(Some South American revolutionary meeting house in Washington. A
painting of one of their leaders hangs on the wall beside a striped flag.
The room is full of a handful of singing and cheering Hispanics. El Lagarto
and Ramon appear behind a table, on which is a shoebox-shaped object and
a jar shape, both are covered with blankets. The men complete their Spanish
song and raise their fists in the air, cheering. El Lagarto raises his
hands.)
El Lagarto: Amigos! Amigos! Por favor. (The yelling stops.)
My friends, the hour we have awaited for so long is nearly at hand. Polo
De Gregorio will be here in only forty-eight hours. (The men all yell.)
Listen to me! Quiet! De Gregorio has done his best to place San Cardenz
into the hands of the Americans. But his American friends will be forced
to turn their backs on him when Polo De Gregorio murders thousands of their
countrymen in cold blood. (The men all gasp and look at each other.
El Lagarto unwraps a black cloth and holds up a large hypodermic needle.)
It cannot be seen, it cannot be smelled, but it is very, very deadly. An
invisible gas. (He nods to one of the men.) Enrico. (The man
lifts the sheet off one of the shapes. Inside the big jar are two frightened
white mice. Enrico puts a top on the jar. El Lagarto inserts the needle
through the top and slowly injects the poison. He looks up at the men,
who are all watching the jar. Inside, the mice are dead.) Nerve gas,
amigos. Captured from a laboratory here in the United States. (He lets
this sink in and then looks at Ramon beside him.) Ramon. (Ramon
quickly lifts off the other cloth. Underneath it is a black suitcase. Ramon
opens it and holds it up. Two small silver tanks are inside.) Enough
to kill every living thing in an entire community. Excuse me. Enough for
Presidente Polo De Gregorio to destroy every living thing in an entire
community.
(The men all laugh and El Lagarto leads a cheer in Spanish.)
(A fast food booth. Amanda is waiting for someone. She checks her
watch and looks around. Who should walk up behind her but Lee.)
Lee: Hi.
(Amanda jumps, startled, and turns.)
Amanda: Oh, my gosh! I wish you wouldn't do that.
Lee: Look, I am sorry I'm late. I told them to get me out of the
jacuzzi in exactly fifteen minutes, they forgot, I was already so relaxed
from the eucalyptus steam that I -- well, you know how it is.
(Amanda shakes her head.)
Amanda: No.
Lee: No. What'd you get from the elevator guy?
(Amanda rummages through her purse and produces a small white piece
of paper. She hands it to Lee.)
Amanda: Here.
(Lee unfolds it, reads it, and sighs.)
Lee: Ah, damn.
Amanda: What is it?
Lee: It's nothing. Another nothing. (Amanda searches for something
to say, then smiles hopefully. Lee takes her arm and leads her to the counter
of the booth.) Amanda, you wait right here for our order, all right?
I'm going to phone Billy.
Amanda: What do you mean, "Wait for our order"?
Lee: Milo's Daffy Dog makes the best chili dogs in all of Washington.
(He yells the man working behind the counter.) Hey, Milo?
Milo: Yeah?
Lee: Two with everything on it, huh?
Amanda: I can't have a chili dog. I'm having lunch with Dean's mother.
Lee: You still seeing that guy?
(Amanda folds her arms and shrugs slightly.)
Amanda: I guess so.
Lee: Why?
(Amanda thinks and speaks barely above a mumble.)
Amanda: Well, I don't -- Why are you asking?
Lee: I don't see you two together.
Amanda: What are you talking about? You've never even seen him.
Lee: Amanda, I have instincts, okay? (Amanda rolls her eyes.)
I'll go make my phone call and then you can go home.
(Amanda sits in a chair, disappointed.)
Amanda: We're not going to do anything else?
(Lee smiles.)
Lee: Don't look so disappointed.
Amanda: I'm not disappointed.
Lee: You want to get home in plenty of time for lunch, don't you?
Amanda: Go make your phone call!
(Lee walks away. A few feet away, a newspaper lowers. The man hidden
behind it is Ramon. He sips coffee and watches Lee go, then he turns his
full attention on Amanda. She checks her watch and waits.)
(At the phone booth, Lee is talking with Billy.)
Lee: Yeah, I'm at the drop now. . . . He probably doesn't have
anything. Amanda didn't get anything from the elevator drop and I came
out of the steam room empty-handed. . . . I know, Billy, I know he's coming
in tomorrow, but there's nothing we can do, unless we get word from Martinez.
(Ramon turns to watch Milo. Milo puts some chili dogs into a paper
bag, then slips a piece of paper into a napkin, which he puts in with the
food. Ramon looks at the street. His friend comes driving up. Milo puts
the paper bag in front of Amanda.)
Milo: That'll be three-fifty, please.
(Amanda pays, then the instant she takes the bag, Ramon grabs her.)
Amanda: Lee! Lee!
(Lee, still on the phone, hears her shouts and looks up. Amanda is being dragged to Ramon's friend's car. Lee hangs up the phone and runs across the street to the car. Two cars swerve to avoid hitting him, but he leaps, undaunted, onto the hood of the car with Amanda in it. The two men try to drive even with Lee in front of the windshield. They manage for a while, only bumping into boxes and trash cans, until finally Lee gets thrown off when the car rams right into a tall stack of boxes. Before he can get back up, the car pulls away and drives off. Lee watches it turn the corner, then holds his injured arm and walks off in the other direction.)
(IFF, Billy's office. Lee is pacing back and forth. Billy sits on
his desk.)
Billy: Did you get a look at them?
Lee:
No, not a good one. I was trying to hold on to the hood of the car. There
were two men, mid-thirties, dark . . . that's about it.
(The door
opens and Francine walks in, carrying a notepad.)
Francine:
I ran the plate. The car was stolen from Deleware and P about three o'clock
this morning.
(Lee and Billy sigh.)
Lee: It figures.
(He walks over to the sofa.) I left that hot dog stand for maybe
a minute. It was supposed to be a safe drop, I had no idea it was being
watched.
Billy: Of course you didn't.
Lee: Who knew
Amanda was going to pay for the chili dogs, dammit, it was supposed to
be my treat.
(Lee sits in the sofa. Francine raises her eyebrows
and looks down as if to say, "Whoa." Billy stands up and walks
around to the other side of his desk.)
Billy: All right.
Now, we've got to assume that Martinez was trying to get through to us.
They were on to him, they followed him to the drop, and waited there to
find out who the pickup was.
Lee: If there was a message, she's
got it with the chili dogs, which means they have it.
Billy:
When does De Gregorio arrive?
(Francine chimes in. She sits in the
chair between Lee and Billy, facing Billy.)
Francine: Tomorrow.
He'll be in for about thirty-six hours. He has a meeting with the secretary
of state, formal dinner at the White House, tour of San Cardenzan exile
neighborhood school, and, uh, some personal business.
(Billy looks
up suspiciously.)
Billy: What kind of personal business?
Francine:
The state didn't have the full agenda yet, but they're going to know more
this afternoon.
Billy: All right, if El Lagarto and the other
Cardenzan loyalists are going to do something, it's going to occur within
the next thirty-six hours.
Lee: Yeah, but, Billy, they have got
Amanda!
Billy: Maybe they won't harm her. They just want the
message.
Francine: If she's got it, it's in cipher, and Amanda
can't break the code.
Lee: They'll think she can. And then it
--
Billy: Lee. (Lee shuts up and looks at Billy.) I'm
concerned about Mrs. King, too. But there's nothing we can do about it
at the moment. (Lee lowers his head and nervously runs his fingers through
his hair. The phone rings and Billy picks it up.) Melrose. (Francine
looks at Lee, then down at her pad. She flips through the pages.) Where?
. . . Anything? . . . I see. Thank you. (He hangs up, disappointed.)
Martinez has surfaced.
(Lee looks up.)
Lee: Where?
Billy:
The Potomac.
(The loyalists' meeting room. Amanda is blindfolded and sitting in
a chair. Ramon is standing across the room, watching El Lagarto fire questions
at Amanda. The coded message is in his hand. The chili dogs are spread
out all over the table.)
El Lagarto: Mrs. Amanda King. Is
that you?
Amanda: Yes.
El Lagarto: Who sent you to
pick this up?
Amanda: Pick what up?
El Lagarto: It
will be easier for you if you tell us what we want to know.
(Amanda
smiles nervously.)
Amanda: I can't see anything.
(El
Lagarto sighs.)
El Lagarto: Ramon.
(Ramon walks over
and unties the blindfold. Amanda squints and rubs her eyes. She looks from
one crook to the other.)
Amanda: Thank you. (El Lagarto
stares at her. She shrugs. He points to her lunch.) The chili dogs?
Oh, well, I was out shopping and I got a little hungry (El Lagarto sighs
and exchanges glances with Ramon.) and I decided to stop off and get
something to eat and I'd heard that Milo's Daffy Dogs had the best chili
dogs in Washington, so --
(El Lagarto doesn't buy it. He leans over
her shoulder and speaks directly into her ear.)
El Lagarto:
Mrs. King.
Amanda: Yes?
El Lagarto: We are not fools.
Who was that man with you?
Amanda: Man?
El Lagarto:
There are two chili dogs.
(Amanda weakly squeaks out an answer.)
Amanda:
I was very hungry.
(El Lagarto sighs and straightens up.)
El
Lagarto: Shall I ask Ramon to get nasty?
Amanda: No, that
won't be necessary. (She turns. Ramon is holding a pocketknife. Amanda
gets more nervous.) His name was, um . . . (Ramon snaps the blade
out. Amanda instantly talks very fast.) Phil Jackson, he's a police
officer, he probably got the license number of the car and there's probably
a SWAT team on the way to surround the building right now.
(Fed up,
El Lagarto sits on the desk.)
El Lagarto: Mrs. King.
Amanda:
Yes?
El Lagarto: We know Martinez was with the Agency. We know
he left you information about us at the hot dog stand. You are one of them,
too, que [pronounced "kay"] no?
Amanda: Que
no. Que yes! But I'm very low level and I don't know anything.
El
Lagarto: What does this say?
(He thrusts the paper into her hands.
She tries as best she can to pronounce the code words.)
Amanda:
"Slymph xlgf -- "
El Lagarto: What does it mean?
Amanda:
I don't know what it means, I don't know code, I don't even have a code
name, and they just give me these little things to do, I promise you, I
don't know anything.
El Lagarto: Well, that is too bad. Take
her, Ramon.
Amanda: Oh, that's all right, um, I can take a bus.
El
Lagarto: Where you are going, you won't be needing a bus.
(Amanda's house. Dotty is trying to entertain Evelyn, Dean's mother,while
they wait for Amanda. Dotty closes the fridge and comes out of the kitchen.
Evelyn is waiting patiently on the couch.)
Dotty: I am sure
she'll be back any minute. She had a few errands to run downtown.
(Dotty
pours herself some tea.)
Evelyn: Does she often just disappear
like this?
Dotty: Disappear? Amanda? (She laughs.) Are
you kidding? Amanda never disappears. Why, she's here all the time. I mean,
sometimes I have to pry her out of that kitchen. (She laughs, then sees
Evelyn's strange look.) Uh, well, not that she can't -- well, you know,
paint the town with the best of them. What was your question?
Evelyn:
We were discussing dependability.
Dotty: That's a very important quality.
When Amanda was a child, I used to tell her that over and over again.
Evelyn
(smugly): It's a trait that Dean acquired naturally.
Dotty:
Yes, well, Amanda, too. I just told her that over and over again to make
conversation.
Evelyn: I'm sure she has her hands full what with
the children and the part-time job and. . . . What was it she does again?
Dotty:
Um, she, uh, she owns a service. She walks dogs and waters plants for people
who, uh, can't do it themselves.
Evelyn (impressed): She
owns a service? How many employees does she have?
(Dotty takes a
sip, then lowers it.)
Dotty: Well, actually, she's the only
employee. But the girl is a wonder. I mean, we had this fichus once that
just drooped over and quit one day. Well, Amanda would not let it die.
I mean, she repotted it, she nursed it, she talked to it, she pleaded with
it. Soon it was back on its feet. Ha ha ha. So to speak.
(Evelyn
looks away, a weird look on her face.)
Evelyn: Yes.
(Dotty
picks up the plate of food and offers it to Evelyn.)
Dotty:
Well, maybe we should get started. You must be hungry.
Evelyn:
Don't you think we ought to wait a little longer?
Dotty: Oh,
no. She'll be here any minute.
(In El Lagarto's headquarters, Amanda is standing and El Lagarto
is giving her one last chance to tell them what she knows. Ramon is standing
close by, with the knife blade extended. The message is in El Lagarto's
hand and he is holding it an inch from her face. Amanda sighs and shakes
her head.)
Amanda: I don't know.
(Frustrated, El Lagarto
lowers the paper.)
El Lagarto: Listen to me. That was your
final opportunity to speak, Mrs. King. (He walks around behind to Amanda's
other side.) Adíos.
(He looks at Ramon and gestures with
his head to take Amanda away. After he leaves the room, Ramon motions with
his knife and walks forward. Amanda walks backward to keep a safe distance
between her and the blade.)
Ramon: Let's go.
Amanda:
Please don't hurt me. I have two small children.
Ramon: I have
seven children. Three of them are still prisoners in San Cardenz of that
pig Polo De Gregorio.
Amanda: But killing me isn't going to free
them.
Ramon: Killing you is an act of political necessity.
(He
drops the knife. Amanda seizes the opportunity, kicks Ramon's leg, and
flees through the door. Ramon, who was cocking his pistol, finishes and
attempts to chase her, but she locks the door from the outside and runs.
Ramon stands back and fires at the lock. It breaks and he chases after
Amanda.)
(Once outside, Amanda finds the stolen car, gets in, and drives wildly
away, nearly running over a man and a hedge. Ramon and his friend stand
in the street behind her and shoot at the car. Amanda ducks her head down
to avoid getting shot, but unfortunately now can't see the road. The two
captors run after her. A truck pulls out directly in her path. She screams
and swerves, but instead slams into a parked car. She blocks her eyes and
gets flung back. The cars on the street, including the truck, stop. The
truck driver gets out and runs to the two totaled cars. Other witnesses
follow. Seeing the crowd, Ramon and the other man stop. Ramon grabs his
friend's arm.)
Ramon: No, no, come on.
(Glancing backwards,
they runs away. Meanwhile, more people have gathered. They gasp as they
look in at Amanda's body slumped sideways in the car.)
(Emergency room of a hospital. Amanda is lying unconscious on a gurney
while two doctors, one holding a medicine bag, wheel her through swinging
doors into place. The doctors run through the facts with each other. A
nurse takes notes.)
Doctor: What do we have?
Paramedic:
Car accident. As far as we can tell, there's no internal injuries, the
pulse is steady. Looks like a concussion to me.
Doctor: Has she
regained consciousness?
Paramedic: Intermittently. We treated
her for shock and she responded okay.
Doctor: Good. Any ID?
Paramedic:
Nothing. The police said the car was stolen.
Doctor: All right,
thanks. We'll take it from here. (The paramedic nods and leaves. The
doctor removes the eye device from the wall.) Okay, here we go. Examination
in prognosis. (He bends far over and pulls back Amanda's eyelids to
check her pupils.) Patient name: Jane Doe.
(IFF, Billy's office. Lee is worried sick and sitting in the chair
in front of Billy, who is standing beside his desk. Billy hangs up the
phone and looks up at Lee.)
Billy: The medical examiner came
up blank on Martinez. (He walks over and stands directly in front of
Lee.) He was a good agent. We didn't even know where he was operating
from. He was very careful.
(Lee does not look up.)
Lee:
Not careful enough.
(Billy sits down and tries to comfort Lee.)
Billy:
Lee, these things happen.
(Lee looks away, then up at Billy.)
Lee:
I blew it, didn't I, Billy?
Billy: What do you mean?
Lee:
You think she's still alive?
Billy: I haven't heard any differently,
have you?
(Lee barely answers.)
Lee: No.
(He
lowers his head.)
Billy: Lee, that drop has always been safe.
There was no way you could have known. (Lee stares blankly at Billy,
then sighs and stands up. He walks over to the door. Billy sighs, giving
up, and also stands.) There's a copy of the Martinez file on your desk,
if you'd care to look through it again. (Lee slightly cocks his head,
thinks, then opens the door and leaves. Billy waits until the door shuts,
then walks over and picks up the phone receiver.) Francine, run a check
with the police and the local hospitals for anyone matching the description
of Amanda King.
(Amanda's house. Dotty is still unsuccessfully trying to entertain
Evelyn. Evelyn is not having fun.)
Dotty: Have another eclair.
Evelyn:
I've had three.
Dotty: Well, make it four. They're small.
Evelyn:
Well, I -- I really must be running along.
(She picks up her coat
and stands. Dotty rushes over to help her into it.)
Dotty:
I just don't understand this. Amanda always phones if there's a problem,
even as a child. She broke a shoelace once, on her way home from school,
she phoned right away, she said, "Mother, stay calm, I broke a shoelace,
I may be a little late." I'm telling you, she was a fabulous child!
Evelyn
(lethargically): Well, maybe she has a pet, or a plant, that's
ill.
(Evelyn picks up her purse. Dotty takes her seriously.)
Dotty:
Oh, yes, that's probably it. Disease could delay her.
(Dotty nods.
Evelyn takes a moment, then quickly gets out of that nuthouse.)
Evelyn:
Well, good-bye, Dotty, and give my best to Amanda.
(Dotty walks over
to the door.)
Dotty: Oh, yes, well, I'll see you out.
(Evelyn
runs after Dotty and stops her.)
Evelyn: No, no, don't --
don't bother, and I -- I do hope you hear from her.
Dotty: Oh,
yes, don't worry, I will! I will.
(Evelyn leaves. Dotty smiles and
waves good-bye. As soon as the door closes, Dotty's smile turns into a
frown and she exhales deeply.)
(El Lagarto's place. He has heard what happened to Amanda. He throws
down his coat and turns angrily to Ramon and his friend.)
El
Lagarto: What do you mean you do not know whether or not she survived
the crash?
Ramon: I told you, we watched the car for a minute.
She wasn't moving. Then people started coming over, cops too, we weren't
going to stick around any longer!
El Lagarto: I want you to find
out what happened to her any way you can! And if she is alive, I want you
to find her! And this time, Ramon, (he walks closer and sticks his finger
in Ramon's face. Ramon does not flinch.) this time, she will not escape
you.
(Hospital, Amanda's room. Amanda is still unconscious. The nurse
is standing over her, taking notes, and the doctor paces. The nurse calls
him.)
Nurse: Doctor.
(The doctor walks over. Amanda
starts groaning and moving. She raises her hand to her head and opens her
eyes. Startled, she looks back and forth from the doctor to the nurse.)
Doctor:
Well, you decided to join us again. Can you tell me your name?
Amanda:
Uh, Amanda King.
Doctor: That's what you said before, I just
wanted to make sure you were sticking to your story.
Amanda:
Oh, yes, I'm definitely Amanda King. What happened?
Doctor: Well,
Mrs. King, nothing broken, no internal bleeding, just a couple bruises
and a mild concussion. We've notified your mother, she's on her way down
here right now.
Amanda: Good. (The doctor starts to leave,
but she calls him back.) Doctor! I don't remember anything, I don't
remember what happened, I don't remember --
Doctor: Mrs. King,
it's not unusual to have some amnesia after a trauma like this.
Amanda:
What do you mean?
Doctor: Well, often a person blocks out a certain
particular aspect of his life, a person, a job. In most cases, total memory
is restored . . . eventually.
Amanda: Oh, my gosh.
Doctor:
Aw, don't you worry about it. Oh, and the police would like to talk to
you.
Amanda: The police?
Doctor: It seems that the
car you were in was, uh . . . stolen.
(Amanda's eyes widen in disbelief.)
Amanda:
Stolen?
Doctor: Yeah.
(The door opens and Dotty rushes
in. She stops and stares at Amanda.)
Dotty: Amanda?
Amanda:
Mother?
(Dotty runs over to her daughter's side.)
Dotty:
Oh, I was so worried.
Amanda: Oh. I'm okay, I have a concussion.
Dotty:
Are you sure you're all right?
Amanda: Mm-hmm.
(Dotty looks
at the doctor.)
Dotty: Are you sure she's all right?
Doctor:
She's going to be fine. I'll come back later.
Amanda: Thank you.
(The
doctor leaves the room. Dotty pulls up a chair and sits by Amanda. She
takes her hand.)
Dotty: Goodness, oh, darling, tell me. Tell
me what happened.
Amanda: Well, I was in a car accident.
Dotty:
Oh, you poor thing. And the salesman told you that that car was so safe!
Amanda:
I wasn't in my car.
Dotty: Well, the person you were riding with,
are they all right?
Amanda: Apparently, I was alone.
Dotty:
"Apparently"?
(Amanda turns her head to her mother and
looks her in the eye.)
Amanda: I can't remember, Mother.
I have partial amnesia.
(Dotty gasps.)
Dotty: Oh, my
God, Amanda. I saw a movie just like this. I mean, when the woman regained
her memory, she suddenly remembered that she -- that she married a man!
In Brooklyn! He had many bambinos.
Amanda: Mother.
Dotty:
Huh?
Amanda: I don't think anything quite like that is going
to happen to me, I'll have my memory back in two or three days.
Dotty:
Can you remember anything?
Amanda: Nothing since this morning.
Dotty:
Lunch with Dean's mother?
Amanda: Dean who?
(Dotty shakes
her head.)
Dotty: Oh.
(At the front desk, Lee approaches a crabby-looking nurse. Lee smiles
charmingly.)
Lee: Excuse me. Could you tell me which room
Amanda King is in?
Receptionist: I'm sorry, visiting hours are
over.
Lee: Ah, well, you see, I am Mrs. King's personal physician.
(The
lady closes her notebook and looks at him coyly.)
Receptionist:
I didn't know Mrs. King had a personal physician.
(Lee chuckles.)
Lee:
Ah, that little dickens, she still can't bring herself to talk about me
or the time that I pulled her through that, uh . . . disease.
(The
nurse stops and looks up.)
Receptionist: What disease?
Lee:
These things are very confidential. Especially things like, uh . . . that.
(The
nurse understands. She nods.)
Receptionist: Oh.
Lee:
Yeah.
Receptionist: I see.
Lee: Mm-hmm.
Receptionist:
All right, doctor, she's in, uh, five-oh-one.
Lee: Five-oh-one.
Thank you.
(He walks down the hall, but becomes interested when Dotty
and Amanda's doctor walk past him, discussing Amanda. Lee stops and listens
until they get out of hearing range, then he continues.)
Doctor:
Amnesia is fascinating, from a medical point of view, Mrs. West. It's quite
amazing sometimes just where the memory gaps occur.
Dotty: Doctor,
a stolen car? I mean, my daughter has never so much as cheated on a parking
meter.
Doctor: Well, the police are being quite decent about
it. She has no prior record, after all.
Dotty: Oh, this is all
so upsetting!
(Meanwhile, Lee has found Amanda's room. He slowly opens the door.
He sees her resting in bed. He smiles, steps in, and closes the door.)
Lee:
Amanda. (Amanda groans and turns her head.) Amanda, are you okay?
(Amanda opens her eyes and rubs them. She stares blankly at Lee.)
I mean, you look okay. Thank God. (Lee walks closer. With every step
he takes, Amanda pulls the blanket up further.) Look, we were -- we
were so relieved when we got word of where you were. I'm sorry I left you
at the drop. I -- I had no idea it was hot. Apparently, they were watching
the place. Look, I know we never told you about Martinez, but I -- I will
give you the whole background, but first of all, tell me as much as you
can about the men who grabbed you.
Amanda: I don't know what
you're talking about. (Lee and Amanda stare at each other. Lee chuckles
uneasily.)
Lee: Amanda, I said I was sorry.
Amanda:
I'm sorry, I don't know what you're talking about. I don't know you, I
don't know Mr. Martinez, I don't know what a drop is, and -- and I'd really
appreciate it if you would leave my room, I was resting. I've been in a
car accident.
(Lee wrinkles his forehead in shock. He numbly nods
his head.)
(Alabam Aircraft, a private little airline near Washington. Ramon
and El Lagarto, in bright orange uniforms, are walking along, talking with
low voices.)
El Lagarto: I just spoke to Lorenzo. The King
woman survived the crash and was taken to the hospital.
Ramon:
It is simple. I will take her out of the hospital.
El Lagarto:
Ramon, it is not that simple. She went home this morning.
Ramon:
Do you have an address?
El Lagarto: Yes.
Ramon: Then
it is simple. (They stop near a locked metal box. El Lagarto kneels
down and works at the lock. Ramon leans on it and watches. El Lagarto looks
up and they laugh. Then Ramon lowers his voice.) You are ready for
the installation?
(El Lagarto unlocks the box. He opens it. Inside
is something covered by a blanket.) El Lagarto: The firing mechanism
has been installed. (He lifts up the blanket and opens the device underneath
it. Both men gaze at a tank of nerve gas.) All that remains is placed
in the canisters.
(He quickly covers it back up and shuts it neatly.)
Ramon:
Do you think the King woman was lying? Could she read Martinez's code?
(EL
Lagarto stands up.)
El Lagarto: If that were the case, my
friend, you and I would be in jail right now. But I am not taking any chances.
I will handle the installation. You, go find Mrs. Amanda King.
(Amanda's house. Dotty is pouring hot coffee into two mugs and listening
patiently as Amanda talks. Amanda is sitting at the kitchen counter.)
Amanda:
You know, it's the funniest feeling, it's like trying to remember a dream
when you know that you dreamt something, but you just can't quite put your
hand on it, you know?
(Dotty picks up both mugs and carries them
to the counter. She sets one in front of Amanda and sits beside her with
the other.)
Dotty: Honey, don't worry about it. I mean, I
have spent many a New Year's Day feeling just like that.
(Both women
laugh out loud.)
Amanda: Well, first I remembered my name,
then I remembered that we live in Arlington, then I remembered Mr. Martinez
--
Dotty: What?
Amanda: What? Dotty: You said
Mr. Martinez.
Amanda: I did?
Dotty: Uh-huh.
Amanda:
I don't know why. (Suddenly she remembers.) Ohh, that man in my
room.
Dotty: What man?
Amanda: The man who came to
my room and told me about Mr. Martinez and the men who grabbed me.
(Dotty
laughs uneasily.)
Dotty: Amanda, darling, I mean, you've
had quite a strain. Why don't you go up to your room and go to bed with
a good book and forget all about these . . . dreams. Now, I am going to
go to the market, get some meat, and make your favorite dinner.
(Amanda
nods. She looks up.)
Amanda: Pot roast?
(Dotty laughs
and takes Amanda's shoulders.)
Dotty: See, you do remember
something.
Amanda: Sure. (She hops down and starts to go,
then turns.) With succotash.
(Dotty grabs her in a big hug.)
Dotty:
Oh, I love you!
Amanda: I love you.
Dotty: Okay.
(She
lets go, pats Amanda on the back, and walks away. Amanda raises her coffee
mug to her lips, then stops.)
Amanda: Do I drink coffee?
(Outside, Dotty steps out onto the sidewalk, closing the gate behind her. Looking back, she walks to the car. Lee's familiar blue Porsche is parked across the street. As Dotty walks past, Lee hunches down. He slowly turns his head and watches Dotty go by. When she is out of sight, he opens the car door and gets out. He walks over to Amanda's house, trying to look nonchalant.)
(Inside the house, Amanda is scrubbing away at dishes. She does not
notice when Lee appears behind her.)
Lee: Hi, there.
(Amanda
whirls around and drops the plate into the sink. She stares at Lee, terrified.)
Amanda:
You again. (Lee sighs and holds his hands up as if to say, "Calm
down." Amanda does, barely.) How dare you break in here.
Lee:
Hold it. I didn't break in here, I walked in here. You know, you should
be a little more careful about --
(Amanda walks closer, wringing
her dishcloth in fear. She points to the door. Her voice shakes.)
Amanda:
Listen, you can just get out. Out!
Lee: Amanda, I have to talk
to you.
Amanda: What are you, a salesman?
Lee: No!
Amanda, you know me, you just can't remember. You have amnesia.
(Amanda
cocks her head curiously.)
Amanda: How do you know I have
amnesia?
Lee: I know a lot of things about you. (Amanda's
eyes widen. Lee gestures to the couch.) Now, please, sit down and I
will tell you all about yourself before your mother gets back.
Amanda:
Why does it have to be before my mother gets back?
(Lee has a tough
time wording this next part.)
Lee: Because no one is supposed
to know that you know . . . me. (Amanda closes her eyes as if to say
sarcastically, "Terrific.") It may make things very difficult
for you.
Amanda: Who are you?
Lee: Lee Stetson?
(Amanda
shrugs helplessly.)
Amanda: What are you?
Lee:
Amanda, I work for the government. I'm an intelligence operative.
(Amanda
wrinkles her forehead and looks at him suspiciously.)
Amanda:
Are you telling me that you're a spy?
Lee: I've never cared for
that word, really.
Amanda: Oh, my gosh.
Lee: Now, please.
Just relax and sit down?
Amanda: You're a spy!
Lee:
Guess what.
Amanda: What?
Lee: You are, too.
(Amanda,
not expecting this, turns and leans against the counter.)
Amanda:
Oh, my gosh!
(Lee walks over, exasperated.)
Lee: Will
you please stop saying that?
Amanda: Well, how am I supposed
to stop saying that? First of all, you come to my hospital room, you tell
me about some man named -- man named what, what, Martinez. And then you
break into my house and you tell me that you're a spy! Then you tell me
that I'm a spy!
Lee: Does it help to tell you that you're only
a trainee spy?
Amanda: No, it wouldn't help at all.
Lee:
I want you to just trust me --
Amanda: Mm!
(He starts walking
closer. She backs up, keeping an equal distance between them.)
Lee:
Just trust me and come back with me to the office. Maybe the surroundings,
the other people will jog your memory --
(Amanda holds out her hands.
Lee stops. Amanda thinks, then softens a little, but she is still angry.)
Amanda:
Trust you.
Lee: Mm-hmm.
Amanda: That's funny.
Lee:
What? What's funny?
Amanda: I seem to remember your asking me
to trust you once before.
(Lee grins, relieved and glad. He nods
fervently.)
Lee: Yeah. Yeah!
Amanda: And I did.
Lee:
Yeah, come on! Come on!
Amanda: Yeah! Yeah! So I ended up in
the hospital with amnesia 'cause I stole somebody's car and wrecked it!
(Lee
sighs.)
Lee: Just get your coat. Hm?
(Outside, Amanda settles into the passenger seat of Lee's Porsche.
He closes the door for her, then walks around to his side. He gets in,
but stops while closing the door. He stares out the windshield in dismay.
The car that stole Amanda originally has returned. Lee closes his door,
then watches as the car pulls up and parks outside Amanda's house. Lee
whispers to Amanda.)
Lee: Get down. (Amanda starts to
question him, but he cuts her off.) Just get down!
(Amanda obediently
slumps down and ducks her head out of view. Lee starts the engine and drives
away, past Ramon and his friend. They watch as Lee's car goes by, but do
not pay much attention to it.)
(IFF. Everyone is gathered around the big office TV set, watching
the Channel 6 news broadcast of the Cardenzan president's arrival. Billy
and Francine are up front.)
Newsman: We're here at Dulles
Airport today to cover the arrival of Polo De Gregorio. He's the new president
of San Cardenz. (The news camera follows the reporter as they catch
up to Polo De Gregorio, just as he is stepping into an escort limo.)
Mr. President, Mr. President, one question, please. When you visit the
White House, what are you going to talk to the president about?
Polo:
I am going to ask the president to see the inside swimming pool and the
bowling alley.
Newsman: The bowling alley? (De Gregorio's
bodyguard helps him into the limo and the door closes. The newsman turns
to face the camera.) All right, well, De Gregorio has been characterized
as whimsical and somewhat unpredictable and, as you can see, he's a little
whimsical and somewhat unpredictable.
(The reporter keeps talking,
but Billy asks Francine a question.)
Billy: Why do they call
him Polo?
Francine: Because he rides horses and hits tiny balls
with a mallet.
(Billy rolls his eyes.)
Billy: You mean
if he wore short pants and dribbled a basketball, they would call him Basketball
De Gregorio?
(Billy and Francine exchange glances.)
Francine:
Yeah.
(On the TV, the reporter talks some more.)
Newsman:
Typical to him, a large portion of his itinerary has been kept secret and,
uh, we're going to try and find out what that secret part is. It has been
labeled "Personal Business" and . . .
Billy: I assume
we know his schedule.
Francine: We think we know his schedule.
But with Polo De Gregorio, anything can happen.
Billy: Well,
doesn't he know that there are San Cardenzan exiles here that want him
dead?
Francine: Oh, his astrologer as assured him there's no
danger.
(Fed up, Billy leans over and clicks off the set. Through
the door, in walk Lee and Amanda. Amanda is clutching her purse as if someone
might steal it and looking around, trying to find something familiar. Billy
and Francine stand.)
Billy: Mrs. King?
(Lee leads a
trembling Amanda over to the other two.)
Amanda: Hello. (Billy
holds out his hand. She shakes it.) Do you work here?
Billy:
Oh, boy.
Lee: Uh, this is Billy Melrose, our section chief. (Francine
smiles brightly, waiting for her title.) And, uh, Francine. Do you
remember Francine?
(Amanda shakes hands with Francine.)
Amanda:
How do you do? (Francine nods hello. Amanda looks at Lee and shakes
her head.) No.
Francine: That's interesting. I've often been
told I'm unforgettable.
(Billy ignores her and looks at Lee.)
Billy:
Can I see you for a moment?
(He walks past them and into his office.)
Lee:
Yeah. (He looks at Amanda.) Excuse me.
(Amanda nods numbly.
Lee follows Billy. Amanda watches him go, then looks nervously at Francine.)
Amanda:
Quite a place.
Francine: Yeah.
Amanda: What do you
do here?
(Francine spots an opportunity and seizes it.)
Francine:
Oh, I am probably the single most important force in keeping this entire
place organized.
(Amanda does not know quite what to say.)
Amanda:
Oh, really, well, that's. . . . Thank you.
(Francine smiles proudly.)
Francine:
Sure.
(Lee walks, frustrated, across Billy's office. Billy is standing
aside, watching and listening.)
Lee: Billy, her brain has
gone . . . blooey, zippo, casa de nada.
Billy: Well, the question
is, does whoever took her think she's still dead?
Lee: The answer's
no. As we were leaving her house, the two goons I saw grab her pulled up.
Billy:
Well, we can't let her go home, then, she's going to need time to think
this thing out. But I'm not sure that the office is the place for her to
do that. (Lee mumbles an agreement. Someone knocks on the door.)
Come in!
(The door opens. Francine walks in with a proud Amanda beside
her.)
Francine: She thinks she just may have remembered something.
(Amanda
uses her hand like a blind person to find a chair and sit in it. Lee grins.)
Lee:
Oh, wonderful, Amanda, wonderful! What is it?
Amanda: Chili dogs.
(Lee
smiles wider.)
Lee: Chili dogs, chili dogs, yeah. No, that's
great. That's great. Now, what else?
Amanda: That's it.
(Lee's
smile fades.)
Lee: That's it?
(Amanda looks nervously
at Billy.)
Amanda: Can I go now? (Lee stares at her in
disappointment.) I'm sorry, it's just that these things come in little
brief flashes and then they're gone and I -- (Her eyes widen. She closes
her eyes and puts her hand to her forehead.) Oh, I think I'm having
another one. Uh, chili dogs and um, um, um . . . oh. (She opens her
eyes, lowers her hand, and smiles apologetically.) Napkins.
(Lee
sighs and he and Billy look away. Then Lee looks back at her, trying to
keep his temper.)
Lee: Napkins.
Amanda: Sorry,
I -- Oh, but there is a note in the napkin.
(Lee looks up, interested.)
Lee:
Yeah, yeah, well . . . what does it say?
(At Francine's cubicle, Francine is slowly and tediously searching
through every single Agency code word in the computer in alphabetical order,
even though they are just scrambled letters. Right now they are in the
"L"'s. Billy and Lee are leaning over, watching Amanda's every
move as she concentrates and tries to pick out the word she saw. Not having
any luck, she looks to Lee and Billy.)
Amanda: This is very
difficult.
Billy: Keep trying, Mrs. King, a lot depends on it.
Amanda:
Well, it's just, the words don't make any sense, they're just a jumble
of letters. (Amanda watches as some "L" words go by. She politely
asks Francine a question.) Could you try the "S" combination
again, please? (Francine nods and types a command. S jumbles flash across
the screen now. Amanda's eyes light up at one of them, but Francine passes
it.) Wait a minute, go back one from the last one. (Francine obeys.
On the screen is the word Amanda saw: "Slymph.") Hold it!
(She points to the screen and nods.) That's it.
Billy:
Francine, run the cipher program.
(Francine picks up a large floppy
disk and inserts it.)
Amanda: You know, it's the funniest
thing. I cannot remember what I had for breakfast this morning, but I can
remember this funny word?
(Lee nods.)
Lee: Amnesia
is like that. It comes back in bits and pieces with a very vivid recall.
(Francine
finishes the commands and stares at the word on the computer. She raises
her eyebrows.)
Francine: "Alabam."
Billy:
"Alabam"?
Francine: If she remembered the cipher correctly,
that's what it means.
Lee: What the hell is "Alabam"?
(Alabam Aircraft. Workers in orange uniforms work on a big plane.
El Lagarto is also working. Ramon hops up to join him. El Lagarto motions
for him to get closer.)
El Lagarto: Well, what have you done
with her?
Ramon: We don't know where she is.
El Lagarto:
What?!
Ramon: We waited for a long time outside the house. Then
we broke in, no one was there. (He reaches into his pocket and hands
a piece of paper to El Lagarto.) We found this note. (El Lagarto
reads it. It says, "Mother, don't worry. Be back soon. Amanda."
El Lagarto throws it back at Ramon in frustration.)
El Lagarto:
Ramon, you must find her. Find her and kill her. We cannot have this operation
ruined now.
Ramon: Are the canisters in place?
El Lagarto:
Yes. De Gregorio takes delivery on his new toy this afternoon. He is like
a child. He will insist on flying the plane himself. The flight path will
take him directly over Arlington, Virginia. And when he pulls the plane
to its bank --
Ramon: The gas will be released.
El Lagarto:
And I would think that destroying an entire population of an American city
will be enough to confuse diplomatic relations for a while, wouldn't you,
Ramon? (Ramon stares in shock.) Adíos, Arlington.
(Amanda's house. Amanda is still gone, and, since Ramon took her
note, Dotty has no idea where her daughter is. Dotty is in the kitchen
with bags full of groceries next to her. She is on the phone and not yet
frantic. She starts unloading the supplies.)
Dotty: I'm calling
from Arlington. Doctor, I did exactly what you said. I brought her straight
home, then I went to the market, and when I got back, she was gone! . .
. No. No, no. Nothing. . . . Yes. She is still vague about a lot of things.
Doctor, where could she be?
(Lee's apartment. Amanda is sitting on the couch. Lee walks into
the room, wearing his shoulder holster and carrying a plate of cookies
and a glass of milk.)
Amanda: You promised you would take
me home.
(Lee sighs and walks around to the other side of the couch.)
Lee:
I told you, I can't. It would be very dangerous for you.
Amanda:
I'm beginning to think that you're making this whole thing up, you know.
(Lee
sighs and sits beside her.)
Lee: Amanda.
Amanda:
Hm?
Lee: Are you absolutely sure you don't remember anything
about me?
Amanda: Yes. The doctor said that I might forget certain
things that were emotionally complicated. Now, I can understand how I might
forget the crash, but I don't know what could be so emotionally complicated
about you that would make me not. . . .
(She looks up into his eyes
and trails off. They stare at each other longingly for a few moments, then
Amanda looks away, breaking the spell.)
Lee: Well, we have
worked fairly closely together, you know.
Amanda: How closely?
Lee:
Well, we've worked hours together, days together --
Amanda: And?
Lee:
And what?
Amanda: Well, did we have -- are we . . . uh, have
-- are we in -- involved in any way?
Lee: You mean did we ever
--
Amanda: Yes, that's what I mean.
(Lee smiles amused.)
Lee:
No. We never --
(Amanda smiles with relief.)
Amanda:
Never did. We never did.
Lee: Mm-mm.
Amanda: We didn't.
Lee:
Mm-mm. (Amanda looks at him as if to say, "Then get your arm off
me, please?") Yeah.
(He removes his arm. They sit uncomfortably,
then Amanda's eyes widen. She puts her hands to her forehead.)
Amanda:
Oh, I'm beginning to remember one of those words!
(Lee sits up, alert.
He leans forward, as if hurrying her brain.)
Lee: Think,
Amanda.
Amanda: I'm thinking, I'm thinking.
Lee: Come
on, think, what is it?
Amanda: Oh. . . .
Lee: Come
on, come on, you can do it, you can do it!
(Amanda almost has it.)
Amanda:
Um, um, uh . . . eugh.
(Amanda loses it. She takes her hands away
from her forehead. Lee straightens, disappointed.)
Lee: Eugh.
Amanda:
I don't know, I'm so confused. I'm beginning to think that I dreamed the
whole thing, maybe I made the whole thing up about the hot dogs and the
chili dogs and the napkins and the notes and the whole -- (Her voice
softens and squeaks as she tries not to cry.) I'm confused, I just
want to go home, I want to see my boys, I want my mother.
(She leans
against Lee's shoulder. He hugs her comfortingly.)
Lee: I
know.
Amanda: She's making me a pot roast.
Lee: I know,
I know. Look, why don't you lie down and rest, you can use my bedroom (Amanda's
eye lids fly open.) and when you're calmer -- (Amanda puts her finger
against his chest as if to say, "Hold it, Buster." She sits up,
looking at him suspiciously. Lee finishes his sentence, regardless.)
You can call home, all right?
Amanda: In your bedroom?
Lee:
Right.
Amanda: To lie down?
Lee: To lie down.
(Amanda
thinks.)
Amanda: For a nap.
Lee: Yeah.
Amanda:
Then I can call home.
Lee: Absolutely. Huh? (Amanda smiles
and nods. Lee stands up.) Come on.
(She follows him over to the
bedroom door. He opens it and motions for her to go in. She shakes her
head.)
Amanda: Mm-mm. (Lee sighs and drops his arm. He
and Amanda switch places, putting Amanda inside the room and Lee out in
the living room. Amanda looks at him.) Thank you very much.
Lee:
Yeah. (She closes the door. Lee calls to her.) Oh, uh, you need
anything, I'll be right out here, so let me know, huh?
Amanda:
I'll remember that.
(Lee runs his hand through his hair and sighs.
He walks back to the couch.)
(In the bedroom, Amanda sits on the bed and takes a deep breath. She picks up the pillow, fluffs it, and lies down on it.)
(Later. IFF, Billy's office. Billy is on the phone. He walks over
and sits in his desk chair.)
Billy: The only thing we've
been able to come up with for "Alabam" is a small manufacturer
of luxury aircraft.
(Lee, in his apartment, is on the other line.
He is sitting on the couch, waiting for Amanda.)
Lee: You
know, Billy, maybe this whole thing is a wild goose chase. (Lee glances
toward the bedroom door and lowers his voice.) I mean, Amanda's memory
is highly unreliable.
(In the bedroom, Amanda wakes up. She looks at her watch, then pulls
herself up. She picks up the phone to call her mother and reaches for the
buttons to dial, but instead hears Billy and Lee talking and stops. She
decides to eavesdrop.)
Billy: Lee, this is a serious matter.
Lee:
I don't know what I'm going to do with her.
Billy: Well, we just
might have to terminate her. (Amanda lets the phone drop in shock.)
In her present condition, she's of no value to us and you know what we
have to do!
(Amanda slowly and secretively hangs up the phone, unfortunately
too soon.)
Lee: Isn't firing her a bit extreme?
Billy:
Sure, I hate to do it. As you know, I've become quite fond of Mrs. King.
But if her condition doesn't clear up, she's not much use to us.
(In the bedroom, Amanda is making what she believes to be an escape. She silently opens the window and climbs out onto the fire escape.)
Lee: Maybe we could retrain her.
(Billy chuckles, amused.)
Billy:
Lee, I'm surprised to hear you talk like this. Usually you're complaining
because you have to work with her.
Lee: I can adapt to almost
anything.
Billy (solemnly): The Agency appreciates your
sacrifice.
(He grins, trying not to laugh out loud. Lee smiles, mocking
exasperation.)
Lee: Okay, I'll call you later. (He hangs
up, taps the phone receiver, then stands up, puts the phone back, and walks
over to the bedroom door. He knocks and calls softly.) Amanda? (No
answer, obviously.) Amanda?
(He opens the door and starts to
say something, then stops when he sees the empty room. He runs over and
finds the open fire escape. He sticks his head out, looks around, then
sighs and slowly retracts his head back in. He breathes heavily, worried
for Amanda.)
(Amanda's house. Dotty is now frantic, sitting at the kitchen table,
and literally stuffing her face with popcorn like a chipmunk.)
Dotty:
I know, doctor, I'm sorry to bother you again. . . . I know, it's just
that, I was hoping you might remember some revealing little something she
could have said. You know, something to give us an idea about where she
could have gone! . . . Doctor, I know. I know you have other patients.
It's just that, this is my baby we're talking about!
(Outside, the city bus pulls to a stop at Amanda's house. She gets out and walks up the path to her door.)
(Inside, Dotty is pacing furiously.)
Dotty: I have
friends in extremely high places in the AMA. I can assure you that this
callous behavior of yours is not going to go unnoticed! I -- (She stops
in mid-threat when she looks out the window and see Amanda trotting up
the path. Dotty shrieks with joy.) Oh, thank God! Oh, God, bless you.
God bless you, Doctor! And just good-bye. Bye, thank you! (She hangs
up the phone and runs over to the front door to welcome her daughter.)
Amanda? Amanda!
(Outside, Amanda is fiddling with the fence, trying to open it. Before
she gets it open, Ramon and his friend drive up. Immediately, Ramon gets
out of the car, grabs Amanda, and carries her, struggling, into the car.
They drive away, tires squealing. At that instant, the front door opens
and Dotty runs out.)
Dotty: Amanda, darling, welcome home.
. . . (Her voice trails off as she looks around and does not see Amanda.)
Amanda?
(Alabam Aircraft. Polo De Gregorio's dark limo pulls up. The chauffeur
jumps out and holds the door open. Polo steps out and Cesar Varga follows
him out the other way. Polo smiles and walks forward, looking around.)
Varga:
Excellency, this is madness! There's no protection here!
(Polo silences
him with his hand.)
Polo: Por favor, Cesar.
Varga:
You need protection! A great many people don't like you.
Polo:
Cesar, por favor. I suffocate with all those guards hovering about! I cannot
think! Besides, my moon is in the sixth house of something-or-other and
I simply cannot die.
Varga: But why do you need another plane?
You have three planes, a locomotive, a small minesweeper, a submarine --
(Polo
yells at him.)
Polo: Cesar! Look at that! (He gestures
to a large luxury jet sitting in front of them.) Look at that and ask
me why I need another plane, huh?
(Varga relents reluctantly.)
Varga:
Very well. I'll go sign the papers. But you must promise me you will not
fly the plane until I am on board.
(Polo stares at him angrily.)
Polo:
Cesar, don't treat me like a child.
Varga: I'm sorry, excellency,
but you know there is a reason for what I ask.
(This time, Polo gives
in. He nods.)
Polo: Very well. Go sign your papers, huh?
And be quick.
(Varga walks away. Polo checks his pocketwatch, then
gazes at his new plane and grins. He laughs out loud and walks, slow at
first, but faster as he gets closer, up to his plane.)
(In the maintenance shop behind Polo's car, Ramon roughly puts Amanda
on a pile of boxes. He fingers his pocketknife as he walks around her.)
Amanda:
What are you going to do with me?
Ramon: You have one last chance
to tell El Lagarto how many of you know about the plane.
Amanda:
What plane?
Ramon: Please, Mrs. King. Already, one of your people
has been here asking about the plane. Fortunately, Polo De Gregorio never
buys these things in his own name. It attracts too much attention.
Amanda:
Listen. I can't remember.
Ramon: Martinez must not have known
about the gas. (Amanda stops and looks up.) Otherwise your people
would have been more thorough.
Amanda: What gas?
(Ramon
snaps at her, fed up.)
Ramon: Nerve gas, Mrs. King. When
Polo De Gregorio lifts off and makes his first right turn, the town of
Arlington will die.
(Amanda breathes heavily, frightened.)
(Lee's Porsche pulls up. He hops out and calls to a worker nearby.)
Lee:
Hey, buddy? Listen, I'm wondering if you can help me. (The worker walks
up, keeping his back to the camera.) I'm looking for a woman. She's
fair, stands about so high (he puts his hand out, showing the approximate
height of Amanda), uh, name's Amanda King.
(The worker looks
around cautiously. We see his face. He is El Lagarto. He pulls out a gun
and points it at Lee, down low. Lee drops his arms and sighs.)
El
Lagarto: You will find, señor, it is very dangerous knowing
Amanda King. Your gun, por favor. (Without waiting for an answer, El
Lagarto reaches into Lee's jacket and pulls out Lee's pistol. With his
own gun, he motions to the shop.) To the building.
(Lee does
not move. El Lagarto grabs Lee's arm and leads him.)
(In the shop, Amanda is desperately trying to explain to Ramon about
her condition. Her voice shakes.)
Amanda: Please. Amnesia
is a very strange thing. I can remember some things, some things I have
no memory of at all. I don't remember you, and I probably won't remember
you. In ten minutes, I won't remember anything about any nerve gas or --
(The door opens. Amanda turns to look. Lee walks in with a grim look
on his face, followed by El Lagarto, pushing him. Amanda's eyes widen.)
Mr. Stetson!
(El Lagarto pushes Lee beside Amanda and keeps his gun
on them.)
El Lagarto: Well, perhaps the two of you could
tell us if any others of you are coming.
(They hear a plane engine
roaring and look up. Lee takes the opportunity to punches El Lagarto and
push him into Ramon. Amanda winces and waits a few seconds, then jumps
up and hightails it for the door.)
(Outside, she stops at the door. She sees Polo's plane ready to take off. She glances around, then runs for the stepladder into the plane.)
(Inside, Lee overturns a shelf full of cans and boxes onto the two men, knocking them to the ground. He runs to another shelf.)
(Outside, Amanda races up the steps and disappears into the plane.)
(Inside, after Lee overturns another shelf, he makes a break for the door. Unfortunately, El Lagarto sits up and fires his gun at Lee. Lee dives out the door and the bullet whizzes past and goes into the door.)
(Outside, Lee lands behind a crate. He crawls on all fours, staying
hidden behind stuff. He peeks out. A worker closes the door to Polo's plane.
Just then, El Lagarto appears at the door and gets his gun ready. Lee crouches
and tiptoes around the box, staying out of sight. Ramon joins El Lagarto,
holding his knife out. Meanwhile, the workers wheel the ladder away from
the plane and it starts rolling, the engine whirring. Amanda is safe inside.
But Lee is not so lucky. El Lagarto silently gestures for Ramon to go left.
Ramon does and El Lagarto creeps in the other direction. Lee tries to stay
hidden, but El Lagarto spots him between two barrels and fires. Lee ducks.
The plane keeps going, oblivious to the unfolding shootout match. Also
oblivious to Cesar Varga and the manager of the air line running outside
of the office building. The manager yells to the plane.)
Manager:
Who the hell's in that plane? No one has clearance to take off right now.
(In the plane, Polo is in the pilot's seat. He smiles, overjoyed,
and mumbles happily in Spanish. He watches through the window as the plane
rolls down the runway. Amanda scrambles in from the rest of the plane.)
Amanda:
Sir?
Polo: Huh?
(He glances at her, then does a double
take. Amanda kneels next to him.)
Amanda: Sir, excuse me,
sir. Señor. Señor, el presidente.
Polo: Ah, a stewardess.
Wonderful.
Amanda: No, no, sir, you can't take off right now.
Polo:
Don't be foolish. What do you mean I can't take off?
Amanda:
No, no, sir, you can't take off now!
Polo: Now fasten your seat
belt or fix me a snack.
Amanda: No, no --
(She still tries
to explain. The air traffic controller tries to call them back through
the radio.)
Controller: Alabam six zero, we have no record
of flight plan, over.
(Polo continues to pilot the plane down the
runway. Amanda sits into the other pilot's seat, but keeps babbling.)
Amanda:
Sir, you don't understand. If you take off, you're going to gas my family.
(The
plane keeps going. It goes faster. Polo turns the plane onto the takeoff
strip.)
Controller: Alabam six zero, you are not cleared
for takeoff.
(Meanwhile, Lee is still hiding from El Lagarto. He peers through the barrels and sees El Lagarto leave.)
(The plane starts to make that screaming sound that planes make when
they are about to take off. Polo is laughing to himself and grinning. Amanda
is frantic and desperate.)
Amanda: No, no, please! Please!
(Lee watches El Lagarto walk away. Confused, he sticks his head out and looks around for him. Behind him, a forklift is ramming toward him at top speed. Lee turns around just in time. He jumps and slams onto the crate the lift picks up. Frustrated, the driver, Ramon, backs up. Lee climbs over the machinery and swings from the roof, kicking Ramon out of the lift and onto the pavement. But El Lagarto is in firing range now. He fires. His bullets miss. Undaunted, Lee heads for him. El Lagarto runs into his shop and closes the door. But Lee just keeps going and drives right through the wooden shop.)
(Meanwhile, in the plane, Polo does not believe Amanda. He keeps
going. Amanda is frantically trying to get the seat belt on.)
Polo:
Now, señorita, you must admit your story is a bit farfetched.
Amanda:
It's true.
Polo: If I don't take off now, they will never let
me pilot my plane out of here. (Amanda looks up, terrified. Polo leans
over and whispers to her.) Just between you and me, my license has
been revoked.
(Polo turns back to his controls. Amanda leans over.)
Amanda:
Why?
Polo: Sometimes I get uh, uh, fainting spells when I am
excited.
(Amanda's jaw drops.)
Amanda: Don't get excited.
But you must stop this plane right now because it's loaded with nerve gas.
(Polo stares at her and passes out, falling against her chest. The plane
keeps going, bobbing like it's going to take off any minute.) Oh, no!
(She pushes Polo off her and holds up the radio.) Hello, sir, the
plane's -- (She also picks up the unplugged end of the radio. She puts
them down and attempts to wake the sleeping presidente. She pushes him
to a sitting position, straining with his weight.) Sir, wake up, Mr.
President, wake up, sir, please!
(The front wheels of the plane lift.
Polo stays asleep. The air traffic controller calls over his radio.)
Controller:
Alabam, who the hell's flying that plane?
(Amanda sets to shaking
Polo roughly and slapping him.)
Amanda: Sir, you've got to
wake up! (Polo wakes up, yelling to imaginary terrorists.)
Polo:
I'll tell you everything! I'll tell you everything!
(The plane goes
faster. Amanda calms Polo. She speaks softly to him.)
Amanda:
No, no. No, no. Stop the plane. Stop the plane?
(Polo slowly nods
and reaches out for the controls. Amanda sits back.)
Polo:
Oh, señorita, perhaps you're right.
Amanda (breathlessly):
Yes, perhaps I'm right. (He pulls the lever. The wheels screech and
the front wheels lower back down, literally seconds before the back wheels
lift. Polo is panting. The plane finally stops. Polo babbles in Spanish.)
That was very good. Gracías. Yes, yes.
(They both just
sit and catch their breath.)
(IFF. Billy, Lee, and Amanda are all walking out of Billy's office.
Amazingly enough, Amanda is still talking. The trio walks over to the hall
doorway.)
Amanda: I don't know, I guess it just must have
been all the excitement. All I know is that when that plane started down
the runway, I saw the last two days of my life flash before my eyes, and
then when we started toward the end of the runway, I saw my entire life
flash before my eyes.
(They stop at the door.)
Billy:
Well, Mrs. King, incidentally I want to tell you that when you heard me
say "terminate you," I didn't mean it in the ultimate sense.
(Lee
chuckles. Amanda blushes.)
Amanda: Yes, sir, well, I'm sorry,
I wasn't thinking very clearly.
Billy: And it was an excellent
job, Mrs. King.
Amanda: Thank you, sir.
Billy: Lee.
Lee:
Thank you.
Billy: Well, I guess I'd better see to rounding up
the rest of these exiles.
(Amanda nods.)
Lee: Ah. (Billy
walks away. Lee motions with his head toward the hall.) Let's go.
(They
walk out into the hall and start toward the closet/elevator.)
Amanda:
How did you know where to find me?
Lee: Well, I took a chance
that you knew what you were talking about with that code word. (At this
next part, Amanda bites her lip and looks away, her eyes wide.) I phoned
your house, and your mother in a rather loud way told me she hadn't seen
you.
Amanda: Oh, my mother! What am I going to tell my mother?
Lee:
Ah, this is a tough one.
Amanda: I just disappeared in the middle
of the afternoon, she never got my note, this is the worst!
(They
stop by the elevator and Amanda pushes the button. Lee comes up with various
ideas.)
Lee: What if you told her that you suddenly remembered
an appointment?
Amanda: I had amnesia!
Lee: An impromptu
college reunion?
Amanda: I used that one.
Lee: Your
club.
Amanda: No, no, she doesn't believe that anymore.
Lee:
A sick German shepherd!
Amanda: That was last week!
(Lee
snaps his fingers.)
Lee: Dan!
Amanda: Dean, he
works weekdays.
(The elevator beeps and opens. There are no coats
inside it.)
Lee: I got it! I got it!
Amanda: What?
(Lee
explains as they step into the elevator.)
Lee: You're standing
in your kitchen.
Amanda: Yeah.
Lee: And you hear a
noise and there is an incredibly handsome man, just standing there, (Amanda
rolls her eyes. Freeze frame. Lee's voice continues.) and one thing
led to another. . . .