up the two full petrol cans and runs to Michelle,
grabbing her hand and pulling her towards the fence at the back of
the petrol station. They clamber over the fence and keep running.
When they’re about half way through the field the petrol station
blows-up behind them. As fire and bits of debris scatter into the
night sky, neither of them look back, they just keep running till
they get to the other side of the field. Once there, they turn and
look back at the inferno. They hug each other and climb the fence.
On the other side, David wrenches the machete out of the dead bike
rider and thrusts the blade into the front tire of the black van
which is parked behind them. Michelle gets into the passenger seat
of their car as David begins to pour the petrol into the tank.
When finished, he throws the empty cans into the field and gets
into the driver’s seat.

90
CUT TO:

INT – CAR - CONTINUOUS

David turns to Michelle.

DAVID
Would you like to go home now?

Tears are welling up in her eyes.

MICHELLE
I’d like that.

David starts the car. It bursts to life first time. He stares out
the broken windscreen and says more to himself then Michelle.

DAVID
Me too.

They drive off.

EXT – HOUSE – LATER

David's car drives into the driveway of the semi-detached bungalow.

It's set in the middle of a suburban street. David stops the car
and turns off the lights, plunging the scene into almost total
darkness. David's commentary restarts.

DAVID (v.o)
Be there nowhere quite like it.
Home sweet home... A place now
I can never go back to. We'd
stayed here for five years.
We'd been trying for a child
for the past two, Peter was the
answer to our prayers. This
night our lives had been torn
apart, we thought at the sight
of home we could start to
rebuild.

David and Michelle get out of the car. Michelle gets the sleeping
form of Peter out of the back seat. They enter the house, closing
the door behind them. Commentary.

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

This is the part of the story

that you could call, “the eye
of the storm.”

INT – HOUSE – CONTINUOUS

91
Michelle carries Peter up the stairs to his bedroom. We follow
David as he heads into the living room.

He opens the drinks cabinet and pours himself a shot of whiskey.

He downs it in one. David refills it, then fills another glass. He
carries them both to the sofa and sits down, putting one of the
glasses on the coffee table by the large chair. David sits and
swills the glass in his hand, staring down into the brown liquid.
Michelle enters the room, breaking the spell of the whiskey.

MICHELLE
I don't believe he's managed to
sleep through most of tonight.

DAVID
That's one thing we should be
thankful for.

MICHELLE
That's the only thing we should
be thankful for.

David picks up her glass from the coffee table and holds it above
his head. Michelle takes it from him and downs it in one. She then
walks to the drinks cabinet and refills her glass. She joins David
on the sofa.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
David, what do we do now?

DAVID
We thank our lucky stars we
made it home.

MICHELLE
Then what?

DAVID
Go to bed?

MICHELLE
We can't just go to bed. Not
after what we've been through
tonight.

DAVID
I don't know what else to do.

MICHELLE
Call the police, tell then what
happened. Those men tried to
kill us tonight! And they
killed God knows how many at

92
 the hotel as well!

DAVID
Don't forget we killed some
people too.

MICHELLE
If we hadn't, we'd be dead
David. So would Peter.

DAVID
Don't say that.

MICHELLE
It's true, and you know it.

DAVID
That's why I don't want you to
say it.

MICHELLE
So, are you going to call them?

DAVID
Let slow down a second, my
heads all over the place. If we
call the police just now, we're
going to be telling them about
a crime that they have no idea
about. This happened over a
hundred miles away. Two, we get
them out here, we show them the
massacre in the boot of our
car, they take a sniff of our
breath and we spend the night
in the cells! Where does Peter
go? I think the best thing to
do is go to bed. First thing in
the morning I'll drive over to
the nearest station and tell
them the story, show them the
boot. By then they'll know what
I'm talking about. And more
importantly, you’ll stay here
with Peter.

David glances at the wall clock above the fireplace.

DAVID (cont’d)
Baby, it's four in the morning.
I'm talking about a couple of

93
 hours shut eye, I'll go round
the crack of dawn. Two, three
hours of sleep can't hurt. Then
I'll be more together as well
and I won't sound like a
Looney. And with a bit of luck
they won't lock me up.

David half smirks at Michelle. She tries to return the gesture and
fails. A sadness is welling in her eyes. David puts a hand on her
shoulder.

DAVID (cont’d)
Trust me.

A single tear rolls down the side of Michelle's cheek. She smiles
at David, but the grin never touches her eyes. She kisses David on
the forehead and gets up, making her way to the door. When she
gets there, she stops and turns.

MICHELLE
I always have.

Michelle manages to give David a proper smile, then leaves the

room. David hears her footsteps as she ascends the stairs. David
downs his drink, then stares at the empty bottom of the glass. He
gets up and walks over to the drinks cabinet again and refills his
glass, he then goes over to the front window that looks out over
his garden. It can hardly be seen in the gloom outside. All he sees
is his own reflection. As he does this his voiceover returns.

DAVID (v.o)
Thoughts began to tumble
through my mind that night.
Thoughts I daren’t think. The
thoughts of what could have
happened played tricks with my
head. It’s funny how it’s
mostly at night that your
demons come to visit. As I
looked out the window at my own
reflection, I felt like
nothing. I’d had no control
over the evening we’d had.
Which was stupid. Looking back,
I realize there wasn’t much
else I could have done. All I
could do now, was go to bed.

CUT TO:

94
INT – BEDROOM – MOMENTS LATER

David lays down flat on his back beside Michelle. He stares at the
ceiling, wide eyed, as if in a trance. Voiceover.

DAVID (v.o)
I knew before I even lay down
that sleep would take it’s time
to find me… It did.

FADE OUT:

FADE IN:

EXT – HOUSE – MORNING

The front door of David’s house opens and he walk onto the path,
Michelle follows, dressed in just her robe.

MICHELLE
Are you sure you don’t want me
to come?

DAVID
Baby, we went through all this
last night. This is the best
way we can play it. If they
decide to lock me up, I’ll
demand my phone call, give you
a bell and tell you and Peter
to flee the country.

David smirks at Michelle, she tries to return the gesture but

fail. The worry shows on her expression.

DAVID (cont’d)
Michelle, it’s over. All I’m
doing today is tying up the
loose ends, trying to help them
catch these guys. Hey, maybe we
even killed them all!? What do
you think?

Michelle has sadness in her eyes even at the thought of last

night.

MICHELLE
That would be nice.

95
 DAVID
It will be nice.

David kisses her on the forehead and walks down the path to the
car. He gets in, gives Michelle a final wave and drives off in the
mangled car from the night before.

INT – CAR – MOMENTS LATER

David is driving the car, his face set in deep concentration. His
voiceover returns.

DAVID (v.o)
On the journey to confess our
misfortune, thoughts still kept
tumbling through my mind.
Thoughts best hidden from
judgmental demons. How was I
going to explain the previous
night? How was I going to
explain the state of the car I
was driving?

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

How was I going to get round
the questions that the contents
of the boot were going to spark
off? And the daddy of them all.
How was I going to tell them
that, I myself had killed
several of the pursuers
personally? Whatever my
subconscious mind had in store
for dialogue, it had better get
it together sharpish. The trip
wasn’t as long as I’d hoped.

EXT – POLICE STATION CARPARK – CONTINUOUS

David’s car swings into the car park and draws to a halt. David
gets out and looks at the building before him. He takes a deep
breath and walks the short distance to the five stone steps
leading to the front door of the station, he climbs them slowly.
David gets to the front door and enters.

INT – POLICE STATION – CONTINUOUS

David walks into the reception area of the station. A desk

sergeant is writing in a ledger. David goes over to him. The
sergeant looks up from the book.

96
 SERGEANT
Can I help you, sir?

DAVID
I’d like to report some
murders.

Freeze frame on the sergeants look of confusion on his face.

Voiceover.

DAVID (v.o)
So much about trying to think
what I was going to say… But on
the up side, that’s a killer
line that will get the
attention of any policeman, in
any police station… My job was
half done already.

The scene goes back into motion.

SERGEANT
Excuse me sir?!

EXT – POLICE STATION – CONTINUOUS

We watch a shot of the front of the police station. We see David’s

car in the car park. His voiceover returns.

DAVID (v.o)
I talked, he listened. When he
realized I might not be a
wacko, I was introduced to a
D.I Murray. I did some more
talking, and once again, I was
listened to. By the time I got
to the massacre in the boot of
my car, he was looking at me
like I was head of the Manson
family. Then he snapped, he
wanted some proof. So…

David comes walking out of the front doors of the station, a man
wearing a suit follows. D.I Murray is of medium build, with dark
hair. They get to the back of the car. David fishes the keys out
of his pocket. He inserts them in the lock and turns to the
policeman.

DAVID

97
 I warn you, this is not a
pleasant sight. And maybe then
you’ll believe me.

David unlocks the boot and turns away as he raises it up, as not
to see the carnage inside again. Murray looks in the boot, then
looks to David, who still isn’t looking at the contents. The
policeman clears his throat. David glances at him. Murray nods at
the open boot. David slowly looks. It’s empty. Not just empty,
it’s spotless. Even the writing on the underside of the boot has
gone. David looks down at the luggage space in shock.

MURRAY
You do realize that there are
laws against wasting police
time, don’t you, Mr. Reid?

DAVID
This doesn’t make sense. It was
there last night.

MURRAY
If that’s a fact Mr. Reid, why
didn’t you report it last
night?

DAVID
I didn’t think you would have
known about the incident at the
hotel last night. It was over a
hundred miles away.

MURRAY
A hotel burns down, killing
every occupant and all members
of staff, everyone hears about
it… You know what I think?

DAVID
What?

MURRAY
I think you, hadn’t heard about
it last night. But this morning
you thought you would have a
sick joke and waste valuable
police time. People like you
make me want to vomit!

DAVID
I didn’t make it up!

98
 MURRAY
Then where’s the body of a dog,
with the head of a housemaid
called Lindsay, gone ?

DAVID
I don’t know.

MURRAY
Maybe it’s gone for walkies?
And before it decided to go, it
washed the blood off the
underside of the boot. “Don’t
look behind you?!” What horror
movie did you steal that out
of?

DAVID
Look, it happened. And there’s
no way they could have cleaned
out my car. I was only in the
station for about twenty
minutes and even so, someone
would have seen them. You
should ask around if anyone saw
anything.

MURRAY
Sir, you’re about half a line
of speech from spending the
rest of your day on the point
of my right shoe.

Both men regard each other silently for a second. David has a
desperate look in his eye. D.I Murray turns to walk away. David
watches him go, he mumbles to himself.

DAVID
How the hell could they have
done this? Where did they do
this?

In the background, D.I Murray takes out his radio and starts
talking into it, he’s too far away for us to hear. He stops for a
moment and turns back to David, he shouts across the car park.

MURRAY
Just go home, Mr. Reid.

D.I Murray disappears back into the police station, the radio,
again pressed to his ear. David is left standing at the back of
his car not knowing what to do, or think. He talks to himself.

99
 DAVID
If I go home, I’m back to
square one… Home.

David’s face frowns into deep thought. Then something hits him.

DAVID (cont’d)
Oh, my god, they know where I
live!… Michelle!

David dashes round to the driver’s side of the car and wrenches
the door open. Freeze frame on the look of stark panic on his
face. Voiceover.

DAVID (v.o)
Unknown to me then, my wife and
son were already dead.

INT – HOUSE – EARLIER

Michelle is dressed in only a towel. Her hair is still wet after

coming out of the shower. She is standing at the kitchen sink
washing the glasses they were drinking out of the night before.
Once washed, she puts the glasses on the draining board just by
the sink. Michelle gazes out of the back window, into their garden
beyond. She is lost in a daydream when the front door bell rings.
She’s shocked out of her thoughts with a start. The bell rings
again. She looks down at the towel she’s wearing and mumbles to
herself.

MICHELLE
Typical!

Michelle tightens the knot above her breasts and walks to the
front door, just as the bell rings again.

MICHELLE (cont’d)
(To herself)
Jesus, give me a chance.

EXT – FRONT DOOR OF THE HOUSE – CONTINUOUS

We see the back of five men. All dressed in black. We see no

faces. We hear the front door being unlocked from the inside. It
opens just enough for Michelle to stick her head out. She is about
to make an excuse about not opening the door properly.

MICHELLE
I’m sorry, I’m just out of…

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 Michelle stares at the five men and an expression of realization
comes over her face. Although she never saw any faces of the men
from last night, she knows this is some of them. Michelle starts
to slam the door. The man nearest to her barges forward,
shouldering the door.

INT – HOUSE – CONTINUOUS

Michelle is flung backwards, such is the force of the blow to the

door. She lands on her back and the five men enter. Before we can
see any of there faces, they all put on black ski masks. When they
turn back to Michelle, all eyes are focused on her barely covered
body. She tries to cover herself up best she can with the towel. A
couple of the men snigger. The man standing at the front of the
group turns to one of the men on his left and says a simple
demand.

MAN 1
Get the kid.

Those three words spark Michelle into action. She jumps to her
feet, not caring when the towel falls from her body, and runs for
all she worth. Two of the men give chase. She gets to the stairs
and takes them in leaps and bounds. As Michelle gets to the top of
the stairs, one of the men is right behind her, he lashes out with
his fist and catches her on the back of the head. Michelle grunts
and falls, skidding on the carpets as she lands. The man who hit
her jumps on her back and gets himself into a sitting position,
preventing her from getting up. Michelle screams. The man on top
starts laughing. The second man who appears at the top of the
stairs walks over to the two figure and looks down at Michelle.
Michelle scowls up at him.

MICHELLE
You stay away from my son!

MAN 2
Your son is about to be
awakened to the horror of the
new world.

MICHELLE
He’s just a baby for God sake!

MAN 2
It’s best to catch them young.

The man on top starts laughing again. Michelle just stares with
disbelief at the man standing above her. He smiles a smug smile
down at her.

MICHELLE

101
 I’ll do anything you want.

MAN 2
What fun would that be?

The man kicks her in the face.

INT – CAR – MORNING

David is racing home, tears streaming down his face. His voiceover
begins.

DAVID (v.o)
Looking back now, I already
knew the fate that awaited me.
I knew I was going to find my
family dead. But still I
continued to race forward,
trying not to believe the
thoughts that were plaguing my
mind.

INT – HOUSE – CONTINUOUS

Michelle is dragged, naked into the living room and thrown to the
floor. The five men circle her. They now have knives in there
hands, two of them carry bats. The men begin to strip, keeping on
only their masks. David’s voiceover continues. We hear no noise
from the scene itself, just the sound of David’s voice.

DAVID (v.o)
The first time I ever saw
Michelle, was in a pub. I had
been out with a couple of
friends, and she happened to be
on a night out with some of her
work mates. My friend knew her
from the school he went too. He
said I wouldn’t stand a chance,
that she was to good for me. He
was right about that. If ever
there was someone that was too
good for me, it was Michelle.

Two of the naked men grab Michelle’s arms and two of them grab her
feet. She starts to scream a silent scream. The fifth man crawls
in between her legs and begins to rape her.

102
 DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)
That night, I bit the bullet
and went over to ask her if I
could buy her a drink. And if
you knew me, that just wasn’t
in my character, but I knew
there was something special
about her. I got the usual
whoops and cheers from her
friends and my face went a nice
colour of scarlet, but it was
worth it.

The man between Michelle’s legs gets out. Another gets in.

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

She joined me at the bar and I
bought the drinks. She had a
southern comfort and coke, I
had a pint. We landed up
standing at the bar the rest of
the night. I had forgotten my
friends, she had forgotten
hers. By the end of the night
we felt like we had known each
other a life time. She’d
invited me back to hers for a
night cap; I told her I didn’t
wear one! I thought she was
going to wet herself. I
remember that when she laughed,
it made me want to shout with
joy that I could so easily
entertain such a person as her.

The second man gets out from between her legs. They then pull
Michelle to her feet. They make her face the mirror over the
fireplace. She sees her own reflection. Tears are quietly running
down her cheeks and blood is pouring freely from her nose. The men
push her hard, towards the mirror. Michelle’s forehead makes
contact and the glass shatters, cutting into her face as she falls
back to the floor. The naked men look down on her and laugh.

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

As it turned out, I did go back
to hers. Sex was not on the
menu, we both knew that. In the
space of only four hours we had
risen above the predictable
Friday night knee trembler down
some dark and dingy alley. What
we had that night was a
connection like no other either
of us had experienced in our
lifetime.

The men drag Michelle back onto her feet.

103
Two of them steady her, while one of the men holding one of the
bats, aims for the strike. He lets rip, it catches her right
across the jaw line, sending her head backwards, lifting her off
her feet and again crashing into the floor, going through the
glass topped coffee table on the way down.

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

That night, back at Michelle’s
flat, all we did was talk. What
about, I don’t know. But it was
the kind of night where no-one
else existed. It was just
Michelle, me and a living room.
It was the kind of night you
read about in mills and boon.
There was no rush for the sex.
It was on route, we both knew
that, but it had to be just
right.

Michelle makes a feeble effort to get up. One of the men slashes
down at her with a knife. The blade cuts deep into her cheek,
gashing her down to the bone. She lets out a little silent yelp of
pain; it’s all she’s got left to give. Michelle flops down again,
the glass from the broken coffee table grinding into the flesh of
her back.

DAVID (v.o) (cont’d)

On the night it finally
happened, it couldn’t have been
more perfect. I’d bought a
bottle of champagne, it’s not
cheap that stuff, but this was
the night that was going to
seal our destiny and join us
together forever. I was the
happiest man in the world.

The sound comes back into the scene. Michelle is weeping softly.
One of the men with the knife bends down and smiles into her face.
Michelle, using her final ounces of strength, manages to utter a
last plea.

MICHELLE
Please, not my son.

MAN 3
For the final moments of your
life, I’d like you to imagine
what we’re going to do to your
newly born cunt of a kid, then
times it by a hundred.

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 MICHELLE
Please, no.

MAN 3
Ssshh. It’ll soon be over.

MAN 3 (cont’d)
Give joy.

The man rams the knife into the side of Michelle’s neck. A look of
sheer disbelief comes over her face. She tries to talk, but blood
just spills from her mouth instead. David adds his last comment.

DAVID (v.o)
And now she’s dead… I will
never be happy again.

The man stands up, leaving the knife protruding from the side of
Michelle’s bleeding neck. He turns to the rest of the men.

MAN 3
Let’s get the kid.

EXT –HOUSE – MORNING

David’s car comes screeching into the driveway of his house. He

dives out the motor and races for the front door, kicking it open
without even trying to open it properly.

INT – HOUSE – CONTINUOUS

David enters the house and comes to a sudden stop as he sees the
mess of the place. He walks slowly into the living room to find
Michelle lying on her back, knife sticking out the side of her
neck. David stands at her feet and takes in the sight. Tears begin
to roll down his cheeks with no effort at all.

CUT TO:

INT – TOP OF STAIRCASE – MOMENTS LATER

David is just reaching the peak of the stairs. He walks at a very

slow pace. David knows he has nothing to rush for. He walks along
the hallway to his son’s bedroom door. It’s covered with bloody
hand prints. He reads the word, “cunts”, which is written in blood
by the door frame. He pushes the door open and stands in the
doorway, taking in the sight that we can’t see. David falls down
to his knees and screams.

DAVID

105
 Nnnnnooooooo !

Behind him, shadows appear. He sees them on the wall beside him.
David turns, slowly on his knees, to face the men. He stares up at
the five men. All are dressed again and still wear the ski masks.
David gazes up at them, new tears forming in his eyes. He asks a
simple question.

DAVID (cont’d)
Why?

A baseball bat smashes into his face, sending David reeling

backwards onto his back. The offender with the bat looks down on
him.

MAN 4
Why not?

All five men start laying into David, with bats, knives, fists and
feet. We pan away from the scene of pure violence along a
corridor, leaving David isolated and alone to his fate. David is
lost under the sea of arms and legs and all we hear is the grunts
and pants of the attackers.

FADE OUT:

DAVID (v.o)
That was the last taste of
mortality I ever had.

FADE IN:

INT – PRIVATE HOSPITAL ROOM – DAY

David bolts upright in bed, taking in a gasp of much needed air.

The sweat is pouring down his face. After composing himself, he
sits trying to work out where he is. At either side of the bed is
a drip machine. One is inserted into the crook of his right arm,
the one on the other side is sticking out of the back of his left
hand. David looks at each with confusion growing on his face. A
heart monitor beeps to the rhythm of his pulse just above his head
over to the right, and a small T.V is mounted high on the wall in
front of him. The screen is blank. There is a door just down to
the left of the telly. David also notices that there is a door
just to the left of his head, leading to a room behind the bed
he’s in. He swings his legs out of the bed and takes the drips out
of his arm and hand. David also pulls the rubber suckers off of
his chest that relate to the heart monitor. The machine flat-lines
and lets out a slow monotone endless beep. David ignores it and
walks to the door by his bed. He turns the handle and opens it. It
leads to a small bathroom, a shower stall and toilet bowl. The
mirror is the first thing that David notices, positioned right in

106
front of him on the wall opposite the door, full length. He
watches his own reflection enter the small room, the first thing
he acknowledges is the scar that runs from the corner of his left
eye and disappears under his chin. David gets close to the mirror
and traces the line with a finger, wondering where it came from.
He glances down at the V of flesh that is showing above his light
blue pajama top, he sees more marks there. David slowly starts to
unbutton the top, watching himself in the mirror as he does so. He
drops the top to the floor, as he stands in disbelief staring at
the patchwork of scaring that confronts him in the reflection
before him. His upper torso is a maze of skin graphs and heeled
wounds. Even thicker scaring can be seen running the full length
of both arms, looking more like operation marks than wounds. A
single tear begins to roll down his face, as a thought enters his
mind. David says one word to himself.

DAVID
Michelle…

David’s sorrow quickly turns to rage. He wipes away the tear and
roaring in anger, he lets fly with his right fist, shattering the
mirror, broken glass falls to the floor, scattering round his bare
feet. David takes his hand away from the wall and looks at his
fist. Pieces of mirror are sticking out, one particular large
piece is sticking out from between his two middle knuckles, blood
is flowing freely from the wounds. David pulls the glass from his
knuckle with a look of confusion on his face. He flexes his hand,
as if he can feel no pain at all. As if to prove it, he lashes out
again, punching the now, bare wall. The bloody fist crashes into
the wall, leaving a blood splash behind, along with a small dent
in the walls finish. David inspects his hand again, showing only
bewilderment, not rage. He holds both hands before him and
clenches them into fists. He mumbles to himself.

DAVID (cont’d)
What’s happened to me…?

David turns away from the wall and is about to leave the room,
walking on the broken glass as he goes, when he sees a calendar
just behind the open door. David swings the door closed to reveal
the full thing. He stares at the month, it say, August.

DAVID (cont’d)
August? That’s not right… It
was July.

David thinks to himself.

DAVID (cont’d)
Jesus, I’ve nearly lost a
month. What have I been doing
for a month?

107
 David looks at his hands again, then at the upper part of his
body.

DAVID (cont’d)
I’ve got to get out of here.

David is about to open the door again and leave the room, when
something else catches his eye on the calendar. Not the month this
time. The year. It reads in large numbers at the top of the page,
2008. David’s eyes widen in horror.

DAVID (cont’d)
What…?! 2008…! “2000 and
fucking 8…! What the hell is
going on here…?! I’ve lost four
years?!

The bathroom door opens and a man dressed in doctor’s attire

stands looking at David. A look of concern on his face. Both men
stand and stare at each other. The silence is finally broken by
the doctor.

DOCTOR
We need to talk.

FADE OUT:

To be continued…..

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