SEVEN by Andrew Kevin Walker January 27,1992 The world is a fine place, and worth fighting for. - Ernest Hemingway For Whom the Bell Tolls 1940 EXT. COUNTRY CHURCH -- DAY The white cross on the church steeple stands against blue sky. The church bell rings, resonating. Mass has let out. Small church, small congregation. The dirt road in front is lined with pick-up trucks and parishioners on foot heading to outlying farms and homes. An old two-story house sits across the road. Lone. INT. OLD HOUSE -- DAY Sunlight comes through the soot on the windows, more brown than bright. SOMERSET, 45, in a suit and tie, stands in this empty second-story room. He looks around, at the ceiling, at the worn wooden floor, at the peeling wallpaper on the walls. Somerset walks to one wall where the current wallpaper is peeled away to reveal flowery wallpaper underneath. He runs his finger across one of the pale red roses that decorates the older paper. He pushes the grime away, brings the rose out more clearly. He pulls at the edge of the paper, carefully ripping off a roughly squared section with the rose at its center. He studies it in his hand. EXT. OLD HOUSE -- DAY Birds sing. Somerset stands, pondering the forested landscape. MAN'S VOICE (O.S.) Is something wrong? Somerset does not respond. The MAN, in an ill-fitting real estate jacket, is seated on the hood of a dirty Ford Thunderbird. He holds a check and a booklet of receipts. MAN (CONT) Is something the matter? SOMERSET No... no. There's nothing wrong. Somerset still seems distant. MAN (writes receipt) Not that it's any of my business... but, are you figuring on moving out here eventually? SOMERSET Soon. MAN I just never seen a man mortgaging an empty house before. SOMERSET Everything here still seems... seems so strange to me. All this. MAN I don't know. I'd say this place is about as normal as places get. The man walks over to hand over a receipt. Somerset accepts the receipt, folds it. Somerset smiles. SOMERSET That is exactly what I mean. Strange. Somerset looks back at the house. The man does not understand. INT. AMTRACK TRAIN -- DAY -- (CREDIT SEQUENCE BEGINS) Somerset is in a window seat, smoking a cigarette, looking out the speeding train. He is near the back of the car, away from the few other passengers. Outside, farms, small homes and lawns pass. The entire panorama is dappled by the rays of the soon setting sun. The light flickers across Somerset's placid face. INT. AMTRACK TRAIN -- LATER DAY The train is nearly full. Somerset has his suitcase on the aisle seat beside him. He has a hardcover book unopened on his lap. He still stares out the window, but his disposition has soured. The train is passing an ugly, swampy field. A car's burnt-out skeleton sits rusting in the bracken. A little further on, two dogs are fighting, circling, attacking, their coats matted with blood. Somerset turns his head to watch the dogs. Away in the field, another dog sprints to join the fight. INT. AMTRACK TRAIN -- EARLY EVENING Passing urban streets below. Slums. Smashed cars. People stand on the corners, under the bleak glow of street lamps. Somerset's suitcase is by the window. Somerset is now in the aisle seat, reading his book. INT. SOMERSET'S APARTMENT -- LATER NIGHT -- (END CREDITS) Curtains closed. The SOUNDS of the CITY are here as they will be everywhere in this story. A CAR ALARM SHRIEKS. Somerset's life is packed in many moving boxes, except for clothing in a closet and hundreds of books on shelves. Somerset, dressed only in his underwear, lays back on the bed. He reaches to the nightstand, to a wooden, pyramidical metronome. He frees the metronome's weighted swingarm so it moves back and forth. Swings to the left... TICK, swings to the right... TICK. Tick, tick, tick, measured and steady. Somerset situates on the bed, closes his eyes. The metronome's ticking competes with the sound of the car alarm. Somerset's face tightens as he concentrates on the metronome. His eyes close tighter. Tick, tick, tick... the swingarm moves evenly. Somerset's breathing deepens. The car ALARM seems QUIETER. Tick, tick, tick. Somerset continues his concentration. The METRONOME is the ONLY SOUND. Somerset's face relaxes slightly as he begins to fall asleep. Tick, tick, tick... EXT. CHINESE BODEGA/CITY STREETS -- NIGHT DAVID MILLS, 31, exits with a bagged 40oz bottle of beer. He is a lean, attractive man, constantly coiled, eyes always smoldering. FOLLOW as he walks quickly past iron-gated storefronts. He crosses the street under elevated subway tracks. A train roars overhead. Mills watches it as he walks on. Blue sparks spit off the third rail and illuminate Mills, throwing his shadow long down the deserted street. EXT. URBAN STREET OF ROW HOMES -- NIGHT This rotting neighborhood lives in the shadow of a single fat skyscraper. Mills walks, looks at the broken refrigerators and pieces of junk in the gutter. Ahead in the street, TWO YOUNG THUGS struggle with a crowbar to break into the trunk of a parked car. Mills draws near. One thug looks up, doesn't think Mills will be a problem, continues prying. Mills stops, calm. MILLS Is that your car, man? FIRST THUG What the fuck do you care? Mills pauses, switches his beer bottle to his other hand. MILLS Does that car belong to you? The thugs look at each other, gauging. They face Mills. FIRST THUG Yeah, it's my car, alright? Fuck off. MILLS You're telling me that's your car? The second thug starts the long way round the car. SECOND THUG Well, for some strange reason, I don't believe you. Mills gives a "isn't that silly" laugh, shifts his gaze -- Sees the first thug slide the crowbar so it's held as a weapon. FIRST THUG (steps forward) You can fucking suck my... Mills swiftly finishes that sentence by smashing his bottle against the first thug's head. The thug falls, swings blindly. The second thug moves from the side, brings out a knife. Mills averts, swings, pounds the side of his fist into the second thug's face -- CRACK. Broken nose. The second thug stumbles back, drops the knife, his nose squirting blood. Mills turns, enraged, breathing hard. The first thug is screaming, trying to stand. Mills takes one step, punts the first thug's head. The crowbar clatters away. Mills is in the process of kicking a man when he's down, when the second thug grabs him from behind, pulls him backwards. Mills clutches at the thug's arm, trying to avoid a choke-hold. They both struggle spastically. The thug's winning. Gurgling, gasping for air, Mills shifts his weight, drops to one knee and spins the thug, slamming him against the car. Mills breaks loose, grabs a handful of the second thug's hair and holds the man's head against the car's side window. Mills' free hand pounds the thug's face: once, twice -- third time's the charm as the window shatters. The thug goes out cold. Mills backs off, still incensed. He rubs his throat, looking at the two prone men. Slowly, he regains some composure. He takes a keychain from his pocket. He unlocks the door of the car, loads one of the thugs into the back seat. He walks to collect the other thug off the street. INT. SOMERSET'S APARTMENT, BEDROOM -- MORNING Somerset picks items off a moving box: keys, wallet, homicide badge. Finally, he opens the hardcover book from the train. From the pages, he takes the pale, wallpaper rose. INT. TENEMENT APARTMENT -- DAY A wall is stained by a starburst of blood. Somerset stands, melancholy, looking at a body on the floor under a sheet near a sawed-off shotgun. The apartment is gloomy. DETECTIVE TAYLOR, 52, looks through a notepad. TAYLOR Neighbors heard them screaming at each other. It was nothing new or unusual. But, then they heard the gun go off. Boom, boom... both barrels. SOMERSET Did his wife confess? Did she actually speak the words? TAYLOR When the patrolman got here she was trying to put his head back together. She was crying too hard to say anything. (shuts notebook) Crime of passion. SOMERSET Yes. Look at all the passion splattered up on the wall here. Taylor shifts his weight, impatient, annoyed. TAYLOR This is a done deal. All but the paperwork. Somerset looks at a coloring-book open on the coffee table. There are crayons beside it. Somerset picks the book up. He flips through: crudely colored pictures. SOMERSET Did their son see it happen? TAYLOR What kind of question is that? Huh? (pointing) He's dead. His wife killed him. There it is. That's all. Anything else has nothing to do with nothing. Somerset replaces the book, digs up a cigarette from his pocket. TAYLOR (CONT) You and your fucking questions, Somerset. I'm glad I'm getting rid of you today. You know that, you fuck? David Mills enters, dressed in a suit. He looks a bit lost. MILLS Uh... Lieutenant Somerset? Somerset lights his cigarette, looks to Mills. MILLS (CONT) I'm David Mills... your new partner. EXT. TENEMENT/CITY STREET -- DAY A body-bag is carried through the crowd around the tenement doors. Somerset follows. Mills follows Somerset. They walk towards the end of the filthy block. MILLS I'm a little thrown. I just finished orientation at central, and they dumped me off down here. SOMERSET I heard you brought in two small-timers last night. MILLS Yeah. Two real idiots. SOMERSET Since we are just starting out, I thought we could go to a bar. Sit and talk for awhile. That way we can... MILLS Excuse me, but I'd rather start sniffing for a case, if it's all the same to you. Seeing how we only have a week for this whole transition thing. (waits) I want to get into the shit a.s.a.p., know what I mean? Somerset walks, no reply. Mills searches to get a read on him. SOMERSET I meant to ask you something... when we spoke on the phone. I can't help wondering... (pause) Why are you here? MILLS (wary) I... I don't follow. SOMERSET All this effort you've gone through, to be transferred from Philadelphia to here. It's the first question that pops into my head. Mills formulates his response. MILLS I'm here for the same reasons as you, I guess. Or... at least the same reasons you used to have for being here... (cutting) ...before you decided to give up. Somerset stops and faces Mills. SOMERSET You think you know me? You just met me two minutes ago. MILLS Maybe I don't understand the question. SOMERSET It's very simple. You've come from the "City of Brotherly Love" to the "City of Brotherly Hate," detective. I've never seen it done that way. MILLS I don't know. Maybe I thought I could do more good here than there. (pause) You know, it'd be great by me if we didn't start right out kicking each other in the balls. But, you're calling the shots, lieutenant, so however you want it to go. SOMERSET Let me tell you how I want this to go. I want you to look, and I want you to listen. MILLS I wasn't standing around Philly guarding the fucking Liberty Bell. SOMERSET But, you've never worked homicide in this city. MILLS I realize that. SOMERSET Well, please do me the favor of remembering it. Mills just stares back at Somerset. Somerset walks. Mills rolls his eyes, looks to heaven like, "what'd I do to deserve this?" He follows Somerset. INSERT -- TITLE CARD MONDAY INT. SOMERSET'S APARTMENT, BEDROOM -- EARLY MORNING Somerset lies asleep on the bed. It is still dark outside. Relatively quiet. The PHONE beside the inactive metronome RINGS HARSHLY. Somerset awakens suddenly, rankled. INT. MILLS' APARTMENT, BEDROOM -- EARLY MORNING It is barely becoming light outside. Mills can't sleep. Alone in a double bed. He sits up, frustrated. Sits on the edge of the bed and looks around. The room is a shambles, filled with moving boxes. The light coming through the window glows upon a football trophy on one box. Large and noble, a golden player stands in frozen motion at the trophy's pinnacle. Mills looks at the trophy and a fond smile forms on his face. The CLINKING of DISHES and SILVERWARE is HEARD from another room. Mills looks at the closed bedroom door, troubled. INT. MILLS' APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM/KITCHENETTE -- EARLY MORNING Across a living room full of boxes, TRACY MILLS, 30, a beautiful woman, stands in her bathrobe. She's upset about something, takes dishes out of boxes, puts them on the kitchenette counter. She pulls a mug from a clump of newspaper and pours some tea from a pot on the stove. Blowing on the steaming tea, she leans back on the counter, looks over at the closed bedroom door. The tea is too hot to sip, and as Tracy is placing the mug on the counter behind her the PHONE RINGS. Startled, she releases the mug too close to the edge. It falls -- Crashes to the floor, shatters. INT. APARTMENT/CRIME SCENE, HALLWAY -- MORNING A dark hall. Somerset and Mills stand with OFFICER DAVIS, 28, a beefy, uniformed cop. Light from a camera's flash spills in from the nearby kitchen. Davis hands Somerset two flashlights. SOMERSET At what time did you confirm the death? DAVIS Like I said, we didn't touch anything, but we were on scene at like o-five- hundred, so he's had his face in a plate of spaghetti for about half an hour. MILLS Wait, wait, wait. You didn't check him? You didn't check vital signs? DAVIS Believe me, he's gone. Unless he's breathing spaghetti sauce now. MILLS No. The point is, when you're first man in, you check vital signs. DAVIS This guy's sitting in a pile of his own shit and piss. If he ain't dead he would have stood up by now. MILLS (getting angry) Listen, Godzilla... Somerset steps in, heads Mills off. SOMERSET Thank you, Officer Davis. We'll see you again after we've had a look. DAVIS Yes, sir. Davis leaves, eyeing Mills. Mills watches him. Somerset hands Mills a flashlight, takes out surgical gloves. SOMERSET I wonder what exactly was the point of the conversation you were about to get into? MILLS And, I wonder how many times Officer Davis there has found a supposedly dead man who didn't really die until Davis was back in the patrol car calling the morgue and eating a powdered donut. Somerset snaps one glove over his hand and checks the fit. SOMERSET Drop it. We have more important concerns just now, don't we? MILLS Fine... for now. INT. APARTMENT/CRIME SCENE, KITCHEN -- NIGHT The POLICE PHOTOGRAPHER packs up, hoists his camera and equipment bag. Somerset and Mills enter. Mills puts on his own pair of rubber gloves. The grubby kitchen is small; barely room for four people to move around in. The photographer exits: PHOTOGRAPHER Bon appetit. The only light is a murky green illumination from the ceiling. The light bathes an OBESE MAN who is slumped forward in a kitchen chair, face-down-dead in a plate of spaghetti. The sizable kitchen table's green tablecloth is covered with soiled paper plates. The plates hold bits of half-eaten sandwiches, potatoes, donuts and other junk-food remnants. Mills and Somerset turn on their flashlights. Mills points his at the green bulb above. Aluminum foil has been wrapped around the bulb to focus the light on the corpse. Somerset sweeps the room with his flashlight. He goes to the body and kneels beside it. There's a rope tied around the man's wide gut. Mills comes to stand beside Somerset. MILLS I guess that makes it homicide. Somerset crouches lower, uses a pen to lift one of the dead man's pants cuffs. Rope is tied around the purplish ankle. Mills examines the knots behind the chair's back. Shines his flashlight on the man's belly. MILLS (CONT) Still, he could have tied himself in. To make it look like murder. Somerset isn't listening, focused on the corpse. He studies the man's head and neck without touching. MILLS (CONT) I don't see any blood or bruises yet. No wounds. You see anything? SOMERSET (irritated) Not yet. Somerset stands, points his flashlight: the obese man's stiff hands are clutching utensils. A knife in the left hand, a fork sticking straight up in the right with a hunk of meat hanging skewered. Cockroaches swarm. Mills turns to the sink and stove. Each burner of the stove has a used pot or pan on it. There's food slopped everywhere. MILLS I saw a guy once... committed suicide, but he wanted to make sure his family could collect insurance money, right? Somerset walks to the room's only window. The window has been painted over with black paint. he touches the window with his pinkie finger. The paint is still wet. Mills goes to a trash can by the refrigerator. The trash can is full to the brim with empty food containers. MILLS (CONT) So, this guy took this big knife... and he held it behind him, put the tip of it in his back, and he ran backwards into the wall. Cause, he thought it was going to look like someone stabbed him in the back. Mills opens the refrigerator. It's nearly empty. MILLS (CONT) Except, he poked a big fucking hole in the dry wall when he did it. SOMERSET If you could... spare me the anecdotes for now. Leave the refrigerator open for the light. MILLS (sarcastic) Oh, forgive me. I thought we had this male-bonding thing going. My mistake. Somerset looks at the floor, deep in thought. His flashlight beam follows a trail of dripped sauces, soups and bits of food running from the stove to the table. SOMERSET What do you smell? Other than him, and all the food. MILLS (sniffs) I don't know... there's something. Somerset goes close to the table, then leans to peer under. SOMERSET A bucket. Somerset points the flashlight and Mills crouches, pulls up the tablecloth on his side of the table. Two large dead rats lay on the floor beside a metal bucket. Mills grimaces, slides under the table, careful to avoid the rats. He looks in the bucket. He leans back, baffled. MILLS It's vomit. He looks at Somerset under the table. MILLS (CONT) It's a bucket of vomit. SOMERSET Is there any blood in it? MILLS Can't tell by looking. Somerset stands, perplexed, stares at the dead man. There is a knock at the door. The detectives look to DOCTOR THOMAS O'NEILL, 52, the medical examiner. O'Neill is a frumpy man, seems a bit gone, looking at the green bulb. O'NEILL Mood lighting. Very sixties. He drops his bag on the floor, sorts through the contents. MILLS (to Somerset) You think he was poisoned? Mills goes to the trash can, pokes the garbage with a pencil. MILLS (CONT) And, those rats there somehow ate the poison off the floor? SOMERSET Guessing this early is useless. O'NEILL You girls have got the forensics guys out there chompin' at the bit. Don't know if we'll all fit in here though. Mills continues searching the garbage. MILLS There's room. Light's the problem. SOMERSET Well, three is certainly a crowd in here. And, with four, someone's bound to be stepping on evidence. (pause) Detective Mills, go help the officers question the neighbors. MILLS (not pleased) Thanks, but no thanks. I'll stay on this. Somerset watches O'Neill at the corpse. O'Neill points a thin flashlight with his mouth, his hands free for the examination. SOMERSET (not looking up) Send one forensic in on your way out. Mills is pissed. He lifts his flashlight to shine it on the side of Somerset's face. A moment passes. Somerset looks at Mills, light shining directly in Somerset's eyes. A longer moment. Mills switches the light off. He leaves. O'Neill unceremoniously places both hands on the dead man's head, lifts the swollen visage from the spaghetti. O'NEILL He is dead. INT. PRECINCT HOUSE, BASEMENT GYM -- DAY THWACK, THWACK... THWACK. Mills punches the heavy bag with hard, quick punches. Sweat drips off his face. He's in work- out clothing, a bundle of nerves wearing boxing gloves. The walls are covered in mirrors. Other cops watch Mills as they pass, checking out the new kid. Mills keeps punching, skillfully. He stops when he sees Somerset reflected in one of the mirrors. Somerset walks over, carrying a pizza box with paper piled on top. He sits on a near bench, takes out a cigarette. SOMERSET Pizza and paperwork, Detective Mills. MILLS We need to chat. INT. BASEMENT GYM, BOXING RING -- DAY Mills opens a door and enters with Somerset behind. They are alone. Chairs face an old, limp-roped boxing ring. Practice pads hang from pegs on a wall. Mills clasps a pair in his gloves, offers them to Somerset. SOMERSET No. MILLS You just hold them up. I do all the work. Somerset takes the pads reluctantly, puts them on. He still has the un-lit cigarette hanging from his mouth. Mills climbs into the ring. He holds the ropes open for Somerset, waits. Somerset doesn't want to do this, but he climbs up. MILLS (CONT) You've seen my files... seen the things I've done? SOMERSET Yes. Impressive work. Mills motions to Somerset and Somerset holds up the practice pads. Mills starts working them, lightly, warming up. THWACK... THWACK... MILLS So, what's your problem? I've done my time on door-to-doors, and walking a beat. SOMERSET I know it. That doesn't mean... MILLS I did all that shit a long time ago. THWACK... THWACK... Somerset's very stiff, uncomfortable. SOMERSET I made a decision, because I have to worry about the integrity of the scene. MILLS That's bullshit. SOMERSET When I'm on scene, I'm not going to worry whether you think you're getting enough time on the playing field. I'm there to do the work. Mills punches a little more aggressively. Somerset's backing, flinching, keeping the pads high. THWACK... THWACK... THWACK... MILLS The badge in my pocket says "detective," just like yours. I've been Homicide for four and a half years. SOMERSET You've worked Homicide for four years, or for five years... Don't count the half-years, unless you want to sound like a rookie. Mills unloads a mighty wallop and one practice pad recoils into Somerset's face, knocks Somerset on his ass. MILLS Oops. My hand slipped. Mills walks, climbs out of the ring. MILLS (CONT) You fucked me over today, and you know it. You know it. Somerset looks at the broken cigarette in his mouth. He contains his anger. He seems to realize Mills has a point. MILLS (CONT) Just don't jerk me off. That's all I ask. It's not much. Don't jerk me off. (pause) Please, do me the favor of remembering that. Mills exits. Somerset spits out the broken cigarette. INT. URBAN SCHOOL, OFFICE -- DAY Tracy looks out a window from behind steel bars. Below her, young children play in a playground. They're playing hop-scotch, throwing balls, chasing each other. The swing sets are broken. The handball wall is graffitied. WOMAN'S VOICE (O.S.) I'm sorry, Mrs. Mills. We don't have anything right now. Tracy looks away from the window to the haggard WOMAN. The school's office is ill-equipped, busy, disorganized. WOMAN (CONT) We'll try to give you a call if we need substitutes next month. TRACY Thank you. Tracy looks back at the playground: on the other side of a chain-link fence, a butcher in a bloody apron walks down the ramp of a freezer truck. he carries a big, whole, slaughtered pig on his shoulder. The pig's head flops as the butcher walks. Some children stop their games and run to watch the man and the pig corpse pass. INT. UNDERGROUND SUBWAY TRAIN -- DAY The train clatters through a tunnel, packed full, WHEELS SCREECHING. The lights go on and off. Passengers read tabloids, stare at their feet, study advertisements on the walls; anything to avoid making eye-contact with others. All races, creeds and colors; all ugly, forlorn human beings. Tracy stands fatigued, holding a handrail. A bag-lady, crusted with dirt, reeking, pushes her way through the crowd. A man presses against Tracy in an attempt to let the bag-lady pass. Tracy switches hands on the rail, turns sideways to make room. She looks down. On one seat, a man, quite normal looking, sits holding a porno magazine, THREE-WAY FUCK, in one hand. His other hand is in his pocket. He's obviously masturbating himself in his pants. No one else notices or seems to care. Tracy looks away, disgusted. She closes her eyes. The train's wheels SCREECH LOUDER as the train takes a curve. INT. INDOOR FRUIT STAND -- NIGHT The front and one side of the shop are entirely open to the busy sidewalk and street. A transparent plastic canopy frames the entrance. A STRANGE MAN, 20, stands at the edge of the canopy. He wears a stained sweatsuit outfit and hums a song, oblivious. Tracy and Mills look together over the piles of fruits and vegetables piled on wooden stands which form tight aisles. MILLS It was okay. I mean... it was certainly better than yesterday. I think Somerset and I came to a small understanding... Mills holds his thumb and forefinger about a quarter of an inch apart to illustrate. MILLS (CONT) ...about this big. TRACY He sounds interesting. MILLS He is that, if nothing else. Mills throws some oranges in the basket hanging from Tracy's arm. He goes to check out the carrots. Tracy looks up from heads of lettuce to the strange man at the entrance. The strange man hums on, rocking back and forth slowly, his eyes glassy. Customers come and go, paying him no mind. Mills notices Tracy's interest. He keeps comparing carrots. MILLS (CONT) We started a big homicide case today. I'll spare you the grisly details. The strange man suddenly stops humming and looks into the store with a crooked grin. STRANGE MAN Name that tune? Anybody name that tune? Name that tune... The man keeps repeating this, over and over, still ignored. TRACY It's... it's like they emptied all the insane asylums into the streets. She looks back to the heads of lettuce. TRACY (CONT) That's what it's like. Like they just gave up, and let everyone out. Mills nods, his back to Tracy. TRACY (CONT) There are a lot of frightening people in this city. MILLS There are a lot of frightening people in the world. Tracy looks again to the strange man. STRANGE MAN Name that tune? Anybody name that tune? TRACY It seems worse than Philadelphia, because everything is pushed right up against you. In your face. Mills edges past Tracy towards the front of the store, tries to be pleasant. MILLS Listen, honey. I don't want to fight tonight. Okay? Can we just go one night without fighting about something? He looks over apples, thinks that's the end of that. TRACY I'm not trying to start a fight. (pause) How am I trying to start a fight? MILLS We're here now. Okay. Are we supposed to pack it all in and go back? How are we going to do that? TRACY Do I have to act like I love this place? Is that what a "good wife" would do? MILLS (doleful) There's a lot of pressure on me... I... TRACY And, there's a lot of pressure on me. I'm here with you. MILLS I know. I know... Mills steps towards the open air entrance. He's watching something. The strange man is still heard offscreen. Tracy reaches to a high wooden shelf, trying to reach a bag of rice, her back to Mills. TRACY I'm not going to close my eyes and block everything out, David. I'm not going to act like you delivered us to some sort of paradise. I can't... She gets the rice and turns. Mills is not there. She sighs, angry, looks around. She walks towards the entrance and sees him -- TRACY'S P.O.V. -- THE STREET In front of the stand, Mills has run to the corner of the sidewalk to help a very old woman with a cane. The elderly woman smiles up at Mills, takes his arm as he helps her off the curb and across the street. He talks to her as they go. INT. INDOOR FRUIT STAND -- NIGHT Tracy's anger fades. She shakes her head, touched, amazed by the plain boy scoutishness of her husband. TRACY'S P.O.V. -- THE STREET Mills deposits the old woman on the other side. She thanks him, patting him on the cheek. Mills starts back towards the fruit stand, proud of himself. A car screeches to a halt, just missing him. The driver leans out the window, yelling at Mills. Mills kicks the side of the car. MILLS Fuck you. (as car leaves) Fuck you, you son of a bitch! I'm walking here. INT. INDOOR FRUIT STAND -- NIGHT Tracy rolls her eyes in amused disappointment. She sighs again. Mills passes the babbling strange man, comes up to Tracy. MILLS I'm sorry... I couldn't pass it up. I never had a chance to actually do that. But, we can start the argument right back up where we left off, right? Tracy looks at him, charmed, no longer willing to fight. MILLS (playing dumb) What? Tracy wraps an arm around Mills and kisses him. He holds her. STRANGE MAN That was the theme from tv's Mod Squad. I'm surprised nobody got that one. The strange man starts humming a new tune. An old man tries to get through the aisle where Mills and Tracy are kissing. OLD MAN (infuriated) Excuse me. Excuse me! INT. MILLS' APARTMENT, BEDROOM -- NIGHT A small transistor RADIO PLAYS on the bedside table. Mills and Tracy are in bed, making love under the sheets. They move rhythmically, kissing, sweating hard. Mills holds Tracy's hair in his hands, pulls her head back as she gasps and he thrusts his entire body against hers. Mills' hair is soaked. He is anything but mellow as a lover, quickening while Tracy twists underneath him. Tracy holds tight to the back of his neck with one hand. Finally, Mills pushes himself up on his arms, holding his head down against Tracy's chest. Holds for a long moment, till he is spent and lowers himself against her, into her arms. He rests a long time. She kisses his forehead, keeping her eyes closed. Finally, Mills rolls off her, gets behind her and wraps the both of them in the sheets. He folds himself against her, and they stay that way. TRACY Goodnight. MILLS Goodnight. After a long moment, Mills shifts back, sits up. Tracy looks over her shoulder at him as he takes a towel off a chair and stands. Mills wraps the towel around his waist. He leans over to give Tracy a last kiss. She watches him leave the room. She is about to say something, but does not. A light comes on in the other room, leaking through the door. INT. MILLS' APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM -- NIGHT Mills sits down at his desk. He starts looking through police paperwork. The RADIO in the other room goes OFF in mid song. INSERT -- TITLE CARD TUESDAY INT. AUTOPSY ROOM -- EARLY MORNING The room is cold, clean. Stainless steel. White tile. Many pathologists work at slabs. Mills and Somerset are with DOCTOR SANTIAGO, 35, who stands over the mostly dissected obese corpse. SANTIAGO If you take a look here, buddies... I can tell you, it was not a poison. If you can see... I have emptied all of everything out of the stomach. But, look at it, now that I took away the liver. Santiago reaches into the belly of the cavernous corpse. Mills moves closer beside Somerset, but not too close, trying to hide his disgust. We hear squashy sounds as Santiago works, but we don't see in. SANTIAGO (CONT) I move the lungs over. First, see how big this fat son-of-a-bitch stomach is. Now... here is the strange thing, on the stomach. Stretches. (pointing) And, here is it distended. Look at the size of that, because of the foods. MILLS I can see what you're pointing at... SANTIAGO On the stomach. The lines of distention. Somerset's looking in, not believing what he sees. SOMERSET Doctor, are you saying this man... ate till he burst? SANTIAGO Yes, well, he didn't actually burst. He was bleeding, inside of himself. And, there's a hemotoma on the outside... on the belly. Somerset walks around the slab, looking the body over. MILLS He died by eating? SANTIAGO Someone punched him, or kicked him. Somerset notices something on the partially shaved head. He leans close to look at five or six small bruises on the back of the dead man's head; circular bruises, some darker than others, all about the same diameter as a dime. SANTIAGO (CONT) Oh, and there is this here... something else you have to look at and see. Somerset stands straight, realizes something about the bruises. SANTIAGO (CONT) Most of his stomach contents are in the lab now... but, this. I found these in the fat man's stomach. Santiago looks amongst tools, buckets and jars of liquid. He picks up a glass jar and shows it to Mills. In the jar: many little bits of blue plastic. Like scrapings. MILLS Plastic? Mills gets Somerset's attention, hands him the jar. Somerset looks at it a long time. SANTIAGO Why these were in a fat man's stomach, I don't know. INT. APARTMENT/CRIME SCENE, HALLWAY -- MORNING Outside the door to the murder scene, Mills and Somerset cut through the RESTRICTED AREA/CRIME SCENE seal. SOMERSET Those bruises on the back of the victim's head were caused by the muzzle of a gun. MILLS So, the killer had him at gunpoint, and gave him a choice: eat, or get your head blown off. INT. APARTMENT/CRIME SCENE, KITCHEN -- MORNING Somerset and Mills enter. Somerset takes out the jar of plastic scrapings, turns on the now normal light. They begin to search. SOMERSET He was force-fed... till his body started rejecting the food. He literally couldn't eat another bite. MILLS So, the killer held a bucket under him. SOMERSET His throat was swollen from the effort. He was bleeding internally. He must have blacked out... and, if you're the killer, you're not going to want to wait around for him to die. Somerset examines the counter tops and wall. Mills gets down on his knees, examines the linoleum floor. MILLS You kick him, pop him like a fucking balloon. (touches floor) Somerset, look here. Somerset gets down, holds the jar against the linoleum. SOMERSET Same color and texture. They both crawl on hands and knees, study every inch of floor. MILLS If this is what that is... it doesn't make sense. It doesn't figure. SOMERSET Always look for one thing to focus on. There's always one singular thing, and it might be as small as a speck of dust, but find it and focus... till it's an exhausted possibility. MILLS How are pieces of the floor going to get in the guy's stomach? SOMERSET Exactly. Why would so many pieces be inside his stomach unless they were placed there intentionally? Somerset notices deep scratches in the linoleum, fingers the grooves. He takes a piece of plastic from the jar, holds it to the scratches, fiddles with it, fits it in. He looks up to see, these scratches are in front of the refrigerator. It looks like they were caused by the refrigerator having been pulled away from the wall and pushed back at some time. INT. APARTMENT/CRIME SCENE, KITCHEN -- LATER MORNING We are BEHIND THE REFRIGERATOR as it is rocked back and forth. It's pulled away from the wall. Somerset and Mills strain, pull a few more feet, then release. They lean to look -- The refrigerator had hidden a space on the wall where the dust has been cleared. In that space: a circle, smeared in grease, and a note taped in the center of the circle. Somerset's BEEPER starts BEEPING. Mills leans to read: MILLS "Dear Detectives. Long is the way, and hard, that out of hell leads up to the light." (looks at Somerset) This is not good. SOMERSET Milton. MILLS What? SOMERSET It's a quote from a book. Milton's Paradise Lost. Somerset takes out his beeper, looks at the LED window. He looks up at Mills, like they've received very bad news. INT. LUXURY APARTMENTS, HALLWAY -- MORNING A marble hallway. A DETECTIVE, 50, nervously chewing his nails, quickly leads Mills and Somerset past cops and forensics. DETECTIVE I said to myself, I'm not going to screw around with this. Nope. Fuck that. It's still pretty fresh meat. I called the medical examiner... he's coming. (stops at door) When I got to it, I knew. As soon as I laid eyes on it, I knew... The detective opens the door. FOLLOW Somerset and Mills -- INT. LUXURY APARTMENT/CRIME SCENE, LIVING ROOM -- MORNING Gross, deep yellow light comes through the only window with its blinds up. The light anoints a NUDE MAN displayed, dead. DETECTIVE (O.S.) ...this is your guy who did this. The nude dead man's legs are folded under him as if he were kneeling, and he's bent forward, chin on the floor. His eyes are open, his arms outstretched before him. Mills and Somerset walk to either side of the man. The detective closes the door, bites his thumbnail. The apartment is on a high floor, so it's quiet. Somerset sees the window has been covered with a sheet of yellow gel, stapled in place to produce the colored light. Mills examines the corpse. There's a chair one foot behind the nude man. It's an elegant leather chair, drenched in blood. There's a carving knife on the carpet in the middle of a huge stain of blood under the chair. Mills looks at pieces of cut rope on the floor behind the chair. The rope is knotted. Somerset crouches beside the body. There's a big piece of flesh missing from the man's left side, as if the love-handle had been lopped off. Hundreds of pennies lie scattered under and around the man. The man's hands are palms up, fingers wrapped around more pennies. Mills walks over to examine a scale on the floor between the corpse and the doorway. It's an old-fashioned counter-balance scale with two suspended dishes on a see-saw arm. In the high dish: the hunk of flesh missing from the man's side. In the low dish: a one pound counterweight. MILLS (to Somerset) A pound of flesh. Somerset stands and walks backwards to view the entire scene from near the door. He looks worried, vaguely frightened. He turns his head, looks to a far wall. Beside a big, abstract, constructivist painting, there's a note pinned up inside a triangular smear of blood. INT. PRECINCT HOUSE, CAPTAIN'S OFFICE -- EARLY EVENING An office full of pictures, books and mugsheets, yet it is meticulously well kept. The CAPTAIN, 50, sits at his tidy desk. He's dressed conservatively. Mills and Somerset sit before him. Somerset reads from a photocopy of the note they just found. SOMERSET (reading) "One pound of flesh, no more no less. No cartilage, no bone, but only flesh. This task done, and he would go free." The captain is a calm man, but whenever not speaking, without fail, he clenches his jaw repeatedly, causing the muscles in his neck and jaw to pulse. Somerset stands, paces. SOMERSET (CONT) This victim, Mr. Gold, was tied down nude, holding a carving knife. And he was given a long time... to decide. Where to make the first cut? There's a gun to your head... but, what part or parts of your body are expendable? Mills sits back in his chair, arms crossed, seems anxious, doesn't know why they're here. SOMERSET (CONT) Mr. Gold tried for the whole pound at once, his love handle. But, he went into shock. Bled to death. CAPTAIN What is the point, Somerset? SOMERSET Look at both killings together. This murderer is an artist. CAPTAIN An artist? SOMERSET He uses colors and symbols. He positions the bodies after death, so he's working with composition. It's been premeditated so meticulously... and this is just the beginning. CAPTAIN Wrong. For all we know, we might never hear from him again, and I don't want that kind of talk floating around. Somerset shakes his head "no." SOMERSET The rats and the pennies. The circle and the triangle on the wall. There's something about them... these murders mean something. CAPTAIN So? What? Somerset has no answer. The captain is irked, jaw clenching. CAPTAIN (CONT) (to Mills) You with him, or you just here to watch? MILLS This is his stuff, captain. I've been out in the cold most of the day. CAPTAIN (to Somerset) Always working overtime up in that big brain of yours, huh? Always cooking. SOMERSET I need you to know... I want us reassigned. We're declining this case. MILLS (sits up, angry) What?! CAPTAIN What the hell are you talking about? SOMERSET This cannot be my last duty here. It's going to go on and on. CAPTAIN You've left unfinished business before. SOMERSET Everything else was taken as close to a conclusion as humanly possible. MILLS Can I just say something? SOMERSET Also... I don't think this should be Mills' first case. MILLS This is not my first case, fuckhead! CAPTAIN I don't have anyone else to give this to, Somerset. And nobody's going to swap with you. MILLS Give it to me, then. There's nothing that says I have to fly with him. The captain considers this. MILLS (CONT) If Somerset wants out, fuck him. SOMERSET It would be too much for him, too soon. MILLS (to captain) Could we talk about this in private? The captain looks at Somerset, then at Mills. CAPTAIN That's not necessary. You're in. MILLS Thank you, sir. CAPTAIN Start picking up the pieces. I'll shuffle some paper and try to get you a new partner. Mills stands. Somerset will not look him in the eye. Mills leaves, slams the door. Somerset seems deflated. CAPTAIN (CONT) You win, Somerset. You're out. INSERT -- TITLE CARD WEDNESDAY EXT. CITY STREET -- MORNING A vendor lays out a pile of tabloid newspapers at his busy newsstand. The headline: SECOND BIZARRE MURDER!, in huge print. The vendor lays out another tabloid pile. Headline: "GIVE ME MY POUND OF FLESH," SAYS BLOODTHRISTY KILLER, in big, red letters. The vendor places a third pile beside the others: SICKENING MURDERS - EXCLUSIVE DETAILS INSIDE !!! INT. PRECINCT HOUSE, SOMERSET'S OFFICE -- MORNING Old office. Moving boxes on the floor. The single window faces a billboard. Somerset works on a manual typewriter. He types hunt-and-peck, slowly. His paperwork is on the desk in two sloppy piles. A jarring SOUND is HEARD OFFSCREEN, like fingers on a blackboard. Somerset looks up, irritated. A WORKMAN is working at the open door, holding the source of the sound, a razor blade he's using to scrape the words DETECTIVE SOMERSET off the door's window. WORKMAN Sorry. Somerset turns back to typing. The captain steps in, looks at the workman, then drops more papers on Somerset's desk. As always, the neatly groomed captain clenches his jaw. He looks around. Two of boxes on the floor have DETECTIVE MILLS written across them. The captain picks one up, puts it on top of the other. He sits, watching Somerset, starts straightening the forms on the desk. CAPTAIN What are you going to do with yourself out there, Somerset? SOMERSET I'll get a job. Maybe on a farm. I'll fix up my house. CAPTAIN Can't you feel it yet? (pause) Can't you feel that feeling... that you won't be special anymore? SOMERSET (lying) I don't know what you mean. CAPTAIN You know. Somerset reclines, looks at the captain. SOMERSET Did you read in the paper today, about the man who took his dog for a walk? And how he was mugged? And, his wallet was taken, and his watch. Then, while he was still lying unconscious, his attacker stabbed him with a knife in both eyes. It happened last night. Not far from here. CAPTAIN I heard. SOMERSET I have no understanding of this place. CAPTAIN It's always been like this. Somerset saddles up to the typewriter. Hunt-and-peck. SOMERSET Yes. You're absolutely right. The captain lays the paperwork down in two neat stacks. CAPTAIN You were made for this work, Somerset. I can't believe you're going to trade it all in for a tool belt and a fishing rod. But, I guess I'm wrong. The captain leaves. Somerset looks up now that the captain's gone. He grabs the paper piles and ruffles them back to their disheveled state. He looks at the workman. The workman is looking at Somerset, has a rag in his hand to remove the last remnants of Somerset's name. SOMERSET (angrily) Put a little elbow grease into it! The workman is startled, continues his work. INT. LUXURY APARTMENT/CRIME SCENE, LIVING ROOM -- DAY The grandly furnished apartment where the second murder took place has been dusted for prints and searched. Two female forensics are at work. INT. LUXURY APARTMENT/CRIME SCENE, MASTER BEDROOM -- DAY Mills is seated in front of a long writing desk with many drawers. All the drawers are open. Mills looks through letters and stationary. Nothing of use. He tosses the pile back. He sits back, frustrated, yanks off one rubber glove, looks around the room. Books have been taken off their shelves, the bed has been stripped. The room has been given the once over. The victim's family photographs hang in expensive frames on one wall. There are at least thirty photos of various sizes: ancestors, sons and daughters, grandchildren and friends. An over-weight forensic, CHRIS, 35, leans in through the doorway. Mills looks up and Chris shakes his head glumly. MILLS He must have left us another puzzle to solve... somewhere. CHRIS We'll keep looking, but we're running out of possibilities. Chris leaves and Mills stands to stretch. Something catches Mills' eye. He walks over to the door, curious. At the base of the open door, there's a ball of paper wedged under to act as a doorjamb. Mills puts his glove back on, pulls the ball out. He uncrumples the paper as the door slowly swings shut. The page has a drawing on it, of the sun with waves of heat at its edges. There is a single eye in the center of the sun. An arrow is drawn in dried blood on the back of the closing door. Mills notices this and pushes the door closed. The blood arrow points to the side and up, seems to be pointing to the photo gallery wall. Mills goes to examine the photos. His eyes search each photo... one by one... till he sees it: MILLS Christ... A framed photo of a falsely pretty, middle-aged woman smiling and wearing pearls. Under the glass, on the photo itself, circles have been drawn in blood around the woman's eyes . EXT. CITY STREETS, DOWNTOWN -- NIGHT An assault on the senses. Crowded streets and sidewalks. On every corner, in every doorway, on every stairwell -- freaks, junkies, punks, leather boys and motorcycle girls. A few tourists wander in the mix, heedful of the dangers around them. Buildings border narrowly. Somerset walks against the stream. He carries a file. CAR HORNS HOWL. MUSIC BLASTS from the entrances of clubs. REGGAE from one club is soon OVERTAKEN by RAP from a second story window. TECHNO-POP blasts from the tattoo parlor. Somerset does not like this place, views it with disdain. He walks to avoid two men fighting on the ground. The men are pulling hair and pounding each other idiotically. Somerset takes a cigarette from a full pack, lights it as he crosses through the traffic jam in the street. A VAGRANT steps up with his hand out. VAGRANT Spare me a cigarette, money-grip? Spare me a cigarette? SOMERSET Sorry. Last one. He walks on. We BEGIN to HEAR JAZZ MUSIC. INT. JAZZ CLUB -- NIGHT A club at capacity. The JAZZ MUSIC CONTINUES like a slow, cool breeze from a JAZZ TRIO on a platform. The air is thick with smoke. Yuppies sit elbow to elbow with the last members of the beat generation. Everyone's drinking beer, smoking pot. Somerset crosses the club, looking for someone. He takes a tissue from his pocket, rips pieces off and jams the pieces in his ears. At the back of the club, a major-league bouncer stands in front of a closed door. Somerset shows his badge and the bouncer steps aside with reservation. INT. NARROW STAIRWELL -- NIGHT The walls are black. Somerset opens the door, enters, walks down the long flight of stairs. As Somerset descends, the JAZZ MUSIC FADES and is ENGULFED by the sound of SPEED METAL. DEAFENING. At the bottom, Somerset opens another door. He enters -- INT. UNDERGROUND ART GALLERY -- NIGHT A narrow room. SPEED METAL is even LOUDER. This is a private art party. The people are lizard-like, pale. Men and women priding themselves on their gauntness. Somerset passes canvases on the walls. Pointlessly abstract paintings. Splatters, smears and blobs of color. Party-people stand in front of these "works," engrossed. Somerset slides past, not interested in the art, jamming the tissue further in his ears. He spots his objective. WILLIAM McCRACKEN, 42, stands inside a circle of admirers. He is dressed like a pauper, his baggy clothing stained with many colors of paint. He wears dark sunglasses, bored by the bleached-blonde girl whispering in his ear. Somerset worms his way to stand in front of William. The party- goers turn their attention to this intrusion. William looks up, pushes the girl away. He takes off his sunglasses. His eyes are badly bloodshot and listless. He looks Somerset over... and then grins, glad to see him. INT. MILL'S APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM -- NIGHT Mills stands brooding over a photocopy of the picture of the woman with her eyes circled in blood. He looks overworked, drinks coffee. His desk is swamped with files. MAN'S VOICE (O.S.) I have voiced the same concerns to our law enforcement officials, and they assure me he is of the highest caliber. Mills looks to a t.v. on a table, picks up a remote, increases the volume. On the screen, MARTIN TALBOT, 47, source of the voice, stands before reporters. He's a powerful presence, with a gold tooth in the front of his mouth. A REPORTER (V.O.) (from t.v.) As District Attorney, don't you feel some responsibility? Detective David Mills lacks the experience... TALBOT (V.O.) (from t.v.) I've always said... I've always said, don't send a boy to do a man's job. Mills is hanging on every word. TALBOT (V.O.,CONT) But, David Mills has a sterling record with the Philadelphia force. I stand behind him one hundred percent. MILLS (relieved) You tell 'em boss. Detective David Mills is a wonderful human being... TALBOT (V.O.) However... however... let me say this... Mills looks back at the television. TALBOT (V.O.,CONT) If Detective Mills, at any point in this investigation... if he is not pulling his weight, I will be the first in line to pull his plug. Mills points the remote, turns the t.v. off as reporters crowd Talbot. Mills stares at the blank screen, dispirited. Across the room, Tracy stands in the doorway. Mills does not see her. He looks at the photocopy and sits at his desk. Tracy watches him, great concern in her sad eyes. INT. WILLIAM'S STUDIO/APARTMENT -- NIGHT Somerset walks through this vast artist's studio, a converted warehouse space filled with canvases. It's clear the works at the underground art gallery were William's. William climbs a ladder to a loft storage space. He moves cautiously, like he's not quite up to the task. WILLIAM I always figured that's the only reason you and I used to be friends. Because I was a friend of hers. William yanks a painting wrapped in dusty paper, climbs down. WILLIAM (CONT) Speaking of which... William hands the painting to Somerset, walks to a director's chair facing a paint-splashed canvas on an easel. He is a used- up man, bound in an apathy-induced haze. He sits, picks up a squeeze bottle of orange paint from a table of supplies. WILLIAM (CONT) I painted that about five years ago. I always told myself I'd give it to you next time I saw you. Somerset starts unwrapping the painting. William "paints," using the squeeze bottles and by flicking saturated brushes so that the paint flies against the canvas. Most times, he's not even looking at the canvas or colors he's using. He looks over his shoulder at Somerset. WILLIAM (CONT) Things are different these days, pal. You wouldn't believe it... Somerset looks at the unwrapped painting and is hit by a swell of memories. Horribly sad memories. It's a portrait in oils of a pretty, red-headed woman. William shoots red paint with one hand, concentrates on lighting a filterless cigarette with the other. WILLIAM (CONT) People buy my paintings now... they drive down in their BMWs and Rolls Royces. It's the new money generation. I guess they think they're touching the avant-garde... William looks at his creation, then calmly kicks the easel over. WILLIAM (CONT) There's another thousand dollar William McCracken expression of anarchy. William gets up, walks across the wet canvas, leaving footprints. He looks down at what he's done. WILLIAM (CONT) Make that two thousand. He laughs. Somerset holds up the delicately rendered portrait. SOMERSET How is she? Have you seen her recently? WILLIAM Huh... oh. No. She moved out of the city. Last winter. She married some businessman, or something like that. Somerset fights the anguish this causes, puts the painting down. SOMERSET Good for her. (pause) I'm leaving soon myself. I'm finally getting out. WILLIAM Yeah? What happened to the idealistic super-cop I used to know? SOMERSET He became a realist. William grunts, flicks his cigarette away, takes out a bag of pills. He palms a few, notices the judgment in Somerset's eyes. WILLIAM Oh... sorry. William turns his back to Somerset, pops the pills. Out of sight, out of mind. Somerset is disappointed, disgusted. SOMERSET (sarcastic) Not that I don't appreciate your recent artistic endeavors... but, what happened to the painter I used to know? William smiles like a dolt, laughs a little. WILLIAM I can't remember. INT. WILLIAM'S STUDIO/APARTMENT -- LATER NIGHT Color photos of the first and second murder sit on a drawing table. The top photos are like establishing shots, each taking in the entire display the murderer created. William examines with Somerset looking over his shoulder. WILLIAM Man... can I buy these from you? SOMERSET They're not for sale. Somerset lays out photos of the notes, triangle and circle: SOMERSET (CONT) What is it? What's the murderer trying to say? William narrows his eyes. Does not know. SOMERSET (CONT) What picture is he painting? WILLIAM (figuring) Wait a minute... William has an idea. He ambles over to a row of cabinets where oversized art books are stacked. He hunts through a pile, shoves some books aside. WILLIAM (CONT) I... I've seen things like that... SOMERSET Where? William keeps digging, finds one book, finds another. He opens one as he walks back to the drawing table. WILLIAM It's church stuff. Christianity. William lays a book down, finds a page. He opens it to Somerset. There is a circle to the side of the text. It says GLUTTONY under the circle. Somerset creases his brow, turns the page. William opens another book. WILLIAM (CONT) When it first started... Christian artwork was all from Bible stories. It was like... nobody had any imagination. It was all... standardized. William pages through and we catch glimpses of the bizarre, worlds of Hieronymus Bosch. Horrifying religious visions. WILLIAM (O.S.,CONT) But, later, everyone started painting to tell their own stories... to teach lessons. Guys like Bosch, Bregel the elder... Van Eycks. William shoves the open book to Somerset. Somerset looks: Seven paintings in a circular pattern showing characters giving in to sins. Wicked, grotesque people. Somerset turns the book to examine each painting right side up. SOMERSET (O.S.) The seven deadly sins. WILLIAM (O.S.) That's what these murders remind me of. Paintings like these. (points) Gluttony... greed... SOMERSET (O.S.) Envy, wrath, pride, lust and sloth. Seven deadly sins. WILLIAM Amen, brother. William goes to continue pulling other books. WILLIAM (CONT) I can find more examples. There's lots of paintings like those... painted over hundreds of years. (moves books) And you're right... that murderer is an artist. Somerset is chilled by all this, immersed in the Bosch book. SOMERSET And, it's two down... five to go. EXT. CITY STREET, PORNO DISTRICT -- NIGHT A bright, tawdry intersection. Neon swirls and circuit-bulbs on porno theatres provide the flash. Cars, taxies, and barkers urging sexual indulgence from doorways provide the noise. The streets and sidewalks are crowded with lonely humans, mostly men, looking around, sizing up promises made on porno placards: FUN WITH NUDES, BIG BOOBS, NAKED DESIRE, etc. The usual contingent of abnormal cretins wanders in the crowd, looking for someone to hurt. MOVE through the crowds. Meet JOHN, a balding, middle-aged man, wearing thick glasses. There is not a single thing strange or unusual about his appearance. FOLLOW him as he walks. He's nervous, looking at the porno palaces. His sweaty hand clutches a Bible tight against his chest. He doesn't feel comfortable being here. John walks to a corner, waits for the light so he may cross. A grotesque STREET PREACHER approaches waving his own Bible. People walk away from him, so he confronts John. PREACHER ...are you, Sir? Is Jesus Christ your Lord and Master? Do you believe in Him? John tries to ignore, traffic blocking his escape. PREACHER (CONT) (pleading) Don't ignore me. Listen to what I have to say. Christ can be your savior! JOHN (quiet anger) Leave me alone. PREACHER Think about God, sir. I can help you let Him into your life. Finally the light changes. John turns and spits in the preacher's face. The preacher recoils as John crosses quickly. John hurries between cars in the crosswalk. The preacher curses from the corner, his voice drowned out in traffic. EXT. ANOTHER CITY STREET, PORNO DISTRICT -- NIGHT People pass on the sidewalk. John is amongst them, but he stops, looking up at something offscreen. He's looking at a bright red storefront adorned with red neon: THE HOT HOUSE. Massage parlor. The Hot House's BARKER notices John's interest. BARKER Interesting isn't it, friend? You like that, you like girls, then come on in. John doesn't hear the barker. Steps up to study fading pictures of naked women massaging happy men. Nudity. BARKER (CONT) You'll see a lot more inside. You'll see a lot more than that. John's just looking, his face bathed in bright red light, the neon reflected in his thick glasses. INT. MILLS' APARTMENT BUILDING, HALLWAY -- NIGHT Somerset, holding more than an armful of art books and novels, pounds on the apartment door. Tracy opens it with the chain on. TRACY Can I help you? She takes a second to drink Somerset in. Somerset is surprised, having expected Mills. Tracy is so exquisite that he falters. SOMERSET Uh... I was looking for Mills. David, I mean. TRACY He's not here right now. Somerset tries not to drop any books while he digs up his badge. SOMERSET Mrs. Mills, my name is Somerset. If I could leave these books for him. TRACY (undoes chain) Please, come in. INT. MILLS' APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM/KITCHENETTE -- NIGHT Tracy leads Somerset into the disarray of the apartment. TRACY David went for a walk. To clear his head. Oh, you can put those here. SOMERSET Thank you. Tracy motions and Somerset puts the books on Mills' desk. He starts looking through one book, checking paperclipped pages. SOMERSET (CONT) Could you tell him... tell him this is his reading assignment. It's urgent. I've marked the most important pages. TRACY Would you like some coffee, or a drink. David should be back any minute. SOMERSET I do have to get going. Somerset sees a medal encased in glass on the desk amongst pens and pencils. He picks it up: it's a medal for valor from the Philadelphia Police Department. TRACY At least I got to meet you. David has told me a lot about you. SOMERSET Really? Good things, I hope. TRACY Oh, yes. He said you were very smart. SOMERSET Really? TRACY I think he's a bit intimidated by you. Somerset thinks about this, finds it hard to believe. He goes through his pocket, pulls out a notepad and some paper scraps. SOMERSET I'm going to leave him a list of specifics. It all relates to the case he's on. He lays the various scraps and receipts aside on the desk, sits to start writing on the notepad. Tracy goes to the kitchenette to get a chair. TRACY You two aren't working together anymore. Isn't that so? SOMERSET To be perfectly honest, Mrs. Mills... TRACY Tracy. SOMERSET Tracy. David and I weren't exactly what you could call fast friends. TRACY That's too bad. Tracy brings the chair over by the desk and sits. Somerset looks up from his writing. SOMERSET I doubt your husband shares that opinion. Tracy nods, leaning forward, semi-conspiratorially. TRACY You know, Somerset, David is very... determined. I'm sure you've seen, it's not likely he'll ever be compared to Gandhi. SOMERSET He's a good cop. He just... TRACY He sees policework as a crusade. That's what he wants it to be, and, that might sound naive, but he's made a conscious choice to be naive. (pause) Believe me, his heart's in the right place. Somerset pauses, enchanted by her. SOMERSET I hear you and he were high school sweethearts. TRACY Yeah. Pretty hokey, huh? But, what girl wouldn't want the captain of the football team as their lifelong mate? SOMERSET It's rare these days... that kind of commitment. TRACY I guess so. Tracy's smile falters a bit. Somerset notices this. He breaks from her spell, turns to continue writing. SOMERSET Well... this will only take a minute. TRACY Take your time. Somerset writes. Tracy looks over the stack of books: Titles on the spines: BOSCH, A HISTORY OF CHRISTIAN ART, BREGEL THE ELDER, etc. Hardcover novels: DANTE'S PURGATORY and THE CANTERBURY TALES. Tracy stands to look at the novels on top, then sees the pile of paper scraps from Somerset's pocket. She picks up the piece of wallpaper with the pale red rose at its center. TRACY (CONT) What is this? Somerset looks up. Sees her holding the paper rose. He takes it, slightly self-conscious, looks at it. SOMERSET My future. Tracy tilts her head, looking at Somerset. TRACY You have a strange way about you, Somerset... I mean in a good way... unusual. Somerset doesn't know what to say. He pockets the paper rose. TRACY (CONT) I apologize. I'll get out of your hair. Tracy stands, takes the chair back to the kitchenette. TRACY (CONT) It's just... it's nice to hear a man who talks like that. If David saw that paper, he'd say you're acting like a homosexual. That's how he is. SOMERSET (mock indignation) Well! I guess I won't be showing this to him then. TRACY I suppose not. Somerset continues writing. Tracy sits at the kitchenette table, watches him. INSERT -- TITLE CARD THURSDAY EXT. CITY MORGUE -- MORNING It's raining hard. Mills exits the morgue building with a few art books and a paper cup of coffee. He holds one art book over his head as he dashes through deep puddles in the street. INT. MILLS' CAR -- MORNING Mills gets in, puts his coffee on the dash and tosses the art books in a box. He closes the door. Alone with the sound of the rain. He wipes water off his face, looks at his tired eyes in the rearview mirror. He reaches in the box of books, takes out copies of The Canterbury Tales and Dante's Purgatory. He makes a face, opens Dante's Purgatory: ------------------------------------------------------------- | THE EARTHLY PARADISE | |-------------------------------------------------------- /\ | | / \ | | VII The Lustful /____\| | / | | VI The Gluttonous /_______| | 7 TERRACES OF / | | V The Avaricious / | | and Prodigal /__________| | PURGATION / | | / | | / | | IV The Slothful /______________| | / | | / | | / | | III The Wrathful /__________________| | / | | II The Envious /____________________| | / | | I The Proud /______________________| | / | | / | | / THE ISLAND | | / | | / OF PURGATORY | | / | |_______________________________/_____________________________| Mills turns to a bookmark, rests the book on the steering wheel. He reads. He bites his lip, leaning close to the words. He concentrates, mouths some of the words to himself. He finally closes the book, shaking his head, not understanding anything he's reading. He starts pounding the book against the steering wheel with all his might. MILLS Fucking Dante. Goddamn, poetry writing freak, mother-fuck... A figure outside the window knocks on the glass. Mills rolls it down. A COP in raincoat hands a wet paper bag through. MILLS (CONT) Good work, Officer. Good work. The cop leaves as Mills quickly rolls the window up and rips the bag open. Inside: Cliff Notes for Dante's Purgatory and The Canterbury Tales. MILLS (CONT) Thank God. INT. PRECINCT HOUSE, SOMERSET'S OFFICE -- DAY It still rains outside. Somerset enters, stops to notice DETECTIVE MILLS painted on the door where his name used to be. He walks, sees all his belongings have been moved from his desk and piled on a small temporary desk in the corner. Somerset sits at the temporary desk, starts organizing the files and papers. Mills enters carrying the box of books. SOMERSET How's it coming? MILLS Great. Mills puts the box on the large desk. They both settle in, attending to their work. Two men, about five feet apart, each trying not to acknowledge the other's presence. Mills takes out his Cliff Notes, looks to see Somerset is occupied, hides them in a desk drawer. Somerset finishes one form, flips it and looks up. There's a chalk board nailed to the wall. On the chalkboard: 1 gluttony(x) 5 wrath 2 greed(x) 6 pride 3 sloth 7 lust 4 envy The PHONE RINGS. Both men look at it. Phone RINGS again. SOMERSET It's your name on the door. Mills picks up. Somerset returns to his work. MILLS (into phone) Detective Mills here. (lowers voice) Honey, I asked you not to call unless... (listens) What... why? Okay... okay. Hold on. Mills is confused. He holds the phone out to Somerset. MILLS (CONT) It's my wife. Somerset looks quizzical. Mills shrugs. Somerset takes it. SOMERSET (into phone) Hello? (listens) Yes, well... I appreciate the thought, but... I... (listens) Well, I guess I'd be delighted to. Thank you... goodbye. Somerset gets up, hangs up, puzzled. Mills is waiting. MILLS Well? SOMERSET I'm invited to have a late supper with you and your wife. And I accept. MILLS How's that? SOMERSET (sits back down) Tonight. Mills looks at the phone, lost. INT. MILL'S APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM/KITCHENETTE -- NIGHT A record player on a moving box PLAYS QUIET MUSIC. There's a basketball game with NO VOLUME on the t.v. screen. Tracy, Mills and Somerset eat at the kitchen table. Mills has a beeper by his beer and occasionally fingers it absently. TRACY Why aren't you married, Somerset? MILLS Tracy. What the hell? Somerset adjusts his napkin on his lap, thinking. SOMERSET I was close. It just didn't happen. TRACY It surprises me you're not married. It really does. SOMERSET Any person who spends a significant amount of time with me finds me... disagreeable. Just ask your husband. MILLS No argument. Mills grins, but he means it. he sips beer. The conversation lapses into long silence. Somerset concentrates on his plate. Tracy looks at Mills, who eats while watching the basketball game. TRACY (to Somerset) How long have you lived here? SOMERSET Too long. Much too long. (drinks) What do you think of our fair city? TRACY You take the bad with the good, I suppose. It's... it's... MILLS It takes time to settle in. Tracy looks at Mills. Somerset can see it is a sore subject. SOMERSET (to Tracy) You'll get used to it pretty quickly. There are things in any big city that stand out at first. But... A LOW RUMBLING is HEARD as plates begin to rattle and clatter. TRACY Subway train. It's right below us/ The dishes clatter more. Coffee cups clink against their saucers. Tracy holds her cup to stop it, tries to act like it is nothing, but she is clearly bothered. TRACY (CONT) It'll go away in a minute. They wait. The t.v. picture goes fuzzy. The RUMBLING grows LOUDER, knocks something over in the sink. Mills continues eating. Somerset fiddles with his food. The record player skips, then plays on. The RUMBLING finally DIES DOWN, till everything is normal. MILLS (uncomfortable) This real estate guy... a real scum, brought us to see this place a few times. And, it was nice enough, and the price was right. I was thinking it was nothing, but I started to notice, he kept hurrying us along. I mean what could it be? Why would he only show it like five minutes at a time, before he'd hustle us out the door? Mills laughs, lamely. TRACY We found out the first night. Somerset tries to stay straight, but he can't help laughing. SOMERSET I'm sorry... it's a nice apartment. He pulls himself together, but only for a moment. He can't stop it, laughs harder, covering his mouth. Tracy and Mills laugh. MILLS (sighs) Oh, fuck. INT. MILLS' APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM/KITCHENETTE -- LATER NIGHT The record player spins a different album, DIFFERENT MUSIC. Tracy's clearing the last dishes into the sink. Mills and Somerset have beers. SOMERSET All television does is teach children that it's really cool to be stupid and eat candy bars all day. TRACY I don't think I've ever met anyone who didn't have a television. Tracy takes a pot of coffee to the table and pours. MILLS That's weird. It's un-American. Somerset shrugs. MILLS (CONT) What about sports? SOMERSET What about them? Tracy brings over a plate of cookies and puts it on the table. MILLS You go to movies at least. SOMERSET I read. Remember reading? What's the last book you read, Mills? MILLS T.V. Guide. Mills laughs. Burps. he turns to Tracy. MILLS (CONT) Excuse me. (to Somerset) I just have to say, I can't respect any man who's never seen Green Acres. Somerset gives a blank stare. Tracy walks away. MILLS (CONT) You've never seen The Odd Couple? The Flintstones? SOMERSET I vaguely recall Wilma, and someone named... Dino. Across the room, Tracy turns the t.v. and the record player off. She goes into the bedroom, shuts the door behind her without a word. Somerset and Mills turn to the closed door. They look at each other, then sit for a time. Somerset drinks coffee. Mills drums his fingers on his beeper. Big silence. INT. MILLS' APARTMENT BUILDING, STAIRWELL -- NIGHT Mills walks up the creaky stairs. He carries his briefcase, a six-pack and art books. Somerset follows, reading a case file. MILLS We think he acted like he was delivering a package. The doorman at Mr. Gold's building says he doesn't even look at anyone who goes in anymore. Mills opens a door to the roof -- EXT. MILLS' APARTMENT BUILDING, ROOFTOP -- NIGHT Mills and Somerset walk onto the roof. It is a spectacular view on all sides. Miles of city lights. Breathtaking. SOUNDS of the CITY reach them. SOMERSET No connection between the two victims? Mills shakes his head, unloads what he's holding onto a rusty table. He sits in one of two lawn chairs. Somerset sits across from him. SOMERSET (CONT) No witnesses of any kind? MILLS None. Which I can't understand. It's like this guy's invisible. SOMERSET In this city, minding your own business is a perfected science. Somerset takes a picture from the file, the drawing of the sun with an eye at its center. He opens a book, CHRISTIAN SYMBOLS, which is full of illustrations. He starts paging through. SOMERSET (CONT) At the precinct, Sunday nights, they offer a public crime prevention course. And, the very first thing they teach is that you should never scream "help" if you're in trouble. Scream "fire." Because people don't want to get caught up in anything. But, a fire... that's entertainment. They come running. Somerset holds the books up to Mills, points to a picture of the sun and eye, same as the drawing Mills found. SOMERSET (CONT) "The Sun in Splendor with the Eye." It refers to God the father, and to Saint Thomas Aquinas. MILLS Which saint is he? SOMERSET Aquinas wrote a summary of theology, Summa Theologica. And he wrote about the seven deadly sins. Mills takes the book and looks it over. SOMERSET (CONT) Now, what else have you got? MILLS Look, I appreciate being able to talk this out, but... it's my case. SOMERSET So... satisfying my curiosity. I'm still leaving town on Sunday. Mills is pondering, very tired. He unlatches his briefcase, takes a photocopy of the photo of the falsely pretty woman and hands it to Somerset. MILLS The eyes were circled. With Mr. Gold's blood. SOMERSET This is his wife? MILLS (nods) She was away on business. She got back the day he was killed. If this means she saw anything, I don't know what. We've questioned her about ten times. SOMERSET And, if it's a threat? MILLS We put her in a safe house. SOMERSET This is the one thing. MILLS I know. EXT. SLUM TENEMENTS -- NIGHT Two twenty-story tenement buildings stand practically underneath the span of a bridge. The streets are littered with garbage. Teenagers stand in cliques in front of a liquor store. Cars pass slowly, CAR STEREOS PUMPING out HIP HOP. Under the bridge, in shadow, a car is parked between two dumpsters. The trunk is open. AT THE BACK OF THE CAR The trunk is full of cardboard boxes which are in turn full of tall, orange candles. Hundreds of candles. JOHN leans in under the trunk's bulb, opens a leather pouch and checks the contents: A plastic bottle of prescription pills. A bottle of aspirin. A hypodermic needle filled with liquid. Lastly, many jars of baby food: STRAINED CARROTS, STRAINED SPINACH, CREAMED CORN, etc. INT. SLUM TENEMENT BUILDING, STAIRWELL -- NIGHT John climbs the stairs holding the leather case and a closed shoebox. He wears clip-on sunglasses, a hat pulled low, a thin overcoat on his plump body. INT. SLUM TENEMENT BUILDING, HALLWAY -- NIGHT John comes from the stairwell door, looks, walks up the hall. The walls are graffitied. The soiled floor is wet in spots. ARGUMENTS and LOUD CHILDREN are HEARD from behind closed doors. John comes to apartment 303. He's winded from the climb. He takes out keys, lets himself in. Closes the door. EXT. MILLS' APARTMENT BUILDING, ROOFTOP -- NIGHT Somerset stands at the edge, holding the photo of Mrs. Gold. He puffs on a cigarette, looks out at the city lights. SOMERSET It's like he's preaching. (pause) The sins were used in medieval sermons. There were seven cardinal virtues, and then seven deadly sins, as a learning tool. The sins distract man from true worship. True faith. Mills is seated at the table with art books open. A breeze fans the pages of the books. The flipping pages reveal views of heaven, hell, adoration, crucifixion and sin. MILLS Like in these paintings, and in Dante's Purgatory, right? But, in Purgatory, Dante and his buddy climb that big mountain... SOMERSET Seven Terraces of Purgation. MILLS Anyway... pride comes first, not gluttony. And in all the paintings, the sins are in a different order. I can't find a pattern. SOMERSET Because there's creativity in the mix. Consider these books as the murderer's inspiration. Or aspiration. Somerset drops his cigarette to the empty street, watching the glowing tip fall. He looks at the woman's circled eyes. SOMERSET (CONT) He sees himself contributing to the body of Christian work. MILLS He's punishing these people. SOMERSET For all of us to see and learn from. These murders are like forced attrition. MILLS What? Forced what? SOMERSET Attrition. When you regret your sins, but not because you love God. MILLS Because someone's holding a gun on you. Somerset thinks. He walks from the edge to Mills. SOMERSET When Mr. Gold's wife found the body, about how long was she in the apartment? MILLS She didn't find it. The door to the apartment was open and a neighbor... SOMERSET I thought you said she found the body. When she got back from a business trip. MILLS No. She got back after you and I had already been there. Somerset thinks, coming up with something. MILLS (CONT) What? Somerset holds up the photo of Mrs. Gold. SOMERSET Maybe she is supposed to see something... she just hasn't had a chance to see it yet. INT. SAFE HOUSE -- NIGHT The room is like a bland hotel room. Mills stands beside MRS GOLD. He shows her photos from the murder scene. Mrs. Gold is crying. Somerset stands across the room. MILLS Please, look for anything strange or out of place. Anything at all. MRS GOLD I... I don't understand. Why now? Mills helps her go through the photos. He is shaken himself, not wanting to put her through this. MILLS I need your help if we're going to get the guy who killed your husband. If there's anything in these pictures... Mrs. Gold sobs quietly, wipes her tears. MRS GOLD I don't see anything. MILLS Are you absolutely sure? MRS GOLD I can't do this now... please. ette to the empty street, watching the glowing tip fall. He looks at the woman's circled eyes. SOMERSET (CONT) He sees himself contributing to the body of Christian work. MILLS He's punishing these people. SOMERSET For all of us to see and learn from. These murders are like forced attrition. MILLS What? Forced what? SOMERSET Attrition. When you regret your sins, but not because you love God. MILLS Because someone's holding a gun on you. Somerset thinks. He walks from the edge to Mills. SOMERSET When Mr. Gold's wife found the body, about how long was she in the apartment? MILLS She didn't find it. The door to the apartment was open and a neighbor... SOMERSET I thought you said she found the body. When she got back from a business trip. MILLS No. She got back after you and I had already been there. Somerset thinks, coming up with something. MILLS (CONT) What? Somerset holds up the photo of Mrs. Gold. SOMERSET Maybe she is supposed to see something... she just hasn't had a chance to see it yet. INT. SAFE HOUSE -- NIGHT The room is like a bland hotel room. Mills stands beside MRS GOLD. He shows her photos from the murder scene. Mrs. Gold is crying. Somerset stands across the room. MILLS Please, look for anything strange or out of place. Anything at all. MRS GOLD I... I don't understand. Why now? Mills helps her go through the photos. He is shaken himself, not wanting to put her through this. MILLS I need your help if we're going to get the guy who killed your husband. If there's anything in these pictures... Mrs. Gold sobs quietly, wipes her tears. MRS GOLD I don't see anything. MILLS Are you absolutely sure? MRS GOLD I can't do this now... please. Mills looks at Somerset. Somerset holds other photos. MILLS We have to show her those. There might be something she's missing. Somerset looks at the photos in his hand, hesitant. These photos show Mr. Gold's corpse, not covered in any way. SOMERSET Have her look one last time. MRS GOLD Wait. Here... here's something... MILLS What is it? Mrs. Gold points at the constructivist painting on the wall in one photo. The painting is an abstraction of colored squares. MRS GOLD This painting... in the living room... MILLS What? MRS GOLD Why is it hanging upside-down? Mills jerks his head to look at Somerset. Big score. INT. LUXURY APARTMENT/CRIME SCENE, LIVING ROOM -- NIGHT This is where the greed murder took place. Somerset and Mills are taking the constructivist painting off the wall. Nothing on the wall behind the painting. Blank space. MILLS Nothing. SOMERSET This has got to be it. Somerset puts the painting down, resting it on its bottom edge. The frame is backed by a thick sheet of brown paper. He points to where the wire used to be screwed into the frame, and to where it has been re-screwed. SOMERSET (CONT) It has to be. He changed the wire to rehang it. Somerset tears along the edge of the brown paper to get to the space between it and the canvas. He tears out the entire sheet. Mills helps pull it away, but there's nothing there. Empty. Mills looks at both sides of the paper, then tosses it away. MILLS It's nothing. Somerset pays the painting down, face up. He pokes his finger on the painted surface. Mills watches as Somerset kneels, takes out a credit card and presses it's edge against the canvas, trying to peel up some of the paint. MILLS (CONT) Give it up. The killer didn't paint the fucking thing. Somerset pushes the painting away, stands, frustrated. MILLS (CONT) He fucked us. Somerset backs away from the wall, staring at the space where the painting hung. There is only a nail. He stares intently, then turns and walks out of the room. Mills holds his hands to his temples, furious. SOMERSET can be HEARD from the other room, going through drawers, dropping things. GLASS is HEARD BREAKING. Mills grabs a lamp and throws it on the floor. MILLS (CONT) Son of a bitch! Somerset comes back in, holding something. He steps over the lamp and goes to the blank wall space. MILLS (CONT) What? SOMERSET Bear with me. Mills watches. Somerset has a woman's make-up compact in hand. He opens it, uses the soft brush to begin applying the red rouge powder to the wall around the nail. MILLS (incredulous) Oh, yeah, sure. You got to be kidding. SOMERSET Shut up and wait! Somerset brushes with wider strokes. He blows, leans very close to the wall to study the powder. Leans closer still. Pause. SOMERSET (CONT) Call the print lab. Now. INT. MILLS' APARTMENT, BEDROOM -- NIGHT Tracy is asleep with lights on. She stirs, opens her eyes. INT. MILLS' APARTMENT -- NIGHT Tracy opens the door, enters. It's quiet. She sees Mills and Somerset are gone. She's all alone. Unhappy. EXT. MILLS' APARTMENT, FIRE ESCAPE -- NIGHT Through the window, we can see into the bedroom. Tracy comes back from the living room. She goes to her side of the bed, kneels. She reaches between the mattress and bedspring, takes out a paperback book she has hidden there. She comes to the window, opens it and climbs out onto the fire escape. She sits, dangles her feet through the metal bars. She opens the book and tries to read by the street light, resting her head against the railing. A WOMAN is HEARD SCREAMING distantly. Tracy looks down the empty street, unsettled. The woman is not heard again. Tracy lays back, looks at the sky, holding herself. We can now see the title of the book: PREPARING FOR PARENTHOOD. There is a picture of a baby on the cover. Tracy cries, quietly. INT. LUXURY APARTMENT/CRIME SCENE, LIVING ROOM -- NIGHT A MALE FORENSIC uses a magnifying glass to study a very clear fingerprint in black powder on the wall. FORENSIC Oh, boy... MILLS (O.S.) Talk to me. The forensic bites his lip, still studying. Mills and Somerset watch the forensic who works offscreen. MILLS (CONT) (to Somerset) Listen, honestly... have you ever seen anything like this? Been involved in anything remotely like this? SOMERSET No. I have not. FORENSIC (O.S.) Well, I can tell you this, detectives... The forensic steps down from a stool. Behind him, where the painting once was, there are fingerprints, clear and distinct. The prints have been left side by side, to form letters which form the words: HELP ME. FORENSIC (CONT) ...just by studying the underloop... these are not the victim's prints. INT. PRECINCT HOUSE, PRINT LAB -- NIGHT Dark. A TECHNICIAN sits before an old computer. The computer's green screen shows fingerprints being aligned, compared and then rejected; whir - click - whir - click - whir - click. Mills and Somerset watch, bathed in the green glow. SOMERSET It doesn't work for me. I can't believe he wants us to help him stop. MILLS Who the hell knows? There's plenty of schizoids out there doing dirty deeds they don't want to do. With tiny voices whispering nasty things in their ears. Somerset doesn't buy it. The technician adjusts a knob. TECHNICIAN I've seen this baby take three days to finish a cycle, so you guys can go cross your fingers somewhere else. INT. PRECINCT HOUSE, HALLWAY -- NIGHT Somerset and Mills come from the print lab. A janitor is mopping the hall. The computer is HEARD WHIRRING AND CLICKING onwards. Somerset sits with a groan on a couch outside the door. Mills flops beside him. SOMERSET You really meant what you said to Mrs. Gold. You really believe we'll get him, don't you? MILLS And you don't? SOMERSET I wish I still thought like you. I'm so far gone from that. MILLS So, tell me what you think we're doing. SOMERSET All we do is pick up the pieces. We take all the evidence... all the pictures, statements. Write everything down and note what time things happened. We take it all, make a nice, neat pile and file it away. Just in case it's ever needed in a courtroom. MILLS You're unbelievable. In my entire life, you're the oldest man I've ever met. SOMERSET I've seen even the most promising clues lead to dead ends. Hundreds of times. MILLS I've seen the same. I'm not the country hick-boy you seem to think I am. Somerset takes out a cigarette and lights it. SOMERSET In this city, if all the skeletons came out of all the closets... if every un- revenged corpse were to suddenly rise and walk again, there would be no more room for the living. Mills slumps back, crosses his arms, closes his eyes to sleep. MILLS Don't try to tell me you didn't get that rush tonight... that adrenalin. Like we were getting somewhere. (pause) And, don't try to tell me it was because you thought we found something that would play well in a courtroom. Somerset looks at Mills, puffs the cigarette. The computer is heard: whir - click - whir - click... INSERT -- TITLE CARD FRIDAY INT. PRECINCT HOUSE, HALLWAY -- EARLY MORNING Our detectives are fast asleep on the couch, leaning against each other. People pass and look at them strangely. CAPTAIN Wake up, Glimmer Twins. We have a winner. INT. PRECINCT HOUSE, READY ROOM -- EARLY MORNING A windowless classroom. The captain stands in front with a white screen at his side. The face of a black man, 25, ZERO, is projected on the screen from a slide projector. CAPTAIN His street name is Zero, as some of you know. His prints were found at the scene by Detectives Mills and Somerset. FIVE hardened POLICE OFFICERS, four men, one woman, sit in chairs facing the captain. They all wear bullet-proof vests with "POLICE" stencil-painted across them. Somerset and Mills sit in back, drinking coffee, still trying to wake up. CAPTAIN (CONT) Now, Zero has a long, long history of mental illness. Serious illness. He was all over your television sets two years ago after he raped and killed a seventy-three year old woman. He got off, as the saying goes, on a technicality. So we watched him on the streets, and he went out of circulation about a year ago. FEMALE COP If he disappeared, what do you want from us? CAPTAIN His last place of residence is still in his name. A search warrant is being pushed through the court as we speak. A red-headed cop, CALIFORNIA, 28, raises his meaty hand. CALIFORNIA So, have the housing cops walk up and ring the doorbell. Problem solved. The cops laugh. The captain clenches his jaw. CAPTAIN Listen, California. When you go in, if Zero isn't home, some of his buddies might be house-sitting. And besides using, Zero deals, so, you will be very uninvited guests. There is chatter among the cops. Somerset leans to Mills while the captain continues the briefing. SOMERSET Does not seem like our killer, does it? MILLS You tell me. I'm new in town. SOMERSET Zero does possess the requisite degree of insanity... but, he doesn't have the desire somehow. Our killer seems to have more purpose. More purpose than Zero could ever conceive of. MILLS We'll tag along. Somerset wants no part of that. SOMERSET Why would we? MILLS Satisfy our curiosity? INT. MILLS' CAR -- MORNING Mills drives, follows a police van. Somerset rides shotgun. Mills is pumped, ready. Somerset takes one Rolaids tablet off a fresh roll and chews it. MILLS You ever take one? Somerset pulls out his gun, checks the load. SOMERSET No. Never in twenty-four years. I took my gun out only five times with the actual intention of using it. I never fired it. Not once. MILLS I pulled it once, fired it once. I never took a bullet. SOMERSET And? Mills turns a corner, tires screeching. MILLS It was my first one of these. We were a secondary unit, in vice. I was pretty shaky going in. When we busted the door, looking for a junkie, the fucking guy opened fire. One cop was hit in the arm. He went flying... like in slow motion. (pause) I remember riding in the ambulance. His arm was like... a piece of meat. I thought, it's just his arm. But, he bled to death right there anyway. A pause. Somerset opens the window, feels the air on his face. SOMERSET How did the fire-fight end? MILLS Well, I was doing really good in Philly up till then. Lots of simple busts. I've always had this weird luck... but, this was wild. (pause) I got that fuck with one shot... right between the eyes. And the next week, the mayor's pinning a medal on me. Picture in the paper, the whole nine yards. SOMERSET How was it? MILLS I expected it to be bad, because I heard about other guys. You know... I took a human life. But, I slept like a baby that night. Somerset eats another antacid. SOMERSET I think Hemingway wrote somewhere... I can't remember where, but he wrote that, in order to live in a city, you have to have the ability to kill. I think he meant you truly must be able to do it, not just faking it, to survive. MILLS Sounds like he knew what he was talking about. INT. SLUM TENEMENT BUILDING, STAIRWELL -- MORNING Crack vials and hypodermic needles crunch under heavy boots. The five cops from the briefing, fully geared up, rifles and handguns held, move quickly up the stairs, single-file. Somerset and Mills follow, guns out. Somerset is sweating bullets. Mills is juiced. INT. SLUM TENEMENT BUILDING, HALLWAY -- MORNING The cops enter the dank hallway, the same hall we saw John in before. They move cautiously, stepping over a drunken, helpless man. A door opens and a woman peeks out. The female cop points her gun and the woman obeys, slamming the door. California leads, steps up to apartment 303. He has a search warrant scotch-taped to the front of his bullet-proof vest. CALIFORNIA (to black cop) This is it. Give it up. A black cop hoists a battering ram. The other cops get on both sides of the door. Mills moves front. Somerset hangs back. CALIFORNIA (CONT) Police!! Open the door! The black cop brings the ram forward with a splintering thud. The door flies open. The cops storm in. INT. SLUM APARTMENT, MAIN ROOM -- MORNING The cops charge down a short hall into this incredibly dusty room. A bed sits against a far wall. Mills and California move up to the bed. Someone lies under an indigo blanket. Three other cops move, training their weapons on the bed. CALIFORNIA Good morning, Sweetheart! A blond cop goes into another room. Mills kicks the bed. MILLS Get up now, motherfucker! Now! INT. SLUM APARTMENT, ADJOINING ROOM -- MORNING The blond cop enters, gun trained, looks around in confusion. The room's tables, chairs and floor are covered with hundreds of colorful, plastic air fresheners. INT. SLUM APARTMENT, MAIN ROOM -- MORNING Somerset moves in, looks around. He notices the area around the bed, the ceiling, walls and floor, has been painted indigo, while the rest of the room is its original white. On a wall, a white sheet is pinned up with a square drawn on it in excrement. MILLS I said get up, Sleepyhead! Mills pulls the indigo blanket off the bed, reveals the shriveled, sore-covered form of a black man who is blindfolded and tied to the bed with a thin wire wrapped time and time again around the bed. Tubes lead from the stained loincloth around the man's waist and snake under the bed. The victim is partially covered by what seem to be piles of black spaghetti. CALIFORNIA Oh, fuck me! Somerset pushes past the cops who recoil from the stench. MILLS Holy shit. SOMERSET Sloth... it's sloth. The black cop touches the black spaghetti. Holds a piece. BLACK COP What the hell... those are dead worms. CALIFORNIA (to Somerset) Check this out, dick. California points with his gun to the end of the black man's right arm. The hand is gone, severed at the wrist long ago. MILLS It's him. It's Zero. SOMERSET Someone call an ambulance. CALIFORNIA Someone call a hearse, more like. The female cop has gone to the wall where the sheet is pinned up. She pulls the sheet aside and finds: fifty-two polaroid pictures; all pictures of Zero tied to the bed, with a date written at the bottom of each. it is a visual history of Zero's physical decay. The blond cop enters from the other room. BLOND COP What the fuck is going on? MILLS Hey, California. Get your people out. Somerset takes out rubber gloves and puts them on. CALIFORNIA You heard him. Hit the hall, and don't touch anything. The other cops file out as Mills goes to examine the polaroids under the sheet. Somerset replaces the sheet over Zero's body. California stays by his side. CALIFORNIA (CONT) It looks like he's some kind of friggin' wax sculpture. Somerset places his finger along Zero's throat. MILLS Somerset, you... you better look here. Mills studies the polaroids. Somerset walks to join him. MILLS (CONT) All pictures of Zero tied to the bed. (crouches) The last one's dated three days ago. Somerset looks at the first photo. In it, Zero is bound and gagged, but he is fit, healthy. SOMERSET (awed) The first photo... it's dated one year ago. Almost to the day. California lifts Zero's blanket to peek under, examining with morbid curiosity. CALIFORNIA Mo-ther... Mills kneels and lifts the bottom of the sheet off the floor, finds an open shoebox. On the box: TO THE DETECTIVES. MILLS What's this? California leans close to Zero's gaunt, blindfolded face. CALIFORNIA You got what you deserved, Zero. Somerset leans down beside Mills. Mills looks through the shoebox. Inside are plastic, zip-lock bags. One bag contains small clumps of hair, one contains a yellow liquid... MILLS A urine sample... hair sample... fingernail clippings. He's laughing at us. California is still close to Zero's face when suddenly Zero's lips twist. Zero lets out a loud, guttural bark. California jerks back in fear, shouting, falling over a chair. Mills and Somerset reel, standing. They see California on the ground, scared out of his mind, pointing. CALIFORNIA He's alive! Mills and Somerset look towards the bed. Zero's lips move feebly as he lets out a sick, gurgling moan. CALIFORNIA He's still alive! EXT. SLUM TENEMENT BUILDING -- MORNING A crowd has gathered. Mills' car, the police van and two ambulances are parked on the sidewalk. INT. SLUM APARTMENT, HALLWAY -- MORNING The siege cops are in the hall, holding neighbors at bay. INT. SLUM APARTMENT, MAIN ROOM -- MORNING Three ambulance attendants are at the bed, working on Zero. One attendant uses wire-cutters to clip Zero's bonds. INT. SLUM TENEMENT BUILDING, STAIRWELL -- MORNING Mills and Somerset stand in the middle of one flight of stairs. They are both highly agitated. SOMERSET The way this has gone, I didn't think it was possible, but we may have underestimated this guy. The type of intestinal fortitude it must take... to keep a man bound for a full year. To sever his hand and use it to plant fingerprints. MILLS I want him bad. I don't just want to catch him anymore. I want to hurt him. SOMERSET Listen... we have to divorce ourselves from our emotions here. We have to keep focusing on the small details. MILLS I don't know about you, Somerset, but I feed off my emotions. SOMERSET He'll string us along all the way if we're not careful. Mills is looking at the floor, burning with anger. Somerset grabs him by the jacket. SOMERSET (CONT) Are you listening to me?! Mills pushes Somerset's hand off. MILLS I hear you. There is a sudden brilliant flash of light and the SOUND of a CAMERA ADVANCING. Mills and Somerset look -- Down the stairs, John is posing as a reporter. He has his camera and flash up, pointed at the detectives. JOHN Say cheese. He takes another picture, flashbulb flashing. Mills charges downwards, grabs John by his wrinkled clothing. MILLS What the fuck are you doing? John squirms, holds up a laminated PRESS identification pass. JOHN I have a right, Officer. I... Mills shoves him and John stumbles a few steps, then falls to the landing below with a thud. His glasses fly off. MILLS That doesn't mean anything. This is a closed crime scene now! Somerset steps down and pulls Mills back. John stands. JOHN You can't do this! You can't... MILLS Get the fuck out of here! John gets his glasses, scrambles downstairs, out of sight. JOHN (O.S.) The public has a right to know! Somerset yanks Mills harder, till Mills sits on the stairs. MILLS How do those cockroaches get here so quick? SOMERSET They pay cops for the inside scoop, and they pay well. You can hate them, but you better give them something, or they'll make it all up. MILLS (calming) I'm sorry... I just... SOMERSET Oh, it's alright. It's always impressive to see a man feeding off his emotions. INT. HOSPITAL ROOM -- DAY Mills stands with the blase DR. BEARDSLEY, who reviews a medical chart on a clipboard. Zero lies inside an oxygen tent with tubes running into him. The room is dark. BEARDSLEY A year of immobility seems about right, judging by the deterioration of the muscles and spinal cord. Blood tests show a whole smorgasbord of drugs in his system. Heroin... crack... even an antibiotic which was administered to keep the bed sores from infecting. Mills looks into the oxygen. MILLS He hasn't said anything, or tried to express himself in any way? BEARDSLEY Even if his brain were not mush, which it is... he chewed his own tongue off a long time ago. Mills winces, moves away from the bed. MILLS There's no way he'll survive? BEARDSLEY Detective, he'd die right now of shock if you were to shine a flashlight in his eyes. EXT. CITY STREET, CATHOLIC CHURCH -- AFTERNOON A tall church on a bustling street. Smoggy air has eaten at the stonework. The homeless are camped out on the stairs. INT. CATHOLIC CHURCH, PRIEST'S QUARTERS -- AFTERNOON The priest's accommodations are quite spacious and comfortable. The parish's wealth is evident. FATHER BLEEKER, 38, stands looking at several 8" by 10" glossies. He's dressed in his "civilian" clothing, wears his hair short and proper. These photos are making him heartsick. Bleeker hands them to Somerset who is seated by a fireplace. BLEEKER Put them away. I wish you hadn't brought them into the church. SOMERSET I needed for you to see them. Father Bleeker shakes his head, as if he were trying to forget the images. Somerset replaces the murder photos in a file. BLEEKER There were five principal phases in the development of early Christian art. From Hellenistic through the Renaissance... each period was affected by the decrees of religious leaders. SOMERSET If this killer belongs to a certain branch of the church... if he collects religious art from a certain period, I want to know. I have to narrow it down. Bleeker walks to an ornate, gold cabinet. He puts on a pair of cotton gloves. BLEEKER The influences on these... things he's done, couldn't have come before the Gothic period. What's in those pictures is presented far too asymmetrically. Bleeker crosses himself before using a key to open the cabinet. He takes out an ancient devotional book and a piece of cloth. BLEEKER (CONT) The colors will tell the tale. Bleeker takes the book to a table. Somerset follows. Bleeker lays the cloth under the book, opens the book, tenderly. BLEEKER (CONT) Each sin had a symbolic color. But the specific color designations changed throughout the ages. Somerset leans to examine Bleeker's illuminated manuscript: Two pages of prayer. The prose is elaborately formed, surrounded by colorful illustrations of the seven deadly sins. Bleeker's finger points to a rendering of a man seated on a rock, guzzling from a jug. It's been painted in orange. BLEEKER (O.S.,CONT) This is an example. Gluttony is the sin, and the color is orange. This particular manuscript is preserved from the 18th century. SOMERSET (O.S.) In the murders, gluttony is green. Greed is yellow. Sloth is indigo. Bleeker steps away and Somerset gets closer to the pages. BLEEKER So, if this murderer is as precise as you say, then you need to find out at what period in history was gluttony green... and so on. SOMERSET Where do I look? If the colors changed so often? BLEEKER (contemplates) There is one man... Father Stone. (pause) I haven't heard from him for quite some time. This was his passion. He spent his life studying the sins... and preaching against them. INT. PRECINCT HOUSE, SOMERSET'S OFFICE -- AFTERNOON The chalkboard on the wall: 1 gluttony (x) 5 wrath 2 greed (x) 6 pride 3 sloth (x) 7 lust 4 envy Mills is behind his paperwork covered desk, listening to a uniformed OFFICER who looks over a report sheet. OFFICER Zero's landlord said an envelope of cash was in the office mailbox each month. He says, quote, "I never heard a single complaint from this guy and nobody ever complained about him. He's the best tenant I ever had." MILLS There's a landlord's dream tenant. A paralyzed man with no tongue. OFFICER Who pays his rent on time. MILLS Bring me everything as soon as it's transcribed. The officer leaves. Mills starts sorting through piles on his desk. He doesn't know where to begin. He sits back in his chair, looks at the collage-like collection of pictures pinned on the walls: photos and diagrams of the murder scenes, the drawing of the sun and eye, color pages and black and white copies of pages from art books. He stares, thinking. He stands, takes a photocopy off the wall. The killer's first note: Dear Detectives, Long is the way, and hard, that out of hell leads up to the light. MILLS (to himself) Milton. INT. CENTRAL LIBRARY -- AFTERNOON Big brass lamps hang from the hig