On Thin Ice

written by

Allison Salkie

(765) 480-7241
allisonns@icloud.com
EXT. FROZEN LAKE - NIGHT
Street lights illuminate the lake. A CU of the ice; when
suddenly a drop of blood hits it. Camera pans over to black
heels. Slow pan up reveals a WOMAN in a fancy dress. As the
camera passes her arms, we see they are bruised. When the
camera gets to her face, we see that it is very bruised. Her
left eye is swollen shut and her right eye appears to have
been slashed by a knife. Blood trickles down the right side
of her face and continues to hit the ice.
She stumbles further out onto the ice. She waves her arms as
she goes, blinded by her injuries. She shivers in the cold,
way too underdressed to be out in the snow. Behind her on the
road we see police lights begin to flash out of focus. The
sound of the car door opening and shutting causes the woman
to turn quickly towards it. A CU of her heels reveal the ice
has slightly cracked.
WOMAN
Who's there?
A police officer slowly walks into focus. A CU reveals his
name is THOMAS. He stops just short of the lake.
THOMAS
My name is Thomas. I'm an officer
with the Greentown police
department. Can I ask what you're
doing out there in the middle of
the night with no coat on?
WOMAN
No you cannot.
THOMAS
Ok... Can I at least get your name?
The woman pauses for a minute, contemplating on whether or
not she should.
CHARLOTTE
It's... Charlotte.
THOMAS
Alright Charlotte, why don't you
take a step towards me?
CHARLOTTE
I can't.
THOMAS
And why is that?
 2.

CHARLOTTE
Because...
Another shot of her heels, the ice cracks again, this time
emitting sound. Thomas looks down at the ice warily. A CU of
Charlotte's face, a tear makes its way out of her swollen
eye.
CHARLOTTE (CONT'D)
I don't want to.
Charlotte falls to her knees. The ice strains under the
weight and cold water seeps up through the many cracks. The
police officer begins carefully walking towards the bridge
that goes over the middle of the lake, which is closer to
where Charlotte is.
THOMAS
Hey, hey, hey, it's alright,
Charlotte. It's going to be ok. Can
you tell me who did this to you?
CHARLOTTE
NO!
The ice cracks again and Charlotte's left foot dips into the
water. One of her heels falls off and floats for a moment,
before filling with water and sinking.
THOMAS
Alright, I won't talk about that.
Can we talk about where you were
before this? You're all dressed up;
you had to have been somewhere
nice.
Thomas has made it to the foot of the bridge. Charlotte
remains kneeling on the ice, and grabs the edge of her dress.
She smooths it down and for a moment smiles, remembering the
time before this.
CHARLOTTE
He told me I looked beautiful... He
said... I would be the prettiest
girl there.
THOMAS
Where?
 3.

CHARLOTTE
There was a charity event tonight.
We didn't even make it there. He...
found out.
Charlotte shivers and her teeth chatter. It becomes harder
for her to speak. At this point, Thomas is at the middle of
the bridge, almost right above her.
THOMAS
What did he find out about?
CHARLOTTE
He found my suitcase... It was
under th-the bed; I d-don't know
why he was looking th-there.
Charlotte rubs her arms but then winces as she remembers the
bruises. She gestures to them.
CHARLOTTE (CONT'D)
As you c-can see, he didn't ex-
exactly treat me right... I was g-
gonna get away. I've never seen him
s-so mad. He pulled the car over
and s-started yelling. And when he
r-ran out of words, he started...
Charlotte begins to sob.
CHARLOTTE (CONT'D)
He l-left me out here to die... I
j-just wanna be safe.
Thomas kneels down and reaches his arm through the bars
towards her.
THOMAS
I can keep you safe. Let me help
you, Charlotte.
Charlotte continues to sob for a moment. Then, she begins to
turn towards the sound of his voice. The ice beneath her
finally gives way and breaks beneath her. She screams as she
goes under.
Thomas runs off the bridge and to the edge of the lake. He
gets down on his stomach and slowly makes his way towards the
hole, all the while yelling.
THOMAS (CONT'D)
I'M COMING, CHARLOTTE! HOLD ON!
DON'T GIVE UP ON ME!
 4.

He makes it to the hole and reached his arm down. He feels

for Charlotte but comes up empty.
THOMAS (CONT'D)
C'MON CHARLOTTE, PLEASE!
Silence fills the air as Thomas stares down into the dark
waters. He pulls his flashlight from out of his belt and
shines it down into the hole. It is then that he sees a pale
arm within the waves and he reaches down to grab it.
He pulls as hard as he can and is able to get Charlotte out
of the water and slowly gets the two of them back to the
snow. He pulls off his police jacket and wraps her in it. He
pulls out his police radio.
THOMAS (CONT'D)
Dispatch, unit 21. I've got an
11-41; I have a woman badly beaten
and unresponsive. She fell into
Lake Lemon and I fear she may get
hypothermia.
The radio emits static but remains silent.
THOMAS (CONT'D)
DISPATCH, UNIT 21. I NEED AN
AMBULANCE AT LAKE LEMON NOW!
Thomas holds Charlotte to him, attempting to keep her as warm
as possible.
THOMAS (CONT'D)
I'll keep you safe, Charlotte.
Minutes go by. And then, faint ambulance sirens can be heard.
They slowly get louder and louder...

FADE OUT.