| Folding Man | Credits | Transcript |
FOLDING MAN 104
Written by: Sam Egan
Directed by: James Head
ROBBER 1
Get up! Do it!
INTERIOR PAWN SHOP
[Two men are robbing a pawn shop. Robber 1 is holding a gun on the owner. Robber 2 is smashing the glass counters and taking jewelry.]
ROBBER 1
On the ground! On the ground!
OWNER
Please, don't shoot! Take what you want.
[The robbers hear a siren in the distance.]
ROBBER 1
Son of a bitch!
[Robber 1 runs and opens door to look out. He runs back toward owner.]
ROBBER 1
He hit the silent alarm.
[Robber 1 looks to Robber 2 then shoots the owner.]
ROBBER 1
Let’s get out here.
EXT NIGHT OUTSIDE PAWN SHOP
[Robber 2 hand Robber 1 the bag of loot and runs off. Robber 1 takes off in the other direction.]
EXT NIGHT END OF ALLEY WAY
[Robber 2 runs down alley which dead ends. Car lights shine on him. He looks up to see a police car coming into alley. He runs to end of alley and opens a door to a chute.
POLICEMAN 1
Stop police!
[The policemen have exited the car and are running down alley with guns drawn.]
POLICEMAN 1
Do not move. Give up, do not move, I do not want to shoot you.
[Robber 2 climbs up and goes down chute. He pulls out a flash light and looks around. As the policeman struggle to get the chute doors open; the robber sees a pipe that draws his attention. He pries the grate off and looks into it with his flashlight.]
POLICEMAN 1
Come out with your hands up!
[The policemen have managed to open the door to the chute. Robber 1 raises his hands to the side of his head and squeezes his head. His head deforms making it narrower. The policemen go down chute into an empty room.]
POLICEMAN 2
He's gone.
INT SANCTUARY LIBRARY DAY
[Will is walking into the library carrying a brown bag. He walks over to where Henry is sitting at a computer. Helen and Ashley are standing on either side of Henry looking over his shoulder.]
HELEN
I did say 9:00, didn't I?
WILL
Sorry I’m late. Bagel run, assorted savory, poppy seed for the big guy and two kinds of schmear.
[Will receives blank stares from the three.]
WILL
What? Okay, don't tell me that you wanted raisin.
HELEN
There's an interesting case I’d like you to see. Henry?
[Will moves over to join them and watches images on the monitor.]
HELEN
Security footage, from a pawnshop robbery last night near the campanile.
WILL
How the heck did you get into the precinct LAN?
HENRY
Well, I’d like to take credit for that, but I got the password from the boss.
WILL
And you got in? How?
HELEN
Now, where would a girl be without her secrets?
WILL
That's... Not an answer.
HELEN
I know.
[Helen smiles coyly at Will.]
HELEN
You'll see the owner shift his weight. That's the foot-operated silent alarm.
WILL
Hey…Henry, can you go back for a sec?
[Henry rewinds it.]
WILL
Yeah, right there. Now, zoom in. Huh….
[Will points at monitor.]
WILL
Check that out; looks like he's scooping up all of the gold jewelry and leaving everything else, including the diamonds.
ASHLEY
Okay, that's just wrong.
HELEN
Interesting; fast forward if you would.
[Henry fast forwards it]
HELEN
Now, they react to the siren and become frantic. And this gunman fatally shoots the owner in the back.
WILL
Brutal.
HELEN
The two robbers split up, and one is pursued down an alleyway.
HENRY
There's the dashboard camera from the cruiser.
HELEN
And into a coal chute basement.
WILL
Okay, I’m still not getting why this ends up on our radar.
ASHLEY
Just wait.
HELEN
The officers enter the basement just moments after the gunman did. And once inside, they report that there's absolutely no sign of him.
WILL
So, what, he just... Disappeared?
HELEN
According to the police, there was absolutely no way this man could have possibly exited. It's all in the police report.
[Helen hands Will a file.]
HELEN
Quite the enigma.
[Will turns and walks away studying the file closely.]
HELEN
Have I taken your mind off bagels?
WILL
Huh? Oh, yeah. Sure, knock yourself out.
[Will picks up the bag of bagels and holds them out. Henry takes the bag and Helen smiles knowingly.]
INT CHUTE ROOM DAY
[Ashley slides down the chute into the room to join Helen and Will who are already in room.]
ASHLEY
No tape, no seal.
HELEN
Crime lab finished their sweep this morning.
WILL
Concrete floor, no windows...
HELEN
This doorway was bricked over decades ago.
ASHLEY
And if he didn't leave the way he came in...
WILL
Oh, please don't tell me we have another teleporter.
HELEN
Not likely, but I’m not ready to rule anything out quite yet.
WILL
What about this?
[Will shines his flashlight on a 10 inch pipe.]
ASHLEY
That?
WILL
Yeah.
ASHLEY
Yeah, sure if he morphed into a boa constrictor.
HELEN
No, Will's right, if only as a potential place that the robber hid his booty.
ASHLEY
I never saw a man with that small a booty.
HELEN
We did bring Henry’s camera?
ASHLEY
Uh, yeah, we did. It's in the van.
[Ashley leaves to get the camera. They are kneeling down to peer into the pipe and Helen places Henry’s fancy camera on wheels in the pipe.]
WILL
That's a nice toy.
HELEN
A "toy" like this helped discover several secrets of the great pyramids. All right, go slow.
[The all turn to look at monitor Ashley has set up that is receiving images from the camera.]
HELEN
Switch on the U.V.
ASHLEY
U.V. is up.
[We switch views to the cameras perspective inside the pipe. An image of a finger print becomes clear.]
INT SANCTUARY HELEN’S LAB
[Monitor showing finger print.]
WILL
So how does a fingerprint get that deep into the middle of a 10-inch pipe?
ASHLEY
Well, it doesn't, unless a person squeezed in that far.
WILL
Yeah, but you saw the size of that guy.
ASHLEY
Well, I’ve seen stranger things.
HENRY
Okay, seriously, why are you staring at me?
HELEN
If I didn't know any better, I’d say we were looking at a folding man.
WILL
A folding man?
ASHLEY
Urban legend crops up in city after city, supposedly a man who's capable of collapsing his skeleton to fit through narrow spaces.
HELEN
Although, the legend falls short of a feat like this; but it is possible that we're looking at some sort of super-folder.
WILL
Whoa, whoa, whoa okay, just... help me out here.
HELEN
You're familiar with a newborn's fontanelles?
WILL
Yeah the soft spot on the top of a baby's head sure.
HELEN
Nature created it so the child could fit through the birth canal.
WILL
Yeah, but for a newborn the head is the widest part of the anatomy. And, what, you're talking about in an adult….it's impossible.
HELEN
Will, look around you. Ten days ago you, would have said all of this was impossible. Henry, could you run the print?
HENRY
I'm on it.
INT SANCTUARY LIBRARY
HELEN
These urban myths we're talking about go back a lot further than contemporary sightings.
WILL
But they're all part of what, the same phenomenon?
HELEN
No, no, there's quite a range; flex-people, whole tribes with genetic defects in collagen synthesis. There's a sect of Shinto monks that are said to bow without bending.
ASHLEY
Then you've got your turn-of-the-century sideshow contortionists...The Human Corkscrew, Henry Athol The Boneless Wonder, and not the least; my personal favorite, Elastic Ed.
WILL
But no one's ever been able to fully document these folding men?
HELEN
Well, if they even exist; they must be quite elusive.
WILL
You know, there was this case that I worked on at the agency that never got solved but had a very similar set of circumstances.
HELEN
Austin, Texas, 2005.
WILL
How do you know about Austin?
ASHLEY
Are you serious? She knows when you switched from boxers to briefs, man. Ah…what's the similarity?
WILL
Three bank employees gunned down in cold blood, and the robbers run into a vault with the cops on their heels, and apparently "disappear. "
HELEN
According to Will's report, the only possible means of escape was a nine-inch-square ventilation shaft; a scenario that didn't win you many points, if memory serves.
WILL
No, but it gets weirder. The only thing that was stolen in that robbery was half a million dollars...in gold.
ASHLEY
Whoa.
WILL
Do you think it's possible that Austin and our folding man are somehow connected?
HELEN
At the very least it's a working theory.
INT SANCTUARY HALLWAY
[Helen and Will are walking down a hallway and meet up with Henry.]
HELEN
Henry?
HENRY
Got a rock-solid match on the fingerprint; belongs to a career lowlife named Malcolm Dawkens.
HELEN
Is there a last known address?
HENRY
Nothing recent, Lago Vista, Texas, about four years ago.
WILL
Lago Vista, that's right outside of Austin. I might be able to get the bank robbery case file from my old partner at the agency.
INT SUBWAY STATION
[Will is standing on subway platform. A man walks over to him.]
WILL’S OLD PARTNER
Will.
WILL
Hey.
OLD PARTNER
Tell me the rumors aren't true.
WILL
What rumors?
OLD PARTNER
Working in-house for an internet gazillionaire, fired for insubordination, consultant for some sort of area 51 freakazoids? Take your pick.
WILL
Can't a man just run away and join the circus without being second-guessed?
OLD PARTNER
Can't believe you want me to bail you out again.
WILL
How many times did I have to pull your fat out of the fire?
OLD PARNTER
I kind of lost count.
WILL
Is that it?
OLD PARTNER
Case files, blood-work, everything from Austin Federal.
WILL
You're a good man, Jake, I don't care what anyone says.
JAKE
I'll be gutted like a mackerel if they find out I brought this stuff to you.
WILL
I just want to take a second look, that's all.
JAKE
Out of the blue?
WILL
Yeah.
JAKE
Come on, Will.
WILL
Look, just call it a hunch, all right? If it bears any fruit, you'll be the first to know, I swear.
JAKE
Okay, you've got 72 hours. You compromise that evidence in any way; I'll swear you held a gun to my head.
WILL
That was my backup plan.
INT SANCTUARY LIBRARY
[Will is sitting at desk working as Helen and Ashley come in.]
HELEN
Looks like your cold case file may have given us our first positive lead. I analyzed trace blood from that bank vault. It didn't match any of the victims.
ASHLEY
Which means it must have come from one of the robbers.
WILL
Do you have a DNA match ‘cause we could never find one?
HELEN
Nor did I; at least not to an individual who left it. But we did find someone right here in old city whose DNA matches 16 alleles out of the 20 that we looked at.
WILL
That many genetic markers has got to be a close relative.
HELEN
Probably the Austin thief's father. He's a 71-year-old by the name of Oliver Braithwaite. His DNA was in the system from a suspect sweep a few years back.
WILL
Do you have an address?
HELEN
He's a drifter, from what we can tell.
ASHLEY
Hangs out in my favorite part of town, the old Bryant Street Corridor.
EXT BRYANT STREET CORRIDOR
[Helen, Will and Ashley are walking separately asking people questions.]
WILL
Excuse me, I’m looking for a man, Oliver Braithwaite.
HELEN
Good evening, ladies, I was wondering if you knew of a man named Oliver Braithwaite, an older gentleman...
WOMAN
No.
HELEN
Thank you.
[The meet up in the street.]
WILL
Any luck?
[Ashley shakes her head no.]
HELEN
Did you find anything?
WILL
Oh, yeah, I got a great recipe for a rubbing alcohol martini.
ASHLEY
They know the name. They just seem afraid to talk.
[Helen sees a man come out of a corner….he appears to be a folding man.]
HELEN
Stay close.
[She walks over to where the man is and Will and Ashley follow her. An older man walks from area and walks toward them. Other folding men appear.]
OLD MAN
I believe you're looking for me?
HELEN
Oliver Braithwaite?
OLIVER
Are you the police?
HELEN
No, absolutely not.
OLIVER
Then you really have no business being here.
HELEN
My name is Magnus, Dr. Helen Magnus.
OLIVER
The Sanctuary?
[Oliver turns to the others.]
OLIVER
It's all right; leave us.
[The others leave.]
OLIVER
I heard about the Sanctuary ever since I was a boy. A good place; where people like ours are treated like human beings.
WILL
But you're not...
OLIVER
We're better than human; we have the gift.
HELEN
The gift of folding.
OLIVER
My days of folding are long gone.
HELEN
We'd like to talk to you about your son.
OLIVER
Aaron? Do you know where Aaron is?
ASHLEY
He's missing?
OLIVER
He's taken up with a madman. I can't contact him anymore.
WILL
We're talking about a folder?
OLIVER
They call him Nomad. He's taken the best of our youth, ripped them from their homes, turned them against their families. Aaron was going to study medicine.
HELEN
What's this Nomad's agenda?
OLIVER
Well, he may be crazy, but he's also a criminal genius. He gets folders hooked on this addictive drug of his. He's got some hotshot drug chemist to make it locally. If I could find out where; I'd kill him myself.
HELEN
We want to stop this Nomad too. Maybe we can help each other.
OLIVER
I just... Want my boy back, that's all.
HELEN
We'll do everything we can I promise you.
[Oliver nods and leaves.]
WILL
So, who would know about this high level of trafficking?
HELEN
What about our high-flying friend Mr. Jones?
ASHLEY
Worth a try.
WILL
You're going to trust an addict as an informant?
ASHLEY
Of course not; he's a crime boss controls most of the city's drug traffic.
EXT UNCOMPLETE BUILDING
[A man is standing far out on a beam which high above the city.
ASHLEY
I like your office.
JONES
Can't beat the view and you know I prefer our conversations private. 'Course, you're taking your life in your hands coming up here.
ASHLEY
Well, I could say the same about you…
[Ashley walks out on opposing beam.]
ASHLEY
..Considering your line of work.
JONES
Oh, so now Miss Thang is working for the cops?
ASHLEY
You know me better than that. What can you tell me about folding men?
JONES
The only folding men I’m interested in are dead presidents.
ASHLEY
I'm looking for a fugitive folder by the name of Malcolm Dawkens.
JONES
The folding men are like their own little tribe. They don't come to me or anyone else for their needs.
ASHLEY
Your crime network caters to abnormals, right? Drug distribution, prostitution, gambling; am I missing something?
JONES
You left out my charity work.
ASHLEY
Right, Mr. Jones, the only one with the resources to find a folder on the lam is you.
JONES
Well, I'm not the only one who's well connected, which brings me to the reason I agreed to see you. Not that I don't always enjoy your company...
ASHLEY
Save the flattery.
JONES
My street troops have been getting signals in the past week that someone is about to make a very big move as early as Friday evening.
ASHLEY
Nomad right?
JONES
What he does with his own criminal enterprises is really not my concern.
ASHLEY
What is your concern?
JONES
That he's making his move on me. It's how he's planning to consolidate his power. I'm thinking we can do each other a solid...I tell you where Malcolm is, you get a lead on Nomad and take care of my problem.
ASHLEY
More than fair.
JONES
Our good friend Malcolm’s been spotted near the old cannery. My men went to capture him, but he's, uh, slippery.
ASHLEY
Thanks, Mr. Jones. If this works out, I owe you.
JONES
I'll hold you to that. Watch your step, sista girl.
ASHLEY
Yup, you too.
[Mr. Jones flings he’s coat off and falls over side of building; he flies away.]
EXT NEPTUNE CANNERY DOCK
[Will and Ashley exit van.}
WILL
There he is.
[The man runs and dives under semi trailer.]
WILL
Get him.
ASHLEY
I've got him!
WILL
Malcolm!
[Malcolm stops and looks at Ashley and Will. He turns and starts running upstairs. He jumps down on the other side into the loading docks. He brings his hand to his head and starts to fold. He jumps through a small window in the fence. As he comes out the other side he lands inside the back of the van. Helen is waiting for him and shuts the door.]
INT SANCTUARY MEDICAL LAB
[Helen has Malcolm in MRI.]
HELEN
I've sedated him. He'll be out for at least a couple of hours.
WILL
You know, you pass him on the street; you have no idea what he's capable of.
ASHLEY
Of course, you could say that about almost anyone.
HELEN
Well, here's a reminder that he's not like anyone.
ASHLEY
Wow, the gaps in the bone.
HELEN
Hinges crumple zones, if you will. Now, watch. I'll trigger a localized reflex.
WILL
Incredible.
HELEN
Efficiency of form; but at what price?
ASHLEY
I'd better see about transferring this guy to a cell.
HELEN
One without vents.
INT SANCTUARY HELEN’S LIVING AREA
WILL
So, did his blood tell us what he's addicted to?
HELEN
Are you strapped in?
WILL
I have been since I got here.
HELEN
I'm guessing it's nothing you ever heard of.
WILL
I'm guessing its gold.
HELEN
TPG... Tertiary phosphene gold how did you know?
WILL
I didn't. I just figured it had to explain their obsession with it.
ASHLEY
So folding men steal gold and turn it into their own form of crack?
HELEN
Gold's un-reactive to most chemicals, but it will bond to certain organic compounds. Now, this one's part of a whole new wave of metallotherapeutic pharmaceuticals.
WILL
So it's a medicine?
HELEN
For Normals, yes, but for folding men; at least based on what I’ve seen of Malcolm’s DNA, it creates a virtually instant craving. It likely also dulls the pain of folding; acting like a sort of beta blocker. Without it, the pain would be beyond excruciating.
WILL
Well, if Jones is right, two nights from now, Nomad floods the market with this Cheap, powerful TPG. It turns the whole society of folding men into his private criminal army.
HELEN
If this quantity of designer drug is being made locally, it'll leave a trail...we'll look for that. Meantime, find out what you can from Malcolm.
WILL
Hey, what about the police?
ASHLEY
What about them?
WILL
Well, I mean, this guy's an accessory to murder, maybe more...
HELEN
And what would you have us tell them? That their man's addicted to gold and that he slithers like a python?
WILL
That's a good point.
INT SANCTUARY CELL
MALCOLM
Where am I?
WILL
You're safe.
MALCOLM
Who says?
WILL
I'm Dr. Zimmerman, Will.
MALCOLM
What is this place?
WILL
We call it The Sanctuary.
MALCOLM
Am I...The only one here?
WILL
Only abnormal, or do you mean another folding man? I don't know what you think you're hiding. We've seen what you can do.
MALCOLM
So are there more here?
WILL
What are you afraid of?
MALCOLM
You chased me, you trapped me, you put me in this... in this cage. You experimented on me.
WILL
Well, that might make you angry, but that's not what you're feeling.
MALCOLM
If he finds out I’m here, he'll kill me.
WILL
Nomad? Why would he kill you?
MALCOLM
He gave me the signal, shoot to kill, and I...I hesitated.
WILL
And that's a capital offense?
MALCOLM
He came that close to executing me on the spot.
FLASHBACK TO ROBBERY
NOMAD
Son of a bitch! He hit the silent.
[Nomad looks at Malcolm.]
NOMAD
Do it.
[Nomad glares at Malcolm then turns and shoots the owner.]
NOMAD
Let's get out of here.
RETURN TO PRESENT
WILL
How do I know you're not Nomad?
MALCOLM
Nomad never would've let himself get caught unless he wanted to be. He would've turned you into a stain on the sidewalk first. Why'd you bring me here? What do you want from me?
WILL
I want you to help us get Nomad before he can do any more damage.
MALCOLM
Nomad's not the problem.
WILL
No?
MALCOLM
You wouldn't understand.
WILL
Try me.
MALCOLM
You're the problem; the whole world of Normals. You can't accept those who are different.
WILL
This whole place is full of those that are different.
MALCOLM
What does that make you, the zookeeper?
WILL
Well what about the drugs? They make it less painful.
MALCOLM
What, Normals don't use?
WILL
They don't use gold.
MALCOLM
Ah, so if I shot heroin, I’d be a model citizen, right?
WILL
You know that he plans to exploit every last one of you?
MALCOLM
He wants to free us.
WILL
Children against their parents, Abnormals against Normals; how many more people like that pawn broker need to get wasted on the road to freedom?
MALCOLM
I need a fix.
WILL
I'm sure you do.
MALCOLM
Let me guess, you used to set ant colonies on fire when you were a kid, right?
WILL
Where's Nomad?
MALCOLM
I may be weak, but I will not betray my kind.
WILL
If you give a damn about your "kind”; you'll see that what this lunatic is doing ensures their destruction.
MALCOLM
Go to hell.
INT SANCTUARY LIVING AREA
[Helen and Ashley are sitting on the couch looking at folder. Will is pacing.]
HELEN
It's pretty much what I expected.
WILL
I can get him to talk, I just need more time.
HELEN
There's an expression amongst creature hunters; if you could teach a lion English, you still wouldn't understand him.
WILL
We're not talking about a wild animal here.
ASHLEY
Oh, Will, that's exactly what we're talking about. Only this guy’s way more intelligent than most.
HELEN
And, as a consequence, more dangerous.
ASHLEY
I'm late.
HELEN
Going out?
ASHLEY
Yeah. I owe it to Mr. Jones to tell him what we've learned.
HELEN
Stay safe.
EXT BUILDING NIGHT
BIG FOOT
How does a flying Abnormal fall to his death?
[Ashley bends down next to Mr. Jones and lifts one of his wings.]
ASHLEY
Somebody literally clipped his wings.
INT SANCTUARY LIVING AREA DAY
HELEN
And there was a struggle with the knife; undoubtedly at the top of the building. The assailant left traces of his own blood.
WILL
Did you run it for DNA?
HELEN
No matches to an individual, but genetic markers indicate it was definitely the blood of a folding man.
WILL
Retribution for the help that he provided us?
ASHLEY
Not retribution, a power grab...control of the city's crime syndicate and hundreds of thousands in drugs and cash; just as Mr. Jones feared.
HELEN
No doubt Nomad will use it to pay for his truckload of TPG. We've got less than nine hours. If we don't intercept that drug shipment and Nomad gets his way, the city had better brace itself for a major crime epidemic.
WILL
I still think Malcolm knows more than he's telling us.
HELEN
Has he ever talked about Oliver’s son.
WILL
Aaron? No, not yet. Why?
HELEN
Well, based on his father's description, I think he might be a chink in Nomad's armor. Intelligent, close to his family...see what you can find out.
WILL
All right.
INT SANCTUARY HENRY’S WORK AREA
[Henry is working on the computer.]
HENRY
TPG, TPG, TPG... Nope, nope...
[Helen enters his lab and stands beside him.]
HENRY
I keep checking on all the key ingredients for making TPG, like you asked...looking for shipments to any nearby locations; but still nothing.
HELEN
Break it down further, Henry. The chemist may be making the constituent compounds themselves in order to avoid being detected.
HENRY
Oh, I get it. See who's buying the ingredients to make the ingredients.
HELN
Precisely.
INT SANCTUARY MALCOLM’S CELL
WILL
The gold drug...when does it arrive?
[Malcolm does answer.]
WILL
Austin Federal, 2005.
MALCOLM
That one took you down a notch, didn't it? What, did you expect me to deny it? Nomad knew more about you than you knew about him. Irony was, you came so close to breaking that case. He got a real kick out of that.
WILL
Were you in the vault with him?
MALCOLM
Yeah.
WILL
That didn't bother you?
MALCOLM
Of course they bothered me. The bank manager was begging for his life...said he had two little kids, one with serious mental problems….Nomad just shot him in the head laughing the whole time.
WILL
All those years, you didn't think about just walking away?
MALCOLM
And go where? We had to stay together for safety. Why is...why is that so hard for you to understand?
WILL
Why don't you tell me about Aaron Braithwaite?
MALCOLM
Aaron wanted to stand up to him.
WILL
Did you ever consider listening to him?
MALCOLM
No, you don't get it. You have no idea what Nomad is like.
WILL
Tell me.
MALCOLM
He makes you weak and then he tears you apart. And then he puts you back together; only it's his way this time. Aaron always said if we had any chance of breaking his hold on us; we'd have to stop using.
FLASHBACK
[A young man walks over to table where a group of men are sitting.]
AARON
We can't keep doing this it's wrong. You want to be free again, right? You want to see your family again?
MALCOLM
Of course, but-
AARON
We've got to be united if we're going to fight back.
MALCOLM
And then what? He'll hunt us down like dogs.
AARON
That's exactly what he wants you to think.
[Nomad unfolds from between the corner of two rows of lockers.]
NOMAD
Did I, uh, interrupt something?
MALCOLM
No.
NOMAD
I didn't ask you, Malcolm; I was asking Aaron. You stirring up trouble again, Aaron, huh? Have you had your fix today?
[Nomad grabs Aaron and knees him. He collapses to the floor. Nomad puts his foot on Aaron’s head and squeezes his head causing his head to fold.]
NOMAD
If anyone has something to say; they can say it to my face.
[Nomad releases Aaron’s head.]
NOMAD
Hey, relax. I brought you some glitter.
RETURN TO PRESENT
MALCOLM
The gold...the gold drug has always been the key. Nomad has to keep us hooked on it.
WILL
You must be going through hell.
MALCOLM
I'll survive. I can fight it.
WILL
But can you fight him?
MALCOLM
Not by myself.
WILL
How many more innocents are you going to help him slaughter? Help me, Malcolm.
MALCOLM
Aaron talked about a place...about a place we could go to...if we ever got away from Nomad.
EXT RUN DOWN BUILDING DAY
[Will kicks down door to outside. Abandoned furniture litters the area.]
WILL
If Aaron was in that apartment; he must have moved everything out.
HELEN
You think these might be his things?
WILL
Maybe.
ASHLEY
Or maybe Malcolm led us on a wild goose chase.
[Ashley walks over to washing machine and opens it. Aaron is folded inside of it.]
INT SANCTUARY LIVING AREA
[Helen is sitting next to Oliver on the couch. Will is sitting in chair across from them.]
HELEN
I'm so sorry. When we promised you that we would find your son, I never imagined that it would be like this.
OLIVER
I wanted Aaron... to be a doctor. I could imagine him working in a place like The Sanctuary. He...he was a smart boy. He was kind. What is there left for me? What's left for any of us?
INT SANCTUARY HENRY’S WORK AREA
[Helen is sitting at computer with Henry and Ashley on each side of her. They are looking at the monitor.]
HENRY
When you broke it all down for me, the most basic recipe for TPG, no shortcuts, everything from scratch, the only local buyer is a small manufacturer just three miles north of the city.
HELEN
Aridan Labs.
ASHLEY
It's almost 4:00. Our chemist will be leaving for his rendezvous any time now.
HELEN
Well, if we're right, he should lead us straight to Nomad.
[Helen gets up and walks to table.]
HELEN
I've come up with a chemical test for the TPG once we find it. It's about the only thing that will turn this liquid a brilliant blue.
ASHLEY
What about Will?
HELEN
He wants one more run at Malcolm. I don't think we should take him away from it.
INT SANCTUARY MALCOLM’S CELL
WILL
I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but we found Aaron at the location you gave us...
MALCOLM
No...
WILL
There's not much doubt about who's responsible.
MALCOLM
He was my best friend. If I had only supported him, he'd probably still be alive. If we had all just stood up to Nomad like he wanted...his blood is on my hands as sure as if I pulled the trigger myself.
WILL
But you didn't pull the trigger. You're not a murderer, Malcolm.
MALCOLM
Aren't I? How do you know what I’m capable of?
WILL
You're right I don't.
MALCOLM
I've watched him kill more than once and done nothing. I helped him beat a man to within an inch of his life and guess what, I enjoyed it. I've given over what I am, who I am, to a monster.
WILL
Your awareness, your remorse, that's what separates you from Nomad.
MALCOLM
Nomad's just an excuse. My addiction is just an excuse. I'm the monster. I'm the monster!
WILL
Help me get him, Malcolm.
MALCOLM
Look at me. I can't even get through a day without gold pumping through my veins.
WILL
You're kicking it and if you can do it; so can other folding men.
MALCOLM
I'm too weak. I'm too weak. My strength comes from the gold and from Nomad.
WILL
No, your strength comes from you. Malcolm, listen to me...folding men are dying, innocent people are dying. Now, you know where he is.
MALCOLM
I…I can't...
WILL
Why don't you do it for Aaron? He gave his life up for you guys. We're running out of time, Malcolm.
MALCOLM
I... I can only tell you where they used to be based. It's in an old factory. The city shut it down, toxic metals, all kinds of places to hide. No matter where Nomad moved, he always kept information there in loose floorboards, in the walls. The locations of his safe houses, the drug labs, weapons caches...
WILL
Where would I find these things?
MALCOLM
I'll...I'll give you the address, I'll, uh, draw you diagrams of it, describe it all to you.
WILL
Or you could just come with me.
MALCOLM
That's... That's not going to happen.
WILL
Do it for Aaron.
EXT OLD FACTORY
[Will and Malcolm get out of Will’s car.]
WILL
You're doing the right thing. Trust me.
MALCOLM
Okay, let's go.
[They go inside factory.]
EXT AIRDEN LABS LOADING DOCK
[A man is taking large containers from the dock and loading it into back of a van. Helen comes up behind him and stops him with a gun to his chest.]
HELEN
Sorry. No deliveries after hours.
ASHLEY
Hi.
HELEN
Do you mind telling us what's in those containers?
DELIVERY DRIVER
Yeah, sure just don't shoot me. It's... Its laxatives.
HELEN
Sorry, I don't believe you.
INT OLD FACTORY
MAN 1
Hands up! Get 'em up both of you.
[Men are holding guns at Will and Malcolm. They puts their hand up.]
EXT AIRDEN LABS
[Helen is testing the substance in the containers.]
HELEN
It's not TPG.
INT OLD FACTORY
MAN 1
Sit down!
WILL
I'm sorry, Malcolm.
MALCOLM
Don't be. I mean, I’m sure under normal circumstances; you're a very good judge of character. I'd like you all to meet Dr. Zimmerman. You'll find you have a lot in common...no backbone. Carver, get me a chair.
CARVER
Yes, sir.
MALCOLM
And get me my gun
CARVER
Right away.
FLASHBACKS TO EARLIER
MALCOLM
How do you know what I’m capable of?
MALCOLM
Nomad never would let himself get caught...unless he wanted to be. He may be crazy, but he's also a criminal genius.
MALCOLM
On the ground.
MALCOLM
He hit the silent.
MALCOLM
Let's get out of here.
NOMAD
You're not stirring up trouble again, are you, Aaron? Hmm?
NOMAD
Have you had your fix today?
NOMAD
If anyone has something to say, they can say it to my face.
NOMAD
I'm the monster. I'm the monster!
RETURN TO PRESENT
[Will realizes that the man he thought was Malcolm was really Nomad. Caver is really Malcolm.]
WILL
You're Nomad. Carver is your pawn. They're all your pawns.
NOMAD
Mind like yours, Zimmerman, too smart for the room. Over thinks everything...The easiest to, uh, manipulate.
WILL
Can't you see what he is? He's just an addict. He's just an addict with a messianic complex. He doesn't care about any of you.
NOMAD
You still don't get it. I love my people. I'm doing this for my people. No more cowering in the shadows; I'm bringing them into the light.
WILL
And what about anyone who gets in the way?
NOMAD
I think you know the answer to that. In a little while, I'll have my hands on enough TPG to draw recruits from all over the continent...a small army of the most powerful folding men.
WILL
Whatever you do to me, they'll know, at The Sanctuary. They'll know, and they'll be all over you.
NOMAD
If I know Dr. Magnus and I do, at least by reputation, she's undoubtedly already fallen for my bait. It's amazing the kind of disinformation you can plant with just a little know-how. Oh, and you'll love this, Will. The TPG, my TPG...it wasn't made locally. It's coming from Austin. I wasn't worried about the police or Mr. Jones or anyone, for that matter, except the sanctuary. I had to make sure that none of you would interfere.
WILL
He ordered you to kill that pawnshop owner. All it took was a look.
NOMAD
Well, unfortunately, all these revelations...you won't be able to share them with the rest of the world.
WILL
And what about Aaron; going to let someone take the rap for that too?
CARVER
What's he talking about? Is Aaron...
WILL
He's dead!
NOMAD
Yeah, it's a terrible shame; Jones had him killed and then he stuffed his body in a washing machine.
WILL
I never said how he was found.
CARVER
He was my friend.
NOMAD
Put the gun down, Carver.
HELEN
Put the guns down, all of you.
[Helen enters the room with gun drawn.]
EXT OLD FACTORY
[Truck is pulling up to dock The driver goes to back up truck and starts to unload. Ashley is behind him with gun aimed at him.]
ASHLEY
That looks like barrels of fun.
INT OLD FACTORY
CARVER
He was just a kid!
NOMAD
He was trying to undermine me. He was trying to undermine all of us. He deserved a traitor's death.
HELEN
Drop the guns. I will not ask again.
CARVER
You son of a bitch.
[Nomad shoots Malcolm but Malcolm fires his gun at Nomad as he is falling. They both collapses and the rest of the men lower their guns. Helen moves to kneel by Will.]
HELEN
Will...
WILL
I'm sorry, I...how did you know?
HELEN
I had a tracking device put on your car...just in case.
INT SANCTUARY HOLDING CELLS
HELEN
Four to six weeks and most of our folding men can be returned to their homes; hopefully drug free.
WILL
Look, can you just say it, please? I mean, it's the elephant in the room. I let myself get conned.
HELEN
We all let ourselves get conned. Some of us just had a Plan B.
WILL
Yeah, well, that's the last time I play by the old rules.
HELEN
Don't be so hard on yourself. We stopped the destruction of an entire culture of Abnormals. And you got to the bottom of one of your agency's biggest mysteries.
WILL
You're right. What am I talking about? I'm a hero.
ASHLEY
Actually, on a scale from zero to hero, you're more like...
HELEN
Ashley...
ASHLEY
…Almost respectable.
INT SUBWAY STATION LOADING PLATFORM
JAKE
Just under the wire.
WILL
Thanks again, Jake.
JAKE
Did you get what you need?
WILL
Yeah. Yeah, as a matter of fact, I did.
JAKE
So...what, are you going to try to reopen the Austin murders?
WILL
No, I couldn't make any more sense of it this time 'round than I did the first.
JAKE
It's a shame, really.
WILL
Yeah, well, we can't solve 'em all, huh?
JAKE
No, I mean you. I don't think I’ve ever met an agent with more raw potential.
WILL
I appreciate that.
JAKE
It's too bad you still can't seem to catch a break.
WILL
Ah, don't worry about it. Sometimes...sometimes you gotta know when to fold 'em.
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