The ending of "Unfinished Business"...
_____________________________________
Matt slips the phone and the photo in his pocket. Caera backs away.
MATT
-- The rags -- .
She gives him the shreds of his shirt. He soaks them with whiskey. Pulls out the ones he already has in the wound and packs it with the fresh ones then stops. Pulls out the photo and presses it to the bullet. It sort-of sticks.
MATT (CONT’D)
Maybe -- maybe -- .
He pulls the rags from the wound. Pulls it open, wider. Blood pours. Sean groans.
CAERA
What’re you doing? WHAT’RE YOU DOING?! HE’S BLEEDING WORSE!
He presses the magnet-photo as deep into the wound as he can. Pulls it out. Blood soaks it.
Caera grabs him.
CAERA (CONT’D)
WHAT’D YOU DO, YA BASTARD?!
He shows the photo to her. On the magnet, three tiny steel fragments gleam under the torch beam. She feels the shards, wary, then hands the photo back.
He checks the bullet. Looks like four real fragments are missing.
He presses the photo into the wound, again. Forces it a bit deeper. He pulls the photo out -- and can just see another fragment caught by the magnet. Caera leans in to see.
CAERA (CONT’D)
Is -- is that all of ‘em?
MATT
The worst. I think. Betters his chances.
Matt returns the photo to his pocket. Packs and binds the wound.
Caera collapses beside Sean. Caresses his face.
MATT (CONT’D)
This bandaging’ll only stem the bleeding, not stop it completely. The wound needs to be closed.
(no response)
Hear me -- this is temporary, at best. If you wait too long, he will die. If not from loss of blood, from infection. He needs proper care.
She uses the pistol to motion Matt away.
He finally sits back, numb. Pulls out the photo and looks at it. Blood stains the image. He tries to wipe it clean.
Caera watches him. Holds Sean closer.
DISSOLVE TO:
DAWN
Matt dozes. Caera still holds an unconscious Sean. Light streams through the barred window. Finally, Sean wakes. She looks at him. He gazes back at her, lovingly. Tears fill her eyes. She kisses him.
CAERA
Doctor.
Matt jolts up. Checks on Sean.
MATT
Minimal fever. Leg feels good. And the bleeding’s stopped? He -- he should be all right. For now. But this is still naught but a stopgap.
Sean eyes Matt with terrifying gratitude. Caera’s expression is unreadable.
CAERA
Come. Up.
She nudges Matt with the pistol. They rise.
MATT
What -- what’re you doing -- ?
CAERA
Over there.
She forces Matt over to the body, pistol at his back. He grips the photo, tight.
MATT
Please -- just let me go and -- .
CAERA
Your name’s Matty?
MATT
-- Matthew. Matt.
CAERA
Where you from, Matt?
MATT
Uh -- Glenrothes. By Edinburgh.
CAERA
Stop here.
He does. She opens locker #29. Kicks aside its red, rusted false back. She pulls out a bank bag filled with stacks of five-pounds-sterling notes and hands it to him. He looks at it, confused.
CAERA (CONT’D)
Your fee. Go. GO!
Matt backs away. Bolts up the steps. Caera watches him then returns to Sean.
DISSOLVE TO:
INT. CELLAR - DAY
A POLICE CONSTABLE leads Matt down the steps. Matt still holds the bag of money.
MATT
Och, careful -- they might be -- .
CONSTABLE
(British)
As I thought, there’s no one.
MATT
But this is the place! Here’s me rucsack. The body’s over here.
He goes to where the man’s body lay -- nothing is there. Not even blood.
MATT (CONT’D)
They -- they must’ve moved it. But this money was in this locker. She opened a panel in the back -- .
He opens locker #29. Its back is red and rusted, but solid.
CONSTABLE
Pretty girl? Irish?
MATT
You know who I’m talking about. Hear me -- she does have a gun.
CONSTABLE
Her name’s Caera Tierney. Boy was Sean Grady. Roger Donnelly was with them. You don’t know about this place?
MATT
I’ve only just moved here. For my internship.
CONSTABLE
Thirty-six years ago, on February twenty-ninth, those three robbed the Hibernia Bank in New Charleton and hid down here. Made off with more than thirty-thousand pounds sterling, meant for PIRA. But in the robbery, Donnelly killed a clerk. He and Caera fought over it, she cut his throat and his gun fired. Shot Sean. He died, so she went mad with grief and killed herself. The money was never found.
MATT
Och, you’re not telling me they’re ghosts? Come off, what about this?
He shows the Constable the cuts on his neck, from Caera’s nails.
MATT (CONT’D)
And this?!
He shows the Constable the bag of money. The man shines his torch on the stacks of bills. Matt looks in the bag.
The strap around them is for Hibernia Bank; the date -- 1976.
Matt eyes the Constable, wary.
CONSTABLE
You’re not the first doctor she’s forced down here, son. That same day, she found one, but it didn’t matter. A bullet fragment cut into Sean’s heart. Now every four years, on the date of her death -- she returns and tries to save him. And every time, he dies, she goes mad and kills the doctor treating him
before killing herself -- again. And again. And again.
MATT
But how do you know -- ?
CONSTABLE
One victim lived a few days. The rest of it, we worked out. Boarded the place up. Posted guards. Made no difference; every leap year we’d find another physician’s body. But I doubt we shall, again.
MATT
Why?
CONSTABLE
Doctor, you saved Sean. Now she’s no need to come back.
MATT
But, that’s -- this money -- .
The Constable notices Matt’s worn shoes and ratty coat. He sees the magnet-photo in Matt’s hand.
CONSTABLE
Listen, son -- no one’s looking for that, any more. Keep it -- you earned it for finishing this dreadful business.
He turns and heads back up the steps.
Matt hesitates then turns to find Caera and Sean standing in a corner, watching him.
MATT
(finally, softly)
You’ll not be able to leave here, will ye?
She slips her arm around Sean, and he puts his over her shoulders, but they smile. She motions for Matt to leave.
He gathers his things and follows the Constable out.
DISSOLVE TO:
INT. DOCTOR’S LOUNGE - NIGHT
Matt opens his locker and puts his clothes and rucsack in. He looks at the magnet-photo. It’s clean, no blood. He checks his phone. It shows a call was sent, yesterday, at 00:29.
Matt shakes his head.
Jack comes up, pulling on a white coat.
JACK
Doing better?
Matt nods.
JACK (CONT’D)
Glad to hear it. Come on.
He leaves. Matt fixes the photo to the back of the locker door and pulls on a white coat.
As he shuts the locker door THE MAGNET-PHOTO CATCHES THE LIGHT and a QUICK FLASH OF BLOOD TINTS THE IMAGE.
Matt heads away -- and we finally see his locker is also #29.
FADE OUT
Matt slips the phone and the photo in his pocket. Caera backs away.
MATT
-- The rags -- .
She gives him the shreds of his shirt. He soaks them with whiskey. Pulls out the ones he already has in the wound and packs it with the fresh ones then stops. Pulls out the photo and presses it to the bullet. It sort-of sticks.
MATT (CONT’D)
Maybe -- maybe -- .
He pulls the rags from the wound. Pulls it open, wider. Blood pours. Sean groans.
CAERA
What’re you doing? WHAT’RE YOU DOING?! HE’S BLEEDING WORSE!
He presses the magnet-photo as deep into the wound as he can. Pulls it out. Blood soaks it.
Caera grabs him.
CAERA (CONT’D)
WHAT’D YOU DO, YA BASTARD?!
He shows the photo to her. On the magnet, three tiny steel fragments gleam under the torch beam. She feels the shards, wary, then hands the photo back.
He checks the bullet. Looks like four real fragments are missing.
He presses the photo into the wound, again. Forces it a bit deeper. He pulls the photo out -- and can just see another fragment caught by the magnet. Caera leans in to see.
CAERA (CONT’D)
Is -- is that all of ‘em?
MATT
The worst. I think. Betters his chances.
Matt returns the photo to his pocket. Packs and binds the wound.
Caera collapses beside Sean. Caresses his face.
MATT (CONT’D)
This bandaging’ll only stem the bleeding, not stop it completely. The wound needs to be closed.
(no response)
Hear me -- this is temporary, at best. If you wait too long, he will die. If not from loss of blood, from infection. He needs proper care.
She uses the pistol to motion Matt away.
He finally sits back, numb. Pulls out the photo and looks at it. Blood stains the image. He tries to wipe it clean.
Caera watches him. Holds Sean closer.
DISSOLVE TO:
DAWN
Matt dozes. Caera still holds an unconscious Sean. Light streams through the barred window. Finally, Sean wakes. She looks at him. He gazes back at her, lovingly. Tears fill her eyes. She kisses him.
CAERA
Doctor.
Matt jolts up. Checks on Sean.
MATT
Minimal fever. Leg feels good. And the bleeding’s stopped? He -- he should be all right. For now. But this is still naught but a stopgap.
Sean eyes Matt with terrifying gratitude. Caera’s expression is unreadable.
CAERA
Come. Up.
She nudges Matt with the pistol. They rise.
MATT
What -- what’re you doing -- ?
CAERA
Over there.
She forces Matt over to the body, pistol at his back. He grips the photo, tight.
MATT
Please -- just let me go and -- .
CAERA
Your name’s Matty?
MATT
-- Matthew. Matt.
CAERA
Where you from, Matt?
MATT
Uh -- Glenrothes. By Edinburgh.
CAERA
Stop here.
He does. She opens locker #29. Kicks aside its red, rusted false back. She pulls out a bank bag filled with stacks of five-pounds-sterling notes and hands it to him. He looks at it, confused.
CAERA (CONT’D)
Your fee. Go. GO!
Matt backs away. Bolts up the steps. Caera watches him then returns to Sean.
DISSOLVE TO:
INT. CELLAR - DAY
A POLICE CONSTABLE leads Matt down the steps. Matt still holds the bag of money.
MATT
Och, careful -- they might be -- .
CONSTABLE
(British)
As I thought, there’s no one.
MATT
But this is the place! Here’s me rucsack. The body’s over here.
He goes to where the man’s body lay -- nothing is there. Not even blood.
MATT (CONT’D)
They -- they must’ve moved it. But this money was in this locker. She opened a panel in the back -- .
He opens locker #29. Its back is red and rusted, but solid.
CONSTABLE
Pretty girl? Irish?
MATT
You know who I’m talking about. Hear me -- she does have a gun.
CONSTABLE
Her name’s Caera Tierney. Boy was Sean Grady. Roger Donnelly was with them. You don’t know about this place?
MATT
I’ve only just moved here. For my internship.
CONSTABLE
Thirty-six years ago, on February twenty-ninth, those three robbed the Hibernia Bank in New Charleton and hid down here. Made off with more than thirty-thousand pounds sterling, meant for PIRA. But in the robbery, Donnelly killed a clerk. He and Caera fought over it, she cut his throat and his gun fired. Shot Sean. He died, so she went mad with grief and killed herself. The money was never found.
MATT
Och, you’re not telling me they’re ghosts? Come off, what about this?
He shows the Constable the cuts on his neck, from Caera’s nails.
MATT (CONT’D)
And this?!
He shows the Constable the bag of money. The man shines his torch on the stacks of bills. Matt looks in the bag.
The strap around them is for Hibernia Bank; the date -- 1976.
Matt eyes the Constable, wary.
CONSTABLE
You’re not the first doctor she’s forced down here, son. That same day, she found one, but it didn’t matter. A bullet fragment cut into Sean’s heart. Now every four years, on the date of her death -- she returns and tries to save him. And every time, he dies, she goes mad and kills the doctor treating him
before killing herself -- again. And again. And again.
MATT
But how do you know -- ?
CONSTABLE
One victim lived a few days. The rest of it, we worked out. Boarded the place up. Posted guards. Made no difference; every leap year we’d find another physician’s body. But I doubt we shall, again.
MATT
Why?
CONSTABLE
Doctor, you saved Sean. Now she’s no need to come back.
MATT
But, that’s -- this money -- .
The Constable notices Matt’s worn shoes and ratty coat. He sees the magnet-photo in Matt’s hand.
CONSTABLE
Listen, son -- no one’s looking for that, any more. Keep it -- you earned it for finishing this dreadful business.
He turns and heads back up the steps.
Matt hesitates then turns to find Caera and Sean standing in a corner, watching him.
MATT
(finally, softly)
You’ll not be able to leave here, will ye?
She slips her arm around Sean, and he puts his over her shoulders, but they smile. She motions for Matt to leave.
He gathers his things and follows the Constable out.
DISSOLVE TO:
INT. DOCTOR’S LOUNGE - NIGHT
Matt opens his locker and puts his clothes and rucsack in. He looks at the magnet-photo. It’s clean, no blood. He checks his phone. It shows a call was sent, yesterday, at 00:29.
Matt shakes his head.
Jack comes up, pulling on a white coat.
JACK
Doing better?
Matt nods.
JACK (CONT’D)
Glad to hear it. Come on.
He leaves. Matt fixes the photo to the back of the locker door and pulls on a white coat.
As he shuts the locker door THE MAGNET-PHOTO CATCHES THE LIGHT and a QUICK FLASH OF BLOOD TINTS THE IMAGE.
Matt heads away -- and we finally see his locker is also #29.
FADE OUT
2 comments:
I liked it a lot. The surprise twist seems strangely matter-of-fact but I kind of like the way it was handled. The use of the magnet was really clever. Is there some significance to the matching locker number at the end that I'm missing?
Thanks, Michael.
Re: #29 -- just carrying the idea of February 29th through to meaning something like fate...probably too obscure.
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