Ghost Virus

8/3/2019 Ghost Virus

1/80

Ghost Virusby

Terry Thome

3rd draftNovember 30th, 2010


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FADE IN

THE GORDON HOUSE, EXT. NIGHT.

This is a modest looking home that sits on a quiet suburban

street. It's a dark fall evening. From inside the house, wecan hear the muffled sound of a baby crying. We hold on theshot for establishing purposes.

CUT TO

THE GORDON'S MASTER BEDROOM, INT. NIGHT.

This is a large bedroom with a queen sized bed as it'scenterpiece. KAREN GORDON lays there half asleep. She's notfully conscious. She can hear the baby cry in the next room,but she knows, even in her sleep, that her husband is takingcare of business. She looks peaceful. A HAND comes into frame

and gently shakes her. Her husband, SAM, is trying to awakenher.

SAMHoney. Honey? Wake up. Karen startsto stir. Wake up, hon. There'ssomething wrong with the baby.

Karen opens her eyes and looks with concern at Sam.

KAREN(Slurred and drowsy)

What? What's Wrong?SAM

I -I don't know. She won't stopcrying.

Karen sits up in bed and turns her head to the door. Shelistens to the baby's cries and gets up out of bed.

KARENShe's probably hungry.

SAM

I tried the bottle. I triedeverything. She just won't stop.

KARENOK.

Karen throws her robe over her and exits the room.

CUT TO


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THE BABY'S ROOM, INT. NIGHT.

This is a small room with a crib near the far wall. The roomis dark except for moonlight from a window near the crib. Thebaby's cries coming from the crib are incredibly loud. The

window is open and the curtains are billowing gently. Karenmakes a sour face and goes to the window, closing it.

KAREN (TO SAM)Why is the window open? It'sfreezing in here!

She moves to the crib and looks down. A look of confusioncrosses her face. The baby isn't there. There is a small taperecorder sitting where the baby would lay. Karen bends downto pick up the tape recorder. As she bends down, Sam isrevealed to us from behind her. He has a grim look on hisface. She stands upright with the tape recorder in hand. She

turns around.

KAREN (CONTD)...Sam..?

She is face to face with Sam. In a split second from herturn, Sam produces a large marble ashtray and backhands herwith it as a tennis player would serve a ball. It connectswith her jaw and collapses into a heap. The tape recorderfalls to the ground, the baby's recorded cries stillamplified through it's speaker. We hold a shot on the taperecorder in the foreground. In the background, we see Sam

dragging Karen out of the room.CUT TO

DOUGLAS WITHERSPOON'S APARTMENT BEDROOM, INT. NIGHT.

It's a smaller bedroom with a full size bed that takes up alarge part of the room. DOUG is sleeping and his girlfriend,LAUREN, is asleep beside him. The phone rings and startlesDoug. After the 3rd ring, Doug answers.

DOUGWhat?

SAM(V.O. on phone; panicked)

Oh, God! Doug! Please... come overquick!

Doug sits up in bed. Lauren stirs a bit.

DOUGUh..Sam? What's wrong?

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SAMSomething's happened. Oh, God.There's been an accident. Jesus!Hurry!

The phone connection goes dead. Doug gets up out of bed.Lauren rises slightly, still in limbo.

LAUREN(Sleepily)

Wha..? What's the matter?

DOUGI'm going over to Sam and Karen's.Something's happened.

Doug throws his clothes on quickly. He sits at the edge ofthe bed and puts on his slippers.

LAURENDo you want me to come?

DOUGNo, go back to sleep. I'll call youwhen I know what's going on.

He leans over the bed and kisses her.

LAURENOK.

DOUGGet some sleep.

LAURENBe careful. I love you.

DOUGMe too.

He exits the room. Lauren lays back down.

CUT TO

DOUG'S CAR, INT. NIGHT.

Doug is driving to the Gordon house. He picks up his cellphone and dials Sam. No one answers. He hangs up the phone,frustrated, and continues driving.

CUT TO

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Doug's car pulls up along the street. Doug exits the car withcell phone in hand. He looks at the house and notices thatthe only light on in the house is a faint light coming from

the ATTIC. A cold wind blows through him as he makes his waythrough the FRONT DOOR. At the front door, he doesn't knowwhat to do. Should he ring the bell, knock loudly or see ifthe door is open? Being cautious, he walks about across thefront of the house, looking to see if he can spot anythingwrong through the windows. The house is too dark inside tosee anything but shadows. Becoming more and more nervous andantsy, he decides to try the front door. It opens up and thesound of a baby crying can be heard from inside. Dougcautiously enters.

THE GORDON'S LIVING ROOM, INT. NIGHT.

Doug enters the house, leaving the door ajar. He tries to bequiet in case there are intruders in the house. We see a shotof Doug's feet walking towards the staircase. He walks past aLARGE CLOTH DESIGNER SHOPPING BAG, just missing stumblingover it. He gets to the staircase and looks up to the top ofit. The baby's crying is louder here. He hesitates and looksabout for something to hold onto, a weapon He grabs a tablelamp, yanking the cord from the wall gently. He wraps thecord around his hand and grips the base tightly. He removesthe lampshade and makes for the stairs. He slowly ascends thestairs. Every loud creak and crack the stairs make sendspanic through Doug's body. After a few long tense moments, he

makes it to the second floor.SECOND FLOOR HALLWAY, INT. NIGHT.

This is a long dimly lit hallway. The only light is comingfrom open doors along the hallway that are letting themoonlight in. Doug follows the sound of the baby's cries. Ashe walks, the cries get louder, but something else ishappening. The sound of the baby's cries are beginning to getslower and deeper. It's not happening quickly, but slow andsteadily. He makes it to the Baby's room.


Doug enters and searches the inner wall for a light. He findsit and turns it on. He sees the TAPE RECORDER on the floor;the source of the Baby's cries. The batteries are dying andthe sounds are becoming more and more guttural and ominous.He moves into the center of the room and sees a pool of bloodon the floor that streaks out of the room and into thehallway. He begins to feel severe paranoia and is starting toreel a bit. The Lamp falls limp in his hand. His breathing isgetting heavier. A phone rings from another room.

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He leaves to find the phone. We hold on the tape recorderloudly and ominously bleating an increasingly unnaturalsound.

THE MASTER BEDROOM, INT. NIGHT.

Doug enters and follows the ringing into the dark room. Hecrawls onto the bed and turns on the lamp on the bedsidetable, placing the lamp in his hand on the bed. He hesitatesand the phone rings a few more times and then he shyly picksup the receiver.

DOUG (HESITANT)Hello?

SAMIt's about time.

DOUGSam, where the fuck are you?

SAM(After a pause)

Did you find them?

DOUGWhat? Find who? What's going on?

SAM(V.O. Voice quivering)

You didn't find them. They'rethere. They're both there. Allyours. They're all yours. She'syours. The baby's yours.

DOUGI don't understand. What..?

SAM(V.O.)

It's not my baby. It's not my baby.

DOUG

Sam...

SAM(V.O.)

She's my wife... Your lover... Yourbaby...

DOUGI..

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SAMShe talks about you. In her sleep.She says your name...

DOUG

Sam... Sam... What did you do?

Silence.

DOUG (CONTD)Sam. Sam. What? What did you do?

Pause.

SAM(V.O.)

Come up to the attic. She's allyours.

The phone goes dead. Sam has hung up. Doug exits the bedroomquickly and into the hallway.

SECOND FLOOR HALLWAY, INT. NIGHT.

Doug looks up and down the hallway. Where is the entrance tothe attic. He looks to the ceiling. Nothing there. He looksin every room. Nothing evident. There is one door at the farend of the hall. It looks like a closet. He opens the doorand sees a SMALL PANEL DOOR on the side of the closet. Thereis a dim light coming from the edges of the panel door. Doug

opens the door and reveals a rickety wooden staircase up tothe attic. Doug pauses and, frightened, begins his ascent.

ATTIC, INT. NIGHT.

Doug climbs up and cautiously stands on the roof studs. Theattic is dark except for a single light at the far end of theattic. It's obscured by storage boxes and such. The baby'scries are getting slower and slower. He looks out across thefloor and there are pieces of paper there. They appear to bephotographs. He walks along the wooden planks and makes hisway over toward the light, picking up the paper as he goes.We see part of this in his POV.

Each photo has a hole cut out where a woman's face would be.One photo in particular has Doug and Karen in a silly poseduring a vacation. Her face is cut out and Doug's face isscratched out. He reaches the light source. It's a smallelectric lantern sitting next to a large garbage bag. The bagis bulked out in different areas and it looks like whateveris inside was hard to fit in there. It's pretty obvious whatthe contents are. Doug kneels down to the bag's level andstares at it.

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He then cautiously reaches out and rips open a hole in thetop of the bag. The slashed, distorted and ravaged face ofKAREN GORDON is revealed. She has been dead for a couple ofdays. Doug falls back and recoils in horror. He just staresat her for a moment and weeps.


We see Doug emerge from the attic entrance with theflashlight in hand. He pauses and then dials a number on hiscell phone. The call connects.

DOUGLauren..?

SAMIt's over now.

DOUGSam?

SAMAll over now. All over.

DOUGWhat the hell are you doing there?

SAMWe're even.

DOUGWhat?

SAMYou took what was mine...

CUT TO

DOUG'S BEDROOM, INT. NIGHT.

Sam is sitting at the foot of the bed, partially unclothedand covered in blood. Lauren is laying there, dead, andstretched out on the bed. She's just out of frame and out of

our view.

SAM...and now I've taken yours.

Sam places his hand on her chest and brings it up to hisface. It's drenched in blood.

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DOUGWhat have you done?

CUT TO


Doug is standing there quivering with rage and fear.

DOUG(Screaming into the phone)

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?

The phone goes dead. Doug runs down the hall and down thestairs.

LIVING ROOM, INT. NIGHT.

Doug sprints down the stairs and trips over the LARGE CLOTHDESIGNER SHOPPING BAG. He falls flat on his face. He looksback and shines the flashlight on the bag. Spilled out ontothe floor are a bloody MARBLE ASHTRAY and the corpse of ababy.

CUT TO


Close up of the TAPE RECORDER. The tape recorder loudly makesit's last horrible sound and runs out of batteries. The

wheels of the cassette stop.CUT TO


Doug is paralyzed with fear. The house is silent Suddenly, wehear a loud thump. Then there is a loud thumping and scrapingcoming form the upstairs. A shadow appears on the stairs.Doug shines the flashlight on the figure. It's KAREN GORDONback from the dead, crawling down the stairs after Doug. Dougis in shock. He can't move. The light continues to shine onKaren's corpse. Karen's body moves unnaturally towards Doug,

as if rigor mortis were preventing a majority of the musclesfrom working properly. A sick imitation of the baby's slowdeep cries comes from Karen's mouth. Doug finally gets hisbearings and begins to move backwards.

He kicks his legs and scoots back on his elbows. He gets tothe front door and it slams shut before he can leave.

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Suddenly, Karen is quickly on top of him. She is face to facewith him.

CUT TO


We hear Doug's blood curdling scream from inside the house.

CUT TO

DOUG'S BATHROOM. INT. NIGHT.

Sam is taking a shower and washing off all of the blood fromLauren's body. He turns off the shower and dries himself offwith a towel. The bathroom door is open and we can glimpseLauren still on the bed, eviscerated.

DOUG'S BEDROOM, INT. NIGHT.

Sam enters and casually picks through Doug's clothes andwears what suits him. He dresses up in Doug's finest clothes.Suit and tie. Class all the way. He bundles up Lauren in herblankets, gathers up his clothes in a bundle and leaves.

CUT TO

SAM GORDON'S LIVING ROOM, INT. NIGHT.

Sam enters his house and puts the bundle of clothes on the

floor. There is no sign that anything has happened here. Thebag is upright and by the stairs, the flashlight is gone...even the lamp is back in it's place with the lamp shadereplaced. Sam turns on the lamp and looks around. He thenclimbs the stairs.


Sam turns on the hall light and looks about. Nothing. Hechecks all of the rooms. Nothing. He opens the closet doorand looks up to the Attic. Nothing. Sam shrugs and figuresDoug had run from the house. Then, he pauses and thinks abit. He walks back downstairs.

CUT TO


Sam walks out of his house and goes to Doug's car. He looksinside the car. No one there. He looks around, beginning towonder what happened to Doug. He returns to the house.

CUT TO

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Sam enters the house. He closes and locks the front door. Hepicks up the bundle of laundry and heads for the basement.

THE GORDON HOUSE BASEMENT, INT. NIGHT.

It's pitch black. A door opens from the top of the stairs andSam's shadow appears. A light comes on and Sam walks down thestairs, laundry in arms. He walks over to the clothes washerand drops his clothes on the floor. He hears soft scrapingsounds from the dark corners of the room. He hesitates, gazesinto the darkness and shrugs it off. He goes over to theshelf and grabs a box of detergent. He places the laundry inthe washing machine and shakes some detergent into thewashing machine. He closes the lid and turns on the machine.He turns to walk up the stairs when the washing machinestarts to bang loudly. He turns around and approaches the

washing machine. The washing machine bangs some more andfinally stops dead. He looks at the washing machine a momentand then opens the top door to the machine. Before he canlook into the washing machine, he hears the feeble sigh of awoman. His eyes widen. He turns around and sees Lauren'scorpse shuffling towards him. She's in a bloody nightgown andher hair is in her face, obscuring it. He is frozen interror. She is almost face to lace with him when he hears alow rumbling cry from behind him, inside the washing machine;the same cry from the run down tape recorder. KAREN'S HANDSreach out of the washing machine and grab his head frombehind. His eyes widen. Karen's face rises above his head and

looks out with a wide eyed, horrific expression on her face.She quickly pulls him into the machine head first andbackwards. The machine's door closes with a bang. All is nowsilent, with Lauren's corpse standing there facing themachine, swaying back and forth.

FADE OUT

BLACK SCREEN

CUT TO

RESIDENTIAL STREET, EXT. DAY.

We are looking at a street corner in a residential suburbanneighborhood just a little ways away from the house. A SCHOOLBUS drives up the road and stops at the corner. A TEENAGEGIRL in a Catholic School Uniform exits the bus and standsthere. Her name is NICOLE. The bus drives away. The girlslaugh and chatter to each other, clutching their books totheir chests. She pulls out a CIGARETTE, lights it with herLIGHTER and finally decides to walk to her home.

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We see a few shots of her walking down the street. Her longhair bounces as she walks happily, a spring in her steps. Shemakes her way down the street a few feet when a BOY, DANIEL,comes up behind her, scaring her. She yelps.

NICOLEDaniel! You dickhead!

DANIELDid I scare you?

Nicole hits him in the stomach with the back of her hand.

NICOLEWhat the hell do you think?

DANIELSo are you coming to my house on

Saturday?

NICOLEWhy?

DANIELMy party! I told you about it.

Nicole begins to walk, Daniel follows her like a puppy dog.

NICOLEUmmmm... Oh yeah. I remember. Yeah.

You've only been talking it up fora month now. How could I forget?

DANIELNice. So?

NICOLESo..?

DANIELSo are you coming?

NICOLE

I'll let you know.

DANIELNikki, that's not fair! Come on!Stop stringing me along.

NICOLEOkay, okay! I'll be there! Like Iwouldn't. Stupid.

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DANIELCool. So, do want me to walk youhome?

NICOLE

No, I think I can manage.

DANIELYou sure? I wouldn't want theboogey man to get you.

He puts his arms around her. She smiles.

NICOLEI think I'd be safer with theboogey man.

She shrugs off his embrace.

DANIELOK, so then I'll see you..?

NICOLESaturday. I'll be there.

Daniel smiles and then moves in for a peck on her cheek. Hegets one in before she can deflect it.

She smiles in surprise.

DANIELBye! Daniel runs off.

SHOT OF STREET THROUGH THE HEDGES, EXT. DAY.

Someone is watching Nicole through a thick hedgerow. Hewatches Daniel run off. We see her standing there across thestreet through that someone's Point of View.

HEDGES, EXT. DAY.

We are looking through the hedges at the man looking atNicole. It's VAGRANT BOB. He has his long hair in front of

his face with one eye peering out. There is a crazed, hornylook in his eye. He makes a few small, sleazy grunts.

RESIDENTIAL STREET CORNER, EXT. DAY.

We can see the hedges that they are being spied upon from inthe background across the street.

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SHOT OF STREET THROUGH THE HEDGES, EXT. DAY.

We see Nicole coming towards us, crossing the street. We seethe hedges rustle and we hear the sound of Vagrant Bobrunning away.


Nicole reaches the other side of the street and walks downthe sidewalk, close to the hedges. She walks with confidence.She has no idea she has a stalker. Over the sound of herfootsteps, we can hear some soft noises beyond the hedges.She takes no notice.

At a corner, she makes the turn where the hedges become apicket fence. She pulls a ruler out of her books and pulls italong the fence, making a clacking noise. The fence gives wayto another fence, this time a chain link one. She continues

making noise with the ruler. At the end of the fence,however, a Large Rottweiler forcefully pushes against thefence with it's paws, barking loudly. He is tied and looksquite vicious with much foam and spittle flying from it'smouth. This sudden shock completely paralyzes her with fear.She steps backward quickly, dropping her books and clutchingthe ruler tightly. She stares wide eyed at the growlingbeast.

From behind and in plain sight, Bob grabs her from behind andruns out of frame with her.

BEHIND THE BUSHES, EXT. DAY.Bob throws her down on her back. Nicole is stunned by thisdouble attack. Bob begins to undo his pants. She regains herwits and lashes out with the ruler and connects with Bob'sface. Bob grabs her wrist and thrusts it to the ground by herhead. He hits her wrist against the ground one more time andthe ruler falls from her grasp. Bob then grabs at her shirtand rips it open, popping the buttons.

NICOLEDANNY! HELP!

She is terrified, but is waiting for a moment to make a move.She screams, but stops short. She locks eyes with Bob. Boblooks down and begins to rub his right hand on her knees. Heslowly moves his hand upward towards her thighs. He's nolonger making any sort of eye contact. His right hand movesup underneath her skirt and he removes his hand from herwrist. As he goes to put his hand on himself, she thrusts herhand out and digs her nails deep into his cheek, leavingthree bloody scratches. Bob recoils in pain and gives herjust enough time to stand up and run.

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Nicole is running down the street as fast as she can. Shereaches the end on the street and turns the corner. As sheturns, Bob appears in the distance. The dog is still barking.

Nicole runs faster, her adrenaline kicking in. She runsacross a street without stopping runs to the far end of thenext street. She stops breathlessly. She looks left andright. No one. The only sound is her breathing. She bendsdown with her hands on her knees and catches her breath.Suddenly, in the distance...

BOB(V.O.)

I'll get you, you little bitch!

Nicole stands and looks in the direction she came from. Bob

comes stumbling around the corner.

BOB (CONTD)Stay right there!

Nicole takes off again at top speed. She runs across anotherroad and sees THE HOUSE. It still has a FOR SALE OR RENT signin the yard. She makes for the house.

THE HOUSE FRONT YARD, EXT. DAY. Nicole stumbles to the frontporch. She tries the door but it's locked. She goes around tothe side of the house.

BOB (CONTD)(V.O.)

You can't hide!

THE HOUSE BACKYARD, EXT. DAY.

Nicole stops, out of breath. She can't go on much longer. TheBACK DOOR of the house opens with a small click.

Nicole turns and sees the door open ajar. She enters thehouse and shuts the door behind her.

THE HOUSE KITCHEN, INT. DAY.

It's a little dark in here. The house is empty. Nicole locksthe door and looks about. She looks out the window and seesno one. She opens the drawers, looking for a weapon. Thehouse is quite empty. She moves to the Living Room.

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THE HOUSE LIVING ROOM, INT. DAY.

This room has a still covered couch and that's about it.She's looking around the room. She's totally lost. She movesto the window. No sign of Bob.

She goes to the front door. She peers through the window ofthe front door. He looks around for a moment then, with aloud musical sting, Bob's face appears in the window.

BOBI GOT YOU! I GOT YOU!

Bob begins knocking on the door. Nicole backs away. He knockslouder. Then he pounds on the door.

THE HOUSE STAIRS, INT. DAY.

Nicole looks around for escape, then looks up the stairs. Shelooks back at the door then starts swiftly up the stairs. Wecan now hear Bob beating his entire body against the door,trying to break it down.

THE HOUSE 2ND FLOOR HALLWAY, INT. DAY.

Nicole looks at the hallway. She studies the rooms. All ofthe doors are shut. Then, she looks at the closet at the farend of the hall.

THE HOUSE FRONT DOOR, EXT. DAY.

Bob is at the front door, ramming it with his shoulder. He'sgetting tired. He finally stops from exhaustion and rubs hisshoulder.


Nicole appears at the top of the stairs. She listens for anysound. She hears none. She begins slowly walking down thestairs.

THE HOUSE FRONT DOOR, EXT. DAY.

Bob is still rubbing his shoulder. He hears a click and looksdown at the door knob. The door swings open a crack.


Nicole is about to the bottom of the steps when she hears thecreak of a door. She sees the light coming from the frontdoor opening and she sees Bob's silhouette. She lets out anoise and runs back up the stairs. Bob slams the door shutand stands at the bottom of the stairs.

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BOBA-HA!


Nicole runs down the hallway and tries each door. All locked.


Bob is shuffling up the stairs.


Nicole reaches the end of the hallway and looks about. Sheopens the closet door. She sobs in exasperation. This is noexit. The closet is empty. She's about to close the closetdoor when she hears Bob reaching the top of the stairs. Shequickly enters the closet and shuts the door.

Bob peers around the corner. He looks around at the closeddoors. He goes to the nearest one. He tries the handle and itopens. He enters the room and looks about. Nothing. He exitsback into the hallway and tries the next door. It openseasily. He enters the room.

THE HOUSE 2ND FLOOR CLOSET, INT. DAY.

Nicole is huddled in the darkness of the closet. She producesthe lighter from her skirt and lights the room with flame.She looks at her cramped surroundings. She notices the panel

on the wall. She runs he finger along the seam of the paneland quietly removes it, killing the flame for a moment. Frombeyond the panel, there is a dimly lit entrance to the ATTIC.She enters the passageway.

THE HOUSE ATTIC, INT. DAY.

Nicole enters the attic. He lights her lighter and looksabout. There is a plank to walk around on. She walks out tothe center of the room. She hears a sound.

The lighter goes out. She continues flicking the lighter, butto no avail. She sees a shadow move in the corner. She flicks

the lighter once more and it lights. There is nothing there.Over in the corner, she sees a lantern. She walks across thebeams to pick it up. She lights it and it illuminates theroom nicely.


Bob reaches the Baby's Room door. He opens it and enters.

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Nicole hears an unearthly sound. She turns to the source andsees something that wasn't there a moment ago. It looks to bea large bag, like a trash bag. It moves back and forth and

then falls forward to the floor. A sickly looking woman'shand reaches out of the bag. Nicole recoils in horror. Theother hand reaches out and the corpse of KAREN GORDON emergesfrom the bag. She stands straight, looking very angry.


Bob exits the Baby's Room into the Hallway. There are twodoors left. He looks at both of them.


Karen Gordon's Corpse walks to Nicole slowly. She cannot

move. Karen is about to reach her when, in a sudden flash,her hands lash out at her. Nicole steps backwards, loses herbalance and falls through the plaster ceiling. Karen grabsNicole by her hair and holds her there. The Girl screamsbloody murder.


Bob grabs the Master Bedroom Door Handle and tries to turnit. It doesn't budge. He pushes on the door to no avail. Hecan hear commotion and screaming.

BOBOPEN THIS DOOR! OPEN THIS DOOR!


We see Karen's face filled with hatred, looking down atNicole in extreme close up. Her face is jaundiced yellow andsickly grey.

THE HOUSE MASTER BEDROOM, INT. DAY.

The room is empty save for some plaster shards on the floor.The Girl's lower half his dangling from the ceiling, her legs

and arms flailing wildly. She's screaming at the top of herlungs. We can hear Bob trying to enter the room.


Bob is laying into the door giving as much as he can. Itwon't budge at all.

BOBCome on!

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THE HOUSE MASTER BEDROOM, INT. DAY.

Nicole's body is still jerking and flailing. Then there is asickening crunch. Her body jerks one last time, a deep moancomes from her lungs and he hangs there lifeless. All is

silent. Her body is quietly hoisted into the attic by herhead. She disappears up into the attic completely.

The Master Bedroom door opens. And Bob enters. Her sees thehole and the plaster, but there's no sign of Nicole. He looksaround, out the window and back up to the hole. He thenthinks a bit and leaves the room.


Bob enters into the hallway. He starts to walk back down thehall and decides to check the closet. It opens. There is noone in there and the panel has been replaced. With no signs

of life, Bob closes the closet door and heads back to thestairs, looking in each room one last time for good measure.


Bob shuffles down the stairs. He searches around and makesfor the kitchen.


He opens some cabinets. Most are empty. The last cabinet heopens, he finds some canned food: Beans and peas. He takes

them out of the cupboard and places them on the counter. Heexamines the Back Door. He looks over to the Cellar door. Heopens it and looks down into the darkness. He decides tosearch down there.

THE HOUSE BASEMENT, INT. DAY.

It is pitch black down there. We see his silhouette comingdown the steps. He gets about halfway and produces a box ofmatches. He lights a match and enters the Basement proper.It's totally barren down there except for the washer anddryer. He sees the light fixture hanging from the ceiling andpulls the cord. Nothing. The electricity has been turned off.

He looks in the ark corners of the room and finds nothing ofinterest. He opens up the washer and then the dryer. From thedryer, he finds a fresh pair of underwear. He pockets it andthe match burns down to his fingers. He stumbles in the darkand climbs the stairs.

THE HOUSE LIVING ROOM, INT. DAY. Bob enters the room andtakes in his surroundings. Satisfies that there's no onearound, he makes himself at home by plopping right down onthe

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couch. His heel hits something underneath the couch. Hereaches down and finds a MARBLE ASHTRAY. He smiles at thisnew treasure. He places it on the couch next to him andproduces a cigarette butt and matches. He lights thecigarette and takes a deep drag. He then relaxes in his

newfound home, head back on the couch.

BLACK SCREEN

CUT TO

THE HOUSE, EXT. DAY.

This is what was once the Gordon's house. It's late fall anda different time from the previous segment. From here out theGordon's house will be referred to as "The House". It's acold day. The few people out on this day are wearing heavycoats and walking briskly to their destinations. AMBER WILLIS

drives up to the front of the house in her car. She parks thecar and gets out. She's bundled up heavily against the coldwith a black dress coat and a large muffler around her neck.She's wearing gloves, yet she stuffs her hands inside thepockets of her coat. There is a "For Sale or Rent" sign atthe edge of the yard. She looks at the sign for a moment andthen looks up to the house. There seems to be a figurestanding in the second floor window. She stares at the figureand the figure stares back. Amber breaks eye contact andmakes her way to the front door.

At the front door, she knocks and waits for a response. There

is none. She raps on the door again, then tries the doorbell. No sound emits from pushing the button. Amber looksabout her and then tries the door knob. The door opens and,hesitantly, she enters.

THE HOUSE, INT. DAY.

Amber enters and surveys the interior. There is furniturehere; a couch and an end table, but mostly the room iscavernous and barren. There is no sign of life here.

AMBERHello? I'm here to see the house.

Amber enters fully into the house and closes the door behindher. With the door closed, the house is fairly dark, even inthe daytime. She unwraps the muffler and unbuttons her coat.

AMBER (CONTD)It's Amber Willis. I hope I'm notearly. I don't own a watch.

19.

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(CONTINUED)


21/80

She chuckles nervously to herself on the last sentence. Sheslowly moves further into the house. Although barren and un-lived in for a considerable amount of time, it's still acomfortable looking place. She goes to the stairs and looksup to the second floor. It's kind of dark up there, too.

AMBER (CONTD)Can anyone hear me up there?

She removes her gloves, stuffs them into her pockets andbegins her ascent to the second floor. She makes her waycarefully, with some hesitation in almost every step. As shereaches the top step, she begins to hear faint sounds comingfrom one of the rooms.


There is a sound of a crying baby lightly in the background.

It's so light that if there were any other sound at all, itwouldn't be heard. Amber begins her walk down the hallwaytowards the sound.

AMBERI saw you in the window...

A door at the end of the hallway suddenly slams shut with aloud bang. Amber is startled by the sound. After she catchesher breath, she moves with more purpose to the shut door. Asshe nears the door, she can hear movement along with thestill faint crying.

She reaches the door. She grabs the knob, but before sheturns it, she thinks it best to knock first.

AMBER (CONTD)Hello? I'm coming in...

She turns the knob. The door clicks softly and opens. Sheenters the room.

THE HOUSE BABY'S ROOM, INT. DAY.

When Amber enters the room, all sounds stop, save for the

howling of wind from an open window on the far end of theroom. The room is freezing. We can see Amber's breath.Although still bundled up, Amber clutches herself andshudders from the cold. She goes to the window and shuts itwith force. There is silence. Amber looks out the window tothe "For Sale or Rent" sign she was standing next to just afew moments before. The sign sways in the wind from it'spost.

20.

CONTINUED:

(CONTINUED)


22/80

EVAN(From behind Amber)

HI!

Amber is jolted by the sound of Evan's voice. EVAN ACKERLAND

is the realtor who is dealing this house. Amber turnssuddenly to face Evan with a shocked look on her face.

EVAN (CONTD)You're a little early. Amber,right? I'm Evan. We spoke on thephone-Are you okay? Did I scareyou?

AMBERYeah. A little. I'm Amber Willis.

EVAN

I'm sorry. I didn't mean to.

AMBERIt's okay. Strange houses make me alittle edgy.

EVANWhen houses are empty, they cantake on a sinister air. Do you likewhat you see, though?

AMBER

Oh, yes. It's a very pretty house.I can't understand why it hasn'tbeen taken yet.

EVANUm... well, let's show you aroundformally.

AMBERCan we wait for my husband first?

EVANSure.

From the downstairs, we can hear the voice of Amber's husband

RICH.

RICH(V.O.)

Hello? Anyone here?

21.

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(CONTINUED)


23/80

AMBERPerfect timing.

(Yells out)We're upstairs!

We hear Rich coming up the stairs and he appears through thedoor.

RICHBeen waiting long?

AMBERNo. We all just got here.

Rich offers his hand to Evan.

RICHHi. I'm Rich Willis.

EVANGood to meet you. I'm EvanAckerland, Your realtor. So...You're newlyweds?

AMBER(She shows the weddingring On her finger)

Freshly.

EVAN

Oh, well congratulations. I'm sureyou'll find this house to beperfect for you both.

RICHYeah, I like what I see already.

EVANGreat! Shall I give you the grandtour, then? Evan escorts them outof the room.


Evan, Rich and Amber walk down the hallway to the stairs.

EVANThis would be a perfect firsthouse.

22.

CONTINUED:

(CONTINUED)


24/80

AMBEROh, yes. I've only even lived inapartments. I'm a city girl. Thisis a big step for me.

EVANI'll say. The city is a littledifferent from the suburbs.

RICHI'm more of a suburbanite. Youknow. A house dweller. I like a bighouse.

Evan, Rich and Amber walk down the stairs. They make theirway to the FOYER / LIVING ROOM.

AMBER

This is a big living room.

EVANIt's standard size. It's a lotbigger than apartment living rooms.Those are...

RICH(Finishing)

...small.

EVAN

Yeah.(Pause)Well. Come this way. I'll show youthe Dining Room and Kitchen.

FADE TO


What follows is a bit of a montage of Evan showing themaround the house. We hear Evan describing the differentaspects of the house. Amber listens intently. He points tothe Dining Room and they enter that area of the house.

FADE TO

THE HOUSE 2ND FLOOR MASTER BEDROOM.

Evan, Rich and Amber enter and once again we hear Evandescribing the possibilities of the room to them.

FADE TO

23.

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25/80

THE HOUSE 2ND FLOOR BATHROOM, INT. DAY.

They enter the bathroom. There is a standard tiled bathroomwith toilet, hand sink and a shower with a bathtub.

EVANThe bathroom...

They don't enter. They just look in from the hallway.

FADE TO

THE HOUSE LAUNDRY ROOM / BASEMENT, INT. DAY.

This is the dark laundry room / basement of the house. It'spretty barren, except for a hanging light, a set of stairsleading up to the first floor and a clothes washer and dryer.The door to the basement opens and they walk cautiously down

the steps. Evan walks down into the dark with Amber behindhim, her hands lightly touching his sides. Rich brings up therear. Evan makes his way to the light and pulls the chain. Asingle bare light bulb illuminates the room.

EVANNot much down here. Washer, dryer.Lots of storage. It's not too dampdown here, but you might want adehumidifier down here in thesummer.

Amber looks around. Rich looks up at the pipes on theceiling.

EVAN (CONTD)OK? Let's go back up.

Evan turns off the lights and they return carefully to thestairs. Amber holds on to Evan's arm.

THE HOUSE FOYER, INT. DAY.

Amber and Evan walk to the front door.

EVANSo that's it. You like?

RICHI love. This place is perfect forus.

AMBERThat's everything?

24.

(CONTINUED)


26/80

EVANYeah... Except for the attic.

AMBERThis place has an attic?

RICHOf course. Every house has anattic.

AMBERI want to see it.

EVANOh. Oh no. There's no lights upthere. We'd need to get aflashlight... and it's kind ofdangerous if you don't know where

you're walking.

AMBERHow so?

EVANWell, you have to walk on thebeams. If you miss a beam or slip,you can fall right through theroof. I don't recommend going upthere.

AMBERI see.

Evan escorts Amber out of the house. As they exit, the soundof a slowed down baby's cry can be heard from the upstairs.Amber begins to turn to the sound and Evan places his handfirmly on her back and guides her out of the house. Richdoesn't seem to notice the sound.


Amber has exited the house and Evan emerges behind her. Hecloses and locks the door. She buttons up her coat.

AMBERWhat was that sound?

EVANAh. Probably just the housesettling. You know, it begins toget really cold this time of year.

25.

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(CONTINUED)


27/80

AMBERBut that...

EVANHouses make many strange noises.

Cracking, creaking... After you'vemoved in and settled, you won'teven notice it. You may not be ableto sleep without hearing thosesounds every night.

Amber smiles lightly but doesn't really believe Evan's words.

RICHNow, how much is this house?

EVANdollars.

RICHThat's fully furnished.

EVANRight.

RICHWell, I wouldn't normally speak forboth of us on such a bigdecision... But looking at Amber'sface, I don't think I'd be out of

line if I told you we want thishouse.

Amber nods in agreement.

EVANGood. I'm going to go and makethings happen for you. I'll draw upsome papers and square everythingaway. I'll give you a call in a dayor so.

Evan goes to his car and opens the door.

EVAN (CONTD)I can tell you can't wait to becomea part of this house. You're gonnalove it here.

Evan enters the car and starts it up. He waves at them beforehe drives off. Amber and Rich walk to the end of the sidewalkand turn to look at the house. We see Amber's eyes scan thehouse. She looks at the roof, where the attic would be.

26.

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(CONTINUED)


28/80

She wraps the muffler around her neck and puts on her gloves.She then looks at Rich. They are the picture perfect happycouple. She throws her arms around Rich and kisses him. Theywalk to their cars.

BLACK SCREEN

CUT TO:

BACK ALLEY, EXT. DAY.

This is a dirty looking back alley, sitting behindrestaurants and shops in an urban area. There are a few trashcans and a dumpster or two against the building walls.Mostly, however, the garbage taken from these buildings arein plastic trash bags piled high in the alleyway. The placejust looks dirty and sleazy. Enter VAGRANT BOB. He is themost high profile homeless person in the area. Everyone knows

him, everyone avoids him.

He stumbles into the alleyway with a swaggering stagger. Heopens a few trash cans and examines their contents. He'shungry. He picks up some food like objects from a can, sniffsthem and throws them back. There's some things even a bumwon't lower himself to eat. He stuffs his hands into hisdirty suit coat and staggers forward. He stumbles into a pileof trash bags and stands quickly, keeping his dignity incheck. He begins to walk again and a trash bag attracts hisattention. It sits a little ways apart from the other trashbags and it seems to move a little on it's own. Bob goes to

the bag. He stares at it. It looks as though it just may bethe wind rustling the bag. Bob gazes at the bag suspiciouslyand then turns to walk away. Just then he hears a quiet moanfrom the bag. He quickly turns back to the bag. He bends downto the bag and hesitantly reaches out to it. Suddenly, thebag jerks violently sending Bob onto his back. He looks inhorror as the bag convulses.

We can see fingers inside the bag trying to tear their wayout. Finally the bag tears away and we see the screaming faceof the deceased KAREN GORDON.

CUT TO

THE HOUSE LIVING ROOM, INT. NIGHT.

Vagrant Bob is lying on the covered couch, still in his dirtyvagrant suit. He jerks violently from his nightmare and rollsonto the floor.

On the floor is a makeshift stove with a lit Sterno can init.

27.

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(CONTINUED)


29/80

Next to it are a few tin cans with plastic spoons in them andthe MARBLE ASHTRAY with a few half smoked cigarette butts init. Bob quickly sits in front of the Sterno and huddles overit. He is a middle aged man with 3 nasty looking scabbed overscratches on is left cheek. He reaches over and grabs a butt.

He lights it over the Sterno and looks about the dark room.He stands nervously, cigarette in hand and moves to thekitchen.

THE HOUSE KITCHEN, INT. NIGHT.

The Kitchen, like the rest of the house, is very dark. Sincethere is no one officially living in the house, there is nopower; ditto water. He wanders aimlessly, trying to ridhimself of the nightmare images still fresh in his brain. Helooks out of the kitchen window. It's dark, but peacefuloutside.

He looks around the barren kitchen. There is absolutelynothing here. Not even a side table. He checks the cabinets,knowing there's nothing inside of them. He's nervous andbored. Bob takes a few more puffs on his cigarette, finishesit and returns to the Living Room.


He snuffs out the butt and places a can of food on theSterno. Suddenly there is a faint rustling coming from thefloor. Bob looks up to the ceiling. There is silence, thenmore rustling; this time a bit louder. Bob knows there's no

one in the house... he's pretty sure.THE HOUSE STAIRS, INT. NIGHT.

He goes to the stairs and looks up to the 2nd floor. It'sdark. Very dark. He doesn't want to, but his curiosity won'tlet him rest until he checks it out. He slowly climbs thestairs. The stairs give off a wooden creaking sound withevery step. In the silence, it sounds very loud. He reachesthe top step.

THE HOUSE 2ND FLOOR HALLWAY, INT. NIGHT.

The only light illuminating the hallway comes from thewindows in adjacent rooms. It must be a full moon. Pale bluelight streaks into the hallway in large angular blocks on thefloor. Bob walks, still slow and cautious down the hallway.He checks the first room. Empty. Nothing in it at all. Hewalks to the second room. The same. Empty. He goes to whatwas the Baby's Room. He looks inside.

28.

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30/80

THE HOUSE BABY'S ROOM, INT. NIGHT.

The room is barren. Bob stands there in the doorway. Frombehind we see a glimpse of a GIRL IN A CATHOLIC SCHOOLUNIFORM dart behind him down the hallway. Bob never notices.


He resumes walking down the hall into the master bedroom.

THE HOUSE MASTER BEDROOM, INT. NIGHT.

It, too, is empty. He notices a large hole in the ceilingwith plaster in shard -like pieces on the floor. The holereveals nothing but darkness.


He's reached the end of the hallway. There is a closet doorhere, which is closed. He opens it and finds nothing, so hecloses it again.

Bob now hears the rustling sound coming from downstairs.

THE HOUSE STAIRS, INT. NIGHT.

Bob comes down the stairs a bit quicker than he came up them.He sniffs the air a bit and goes to the Living Room.


His food is burning in the can on the Sterno. He grabs thecan buy the lid and removes it from the heat. He produces adirty handkerchief from is coat pocket and grabs the can withit. He eats a spoonful of burnt beans. He eats anotherspoonful. This, in itself, is a bit grotesque. There is arustling sound coming from the kitchen. He looks over thatway. The sound comes again. He puts the spoon into the canand goes to the Kitchen.


Bob enters and all is quiet. He looks all around the room and

sees nothing. He then hears what sounds like a light scrapingon the other side of the basement door. He moves to the doorever so quietly. He turns his head to listen and BAM!

There is a sound like someone hit the basement door with ahammer. Bob jerks back and drops his beans on the floor.

It then sounds like someone is drumming on the door. Bobgathers his courage and steps to the door. The sounds getslouder and stronger.

29.

(CONTINUED)


31/80

He reaches for the doorknob and the sound stops. Hehesitates. There is a moment, then the door swings openviolently. The door his Bob; he steps back, slips on thebeans and crumples into a pile on the floor, out cold. Thereis nothing behind the door.

FADE TO BLACK

FADE IN


Bob comes to and everything is different. It's still dark,but the Kitchen is fully furnished and stocked. The can ofbeans is gone. Bob doesn't really know where he is. He standsand becomes a bit dizzy from the blow he had suffered. Whoknows how long he was out? He rubs his head. He gets hisbearings and he hears the sound of a baby crying from

upstairs. Intrigued, he exits the Kitchen.


Bob is totally confused. The Living Room is totally furnishedand lived in. It looks like a family is living here. Themakeshift stove and Sterno is gone. The rest of his food isgone and... the Marble Ashtray is gone. The baby's cryingstill rings through the house. He looks up to the ceiling,then goes to the steps.


Bob looks up to the 2nd floor. There is electric light comingfrom the upstairs hallway. He makes no notice of the DesignerBag on the floor next tot he steps. Since he can see wherehe's going a bit better, he walks up the steps with a bitmore confidence, though still very cautious and as quietly aspossible. He reaches the top.


The Hallway isn't lit, but we can see electric light comingfrom some of the rooms. The Baby's crying can be heard loudlyfrom the end of the hall. Bob goes to take a step and is

shocked to see a sleepy looking woman emerging from theMaster Bedroom and into the Baby's Room. It's KAREN GORDON,very much alive. She makes no notice of Bob. Bravely, Bobwalks down the hallway to the Baby's Room and, with one handon the door jamb, peeks into the room.

THE HOUSE BABY'S ROOM, INT. NIGHT.

Karen is closing the open window. She goes over to the criband stares into the crib for a moment.

30.

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(CONTINUED)


32/80

From behind Bob, SAM GORDON enters the room, making no noticeof Bob. Sam has the MARBLE ASHTRAY in his hand. Sam standsbehind Karen. Karen picks up a tape recorder from the criband looks at it, puzzled. She turns around and Sam backhandsKaren across the face with the Ashtray. The tape recorder

falls to the ground, a baby's cries coming from it's speaker.Blood flies from Karen's face as she falls to the ground.Bob's eyes widen in fear as he witnesses this horrific sceneunfolding in front of him. He quickly exits the scene.

THE HOUSE HALLWAY, INT. NIGHT.

Bob runs down the hallway to the stairs. Bob stops suddenlyand looks back. At the other end of the hall, we can see Samcarrying Karen's still twitching body out of the Baby's Room.Sam stops suddenly and looks down the hall to Bob. Bob's eyeswiden. He runs down the steps.


Bob makes it about hallway down the steps and trips. He fallsforward down the steps. He is still conscious when he reachesthe bottom. He body, upon reaching the bottom, knocks overthe BAG. The bag begins to rustle. A grotesquely slowed downbaby's cry comes from the bag. Bob catches the glimpse of adiscolored baby's hand reaching out of the bag and he backsup to the front door, scooting back on his arms and kickinghis legs. Instead of reaching the door, however, he backsinto a pair of legs. He looks up to see a ZOMBIFIED NICOLElooking down at him. Her face has been mutilated and her

dress shirt has been ripped open. They stare at each otherfor a moment and then she lunges down for him. Bob shufflesaway backwards and falls on his back.


Nicole keeps coming for Bob. Bob is half crazed with terror.He sits there, on his back with his knees up in the air;staring at Nicole. Bob moves back, kicking his legs. KARENGORDON'S CORPSE appears behind him. We hear the slowed downbaby's cry coming from her. Bob looks up to Karen, paralyzedwith fear. KAREN'S EYES are wide with hatred. There is oneslight pause before she bares her teeth. The ghosts move in

for the kill.

BLACK SCREEN

CUT TO

31.

CONTINUED:


33/80


It is a normal, cold November day. The "FOR SALE OR RENT"sign in the front yard of the house now has a large "SOLD"sticker pasted proudly upon it. There is a CAR with a U-HAUL

TRAILER pulling up the street. It parks in front of the houseand AMBER exits the car on the passenger side. RICH exits thecar from the driver's side and goes around the rear to openthe U-Haul. Amber exits the car and meets Rich at the rear ofthe car.

RICHSo this is it.

AMBER(Sighs)

Yeah. I can't believe it. We own ahouse!

Rich begins unloading the U-Haul. Amber picks up a box andgoes to the front door.

CUT TO

LIVING ROOM, INT. DAY.

Even in the daytime, the house is dark and shrouded inshadow. Amber unlocks the door and enters with the box in herarms. She sets the box just inside the door and surveys thearea. Rich enters the house just behind her with another box.

He sets the box down. The house looks cold; almostmonochromatic with the white tarps shrouding the furniture.They look for a moment and exit for the rest of their things.We hold on the living room, then...

WE FADE TO

LIVING ROOM, INT. DUSK.

Amber and Rich have moved in and the tarps have been removed.With the furniture unmoved from their previous positions, thehouse looks similar to when it was the Gordon's. Amber'saccents, however, give the room a more homey look. The

monochromic look is gone and a warm tone has replaced it.AMBER and RICH are sitting there, admiring their handiwork.They are proud of themselves and rightfully so. Rich placeshis arm around Amber and they stare off into space, lost intheir thoughts.

There is a knock at the door.

RICHWho could that be?

32.

(CONTINUED)


34/80

Rich stands and answers the door. The visitor is an olderman, about 65 years old. His name is BERNARD KERRY.

RICH (CONTD)Hi...

BERNARDHello! I'm Bernard. I live nextdoor. I wanted to welcome you tothe neighborhood. I hope I'm notdisturbing you.

RICHOh, no. We were just resting fromthe move. It's nice to meet you.Come in.

Bernard enters and looks about the room. He sees Amber and

smiles. Amber stands to greet him.

BERNARDHello. I'm Bernard.

AMBERHi! I'm Amber. Urn... This is myshy husband, Richard.

RICHOh, stupid of me. I didn'tintroduce myself. I'm Rich.

They shake hands.

BERNARD It's nice to see some young faces in theneighborhood. I hear you got a great deal on this house.

RICH (CONTD)Yeah. It was a great deal. I can'tbelieve we got it.

AMBERIt is a beautiful house.

(Pause)

How long has it been up for sale?

BERNARDWell, it's been empty... Oh, it hasto be about a year or so.

AMBERThat long?

33.

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(CONTINUED)


35/80

BERNARDYes. Almost a year since... Thelast family.

(Pause, then a smile)Well, I don't want to bother you. I

just came to welcome you to theneighborhood.

RICHYou don't have to rush. We couldmake some coffee.

BERNARDNo. I should go. I will see youaround, though.

RICHAbsolutely.

They shake hands again. Rich walks Bernard to the door.

BERNARDGood night.

RICHGood night.

AMBERGoodbye! Nice meeting you.

BERNARDYou, too. Have a good evening.

Bernard exits and Rich closes the door.

RICHWell, we're officially welcomed!

AMBERHe seemed really nice. I hope allof our neighbors are like that.

(Pause)But you know what the best part is?

RICHWhat?

AMBERAll of our neighbors live differenthouses.

RICHI think that's the idea.

34.

CONTINUED: (2)

(CONTINUED)


36/80

AMBERNo! I mean we're free. We can watchTV or play the stereo loud or carryon as much as we want and there'snobody living upstairs banging on

the ceiling.

Amber hugs Rich.

RICHYeah. I think this is the best movewe've ever made.

CUT TO

BEDROOM, INT. NIGHT.

Amber is turning down the bed and humming softly to herself.

Rich enters wearing a t-shirt and boxers. Amber is obliviousto his entrance. Rich grabs Amber from behind and jumps ontothe bed while holding her. Amber squeals.

RICHSo what time do you have to be atwork tomorrow?

AMBERNine o' clock sharp. What are yourplans?

RICHWell, since I took a week off tomove in, and my wife is aworkaholic, I thought I'd unpack afew more boxes and settle in.

AMBERYou know I wish I could stay andhelp.

RICHI know. It's okay. I'll tell youwhat. Tomorrow night when you come

home? Expect a home cooked meal.

AMBERMmmmm... Thank you, husband. Wouldthat be from a can or a box?

35.

CONTINUED: (3)

(CONTINUED)


37/80

RICHScratch! Only the best, wife! Richtickles Amber's sides. She laughsand tries to squirm away.

CUT TO

THE HOUSE, EXT. NIGHT.

It is the middle of the night all is still.

CUT TO


Amber and Rich are lying there in bed. Rich is sound asleepand Amber is not so much so. There is a light SCRATCHINGNOISE coming from the attic. Amber opens her eyes. She looks

up at the ceiling. The scratching continues a little bit andthen stops. After a moment, Amber gets out of bed and leavesthe room, staggering a bit.

HALLWAY, INT. NIGHT.

Amber enters from the bedroom. She looks to the Attic doorand pauses a moment. She is deciding wether to go up there.She then turns her attention to the Baby's Room, where she'sheard a noise somewhat like the faint cooing of a baby. Sheenters the room.

BABY'S ROOM, INT. NIGHT.Amber enters from the hallway. The room is empty and barren,except for an open window. Wind is blowing through thewindow. Amber rubs her shoulders from the cold and shuts thewindow. She looks about, then exits into the Hallway.

KITCHEN, INT. NIGHT.

Amber enters and gets a glass from the cupboard. She thenfills the glass with water from the faucet and drinks itdown. She places the glass on the counter and exits.

STAIRS, INT. NIGHT.

Amber enters and begins her ascent to the second floor. Shepasses a mirror on the way and we get a fleeting glimpse ofKAREN GORDON in the mirror, glaring out at us.

36.

CONTINUED:


38/80


Amber enters and gets back into bed. She pulls the covers upover her and cuddles up to Rich. Rich never wakes up. Thescratching noise resumes.

FADE OUT

CUT TO

BEDROOM, INT. DAY.

It is late morning. Rich is laying there, waking up. He openshis eyes and looks about the room, slightly disoriented. Heremembers where he is and sits up in bed. He looks over towhere Amber was sleeping. She is gone to work for the day,but there is a NOTE on her pillow. Rich Picks up the note andreads it.

GOOD MORNING HONEY!I'LL BE HOME AROUND 6:00. HAVE AGOOD DAY! I LOVE YOU.

AMBERRich smiles at the note andstretches with a deep sigh.

CUT TO

BATHROOM SHOWER, INT. DAY.

Rich is here, taking a shower. He lathers himself up and letsthe water rise it off. He spins around in a circle, trying tomake the water reach every area. He rubs the soap and lathersup his face. He lets the water run over his face. Rich turnsoff the water and opens the shower curtain. There is no onethere. Rich grabs a towel and drys off.

CUT TO

STAIRS, INT. DAY.

Rich sprints down the stairs. He is fully clothed andenergized. He goes to the kitchen.

KITCHEN, INT. DAY.

Rich goes to the coffee maker; the only appliance yetunpacked. He grabs a mug and pours himself a cup of coffee.He leans on the counter and admires the kitchen as he drinks.

CUT TO

37.


39/80


There are several boxes here that Rich is unpacking. Richcloses one box and lifts it up.

STAIRS, INT. DAY.

Rich carries the box up the stairs.

HALLWAY, INT. DAY.

Rich enters the hallway carrying the box. He walks down thehallway to the attic door. He, with some difficulty, opensthe door while carrying the box. He makes his way up thestairs to the attic.

ATTIC, INT. DAY.

The attic is dark, but there is some light coming fromoutside, casting heavy shadows on the room. Rich enters theroom with the box. He makes sure he stays on the walkway madeby some two by fours. He sets the box in a corner of theroom. He stands there a moment and surveys his surroundings.All is still. He turns and leaves the attic.

HALLWAY, INT. DAY.

Rich enters from the attic.


Rich enters and is about to rearrange some furniture, when hehears a knock at the door. He goes to the door and opens it.Beyond the door is DANIEL. He is carrying a stack of fliersin his arms.

RICHHi. Can I help you?

DANIELHi. Um, I was wondering if you hadseen this girl.

Daniel hands Rich a flier. It is a missing personsannouncement with a picture of Nicole on it. Rich looks atthe picture.

RICHNo. I've never seen this girl. Ijust moved into this neighborhood.

38.

(CONTINUED)


40/80

DANIELShe disappeared a few weeks ago andwe're covering the town with thesefliers. Keep that one and call thenumber at the bottom if you happen

to see her.

RICHOK, will do.

DANIELThanks man.

Daniel exits and gets on his bicycle. He rides over to thenext house as Rich closes the door.

CUT TO

KITCHEN, INT. DAY.

Rich puts the flier on the refrigerator, anchoring it withmagnets at each corner.

CUT TO


Rich is arranging the furniture. He moves an end table andplaces a chair next to it. He thinks a moment and moves thecouch over a bit to the left. Then, after a thought, moves it

back.In a mini montage, he fusses with the accent pieces. He movesthe lamps about. We see him, hammer in hand, setting a nailin the wall to hang a picture. He then places a picture onthe wall and stands back from it. He notices it's a bitcrooked and straightens it.

CUT TO

KITCHEN, INT. DAY.

Rich opens the fridge and sees it's almost completely bare.

Slightly frustrated, he closes the fridge and thinks amoment.


Rich enters and grabs his keys from the mantle. He exits thehouse.

CUT TO

39.

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41/80

SUPERMARKET, INT. DAY.

We see Rich walking through the supermarket while pushing ashopping cart. He piles food items into his cart as he walks.We see him at various places in the supermarket during this

sequence. Finally, with a full cart, he makes his way to thecheckout and begins unloading his cart onto the conveyorbelt. The CASHIER rings up each item and the BAGBOY loads thefood into bags and places them back into Rich's cart. TheCashier gives Rich the total and Rich hands her his chargecard.

CUT TO

KITCHEN, INT. DAY.

Rich enters the kitchen with about 4 or 5 full grocery bagsin his arms. He places the bags on the counter and sighs

deeply. He begins unloading the bags.

Later on, Rich is cooking at the stove. He has a cuttingboard and a large KITCHEN KNIFE. He chops onions and pepperswith the precision of a chef. He places the choppedvegetables in a pot on the stove. We see more shots of Richgoing through the cooking process.

CUT TO

DINING ROOM, INT. EVENING.

Rich is setting the table. He has changed his clothes and iswearing a dress shirt and pants. He sets the table like aprofessional would; every fork in place. He places candles onthe table and lights them. Perfect timing, we hear Ambercoming into the house from the other room.

AMBER(V.O.) I'm home! Rich?

RICHI'm in the dining room.

AMBER

(V.O. as she makes her wayinto the room)Wow! You did some major settlingin! You had a busy day.

(She sees the set table)Look at that! You're so sweet. It'sjust what I need. I had a shittyday.

Rich hugs her.

40.

(CONTINUED)


42/80

RICHAw, I'm sorry. Well, it's over now.Time to relax with a nice quietdinner.

AMBERSmells good.

RICHIt's almost ready. You go and slipinto something a little more comfy,and I'll finish up here.

AMBEROK. Thank you, honey.

They kiss.

AMBER (CONTD)I'll be right back.

Amber exits the room and Rich goes to the kitchen.

BEDROOM, INT. EVENING.

Amber enters the room. She picks some clothes from herdresser and places them on the bed. She begins disrobing. Asshe undresses, WE SLOWLY MOVE IN ON HER. When we're upon her,we hear a LOUD SCRATCHING NOISE coming form the attic. Sheturns her head sharply and then looks up to the ceiling. The

scratching noise continues as she puts on her other clothes.DINING ROOM, INT. EVENING.

Rich is placing the food on the table. Amber enters a bitdistressed.

AMBERWe have rats.

RICHRats? Where?

AMBERIn the Attic. I just heard themrunning around up there.

RICHRats. Are you sure they're rats?

41.

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(CONTINUED)


43/80

AMBERWhat else could they be? I mean, Iheard them last night and just now.It sounds like rats.

RICHOK. I'll check it out after dinner.I'll put some D-Con up there orsomething.

AMBERYou're going to kill them?

RICHYou want them hanging around?

AMBERWell, no. But isn't there some

humane way to get rid of them?

RICHI guess there is, but I don't know.But let's eat right now before itgets cold.

AMBERAll right.

She sits at the table. Rich uncorks some wine and pours itinto Amber's glass. He pours some into his glass and places

the wine bottle on the table. He then unveils the meal.AMBER (CONTD)

Mmmm. Looks good.

RICHOh, it is good. Trust me.

Rich produces a lighter and lights the candles at the table.He then lowers the lights. Rich sits at the table.

AMBERVery romantic. Where's the violin

player?

Rich reaches under the table and produces a portable boombox. He places it on the table and presses the play button.Soft romantic music fills the air.

AMBER (CONTD)You don't miss a trick.

42.

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(CONTINUED)


44/80

RICHMy woman is demanding. Go on, eat.

Amber puts some food on her plate. She cuts into her food andtakes a bite.

AMBERMmmm... This is so good.

Rich takes some food for himself.

RICHThanks. You said you had a bad day?

AMBERYeah. Long. Long and shitty. I'mglad to be home.

(Laughs) Home. Sounds good. So what all did you do today? Imean, besides putting everything away and cooking dinner?

RICHThat's about it. Organized theboxes in the attic. You know, Ididn't see or hear any rats...

AMBERMaybe they were hiding.

RICH

Anyway. I cleaned up the house abit, went grocery shopping and madedinner. That was my day.

AMBERGood. I guess dinner's on metomorrow.

RICHIf you want to... Or we could ordera Pizza.

AMBER

You don't like my cooking?

RICHNever said that. Eat up.

FADE TO

Later on after dinner. Amber is sitting back in her chair.Rich finishes his last bite and looks at Amber.

43.

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(CONTINUED)


45/80

RICH (CONTD)You done?

AMBERI can't eat another bite. I'm

stuffed.

RICHOK, I'll clear the table. You gorelax.

AMBERThanks, hon. I love you.

RICHI love you, too.

They kiss and Amber exits the room. Rich gathers the plates

and, plates in hand, tries to turn on the light switch withhis elbow. The switch flips, but there's no light. He placesthe plates on the table and toggles the light switch.Nothing. Just then, Amber enters.

AMBERHoney, there's something wrong withthe power.

RICHYeah. I see that. Maybe we blew afuse. The fuse box is in the

basement.AMBER

You want to take a candle?

RICHNo. Little too Gothic for me. Ihave a penlight on my key chain.

Rich digs in his pocket and produces his keys. He lights upthe penlight and shines it on Amber. She winces at the light.

AMBER

OK. That's enough.

RICHI'll be right back.

Rich exits.

CUT TO

44.

CONTINUED: (3)


46/80

BASEMENT, INT. NIGHT.

The Basement door opens and Rich enters from the top of thestairs, his penlight lit. He slowly descends the stairs. Hereaches the bottom and shines the light around, looking for

the fuse box. He locates it and goes there. The fuse box isold and it's covered in cobwebs. He opens it and checks thefuses.

They all seem all right, but he flips the master switch justto be sure. No luck. He closes the box and hears the sound ofa baby cooing softly from behind him. He turns and shines theflashlight on the far wall. There is nothing there. He shinesthe beam along the wall until he comes across what looks likethe corpse of LAUREN. She is quite dead; her throat slit andthere are many slices and cuts over her body. She staresdirectly at him, her mouth gaping. The shock of seeing thatmakes Rich drop his penlight. He bends down quickly and picks

up the light. He shines the light in the same place and findsa nightgown on a hanger where the body was. He slowly goesover to the nightgown. As he reaches the nightgown, he tripsover something. He looks down and shines the light on thefloor. He bends down and picks up the ASHTRAY. He stands andexamines the ashtray. He then goes to the stairs and ascendsto the Kitchen.

KITCHEN, INT. NIGHT.

Rich enters with the ashtray.

RICHAmber? It must be a downed line.The breakers are fine.

DINING ROOM, INT. NIGHT.

Rich enters. There is one candle missing. He places theashtray on the table.

RICHAmber?


Rich enters, looking for Amber. The living room is dark.

RICHAmber? Where are you? There is athumping noise from the upstairs.

Rich turns and goes to the steps.

45.


47/80

STAIRS, INT. NIGHT.

The stairs lead up into the darkness. Rich slowly, cautiouslymakes his way up the stairs.


Rich enters and shines his penlight down the hallway. Theattic door is wide open. Rich starts to walk down the hall.

RICHAmber? Are you up here?

There is another thump from the attic. Rich goes to the atticdoor. He looks up into the darkness of the attic. There is ashuffling and scraping noise. Rich shines his penlight upinto the darkness. He then makes his way up the stairs intothe attic. As he begins to reach the top of the stairs, a

hand grabs Rich's flashlight hand. Rich screams. Amber's facecomes into view, her face under lit with a flashlight.

AMBERBoo!

Rich catches his breath.

RICHAre you trying to give me a heartattack?

Amber laughs.AMBER

I'm sorry, hon. I couldn't resist.

Rich enters the attic fully. Amber is here with the boxes.There is a lit candle here.

RICHYou know, it's really dangerous uphere. You could fall through thefloor.

AMBERNot if you stand on the studs.

RICHWhat are you doing up here anyway?

AMBERI was looking for a flashlight,which I found.

46.

(CONTINUED)


48/80

RICHYou scared the hell out of me.

(Pause)Hey, aren't you scared of the rats?

AMBERI'm not scared of the rats, I justdon't want them up here. Besides, Idon't see any.

She flashes the flashlight around.

RICHWell, anyway, It's probably adowned power line. It's not ourfuse box. Come on. Let's godownstairs. It's cold up here.

Amber grabs the candle and blows out the flame.


Rich and Amber enter the hallway from the attic. They walkdown the hall to the steps when there is a knock at the frontdoor. They look at each other.

AMBERNow, who's that?

FRONT DOOR, INT. NIGHT.

Amber and Rich enter. Rich looks through a window next to thedoor.

RICHIt's Bernard.

Rich opens the door and Bernard is standing there, a box inhis hands.

BERNARDHello. The power's out on theentire block. I, uh, thought you

might need some candles.

RICHOh, thanks. Would you come in?

BERNARDAll right.

Bernard hands the box to Rich and enters.

47.

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(CONTINUED)


49/80

AMBERHi, Bernard.

BERNARDHi. You know, my friends call me

Bernie.

AMBERYou got it, Bernie. Rich, why don'tyou give me the candles and takeBernie into the living room.

(To Bernard)Would you like something to drink?

BERNARDNo thank you.

Amber leaves for the dining room; Rich and Bernard make for

the Living Room.


Rich and Bernie sit down on the furniture. Amber enters withthe candle from the kitchen table. She opens the box, removesthick candles and lights them with the table candle. She sitsdown next to Rich.

BERNARDSo, you two are pretty much settledin now?

RICHYeah, pretty much. We still have abox or two to unpack, but we're in.

AMBERI've been working, so Rich is doingthe lion's share of the settlingin.

BERNARDIt's so nice that there're some newyoung faces in the neighborhood.

Seems like this part of town isdying off.

AMBERThe people who lived here before uswere pretty young, weren't they?

BERNARDYes. They were. They were a nicecouple.

48.

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(CONTINUED)


50/80

RICHThis seems like such a goodneighborhood. Do you know why theymoved out?

Bernard pauses as a look of concern appears on his face.

BERNARDNo one told you about this house?

Rich and Amber shake their heads.

RICHNo. Why?

Bernard sighs and tries to put things a delicately aspossible.

BERNARDThe last couple that lived here...The Gordons... They just seemedlike the perfect couple. Reallyfriendly. Very nice. The kind ofpeople who would stop to say helloto you, no matter what they weredoing. Sam worked in constructionand Karen was studying Law, Ithink. Anyway, they were justgreat. Lived here almost 3 years.

Rich and Amber listen in rapt attention, their facesilluminated by the candle light. Bernard reluctant to go on.He thinks a minute and goes on.

BERNARD (CONTD)I remember when Karen found out shewas going to have a baby. You knowhow they say women have that glowabout them when they're with child?Well, Karen had that. Sam. Sam wasso proud, I swear the buttons onhis shirt were about to pop off ofhis chest. He gave me a cigar when

he found out. I told him, "Sam,you're supposed to hand out CigarsAFTER the baby's born!"

(Laughs)He was a character. Always doingyard work, fixing his car... Afterthe baby was born, he was themodel of a proud papa. You couldn'tget the baby out of his arms.

49.

CONTINUED:

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)


51/80

When you saw him look at thatchild, well, you knew he'd foundhis purpose on this Earth. But forsome reason, something happened. Idon't know what. After a while,

I'd start to see them less andless. Sam became really quiet. Itwas hard to get a hello out of him.He wouldn't look you in the eye. Iknow Karen noticed a change in him,too. She became real standoffish.It was real sad to see them likethat.

AMBERSo, did they get a divorce?

BERNARD

Well, it got to the point where Ididn't see them for about a month,I was worried, but there wasn'tanything I could do. I Figured theydidn't want some meddling old manin their affairs.

(Pauses)Perhaps this isn't the best time totell this story.

RICHWhat happened to them?

BERNARDAre you sure you want me to go on?

AMBERI don't know. I'm not sure I wantto know.

RICHNo. Go on. It's our house. Weshould know it's history.

BERNARD

One day, I saw the police come tothis house. Karen's sister hadcalled them. I guess she hadn'theard from them in a long time,either. The police broke into thehouse and searched the entireplace. They found Karen's body in agarbage bag in the attic.

50.

CONTINUED: (2)BERNARD (CONTD)

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)


52/80

They found the baby in a carpet bagsomewhere else. They never foundSam.

AMBER

Oh, god. Amber clings to Rich.

RICHSo... Did Sam...?

BERNARDI don't know. I don't see how hecould. He loved them so much. I'msorry. That was a pretty sinisterstory to tell on a night like this.

There is a moment of silence, then the lights come on.

RICHGood timing.

BERNARDWell, I think it's time I get backhome. I've bothered you enough.

AMBERYou don't have to leave.

BERNARDYes, I do. The power's back on and

I have to go watch my programs.Bernard stands. Rich and Amber stand. They escort Bernard tothe door.

BERNARD (CONTD)Now, I don't want you to dwell onthat. That happened almost a yearago... Yeah, in fact it was a yearago. Anyway, it's your house now.Nothing else is going to happenhere.

AMBERI hope you're right.

BERNARDCount on it. Keep the candles, youmay need them again.

RICHAll right. Thanks for coming over.

51.

CONTINUED: (3)BERNARD (CONT'D)

(CONTINUED)


53/80

BERNARDOK. Good night.

RICH AND AMBER

Good night.

Bernard exits and Rich closes the door after him.

AMBERWell, good luck sleeping tonight...

CUT TO


The room is dark. Rich is sleeping, but Amber lies thereawake. The scratching and thumping noises have returned.

Amber stares straight up at the ceiling. Finally, unable totake anymore, she tries to wake Rich.

AMBERRich? Rich.

No answer. Rich is a heavy sleeper. She nudges him, to noavail. She then shakes him by the arm.

AMBER (CONTD)Rich! Wake up.

Rich finally stirs.Rich lets out a low moan in his sleepy limbo. Amber shakeshim again.

RICHWhat?

AMBERDo you hear that?

RICHHear what?

AMBERListen.

They listen to silence for a moment, then the scratchingresumes.

AMBER (CONTD)Hear that?

52.

CONTINUED: (4)

(CONTINUED)


54/80

RICHYeah. Sounds too big for a mouse.

AMBERWhat do you think it is?

RICHI don't know. Rich begins to getout of bed.

AMBERWhere are you going?

RICHTo investigate the noise.

AMBERNow? It's the middle of the night.

RICHIf you didn't want me to check itout, then why did you wake me?

AMBERI wanted you to hear it.

RICHI'll just be a minute. I have to goto the bathroom anyway.

Rich stands and exits to the hallway.HALLWAY, INT. NIGHT.

The hall is dark. The attic door is open. We can hear windcoming through the window in the Baby's Room. Rich hears itand goes to investigate.

BABY'S ROOM, INT. NIGHT.

Rich enters. The window is wide open the a hard wind isblowing through it. Rich shudders as the cold air hits him.He goes to the window and closes it. He looks around one last

time and exits.


Rich enters into the hallway. He goes to the attic door. Allis silent. Suddenly the thumping starts. Rich jumps a littleand closes the attic door. The then exits to the bathroom.

53.

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55/80


56/80

KITCHEN, INT. MORNING.

Amber enters in her work clothes. She gets a mug out of thecupboard and fills it with hot coffee. She drinks it down.

DINING ROOM, INT. MORNING.

Amber enters. As she passes by the table, she notices theASHTRAY. She stops and picks up the ashtray, examining it.

She looks around, wondering where it came from. She puts itback on the table and exits the room.

CUT TO

BEDROOM, INT. DAY.

Rich is here, just waking up. He rolls onto his back and

looks up at the ceiling. Time to start the day.

CUT TO

HALLWAY, INT. DAY.

It's later in the day, Rich enters with a garbage bag and aflashlight. He goes to the attic door and opens it. He looksup into the darkness and turns on the flashlight. He beginshis ascent to the attic, closing the door behind him.

ATTIC, INT. DAY.

It is dark up in the attic with only a few shafts of lightvisible. Rich enters with his flashlight cutting thedarkness. He walks cautiously across the attic floor. Heslowly shines the light along the far wall of the attic.

RICHHere, kitty, kitty.

The creaking of his shoes seems to amplify up in the attic.The dust in the air is exposed by the flashlight's beam.

RICH (CONTD)

Puss, puss, puss. Where are you,cat?

He turns and flashes the light behind him. There is nothingof note there. He turns back and walks forward to the centerof the attic. He stops there and moves the flashlight beamacross the parameter of the room. Just then, there is ascratching sound coming from the far corner of the room.Rich's ears perk up. There is the sound of a slowed downbaby's cry joining the scratching.

55.

(CONTINUED)


57/80

Rich moves the beam to the source of the noise. There isnothing there but a large old box. Suddenly, something fallsto it's side from behind the box. It appears to be a garbagebag. Rich shines the light on it. The noises become louder.The bag opens up and an ugly dead hand appears, reaching out

of the bag. Rich becomes paralyzed with fear. His eyes widenand his breath becomes shallow. Following the hand out of thebag is the top of a woman's head, obscured with long darkhair. The noises become deafeningly loud as the woman's bodyexits the bag. Rich's heart beats rapidly.

He jerks and shakes slightly as he tries to move. He finallydoes. He turns to run out and runs face to face into the deadSAM GORDON. The flashlight drops from Rich's hand and goesout as it hits the floor.

BLACK SCREEN

CUT TO

KITCHEN, INT. DAY.

All is still, then, there is a knocking at the front door.

DINING ROOM, INT. DAY.

The knocking continues. We hold on the shot.


The knocking continues. We hold on the shot.STAIRS, INT. DAY.

We stay on the stairs for a moment. The knocking continues.

Then, we see Rich walking down the stairs. We can senseimmediately that there is something wrong with him. He goesto the front door.

FRONT DOOR, INT. DAY.

Rich pauses at the front door. The knocking continues. He

opens the door. Beyond the door, is Bernard.

BERNARDHello, neighbor! Rich looks atBernard. Lovely day, isn't it? Richcontinues a steely glare atBernard. Did I come at a bad time?There is a momentary pause.

56.

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(CONTINUED)


58/80

RICHNo.

(Pause)Come in.

Rich backs into the house and Bernard enters. Rich closes thedoor.

Rich walks to the kitchen and Bernard follows.

BERNARDI hope I'm not being a bother. Ijust came by for a visit.

RICHNo. No bother.

KITCHEN, INT. DAY.

Rich goes to the kitchen counter. Bernard sits at the kitchentable.

BERNARDI just went for my afternoon walk.Doctor's orders, you know. I had aheart attach 3 years ago and wasput on a strict regiment.

Rich pours Bernard a cup of coffee and places it on the tablein front of Bernard.

BERNARD (CONTD)Oh, thank you. Is thisdecaffeinated? I can't havecaffeine.

Rich moves to the kitchen counter. Bernard and Rich are backto back.

BERNARD (CONTD)Yeah, I walk 2 miles a day now.I've never been healthier, mydoctor says. I feel good, too.

Rich grabs a large kitchen knife. (We may or may not see thisshot)

BERNARD (CONTD)I didn't really like it at first,but I came to really enjoy it. Ittakes up a good chunk of myafternoon. I need to keep busy,living alone and all.

57.

CONTINUED:

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)


59/80

The wife died a few years back andI don't have any pets. Idle hands,they say-

Rich stands behind Bernard and stabs him three times in the

back.

RICHShut up, you old meddling fuck!

Bernard falls on the ground and to his side in excruciatingpain. Rich stands over him, knife in hand. Blood drips fromthe knife. Bernard writhes on the floor, grasping at hisback. He finally falls still. Bernard dies in a pool of bloodon the kitchen floor.

CUT TO

STREET, EXT. DAY.

Daniel is riding his bicycle down the sidewalk. He is wearinga backpack filled with fliers and a staple gun. He stops at atelephone pole and staples a missing persons flier with apicture of Nicole on it to the pole. He stops to look at thepicture of Nicole. Looking at the picture brings on a wave ofsadness across his face. He rides to the next pole andstaples another flier. He rides on.

STREET IN FRONT OF THE HOUSE, EXT. DAY.

As Daniel rides by, he sees Nicole standing on the porch,bloody and ripped up. The sight of her causes him to wreckhis bike into a telephone pole. When he gathers his wits andstands, he looks to the house and finds her gone. Hehesitates and begins walking towards the house. He stands onthe porch and looks around. He looks in the front window. Hegoes to the door and it opens a crack. Daniel thinks for amoment and begins to walk away. He gets a few steps away fromthe door and it opes wide with a creak. Daniel turns and seesthe gaping doorway. It's dark inside. He goes back to thedoor. He wonders wether he should enter and, after a moment,he does.


Daniel enters and cautiously looks about. The house is quietand it doesn't seem like anyone is there. He steps furtherinto the room and looks around. He hears a sound coming fromthe stairs. He goes to the stairs to investigate and catchesa fleeting glimpse of a girl (presumably Nicole) exiting intothe upstairs hallway. Daniel takes a step up the stairs andstops.

58.

CONTINUED:BERNARD (CONTD)

(CONTINUED)


60/80

DANIELNicole?

There is a rustling, like someone lightly running upstairs.Daniel hesitates a bit, then makes his way up the stairs. He

reaches the top.

HALLWAY, INT. DAY.

Daniel steps into the hallway and stares. There is no onethere. He slowly begins walking down the hall.

DANIELNicole. Are you there?

He reaches the Baby's room and pushes the door open slightly.He peers in and sees that it's empty. At that moment, hehears a rustling and dragging sound from the downstairs. It

is getting closer. Daniel freezes. He has no place to go. Thedragging sound stops and there is a brief silence. Then wehear the sound of something very heavy being dragged slowlyup the stairs. Daniel's heart beats faster with every thumpof the object coming up the stairs. Daniel seems to be frozenwith panic. He begins to breathe heavier. The thumpingbecomes louder and louder until we see RICH enter from thestairs, bent down and pulling something up from the stairs.Daniel enters the Baby's room as silently as possible. Hepushes the door shut and it creaks, causing Rich to stop andswing his head around, looking for the sound. Satisfied thatit's probably nothing, he resumes tugging on the object. Once

up the stairs, the object is revealed to be a large trashbag; tied shut.

BABY'S ROOM, INT. DAY.

Daniel is just behind the door of the Baby's room. He lookslike he's never been so scared in all of his life. Hisbreathing is shallow and panicked as he tries to hang ontohis composure. From out in the hallway, he can hear Richdragging the trash bag down the hallway. It comes closer andcloser. Rich turns himself so he can look out the crackbetween the door and the jamb. The sound gets closer andcloser. Daniel holds his breath. Finally, Daniel can see Rich

coming by, dragging the heavy contents in the trash bag downthe hall past the Baby's room door. Rich is a little out ofbreath and h

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