Napolitano finishes removing his head bandages.
Napolitano tenses. He has no choice but to go along.
INT. WOLF’S LAIR - RACHEL'S GUEST BEDROOM - NIGHT
A hand is cuffed to the bed frame -- Rachel’s. She twists and turns violently in the dim LIGHT, bruising her shackled wrist, slowly waking herself up.
INT. WOLF’S LAIR - WINE CELLAR - NIGHT
Wayne leans back in his chair, blowing smoke-rings. Alphonse stares at him silently.
BEEP. Wayne reads a text message on his phone. Alphonse paces.
He goes to pinch Alphonse's cheek, but Alphonse knocks away his hand.
EXT. WOLF’S LAIR - NIGHT
The moon shines bright, illuminating the giant Hollywood sign atop Mt. Lee.
Deland’s Crown Vic stops in front of the castle. Deland gets out and moves toward the house. Napolitano's nowhere to be seen. From out of the darkness, the two Henchmen, Bony and Karl, flank Deland and guide him to the door.
REVERSE ANGLE - NAPOLITANO
Hiding in a cluster of trees, watching, punching in a number on his cell. The Henchmen take Deland inside.
INTERCUT:
INT. GALLARDO'S BEDROOM - NIGHT
Gallardo's on the phone, as his wife tries to sleep beside him. A clock radio says 2:40.
Off Napolitano, liking this less and less by the second. He notices something in the distance --
RACHEL'S BALCONY
The one she jumped from earlier. Its French doors are still open, and there's a dim LIGHT on inside.
NAPOLITANO
He pockets the phone and moves off.
INT. WOLF’S LAIR - ENTRYWAY - NIGHT
The Henchmen bring Deland inside, where Wayne pats him down. He finds a gun in his ankle holster and takes it.
He CLICKS the hammer back on Deland's gun.
He shoves Deland toward the stairway, and follows.
EXT. WOLF’S LAIR - RACHEL'S BALCONY - NIGHT
A figure drops quietly down onto the balcony from the roof, landing away from the doorway. ¬It's Napolitano. He quietly peers inside the room, sees Rachel kneeling by the bed, futilely trying to break out of the handcuff.
INT. RACHEL'S GUEST ROOM - NIGHT
Napolitano enters with a finger to his lips. Rachel turns and sees him. It's all she can do to stifle a GASP.
Napolitano embraces her, then gets to work on the cuff.
EXT. WOLF'S LAIR - BACK OF THE HOUSE - NIGHT
Karl searches the grounds with a FLASHLIGHT. A shed near the pool has been busted open. Karl scans the area, spots a ladder leaning up against the back of the house. He gets on his cell, speed dials a number.
He CLICKS off.
Feet running up steps. Alphonse first, then Deland and Wayne.
INT. RACHEL'S GUEST ROOM - MOMENTS LATER
Alphonse bursts in. The bed frame has been taken apart, and Rachel is gone.
Wayne blows by him, gun out, pushing Deland. He looks out on the balcony, then down into the yard. Nothing.
Alphonse takes a gun from his waistband, as Wayne races out.
EXT. WOLF'S LAIR - BACK OF THE HOUSE - NIGHT
Karl hoists himself from the ladder onto the roof, gun first. As Bony follows --
NAPOLITANO AND RACHEL
Emerge from behind the nearby pool shed. Rachel still has the handcuff dangling from a wrist. Napolitano removes the ladder from the house and they hurry off.
EXT. WOLF’S LAIR - FRONT OF THE HOUSE – NIGHT
Wayne moves cautiously, gun first, around the side of the house. As soon as he does –
ON THE CROWN VIC
Napolitano pops up in the driver’s seat. The ENGINE ROARS to life, and he tears out of the driveway, as Wayne comes running back after him, too late.
EXT. MULHOLLAND DRIVE - NIGHT
The Crown Vic hugs the windy road.
INT. DELAND’S CROWN VIC (MOVING) - NIGHT
Behind the wheel, Napolitano negotiates Mulholland Drive’s sharp twists and turns. Rachel is next to him, trying to get a signal on her cell phone.
Napolitano tries turning right onto Edgewood Dive, but several vehicles block the intersection. He slows to look, then keeps driving up the mountain.
Napolitano glances at her as they pass the Mulholland Dr./Mt. Lee intersection. More cars are blocking the road leading down the mountain.
He turns up the mountain and keeps driving.
EXT. MT. LEE ROAD - NIGHT
The road ends at a fence with a radio tower and building on the other side of it. Napolitano stops the Crown Vic about a hundred feet shy of the tower.
INT. DELAND’S CROWN VIC - NIGHT
Napolitano’s side of the road is against the hillside. Rachel’s side is fenced off, beyond which is a steep drop down into the hills, where we glimpse scaffolding and some sort of construction.
As CAMERA PANS, we realize she’s looking at the back of the HOLLYWOOD SIGN, just a few hundred feet down the mountain. Napolitano opens his door.
]]>About to get out of the Crown Vic, Napolitano sees a car shining its BRIGHTS behind them.
They both get out as Napolitano shifts into neutral and aims the wheel. The car begins to roll backward downhill, picking up speed.
INT. BMW - NIGHT
Alphonse, behind the wheel, brakes in panic. Wayne is upfront, with Bony holding his gun on Deland in the back. The Crown Vic barrels toward them in reverse.
Alphonse tries to squeeze past, but can’t. Wayne, Deland and Boni bail out just before the cars collide. The Beemer goes crashing through the fence --
OVER THE LEDGE
With Alphonse inside, careening off the road and flipping down the hillside, CRUNCHING horribly into some trees.
EXT. MT. LEE - NIGHT
Napolitano and Rachel, halt their descent toward the Hollywood Sign to watch in horror.
EXT. MT. LEE ROAD - NIGHT
Deland and Wayne watch the crash in dismay. Bony moves toward the gaping hole in the fence.
Wayne motions Deland ahead toward the opening in the fence, and the three of them start to make their way down the mountainside.
EXT. MT. LEE - NIGHT
Napolitano and Rachel make it down to level ground, at the base of the HOLLYWOOD SIGN. Napolitano waves his arms at the motion detectors attached to the back of the sign.
They begin moving toward the front of the sign.
EXT. MT. LEE - NIGHT
Wayne, Deland and Bony descend down the mountain. Bony loses his balance and slides down the path, coming to a stop, about twenty feet down. As Wayne carefully goes to make sure he’s okay, Deland spots some movement down by the sign. Wayne notices that Deland is hanging back.
Deland resumes his descent.
INT. WOLF'S LAIR - NIGHT
Sydney, bandaged around the middle with his shirt open, is dozing in a recliner as the big-screen blares Adult Swim cartoons. He awakes with a start, disoriented.
He looks at his watch, piecing things together in his mind. He gets up gingerly, purposely knocking aside a walker that he's left there. He calls out --
He pours himself a shot of scotch from a bottle on the coffee table, drinks it down and moves off.
EXT. HOLLYWOOD SIGN - NIGHT
Rachel and Napolitano crouch out of sight, beneath the front of the second “L.” They look out toward the city below them, its TWINKLING LIGHTS beckoning before dawn.
Napolitano smiles and looks away, lost in thought.
The moment is broken, as the SOUND of a police chopper approaches. Napolitano quickly scans the pre-dawn sky.
Wayne perks up as he hears the CHOPPER. He motions Bony to circle around the Hollywood Sign. Then he grabs Deland hard, puts the gun to his head and calls out --
WITH NAPOLITANO AND RACHEL
Crouched low in front of the sign's first "L." He takes the gun from his waistband and gets ready to defend himself and Rachel. He cranes his neck to see the helicopter, which is scanning the area with a SEARCHLIGHT.
As if on cue, the chopper suddenly CUTS its light and banks away from the scene.
Napolitano hands his gun to Rachel.
He comes out carefully, edging his way up the steep incline.
WIDER - ON THE SCENE
Wayne holds Deland, as before. Bony, unable to find a safe path to the sign, has stopped. He aims his gun at Napolitano.
BANG! Before he finishes the word, Bony FIRES, hitting him in the shoulder, knocking him down, sliding toward the edge of the cliff --
DELAND
Grabs Wayne's gun-hand, pushing it away just as Wayne SHOOTS wildly into the air. As the two wrestle for control, they both lose their footing and go tumbling down toward --
NAPOLITANO
A jagged boulder has stopped his slide. He manages to pull himself up -- BAM! BAM! -- and take cover behind the rock, avoiding Bony's shots. Napolitano checks his shoulder, which is soaked with blood.
WAYNE AND DELAND
Wrestle for control of the gun on the steep slope to the nearby precipice. Deland takes control but must let go and grasp at a tree branch to keep from sliding down. Wayne grabs onto some brush, and Deland lunges for him again.
NAPOLITANO
He edges out to help Deland, but -- BAM! --
BONY
SHOOTS again and misses. He's now advancing quickly but carefully down the slope toward the fight.
NAPOLITANO
Dives safely behind the rock for cover. He takes off his shirt and begins to tie one of the sleeves to a tree root.
IN FRONT OF THE 'L' - RACHEL
Gripping the gun with both hands, too terrified to shoot. Bony crosses without seeing her, and she scrambles to the other side of the sign to hide.
DELAND AND WAYNE
Grappling for their lives. Deland is lying on Wayne's right arm, prying the gun from his grip. Wayne grabs a rock with his left hand, and bashes Deland, stunning him.
Sees Wayne in control. He swings around the jagged rock, gun first, but Napolitano's not there! Just then --
NAPOLITANO
Vaults the rock, placing a sweeping side-kick to Bony's head, sending him staggering over the side of the mountain!
Napolitano lands and falls, sliding toward the precipice. At the last moment, he reaches out to grab the shirt he tied down to stop his descent. He begins to pull himself up.
WAYNE
Gets to his feet and takes aim at Napolitano, but Deland lunges for his legs, knocking him down. They both come rolling toward Napolitano, who grabs Deland with all his strength.
Wayne also grabs Deland just before he goes over the edge. With the other hand, he points his gun at Napolitano who, despite his bad shoulder, supports the weight of all of them.
Deland coils his right leg, ready to kick Wayne over the side. It's a classic standoff.
Wayne takes a deep breath, resigned to his fate. ¬But instead of giving in, he aims directly at Napolitano.
Deland KICKS HARD, and Wayne SHOOTS and misses, as he goes flying down the mountainside. Deland and Napolitano share a look, then start to regain their footing on the harsh terrain.
EXT. MT. LEE - MOMENTS LATER - DAWN
Napolitano, now wearing his tattered, bloody shirt, makes his way up the mountain with help from Rachel and Deland.
Napolitano shoots Deland an uneasy glance before turning to meet her gaze.
She looks like she's been kicked in the gut.
She withdraws from him so suddenly it's like she doesn't even hear. Napolitano wishes he could erase the sting, but he knows he can't. They approach the road, where the last of six marked and unmarked SHERIFFS' CARS pulls up.
EXT. MT. LEE ROAD - CONTINUOUS - DAWN
A DOZEN DEPUTIES are fanning out, pointing rifles, shotguns and handguns at the approaching threesome. One of the Deputies, MAGUIRE, has a megaphone.
EXT. MT. LEE ROAD - MOMENTS LATER - DAWN
Maguire and another deputy question Rachel, away from Napolitano and Deland, who are being led in handcuffs to a waiting ambulance. Rachel looks over to see --
SYDNEY'S SUPER-CAR
Approaching on the windy road. Sydney parks and gets out, waddling over toward Rachel with a large cup in his hand. He's stopped momentarily at the perimeter, but he shows a Deputy some ID and is escorted back.
Rachel is too horrified to speak. Sydney addresses Maguire.
Rachel doesn't acknowledge. Sydney prods her toward his car, and she moves as if in a trance. He offers her the cup.
After a long beat, she takes the cup and sips. Sydney pulls her close as he walks her to his car.
AT THE AMBULANCE
As the PARAMEDICS and Deputies escort them to the back of the ambulance, Napolitano and Deland crane their necks to watch. Deland can see Napolitano is distraught.
Napolitano looks grim as he gets into the back with Deland, the Deputies and Paramedics. Two other Cops shut them in.
INT. AMBULANCE - MOVING - MOMENTS LATER - DAWN
Napolitano and Deland lie on stretchers in the back, being tended by the Two Paramedics. The SIREN BLURTS out a warning and the Ambulance begins to roll off. But before it picks up speed they hear a muffled sound from O.S. -- a GUNSHOT!
Napolitano and Deland rise on their stretchers. A Paramedic gently push Napolitano back down, but he resists.
The Driver gets a radio call and stops the car. He BLURTS the SIREN again, backs up 20 yards and stops. The back doors fly open. Napolitano is up on his elbows watching.
MUSIC UP and CREDITS ROLL.
THROUGH THE BACK OF THE AMBULANCE
The Paramedics jump out and run toward the Supercar. Sydney is slumped against the wheel, dead from a gunshot to his right temple. Cops are pulling Rachel out of the passenger seat, taking the gun from her hand and arresting her.
The Medics get Sydney onto a stretcher and check his vitals, but they know it's hopeless. They talk to Maguire, who gets on his radio.
REVERSE ANGLE
The Paramedics hustle back inside the back of the ambulance. Deland watches Napolitano, concerned.
PUSH IN ON Napolitano, who is struggling wildly against his restraints to get to Rachel. One of them quickly prepares a syringe and injects his arm with a sedative.
The ambulance begins to roll off. Slowly and against his will, Napolitano falls into a deep, fitful stupor.
FADE OUT:
THE END
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