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Shadows of the Wind (Short)
by Taylor Lehotan (equinox_pictures@yahoo.com)

Rated: R   Genre: Film Noir   User Review:
NOT YET
RATED

This is a companion film to "Chicago Blood". Marcus Kane wants out, but first he wants to settle some bad blood.


This screenplay is copyrighted to its author. All rights reserved. This screenplay may not be used or reproduced without the express written permission of the author.



SHADOWS OF THE WIND (SHORT)

EXT. HOTEL ROOF - NIGHT
                                                            
A fierce storm. A bright flash of lightening opens the
scene.

MARCUS KANE leans against the door to the roof, clutching a
pistol. His clothes are covered in blood, and he's bleeding
extremely badly.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
The night's a bitch. At least, it
is in Chicago. Turn a corner and
you're in for trouble, and nothing
can save you. All the angels are
out west, but not even they seem
to give a damn.
                                                            
He closes his eyes.
                                                            
                                         FLASH CUT OUT.
                                                            
                                         FLASH CUT IN:
                                                            
 
INT. BATHROOM - NIGHT
                                                            
The storm continues.

Marcus washes his hands, and then splashes some water on his
face.

Establish the bathroom: broken alcohol bottles, an unloaded
gun surrounded by bullets, bloody towels.

Marcus looks up in the mirror - he's cut up, still bleeding
a little.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
Sometimes I wonder how I got
myself into this mess. The
mafia's no joke. It's nothing
like it is in the movies. There's
no glamour to killing someone,
granted the broads are somethin'
worth lookin' at, and the pay
ain't bad.
                                                            
He loads one of his guns.
                                                            

2.

                       MARCUS (V.O.)
But the minute you pull the
trigger for the first time...
everything changes. Your past
suddenly waits for you, hidden
beneath the shadows of the wind.
Not the actual wind, of course,
but the words of the politicians
and the mobsters that ruled these
streets.
                                                            
                                         FADE TO:
                                                            
 
INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT
                                                            
Marcus sits on the couch. On the table in front of him:
more alcohol bottles, shot glasses, a cell phone.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
Make no mistake... an emotional
attachment while you're putting
everything you cherish at stake is
a risky proposition, and it was
one of the biggest mistakes I had
made up to this point.
                                                            
He pours a shot of alcohol, but before he drinks, his phone
rings.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
There was only one person the
caller could've been. It was
midnight, and I was expecting this
call. No one else knew I'd be at
this number - I had taken the
phone off one of Roselli's thugs.
                                                            
Marcus picks up the phone, but doesn't answer it yet.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
This call would change my life
forever.
                                                            
He answers the phone.
                                                            
                       MARCUS
Hello?
                                                            
                       LOVE
I started to doubt whether you'd
pick up or not, Marcus.
                                                            

3.

                       MARCUS (V.O.)
Robert Love was one of the richest
men in the city, and one of the
most successful. But he had an
incredibly dark past, and
everything in it involved me.
                                                            
                       MARCUS
Hello, Robert.
                                                            
                       LOVE
So have you made your decision?
                                                            
                       MARCUS
I have. Where do you want to make
the exchange?
                                                            
                       LOVE
My hotel room. Come alone.
                                                            
The line goes dead, so Marcus hangs up.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
This guy worked for the most
powerful mobster in the city: Tony
Roselli. He climbed high on the
ladder in a very short amount of
time.
                                                            
He loads his guns.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
Robert Love asked me if I had made
my decision. The question: "Do
you ever want to see your
girlfriend again?" The answer:
"I'll see you in hell."
                                                            
He cocks one of the guns.
                                                            
                                         FLASH CUT TO:
                                                            
 
EXT. HOTEL - NIGHT
                                                            
Rain. The storm continues.

A car pulls up outside a hotel and stops right out front.
Marcus sits in the driver's seat.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
I had to think this over for a
minute. In a hotel controlled by
the mob, you can't just charge in
            (MORE)

4.

                       MARCUS (cont'd)
like John Wayne or Tony Montana. I
needed a plan, and right now, I
didn't have one. The rain on the
window calmed my mind, and helped
me think. After a few minutes, I
know exactly what I'm going to do:
I'm going to kill them all.
                                                            
Marcus gets out of the car, carrying a silver briefcase.
                                                            
                                         CUT TO:
                                                            
 
INT. HOTEL - NIGHT
                                                            
Marcus enters the hotel, looking around the lobby.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
The hotel smelled of expensive
cigars and cheap wine. The scent
trapped itself in my nostrils and
wouldn't go away.
                                                            
Marcus walks to the elevator and gets in.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
The elevator doors shut in front
of me, and I suddenly knew that
this was going to be a hell of a
night. There was no going back
now.
                                                            
                                         FADE TO:
                                                            
 
INT. HOTEL ROOM - NIGHT
                                                            
A straight-on shot of ROBERT LOVE. He holds a cigar near
his mouth, but doesn't smoke it.
                                                            
                       LOVE
He just got here.
                                                            
He turns around, stepping aside. Behind him is LACY
MITCHELL, wearing only her lingerie and strapped to a chair.
She is bound and gagged.

Robert walks over to her and bends over to talk to her.
                                                            
                       LOVE
How are you doing, Lacy?
Comfortable enough?
                                                            

5.

She tries to attack him, but he simply backs away, allowing
her time to calm down. He walks back to the window.
                                                            
                       LOVE
I'm sorry we had to kidnap you
under such... hostile means. We
have no intention of hurting you.
Unless, of course, your boyfriend
doesn't do what we've asked of
him.
                                                            
Lacy stops, and starts crying. She tries to shout
something, but she can't.
                                                            
                       LOVE
This was necessary. Your
boyfriend thought he could steal
from me. I trusted him. He was
like a son to me, and he betrayed
me.
                                                            
There are a few knocks on the door, which catch Robert's
attention.
                                                            
                       LOVE
And here he is now.
                                                            
Robert walks to the door.
                                                            
                                         CUT TO:
                                                            
 
EXT. HOTEL - NIGHT
                                                            
We get a view of the exterior of the room from the building
across the street.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
I casually strolled into the room,
eyeing everything around me. He'd
told me to come alone. I wasn't
alone. I had my gun.
                                                            
A flash of lightning.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
That was my cue.
                                                            
Flashes are visible from inside the room. We silhouettes of
bodies in the light, and then we see a final flash - with
the silhouette of Marcus aiming his gun visible for a mere
second.

6.


Then everything is still, except for the rain.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
Love escaped. He disappeared
without a trace. But Lacy was all
right, and that's all that
mattered to me at the moment.
                                                            
                                         CUT TO:
                                                            
 
INT. HOTEL ROOM - NIGHT
                                                            
Marcus unties Lacy from the chair, and they hug and kiss.
                                                            
                       MARCUS
I'm so sorry.
                                                            
                       LACY
Don't be. I made a mistake. I
shouldn't have tried to go home
alone.
                                                            
                       MARCUS
It's over now, baby. He's never
gonna hurt you again.
                                                            
                       LACY
But what are you gonna do about
him?
                                                            
He kisses her.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
I didn't have it in me to tell her
the truth: that I was gonna kill
Robert Love, and I was gonna kill
him good.
                                                            
                                         FADE TO:
                                                            
 
INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT
                                                            
Marcus stands in the doorway. The hall is lit behind him.
Lacy stands at the foot of the bed, looking at Marcus. The
bedroom is dark. They both begin unbuttoning their shirts.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
But right now, there was something
else I wanted... I needed.
                                                            

7.

Lacy takes her shirt off, standing topless, looking at
Marcus. He walks to her and shuts the door.
                                                            
                                         CUT OUT.
                                                            
                                         FADE IN:
                                                            
 
INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT
                                                            
Lacy lies on her back, the blanket covering everything below
her waist. Her eyes are open, but she does not move. Her
throat's been slit.

Marcus sits at the foot of the bed, looking at a picture of
the two of them.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
Obviously she knew something,
otherwise he wouldn't have gone to
all the trouble to kill her and
keep me alive. That's what was
bothering me: why he kept me
alive. I worked for him for years
and he never let anyone who caused
him trouble get in his way. Why
me?
                                                            
He looks at Lacy's body.
                                                            
                       MARCUS
I'm gonna kill him for ya, baby.
I'm gonna kill him good.
                                                            
                                         FLASH CUT TO:
                                                            
 
EXT. ALLEYWAY - NIGHT
                                                            
The rain continues, but it's lighter now.

Marcus walks down the alleyway, wearing a black trench-coat.
He has one hand inside his jacket, as if holding onto a
gun.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
I knew there would be one person
who would help me. It was just a
question of how much she'd charge
me.
                                                            
Marcus reaches the end of the alleyway, but can't see
anything or anyone.
                                                            

8.

                       MARCUS
Dammit.
                                                            
He turns around and starts walking away.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
She wasn't there. Or at least, I
hadn't seen her. But that didn't
mean she wasn't there.
                                                            
A bottle drops right in front of Marcus, shattering. He
stops dead in his tracks and looks up.

There is nothing visible on the roof above.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
Funny girl.
                                                            
                                         CUT TO:
                                                            
 
EXT. HOTEL ROOF - NIGHT
                                                            
Marcus enters the roof through a door. He looks around, but
there's no one in sight.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
Tricky girl. I knew she was up
here somewhere.
                                                            
                       GOLDIE
Hey there, big man.
                                                            
Marcus turns around and sees a sexy young woman named GOLDIE
standing before him.
                                                            
                       MARCUS
I need some help.
                                                            
                       GOLDIE
Why else would you come see me? So
what'll it be this time?
                                                            
                       MARCUS
Nothing like that. I need
information.
                                                            
                       GOLDIE
We'll talk later. I'll give you
one on the house.
                                                            

9.

                       MARCUS (V.O.)
If you couldn't figure it out by
now, this girl was the biggest
prostitute in the whole town. Pay
her enough and she'll forget about
that part of the favor, and skip
straight to the talkin'.
                                                            
Marcus pulls his hand out of his jacket. He wasn't holding
a gun. It's an envelope, and he gives it to Goldie. She
opens it and pulls out a stack of money.
                                                            
                       GOLDIE
Well, well, well. What would you
like to know?
                                                            
                       MARCUS
Give me anything you got on Robert
Love.
                                                            
                       GOLDIE
Love, huh? Got some bad blood
with him? Wrong man to have bad
blood with.
                                                            
                       MARCUS
Just tell me where he is.
                                                            
                       GOLDIE
I can't.
                                                            
                       MARCUS
After all that? After the money?
                                                            
A gunshot goes right through Goldie's neck, and she
collapses on Marcus. She dies in his arms. Marcus looks up
and sees Robert Love aiming his smoking gun.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
That bastard. He wasn't trying to
get away. He was determined to
finish this.
                                                            
The storm worsens.

Marcus stands up and just stares Love down.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
I promised Lacy that I'd kill this
son of a bitch. I always keep my
promise.
                                                            

10.

Robert tries to shoot, but he's out. Marcus charges at Love
and tackles him to the ground. They get into a fist-fight.
Love shatters a glass bottle on Marcus's face, cutting him
up badly. Soon they're both exhausted.
                                                            
                       LOVE
You brought it on yourself. She
didn't have to die.
                                                            
                       MARCUS
You could've just killed me, too.
                                                            
                       LOVE
But I wanted the satisfaction of
watching you die trying to avenge
the death of your love. Just like
Tony Roselli did to me.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
He dropped the bomb. Tony Roselli
was the real enemy here. On any
other occasion, I may have
considered helping Love take down
Roselli's organization. But I
wasn't thinking so clearly today.
                                                            
Marcus draws his gun and shoots Love in the head.

He leans against a wall - we're right back at the beginning.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
The night's a bitch. At least, it
is in Chicago. Turn a corner and
you're in for trouble, and nothing
can save you. All the angels are
out west, but not even they seem
to give a damn.
                                                            
He closes his eyes.
                                                            
                       MARCUS (V.O.)
They really don't.
                                                            


FADE OUT.


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