The Skull Ring (45 page)

JULIA

Death? I thought she was missing.

WALTER

A thing like that, you know it in your heart.

JULIA

I thought Wheatley was missing, too.

WALTER

Only when he wants to be.

JULIA

Damn you. Not you, too.

She jumps out of the Jeep, runs to her house, slams door.

CUT TO:

INT. JULIA'S LIVING ROOM.

Julia waits with her back at the door for a moment, half-expecting Walter to use his key. Nothing. Julia goes to her bedroom.

CUT TO:

INT. BEDROOM.

From POV of someone watching from the woods. Julia approaches her dresser and opens her jewelry box.

The engagement ring is gone, replaced with the skull ring. Julia looks around, goes to the window, and closes the curtains.

CUT TO:

EXT. WOODS BY THE RIVER- NEXT MORNING.

Julia, pale, is led by the brawny cop to the crime scene. They stoop under the yellow tape.

Rick O'Dell's body is on the ground, face down. The leaves around him are dark with blood.

A crime scene photographer takes pictures. Lt. Snead walks up to Julia and smiles.

SNEAD

The privileges of the press, Julia.

JULIA

(barely able to speak)

What happened?

SNEAD

We'll have to wait for the coroner's report. But I'd guess he was talking a little too much.

JULIA

Why's that?

SNEAD

They took his tongue.

(beat)

Cut his heart out, too. And they say men don't have them.

JULIA

Any suspects?

SNEAD

Hundreds. And none of them have faces.

JULIA

Do you think it's related to the first murder?

SNEAD

Serial killers? You reporters love that, don't you? Almost as much as a conspiracy theory. All I know is whatever crazy fucker we catch will say, "The devil made me do it."

JULIA

The devil doesn't exist.

SNEAD

That's exactly what he wants you to believe.

Snead walks away.

CUT TO:

INT. DR. FORREST'S OFFICE- AFTERNOON.

The curtains are darker and drawn. The chairs are closer together. Julia looks small and defeated as she sits. Dr. Forrest stands over her.

DR. FORREST

Can you remember?

JULIA

Forget, remember. Which one am I supposed to do now?

DR. FORREST

You forget the new things and remember the old. You want to get better, don't you?

JULIA

Too much is happening at once. Rick's death, Mitchell's attack, Walter's wife—

DR. FORREST

You're getting confused again, Julia. I don't like this.

JULIA

Why did you tell me that you had been abused, too?

DR. FORREST

So you'd know that you're not alone. Except you still don't trust me.

JULIA

I told you everything.

DR. FORREST

You found a skull ring in Memphis.

JULIA

I—

DR. FORREST

Julia. You shouldn't keep secrets from your therapist.

JULIA

I'm not keeping secrets.

DR. FORREST

You talked to a detective. You went back to your childhood home. You saw the barn where you suffered Satanic ritual abuse. Why didn't you tell the police about the skull ring?

JULIA

I don't trust them.

DR. FORREST

Julia, that sounds like paranoid thinking. You want to be healed, don't you?

JULIA

Yes.

DR. FORREST

You want to be free, don't you?

JULIA

(closing eyes)

Yes.

DR. FORREST

Freedom is surrender, Julia.

JULIA

Surrender.

DR. FORREST

He owns you, Judas.

Julia's eyes open. Dr. Forrest's face is inches away.

DR. FORREST (CONT'D)

There's someone here to see you, Julia.

Snead enters the room as if he's been listening at the door.

SNEAD

You don't like me, do you, Julia?

JULIA

How come you followed me from Memphis?

DR. FORREST

(to Snead)

I told you she was paranoid.

SNEAD

(to Julia)

I didn't follow you. I was already here.

(beat)

I'm a friend of Dr. Forrest's. And I've talked with your therapist in Memphis. I'm concerned about you, Julia.

JULIA

Did you find out anything about Rick's murder?

SNEAD

Who says it was murder?

JULIA

What's the matter with you two? A man is dead and you're acting like I'm the one who's done something wrong.

DR. FORREST

Julia, Julia. That's not the path to healing. You can lie to us all you want, and that doesn't matter. What matters is that you're lying to yourself.

(to Snead)

She said she saw two red eyes at her window last night.

SNEAD

(to Julia)

Are you sure you weren't dreaming?

Julia shakes her head, not sure of anything.

DR. FORREST

Let's pretend that a creep really is after you. What was it you think this person said?

JULIA

"He owns you."

DR. FORREST

"He owns you." And what do you think this means, Julia?

JULIA

I don't know what it means.

DR. FORREST

I'll tell you what it means. You're still a slave to the past. You're denying the truth. But the fact that you're ready to hear the message is a good sign, even if it came in a dream.

JULIA

I wasn't dreaming. And I don't want to talk about this in front of him.

SNEAD

You might know something that can help us.

DR. FORREST

You trust me, don't you? We're moving forward.

Julia stands and paces.

JULIA

We're not moving forward. I'm going backwards, back to that four-year-old girl who saw horrible things.

DR. FORREST

You know who the bad man really is. What did he do, Julia? Tell us what he did.

Dr. Forrest and Snead close in on Julia, working together, hammering her with questions.

SNEAD

Tell us, Julia.

DR. FORREST

Julia, trust us. We understand, more than anybody in the world. We know what it's like, how hard it is to accept the truth. How hard it is to accept the master.

SNEAD

We don't want you to fight it any longer, Julia. He doesn't want you to fight. He's been very patient with you because he cares for you so very much.

JULIA

Who cares?

DR. FORREST

You might wonder why he bothers, when he has so much power that he can easily take what is his.

Julia shakes her head. She sits in her chair again.

DR. FORREST (CONT'D)

I'll tell you why he's so patient, Julia. Because he loves you.

SNEAD

He owns you, Jooolia.

JULIA

(to Snead)

I found something in my closet the other night.

SNEAD

What's that, Julia?

JULIA

The drawing.

Dr. Forrest and Snead exchange looks.

DR. FORREST

Drawing?

JULIA

A picture of a pentagram. With 'Hello Julia' underneath, only 'Julia' was spelled 'Jooolia' with three O's in the middle, just like Daddy used to spell it when he was teasing me.

SNEAD

Where is this picture now?

JULIA

I gave it to Dr. Forrest.

Dr. Forrest looks sadly at Julia, then at Snead. She shakes her head.

JULIA

What?

DR. FORREST

There's no picture, Julia.

JULIA

(standing)

What do you mean, there's no picture? I gave it to you yesterday.

DR. FORREST

You're imagining things again.

JULIA

(to Snead)

I gave her the picture, right here in this room. Yesterday.

DR. FORREST

Please sit down.

JULIA

What did you do with it?

DR. FORREST

Sit down.

(to Snead)

She's worse off than I thought.

JULIA

(not sitting)

It's not me that's crazy, it's all of you.

Julia runs for the door, throws it open, and flees the office.

DR. FORREST

Julia!

Dr. Forrest and Snead smile at each other and kiss.

DR. FORREST

The master will be pleased.

SNEAD

Not half as pleased as Wheatley.

CUT TO:

EXT. MOUNTAIN ROAD- LATE AFTERNOON.

Julia wildly drives her car up the winding road toward her house. As she pulls up, Mabel Covington comes off of her porch, walking stick in hand. Julia gets out of the car as Mabel hobbles over.

MABEL

He's here. He come back.

JULIA

Who's here?

(looks at apartments)

The Peeper?