The Very Best of Tad Williams (36 page)

ERIC

K-K-Ki...Kimmy?

The crying continues, a little more frightened and miserable now.

ERIC

Kimmy, is...is that you?

KIMMY

(tiny, whispery voice)

I’m so scared.

ERIC, hands shaking violently, tries the door. It’s locked.

ERIC

Kimmy, let me in.

KIMMY

I’m...scared. Eric, where is everyone? What’s happening?

Something THUMPS, as though someone has just climbed into the bathtub. The thumping gets louder—something very strange is happening in the bathroom.

ERIC

Kimmy? Kimmy!

Her weeping has changed to sounds of panicked grunts, like someone fighting for their life or being raped.

KIMMY

Why...why can’t...I...see? You told me...you told me I could see...everything!

On “everything,” the door finally pops open in ERIC’s hand. He throws on the light. The bathroom is EMPTY. He staggers back, looks wildly at the clock. It reads 3:18, as we

CUT TO:

INT.—HOSPITAL—NIGHT, SAME TIME

We see TOPHER’s strange head on a pillow, eyes open, staring straight up into the darkness. A light from outside is making tree-branch shadows flail on the walls and across his expressionless face, but he is utterly, utterly still.

CUT TO:

INT.—JANICE’S KITCHEN—NIGHT

ADULT JANICE is in her dressing gown, hugging herself against a chill, stumbling a little as though just awakened. There’s streetlight coming through the blinds and a bathroom light in the hall. She takes a glass and fills it from a dispenser bottle of water by the refrigerator, then drinks it, as we

CUT TO:

CLOSE UP: RIM OF GLASS

There’s an ANT on the glass, feelers waving. JANICE makes an “urp” of shock and jerks the glass away from her mouth, then slams it down in the sink. A moment later she snatches it up again, plunges it under the faucet and washes the ANT down the drain. She looks, and there are a few ANTS on the dispenser bottle as well. A little less surprised now, but just as unhappy, she starts to lift the bottle into the sink, then snatches her hand back. There are more than a couple of ants—at least a dozen are running along the counter and in a line to the refrigerator door. She takes a napkin and flicks them off the handle, then pulls open the refrigerator, spilling out the light.

CUT TO:

INTERIOR OF REFRIGERATOR

There are MILLIONS of ANTS in the refrigerator—a boiling black mass that tumbles out the door and all over the linoleum. JANICE leaps back, shrieking and shrieking and shrieking as we go to BLACK and then, when the screams have faded,

DISSOLVE TO:

INT.—MOTEL COFFEE SHOP—MORNING

ADULT JANICE and ADULT ERIC are having coffee. They both look like hell—they clearly haven’t slept.

ERIC

I...I’ve been having bad dreams for a few weeks now. About...that night. That’s one of the reasons I decided to come back. I thought, y’know, seeing the place again...

JANICE

But not me. Just the place.

ERIC

I didn’t think you’d WANT to see me. Stop playing games. You’ve been having them too, haven’t you?

JANICE

Yeah. But it wasn’t bad at first. Just a couple of nightmares, and I used to have those all the time. But...things have started happening. In the daytime.

ERIC

Me too. Bad. Bad stuff.

JANICE

But why? It’s too weird, Eric. It doesn’t make sense. I’m scared I’m going crazy.

ERIC

I don’t think so—not both of us at the same time.

(he stands up)

Well, as long as I’m back in town, I guess it’s time to go see another old friend...

DISSOLVE TO:

EXT.—BRENT’S HOUSE—HALF AN HOUR LATER

The house is big, nice, with two SUVs in the driveway. ERIC and JANICE are on the front porch.

JANICE

We could have called first...

ERIC

If he’s really Zenger-Kimball, I don’t trust ad guys on the phone.

JANICE

He’s still Brent!

ERIC

Yeah. Whatever that means after twenty-five years.

The door opens. BRENT ZENGER doesn’t look good. In fact, he looks worse than ERIC and JANICE: it’s early in the morning and he has a drink in his hand and a sour, sick expression on his face.

BRENT

Hey, Janice. Pierson. Long time.

ERIC

You don’t seem surprised to see us.

BRENT shrugs and turns, waving for them to follow him. He leads them across the entry into the large living room. The television is playing and there’s a Bacardi bottle on top of it, half-full.

BRENT

Drink?

ERIC

A bit early.

BRENT

Tracy and Joanie are out at the park.

(looks at Eric)

My wife and kid. Sit down.

ERIC

Like I said, Brent, you don’t look surprised to see us.

BRENT

Not feeling very surprised today, I guess. Watching Jenny Jones’ll do that to you—kind of burns the surprise glands right out.

ERIC

Me and Janice—we’ve been having some weird dreams. Ring any bells?

BRENT

Yeah, and it’s nice to see you, too, Pierson. It HAS been a long time. I’m doing well, thanks for asking.

JANICE

Neither of us has had much sleep, Brent. Eric doesn’t mean to be rude.

BRENT

That’s pretty good, Pierson. Back after twenty years and already she’s sticking up for you again.

(he looks around)

Do you think there’s too much white in this room? Tracy kind of bugged out on the all-white thing.

ERIC

Have you been to see Topher?

BRENT

I saw him. Once. That was enough.

JANICE

He’s gotten a lot worse.

BRENT

No shit.

ERIC

(angry)

Look—enough! Brent, man, I’m sorry I haven’t been around. You could have called me too, for that matter. But the fact is that we went different ways.

BRENT

Yeah. It happens.

ERIC

So let’s cut the bullshit, okay? I knew you in the fucking third grade, man. Being a grown-up sucks, cool, we’ll all agree. Now let’s get down to business. There’s something really strange going on. Janice and I have been having hallucinations, all about that night. THAT night. Nothing else. How about you?

BRENT

I don’t really want to spend a lot of time thinking about that shit.

ERIC

It doesn’t feel like we have much choice.

(a beat)

It’s happening to you, too, isn’t it? How long?

BRENT

I don’t know what you’re talking about.

ERIC

Don’t give me that, man, I know you. How long? Weeks?

BRENT

(after a pause)

Yeah. For a while. But it goes away sometimes.

ERIC

Maybe it did, but now it’s getting worse. We have to do something.

BRENT

(laughs)

Oh, yeah? What’s that? Write a little Sunday magazine section piece? “High School Nightmare Reunions”? Or maybe call the cops? The dream police? What the fuck do you think we can do about it, Erky?

ERIC

It’s something to do with Topher. I could feel it when I saw him. There’s something...alive in there. Angry.

JANICE

That doesn’t make any sense.

ERIC

None of this does—but it’s happening. We have to go see him. All of us. If this is something to do with...that stuff...that stuff he took...

BRENT

Talk to him? You really have turned into liberal dickhead, Pierson, just like I always thought you would. What are we going to say? “If that’s you fucking with our minds, Topher, could you please stop?” You must be joking.

ERIC

He was our friend...

BRENT

And look at him now! You think talking to that... thing is going to change anything? Is it going to change the past? Is it going to make up for what happened to him, to...to Kimmy?

Shockingly, BRENT suddenly bursts into tears—he’s had quite a lot to drink.

BRENT
(cont.)

Kimmy. Oh, man, poor Kimmy... Shit!

JANICE

It’s okay, Brent. It wasn’t your fault, either...

BRENT

Okay? It fucking well is not. And if you want to go talk to that...that thing...go ahead. But don’t expect me to come with you. I wouldn’t go within a mile of that freak.

ERIC

That doesn’t make...

BRENT

Just get out. Get out of here before my wife comes home. I used to tell her about what great friends I had. Don’t fuck it up for me.

JANICE

Brent, come on...

BRENT

(shouting)

Get out of my damned house!

CUT TO:

INT.—ERIC’S CAR—MINUTES LATER

They are driving out of BRENT’s nice neighborhood.

ERIC

That went well, didn’t it?

JANICE

He’s terrified. What’s going on?

ERIC

Guess what. I’m terrified too...

DISSOLVE TO:

INT.—HOSPITAL—AN HOUR LATER

JANICE and ERIC are talking to an ADMINISTRATOR at the main desk, a lady in her fifties or early sixties.

ADMINISTRATOR

I don’t quite understand what you’re asking, sir. Mr. Holland’s records are private, but I can assure you he’s been getting the best possible care.

ERIC

Who DOES have access to his records? His father’s dead—he must have a legal guardian.

ADMINISTRATOR

He has an aunt in Northern California. But I’m not sure I should be discussing any of this with you. He’s been a patient with us for almost thirteen years now. I recognize Mrs. Moorehead, but I don’t think I’ve even seen you before.

ERIC

(to JANICE)

Mrs. Moorehead?

JANICE

(to ADMINISTRATOR)

That’s fine, thanks. We were mainly wondering about whether there had been any...changes. To his condition.

ADMINISTRATOR

Only the skin problem, which seems to be getting worse.

ERIC

But what did they say when they sent him here...?

JANICE pulls him away.

ERIC
(cont.)

He was in a government psychiatric hospital—under security. I still have the clippings. Would they really just let him go?

JANICE

(a little angry)

This isn’t some big investigative report, Eric. Topher hasn’t spoken or moved in years. His dad went to court and asked to have him sent here, so he’d be closer to home.

ERIC

(disgusted)

His old man must have been happy Topher couldn’t get into trouble any more.

The OLD WOMAN ERIC has seen earlier rolls out in front of them, then paces them until they stop in front of TOPHER’s door.

OLD WOMAN

(eyes wide)

You going in there?

JANICE

We’re going to see a friend.

OLD WOMAN

(grabbing ERIC’s arm)

You tell my mother I been good. Tell her I never went in there.

As they open the door, she rolls herself backward down the hall.

OLD WOMAN
(cont.)

That’s where the devil lives...

The door swings open. It’s a small room, but with TOPHER at the far end it seems very large. He is sitting in his wheelchair by the bed, staring at nothing. ERIC and JANICE hesitate, then JANICE at last moves forward and sits on the bed. ERIC picks up a chair and puts himself on the other side of TOPHER.

JANICE

Eric and I are here to see you, Topher. We’ve been thinking about you a lot.

ERIC

Yeah. A lot.

JANICE

We’ve been having...bad dreams. About that night. We thought...you might be having bad dreams too.