Le Capitale

Le Capitale By David Polk

an Original Screenplay

FADE IN: EXT. THE SEA - DAY DISTANT VIEW of a tropical island. As we come closer we see mountains, a lush jungle and pristine white sand beaches surrounded by crystal clear blue sea. Paradise. We glide down to... EXT. THE JUNGLE - DAY Dark. Ominous. Teaming with EXOTIC CREATURES. As we move through the dense foliage, the cacophony of hoots, croaks and hums turns into a pulsating SAMBA BEAT that grows louder as we emerge from the jungle and onto... EXT. THE STREETS - DAY A colonial port town, vibrant and colorful - from its old buildings to its people. Children and adults alike move about, unaware but seemingly in time to our infectious Samba beat. SUPER: "Le Capitale.

Carnival."

A YOUNG WOMAN with an over-sized PURSE presses through the crowd. Her dress tells us she’s of a humble background, but she could stop traffic with that body. A TRAFFIC COP, distracted by the passing beauty, shoots her a big, white-toothed grin. She smiles demurely back at him and traffic does stop as two cars collide. We continue with the young woman through crowded streets as she approaches... EXT. CENTRAL PLAZA - DAY Where thousands of people wait with great anticipation for an event of some kind. Our young beauty wades into the masses, looks far into the distance. We follow her gaze to the PRESIDENTIAL PALACE. The Samba beat dies down as we, SMASH CUT TO:

2.

INT. PRESIDENTIAL PALACE - DAY LENA sits in an opulent suite admiring old PHOTOGRAPHS. She absentmindedly rubs a worn ST. PETER MEDAL between her finger and thumb. In her late seventies with impeccably coiffed white hair, she possesses ageless grace and beauty. THREE CHILDREN, ages seven, nine and eleven, burst into the room. The eldest is YOUNG DAX. CHILDREN Grandma’ma! Grandma’ma! Birthday!

Happy

They embrace her, kiss her dutifully on the cheek. LENA My darlings! Thank you! The children each hand her a gift-wrapped present. YOUNG DAX Grandma’ma, please finish telling us the story about you and Grandpa’pa in the Revolution. The excited children sit at her feet. LENA Yes...Now where did we leave off? YOUNG DAX You and Grandpa’pa and the Freedom Fighters were about to attack the Medelin Road bridge. LENA Yes, of course. We were hidden in the bulrushes. When Rodrigo and Pierre were in position underneath the bridge, your great-grandfather gave the signal to attack -MONIQUE (O.S.) Children! MONIQUE, standing in the doorway, is an attractive albeit stern-looking woman in her late thirties. MONIQUE Your great grandmother has more pressing matters to tend to now.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

3.

CHILDREN Yes, Mother. The children file past Monique, each kissing her before leaving the room. Just as Young Dax is about to leave, Lena calls after him. LENA (a loving smile) Dax, we’ll finish later. The boy smiles at her then leaves. INT. PRESIDENTIAL PALACE (HALLWAY) - DAY Lena and Monique walk slowly down the hallway. TWO MILITARY OFFICERS, one male and one female, trail several paces behind. The COBRA INSIGNIA on their crisp, white uniforms signify that they belong to the island’s most elite Army unit. As Lena approaches a set of French doors, we can hear an impassioned speech being delivered outside over a public address system. MARCHOND (V.O.) Today, as we celebrate fifty years as a free nation, we can look back with pride on the glory of the State and salute the will of the People, whose sacrifices gave birth to our Great Republic, who stood courageously in the face of tyranny and returned our beloved island home to her rightful heirs, you the People!... (applause) We are honored that heroes of the Revolution are still among us. I am particularly proud that the Mother of the Revolution, the Mother of our Country - my grandmother - is here with us on this momentous day, celebrating her eightieth birthday! On cue, UNIFORMED ATTENDANTS open the doors to the balcony. LENA (to herself) Seventy-eighth. Lena walks out onto the balcony. Her grandson MARCHOND His Excellency the President - turns to greet her with a (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

4.

broad smile and a kiss for each cheek. She steps to the balustrade, looks out on the sea of adoring citizens. The chant "Lena! Lena! Lena!" echos throughout the plaza. Pride washes over her face as we... DISSOLVE TO: INT. TORTURE CHAMBER - NIGHT The FACE of a pain. LENA. head. Strung black hair is

teenage girl - beautiful, prideful, in She’s naked, hands bound above her up from the ceiling like a slab of meat. Her short; she could easily pass for a young boy.

SUPER: "60 Years Ago." The room is barren and dark with a dirt floor. DECKER, a middle-aged man in horn-rimmed glasses, steps up next to her. His olive drab fatigues are perfectly pressed, the creases sharp enough to cut. DECKER It’s Lena, isn’t it? (off her defiance) It hardly matters whether you tell me your name. We know who you are, Lena. We know all about you. And we know everything we need to know to crush this so-called revolution of yours. Sweat covers Lena’s lithe body. The heat is oppressive and there’s no telling how long she’s been hanging. Decker nonchalantly swats at a mosquito, removes his glasses, wipes them with a HANDKERCHIEF, then mops his brow with it. DECKER You must know by now that your attempts to spread sedition among the people are futile. Ridiculous, really, when you consider all that His Excellency the President has done to help the people. Schools, roads, clinics. He has even been a benefactor to your people, the "Originales". You’re nothing but backward, inbred vermin, an embarrassment to our country. It’s no surprise that your people were the first to throw in your lot with the PLU scum. Fortunately, we’ll be rid of you all very soon. (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

5.

Decker puts his glasses back on, looks at her with contempt. DECKER I believe my greatest contribution to my country will be having a hand in wiping your kind off the face of the earth. Lena’s weary eyes grow dark with hatred. We hear a MAN MOAN in misery. The door opens and the owner of the misery, FELIPE MORENO - or what’s left of him - is thrown into the room. He lands near Lena’s bound feet. He’s bloody, black and blue all over from untold days of torture. Lena’s hatred is suddenly trumped by fear. Following Felipe into the room is a bald, shirtless hulk of a man in his late forties - the TORTURER. TORTURER Apologies for being late, Excellency. This son of a whore passed out again. I hate it when they pass out. DECKER Lena, I’d like you to meet one of my interrogators. His name is of no relevance to you. Though I believe he became quite well acquainted with your father, mother and brother before they died. Lena tenses. The torturer stands in front of her, a sinister, yellow-toothed smile creasing his hideous face. TORTURER (ref. Felipe) Don’t fret little girl, I won’t let you pass out. I want you to enjoy every minute, just like your whore of a mother and those eunuchs you called father and brother did. Lena summons just enough energy to spit in his face. LENA Pig! The torturer just grins at her, wipes away the spit.

6.

EXT. THE JUNGLE - NIGHT It’s dark. So dark that it takes a moment to realize we’re looking directly at the CAMOUFLAGED FACE of a man. His eyes are cold and hard. He’s staring into a military encampment. Inside the compound, a handful of SENTRIES stand about listlessly, machine guns slung over their shoulders. Insects HUM ominously. The hard-eyed man makes a DISTINCTIVE INSECT SOUND and moves stealthily toward the compound. Six other SHADOWY FIGURES move at the same time. EXT. COMPOUND - NIGHT The shadowy figures swoop in. A SENTRY sees something, unshoulders his rifle, but it’s too late. The hard-eyed man throws his COMMANDO KNIFE with vicious accuracy, splitting the sentry’s forehead. The invaders STRIKE, quietly killing the other sentries with knives and their bare hands. INT. TORTURE CHAMBER - NIGHT The torturer beats Lena with a RATTAN ROD. Her back is raw and bloody. Tears stream down her face but she doesn’t cry out. She’s nearly unconscious. Decker looks on impassively. The torturer cuts her down. She falls on top of Felipe, who groans. The torturer drags her to a chair, bends her over and binds her to it. When the torturer unzips his pants, Decker decides its time to leave. DECKER I’m a civilized man. His Excellency doesn’t pay me enough to witness this sort of thing. Decker leaves the room. EXT. OUTSIDE TORTURE CHAMBER - NIGHT Decker closes the door behind him, turns and stops in his tracks: TWO DEAD GUARDS are on the ground, mouths gaping in startled alarm, throats cut ear-to-ear. Decker looks up into the stone cold face of the hard-eyed man. Decker opens his mouth to scream but the hard-eyed man SLASHES his throat, nearly decapitating him.

7.

INT. TORTURE CHAMBER - NIGHT The torturer is about to mount Lena from behind when the door bursts off the hinges. The hard-eyed man and two other REBELS rush in. As the rebels bash the torturer’s head with their gun barrels and pin him to the wall, the hard-eyed man cuts Lena lose, covers her body with his fatigue jacket. One of the rebels looks down at the torturer’s now flaccid member and exchanges a look with his comrade. The torturer yells out, struggles in vain. The first rebel unsheathes his KNIFE and castrates the torturer. The hulking man falls to the floor, HOWLING in agony. HARD-EYED MAN Let’s go! They’re headed for the door when Lena stops. LENA (ref. Felipe) We have to bring him too. HARD-EYED MAN He’s dead. LENA He’s not! Agitated, the hard-eyed man relents, signals for one of the rebels to grab Felipe. EXT. COMPOUND - NIGHT An intense firefight. Flashes of gunfire from the jungle perforate the night as Lena, the hard-eyed man and the rebels make their way out. Suddenly, Lena stops. HARD-EYED MAN What is it?? Lena grabs the COLT .45 from his shoulder holster. HARD-EYED MAN (annoyed) We don’t have time for this! She ignores him. The hard-eyed man motions for the rebels to keep moving with Felipe. He follows Lena.

8.

INT. TORTURE CHAMBER - NIGHT The torturer writhes in agony on the floor, which is now soaked with his blood. Lena comes in, kicks him in the gut to turn him on his back. She plants her foot on his chest, looks in his eyes. Her eyes are hot but her voice icy calm. LENA For my family. For all the families you’ve murdered. Pig. She levels the .45 and shoots him in the head. Twice. hard-eyed man watches, unfazed, from the doorway.

The

EXT. REBEL CAMP - SUNSET To establish a rebel encampment hidden deep in the jungle. INT. INFIRMARY - SUNSET The infirmary is a tent with a half-dozen cots, a WOUNDED REBEL on every one of them. Lena tends to Felipe, changing his bandages. He’s in his mid-twenties and, without the bandages, swelling and bruising on his face, probably handsome. LENA You’ve been here for three days, in and out of consciousness. Mostly out. But our doctor says you’re past the worst. You should be up and around in a day or two. FELIPE Thank you...for saving me. your name?

What is

LENA Lena. FELIPE I’m Felipe. Felipe Moreno. LENA The propagandist? FELIPE I’m a writer, yes. work?

You’ve read my

(CONTINUED)

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9.

LENA No...not really. But I’ve heard of you. We’ve all heard of you. How did you come to be arrested? FELIPE For weeks I had been following rumors that His Excellency the Dictator’s agents were plotting to assassinate the Alsatian president. I planned to publish an article exposing the regime’s treachery. The day I was to meet a patriot who had hard proof of the plot, Blackshirts broke into my flat and arrested me and my roommates. LENA Their spies are like cockroaches! They’re everywhere! How long were you in prison? FELIPE I don’t know. Two weeks. A month, maybe longer. The beatings started the first day...After two or three days I...I... (emotional) I couldn’t say. She touches his arm gently to soothe him. LENA How did you survive for so long? FELIPE Each day the beatings stopped just long enough for them to put a piece of paper in front of us. A confession of treason. They said once we signed it the beatings would stop and we would receive a trial. After a couple of days, Alphonse and Lido signed...Their only crime was being at the apartment when I was taken. (beat) The Blackshirts were true to their word. After Alphonse and Lido signed the paper, the beatings stopped. Within minutes they were taken out and shot. I saw it all (MORE) (CONTINUED)

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10.

FELIPE (CONT’D.) from my cell. When they came for me, I figured I’d live longer if I didn’t sign anything. LENA They’ll all burn in hell for eternity, just like that filthy pig who violated you. The mere mention of the torturer causes Felipe to wince. FELIPE They killed him, the men who rescued us? LENA I did. FELIPE (incredulous) You? How could a girl so young do such a thing? You can’t be more than fifteen. LENA (offended) I’m nearly twenty! And I’ve killed men before. Four in combat. INT. DAX’S COMMAND TENT - SUNSET SIX REBELS - tough, hard men in dirty fatigues - are gathered around a makeshift campaign table. The most imposing of them is their leader, the hard-eyed man. His name is DAX GRIMALDI - dark, ruggedly handsome and in his mid-twenties. When he speaks it’s without emotion, just cold, hard authority. DAX I don’t believe it. No one close to Montague would betray him. IKE I didn’t want to believe it myself, Boss, but I got it straight from Remy. He forced a confession from the turncoat. It was one of Monty’s own lieutenants that told the Blackshirts where he was rendezvousing with his woman and daughter. They picked them all up and, well, we know the rest. (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

11.

OSCAR GRIMALDI, twenty-one, throws his tin coffee mug across the room, slams his ham of a fist onto the table. Dax’s brother is a tempestuous bear of a man wearing a black beret. He’s the rebel who castrated the torturer. OSCAR Bastards! They rape and murder a man’s family before his very eyes, put a bullet in his head and throw his body into the street, and we’re the terrorists?? CASTOR (to Dax) It’s time we fight fire with fire, Captain. Hit the Loyalist dogs in their homes, in their precious resorts and casinos. Oscar pulls his commando knife, sticks it in the table. OSCAR I like the sound of that. Only I’d drag them from their warm beds and litter the streets of Le Capitale with their balls! Some of the men grumble in agreement. WILF, in his early forties, is the "old man" in the tent. Red-haired, bearded and chomping an ever-present CIGAR STUB, his voice is heavily-graveled. He held the torturer while Oscar castrated him. WILF (a sly smile) Chase a rat down the sewer to kill it, know what you get? Two rats in the sewer. OSCAR But those dogs have to know that there’s a price to pay for supporting murderers and rapists -WILF So we become bigger murderers and rapists? OSCAR (anger rising) If that’s what it takes! His Excellency the Dictator has been (MORE) (CONTINUED)

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OSCAR (CONT’D.) raping the people for forty years and for forty years those sheep the Loyalists have looked the other way. They don’t give a tinker’s damn what happens to the people so long as they can line their pockets with millions from the casinos and the cane fields! JEAN-CLAUDE Wilf’s right. Look, we’re already losing support from the people. We start blowing up casinos and plucking fat magistrates out of their beds, we’ll lose them altogether. Oscar jumps up, murder in his eyes. A loud METALLIC CLICK gets everyone’s attention. Dax has chambered his Colt. DAX We’re the People’s Liberation Union. An army fighting a war. In this brigade we’ll act like soldiers. Not terrorists. Those are my orders. (looks at Oscar) I’ll shoot anyone who disobeys them. Oscar and Dax stare at each other for a long beat. sits down, plucks his knife out of the table.

Oscar

INT. INFIRMARY - SUNSET Lena is helping Felipe eat soup from a tin cup. FELIPE Are there many Originales in this unit? LENA My brother Quintos and me were the last. We came three years ago. Now there’s only me. FELIPE I’m sorry...Your people have the greatest reason to despise the Dictator. He’s slaughtered you by the thousands, stolen your land, (MORE) (CONTINUED)

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13.

FELIPE (CONT’D.) taken away your rights and your dignity. LENA (hot) Never our dignity! No one can ever take away our dignity! FELIPE Of course, forgive me. JORGE, the medic, comes into the tent. notices movement outside.

When he does Lena

LENA Jorge, what’s going on? Jorge looks at Felipe, unsure of whether to answer. JORGE Best to talk to the Captain about that, Lena. His answer only annoys her. LENA (to Felipe) I’ll be back. INT. DAX’S COMMAND TENT - SUNSET Dax and Wilf are poring over a map spread out on the campaign table. The flap of the tent flies open and Lena strides in. LENA Are we moving out? Wilf looks up at her.

Dax continues studying the map.

WILF See you at the tree line in ten, Boss. Wilf winks at her as he passes, makes himself scarce. Lena watches him go then levels dark eyes at Dax. She’s pissed. LENA Why wasn’t I told we’re going on a mission?

(CONTINUED)

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14.

DAX (eyes on map) If I thought you needed to know I would’ve told you. LENA Wilf is going and Oscar’s loading his gear. I’m in their unit. Dax glares at her with a look that would tighten a man’s sphincter. She stares back at him, uncowed. DAX You know how many lives I risked to pull you out of that camp? LENA I’m a soldier! unit!

I should be with my

DAX And I’m your commanding officer, so you’ll follow orders. I can’t focus on this mission and worry about you too. That rips it; she flies off the hook. LENA Stop treating me like a child, Dax! DAX You are a child, Lena! I swore to Quintos that I’d protect you and I intend to keep that promise. LENA You’re not my brother so stop acting like your are! I know the risks and I’m willing to accept them! EXT. DAX’S COMMAND TENT - CONTINUOUS Passing rebels hear Lena’s rant. They go about their business. They’ve heard it all before.

15.

INT. DAX’S COMMAND TENT - CONTINUOUS Dax coolly turns his attention back to the map. DAX Well I’m not. You’re staying behind. That’s an order. Lena’s nostrils flare, her fists are clenched. She’s a mini volcano about to blow. Dax folds the map, takes his machine gun off the table and brushes past her, out of the tent. EXT. DAX’S COMMAND TENT - CONTINUOUS As Dax walks away we hear LENA (O.S.) AAAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!! The outer walls of the tent shake as, inside, Mount Lena erupts, flinging anything she can put her hands on. INT. JUNOT’S OFFICE - DAY JUNOT SOTO, a politically savvy Blackshirt captain in his early thirties, studies prison MUG SHOTS of the rebels from Dax’s tent. A nervous UNDERLING fills him in. UNDERLING Our informants tell us this is the PLU unit responsible for Major Decker’s assassination. They also murdered twelve soldiers and an interrogator. It appears the raid was to free an Originale girl. Her I.D. number is 55-670-9. She was captured in a firefight near the Sierra Maestra. Junot stops on Dax’s mug shot. UNDERLING His name is Dax Grimaldi. Hardcore Marxist. Served two years in Lobianca. A fisherman’s son from the Cristobal district. He commands roughly one hundred rebels operating mostly in the Sierra Maestra.

(CONTINUED)

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16.

JUNOT Family? UNDERLING A brother under his command. Father and mother both died long before the revolution began. Junot shoots him a disapproving look. UNDERLING Apologies, Excellency. "Revolt."

The

JUNOT And the girl? UNDERLING Excellency? JUNOT The girl he rescued. lovers?

Are they

The underling lowers his eyes, realizing his report is inadequate. JUNOT That will be all. The underling exits the room quickly. photograph.

Junot stares at Dax’s

INT. SAVOY RESTAURANT - DAY A fine French restaurant in a top-flight tourist hotel. Junot sits across the table from GASPAR DEVILLE. The head of the secret police is an aristocratic, attractive man in his forties. He wears a colonel’s rank on his tailored uniform. Gaspar sips his wine, pauses to appreciate it. GASPAR You know, the Bolla is a far superior wine, yet the French have brainwashed the masses. They disgust me. A weak, spineless people. How is your Duck L’Orange, Captain?

(CONTINUED)

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17.

JUNOT Very good, Excellency. GASPAR You say this PLU unit is responsible for the attack on our compound in Bruges and that they suffered no casualties? JUNOT That’s correct. They’ve staged a dozen or so ambushes throughout the Central District. All told, they’re responsible for twenty-two KIAs in the last eight months. That includes Major Decker and his interrogator. GASPAR Decker was no great loss. I always thought him more of a bureaucrat than a man of action. But when it’s your sister’s husband, what are you to do? ... It’s clear we need more competent leadership in the Central District. Would you agree, Captain? JUNOT Yes, Excellency. GASPAR These brazen attacks are precisely why the Americans are raising questions about His Excellency’s resolve. Did you know they’re sending a special envoy to Le Capitale to assess the state of affairs on the island? JUNOT (lying) No Excellency, I did not. GASPAR We need to show stronger resolve. This rebel unit must be made an example of before the American arrives. Do you follow me, Captain?

(CONTINUED)

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18.

JUNOT Yes, Excellency, I understand. EXT. PLANTATION HOUSE - NIGHT A grand old plantation house built in colonial days. The island’s well-dressed and powerful enjoy after-dinner drinks on the veranda. A QUARTET plays CLASSICAL MUSIC. Gaspar, debonair in a white dress uniform adorned with too many medals, approaches a group of LOYALISTS, among them RAMON, the stylish MRS. MIRAPOSA and MANUEL, her effeminate husband. MRS. MIRAPOSA Gaspar, darling! We’ve been waiting forever for you to arrive. They kiss cheek to cheek. GASPAR Good evening, my dear Mrs. Miraposa. Please forgive my lateness. I regret that I was detained at the Ministry. MRS. MIRAPOSA So much time spent at the Ministry! You’ll never find a wife stuck in that dreadful place. GASPAR (a charming smile) Alas, the woman of my dreams is already happily married. Mrs. Miraposa blushes. RAMON Colonel, is it true the rebels have stepped up attacks in the south? GASPAR Of course I’m not at liberty to discuss operational details, but rest assured, Ramon, the rebels have been thwarted at every turn. Our troops have eliminated the threats in the south and the west and rendered their mountain forces completely ineffectual.

(CONTINUED)

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19.

MANUEL What about in the Central District, Colonel? I’ve heard the rebels remain strong here and in the north. GASPAR That’s what they’d like you to believe, old friend. (a dismissive wave of the hand) If only they were half as effective with their weapons as they are at spreading propaganda. The others laugh.

But it’s mostly for effect.

MRS. MIRAPOSA (shamelessly flirting) Oh, Gaspar, I sleep so much better knowing that you’re keeping us safe from the terrorists. A WAITER offers them hors d’oeuvres. He and Gaspar exchange the briefest of glances. When the waiter leaves them, CAMERA STAYS with him as he serves other GUESTS. We overhear bits of their conversations. The rebels are the main topic of the evening. WOMAN #1 I hear they’re planning to bomb the Presidential Palace... MAN #1 A government base not twenty kilometers from Le Capitale was attacked. The terrorists slaughtered every one of our soldiers... WOMAN #2 They’re animals! My maid says they’ve begun kidnapping Loyalists, raping the women and castrating the men... MAN #2 This revolt is dreadful for business. Tourists are afraid to come to the island, profits at the casinos are down twenty percent.

(CONTINUED)

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20.

WOMAN #3 His Excellency simply has to take a hard line with these filthy terrorists... INT. KITCHEN - NIGHT The waiter, YVES, comes in with other WAITERS to return their white jackets and collect their pay from the BUTLER. They each get only a few bills for the night’s work. EXT. PLANTATION ROAD - NIGHT Yves removes his SHOES and ties them to the handlebars of his bicycle. He rides barefoot off into the night. EXT. SHANTYTOWN - NIGHT WIDE SHOT of hundreds of crude shacks made from scraps of lumber, tin and dried mud. A maze of unpaved dirt paths network through the squalid hamlet. ANGLE ON Yves as he rides his bike down a path. a SHACK.

He stops at

INT. SHACK - NIGHT A YOUNG WOMAN sound asleep on a straw mat stirs when Yves enters the dark, cramped hovel. He kneels, kisses her cheek tenderly, sending her back to sleep. Yves looks over at a sleeping LITTLE GIRL. She’s no more than five years old. He goes to the other room (there are only two), even smaller than the first. He kneels in the corner, glances over his shoulder for caution’s sake. He pushes aside a HEAVY URN. Underneath it there’s a neat hole in the ground. He reaches down the front of his pants and pulls out a THICK WAD OF BILLS. Far more than he was given by the butler. He pulls a BURLAP SACK from the hole, opens it. Inside is a HORDE OF CASH.

21.

EXT. DUVALIER’S CAMP - NIGHT GENERAL DUVALIER, a stocky, rugged man in his late forties, walks with his top COMMANDERS - PAULO, LAGARDE and Dax among them. DUVALIER Simultaneous assaults on the military command centers of all five provincial capitals is the boldest operation this Revolution’s ever seen. Our success depends on speed and complete surprise. (beat) Paulo, you’re the tip of the spear. Are you ready to strike the first blow? PAULO (a confident smile) By sunrise the garrison at Le Pointe will be hotter than a whore’s ass on a Friday night. DUVALIER Excellent. Lagarde, your men are in position on the Embarcadaro? LAGARDE Yes, sir. Scouts have mined the mountain roads leading to Corvallis. His Excellency the Dictator’s armored division will catch hell trying to reinforce the paramilitary units there. Duvalier stops and turns to Dax. The two warriors exchange a look that confirms their mutual respect and affection. DUVALIER Dax, going into the heart of Le Capitale for the radio station, you’ll get the worst the Federals can throw at you. Your men ready? DAX The question is are the Federals ready for our worst, General? The commanders laugh in a show of bravado. Duvalier nods, smiles grimly at him. An AIDE-DE-CAMP approaches.

(CONTINUED)

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22.

AIDE-DE-CAMP General, Major Ojeda is on the radio with a report from the south. DUVALIER Men, you have your orders. luck. The commanders take their leave.

Good

Duvalier stops Dax.

DUVALIER Dax, come with me. INT. DUVALIER’S TENT - NIGHT Duvalier finishes his conversation with Major Ojeda, hangs up the field phone. He takes a BOTTLE OF LIQUOR from a table, fills two tin cups and hands one to Dax. DUVALIER To those we’ll join in hell. They down their drinks in one gulp, grimace. for hard men.

Hard liquor

DUVALIER Montague and I were boyhood friends. My wife, may she rest in peace, introduced him to his woman. DAX Do you really believe he was betrayed by one of his own men? DUVALIER Captain, treachery is like a beautiful woman breathing on your neck. In the right circumstances, even the strongest man finds it hard to resist her charms. DAX (face tightens) The Federals fight because they’re paid to or because they’re afraid of what the Dictator will take from them - their homes, their power, their families. But we fight to free the people, to return what’s rightfully theirs. What have we become if our own men can’t see the difference?

(CONTINUED)

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23.

DUVALIER You know why you’re my best commander, Dax? Not because you’re the bravest. We’re all brave men, good fighters. No, you’re my best because you carry your beliefs into battle like a shield. After some of the scrapes you’ve survived, I honestly believe that shield’s kept you alive for years. But by now, my young friend, you must realize that this isn’t a war just for "the people". It’s for power, pure and simple. His Excellency the Dictator and his sycophants can feel that power slipping away, and there’s nothing they won’t do to keep hold of it. Never underestimate how far a corrupt man will go to survive, Dax. Duvalier puts a firm hand on Dax’s shoulder, looks him squarely in the eyes. DUVALIER These may well be my last orders to you, son, so I expect you to follow them faithfully. (Dax listens intently) Question everything. Trust no one. EXT. OUTSKIRTS OF LE CAPITALE - BEFORE DAWN It’s pitch black. A gentle breeze rustles through the cane fields. Wilf sits behind the wheel of an idling jeep. Dax rides shotgun. Oscar sits behind them. DELANCEY, a mountainous hunk with rippling muscles, stands next to Oscar, gripping a mounted 50-caliber MACHINE GUN. Dax looks at his watch. He raises his hand and makes a circular motion. "Move out!" Engines rev and vehicles pull off into the night. INT. DAX’S JEEP - MOVING - BEFORE DAWN We hear sporadic gunfire as Dax’s jeep speeds down the road. Ahead of them, in the dark city, firefights have broken out. Dax shouts over the wind. DAX (ref. the gunfire) That’s Duvalier’s November unit! They’ll pin down the garrison as (MORE) (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

24.

DAX (CONT’D.) long as they can, then we’re on our own to take and hold the radio station! WILF Great! Now I know not to waste time praying for reinforcements! OSCAR (laughs) A good Marxist wouldn’t waste time praying at all! Flashes of automatic weapons fire penetrate the darkness. Delancey chambers the 50-caliber, takes aim at the unseen enemy in the distance. DAX Open up, Delancey! RAT-TAT-TAT-TAT! The big gun belches fire. gas pedal to the floor.

Wilf jams the

EXT. THE STREETS - DAY We should recognize some of the COLORFUL BUILDINGS from our opening scenes. Smoke and fire billow from bombed out vehicles and storefronts. REBELS and FEDERALS engage in intense firefights around the city. EXT. CENTRAL PLAZA - DAY Dax and Wilf dart behind a building. Dax reaches around and fires his machine gun in the direction of the Federals. The Federals answer with a withering volley of their own. Brick and mortar fly off the building. Dax and Wilf scramble away for more cover... BEHIND A TRUCK Dax peeks over the hood across the plaza at a squat building with a tall array sticking out of the roof. The radio station is surrounded by sandbags, troops and a light TANK. He crouches, looks at Wilf. WILF (a wry grin) You think they got coffee and biscuits waiting for us too?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

25.

Dax looks further down the street. Oscar, Delancey and a handful of rebels make their way in two columns toward the radio station. The Federals don’t see them yet. DAX If we can get that tank turned toward us, Oscar might have a chance to get into their perimeter and cause some trouble. WILF That’s just what I was thinking, Boss: "Let’s jump out and draw fire from a tank." DAX (a wry smile) What? You want to live forever old man? IN THE OPEN Dax and Wilf zigzag across the plaza toward the radio station, firing bursts of machine gun fire as they go. The Federals lay down a hell storm of lead and shrapnel. The rebels dive for cover behind two large stone planters twenty yards apart. BEHIND THE PLANTERS Dax signals to Wilf to use the rocket propelled grenade launcher (RPG) strapped to his back. Wilf nods, pulls the weapon around and loads it while Dax reaches up and fires blindly toward the Federals. OUTSIDE THE RADIO STATION Still unseen by the Federals, Oscar and his men take position. He gives the signal to open fire. For a few chaotic seconds the Federals are confused, caught in a crossfire. Wilf takes a huge breath, pops out of hiding and SHOOTS at the tank. The grenade rockets across the plaza, hits its mark, EXPLODES. Flabbergasted, Wilf looks over at Dax, chomps his cigar proudly and grins. Dax shrugs just as... The tank FIRES. The shell lands short but the BLAST obliterates Wilf’s planter and hurls him backwards. DAX Wilf!

26.

Dax turns toward the radio station and yells furiously as he unloads a clip of ammo at the Federals. INT. LENA’S TENT - DAY A BLACK CAT sits curled up on the cot, watching disinterestedly as Lena hurriedly loads a rucksack with gear. The flap of her tent opens and Felipe comes in. Without bandages covering his face he is quite handsome. FELIPE What’s going on? we’re leaving.

It looks like

LENA That’s because we are. Why?

FELIPE What’s happened?

LENA I don’t have time to explain now. We have to go. EXT. REBEL CAMP - DAY Felipe limps alongside Lena, trying to keep up. All around them tents are being struck by the handful of rebels left in camp. Lena comes to a truck. LENA Get in. Felipe does.

She gets behind the wheel, starts the engine.

INT. TRUCK - MOVING - DAY Lena’s face is set in a grim expression. She and Felipe are in a convoy of vehicles rumbling through a jungle passage. FELIPE Are there reports on casualties? LENA All we’ve heard is that Freedom Fighters are taking heavy losses.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

27.

FELIPE This is madness. Whose idea was it to use brute force against the provincial garrisons? It’s suicidal. EXT. JUNGLE CLEARING - SUNSET A small group of rebels is bivouacked. A FIELD RADIO crackles to life. JAVIER, the baby-faced radio operator, drops his tin cup of soup and hurries to the set. Other rebels, including Lena and Felipe, follow. MAN’S VOICE (V.O., FILTERED) Cougar this is Pelican. Do you read? Cougar this is Pelican, come in, Cougar. JAVIER (into handset) Pelican this is Cougar. We read you. What’s your situation? Javier holds the handset so the others can hear. We hear shouting and sporadic gunfire in the b.g. as the man’s voice (PELICAN) comes through the handset. PELICAN (V.O., FILTERED) We’re falling back, four miles out of Atia, headed east. Twenty dead at Le Pointe, including Major Espinoza. More than fifty captured. We have twelve seriously wounded. The rebels’ faces cloud over. JAVIER (into handset) Any word of Duvalier? PELICAN (V.O., FILTERED) He’s dead. And at least ten with him. Outside Le Capitale. LENA (urgently to Javier) What about the others? He knows who she really means.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

28.

JAVIER (into handset) What about Major Sanchez and Captain Grimaldi? PELICAN (V.O., FILTERED) Sanchez and his men were hit hard but they managed to harass the armored division for a few hours. They retreated into the mountains. We heard Grimaldi’s men took heavy fire at the radio station. It’s almost like the Federals knew we were coming. The rebels are in a state of shock, none more so than Lena. INT. BIVOUAC - NIGHT Lena lay on her back, looking at nothing. Felipe is next to her on his stomach, staring out on the clearing. FELIPE I don’t understand it. They could’ve built more support among the labor unions. A prolonged worker’s strike combined with guerrilla raids would force the regime to negotiate. Eventually. Lena...are you alright? She hasn’t heard a word he’s said. LENA (absently) I should be with them now. needed me. FELIPE Are you insane?! maybe even dead!

They

You’d be wounded,

Her look could draw blood. FELIPE (feels it) I’m sorry. Look, Lena -LENA (interrupts, angrily) You write about the Revolution but what do you really know about (MORE) (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

29.

LENA (CONT’D.) it? All those words and fancy ideas, they don’t stop bullets. They didn’t save you from that pig in the Federal’s camp. Dax and his men did. Beat. FELIPE Bullets and steel may win battles, Lena, but only ideas can capture the hearts and minds of the people. And hearts and minds are what win revolutions. Lena looks at him discerningly, as if seeing the man for the first time. LENA Is that what they taught you at university? About hearts and minds? FELIPE To teach such ideas under the Dictator’s regime would be considered treason, punishable by death. No, my beliefs about the Revolution were born long before I set foot on campus. LENA You knew you could be executed for what you wrote, but you kept writing. Why? For a moment he stares at the MACHINE GUN on the ground between them, then into her eyes. FELIPE You know brute force alone won’t break His Excellency’s grip on the people. Why do you keep fighting? INT. GOVERNMENT MEETING ROOM - DAY Junot stands at the head of the room, comfortable and confident. A DOZEN BUREAUCRATS and MILITARY OFFICERS sit around a large table, among them Gaspar, DANJOU and MILLER, a dour American adviser with the demeanor of a mortician.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

30.

JUNOT Because of intelligence received from our informants, we were able to anticipate and thwart the attacks on our provincial garrisons, killing, wounding or capturing more than one hundred terrorists in their ill-advised assaults on our garrisons. Our best troops are pursuing what’s left of the rebel forces into their hideouts in the jungle and mountains. DANJOU How many officers captured? JUNOT A major, a captain and three lieutenants. We’ve already begun interrogating them. I’m confident we’ll get enough intelligence to strike a death blow to the revolt. MILLER You’re sure their commanding general and one of his top officers were killed in action? Junot signals to a JUNIOR OFFICER who immediately steps forward and places BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOS on the table in front of Miller. The American looks down at images of the bullet riddled bodies of Duvalier and Paulo. JUNOT Quite sure, Mr. Miller. INT. GOVERNMENT MEETING ROOM - LATER The bureaucrats and military officers are filing out of the room. Junot gathers his papers into a leather valise. Gaspar is near the door, speaking with Miller. After the American leaves, Gaspar goes to Junot. GASPAR Very well done, Captain. JUNOT Thank you, Excellency.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

31.

GASPAR The photographs were a nice touch. Put the American lackey in his place. I’ll be sure to include that in my report to His Excellency. Junot nods appreciatively. INT. JUNOT’S APARTMENT - SUNSET A well-decorated, comfortable flat with a nice view of the Bay. The kind of place afforded to a staunch Loyalist. Junot’s wife, PIPPA, is a handsome, ambitious woman in her late twenties. This evening she’s dressed to impress in pearls, high-heels and a red dress that compliments her comely figure. She’s inspecting the dining room table, sees something she doesn’t like. Calls to the kitchen. PIPPA Ana!

Ana!

ANA, the plump peasant maid, comes in holding a BUTCHER KNIFE. Sweat rolls down her face from hours spent cooking and cleaning. ANA (dryly) Yes, Misses. Pippa holds out a WINE GLASS as though it were Exhibit One for the Prosecution. PIPPA How many times must I tell you, Ana?? No water spots! ANA (dryly) Yes, Misses. Sorry, Misses. PIPPA The Major will be home any second. Take care of this immediately! As if on cue, the door opens and Junot walks in. Pippa dismisses Ana curtly then turns and greets her husband with a lovely smile.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

32.

PIPPA Junot, darling! He puts his valise on a chair, looks at her, impressed. Pippa kisses him on both cheeks. JUNOT You look divine.

A new dress?

PIPPA I hope you don’t mind, darling. knew you’d agree that a major’s wife must look her best at all times.

I

She caresses the shiny new insignia on his lapel. her close and they kiss deeply.

He pulls

DANIELLA (O.S.) Poppy! Poppy! Their six-year-old daughter DANIELLA runs in and hugs Junot’s waist. He leans down, kisses her. Pippa calls to the kitchen. PIPPA Ana! Ana! The Major is home. Where is his cocktail? EXT. SECLUDED BEACH - NIGHT The moon is full. Waves roll in and gently caress the white sand. Palm leaves sway with the tropical breeze. Another blissful night in Paradise. Lena and Felipe walk side-by-side. LENA Weren’t they disappointed when you told them you weren’t going to become a doctor like them? FELIPE Father and mother both accepted my decision. They understood that I could do more for the people with my typewriter than with a stethoscope. LENA Have you heard from them since they left for America?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

33.

FELIPE My little sister wrote to me often after they arrived. But it’s been months since her last letter. LENA You could have gone with them to America, continued writing there. He laughs more at the thought than at her words.

Then,

FELIPE (somberly) I love this country. I could never leave her. I only regret that my writings forced my family to flee. LENA I would like to read your articles some day, Felipe. They continue walking for a while... FELIPE When I was a boy, my father would read stories of the Originales to me at bedtime. A fierce, proud people who survived hurricanes, earthquakes and all manner of wild beasts to tame this island when it was little more than a rock. I admit, I had a fascination with your ancestors. LENA There are no pure-blooded Originales anymore. Most died of disease or were slaughtered by Colonialists. My Poppy told my brother and me that our great-great grandparents were a half-breed pirate captain and an Originale princess. (smirks) She was most likely his whore. FELIPE That explains a lot. LENA (offended) What’s that suppose to mean?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (3)

34.

FELIPE (smiles) Beautiful, spirited and brave. I assume you got the mouth from the pirate. They stop walking and look into each others eyes for a long beat. They are about to kiss when: PIERRE (O.S.) They’re back! Survivors are back! The spell broken, Felipe and Lena turn to see PIERRE, a young rebel, running toward them. When he reaches them. LENA (pressing) Who?? PIERRE I don’t know, but they’re coming in now. Lena takes off running toward the tree line. Felipe follow, Felipe limping as he runs.

Pierre and

EXT. REBEL CAMP - NIGHT Rebels come in from the jungle, exhausted and bloodied. Lena runs into camp just in time to see two rebels carrying Wilf on a makeshift litter. She goes to him and is taken aback. He’s barely alive. LENA Wilf! Can you hear me? Wilf pries his eyes open, recognizes her, smiles weakly. Relief washes over her. LENA You’re going to be all right, Wilf. You’re going to be all right. His eyes close, but the smile remains. away.

The rebels take him

Lena turns and anxiously looks toward the jungle. A few more rebels come in...Oscar walks out of the jungle, his fatigues ripped and caked with blood and mud. Lena steels herself, holds her breath, stares into the jungle. Beat.

35.

Finally, Dax emerges. Lena exhales her relief. She and Dax lock eyes as he limps toward her. He’s more weary than she’s ever seen him. Jorge, the medic, brushes past her and hurries toward Dax. INT. COMMAND TENT - MOMENTS LATER Jorge is about to tend to a bullet wound in Dax’s thigh when Lena barges in. LENA I’ll take care of him. JORGE But the wound’s near the artery -LENA I said I’ll do it. Dax nods. Jorge reluctantly leaves. Lena kneels and goes to work, expertly CLEANING AND DRESSING the wound. Dax grabs a bottle of liquor. DAX They had us at the radio station. If it wasn’t for Delancey, we’d have all been killed there. Never seen anything like it. He ran into them like a man possessed, killed five of them before they even knew what was happening. Confused them long enough for Oscar’s men to break into their perimeter. Once they were in, the Federals folded like cards. Cowards. He takes a deep drink from the bottle. LENA What happened to Delancey? One look in Dax’s eyes and she knows. DAX Holding the radio station was suicide. I ordered the men to split up and retreat to the shantytown. The fight out of Le Capitale was bloodier than the fight in. In the shantytown, sympathizers tried to cover our (MORE) (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

36.

DAX (CONT’D.) escape. When the Federals swept in they didn’t care who they killed old men, women, children - it didn’t matter. Delancey tried to save a woman and her two babies. The Federals killed them all. Hacked them to bits after they shot them. Lena pauses to mourn.

Dax takes another long drink.

DAX We finally escaped into the jungle, avoided the Federals for four days. (beat) I lost eighteen men, Lena. Never so many on one mission. LENA But you survived to fight another day, Dax. The Revolution needs you more than ever now. (off his look) No one told you? General Duvalier and Major Espinoza are dead. DAX Duvalier and Paulo? ... My God. He puts the bottle aside, sobering in more ways than one. LENA God? EXT. THE JUNGLE - DAY The sun beats down oppressively. Beneath the thick green canopy of foliage, the jungle floor is sweltering. We become aware movement. The thwack of of a MACHETE cutting a path. Men trudging along afterward. ANGLE ON the face of a TEENAGE SOLDIER. Sweating. Weary. Frightened. He’s cutting point for a SQUAD OF FEDERALS. They move through the bush, eyes narrow, fingers on triggers. Except for their LIEUTENANT, who is in his thirties, they’re all teenagers fresh from the cane fields. BUSH POV - THE SQUAD

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

37.

as it moves past us, mere inches away. Hidden in the bush, a camouflaged face comes into view. Oscar’s face. The last Federal passes. We wait. Then Oscar stands, steps out of hiding. From nowhere and everywhere, a dozen rebels appear along the path. EXT. REBEL CAMP - SUNSET Oscar and his patrol come in. He stops to talk to Dax, who is reading dispatches and eating coconut with his knife. DAX Report. Oscar sits and pulls a MAP from his shirt pocket, lays it on the table. OSCAR Six patrols in the last forty-eight hours. (pointing) Here, here and here. Light weapons. Best I could tell they were from different -Dax stops him with a look. They eye a YOUNG REBEL approaching the table. After he’s passed, Dax nods for Oscar to continue. It’s obvious from his expression that Oscar finds his brother’s behavior unsettling. OSCAR Best I could tell they were from different outfits. Which means -DAX Which means they’ve brought up reinforcements to canvass the jungle. OSCAR Looks to me like they’re fresh out of basic. Five of us could’ve taken out every one of those patrols without so much as a scratch. DAX That’s just what they want, for us to give away our position. We take out a few worthless recruits, they crush a revolution.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

38.

OSCAR All I’m saying is that we should do more than sit in the jungle with our thumbs up our assholes! Hell, Lena’s got more hair on her chest than most of those boys! Dax looks across the camp. Lena and Felipe sit side by side on a log, talking earnestly. DAX What do we know about the Professor? OSCAR Come on, Dax! How many times you going to -Dax stares at him.

Waits.

Oscar knows the look.

OSCAR Okay, for the hundredth time, he’s some booshie college boy who got a cattle prod up the ass for writing bad things about His Excellency. Just another paper tiger playing revolutionary is all he is. DAX He’s spending a lot of time with her. What do they talk about? OSCAR How the hell should I know?! Maybe you ought to put a spy under her bunk so you can find out. Dax’s eyes turn as hard as when he slit Decker’s throat. OSCAR Look, Dax, if you think he’s a turncoat, shoot him. If you think he’s screwing our girl, cut off his balls and then shoot him. Just stop asking me about him, okay? Oscar takes his map and leaves. Dax looks at Felipe and Lena. She laughs at something Felipe says. Dax cuts another slice of coconut, sticks it in his mouth, bites down hard.

39.

INT. INFIRMARY - DAY Wilf is laying on a cot, cigar butt plugged in the corner of his mouth. He looks like death. Lena comes in and smiles at him. Seeing her lifts his spirits. WILF Beaut! You’re always a vision. She pulls up a stool, sits next to him. LENA (a warm smile) And you’re always full of it. His laugh quickly turns to a painful cough.

She reacts.

LENA Here, let me get you some water. WILF What I got water can’t help. She lifts his head, gives him a drink from a canteen. LENA What are you talking about you old dog? You’ll be humping in the jungle in another week. Jorge patched you up better than I could. WILF Jorge ain’t a doctor. LENA So what’d that doc in the village say? WILF (beat) Lung cancer. Pretty far gone. LENA You dirty whore monger! You’re going to outlive all of us! But his eyes tell her she’s wrong. WILF Three years in Lobianca, three dodging bullets in this stinking jungle, then I get my head damn near blown off by a tank less than (MORE) (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

40.

WILF (CONT’D.) a kilometer from where I was born. Live through all that just to find out it’s my own god damn body going to do me in. (a wry smile) If life’s a bitch, she’s my ex taking her revenge from the grave. Lena touches his face gently, smiles sadly. INT. DAX’S COMMAND TENT - DAY Dax sits at his campaign table staring at a map and DISPATCHES. He hasn’t slept in days. Javier comes in. young radio man is visibly shaken. He hands Dax a NOTE. Dax reads it without emotion.

The

DAX Did Lagarde say how many? JAVIER All of them. DAX (misunderstanding) But how many in the shantytown? Javier’s eyes water and he struggles to get the words out. JAVIER All of them, sir. Dax dismisses him with a nod. After Javier’s gone, Dax refocuses on the map. He absentmindedly reaches into his shirt, rubs a ST. PETER MEDAL hanging on his neck. EXT. SHANTYTOWN - NIGHT Sounds of a RAGING FIRE. Then CLOSE ON Junot’s face, the flames reflected in his bloodshot eyes. A gunshot rings out. Then another and another. BLACKSHIRT LIEUTENANT (O.S.) Excellency, the men are ready to move out on your command. JUNOT Thank you, Lieutenant. Move out.

41.

The BLACKSHIRT LIEUTENANT salutes and goes about his business. When he clears the frame we see what Junot is looking at. The entire shantytown is engulfed in flames. All around, machete-hacked, bullet riddled BODIES litter the ground. Blood is everywhere. EXT. SECLUDED BEACH - NIGHT Lena and Felipe walk along the beach. Their growing affection is apparent by how close they walk together. FELIPE It wasn’t so much that Marx denied the existence of god as he questioned whether man should rely on such a being. LENA Then he wasn’t an atheist? FELIPE Not in the way that a Communist is an atheist. Marx wrote: "Religion is the sign of the oppressed creature, the feeling of a heartless world and the soul of soulless circumstances." He believed that religion would eventually wither away when social-economic conditions changed. LENA (beat) Felipe, do you believe in God? FELIPE I believe there’s more to the world than what we see. That there is a higher power than man. LENA Before the Colonialists came and forced their religion on us, my people believed that God’s spirit lived in all living things. They worshiped the sea, the forests, the mountains, the jungle and every animal in them. Felipe looks up and stops walking. Further up the beach, Dax is walking toward them. They wait until he reaches them.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

42.

DAX (to Lena) I need to talk to you. LENA Okay. DAX Alone. LENA I’ll see you later, Felipe. DAX (coldly) Maybe she’ll see you tomorrow. Felipe leaves them alone but not before mildly challenging Dax with his eyes. Next it’s Lena’s turn to stare him down. LENA Well? DAX We’re moving out at daybreak. LENA You came all the way out here to tell me that? DAX I came out here to make sure you were alright. LENA Why wouldn’t I be? DAX You’re spending too much time with him, Lena. LENA (huffy) What else am I supposed to do, Dax? You won’t let me go on patrols, the infirmary’s empty... DAX Blackshirts have infiltrated PLU units all over the island and it’s only getting worse. How much do we really know about him?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (3)

43.

LENA (almost laughs) Felipe’s no more of spy than I am! You saw him in that torture cell. You know what they did to him. DAX I know he’s been here for only a few weeks and all he’s done is fill your head with Bourgeoisie bullshit. LENA Is that why you don’t trust him, Dax? Because he’s got a brain? If you’d read any of his articles - if you read anything - you’d know it takes more than guns and blood and killing to win a Revolution. She’s struck a nerve and knows it. DAX Maybe I’m not some highbrow university snot, but I know it’ll take more than harsh words and empty promises to overthrow the Dictator. LENA Maybe you’re just jealous, Dax! (off his reaction) Finally someone in this camp can think for himself and doesn’t need you to tell him what’s right and what’s wrong. Dax’s jaw tightens.

Now he’s the volcano about to erupt.

DAX (through clinched teeth) I’ll shoot anyone who disobeys my orders. Your boyfriend included. She’s about to fire back but it’s too late. He’s already spun away and is headed back up the beach. As she watches him go, tears well in her eyes.

44. EXT. MOUNTAIN - DAY To establish rugged and densely forested terrain. EXT. MOUNTAIN CAMP - DAY Dax is briefing his men, among them Oscar, Jean-Claude, HEWES, Lena and Felipe. DAX After we take out the lead vehicle they’ll be sitting ducks. Oscar, Jean-Claude, your men will block any attempt by the Federals at the garrison from reinforcing the payroll convoy. JEAN-CLAUDE Got it, Boss. DAX The Federals transporting the payroll can’t open it - the keys are kept at the garrison. Once we get control of the truck, Hewes, you’ll put that explosives training to use. HEWES Yes, sir. I don’t care what kind of locks they got on it, I’ll blow them to hell. OSCAR Just make sure you don’t blow the money away with it. The rebels laugh. DAX Taking the Mountain Brigade’s payroll will give the PLU hard cash for weapons, ammo and medical supplies, and for recruiting Freedom Fighters from across the island and other countries where people sympathize with our cause. Since Legarde’s brigade was driven out of the district, the Federal’s believe we’re weakest in the mountains. This raid will prove we can still hit them anywhere. (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

45.

LENA What about me? Do I go on this mission or do you need someone to stay behind and water the dandelions again? The rebels react. "Here we go again." at Lena.

Dax levels his eyes

DAX You’re with my squad. You and Felipe. (off Lena’s and Felipe’s surprise) We move out at 0530. INT. DAX’S COMMAND TENT - MOMENTS LATER Dax comes into the tent. Lena’s right behind him. She hits the bitch switch before the flap on the tent closes. LENA What do you think you’re doing? Felipe’s never even fired a weapon! DAX There’s no room in this brigade for paper revolutionaries. He stays, he fights. LENA That’s what you want isn’t it? get him killed! They lock eyes. both know it.

To

This is more than their usual row and they

DAX What I’m trying to do is win a Revolution. I thought that’s what your boyfriend was trying to do too. LENA Dax, do you really believe killing a few hundred or even a few thousand Federals is enough to win the Revolution? DAX Are you questioning my authority?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

46.

LENA I’m not! (then, calmer) Dax, Felipe believes that even if we overthrow the regime, the Americans will never allow Marxists to take power on the island? No!

DAX (angry) Felipe! Felipe! What about Quintos and all the Freedom Fighters who gave their lives for our ideals? Does their sacrifice mean nothing to you now, after only a few weeks of brainwashing from this...schoolboy? LENA Nobody’s brainwashed me, Dax! But I...I...Well, I’ve been reading a lot lately and I think at least some of what Felipe says makes sense. Dax has heard enough. checking his gear.

He turns his back on her, begins

DAX We move out at 0530. I suggest you get the schoolboy ready. EXT. BEHIND LENA’S TENT - SUNSET SERIES OF SHOTS - WEAPONS TRAINING Felipe awkwardly holds a machine gun; Lena shows him how to load and fire the weapon without actually shooting it; after hours of trying, Felipe’s still uncomfortable; Felipe looks on, astounded, as Lena breaks down the weapon and reassembles it in seconds; Felipe fires the gun and is nearly knocked over by the kick. INT. WILF’S TENT - NIGHT Wilf sits on a cot chomping a cigar butt. He drains a tin cup of hard liquor. Dax walks over, refills it. DAX I don’t trust him as far as I can throw him.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

47.

WILF He seems harmless enough, Boss. Unless you’re a lovesick twenty-year-old girl. DAX She’s seventeen. And it’s not her I’m worried about. Wilf’s shrug says he thinks otherwise. WILF If you really think he’s a turncoat, why take him with us? He’s liable to get Beaut or somebody else killed in a firefight. Just shoot him here and be done with it. DAX (derisive laugh) Right. I’d never hear the end of it from her. No, I want to keep an eye on him. I need to know if he’s with us or not. Wilf takes another drink. He coughs painfully, clutches his chest. Dax looks at him, resists the urge to go to his friend’s aid. WILF (grimaces) Still feels like a hot piece of iron’s stuck in here. DAX I wish you were going with me on this one, old man. They exchange a look that only men who have endured great hardship together can share. WILF What? You mean nobody else is volunteering to take a tank round in the chest for you? Dax takes a drink.

It burns but he appreciates it.

DAX Seems like you’ve been taking rounds of one kind or another for me since Lobianca. I couldn’t have (MORE) (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (3)

48.

DAX (CONT’D.) survived that place without you, Wilf. WILF (a wry smile) That reminds me, Boss. I’ve been meaning to talk to you about a raise. DAX (laughs) Talk to me after we’ve hit the Mountain Brigade. EXT. MOUNTAIN ROAD - DAY A cloudless, azure sky. The sun burns hot on the mountainside. Rugged and dangerous, it’s almost a 1,000-foot drop down a sheer cliff to the sea. If we look closely we can see rebels concealed in the brush on either side of the road. IN THE BRUSH Felipe is sweating bullets, clutching his machine gun. Lena reaches over, touches him softly on the arm and offers a comforting smile. LENA Just stay down.

It’ll be okay.

She feels Dax’s eyes on her. She turns and they exchange a look. His face impassive, eyes battle hard. THE CONVOY A jeep, an armored personnel carrier (APC) with an autocannon on top, the payroll truck, and two troop trucks rumble up the incline. A TRIP WIRE Stretched across the road. ANGLE ON the front wheels of the jeep as it nears the trip wire, a second before... BAM! Charges EXPLODE, flipping the jeep over on its side. Dax gives the order and the rebels open fire. rebel shoots an RPG at the APC, scores a direct hit.

A

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

49.

The Federals are surprised but well-trained. About forty TROOPS pour out of the vehicles and take positions. Two 50-caliber machine guns - one on each troop truck - are uncovered and begin blanketing the rebels on both sides of the road. The autocannon atop the APC is burning but still functional. It turns and draws a bead on two rebels behind a boulder. WHAM! The rebels are hit, one blown to bits, the other mortally wounded. The FEDERAL CAPTAIN expertly directs the fire of his men. His SERGEANT is on the radio, calling up reinforcements. EXT. MOUNTAIN ROAD (FURTHER UP) - DAY Two trucks full of REINFORCEMENTS race down the road. On a cliff above the road, Jean-Claude takes aim with an RPG and hits the lead truck. KABOOM! On the road, Oscar and his men open up... EXT. MOUNTAIN ROAD - DAY Back at the main fight, the rebels have gained an advantage. More than half the Federals lie dead or dying. But the Federal captain continues to bravely lead his men in what is fast becoming a losing battle. Dax orders his men to move in. Lena starts to leave her position and draws fire from below. She dives behind a grouping of rocks, barely avoids a withering barrage. Dax and FERDINAND lay cover fire as Lena dashes to the burning, overturned jeep. Behind it, she turns and lays cover fire for Dax and Ferdinand. Bullets ricochet off the jeep and trail Dax and Ferdinand as they dart across the road. Dax barely makes it but Ferdinand is hit in the thigh, falling in the open road. FELIPE terrified, sees Ferdinand writhing in agony. Bullets kick up gravel around the wounded rebel. A FEDERAL takes aim. Shoots. Misses. Takes aim again... LENA (O.S.) (shouting) Fire, Felipe! Fire!

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

50.

Felipe tears his eyes off Ferdinand, sees Lena pointing toward the main column of Federals. She wants him to shoot the Federal drawing a bead on Ferdinand. Too late. Ferdinand is hit in the neck. Blood spurts like a geyser. FERDINAND (gurgling blood) AHHHHHH! God! Help me!

Oh God!

Felipe fumbles with his gun. Bullets light up the bush around him and he dives for cover. DAX Son of a bitch! (to Lena) Cover me! Lena lets the column have it. Felipe looks up, sees Lena kicking ass like Lara Croft, and is inspired. He steels himself, opens fire on the enemy. Dax sprints to Ferdinand. DAX I’ve got you, Ferdinand! FERDINAND (gurgling blood) I don’t want to die, Captain! God, I don’t want to die!

Oh,

The Federal who shot Ferdinand has Dax in his sights. He’s about to fire when WHAM! He’s blown away by a machine gun blast from Lena. Felipe dashes out to help Dax with Ferdinand. Together they drag him behind the jeep. DAX (to Felipe) Stay with him! Put pressure here! (to Lena) Let’s go! Felipe and Lena exchange a glance and then she’s gone. DAX AND LENA join the final assault on the column. Shoulder-to-shoulder, they’re a fierce fighting team. It’s brutal, close combat point blank, hand-to-hand, guns, rifle butts, knives. At one point Dax runs out of ammo; before he can shout for more, Lena tosses him a fallen comrade’s machine gun. Watching from behind the overturned jeep, Ferdinand is mesmerized by Lena’s bravery. (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (3)

51.

Finally outmatched, the Federal troops start to flee or surrender. FEDERAL CAPTAIN Stand your ground! Stand your gr--! A bullet pierces the Federal captain’s temple, mercifully killing him instantly. BEHIND OVERTURNED JEEP Felipe is pressing Ferdinand’s neck, trying to control the bleeding. Ferdinand’s eyes shift as he focuses over Felipe’s shoulder. Felipe whips his head around and is confronted by the BARREL of a FEDERAL SOLDIER’S rifle. Felipe gasps, closes his eyes... The Federal’s head is thrown back by the force of a knife SLAMMING into his left eye. He fires his rifle harmlessly into the air as he falls backward. He’s dead before he hits the ground. Surprised to hear the shot but feel nothing, Felipe opens his eyes. Looks around just as Dax walks up, takes his knife out of the Federal’s head and wipes it on the dead man’s tunic. EXT. WOODED AREA - SUNSET CLOSE ON Ferdinand’s blood-smeared face. weak. Near death.

He’s pale,

FERDINAND (barely audible) Captain...Captain... WIDEN to reveal Dax, Felipe and Lena kneeling next to Ferdinand. Lena’s changing the bandages on his neck. DAX I’m here, Ferdinand. Dax holds his hand tightly, looks into his eyes, tries to steady him for his last mission. FERDINAND I’m...I’m s-s-sorry, Cap... DAX You relax, now, okay? Our girl’s going to take good care of you.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

52.

LENA (a practiced smile) That’s right, Ferdinand. You’ll be humping the jungle in a week. I promise. Felipe looks on knowing it’s not true. Ferdinand attempts a brave smile then dies. Lena closes his eyes as she fights back the tears welling up in her own. O.S. we hear ANGRY VOICES. EXT. BIVOUAC - MOMENTS LATER Oscar and Jean-Claude are arguing bitterly. Other rebels stand around, nervous, not knowing what to do. Once they Capitale, whole god will just

OSCAR hear about this in Le they’ll carpet bomb the damn mountain! Prisoners slow us down!

JEAN-CLAUDE I’m not going to have any part of killing unarmed men! OSCAR Have you already forgotten what they did in the shantytown! None of those people was armed! JEAN-CLAUDE That wasn’t these men, Oscar! FIVE PRISONERS stand bound together near a tree, listening as their captors argue their fate. The young REBEL GUARD next to them listens too. Dax pushes through the rebels.

He’s in no mood for shit.

DAX What the hell is going on here?? JEAN-CLAUDE Oscar wants to shoot the prisoners, Captain. Dax looks at this brother with fierce eyes. OSCAR They’ve already killed four of our men today --

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

Five.

53.

LENA Ferdinand’s dead.

JEAN-CLAUDE Captain, I won’t kill unarmed men. I won’t do it. ANGLE ON a YOUNG PRISONER who works to free himself. young rebel guard doesn’t notice.

The

OSCAR (O.S.) For fuck’s sake, Jean-Claude, are you a Revolutionary or a schoolboy like Felipe over there?! They’ll just slow -DAX (O.S.) Both of you, shut the hell up! The young prisoner breaks free, grabs the young rebel guard’s gun. The prisoner OPENS FIRE. Rebels dive for cover. Felipe, still standing, levels his machine gun and mows down the young prisoner and two others before Dax cracks him over the head with his .45. As the rebels stand up and look around, we see two of them are still on the ground. Jean-Claude, a bullet between his lifeless eyes, and Oscar, writhing in pain, spitting up blood, his chest soaked with blood. Dax rushes to him, takes him in his arms. on Dax’s face.

There’s anguish

DAX Hang in there Oscar! Don’t give up! Don’t! ... Lena! Lena!! She’s there already, on there’s nothing she can brother, tries to speak arms. Dax looks to the God.

her knees next to them. Knows do. Oscar looks up at his older but can’t. He dies in Dax’s sky, as if making a silent plea to

EXT. WOODED AREA - NIGHT The TWO SURVIVING PRISONERS stand sweating and nervous in front of seven fresh graves, shovels in hand. Two of the graves are open, awaiting their permanent guests.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

54.

FELIPE (whispers urgently) He can’t do this, Lena! LENA (whispers) Quiet, Felipe! Dax stands in front of the prisoners, his eyes like granite. He holds the .45 at his side. When he speaks, his voice is almost comforting. DAX (to one of the prisoners) Do you believe in God? PRISONER #1 Yes...I do. DAX (to the other) And you? PRISONER #2 Yes, sir. Beat. DAX My brother didn’t believe in God. Even before the Revolution, he believed what you get in life, you get. If life gives you money and a beautiful wife, don’t thank God, just count yourself lucky. If life gives you a cattle prod up the ass for trying to provide for your family, well that’s just what you get. Don’t expect any miracles to change it. Life’s a dream or life’s a bitch. God’s got nothing to do with it. Lena, Felipe and the other rebels look on in mute anxiety. DAX (to both prisoners) So you think God’s up there looking down on you now? Waiting to welcome you with choirs and trumpets and angels singing? Well, do you?! No answer. Just sniffles from the first prisoner. rolls down the other prisoner’s face.

A tear

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (3)

55.

FELIPE Captain! -Lena elbows Felipe hard in the ribs, doubling him over. steps close to the prisoners, looks at them hard.

Dax

DAX Go home to your families. And thank your God for another one of his miracles. Dax turns and walks away, past his men and into the woods. DISSOLVE TO: EXT. REBEL CAMP - SUNSET MUSIC PLAYS on a PORTABLE RECORD PLAYER, liquor flows freely and PIGS spin on fiery pits as the rebels celebrate their heist of the Mountain Brigade’s payroll. EXT. WOODED AREA - SUNSET In earshot of the revelry, Dax stands alone, gazing at a magnificent blood orange sun as it slowly descends behind a mountainous horizon. He holds Oscar’s BLACK BERET. Lena comes up silently from behind. Without a word, she stands next to him, rests her head on his shoulder and puts her hand on his. They both hold a piece of Oscar’s beret. Watch the sun until it slips away. INT. GASPAR’S OFFICE - DAY A NEWSPAPER smacks on a desk. The banner reads: "FREEDOM FIGHTERS CONQUER MOUNTAIN BRIGADE." GASPAR This is unacceptable! JUNOT If I may, might I remind Your Excellency that this is merely a propagandist rag published by rebel sympathizers. Gaspar bores holes in Junot with his eyes. The Major stands at attention in front of the Colonel’s desk.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

56.

GASPAR A propagandist rag that has reached the eyes of His Excellency the President! This is your responsibility, Major. Yours and yours alone! JUNOT Yes, Excellency.

I understand.

GASPAR Only weeks ago you told us the rebels were all but crushed. Now they’ve made off with the payroll of an entire brigade! And they’ve embarrassed one of our finest fighting units on their own ground! It’s an insult to our military, it’s an insult to me and the Special Police and, most importantly, Major, it’s an insult to His Excellency! JUNOT Yes, Excellency. My men will work around the clock to bring those responsible to heel. Gaspar leans forward on the desk.

His knuckles turn white.

GASPAR You will bring me the head of this Dax Grimaldi before the American Ambassador arrives or I will have yours. Is that clear, Major? JUNOT Crystal, Excellency. EXT. AROUND THE ISLAND - DAY/NIGHT BEGIN MONTAGE Deep in the jungle, Dax buys weapons from a SHADY RUSSIAN; at a secret rendezvous in a friendly village, Lena, Wilf, Javier and Felipe buy medical supplies from a BEARDED MAN; Federal troops fan out through villages terrorizing the people, interrogating elders, beating men, women and children in their homes and in the streets, as Junot looks on with hard eyes;

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

57.

Rebels ambush Federals in the jungle and in the woods; Felipe continues his weapons training while Lena reads propagandist PAMPHLETS nearby; Wilf downs pain PILLS by the handful; Dax sits alone in his tent planning missions, rubbing his St. Peter medal. END MONTAGE EXT. THE JUNGLE - DAY Lena is showing Felipe how to use his new machine gun. LENA This is a Kalashnikov SK-57. It fires four hundred rounds a minute and has an effective range of five hundred meters. It has a lot more kick than the AK-27s we’ve been using and is better than the M1’s the Federals carry. Felipe takes the gun and with the ease of a veteran guerrilla fighter, cocks it, aims and fires into the jungle. FELIPE (smiling) You’re right. It has a lot more kick. But I like it. LENA Are you showing off to impress me? FELIPE Why yes, Professor, I am. She blushes. He knows how to bring the pretty girl out of her tough rebel shell. LENA That’s enough for today. We should get back to camp. Dax will shit a brick if he finds out I’m outside the perimeter after sundown. As she turns, she smiles provocatively at him. totally smitten.

He follows,

58.

EXT. THE JUNGLE - LATER Lena and Felipe walk through the jungle, casual but alert. LENA They were best friends before the Revolution. FELIPE But I thought you joined this unit only three years ago. LENA We did. But I’ve known Dax since I was ten years old. After my brother was kicked out of school, he went to work with Dax on his father’s fishing boat. The boat sank in a storm and Dax’s dad drowned. Dax and Quintos rode out the storm on a cay. They were stranded for five days. When they came back they were closer than brothers. FELIPE So you’re like his little sister? LENA (beat) I suppose. Something like that. FELIPE How’d your brother end up in Lobianca? LENA After the Blackshirts arrested my mother and father, Quintos left the unit to rescue them. He knew it was impossible, so he left me here and made Dax swear to look after me. That was over a year ago. Beat. FELIPE I’m not afraid of him, you know. LENA (a reassuring smile) I never thought you were.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

59.

FELIPE I know he doesn’t trust me. LENA That’s just Dax being Dax. He doesn’t trust anybody. FELIPE He’s jealous because you and I have become...close. LENA (laughs) Jealous! Dax? Overprotective, maybe. But jealous? No. FELIPE I know jealousy when I see it, Lena, and I see it in his eyes every time he looks at me. LENA Uh, that would be hatred. (off his reaction) He thinks you’re an infiltrator. FELIPE What! That’s ridiculous! If he thinks I’m a traitor why doesn’t he just shoot me? LENA Because he’s afraid that if he’s wrong I’ll never forgive him. FELIPE (beat) You do think he’s wrong, don’t you? LENA (a coquettish smile) Just don’t give him a reason to shoot you...I hate it when he’s right. EXT. THE JUNGLE - MINUTES LATER Lena stops suddenly, raises a hand for quiet. Felipe flicks the safety off his Kalashnikov. Lena signals "Take cover!" and they separate, hide in the bush. Wait.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

60.

Like shadows, slow and cautious, a Federal AMBUSH PATROL moves in. Their SQUAD LEADER raises his fist. "Stop!" He looks around. Satisfied, he turns to his SERGEANT. SQUAD LEADER (pointing) Sergeant, set a perimeter from there to there, fifteen-meter intervals. Listening posts thirty-meters out. We’ll lay here for the night. Surprise the rebels before morning. As the sergeant carries out his orders, Lena’s eyes dart back and forth, sizing up their chances of escape. Zero. She peers through the heavy foliage at Felipe. He’s tense, but holding it together. They’re stuck in the midst of an enemy ambush. Worst of all, they have no way to warn Dax and their comrades. EXT. DAX’S COMMAND TENT - SUNSET Dax stands outside the tent, glances at his watch. His face tightens. A ROLLING RUMBLE in the distance. Thunder. He looks up at rain clouds. Curses under his breath. INT. TORTURE CHAMBER - NIGHT Junot sits at a table, his olive drab fatigues neatly pressed. He takes a long drag on a cigarette. HEAVY RAIN pelts the tin roof. GASTINEAU (O.S.) (in agony) AAAAGGGHHHH! I swear...I know nothing! DR. GASTINEAU - the bearded man from the friendly village in our earlier montage - sits naked and bound. He’s in a rattan chair, the bottom cut out like a toilet, his ass and balls hanging through the opening. A BURLY MAN stands next to him, dangles a thick ROPE with a large knot at the end. JUNOT Please, Doctor, must we continue this pretense? Those loyal to His Excellency have seen you deliver medical supplies to terrorists.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

61.

GASTINEAU I give medicine to peasants, farmers...never...terrorists. I’m...loyal...to His Excellency. Junot glances at the burly man. He swings the rope, slams the knot into Gastineau’s balls. Gastineau cries out. JUNOT Doctor, I consider myself a merciful man. I would like very much to show you mercy. But how can I do that if you refuse to cooperate. Are you not familiar with the concept of quid pro quo? You give us something of value, we give you something in return. I would like to spare you more pain and suffering. For this "value" all I ask is information that I know you possess. Junot opens a folder, pulls out a PHOTO of Dr. Gastineau meeting with Lena, Wilf, Javier and Felipe. He hands the photo to the burly man, who puts it in Gastineau’s face. JUNOT You see, Doctor, we know that you’ve lied to us. I, for one, have no desire to continue this unpleasantness. But I can assure you my colleague here does not share my compassion. He will gladly continue - reviving you if he must - until you tell me everything I want to know about your comrades in the photo. Gastineau breaks down completely, realizing resistance is futile. Junot snubs out his cigarette, blows a stream of smoke. EXT. BARRACKS - LATER Junot steps onto the porch of the barracks. Lights a cigarette. Thoughtfully watches the rain pour down. TWO BLACKSHIRT TROOPERS come out behind him, dragging Dr. Gastineau’s limp body between them. They take the doctor out into the rain, throw him onto the ground. One of them unholsters his pistol and shoots Dr. Gastineau in the head. Junot exhales a stream of cigarette smoke.

62.

EXT. THE AMBUSH - NIGHT RAIN falls in torrents. The Federal ambush patrol is dug in. Waiting. Suddenly the rain stops. Eerie silence. Within moments the ominous SOUNDS of the night jungle return. Hoots, howls, insect noises. Out of the darkness comes the faint but distinct sound of METAL-ON-METAL. A weapon. The Federals tense, the squad leader licks his lips. Lena peers through the darkness, finds Felipe’s wide eyes. She puts a finger to her mouth, "Shh!" Felipe has a more immediate concern: a HUMONGOUS COCKROACH crawling on his face. EXT. THE REBEL PATROL - NIGHT Javier has just finished cocking his new Kalashnikov and realizes his mistake. The rebels freeze, become statues, moving only their eyes to scan. We wait. Dax struggles to hear. The DISTINCT INSECT SOUND is faint. We’ve heard it before. EXT. THE AMBUSH - NIGHT Lena makes the sound again. Only a few yards away, the Federal squad leader lifts his head, senses something is not right. He hears the sound again, only this time from a different direction. Lena hears it too. EXT. THE REBEL PATROL - NIGHT Dax makes the sound - the same sound he made before rescuing Lena from the torture chamber. He signals to the rebels. "Fall back." They melt into the jungle. INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT On Gaspar’s face. ecstasy.

Eyes half closed, lip quivering in

GASPAR Yes...that’s it. That’s it... Gaspar is standing, his unseen lover’s head bobbing beneath him. Gaspar climaxes. Manuel, Mrs. Miraposa’s husband, looks up at him.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

63.

MANUEL You like that, don’t you? Gaspar looks down at him.

Spent.

GASPAR (a satisfied smile) You just get better and better at it. A telephone RINGS. INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT Gaspar walks naked into the room, picks up the TELEPHONE. At this hour it had better be important. GASPAR (sharply) Who is it?? HIS EXCELLENCY (V.O.) Colonel DeVille? Gaspar snaps to attention. GASPAR Your Excellency! HIS EXCELLENCY (V.O.) Colonel, General Picard has informed me that the American Ambassador is to arrive in Le Capitale in two days. Were you aware of this change in plans? A dilemma! For the head of the secret police not to know is failure. To know and not to have informed His Excellency is failure. In His Excellency’s regime, failure is death. GASPAR (covering) It had not yet been confirmed through our most reliable informants, Excellency! HIS EXCELLENCY (V.O.) But there is still rebel activity in the Central District, is there not?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

64.

GASPAR Minimal, Excellency. We have everything under control. HIS EXCELLENCY (V.O.) I’m counting on that, Colonel. There can be no incidents during the American’s visit. Is that clear? GASPAR Yes, Excellency. CLICK.

Quite clear.

His Excellency the President has hung up.

Manuel watches from the bedroom door. Gaspar’s face.

He reads the worry on

MANUEL That was His Excellency the President? GASPAR (snaps) Get dressed and get out you degenerate cow! EXT. THE JUNGLE - DAY ANGLE ON a pair of worn, filthy BOOTS walking. WIDER ANGLE to show a second pair of boots. DISCOVER Felipe and Lena moving cautiously, fatigues filthy from a night spent in the muck. Kalashnikovs at the ready. A MYSTERIOUS SOUND. Lena stops, strains to hear. Then her beautiful smile as she sees... Dax step out of the bush, followed by the rebel patrol. Without hesitation, she runs to Dax, throws her arms around his neck. Felipe is surprised by her show of affection; Dax is utterly at a loss. DAX I guess that’ll teach you not to disobey my orders. The rebels break out laughing, as much at Dax’s lame attempt to cover his emotions as at their relief to see their girl alive. Lena playfully punches one of them in the stomach. Wilf musses her hair and the others welcome her back with similar gestures of affection.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

65.

Dax and Felipe exchange a look - Dax’s nod of appreciation is barely noticeable but Felipe catches it and returns one of his own. DAX All right let’s move out...Before Lena’s new boyfriends come looking for her. She smiles and shoves him playfully. into the jungle.

The rebels disappear

EXT. REBEL CAMP - DAY Rebels play a rousing game of soccer on a crude field. A few hours of relief from the pressures of war. During the match we see their camaraderie and strong affection for one another. And their intense competitiveness. Felipe dribbles the ball, dodging defenders easily. It’s obvious he’s an exceptional player. Dax SLAMS into him full force, knocks him down, steals the ball. Felipe looks up as if expecting a called foul. On the sideline Wilf grins, spits through his teeth. WILF (shouting) No rules in the jungle, Professor! In goal, Lena prepares to defend the shot from Dax. He charges and takes the shot. The ball ricochets off her hands into the makeshift net. His smile is cruel. Meant to convey more than the joy of scoring a goal. Never one to back down, Lena smiles and gives him the "Up yours" sign with her fist. As he walks to midfield, Dax regards Felipe, who is making sure his jaw isn’t broken. DAX They didn’t teach you at university that the shortest way between two points is a straight line? FELIPE Must have been out sick that day. All your time at sea and you never learned that sometimes you have to go where the wind takes you? Dax’s eyes narrow.

From goal, Lena smiles at both of them.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

66.

LENA C’mon, girls! Stop flirting and let’s play! EXT. VILLAGE - DAY Dax, Wilf, Javier and Lena arrive in the village and are met by the village ELDER. Other peasants hang back, watching nervously from a distance. ELDER Captain, we heard that you and your men had moved south? DAX Change in plans. (signals to Javier and Lena) But we happened to come across something we thought you could use. Javier and Lena pull handfuls of CHOCOLATE BARS from their rucksacks. CHILDREN swarm in on them, grabbing the candy faster than they can dole it out. Lena and Javier are even more delighted than the kids. Dax motions for the Elder to follow him and Wilf. ELDER Captain, it is not safe for you here. Not for you and not for us. DAX We got word that Blackshirts came through the area. I’m sorry about that. ELDER I have heard about the terrible things they’ve done around the island...looking for you and your men. I’m afraid it’s worse than it’s ever been. Captain, it pains me to say this, but we can no longer be of assistance to the Revolution. Dax looks him in the eyes, can almost feel the old man’s strength and compassion. DAX I understand. We won’t be back again. But my friend here needs to see the doctor. He’s out of his (MORE) (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

67.

DAX (CONT’D.) meds and his condition has gotten worse. Of course, we have money to pay... The Elder shifts his eyes to Wilf, then downward. DAX What is it? Where’s the doc? ELDER Blackshirts came, took him away...We heard that they tortured him for days before...before it ended. Wilf and Dax exchange a somber look. Javier and Lena come to them still happy about the work they’ve done. JAVIER (smiling) Captain, I hope the doc can do dentistry too. He’s gonna have plenty of rotting teeth to tend to before long. WILF That ain’t the only thing’s going to be rotting before long. Wilf walks away.

Lena looks after him.

LENA (to Dax; concerned) What is it? What’s wrong? JAVIER Did I say something wrong, Captain? EXT. REBEL CAMP - SUNSET Rebels are drinking beer and liquor and tearing thick chunks of meat from the bone. A celebration is in full swing. ANGLE ON A BIRTHDAY CAKE with 18 BURNING CANDLES. Wilf carefully carries it to a long table of rowdy rebels. Lena, flanked by Dax and Felipe, is the center of attention, but she’s surprised when Wilf puts the cake in front of her.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

68.

WILF (smiles proudly) Happy birthday, Beaut! I baked it myself.

Oh!

LENA (gushing like a little girl) Oh, my! Is this for me??

WILF (ref. Dax) Well it sure as hell ain’t for the moke sitting next to you! I had one helluva time finding eighteen candles though. LENA (suddenly offended) I’m twenty! Dax rolls his eyes. WILF (chuckling) We got a couple sticks of TNT. I can put those on if you want. JAVIER (shouts) Noooo! She’s hot-headed enough! Laughter all around.

Lena looks at the candles, mesmerized.

JORGE Make a wish, Lena! You’re supposed to make a wish then blow out the candles! She looks at Wilf. Felipe. Dax. At the smiling FACES of her comrades all around the table. Her family. She closes her eyes and BLOWS hard. INT. LENA’S TENT - NIGHT Lena’s curled up on her cot, stroking her black cat. Her birthday party is long over, but we can hear a group of rebels carousing outside. Suddenly they stop. REBEL VOICE (O.S.) Evening, Captain.

69.

She gets up, peeks through the slat, sees Dax walking past the men toward the jungle. She puts the cat down, grabs her Kalashnikov and leaves her tent to follow him. EXT. OUTSIDE REBEL CAMP - NIGHT ANGLE ON the night sky. Filled with twinkling stars. Dax stands alone, looking up at the heavens. A sound O.S. He reacts, turns and grabs his machine gun from against a tree. LENA You wouldn’t shoot me on my birthday would you? He relaxes, sets the gun aside. DAX What are you doing out here? You know my orders. You’re to stay inside the perimeter after dark. LENA I came looking for you. And I could ask you the same thing? She goes to him, puts her gun down. sky.

Looks up at the night

LENA I’ve been watching you for a while now, Dax. What’s so interesting up there? He looks up again.

Beat.

DAX My father would always pray before he went to sea. I used to believe the harder he prayed - the more he believed - the better our catch would be. So I’d pray too. I knew his prayers were stronger than mine because he believed more strongly than me. But I figured it couldn’t hurt to add mine too. We always needed the money. Never had enough, you know? She looks at him, understands.

Then back at the stars.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

70.

DAX When he died I knew it was all just a load of crap. I mean, how could someone so sure in his belief in the Almighty be taken that way? I didn’t know it at the time, but I became a Revolutionary when my father died in that storm. That’s when I knew men like him would never have the rewards of their labor. If God didn’t give a damn about them, the rich plantation owners and casino bosses sure as hell didn’t. I knew that God was worthless to poor people like us. LENA (beat) I think people, poor people, need God more than anyone else. He’s all they have in this world. Him and the people who love them. He looks down at her, gazes into her eyes as if trying to see into her soul. She meets his gaze with her own. Neither of them notices the shooting star darting across the sky. DAX You still believe in God? Beat. LENA I believe whatever you want me to believe, Dax. It’s been a long time coming. She moves close, so close that her intent is unmistakable. She touches his face tenderly, brushes her fingers across his mouth. As if by instinct, he kisses them, pulls her to his body and they kiss, tentatively at first, then with a passion that can only come from years of pent up desire. CAMERA PANS up to the night sky and we hear Dax and Lena begin to make love under the stars.

71.

INT. DAX’S COMMAND TENT - NIGHT ANGLE ON Lena’s hand as it caresses Dax’s chest. at his St. Peter medal. She fondles it.

It stops

LENA (O.S.) I used to watch you from the pier when you and your father and Quintos went out to sea. A few times, I cut school to see you before you’d go. DAX (O.S.) I thought you were sweet on that Romero kid. He used to follow you home from school and spend all of his time hanging around your house. When she rolls on top of him we see that they’re naked in his cot. The SCARS from her torture are visible on her back. LENA God, that seems so long ago. I hated Romero. He smelled of old shoes and he never left me alone. I can’t believe you actually noticed him? DAX I noticed a lot of things. LENA (smiles) But you didn’t notice that I’ve loved you since I was ten years old? She rests her chin on his chest, stares into the darkness of the tent. LENA Dax, I’ve known since the day we met that you were the one, that I could only give myself to you. Even though you always treated me like a child, I knew it was you and only you. Beat.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

72.

DAX You were always so young. Quintos’ little sister. But I did notice you, Lena. It wasn’t until I was in Lobianca that I allowed myself to admit just how much you meant to me. (she looks up at him) In that hell hole, whenever I felt there was nothing left to live for, I thought of you. I’d picture you with your pigtails in that blue dress you always wore, in the yard of your house chasing the chickens or pulling water from the well. Or the time you inked Quintos’ coffee and turned his teeth black for days. Or how beautiful you were when you laughed. Those thoughts of you as a child, and wanting to see you as a woman, that’s what kept me alive, Lena. They kiss softly. She presses her face to his chest, holds him tightly, as if a child overflowing with happiness. LENA Oh, Dax, I love you so much! I’m going to give you so many children! Seven boys and seven girls! When they’re old enough, the boys will go out to sea with you on your boat. I’ll teach the girls to make gumbo just the way you like it. And at night, when you and the boys come in from the sea, we’ll sit around on the porch and talk about the Revolution, about their uncle Quintos and their uncle Oscar and all the Freedom Fighters -When she looks up the sadness in his eyes abruptly ends the fantasy. For the first time she realizes - he doesn’t expect to live through the Revolution. INT. DAX’S COMMAND TENT - DAWN Lena and Dax are sound asleep in each others arms. startled awake when Wilf walks in.

They’re

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

73.

WILF (a knowing smile) Well, it’s about time. You two fight like an old married couple; may as well get some of the benefits. (Lena blushes) At least you had the decency to wait until she turned eighteen. LENA (suddenly hot) How many times do I have to tell you people, I’m twenty! Wilf’s laugh starts in his gut, makes its way up through his throat and spills out as a painful, hacking cough. Lena covers herself with the blanket, ready to go to him. LENA Wilf! He raises his hand, "I’m okay." WILF (to Dax) Word in from Legarde, Boss. wants to rendezvous.

He

DAX When? 0930.

WILF Point Charlie.

DAX Alright. Six-man detail, ready to move out in ten. (then) You up to it, Wilf? WILF (a wry smile) See you at the tree line in ten, Boss. After he’s gone, Dax quickly dresses, begins gathering his gear. Lena gets out of bed, embraces him. Everything’s changed and nothing’s changed. They kiss deeply.

74.

INT. CELLAR - NIGHT A naked LIGHT BULB switches on and swings from the ceiling. At first all we see are shadows bobbing and weaving with the sway of the bulb. Then: GASPAR (pointedly) No one knows you’re here? JUNOT Absolutely no one, Excellency. Your wife?

GASPAR Your mistress?

JUNOT No, Excellency. You said to tell no one. (then) I have no mistress. Gaspar’s eyes narrow. some on the side?

Can he trust a man who isn’t getting

GASPAR The situation is far worse than I expected. JUNOT Excellency? Gaspar is pale, weary.

Not at all his usual suave self.

GASPAR I’ll be plain, Major. General Picard plans a coup d’etat. The Army?

JUNOT You’re sure about this?

Gaspar’s expression tells us he is. GASPAR Picard believes the Mountain Brigade ambush has caused the Americans to lose all confidence in His Excellency and that they will insist on stronger leadership to quell the rebels. The General believes now is his opportunity to take power.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

75.

JUNOT We have to stop him, Excellency. GASPAR Of course, Major. And we will. Unfortunately, Picard knows his plot is doomed to fail if we stand by His Excellency. So he’s already begun attempts to undermine us. JUNOT (a chilling thought) Us? GASPAR Yes, you and me, Major. Picard kept the fact that the American Ambassador moved up his visit a secret from us. Which can only mean that he’s trying to weaken our position with His Excellency. It also means he’s talking directly with the Americans. JUNOT You think the General’s made some sort of an arrangement with them? GASPAR (nodding "yes") If His Excellency has one weakness - and I would say it is his only weakness - it is his over reliance on the Americans. JUNOT And trusting General Picard. You have a plan of action, Excellency? INT. SEDAN - MOVING - NIGHT Junot drives through the streets of Le Capitale. As he cruises slowly, he’s aware of the SOLDIERS who casually patrol the sidewalks in pairs, machine guns slung over their shoulders. They’re hard, lean men with COBRA INSIGNIA on their berets and their shoulders. The Army’s most elite. Junot curses to himself. Why didn’t he notice sooner that they’d taken over from regular troops?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

76.

He stops the car at an intersection behind another sedan. Watches through the windshield as a soldier checks the papers of the driver ahead of him. A second soldier stands on the passenger side, looking inside the car. He sees something. SOLDIER #2 (leveling his weapon) Out! Out of the c--! KABOOM! The car explodes. The impact of the blast spiderwebs Junot’s windshield. He raises his hands to shield his face. INT. JUNOT’S APARTMENT - NIGHT Junot comes in, crosses the dark apartment to... INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT Pippa is sound asleep. Junot sits on the side of the bed, wakes her with an urgent nudge. PIPPA (sleepily) Junot, darling. (suddenly awake, alarmed) What is it? Is something -Yes.

JUNOT Something is very wrong.

INT. DAX’S COMMAND TENT - DAY Dax is with several of his most trusted rebels, among them Wilf, Castor, Hewes, Javier and Lena. DAX Legarde says the American Ambassador is coming to make final arrangements before the Americans ship new weapons. They’re going to resupply every garrison on the island. They’re even going to send Hueys. CASTOR Dammit! With those they’ll be able to counter our ambushes, cut off our escape routes.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

77.

WILF (spits) Sounds like old Uncle Sam wants His Excellency to clean up his mess once and for all. HEWES What are we going to do, Captain? DAX We’ve already begun. Sympathizers of the Revolution are sabotaging Loyalist targets in and around Le Capitale. The Imperial Hotel was bombed last night. CASTOR It’s about time!

And the casinos?

DAX (nodding "yes") Government buildings, homes of select government officials -LENA (angered) You mean terrorism? But, Dax, we’re Revolutionaries not terrorists! His icy glare silences her. DAX We have our orders. While Legarde’s September brigade diverts the garrison to the West of the city, we’ll move into position outside of the airfield and "detain" the Ambassador after he arrives. At the same time, the unions will declare a general strike and insist on direct talks with the U.S. government. The idea is to show the Americans that His Excellency the Dictator is so weak and unpopular that his regime is not worth saving. The rebels react to the audacity of the plan. WILF (deadpan) Great. Just what I was hoping for, another party in Le Capitale. (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (3)

78.

CASTOR So what do we do with the American once we get him? Castor smiles, drags a finger across his throat. DAX We’ll deliver him - unharmed - to Lagarde and the union leaders for a parlay. Castor smirks his disapproval.

Dax smiles wryly in reply.

JAVIER When’s the assault, Captain? DAX One of our informants will give us details of the Ambassador’s arrival and his security detail. Until then, nobody in or out of camp without me knowing about it. Understood? EXT. WOODED AREA - DAY The deepest part of these woods. Dark. Quiet. REVEAL Dax, Lena, Felipe and Wilf as they walk cautiously to a rendezvous point. On hearing a sound, Dax signals Wilf and Lena to cover his flanks. They disappear into the woods. Dax and Felipe keep moving, Kalashnikovs at the ready. We see that Felipe is much more comfortable with his weapon now. They stop. Dax levels his gun. Out of the darkness walks Yves, the waiter from the plantation house dinner party. YVES Captain. DAX (lowers his gun) You’re alone? YVES Yes, Captain. I was not followed. Yves gives Felipe a suspicious look. unnoticed.

It doesn’t go

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

79.

DAX Don’t worry about him. Dax pulls out two cigarettes, one for himself, the other for Yves. Lights them both. Yves’ eyes light up at the rare treat. DAX All’s well with your family? YVES Yes, Captain. (a satisfying drag on the cigarette) I was sorry to hear about your brother. He was a brave Freedom Fighter. DAX (a slight nod of appreciation) What do you know? YVES The American’s plane is to arrive at 7:30 tomorrow night. The airfield will be closely guarded the whole time he is there. SNIPER SCOPE POV - DAX, FELIPE, YVES through the foliage as Dax talks with Yves. LENA quietly patrolling, thinks she sees something in the brush. DAX, YVES, FELIPE DAX How many Federals? Yves takes a deep drag off the cigarette. nervously. It doesn’t go unnoticed.

His eyes flit

YVES The Blackshirts are trying to keep it a secret that the American is coming. They don’t want to draw any attention to the airfield, so not more than fifty troops.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (3)

80.

DAX (a drag on cigarette) Which unit? SNIPER SCOPE POV - DAX between the cross hairs. DAX, YVES, FELIPE YVES Paramilitary. Fifth brigade. Dax flicks his cigarette on the ground, crushes it with the toe of his boot. He takes the PACK OF CIGARETTES from his shirt pocket, tosses it to Yves. DAX Federal captain gave up smoking after he took a bullet to the head. YVES Thank you, Captain. These will fetch a good price on the black market. LENA moves in silently behind the SNIPER, clenching her COMMANDO KNIFE in her right hand. She steps on a BRANCH. The sniper turns. Lena STRIKES, plunging her knife deep into his neck. DAX, YVES, FELIPE Yves turns to walk into the darkness. DAX Didn’t you live in the shantytown? Yves turns, faces him. He’s clearly saddened by the memory of what happened there. YVES Yes...Yes, Captain, I did. DAX We heard the Blackshirts came in the middle of the night, massacred everyone before most even knew they were there. (beat) How’d you make it out?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (4)

81.

YVES (beat) I...Captain, I was... Dax levels his machine gun, pauses just long enough for Yves to take a last terrified breath, then SHOOTS him in the chest. FELIPE (horrified) What the --! We hear sporadic GUNFIRE deep in the woods. Wilf rushes in on Dax and Felipe.

Soon after,

WILF Sounds like the party’s starting, Boss. Wilf glances at Yves’ body. Dax reacts.

Lena runs in, covered in blood.

DAX (concerned) What the -LENA (winded) Sniper! In the bush! coming in fast!

Blackshirts

DAX (concerned) Are you okay?? LENA (grabs his arm) We’ve got to go, Dax!

Now!

FELIPE (looks at Yves) B-But... Wilf grabs Felipe, pushes him off into the woods as we hear the sound of Blackshirts approaching O.S. EXT. WOODED AREA - LATER Dax, Lena, Wilf and Felipe stop to take a breather. They’ve eluded the Blackshirts.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

82.

FELIPE (furious) How could you just execute a man like that?! He was unarmed!! Wilf watches impassively, sees a train wreck about to happen. Lena takes Felipe’s arm. LENA Felipe, please, don’t. know what you’re --

You don’t

FELIPE No, Lena! No! Isn’t he always the one lecturing about behaving like soldiers - Revolutionaries - and not terrorists?! Well, Captain, you’ve got to answer for yourself!! DAX (coldly) I don’t have to answer to you or anyone else under my command. FELIPE Oh, that’s right! His Excellency the Dictator has spoken! Dax strides over to him.

LENA Felipe, it was a trap!

Lena tries to get between them.

LENA Dax, he doesn’t know -DAX (hotly, to Felipe) That man was the same informant who told General Duvalier the radio station in Le Capitale was guarded by only a handful of soldiers - not a tank and a whole platoon! And if his family survived the shantytown massacre they’re the only ones who did! Our reports were that every soul was shot, burned or hacked to death. All fifteen hundred people! FELIPE But you don’t know that! Some people could have escaped --

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (3)

83.

DAX He lied about security at the airfield! We already know that the Army’s elite Cobra troops are taking up positions at the airfield and are going to escort the American! Not paramilitaries! FELIPE But you shot him like a dog in the streets! You call yourself a Revolutionary but you’re nothing but a cold-blooded murderer! Dax DECKS him with a powerful right. Felipe hits the ground hard, scrambles to his feet, starts to rush him and stops cold. Dax’s .45 is pointed inches from his face. Felipe looks past the barrel to Dax’s hard eyes. Dax’s finger tightens on the trigger. We have no doubt he’ll pull it. LENA (O.S.) (softly) Dax...Please. A beat.

Dax’s eyes shift to Lena. LENA Please, Dax...Don’t.

Beat.

He holsters the .45. DAX (to Wilf) Let’s move! WILF Right, Boss.

Dax picks up his machine gun and strides off. Wilf and Lena exchange a look. She understands: "Wait before you follow." Lena turns to Felipe. He’s breathing hard, but he’s breathing. DISSOLVE TO: EXT. REBEL CAMP - DAY Dax sits on a five-gallon water can cleaning his .45. A shadow falls over him. He looks up at Lena, goes back to cleaning the gun. An awkward silence before:

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

84.

DAX Did you sleep with him? Beat. LENA No. Beat. DAX Do you have feelings for him? LENA Dax, you’re the only man I’ve ever loved. You’re the only man I will ever love. He stops cleaning the gun.

Looks up at her.

DAX Do you have feelings for him? She doesn’t answer.

They just stare at each other.

EXT. REBEL CAMP (LATRINES) - DAWN A few rebels mill about. Felipe makes his way to the shitter in boots and civvies, holding his Kalashnikov in one hand, a toothbrush and towel in the other. He comes upon Wilf and Javier, both shaving over buckets of cold, dirty water. WILF (nods) Professor. Felipe nods coolly and continues toward the latrine. and Javier exchange a look then go back to shaving.

Wilf

EXT. WOODED AREA - DAWN ANGLE ON a pair of dirty, well-worn BOOTS walking through the woods. The boots stop in front of a pair of shiny new black boots. NEW ANGLE on a BLACKSHIRT LIEUTENANT in crisp olive drab fatigues. BLACKSHIRT LIEUTENANT You’re late.

85. EXT. SECLUDED ROAD - LATER The Blackshirt lieutenant walks out of the woods to a jeep. Junot is waiting for him. JUNOT Well, Lieutenant? BLACKSHIRT LIEUTENANT The sniper failed. He and our informant were...eliminated. Junot nods thoughtfully. INT. AIRFIELD TERMINAL - DAY On Pippa as she walks into the terminal. She’s holding Daniella’s hand tightly. Daniella clings to a DOLL. Behind them, Ana lugs two suitcases. Only a handful of people are in the terminal but they all seem to follow Pippa as she goes to the ticket counter. A creepy PARAMILITARY OFFICER seems especially interested in them. At the counter, a TICKET AGENT snaps awake. TICKET AGENT Good day, Madame. How may I help you? PIPPA Two tickets to Port Royal. As the ticket agent works, the paramilitary officer hovers in the b.g. TICKET AGENT Madame, I’m afraid the flight is not due to depart for another three hours. Of course, you are welcome to wait in the lounge. She takes the tickets and walks with Daniella and Ana down the corridor toward the lounge. The paramilitary officer follows at a distance. EXT. REBEL CAMP - DAY Felipe and a couple of rebels are eating C-rations. Lena stops at their table. A look from her is all it takes for the rebels to make themselves scarce. She clocks Felipe’s coolness toward her.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

86.

LENA Can I sit? He nods.

Continues eating.

She sits across from him.

LENA You’re still upset about what happened. FELIPE About the cold blooded murder of an unarmed man or having a gun stuck in my face by a cold-blooded murder? LENA Felipe, I’m sorry about what happened. But you know the rendezvous was a Blackshirt trap, don’t you? FELIPE What are we trying to accomplish here, Lena? Do Dax and Legarde really believe they can achieve a political victory by gunning down anyone who disagrees with them? Is that what the Revolution has become, who kills more innocent people? If so, I can’t see the difference between the People’s Liberation Union and the Dictator’s regime. LENA Dax says turncoats have infiltrated almost every unit of the PLU. Maybe even this one. FELIPE (snaps) Dax says! Dax says! I thought you’d finally starting thinking for yourself, Lena! I suppose if Dax thinks I’m a turncoat you do too. LENA If I believed that I would have let him shoot you. FELIPE Why didn’t you?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (3)

87.

LENA (beat) I think you know why. (another beat, then) Felipe, you have to leave. FELIPE I told you I’m not afraid of him, Lena. And I won’t run away with my tail between my legs. She reaches across the table, touches his arm affectionately. LENA Felipe, he doesn’t trust you and I can’t protect you anymore. He jerks his arm away angrily. eyes.

We read the hurt in his

FELIPE Can’t or won’t? You think I don’t know what’s going on? Everyone knows about the other night, that now you’re his woman! She stares at him, compassion in her eyes, and we see how torn she is. LENA I’m so sorry, Felipe. I never meant to hurt you...But I’ve always been his. Everyone in camp has known that for years. He was the only one who didn’t. FELIPE (beat) Not the only one... INT. AIRFIELD LOUNGE - DAY Pippa sits, tries not to look nervous. her doll as if it were a real infant.

Daniella talks to

DANIELLA You need a nap, Marcella. Mommy will wake you when we get on the airplane. Ana comes to them, hands them each a paper cup of water.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

88.

ANA (so Daniella can’t hear) Misses, soldiers are gathering up around the airfield. Pippa looks up, alarm in her eyes. PIPPA Stay here with Daniella. her out of your sight.

Don’t let

DANIELLA Mommy, where are you going? PIPPA Mommy will be right back, dear. INT. AIRFIELD TERMINAL - DAY Pippa walks toward the main entrance of the terminal. There are fewer people in the terminal now. A nervousness fills the corridor. Pippa goes near a window, glimpses outside. Soldiers are patrolling. Pippa turns and is startled by the creepy paramilitary officer. He’s standing right in front of her. PARAMILITARY OFFICER Madame, may I be of assistance? PIPPA (covers her anxiety) Thank you, no, Lieutenant. PARAMILITARY OFFICER Madame, you are Major Soto’s wife, yes? PIPPA Why, yes, Lieutenant, I am. PARAMILITARY OFFICER Madame Soto, may I ask where you are traveling today? PIPPA Lieutenant? PARAMILITARY OFFICER Madame, with so much terrorist activity, it’s unwise for someone of your stature to (MORE) (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

89.

PARAMILITARY OFFICER (CONT’D.) be...unprotected. I’m surprised that His Excellency the Major would permit you to be without -PIPPA (interrupts) Lieutenant, how dare you be so presumptuous as to question the Major’s actions! PARAMILITARY OFFICER (humbly) Please, forgive me, Madame. I am only thinking of your safety. PIPPA What is your name and unit, Lieutenant? The Major will need it for his report to your superior. INT. LENA’S TENT - DAY Lena is checking her gear. Felipe comes in, a rucksack on his shoulder. They look at each other for a beat. LENA You’ve got everything you need? (he nods "yes") Felipe, I wish -FELIPE Lena, come with me. LENA What? He takes her by the shoulders. FELIPE Come with me. Please. LENA Felipe, my place is here, with Dax and his men. FELIPE Lena, this Revolution is lost. This plan to kidnap the American, the assaults against His Excellency’s best troops. These are desperate measures by doomed men. (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

90.

LENA Stop it, Felipe! I won’t listen to that kind of talk. FELIPE Come with me, Lena. I’ll go to America. I’ll continue writing. Expose the regime’s evil and get support for a political overthrow of the government. That’s the only way the Americans will allow the People to be heard. LENA I can’t leave, Felipe. FELIPE (angrily) Because you love him? LENA (evenly) Yes. But even if I didn’t, I could never leave. This island is my home, these are my people. The only family I have left. I could never be happy anywhere but here...in life or in death. FELIPE You won’t have a life here, Lena. Only pain and suffering. It would be a tragedy for you to die here for nothing. LENA (thoughtful) No, Felipe...It would be a tragedy if I didn’t die here, in the land I love...with the man that I love. Beat. Felipe turns to leave. Before he goes, she turns him around, embraces him tightly, kisses him on the mouth. They share a last emotion-filled look before he walks out of the tent. After he’s gone, Lena wipes tears from her eyes. INT. AIRFIELD LOUNGE - DAY Pippa, Ana and Daniella are the only people left in the lounge. Ana looks around, nervous. Daniella naps, her head resting on Ana’s lap. Pippa lights a CIGARETTE, takes a drag.

91.

INT. GASPAR’S OFFICE - DAY Gaspar hangs up the phone just as Junot enters. GASPAR Our men have taken up positions outside the airfield and are prepared to strike when I give the order. JUNOT The airfield? But I thought the Ambassador was not to arrive until tomorrow morning. GASPAR That is what Picard wanted us to believe. Our informants within the army learned of the true plan only this morning. JUNOT True plan? GASPAR His Excellency the President is leaving the island. JUNOT Excellency? GASPAR He’s brokered a deal with the Americans. He has agreed to temporarily hand power to a military junta led by General Picard. After Picard crushes the rebellion with American support, His Excellency will return, elections will be held and he will be re-elected to the presidency. JUNOT But once the rebels are put down, what’s to stop the General from claiming the presidency for himself? GASPAR Absolutely nothing, Major. Which is why we must stop him at all costs.

92.

EXT. VILLAGE - DAY Members of Dax’s brigade check their gear and weapons, preparing to move out. Using a map spread on a campaign table, Dax goes over plans with his SQUAD LEADERS. Lena stands close to him, looking over his shoulder. DAX They’re expecting us to assault the airfield, so that’s where they’ll be strongest. Our scouts have confirmed that Cobra troops are in position on the tarmac and outside the terminal. The usual paramilitaries are inside the terminal. After the American’s plane lands and he’s left the airfield, his motorcade will take Medelin Road to the Presidential Palace. Outside the airfield is where they’re most vulnerable so that’s where we’ll hit them. (points at map) We’re going to blow the Medelin Road bridge, here. They’ll have to go about two clicks south to cross, and that’s where we’ll be waiting for them. Hewes, your job is to wire the bridge so the Federal’s can’t find the explosives. They’ll have advance details looking for just that sort of thing. (points at map) Wilf, Pierre, Rodrigo and I will hit the Ambassador’s car about half a click down this road. That’s where we’ll take him. LENA What about me? DAX You’ll be with Diego’s men, covering our retreat after we have the Ambassador. LENA No, I want to go with you. DAX It’s better if you stay with Diego.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

93.

WILF (fatherly concern) He’s right, Beaut. This won’t be the usual picnic. LENA No. Dax turns to look at her, sees that she’s made up her mind. The squad leaders silently accept that their girl is now the commander’s woman. Dax nods, acknowledging it too. DAX Pierre, you’re with Diego’s men. PIERRE Right, Captain. EXT. AIRFIELD - SUNSET On the tarmac a DOUGLAS DC-6 - His Excellency’s plane warms up. Cobra troops stand guard around it. INT. AIRFIELD LOUNGE - SUNSET ANGLE ON an ash tray with FIVE CIGARETTE BUTTS. Pippa stubs out a sixth, stands impatiently and walks to the window, looks at the Cobras patrolling. We see the worry on her face. DANIELLA Mommy, when are we going to get on the plane? PIPPA Soon, dear. DANIELLA But it’s been forever, Mommy. Marcella is done with her nap. She’s hungry and she has to pee. PIPPA (snaps) Not now, Daniella! Daniella scrunches her face, about to cry. around the girl, comforts her.

Ana puts her arm

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

94.

ANA Don’t you cry, now, Dani. Here, let Ana take care of little Marcella for awhile. Pippa turns from the window, determination on her face. PIPPA Ana, I’m going to get something for Daniella...and Marcella. Don’t leave this room until I return. ANA Yes, Misses. INT. AIRFIELD TERMINAL - SUNSET A handful of passengers sit, waiting anxiously. to the ticket counter.

Pippa walks

PIPPA (indignant) Where have you been? I’ve come to this counter many times! TICKET AGENT I’m so sorry, Madame. I was called away. PIPPA When will the flight to Port Royal begin boarding? It’s been well over three hours. TICKET AGENT (humbly) My apologies, Madame. (waves her closer) The plane has not arrived yet. What!

PIPPA Why not?

A few passengers overhear her and look to the counter. TICKET AGENT (whispers) Madame, if you can please keep your voice down. I tell you this because your husband, the Major, is an important man in the government and therefore must already be (MORE) (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

95.

TICKET AGENT (CONT’D.) aware. An important flight from America is due to land at any moment. All other flights in and out of Le Capitale have been postponed indefinitely. PIPPA What? (covers) Yes, of course. I expect to be notified as soon as the plane is ready for boarding. Understood? TICKET AGENT (humbly) Yes, Madame. Of course, Madame. Pippa walks away from the counter and around a corner. She finds a telephone booth, rummages through her purse for change. She picks up the RECEIVER, dials. Waits nervously as it RINGS. SECRETARY (V.O.) Major Soto’s office. PIPPA Put Major Soto on the line. SECRETARY (V.O.) Who may I say is calling? PIPPA Where is Greta? speaking?

To whom am I

SECRETARY (V.O.) Who may I say is calling, Ma’am? It dawns on Pippa that something is dreadfully wrong. EXT. PRESIDENTIAL PALACE - NIGHT An entourage exits a side door and moves toward two black sedans and a jeep. We catch a glimpse of HIS EXCELLENCY THE PRESIDENT, a slender, mustachioed man in his sixties. Next to him is a BUXOM YOUNG WOMAN, no more than twenty years old. GENERAL PICARD, in his fifties, a professional soldier through and through, stands at attention next to His Excellency’s sedan. He nods curtly before the president and (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

96.

the young woman get in the back seat. An OFFICER closes the door and the sedans pull away, a jeep as their escort. General Picard walks toward the Palace entrance. EXT. OUTSKIRTS OF LE CAPITALE - NIGHT BLACKSHIRT STORM TROOPERS are preparing for an operation. Standing next to a jeep, Gaspar talks to a BLACKSHIRT CAPTAIN. BLACKSHIRT CAPTAIN All units have reported in, Excellency and are ready to move out. GASPAR This is a covert operation, Captain. Make sure your men remove all insignia and identification before the assault begins. BLACKSHIRT CAPTAIN Yes, Excellency. The Captain salutes crisply and leaves. Gaspar turns and is face to face with Junot. GASPAR Yes, Major? What is it. JUNOT Excellency, permission to take an advance team into the perimeter before the assault begins. GASPAR Major, our scouts have already painted the enemy’s positions. JUNOT Yes, Excellency, I know. But it may prove useful to have eyes inside the perimeter once the shooting begins. GASPAR Major - Junot - I admire your conviction and your bravery, but I can’t allow my second in command to put himself in such a position. You are more valuable here, helping me direct our operations. (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

97.

JUNOT (covers his disappointment) Yes, of course, Excellency. EXT. AIRFIELD (RUNWAY) - NIGHT A JETLINER touches down and taxis on the runway. to a stop a short distance from the idling DC-6. rolled into place.

It comes A ramp is

A jeep pulls up followed by a black sedan. TWO COBRA OFFICERS climb out of the jeep as the door of the jetliner opens. The AMBASSADOR emerges from the plane, walks down the ramp and is greeted by the senior Cobra officer. The other officer opens the sedan door. When the Ambassador is inside, the Cobra officers climb back in their jeep and both vehicles drive off. INT. AIRFIELD TERMINAL (OUTSIDE BATHROOM) - NIGHT Pippa closes the bathroom door and takes Daniella’s hand. They walk through the terminal, Ana trailing closely behind. Pippa looks at people gathered along the windows and looking at the activity around the American jetliner. BOOM! BOOM! A stir near the windows as people react. Pippa looks past them, out the window. Explosions from mortars hitting the airfield. Cobra troops scurry about outside, taking positions on the tarmac. THEY’RE UNDER ATTACK. KABOOM! A mortar round shatters the window, killing a handful of people. Shrieks and screams fill the terminal as people run for cover. Pippa falls to her knees, grabs Daniella. EXT. AIRFIELD - NIGHT The jeep escorting the Ambassador speeds across the airfield, the Ambassador’s sedan right behind it. Deadly mortar blasts all around. INT. AMBASSADOR’S SEDAN - MOVING - NIGHT A DRIVER and an OFFICER in the front seat react to the assault. In back, the Ambassador holds on for his life.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

98.

AMBASSADOR (scared shitless) What the hell is going on?! OFFICER Terrorists, Excellency! EXT. MEDELIN ROAD - NIGHT Two sedans, the first with Presidential flags fluttering, follow a jeep with FOUR COBRA TROOPS. EXT. AIRFIELD - NIGHT Cobra troops fire machine guns and mortars at enemy troops encircling the airfield. VABOOM! The American jetliner takes a direct hit. A FIREBALL shoots into the night sky. EXT. MEDELIN ROAD (REBEL AMBUSH) - NIGHT In the distance rebels see the fireball from the jetliner explosion. A FIELD RADIO crackles to life. Javier puts the receiver to his ear. JAVIER Yes, this is Falcon. (listens) Say again. (listens) Understood.

Go ahead.

CASTOR (off Javier’s expression) What? What is it? JAVIER Sir, the airfield is under heavy attack. CASTOR What?! EXT. AIRFIELD - NIGHT The Ambassador’s car speeds to the exit. BOOM! A mortar hits the escort jeep, instantly killing the two Cobra officers. The Ambassador’s car swerves into a fence.

99.

INT. AIRFIELD TERMINAL - NIGHT The terminal is under heavy gunfire. Panicked travelers run for their lives. The paramilitary soldiers inside drop their weapons and run too. Pippa, disoriented and still on her knees, holds a crying Daniella in her arms. Then Pippa looks up into the face of the creepy paramilitary officer. His ravenous eyes signal his intent. Pippa clutches Daniella’s wrist and runs away. The girl drops her doll. The paramilitary officer steps on it as he follows. EXT. DAX’S POSITION - NIGHT Dax is on the field phone to Castor.

He’s perturbed.

DAX (into receiver) What about the Ambassador?? Pierre runs up to him. PIERRE Captain! Captain! Diego reports that His Excellency’s motorcade is en route to the airfield! Dax, Lena, Wilf and Rodrigo react. DAX His Excellency the President?! PIERRE Yes, Sir! They should cross our ambush position in twenty minutes! DAX (into receiver) No, Castor, hold your position! Report back when you have something on the Ambassador. (to his squad) Follow me. Dax hangs up the receiver and strides off. follow.

The others

100.

INT. AIRFIELD TERMINAL - NIGHT Amid the chaos, shouts and gunfire, Pippa rounds a corner with Daniella in tow. Dead end. She turns, desperate to leave, but the paramilitary officer blocks her path. Pippa pushes Daniella behind her. DANIELLA (crying) Mommy! Mommy! The paramilitary officer approaches, his eyes full of lust. PIPPA Don’t you dare come any closer! He does. He grabs Pippa. She claws at him viciously, drawing streaks of blood across his face. DANIELLA (screaming) Mommy! Mommy! Mommy! He hits Pippa hard with a backhand. She falls to the floor, grabs Daniella and protectively covers her body. ANGLE ON the paramilitary officer, about to pounce, then his eyes bug wide. He clutches at his back. When he falls to his knees, we see Ana standing behind him. The paramilitary officer falls face down on the floor, dead. Ana’s butcher knife is lodged to the hilt between his shoulder blades. INT. AMBASSADOR’S SEDAN - NIGHT The Ambassador cowers in the back seat. The driver is slumped over the steering wheel, dead. The officer in the passenger seat is alive but dazed, his head bleeding profusely. A door opens. The Ambassador reacts, at first frightened, then relieved. Thank God!

AMBASSADOR Get me out of here!

The Blackshirt Captain leans into the sedan. He points his .45 at the wounded officer, shoots him in the head. The Ambassador’s eyes go wide with fear. The Blackshirt Captain points his gun on the Ambassador. AMBASSADOR What! What are you doing?! know who I am?! No! --

Do you

101.

ANGLE ON the Blackshirt Captain as he shoots. EXT. MEDELIN ROAD (REBEL AMBUSH) - NIGHT Castor is on the field phone, talking urgently to Dax. CASTOR Yeah, Boss. They’re headed to your position now. (listens) Should be there in five. EXT. MEDELIN ROAD (DAX’S POSITION) - NIGHT Dax puts the receiver back on the field phone. His squad of Lena, Wilf, Rodrigo and Pierre are positioned along the road. A half-click up ahead, a squad of Federal regulars stand guard on a small bridge that crosses a stream. They’re waiting for His Excellency’s motorcade to pass and for their night’s work to be done. DAX Once the Dictator realizes the airfield is under attack, they’ll turn back. I don’t want to give them that chance. WILF So we wait for them to cross that bridge, then blow it. (a wry smile) You’re just full of ideas, Boss, full of ideas. DAX (a wry smile) If we can’t get the American Ambassador, maybe His Excellency the President will do. Wilf spits through his teeth, shakes his head. LENA (re: Federals on the bridge) First things, first.

102.

EXT. MEDELIN BRIDGE - LATER ANGLE ON Rodrigo. Unseen by the Federals above, he crawls along the wooden buttresses beneath the bridge. Pierre crawls on the other side. EXT. MEDELIN ROAD (BULRUSHES) - LATER Dax, Wilf, Lena and a handful of REINFORCEMENTS from Castor’s ambush squad (Javier the radio man among them) take up positions to assault the bridge. Seeing Rodrigo and Pierre in position, Dax gives the signal. The rebels open fire with machine guns and an RPG. When the Federals react, Rodrigo and Pierre climb up onto the bridge behind them and open fire with machine guns. Federals fall, dead and wounded. Dax’s rebels advance quickly. Then the shit hits the fan. A HUEY GUNSHIP swoops down from over the treeline. A heavy-caliber machine gun opens fire from the door. WILF Son of of --! Where’d that come from?! DAX Take cover! Take cover! The Huey sprays hot lead onto the scrambling rebels, killing two immediately. Dax finds Lena and throws his body over her as shells explode all around them. EXT. MEDELIN BRIDGE - CONTINUOUS Rodrigo’s machine gun jams. RODRIGO (whacks gun) Damn! DAMN! A Federal takes aim at him, fires. Pierre doesn’t hesitate. He throws himself in front of Rodrigo. The Federal’s barrage rips through the young rebel. Rodrigo unjams his weapon and blasts the Federal who killed his comrade. But he only postpones his own demise. Federal machine guns light Rodrigo up like a pinata. He falls over the railing into the creek.

103.

EXT. MEDELIN ROAD - CONTINUOUS His Excellency’s motorcade speeds along, nearing the Medelin Road bridge. EXT. NEAR MEDELIN BRIDGE - CONTINUOUS On top of Lena, Dax watches as the Huey circles, fire belching from its belly. Rebels fire at the chopper and at the Federals advancing from the bridge. DAX (to Lena) Stay here! He takes off before she can respond. LENA Dax!

No!

Dax runs to Wilf and Javier, who has the RPG. DAX We’ve got to take out that Huey! WILF That’s just what I was thinking, Boss! "Let’s shoot down a Huey with these here grease guns!" Dax takes the RPG from Javier. DAX (a wry smile) What, you want to live forever old man! Wilf grins, chomps down on his cigar and takes aim at the circling helicopter. Dax gets a bead on the gunship with the RPG while Wilf and Javier blast away with machine guns. Lena, firing at the advancing Federals, looks over at Dax then at the Huey turning for another pass. Oh, no.

LENA Dax! Dax!

Instinct takes hold of her. She runs toward him. A Federal throws a grenade. It explodes right in front of Lena, knocks her unconscious.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

104.

Dax fires the RPG, scores a hit! The Huey pulls up, spins, smoke billowing from its main rotor. The chopper flies back toward the treeline. No sooner than Dax and Wilf exchange a surprised look, Federals overrun their position. The remaining rebels and Federals go at it hand-to-hand. As they do... SOMEONE picks Lena up off the ground and carries her away. INT. AIRFIELD TERMINAL - CONTINUOUS Unarmed PARAMILITARY SOLDIERS try to surrender but are gunned down by Blackshirt storm troopers. The Blackshirt Captain steps over their bodies as he and his men sweep through the terminal, shooting soldiers and civilians. INT. AIRFIELD LOUNGE - LATER Pippa, Daniella and Ana huddle in a corner. The door bursts open. Storm troopers come in, guns at the ready. The Blackshirt Captain steps up from behind them. He sees the three cowering females. Pippa covers Daniella’s eyes, Ana puts her heavy arms around both of them. The peasant woman stares at her killers with defiant eyes. EXT. MEDELIN ROAD - NIGHT His Excellency’s motorcade slows down. INT. ESCORT JEEP - MOVING - CONTINUOUS The Cobra troops hear the EXPLOSION of the Huey crashing. See the fireball up ahead. They check and chamber their weapons. EXT. HILLSIDE - CONTINUOUS ANGLE ON A MAN’S HAND as it wipes the blood from Lena’s head with a wet rag. She comes too, focuses her eyes. LENA (softly) Felipe? Felipe is kneeling beside her. She’s laying on the ground underneath a palmetto tree.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

105.

FELIPE You’ll be all right. It’s just a concussion and a few scrapes. LENA But... (realizing) Dax! Where’s Dax? She tries to get up but he settles her down. FELIPE I don’t know. But I had to get you out of there, Lena. LENA (distraught) I have to go back! the men!

The Huey, Dax,

FELIPE It’s over, Lena. She pushes his hands away. Coward!

Her dark eyes ablaze with anger.

LENA Turncoat!

He restrains her. She’s too weak to fight. FELIPE Listen to me, Lena! You can’t go back there! I won’t let you go back there! She starts crying. him away.

He tries to comfort her but she pushes

LENA Dax knew all along, you’re a traitor! FELIPE No, Lena, I’m no traitor to the Revolution. LENA Liar! How else did you know where to find us? FELIPE I’ve followed the brigade since I left camp. I’ve followed you. (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (3)

106.

(beat) I couldn’t leave you, Lena. can’t leave you. I can’t.

I

She becomes faint. LENA (losing consciousness) But I’ve got to get to Dax...Dax... And she’s out. He eases her back down. his fatigue jacket.

Rests her head on

EXT. MEDELIN BRIDGE - CONTINUOUS Dax, Wilf and Javier are the only men alive. and Federals all around them.

Dead rebels

DAX (looks around) Lena! Where’s Lena?? Wilf looks at him somberly. WILF Boss... DAX No Wilf! Don’t you say it! JAVIER Captain! Dax looks at Javier, follows the radio man’s eyes to the HEADLIGHTS approaching - His Excellency’s motorcade. DAX (to Javier) The RPG! WILF Dax, what the hell?! DAX (to Javier) Now! Javier runs off for the RPG. WILF The three of us don’t have a chance against His Excellency’s guards. They’re trained Special Forces. (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

107.

DAX Look around! Do you want all of this to mean nothing? Now take position! (Wilf hesitates) Dammit, that’s an order! EXT. MEDELIN ROAD - CONTINUOUS His Excellency’s motorcade approaches. INT. HIS EXCELLENCY’S SEDAN - CONTINUOUS The passenger side window is splattered with the brains of a BODYGUARD. CAMERA PANS to the right, past the dead bodyguard to the back seat, where the buxom young woman is dead, eyes open, a bullet through her chest. His Excellency the President is also dead, a single bullet through the forehead. ANGLE ON on the driver. He’s dressed as a Cobra officer but we recognized him as the Blackshirt Lieutenant who rendezvoused with the rebel turncoat in the forest. On the seat next to him is a WALTHER PPK with SILENCER. Suddenly, he reacts. The jeep ahead of him explodes, hit by an RPG round. The Blackshirt lieutenant swerves to avoid the burning jeep. EXT. MEDELIN ROAD - CONTINUOUS The two sedans screech to a halt off the road. FOUR SPECIAL FORCES BODYGUARDS pile out of the trailing sedan. A Cobra officer who survived the RPG attack crawls away from the jeep, takes aim with his machine gun. They’re immediately under fire from Dax, Wilf and Javier. EXT. HILLSIDE - CONTINUOUS Felipe hears the RPG blast and the firefight. Feeling Lena’s words - "traitor," "turncoat" - he’s compelled to act. He takes a last look at Lena, unconscious, then runs to the action.

108.

EXT. AIRFIELD (OUTSIDE TERMINAL) - NIGHT Gaspar and Junot have just arrived at the terminal. They’re climbing out of their jeep as the Blackshirt Captain and his storm troopers approach. GASPAR Report, Captain. BLACKSHIRT CAPTAIN (salutes) Excellency! We have secured the perimeter and the terminal. We also rescued Madame Soto and her daughter from Cobra deserters, sir. Relief washes over Junot’s face as Pippa emerges from behind the storm troopers. She rushes to him with Daniella and the three of them embrace. Gaspar raises a curious eyebrow but decides to let it go. Ana watches them, then glares resentfully at the nearest storm trooper. GASPAR Well done, Captain. Well done. EXT. WOODED AREA - NIGHT FELIPE’S POV - THE WOODS We hear Felipe’s HEAVY BREATHING as he runs through the woods toward the firefight. EXT. MEDELIN ROAD - CONTINUOUS Three bodyguards lie dead in the road. Javier fires another RPG round, lighting up the second sedan for good measure. Dax and Wilf move in fast. Wilf fires on the bodyguard and the Cobra soldier, killing them both. Dax carefully approaches His Excellency’s sedan. INT. HIS EXCELLENCY’S SEDAN - CONTINUOUS The Blackshirt Lieutenant is regaining consciousness. His head is bloody from hitting the steering wheel. He sees Dax coming, grabs for the Walther, which is now on the floor. He opens the door, takes cover behind it, fires at Dax.

109.

EXT. MEDELIN ROAD - CONTINUOUS Dax ducks to avoid the shots, sprays the sedan with a burst of machine gun fire. The Blackshirt Lieutenant falls out from behind the sedan and hits the ground, dead. Dax moves in quickly, levels his machine gun inside the sedan. He sticks his head in. Can’t believe his eyes... EXT. MEDELIN ROAD - MOMENTS LATER Wilf and Dax stand next to His Excellency’s sedan. Dax holds the Walther in one hand; his machine gun slung over his shoulder. DAX (ref. Blackshirt Lieutenant) Looks like he killed them all before we even hit them. (hands the Walther to Wilf) Doesn’t make sense, Wilf. WILF (examines the pistol) Unless... DAX What? WILF Gotta be a coup, Boss. Picard with the Army or DeVille’s Blackshirts. Who else could hit the airfield that hard? Then they blame the whole mess on us, get the Americans hopping mad ’cause it all happened when their man was down island way. Dax looks at his old comrade, ever astonished at the level of treachery within the regime. DAX Jesus. Wilf reacts to "Jesus". Then a GUN BLAST in the back hurls him forward onto the sedan. Dax spins, sees Javier standing in the road, machine gun pointed at him. Javier!

DAX What the --

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

110.

JAVIER Sorry, Captain. But the Revolution’s over. It’s been over for months now. You and Legarde and the others just won’t accept it. Meantime we just keep dying. Like back there at the bridge. Even Lena, Captain. And for what? The Revolution was lost months ago. DAX You bastard son of a whore! How could you betray your own people?! JAVIER I’m going to America, Captain. Going to start a new life. No more jungles, no more killing, no more starving. They promised. (beat) I’m sorry, Captain. Dax flings his machine gun off his shoulder. Javier shoots, hitting Dax in the chest. Dax fires aimlessly as he falls back onto the sedan. EXT. MEDELIN ROAD - CONTINUOUS Felipe runs breathlessly out of the woods onto the road. Up ahead, he sees Wilf face down in the road and Dax sitting on the ground against a sedan. He runs past Javier right to them. Wilf is obviously dead. Felipe turns to Dax, who is spitting blood, dying. FELIPE Captain! Dax’s eyes meet Felipe’s. DAX (weakly) Le...Le... FELIPE She’s alive. Lena’s alive. Dax exhales, satisfied. Then he tries to look past Felipe at Javier. Felipe grabs Dax’s shoulders to carry him.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

111.

FELIPE Come on, we’ve got to get you out of here. (over his shoulder) Javier, help me! DAX (weakly) Tra...tra..tray... FELIPE (over his shoulder) Javier! We can’t leave him here! Javier levels his machine gun. Felipe glances at Wilf’s body. Realizes he’s been shot in the back. SUDDENLY it’s clear - what Dax is trying to say to him. He grabs the .45 from Dax’s shoulder holster, turns. Javier pauses, surprised to see the Professor - of all people - pointing the Boss’s Colt at him. Javier blinks. Felipe doesn’t. He fires the .45, hitting Javier between the eyes. EXT. HILLSIDE - BEFORE DAWN Lena cries softly. She runs her fingers through Dax’s hair, touches his face tenderly. He’s dead, under the palmetto tree that Felipe carried him to, next to the grave that Felipe has dug for him. Felipe touches Lena’s shoulder. FELIPE Lena...We have to go. She kisses Dax on the mouth softly. Before she stands, she takes the bloodstained ST. PETER MEDAL from around his neck. INT. PRESIDENTIAL PALACE - SUNSET (PRESENT DAY) Lena walks slowly down the hall. Age and illness have finally caught up to her. The FEMALE COBRA OFFICER follows several paces behind. Every few yards a COBRA GUARD snaps to attention as Lena approaches, and remains rigid until she passes. Marchond and Monique wait at the end of the hallway. His Excellency the President is a tall, handsome man in his mid-forties. He leans to kiss his grandmother’s cheek. MARCHOND Grandmother. I wish you would reconsider. Just this once. Agitators have increased their activity since Carnival began.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

112.

LENA (a loving smile) Excellency, the day that I am not safe on the streets of Le Capitale is the day I wish to leave this world. MONIQUE Grandmother, be reasonable. It isn’t safe. The people will always love you, but there are those who would -LENA (interrupts) There are those who would cling to power to further their own benefits and not to further benefit the people. I’m old, my dear Monique, but I’m not deaf and blind. I’ve heard what the people are saying about my grandson’s government. MARCHOND Grandmother, please. The world has changed since father’s day and even more so since you and grandfather brought a true democracy to the island. Politics is much more complicated. LENA (thoughtfully) Fifty years is a long time for one family to rule, Excellency. You have done much to disappoint the people in your five years. You’ve done good things, yes, but nothing like your father, Dax, or like my beloved Felipe. (off his reaction) I have heard that the cells in Lobianca are filled with those who speak out against you, and that the people protest because they feel their freedoms are being stripped away little by little. Your grandfather fought so that the people would always be free. It saddens me to say this, but he would have fought against you, Excellency.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (3)

113.

Marchond doesn’t want to argue. Instead, he offers a placating smile. It’s harder for Monique to mask her resentment. MONIQUE At least reconsider taking Dax. It’s already late and will be well past his bedtime by the time you return. LENA (not really asking) Excellency? MARCHOND Very well. Take him with you, Grandmother. Monique bites her tongue. Lena offers a small, placating smile of her own. Marchond looks at the female Cobra officer, who nods her understanding. Marchond and Monique watch as Lena and the officer continue down the hall. MONIQUE Must she insist on doing this every year? At her age you’d think she’d forget just once. MARCHOND Father told me she hasn’t missed a birthday in over fifty years, not since she and grandfather returned to the island from America. MONIQUE You can say no to her, Marchond. After all, you are the President. MARCHOND Perhaps...But she is the Mother of our Country. EXT. PRESIDENTIAL PALACE - SUNSET Lena and Young Dax climb into the back seat of a black sedan. The female Cobra officer sits on the front passenger side.

114.

INT. LENA’S SEDAN - SUNSET As her sedan pulls out of the Palace compound and onto a boulevard, Lena looks out the window at people celebrating Carnival in Central Plaza. Seeing the people happy warms her. She smiles to herself. EXT. CENTRAL PLAZA - CONTINUOUS The beautiful young woman with the over-sized purse from our opening scene walks along the boulevard, watches Lena’s sedan as it slowly rolls by. She can just barely make out Lena’s profile behind the tinted glass, knows the Mother of the Revolution is a stone’s throw away. She smiles to herself, feels as though she’s somehow crossed paths with a kindred spirit. After the car is gone, the young woman continues toward the Presidential Palace, clinging to her purse. INT. LENA’S SEDAN - MOVING - SUNSET Lena takes Young Dax’s hand and continues the story she began earlier that day. LENA We lost the battle at Medelin Road, but it was there that the Dictator’s forty-year grip on the people was finally broken. But it would be another eleven years before true freedom and democracy came to the island. Young Dax listens intently as Lena tells the story over the following... BEGIN MONTAGE INT. PRESIDENTIAL PALACE - DAY Blackshirt storm troopers, led by their captain, burst in and arrest an indignant General Picard. LENA (V.O.) Immediately after the bloody coup, there was a bitter power struggle between the Dictator’s top henchmen to see who would take his place...

115.

EXT. PRISON YARD - DAY General Picard sits blindfolded and bound to a chair. Gaspar, in crisp fatigues and too many medals, looks on smugly. LENA (V.O.) Not surprisingly, the Blackshirts won that struggle... ANGLE ON the FIRING SQUAD as it opens fire. EXT. CENTRAL PLAZA - DAY Gaspar, immaculate in a tailored uniform, is sworn in. LENA (V.O.) The head of the secret police installed himself as "Governor Protector" of the island. To no one’s surprise, he was even more corrupt than the Dictator himself... INT. PRESIDENTIAL PALACE (BEDROOM) - DAY Gaspar and his MALE LOVER are dragged out of bed by Blackshirt storm troopers, led once again by their captain. LENA (V.O.) Fortunately, he didn’t last long. When the Americans learned who was responsible for their Ambassador’s death, the Colonel was quickly disposed of... EXT. PRESIDENTIAL PALACE - DAY Junot stands on the balcony alongside Pippa and Daniella. The first "First Family" of the island waves down to thousands of people in the plaza. LENA (V.O.) To placate the world community and quiet demonstrations in their own country, the Americans rigged an election and installed one of their puppets as president...

116.

EXT. JETLINER - DAY ANGLE ON the DOOR of a Pan-Am jet as it opens and passengers file out. LENA (V.O.) President Soto continued his campaign to crush the PLU. And after a year of hiding in the jungles, my Felipe convinced me that we had to leave for America. Lena, nineteen years old, lovely and with longer hair, steps off the jetliner. She looks around, utterly forlorn. She’s holding an INFANT in her arms. Felipe helps her down the stairway. LENA (V.O.) The day we arrived was the darkest day of my life. I would have died of a broken heart if I didn’t have your grandfather, Dax, to love and care for... INT. APARTMENT - NIGHT Felipe, late-twenties and mustachioed, is hunched over a typewriter. Lena stands over his shoulder, THREE-YEAR-OLD DAX asleep in her arms. LENA (V.O.) In New York, my Felipe continued his writing and became the most important voice in the Peoples’ Liberation Union... EXT. THE STREETS - DAY Felipe, in his thirties, wades through throngs of supporters on the streets of Le Capitale, shaking hands and signing autographs Bobby Kennedy-style. Lena and ELEVEN-YEAR-OLD DAX (by now bearing a resemblance to his biological father, Dax Grimaldi), are right there with him. LENA (V.O.) Ten years after we left the island, we returned home. By then the PLU had grown from a Revolutionary movement to a political party, with your great-grandfather its unquestioned leader...

117.

EXT. CENTRAL PLAZA - DAY Felipe is sworn in by a JUDGE. Lena stands by his side, her son Dax stands by hers. Thousands cheer and celebrate in the Central Plaza and throughout the streets of Le Capitale. LENA (V.O.) When my beloved Felipe took the oath of office, your grandfather and I watched with pride as he became the first freely elected president in our country’s history... EXT. LOBIANCA PRISON - DAY The notorious prison is a Colonial-era fortress that overlooks the sea. Junot - in his late forties, handcuffed and wearing prison clothes - is escorted into the prison by TWO GUARDS. LENA (V.O.) And one of His Excellency’s first acts as president was to punish those who’s treachery caused so much pain to so many people during the Revolution. END MONTAGE INT. LENA’S SEDAN - MOVING - SUNSET (PRESENT DAY) Young Dax is enthralled. YOUNG DAX So President Soto spent the rest of his life in Lobianca? LENA (a small smile) Yes. You see my darling, Lady Justice has a very long memory and she is always given her due...Ah, I see that we’re almost there. The sedan approaches the Medelin Road bridge. It hasn’t changed much in sixty years. Lena’s sedan crosses the bridge and after a short distance more pulls to a stop on the side of the road. The female Cobra officer opens Lena’s door.

118. EXT. GATES OF THE PRESIDENTIAL PALACE - SUNSET The young woman is now at a guard shack flirting with a handsome COBRA GUARD. She looks past him to the Palace side of the gate. There, a black SUV has come to a stop, waiting for the gate to open. Behind the SUV is a black sedan, His Excellency the President’s sedan. Behind the sedan is another black SUV. INT. HIS EXCELLENCY’S SEDAN - CONTINUOUS Marchond is in the back seat reading text messages on a CELL PHONE. The lead SUV turns onto the boulevard. The sedan pulls forward then stops abruptly. Marchond looks up. MARCHOND (to driver) What is it, Helms? EXT. GATES OF THE PRESIDENTIAL PALACE - CONTINUOUS The young woman has put herself smack in front of His Excellency’s sedan. The Cobra guard who she was flirting with moments earlier walks toward her. GUARD (smiling) Hey, Sis! You can’t stop there! The woman calmly reaches into her purse, pulls out a HANDGUN and shoots him in the head. HELMS, the president’s driver, locks eyes with the woman. Before he can react she aims and shoots. The bullet-resistant windshield spiderwebs. COBRA BODYGUARDS pour out of both SUVs, their guns blazing. In a fluid, practices motion, the woman whips the purse off her shoulder and slings it underneath the sedan. KABOOM! The sedan, the Cobra bodyguards, the young woman and a few nearby TOURISTS all go up in flames. EXT.

HILLSIDE - NIGHT

Lena’s aides have set up a small, comfortable sitting area underneath a palmetto tree that should seem familiar to us. She sits gazing at a magnificent blood orange setting sun. Young Dax is at her side on the grass, legs crossed. Cobra soldiers are an unobtrusive distance away, their eyes alert, hands on machine gun triggers. The female Cobra officer stands only a few feet behind Lena, her eyes continually scanning the area. (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (2)

119.

YOUNG DAX Grandma’ma, why do you come here every year on your birthday? She looks at him and smiles warmly. LENA To remember, my darling. YOUNG DAX The Revolution? LENA (eyes back on the setting sun) Yes. And the men I fought with...And the man I loved. YOUNG DAX Great-grandpa’pa? LENA Yes, Dax, your great-grandpa’pa. Lena touches the St. Peter medal around her neck. In the b.g., we see a Cobra soldier urgently come up the hillside to the female Cobra officer. He whispers in her ear. The female officer reacts, looks at Lena. Then she whispers orders into a microphone in her sleeve. Soldiers all around the hillside and on the road prepare to protect the Mother of the Country. ANGLE ON Lena’s face as her eyes close and we DISSOLVE TO: SERIES OF SHOTS - LENA’S MEMORIES The rebels relieved to see her alive after she was trapped in an enemy ambush; the rousing soccer game; the smiling faces of rebels around the table at her eighteenth birthday party; sitting by Wilf’s side in the infirmary; laughing with Oscar in camp; walking on the beach with Felipe. And with Dax - arguing with him in his tent; mourning Oscar’s death; running into his arms in the jungle; gazing into his eyes the night they made love for the first time; holding him tightly; kissing him deeply. RETURN TO SCENE Lena’s hand falls from the St. Peter Metal onto her lap. Young Dax notices it, looks up at his great-grandmother. He (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: (3)

120.

senses something’s different about her but would never guess by the look of serenity on her face that she has passed away - gone to rejoin his great-grandpa’pa Dax, her beloved Felipe, Wilf, Oscar, her brother Quintos and all of her comrades from the Revolution. LENA (V.O.) It would be a tragedy if I didn’t die here, in the country that I love...with the man that I love. The sun finally slips below the mountainous horizon as we, FADE OUT: THE END