Screenwriting Contest - "The Deliverance" by Tim Dammer

 THE DELIVERANCE

by

Tim Dammer

          EXT. STREET - MORNING

          A man in a suit and tie is running frantically down an urban street.
          He is RAYMOND TERRY, mid 20's and well built. His BREATHING
          IS HEAVY as he makes a sudden turn down a side street.

                              RAY (V.O.)
                    You're probably wondering why I'm
                    running.

          Ray hops over a fence and looks at his forearm which is covered
          in blood. He continues to run.

                              RAY (V.O.)
                    Well see, when you're good at what
                    you do and decide it's time to quit
                    during your prime...

          We now see that Ray is being chased by two THUGS in suits
          and ties. THUG 1 has a pistol tucked in his pants, THUG 2 a
          clenched fist ready to strike.

                              RAY (V.O.)
                    ...you can be sure there will be
                    unhappy people.

          Both thugs look enraged as they continue to chase Ray who
          makes another quick turn into an alley. Only until too late
          does Ray realize this alley has a dead end. Ray looks for an
          escape over the tall brick wall standing in his way. There
          is none.

          The thugs enter the alley and stop at the entrance blocking Ray's
          only exit. The thug with the gun aims it at Ray's head.

                              RAY (V.O.)
                    You can also be sure that one of
                    those unhappy persons will likely
                    be your employer.

          A sleek, expensive looking car behind the thugs slows to a
          stop. A man steps out slowly. He wears sunglasses and walks
          with a cane. He is THE BOSS. The car drives away as The Boss
          steps in front of his thugs. He looks at the thug with the
          drawn gun and nods to him. This signals the thug to pull the
          trigger.
 
                              RAY (V.O.)
                    Nobody ever told me how difficult
                    early retirement would be.

          Ray SHUTS HIS EYES just as a GUNSHOT RINGS OUT.

          INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT

          MATCH CUT TO SAME EYES as they snap open. We pull back on
          the blinking eyes to see Ray in bed.

          He tosses and turns unable to sleep.

          MONTAGE OVER RAY UNABLE TO SLEEP: IMAGES FLASH OF DIFFERENT
          PEOPLE RAY KILLS. HE SHOOTS A MAN IN BED, ANOTHER IN A CAR, AND
          A KNIFES ANOTHER IN AN ALLEY. Each kill quick and
          professional in manner.

          The lasting image we see is a WOMAN on a swing set cradling an
          infant in her arms. She gently sways back and forth as Ray
          approaches unnoticed from behind and raises his pistol.¬† He
          aims at the mother's head. BANG. WE HEAR THE CRIES OF A BABY
          who has just lost their mother. Ray's eyes reveal slight
          remorse.

          FLASH CUT BACK TO PRESENT: An ALARM CLOCK IS BEEPING. Ray shuts
          off the beeping alarm clock that reads 2:20AM. Ray gets out
          of bed, turns on a desk lamp, and opens a laptop. He opens a
          file on screen that says: DETECTIVE MURPHY.

          Ray looks through the file and we see the schematics of a house.
          We see an image of the exterior of a house. We see a picture
          of DETECTIVE MURPHY. He is muscular and has a shaved head.
          He wears a suit and tie and a golden police detective badge
          is clipped to his belt.

          Ray grabs a nearby medicine bottle and downs the pills like candy.
          He grabs a pistol out of a drawer and sticks it in his
          pants. He shuts off the desk lamp.

          EXT. STREET/HOUSE - NIGHT

          Ray drives along a dark road with sparse street lights. He pulls
          slowly up to the same house that was in the picture and
          shuts off his headlights. Ray quietly closes his car door
          and creeps to a side door of the house.
 
          INT. HOUSE - NIGHT

          Ray picks the lock to the side door and enters cautiously with his
          pistol drawn. We follow Ray and his flashlight beam through
          the cluttered house as he checks each room for his target.

          INT. MURPHY'S BEDROOM - NIGHT

          Ray finds the cramped master bedroom and the door is ajar.
          He quietly steps into the bedroom.

          On the dresser is a framed police academy diploma and a gold detective
          badge. We also notice a framed picture of Detective Murphy
          with his arm around the woman Ray killed on the swing set.
          She is holding a baby. They look like a happy family.

          Ray approaches the bed where Detective Murphy sleeps. Murphy has
          fallen asleep reading a book which his face is buried in.
          Ray carefully aims at Murphy's head. Beat. He thinks about
          it.

          THE CRIES OF AN INFANT FLOAT IN FROM A NEARBY ROOM. This startles
          Ray. These CRIES are familiar. It is the same baby from the
          swing set. Detective Murphy begins to stir awake which
          startles Ray. Ray quickly exits the room.

          Detective Murphy catches a glimpse of Ray as he leaves. He jolts
          out of bed and pulls a pistol from his sock drawer. Murphy
          goes to the next room and checks on his CRYING BABY. He sees
          that his baby is fine and quickly looks to see the front
          door wide open. Detective Murphy rushes out the front door
          to see Ray's car peel out of the driveway.

          INT. RAY'S CAR - NIGHT

          Ray tries to regain composure as he drives. He wipes sweat away
          from his brow and takes long deep breaths. Ray's cell phone
          RINGS which brings him out of his sleepy trance. He looks at
          who is calling and looks unsure if he should pick up. After
          a moment, Ray silences the phone and throws it on the
          passenger seat.
 
          INT. BOSS' CAR - MORNING

          The Boss is seated in the back seat of a car and lowers his
          cell phone from his ear and looks at it frustrated. He
          thinks for a moment and begins dialing new numbers.

          EXT. GAS STATION - MORNING

          One of the Thugs from the beginning is pumping gas into his
          car. His cell phone RINGS and he picks it up quickly.

                              THUG 1
                         (into phone)
                    Yeah. Saw it coming too Boss...yeah
                    we'll take care of him.

          Thug 2 exits the gas station with a cup of coffee in hand.
          Thug 1 hangs up the phone.

                              THUG 1
                         (to THUG 2)
                    We've got a situation. We're
                    heading to Ray's place.

          Thug 1 starts up the car and speeds away.

          INT. RAY'S CAR - MORNING

          Ray looks very nervous as he parks his car in an abandoned
          school parking lot. He gets out and jogs through a couple
          backyards and reaches the back porch of a small house.

          Ray looks around to make sure no one is watching or
          following him and quickly reaches under a potted plant where
          a key lies. Ray unlocks the back door quickly and enters the
          house.

          INT. RAY'S HOUSE - MORNING

          Ray grabs a gym bag and scramble around his small house
          grabbing food, a pistol, and other necessities. Ray stops.
          He thought he heard something.
 
          Ray looks out his window shades to see the Two Thugs getting
          out of a car across the street. Ray watches as both Thugs
          pull weapons discreetly from the coats. Thug 1 has a pistol
          drawn and Thug 2 has menacing knife. They approach the
          house.

          Ray grabs his own pistol and heads to his bathroom. He locks
          the door behind him and waits with pistol drawn. He listens
          as we hear the front door's lock is picked. Ray listens. He
          hears only one pair of feet walking across his wood floor.

          Ray opens his bathroom window. Looks out and jumps down. He
          quickly makes his way around to the back yard. Ray is in a
          full run when Thug 2 pops out from behind a tree and trips
          Ray. Ray stumbles to the ground. Thug 2 pounces on Ray who
          is the more skilled fighter.

          Ray and Thug 2 grapple for a few seconds and Thug 2 manages
          to slice Ray's forearm with a quick slash. Ray knocks the
          knife out of the Thug 2's hand and head butts the thug. This
          stuns Thug 2 long enough for Ray to get to his feet and run.

          Thug 1 exits the back door quickly to see Thug 2 getting to
          his feet. Both thugs begin to chase Ray.
                         
          EXT. STREETS/ALLEY - MORNING

          Ray continues to run like a mad man with the thugs close behind
          him. We see FEET moving quickly. We hear HEAVY BREATHING.
          The chase is on.

          Ray cuts down side streets and alleys and still can't shake the
          thugs. He jumps over a fence and looks at his bloody
          forearm. He continues to run.

          Ray makes a quick turn down a back alley only to find it's a dead end.
          Too late. The thugs block Ray's exit. Thug 1 draws his gun
          as a car pulls up. The Boss steps out and nods to Thug 1 who
          smiles menacingly. He is about to pull the trigger. ECU OF
          FINGER ON TRIGGER.

          This is it for Ray. He shuts his eyes. WE HEAR FIVE SHOTS RING
          OUT. Ray winces. He opens his eyes and checks his body which
          is unharmed.
 
          We pull back to see the lifeless bodies of the Boss and his two
          thugs. Detective Murphy holds the smoking pistol. His badge
          gleams in the sunlight. Ray and Detective Murphy stare at
          each other for a moment. Both frozen. Beat. Detective Murphy
          lowers his pistol and Ray exhales in relief.

                                                  FADE TO BLACK: