The Grand Budapest Hotel (15 page)

Insert:

A Martini glass. The drink is poured neatly – then stirred with a ‘Z-Z’ swizzle-stick.

The hotel is busier than ever, and every man in the room is in uniform. ‘Z-Z’ symbols are plastered across every conceivable surface.

Agatha comes in the front doors carrying a tall stack of pink cardboard pastry-boxes. A soldier seated at a small desk blocking the entrance looks up from his ledger book. He frowns. Agatha explains:

Agatha takes a smaller box off the top of the stack and sets it down in front of the soldier. The soldier hesitates. He opens the box and sees inside: one Courtesan
au chocolat
. He looks back up to Agatha, hopeful. She nods. He signals for her to proceed.

An officer with a crew-cut mans the concierge desk. A badge on his chest reads: ‘Military Concierge’. He is M. Chuck. Mr. Mosher stands beside him taking notes while he dictates orders:

Mr. Mosher points to a group of four soldiers carrying a ping-pong table through the lobby. Agatha waits calmly while they pass. She pauses, looks left and right, then ducks through a curtain below a sign that reads:
STAFF ONLY
.
She dashes up a staircase.

Cut to:

The storage pantry adjacent to the vault. Agatha comes in and sets aside her boxes. She immediately stands on a chair and runs her hand along the top of a picture rail near the ceiling. She finds a brass key. She unlocks the outer door of the vault and slides it open – revealing the inner one
(
which has a combination lock
).

Agatha reaches into her pocket and withdraws Zero’s hand written square of tissue-paper and a small magnifying glass. She squints and studies the tiny document. She quickly spins the dial and opens the door.

Agatha whips the fur stole off the radiator.

She pulls out the wrapped painting.

She tucks the package under her arm, exits the vault, and relocks the doors.

The entrance to the hotel. ‘Z-Z’ banners hang from every awning. A dozen Zubrowkian flags wave and rustle in a row. Crests, heralds, and insignias are displayed in vitrines, doors, and windows. A chanting platoon marches up the promenade, and a soldier in a pilot’s cap sits smoking a cigarette on top of a parked tank next to the funicular.

M. Gustave and Zero wait, tense, in a parked delivery truck with ‘Mendl’s’ painted in delicate, pink cursive across the side. The engine idles. Zero is at the wheel. He and M. Gustave both wear white caps and aprons. M. Gustave says, deeply disgusted, as he stares at the new ornamentation:

Zero points to a long, silver limousine
(
last seen parked in front of the
Desgoffe und Taxis mansion in Lutz
)
as it pulls up the drive and stops between the Mendl’s van and the entrance to the hotel. A liveried chauffeur jumps out and opens one of the back doors.

Dmitri emerges.

M. Gustave and Zero crouch down low in their seats. M. Gustave whispers with contempt:

M. Gustave and Zero watch as: Marguerite, Laetizia, and Carolina exit from the other side of the car, and an eager team of bellboys springs into action collecting their numerous bags and suitcases out of the trunk and off the roof-rack of the vehicle.

Cut to:

Agatha poking her head back into the lobby from behind the curtain. She starts toward the front door but pauses as she sees:

Dmitri and his sisters. They enter and are immediately greeted by M. Chuck. A large assembly of maids and footman stand in a row at attention to receive these distinguished guests.

Dmitri shakes hands coolly. As M. Chuck introduces himself to Marguerite, Laetizia, and Carolina, Dmitri spots Agatha. He stares at her, curious. She looks back at him, uneasy. He focuses on the package under her arm. She turns away and walks quickly deeper into the lobby. Dmitri frowns.

Dmitri bolts into the room.

Agatha’s eyes dart, searching for an escape route, as she zooms among the tables, couches, tea trays, officers, waiters, and bellboys.

At the concierge desk: Henckels looks up from signing the guest book. He watches Agatha pass. He watches Dmitri grimly pursuing her. He looks intrigued.

Agatha bee-lines into the elevator. The elevator operator looks to her and waits. She hesitates. She names the top floor:

Just as the elevator operator starts to shut the gate – a voice commands him:

The elevator operator pauses. Dmitri enters and stands next to Agatha. He stares ahead into space and repeats:

The elevator operator slams the door.

Henckels watches from across the lobby. He says to Anatole:

Anatole nods and dashes away.

At the front door: M. Gustave and Zero stride into the building holding two tall stacks of pink, cardboard pastry-boxes. They stop. M. Gustave says warmly:

The soldier at the desk blocking the entrance looks up. He is halfway through his Courtesan
au chocolat.
He has butter-cream on his moustache.

Cut to:

Henckels on his way up the steps followed by M. Chuck. They stop at the next floor, look up and down the corridor, then continue climbing.

Cut to:

Mr. Mosher staring, curious; Herr Becker watching, surprised; and Anatole gaping, mouth open, at: M. Gustave and Zero crossing speedily through the center of the lobby with their stacked boxes, looking around in every direction as they go. They arrive at the closed elevator. A lobby boy stands next to it. He has curly hair and looks to be about sixteen. He is Otto.

M. Gustave and Zero look up at the wall. Something is gnawing at them both.

Insert:

The needle above the elevator entrance. It climbs past ‘Four’ toward ‘Five’.

M. Gustave and Zero start to dash away – but Zero stops short and turns back. He says quickly to Otto:

M. Gustave and Zero exchange a quick look: well-handled. They run.

As the lift ascends:

Dmitri casts a sideways look to Agatha. She stares ahead and avoids his eyes. He looks away.

Agatha casts a sideways look to Dmitri. He snaps his head suddenly to look at her. She turns away again immediately, stricken.

Dmitri reaches out toward Agatha. She retreats further into the corner.
He touches the package under her arm with his long fingers and peels back the edge of the wrapping-paper – revealing a white hand holding a golden apple. He says quietly:

Agatha does not respond. They come to a stop, and the elevator operator opens the gate.

Neither Agatha nor Dmitri move. Silence. The elevator operator turns around slightly to look at them.

Agatha exits. The elevator operator starts to close the door, but Dmitri holds up a finger. He follows Agatha. The gate closes behind him.

Agatha walks swiftly but calmly down the long corridor. She looks back. Dmitri walks behind her, equally swiftly and significantly more calmly, thirty feet back. Agatha turns a corner.

Dmitri cracks his knuckles as he continues. He clears his throat. He turns the corner now, himself, and sees:

Agatha running as fast as she can, already sixty feet ahead, nearly at the end of the corridor. She looks back again as she disappears around the next corner.

Dmitri breaks into a full sprint. In five seconds, he reaches the end of the hallway. He stops and looks down the next corridor.

It is empty. Pause.

At the far end: a pair of doors labeled
SERVICE ELEVATOR
slide open. M. Gustave and Zero stand inside it with their stacked boxes. Dmitri’s eyes widen. He shouts:

Dmitri instantly leans down, lifts up his trouser leg, and draws a small-calibre handgun from a strap under his sock. He fires.

M. Gustave and Zero throw their boxes in every direction and duck to the sides of the elevator. Dmitri fires again. Bullets ricochet.

A door opens halfway down the corridor. An officer wearing his uniform tunic but no trousers looks out at Dmitri, alerted, with a Luger pistol in his hand.

Dmitri fires three more times into the service elevator. The officer fires back at Dmitri. Dmitri ducks behind a room-service cart and quickly reloads. More doors open up and down the corridor, and more armed officers in various states of dress/undress look out.

Dmitri pops up again and resumes his barrage. All the officers open fire at once, shooting, apparently at random, in both directions. Henckels appears suddenly at the top of the stairs with his own firearm drawn. M. Chuck hurries behind him. Henckels ducks down low and screams: