The Edge
[snowy
woods]
[assault team maneuvers toward a large mansion; men
surround the house quietly, as one team takes the front
door off its hinges, and another team throws grappling
hooks to the 2nd floor, and a lone man enters
through a window; they enter the house; Vecchio’s team
runs upstairs, to find a man holding a syringe to a
woman’s
neck]
Fraser:
Freeze!
Assassin: Shoot
me and my hand squeezes 3cc’s of Lake Michigan into her
neck. PCBs’ll cause cancer. The other toxins will cause
meningitis, leprosy, dementia, and internal hemorrhaging,
and ultimately a very agonizing death.
Ray:
Fraser?
[Fraser’s team appears behind the assassin, who backs
against the
wall]
Fraser: Well,
the threat of leprosy’s probably overstated. There’s only
been seven known cases in this area--
Assassin: Back
off!!
Ray: Any
ideas?
Fraser: If you
take a shot, he stabs her. If I take a shot, he stabs
her.
Hostage (Anita
Cortez): [Spanish,
sounds like “Agarralo!”
– “Get
him!”]
Assassin: Shut
up!
[the lone man watches from behind a
door]
Fraser: Between
the shot and the time it’ll take him to depress the
plunger, we have a half-second window of opportunity. Not
enough time.
Anita:
Disparen!
Shoot him!
Fraser: I don’t
have a shot.
Ray: Neither
do I.
Anita:
Miedo lo.
[“I’m afraid of
him.”]
Shoot him!!
Ray: Any other
ideas?
Assassin: The
idea is that we’re gonna move straight ahead together, and
then we’re going to walk out of here.
Ray: Bad
idea.
Assassin:
Time’s up, boys!
[Anita bites him... Vecchio fires, hitting Fraser in the
neck...Vecchio runs and tackles both assassin &
hostage to the
ground]
Ray:
Fraser?
Bennett: Ladies
and gentlemen, what you have just seen is a perfect
example of what not to do in a training exercise. If this
was a real hostage situation, you would have just killed
the Secretary of State.
[throws syringe at
Vecchio]
Thanks, Nick.
Agent : Thanks, Agent Cortez.
Assassin : Thanks, guys.
Agent 2 : Good going, Nick.
[Assassin exits]
Bennett : I can only hope that the cooperation between our three nations will be more productive at the summit conference. Oh god, help us all. [exits]
[lone man breaks into a filing cabinet & removes a file]
[27th precinct; Welsh’s
office]
Ray: In what
manual does it say you bite the assassin?
Anita: Well, I
had to do something. You weren’t going to.
Ray: But you’re
the hostage!
Anita: Oh, so
we are just a third world country, we are not supposed to
fight back? Gringo
baboso!
(“foreign idiot”)
Ray : Baboso?
Fraser
: A Spanish explorer.
Ray: That’s not
what she said. I know what you said. That is not what you
said. She did not say Spanish explorer!
Fraser:
Ray-Ray-Ray please-please, please. This entire situation
was my fault.
Anita: The
American shot him. Why is he apologizing?
Welsh: He’s
Canadian.
Thatcher:
People, enough. It is imperative that the North American
Free Trade Summit operates without incident. This
conference is a milestone in the relations between our
three countries. It’s about cooperation. It’s about
growth. It’s about--
Ray:
Money?
[enter Bennett & three other
men]
Welsh: Ah, Mr.
Bennett.
Bennett:
Lieutenant.
Welsh: Mr.
Bennett is the US trade official in charge of this summit.
And I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure.
Helms:
Helms.
Bush : Bush.
Casey
: Casey.
Ray: Secret
service?
Helms: That’s
need to know,
Detective...Vecchio?
Now Washington has received some very scary, very
believable threats to the safety of the summit. Due to the
large crowds of press and demonstrators expected, security
consideration has become a nightmare. Let me just say,
nothing will interfere with the security and safety of
this summit conference.
Bennett:
Special Agent Helms will be heading up security. Now our
respective countries are all counting on this joint task
force to be an example of international cooperation. I
trust I can count on you.
[Bennett, then Helms, Bush, and Casey
leave]
Welsh: Meaning
if you screw up, we’re all toast.
Ray: Look, this
could be a problem, sir. I don’t think we really bonding.
Perhaps Fraser and I should be the ones--
Welsh: Listen,
Vecchio. The three of you have less than 72 hours to, uh,
bond.
Ray: This is
not enough time, sir.
Welsh: Vecchio,
are you familiar with that old Spanish expression "el
gardio del traffico?"
Ray:
Understood, sir. We will be a well-oiled machine by
tomorrow.
Anita: The
American shot you.
[takes a cloth and begins to wipe paint off of Fraser’s
neck]
Fraser: I don’t
think he intended to.
Thatcher: Thank
you. We clean our own personnel here.
[takes over the wiping, then realizes what she’s doing;
everyone looks at
her]
[Riv]
Ray: Look, it
was a simple mistake.
Fraser: No, it
was a miscalculation. And I haven’t made a miscalculation
since....
Ray: Since
when?
Fraser: Well,
since the last time you shot me. I’m just grateful you had
the presence of mind to shoot me again.
Ray: Well, it
wasn’t my fault. She jumped the gun.
Anita: She
heard that.
Ray: I
know.
[phone company window; Vecchio dings the
bell]
Ray: Police,
anybody home?
Man:
ID?
[we can’t see his face: the shade is partly
drawn]
Fraser: It’s
Constable Benton Fraser, Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
I’m here on behalf of the, uh, joint security task force
to pick up the telephone security codes for the Trade
summit. I believe you were expecting us?
Man: Your
health insurance number.
Fraser:
559-764-921.
Man: Mother’s
maiden name?
Fraser:
Pinsent.
Man: Code word
of the day?
Fraser:
Manatee.
Man: Sign here,
please.
[Fraser signs a clipboard; Man stamps an envelope &
hands it through the
window]
Fraser: Thank
you kindly.
Man: Thank
you.
Ray: What’s
with all this security hocus-pocus for a trade
meeting?
Anita: Not any
trade meeting. Top
NAFTA
representatives.
Ray: Yeah,
well, in my country, nobody knows what NAFTA is or
cares.
Fraser:
Somebody does apparently, enough to--
[abruptly stops
walking]
Ray:
What?
Fraser: That
security official stamped this document rather hard.
Ray: Yeah,
well, those phone company boys are tough.
Fraser: Yeah,
but if you stamp documents all day long and you do it that
hard, Ray, you develop tendonitis. So you start to use
a...a rolling motion.
[they rush to the window & look in, and see the real clerk tied up]
Clerk
:
[muffled]
Help!
Anita: Are you
all right? [Fraser
& Anita untie
him]
Okay.
[Fraser finds an
envelope addressed to Constable Benton
Fraser]
[mansion]
Helms:
[reading]
“You know what it is to love your home and
lose it. I am losing mine. Canadian forests are being
destroyed to build houses in America. American forests are
being destroyed to build houses in Mexico. Trade
representatives Sinclair, Franklin, and Tedesco have
betrayed us. I will see them die before they are allowed
to betray their countries again.” Lunatic. And you say you
don’t know this man.
Fraser: Not to
my knowledge, no.
Helms: But he
knows you.
Fraser: It
would appear so, yes.
Helms: Yes, it
would.
Bush: You
didn’t get a look at his face?
Fraser: The
blinds were down, the room was dark.
Casey: The room
was dark, or your eyes weren’t sharp, Constable?
Fraser: My
eyesight is fine, thank you.
Helms: Just not
today.
Fraser:
No.
Casey: You’ve
been working in law enforcement for some time, haven’t
you, Constable?
Fraser: For
some time, yes.
Helms: Is there
anything going on, either physically or emotionally, that
could be putting you off your game?
Fraser:
No.
Bush: Did you
observe anything
about this person, Constable?
Fraser: I
observed many things. The most salient feature was his
hands. He spent a lot of time out-of-doors. He worked with
his hands.
Helms: Somebody
walked away with top secret copies of a summit telephone
codes right under your nose, Constable, and the only thing
that you can recall, is that perhaps he spent a lot of
time out-of-doors. You weren’t on the detail at the Prime
Minister’s residence during the break-in last year, were
you?
Fraser:
No.
Helms: Keep in
touch.
[Fraser’s apartment; Fraser is preparing
dinner]
Fraser:
[to
Dief] I
made a mistake. No. I made two mistakes. Oh boy. You know,
they say your muscle tone and reflexes start to go in your
early twenties. Of course, in your case that would be in
your early threes. But we’ve made up for it, haven’t we?
We have increased knowledge, we have increased skill...
Yes, eat up quickly. We have to go to bed early.
[in bed; Fraser is
dreaming: a heartbeat, whispering...then Fraser is sitting
in an interrogation room, facing three empty chairs; he
wears his longjohns and holds his pillow... the clock
ticks, the overhead light swings... three boys now sit in
the chairs... (on the table: a solved Rubix Cube in front
of Bush, a toy gun in front of Helms, money in front of
Casey)]
12-year-old
Bush: A burglar got inside the Prime Minister’s
residence, Constable, while the PM was at home. And where
were you?
Fraser: In
Chicago, sir.
12-year-old
Helms: You think it was appropriate for you to be
hundreds of miles away in a foreign country, when you PM
was facing that kind of threat?
Fraser: Of
course not.
12-year-old
Casey: Fitness is not just about strength and
reflexes. It’s about judgement.
Fraser: Yes,
sir.
12-year-old
Bush: [appears
over Fraser’s
shoulder]
I can’t hear you!
Fraser: Yes,
sir!
12-year-old
Helms: [across
the room]
Over here, Constable.
Fraser: Yes,
sir!!
[all back at the
table]
12-year-old
Bush: Eyesight, I understand, is the first thing to
go.
[all laugh at
Fraser]
Fraser:
[waking
up] Yes,
sir!
[Dief whines]
Fraser
: Just a bad dream. Go back to sleep.
[Dief lies down, and
begins dreaming: circus-type music; Dief is the lead dog
of a sled team; a person walks over and unlatches
him]
Person: Come
on, old timer. You’re out of here.
[Dief is led away, and a very young pup replaces him; the
team & sled move on, and Dief can only sit by and
watch them
go]
[airport]
[corridor]
Thatcher:
[to
Fraser]
We’ll have our trade representative stay on the plane an
extra five minutes. Then he’ll meet up with the others, go
out the back entrance. No need to tell the Americans or
the Mexicans.
[going up
escalator]
Helms
: The American trade representative will come out of the
hatch second. The guy in front will be a look-a-like. Our
guy will wait five minutes, then enter the terminal.
Casey: Don’t
tell the Mexicans or the Canadians.
[near gift
shops]
Official
: [in Spanish,
subtitled]
“Our man will stay for 5 more minutes in the plane. The
Canadian comes in the back. The American is a
double.”
Anita:
[subtitled]
“How do you know this?”
Official:
[subtitled]
“That’s the advantage of being Mexican,
they always think we’re sleeping... but don’t tell the
Americans or the
Canadians.”
[a photographer enters the restroom; a large man
chloroforms him, then takes the cameras and
cases]
[gate; the trade group exits from plane, various agents
greet
them]
Bush:
[into hidden
microphone]
Blue Jay is on the gangway. On your toes.
Vecchio : [to Fraser] They’re on the move.
[Vecchio, Fraser, & Cortez are on high alert, scanning
the
crowds]
Ray: You see
anything?
Fraser:
Nothing.
[the trade group
comes down the stairs, under heavy escort, past the
raucous reporters and protesters]
Ray: Move aside
please. Move aside, come on.
[they move through the busy airport, still flanked by the
press... a man passing the other way snaps a flash picture
and pulls a gun out of his
pocket]
Fraser:
[into lapel]
Gun
left.
Bush: Gun left!
Down!
[all agents draw their guns and protect the trade group,
and all passersby drop,
screaming]
Ray: Get down!
Everybody down! Down, down!! Everybody down!
[Fraser takes off after the fleeing man, up the stairs...
but he lost him; Vecchio & Anita arrive at the
top]
Anita: What
happened?
Ray: You see
anything?
Fraser: I don’t
know.
[mansion; Fraser is addressing
envelopes]
Ray: Bruce
Cabot. C-A-B-O-T. Enid Cabot.
C-A-B-O-T.
Jacques Camdessus. C-A-M-D-E-S-S-U-S. Boy, we’re making a
difference for democracy, here.
Anita:
[entering]
They called the airport. No one saw a
gunman. No one saw anything. Nothing. Nada. Sometimes a
camera lens, if you look at it from a different angle,
possibly--
Ray: He saw his
hands. Right?
Fraser:
Yes.
Ray: He saw a
gun. Right?
Fraser:
Yes.
Ray: Read the
report. There’s a Spanish translation.
Anita: You
believe your friend, very touching. Also very
American.
Ray: You know,
I’m getting a little sick and tired of your disrespect.
You are a visitor in this country.
Anita: Ah.
Thank you, Vecchio. I had forgotten the Alamo.
Ray: Is that a
slam against Davy Crockett?
Anita: Do you
make an effort to be obnoxious, or is it just a
gift?
Ray: It’s just
a gift.
Fraser: He was
here.
Ray: Who was
here?
Fraser: The
assassin. During the training exercise. He saw me
miscalculate.
Anita: Well, he
would look for a weak spot.
Ray: Oh, come
on, this place is crawling with SWAT. He couldn’t get
within a mile.
Fraser: He
could if he was one of them. My security clearance. It was
in with the task force file.
[enter Special
Agents]
Helms: Okay,
listen up. The psych boys in Washington have been working
overtime. We got a profile on our man based on his letter.
First, he’s a woman.
[Vecchio
snickers]
Anita:
What?
Casey: One of
those retro-sixties types. You know, ban the bomb, kiss a
whale. Your typical sandal-wearing,
lavender-smelling--
Bush:
--granola-crunching, tree-hugging--
Helms:
--subversive.
Ray: Who
happens to be armed to the teeth.
Helms: That’s
what the profile says.
Anita: Do you
have a list of suspects?
Helms: The
moment we got something definite, I’ll let you know.
Bush: You find
out if, and when.
Anita: What
happened to all of us being in this together?
Helms: Some of
us are in it more than others. Now, Cortez, you and
Vecchio take over for Montoya and Brewster on the first
floor east wing. [to
Fraser]
You. You stick to your strengths.
[all exit but Fraser; he sits down at the desk, then changes mind & leaves, passing the Agents as Helms shares his mints]
[Fraser and Dief peruse the outside grounds; Anita steals
into the file room & locks door behind her, finds a
file, and copies
it]
[mansion grounds; Fraser & Dief inspect
footprints]
Robert Fraser:
Same boots. Army issue
Fraser: Oh,
hi.
Robert Fraser:
Hi. These have been resoled with used rubber. Michelins.
The man knows his tires.
Fraser: What
kind of man soles his own shoes?
Robert Fraser:
A thrifty one. Look at the way he walks. The curl from the
ball of the foot to the outside. Light. Careful. Like a
predator. He’ll be seen when he wants to be seen.
Fraser:
Military training, combat experience.
Robert Fraser:
Indeed.
Fraser: Is this
a dream, or are you still dead?
Robert Fraser:
Still dead, son. Thanks for
asking.
[file room; Anita hears a noise at the door, and scrambles
to get away with her
copies]
Ray:
[bursting in]
And what do you think you’re doing in here?
Anita: Probably
the same thing you are.
Ray: Oh, I’m
here on official business.
Anita: Oh. Is
that why you had to pick the lock?
Ray: I’m not
the one who was caught red-handed. Do you know that the
contents of that file are American government
property?
Anita: What’s
in this file could help save a Mexican diplomat’s life.
I’m not going to allow him to die over some American
need-to-know power game.
Ray: Well then,
you better be prepared to share.
[grabs
file]
Anita:
[grabs file
back] I
don’t share with people I don’t trust.
Ray:
[grabs file
again] Me
neither.
Anita: Fine.
Make your own copies.
[leaves with her
copy]
[snow-covered woods]
Fraser
: Our man is 192.5 centimeters in height and weighs... a
hundred and nineteen kilos.
Robert Fraser:
And 52 grams.
Fraser: You
can’t possible know that.
Robert Fraser:
There’s nothing wrong with my eyes, son.
Fraser: There’s
nothing wrong with mine.
Robert Fraser:
You know, this could be the one.
Fraser: The one
what?
Robert Fraser:
Your match, son. Someone who’s stronger than you. Faster.
Smarter.
Fraser:
Dad.
Robert Fraser:
First you see one, than you start to notice more. Before
you know, you’re struggling to keep up with ‘em.
Fraser:
Dad.
Robert Fraser:
See it as a challenge, son. I’d relish the chance.
Fraser:
Completely unstable.
Robert Fraser:
Huh?
Fraser:
Nothing!
Robert Fraser:
You’d do well to listen to your father, son.
[Fraser keeps walking, then realizes he’s
alone]
Fraser: Dad? He
comes, he goes, never a word of warning...
[the lone man watches from behind a tree]
<Doo
Mah>
[Fraser’s apartment; Fraser is in bed, then looks
up]
Fraser: Oh,
great.
[his dad is sitting on his bed]
Robert Fraser : Move over.
[Fraser shifts, making room for his dad to lie down beside
him in the twin
bed]
Robert Fraser:
The eyes are the first to go.
Fraser : Hmm?
Robert
Fraser
: You start to miss things that you used to be able to
see. Worse still, you start to see things that aren’t
there anymore.
Fraser: Well,
I’m not seeing you, I’m dreaming you. Would you move your
shoulder?
Robert Fraser:
Are you asleep?
Fraser: I’m
dead to the world.
Robert Fraser:
Are you sure?
Fraser: I’m a
log.
Robert Fraser:
You don’t look asleep.
Fraser: Well, I
am. So, if you wouldn’t mind, I could really use a decent
night’s rest.
Robert Fraser:
Oh. Look out, son.
Fraser : Hmm?
[Fraser dreams: a heartbeat, whispering... then Fraser is
trying to climb a very steep hill, and also running
directionless through the snowy
woods]
12-year-old
Helms:
[voice]
Hurry, the Prime Minister needs
you!
12-year-old
Casey:
[voice]
Come on, piece of cake.
12-year-old
Bush: You used to be able to do it.
[the climbing Fraser falls, and slides down the hill; then
again, as his support branch breaks, and
again]
All three:
Watch out!
[Fraser lands on the
floor of the interrogation room; the boys stand above him,
blowing gum bubbles]
12-year-old
Helms: You lost him.
12-year-old
Bush: You failed.
Fraser: But the
Prime Minister--
12-year-old
Helms: Don’t worry. His wife saved him.
12-year-old
Bush: With an Eskimo sculpture.
12-year-old
Casey: No trip to Disneyland for ya,
babe.
12-year-old
Bush: You lost your edge.
All
three
:
[whispering]
Lost your edge. Lost your edge...
[repeats as they
advance on Fraser, now seated in the chair, and
12-year-old
Helms ‘shoots’ at Fraser with the toy
gun]
[Fraser wakes; the lone man is sitting on Fraser’s bed,
holding a
knife]
LaCroix: You
were dreaming.
[laughs]
You know who I am.
Fraser: You
were at the airport.
LaCroix: I read
your file. You and me, we know each other. Don’t see how
you can sleep in here.
Fraser: It
isn’t easy sometimes.
LaCroix: I
tried sleeping inside once. When I came back. My mother’s
house. Couldn’t get used to it. Woods is better. Blankets
you like the night.
[Dief is lying motionless on the
floor]
Fraser: My
wolf?
LaCroix: He’s a
beauty. But he’s got a sweet tooth. Candy bar, couple
drops of ether. Should keep him away from junk food.
[laughs]
Fraser: How
long?
LaCroix: Two
tours.
Fraser:
Infantry?
LaCroix: Yeah.
You a good tracker?
Fraser:
Sometimes.
LaCroix: It’s
going quick, you know. The cover. It used to be, I could
hike through the woods fifty clicks, never see a can or
candy wrapper. Then it’s forty clicks. Now it’s ten.
Fraser: Not in
these parts.
LaCroix: No,
not in these parts. They raped these woods a long time
ago. We gotta take ‘em out, quick and clean. If we don’t,
they gonna take away every stick of wood, every bush. And
us. One at a time. Me, you, all of us. But we know. We
been here before.
Fraser: Who’s
they?
LaCroix: Them!
The suits! They keep taking it away from us. A man just
wants to get from one day to the next. One day he’s in his
own bed, then he’s in the jungle, then he’s not. The
jungle was safer. A man knew what to expect. Listen.
You’re on the inside. You could do this easier than me.
I’ll cover you.
Fraser: I’m
charged with protecting these men.
LaCroix: That’s
too bad. Cause they’re closing in. They gonna get you,
just like they got me. Think about
it.
[mansion; Fraser sits in a chair, waiting, Dief at his
feet]
Fraser:
Shouldn’t you be on guard duty?
[Dief groans, then
wanders off toward the
door] Oh,
I will bring him in, you can count on that.
[Dief
grumbles]
[Vecchio emerges, walking straight down the hallway; Fraser jumps up & follows]
Fraser
: They didn’t believe me.
Ray: In a word,
no.
Fraser: They
think I miscalculated.
Ray: In a word,
yes.
Fraser: So
they’re pursuing their own line of suspects?
Ray: Yeah, the
granola lady. They’re gonna have every health food store
in the country surrounded by five o’clock.
Fraser: And
he’ll have a clear shot.
Ray:
What?
Fraser: What
time’s the reception?
Ray:
Seven-thirty.
Fraser: We
better
hurry.
[snowy
woods]
Ray: Are you’re
sure he’s out here?
Fraser: He’s an
experienced infantryman and an expert in reconnaissance.
He’s camped out here somewhere.
[deep woods; LaCroix feed his dogs – condensed tomato soup]
[snowy woods]
Fraser
: Shouldn’t we invite Ms. Cortez?
Ray: Ah, she’s
busy. [Fraser looks
at him]
She’s only gonna slow us down.
[Anita follows behind them, stealthily]
[Fraser heads down a path]
Ray : No. He knows we’re coming after him. If we take that path we are walking into a booby trap.
[Vecchio climbs up, walking behind a tree]
Fraser: Uh,
Ray. [a tripwire is
in Vecchio’s
path] I
think you should step back. Easy.
[he does; Fraser brushes snow off of the coffee can
attached to the wire; Vecchio jumps down, they hide behind
a tree; Fraser tosses a rock onto the mine and detonates
it]
Ray: Okay,
let’s take the path.
Fraser: I think
that’s a good idea.
[Anita is following, and stops in her tracks at a noise; she draws her gun & whips around... it’s a bunny]
[field; Vecchio crossing it extra-super-carefully]
Fraser
: Ray, come on.
Ray: Are you
kidding me? One false step and I’m an extra in an Indiana
Jones movie.
Fraser: You
just have to be aware, keep your eyes open. Ray –
duck.
[Vecchio hits the deck... a duck quacks]
Fraser
: Anas
platyrhyncos. Very unusual sighting for this time of
year.
Ray:
[gets up, brushes
himself
off] Duck.
Duck. Duck means duck. Duck doesn’t mean duck. I hate my
life.
[deeper woods; Dief investigates a tree]
Ray : Whatta ya got?
[Fraser smells the
snow]
Fraser: Coffee.
French roast.
Anita: At least
he’s a connoisseur.
Ray: Hey, don’t
be sneaking up on somebody like that, or you’re gonna get
yourself hurt.
Anita: I can
take you out in a second, buddy.
Ray: I’ll
consider that.
Anita: This
where he lives?
Ray: Yeah. He
led us here.
[Anita finds a photo of Fraser; LaCroix appears &
throws a
knife]
Fraser: Step
back.
[knife lands in a tree by their heads; Fraser rushes after
LaCroix, then Dief, then Vecchio & Anita... suddenly
Anita stops
running]
Anita:
Vecchio!
Ray:
What?
Anita: My
foot.
[Vecchio carefully brushes the snow from around her foot,
and the coffee can on which she
stands]
Ray: Land
mine.
Anita:
Yeah.
Ray: Don’t
move.
Anita: Wasn’t
planning on
it.
[Fraser & Dief continue to chase LaCroix through
moderate underbrush; Fraser bursts into a clearing – it’s
a field, and LaCroix has disappeared... but suddenly
LaCroix rushes right by, knocking Fraser to the ground –
he’s on skis, being pulled by his two dogs... Robert
Fraser arrives, driving a dog
sled]
Robert Fraser:
Come on, son, you’re losing
him!
[Fraser remains on the ground]
Robert Fraser : Uh. I suppose it takes some people longer than others to do a day’s work. Go on, boys.
[he takes off again, after LaCroix... Dief emerges from
the woods to sit by Fraser... a puppy runs by behind them
as the circus music
refrains]
[woods]
Ray: Homemade.
Coffee can with gun powder.
Anita:
Dismantle it.
Ray: Look, you
don’t want to set this thing off, okay? Now give me
something flat, like a nail file.
Anita:
Here.
[she hands him a large pocket knife; he looks at her, she just shrugs; he attempts to figure it out]
Anita
: You know, I don’t think you know what you’re
doing.
Ray: Do you
wanna wait for somebody else? Oh, man...
[sighs, and gets up
to get a large
rock] You
know, some days I hate this job.
[kneels down
again]
Anita: You know
what your problem is? You’re spoiled.
Ray: This is
not a good time to be insulting me.
Anita: You
know, there was this place outside Mexico City where they
dump the trash. People live there, and they build shelters
with the garbage, burn it for heat, they eat the scraps.
And the only people they see there who have money, are the
cops.
Ray: Uh,
nothing wrong with taking a job that pays well.
[inserts blade
between her foot and the
mine]
Okay, now be very careful. And don’t move until I say
so.
Anita: You
know, the job itself, they don’t make any money. They make
money from la
mordida and the payoffs.
Ray: And you
know this because?
Anita: Because
I grew up there. You know, there was this one cop. His
name was El
Halcón – The Hawk. He saw everything. And he never
once – once – took money from nobody.
Los federales,
everybody else was on the take, except for him. It was
always underneath his nose and he never, ever, took money.
I wanted to be a cop to be just like him.
Ray: Ready?
I’ve never lost a partner before. On three. Uno--
Anita:
Dos--
Ray:
Tres.
[veeeerrrrrrry slowly, she slides her foot off, and
veeeerrrrrrry slowly, he slides the rock in its place,
then retrieves the knife]
Ray
: Slow. Very slow.
[they tiptoe away]
Anita
: Gracias.
Ray: Don’t
mention it.
[the rock slides off and the mine
explodes]
[mansion]
Ray: Look, this
guy is armed to the teeth, okay? He’s got hand grenades,
he’s got land mines, he’s got--
Casey: Look, we
got three suspects under round-the-clock surveillance, and
we’ve got this place sealed up tighter than a drum.
Bush: Every
door, every window, every crack, is covered.
Helms: A
mosquito could not get through.
Fraser: You
have to cancel the event.
Casey: Are you
deluded?
Fraser: This
man is a highly skilled soldier. Your government trained
him. He will
penetrate the guard.
Casey: It’s not
an option.
Helms: Every
moment you spend trying to convince us otherwise is taking
us off the task at hand. I’m taking you off the
detail.
Ray: You gotta
be kidding me.
Helms: Hey, if
either of you have a problem, you can join him. Put
another man on the Canadian trade representative. Parker.
He’s young. Hand me your tag, Constable. You’ll be
escorted off the premises.
Ray: We’re
coming with you.
Fraser: That
wouldn’t be smart. Do your
job.
[mansion ballroom; gala is in full swing]
[outside; Fraser watches from edge of woods as caterers arrive]
[gala; guests are engaged in small talk; Anita &
Vecchio monitor the affair: they wear formal attire and
wireless
devices]
Anita: All
clear.
Ray : You look great.
Anita : Thank you.
[Fraser appears, dressed as a waiter]
Fraser
: Agent Helms.
Helms: You
sneaky son of a--
Fraser: Yes,
it’s quite true, but if I got through the security, so
will he.
Helms: Okay,
either you leave here quietly or I will have my men drag
you out, do you understand me?
Fraser:
Yes.
[greeting line-up]
Guest
: I hope things are well in Ottawa.
Pierce: Oh,
they’re going very well.
Bennett: Mr.
Pierce, I’d like you to meet Mr. Greenway of Portland,
Oregon.
Pierce
: Mr. Greenway.
LaCroix: Mr.
Ambassador.
[Fraser spots
him]
Fraser: Will
you excuse me?
[makes his way to
Vecchio]
Our man’s with Pierce.
Ray:
[into
wireless]
Uh, Mexico. Nine o’clock, our man’s with Pierce.
Fraser: On
three.
Ray: On
three.
Anita: On
three.
[they make their way to the
line-up]
LaCroix: I sent
you some correspondence about three months ago. I hope
that you got it and had a chance to read it.
[the trio get closer]
LaCroix : Yes, I have something here that you might want to look over tonight. [reaches into his jacket for his weapon]
Ray : Uno.
Anita : Dos.
Fraser : Tres.
[Fraser elbows LaCroix out of the way and pushes Pierce down to the ground; Vecchio pushes another diplomat out of harm’s way; Agents draw their weapons; LaCroix gets Fraser at gunpoint & holds him in front as a shield]
LaCroix : Everybody freeze!
[all weapons are trained on LaCroix]
Helms : Hold your fire!
LaCroix
: Don’t move a muscle! Now we’re gonna walk out of here,
together.
Fraser: I don’t
think they’re prepared to just let you walk out of
here.
LaCroix: If you
move, I’ll shoot him! Lower your guns! Lower Your
Guns!!
Fraser
: You won’t survive.
LaCroix: What
do you know about survival?
Fraser: At the
moment, very little, it would seem. Although there was a
time I knew everything. I was always right, and I was
never wrong. Until one day, when I was in the woods with
my father, we were tracking a killer through the bush. And
then suddenly one set of prints became two. Split right.
Split left. My father said the killer had gone left and
retraced his steps. I said he’d gone right and retraced
his steps.
Ray: There he
goes again.
[guns are trained on the floor as they make their way
through the
crowd]
Fraser: So as
it turns out, there was a third option.
LaCroix: Two
killers.
Fraser:
Exactly. So you see, I was both right, and I was wrong.
And you can never lose sight of that distinction, because
if you do, you’re beaten. You won’t know where you are, or
who you are. The enemy is everywhere and everyone.
LaCroix: I
haven’t lost sight of anything. I know who I am. I spent
three years in the jungle, in the service of this country.
Now they’re taking it away from me. The air, the trees,
the water. They’re taking away my home. You take away a
man’s home, you take away his honor.
Fraser: They’re
not taking away your honor, they’re taking away your
hiding place. If you know who you are, then you don’t have
to hide.
[Helms signals a
man, who jumps up from behind the bar & shoots; Fraser
pushes LaCroix to the floor and the shot misses, and
everyone rushes over]
Ray: You
okay?
Fraser: Yeah,
I’m fine.
Helms: Cuff
him! What’s your name? What’s your name?
LaCroix:
LaCroix. Macon LaCroix.
Helms: We’re
traveling.
[they take LaCroix away]
[party has wrapped
up]
Anita: So is it
true you never lost your partner?
Ray: Well,
uhhh... No.
Anita:
No.
Ray: Well, what
I meant was, I never lost a partner to a land mine.
Anita: That’s
not what you said.
Ray: Well,
that’s what I meant.
Anita: I can’t
believe you lied to me.
Ray: Well,
technically I didn’t lie to you. You see, he was hit by a
minivan.
Anita:
Oh.
Ray: While I
was driving it.
[runs]
Anita: Vecchio!
[she chases
him]
Thatcher: You
saved the trade representative.
Fraser: Yes,
sir.
Thatcher: And
then you saved the assassin?
Fraser: I’m
afraid I did, sir, yes.
Thatcher: If
you think you can use this to buy your way onto the Prime
Minister’s security detail--
Fraser: Well,
that wasn’t my first thought, sir.
Thatcher: Of
course not. I’ll see that you receive a
commendation.
Fraser: Well,
that won’t be necessary, sir.
Thatcher: Well,
what do you want?
Fraser:
[pause]
Coffee. Would you care for some
coffee?
Thatcher: Um,
well I-I-I don’t think that...All right.
Fraser:
Good.
Thatcher: Yes.
Uh, fine. Get the car.
Fraser: Uh, do
you want to drive?
Thatcher: Yes.
No. You drive. No, I’ll drive. You.
Fraser:
Understood.
12-year-old
Helms: Not bad.
12-year-old
Bush: I think he’s
back.
End