The Glades (4 page)

GREEN (O.S.)

Caiman, female, about four years old. Between nine and ten feet.

Longworth and Daniel Green on the bank. Green scanning the creek with a pair of binoculars.

LONGWORTH

Not bad from just one tooth.

GREEN

Go you one better, caiman aren't indigenous. Probably someone's pet who let it loose when she got too big. Won't be the only gator in the area but she'll definitely be the only caiman. Wait. Here we
go...

The point of view shifts to binocular...

A pair of eyes drifting ahead of a spine, specific markings which he enthusiastically describes --

GREEN (O.C.)

Broad snout, bony ridge over the eyes, definitely caiman. Female coloring, easy ten footer...

When BAM! The lens jolts, taking us back out to --

Green recoiling from the report from Longworth's gun.

LONGWORTH

That's the one, right?

Green stares at Longworth in disbelief. Stunned.

GREEN

That animal is protected.

LONGWORTH

Then how come I had such a clear shot?

Longworth holsters his gun. Off Green, yawning his hearing back...

FADE OUT.

END OF ACT THREE

ACT FOUR

FADE IN:

INT. LAB - DAY

A ten-foot CAIMAN lies on top of a surgical table. Daniel Green over it, marking an area near the stomach with a red marker.

Carlos and Longworth, off to the side, Carlos pissed there's an alligator on his table.

CARLOS

Unorthodox? Try nuts. I'm not autopsing an alligator, get that thing off my table.

LONGWORTH

Caiman. Then let the kid do it.

CARLOS

Right, and Chain of Evidence goes out the window.

LONGWORTH

See, you think I'm right.

CARLOS

I think you're nuts but we've been over that already.

ANGLE ON AUTOPSY TABLE

Daniel Green is over the caiman, gestures along a section of the reptile's belly marked with red, as they step up.

GREEN

Tubal absorption runs along the length of the thorax. Anything this guy's eaten in the last ten days will be right along here.

LONGWORTH

Look at that? All marked up for you and everything.

GREEN

Thanks for letting me observe, Dr. Sanchez. I really appreciate it.

CARLOS

Yeah. No problem.

Carlos shoots Longworth a look, takes a scalpel, inserts it along the marking. A tough hide requiring a great deal of effort as he saws along the cut line.

GREEN

The caiman latirostris is pretty efficient as a predator. Eats fish, turtles...small land creatures like raccoon, possum...pretty much anything that ventures into its waters, especially if it's nesting or just gave birth...

The cut finished, Carlos inserts a gloved hand into the opening.

GREEN

Their enzyme production is really low cause they have like no immune system - basically they never get sick, so it gets pretty backed up in there...

He begins removing fleshy debris, which Green identifies as Carlos pulls out, dropping it into a blue container --

GREEN

-- catfish...I'd say brim or perch maybe...box turtle...

Which Carlos drops it in, feels briefly around inside, then --

CARLOS

Okay. That's it.

GREEN

No, there's more.
(off Carlos' look)
I can feel it.
(he feels, confirming)
Yeah, definitely.

Beat. Carlos looks at Longworth, runs his hand back inside.

When he feels something and stops. Adjusts his slippery grip and pulls it out. Covered in blood and partially digested.

But clearly a human jawbone.

GREEN

Oh man. Sweet...a jawbone.

Carlos, half amazed, half annoyed.

INT. FLORIDA HIGHWAY PATROL - OFFICE - DAY

Ogletree at his desk, annoyed and groaning over his keyboard.

LONGWORTH

Anything popping with that?

OGLETREE

It keeps asking me if I want to
download a new version.

LONGWORTH

Ignore it. Most departments work off Adobe three-point-nine years ago anyway.

OGLETREE

Tourists, transients, illegals -
this is Florida. Thousands of visitors from all over the world pass through this time of year...

LONGWORTH

Just focus on the ones who've been reported missing.

OGLETREE

What if they haven't?

LONGWORTH

Family, co-workers, friends, eventually someone calls it in.

OGLETREE

And then there's HIPPA rules...

LONGWORTH

We have some leg work to do before we start asking for dental records. Pace yourself. It'll come together.

OGLETREE

You could help.

LONGWORTH

I found the jawbone.

Not what he wanted to hear. Longworth throws him a bone.

LONGWORTH

I saved you a trip to the high school...

Longworth fans open a high school yearbook showing him a page of graduating seniors. One in particular --

LONGWORTH

Lane Brussard, class of '02, and I quote: "Okeechobee Southerners Are Sub-Human". A quote that's been popping up all over the high school this past week.

Ogletree refusing to give it up.

OGLETREE

We still don't know what it means.

LONGWORTH

It means the one-year anniversary of his brother being killed by a tourist had not gone forgotten.

INT. ROBBIE'S RAW BAR - DAY

Justin daytime drinking and having lunch. Looks up as Longworth sits down across from him, without an invitation.

LONGWORTH

So I figured out who's been painting on the sides of buildings around here.

Justin looks at him for a beat, then goes back to eating.

LONGWORTH

Your brother.

JUSTIN

That's not funny.

LONGWORTH

I don't mean your brother per se. I mean someone who loved your brother. Who thought he was a hero worth remembering. Someone who looked up to him. That's who did it.

JUSTIN

He had a lot of people like that.

LONGWORTH

Yeah, I'm not hearing that. I'm hearing he was kind of a moody little dipshit. It's all about him. That guy.

JUSTIN

He could be that.

LONGWORTH

Which can put some people off.

Justin glances up at that, but right back down to eat.

LONGWORTH

So here's what I think is going on. And you tell me where I've got it wrong.
(beat)
You hate tourists. I mean, who doesn't, right? But unlike the rest of us, you have a really good reason. And knowing that, I'd be kind of an idiot not to pursue the possibility that you lured one of those annoying asswipes into a situation, killed her, dumped her body in the swamp, then dragged poor Erin into it after the fact so she could witness you "finding" her headless body, how's that?

Justin, head down, pushing his food around, listening.

LONGWORTH

Only that's not what happened. I mean, you might have done it, I've been wrong before. But I just don't see it. See the thing about murder? Is you really have to be able to keep it together to get away with it, and I don't know, something about the way a kid like you is able to sit here sawing away at Robbie's chicken fried steak just doesn't say to me that three nights ago you killed a woman and fed her to an alligator. And for my deal, if I have loose ends or something doesn't fit or add up? Then I really haven't eliminated anything. And murder is all about elimination. So while I could be wrong, I just don't see it. Now what I do see you doing is spray painting Okeechobee whatever the hell on the side of a few buildings so no one will forget your brother. Will you give me that?

Justin looks up. Stares a beat.

JUSTIN

Okay.

LONGWORTH

Good. And was it your idea or your girlfriend's to plaster it all over the high school?

JUSTIN

She's not my girlfriend.

LONGWORTH

Not your girlfriend.

JUSTIN

We're just hanging out.

LONGWORTH

Hanging out with a sixteen-year-old.

JUSTIN

I mean. We just. We were both...
thinking about him. I was drunk. I don't know. We just wanted to remember him...

Justin stops, not sure where he stands here.

JUSTIN

She told me she checked. I thought she was telling me the truth.

Longworth lets that worry sit on his head for a beat.

LONGWORTH

She was, son. It's sixteen.
(beat)
Sorry, kid.

Longworth gets up and leaves. Off Justin --

INT. OGLETREE'S HOUSE - KITCHEN - DAY (OR EXTERIOR SPIGOT)

Ogletree tending to something at the sink, on his cell phone.

OGLETREE

Well yeah, he was drunk. That's not exactly news.

INT. LONGWORTH'S CAR - TRAVELING - DAY

Longworth driving, on his cell phone. INTERCUT as necessary.

LONGWORTH

Slept on a blanket by the creek most of the night. Barely remembers trying before passing out completely. And sure as hell can't account for Erin's whereabouts.

OGLETREE

Bet he remembers tagging half the damn county.
(beat)
I've got calls in to all the major airlines, checking passenger lists on flights from Flagstaff, Phoenix, Albuquerque...

LONGWORTH

I could've done that...

OGLETREE

I said I'd handle it.

Said a little emphatically, which Longworth notes...

LONGWORTH

And the entire school was tagged. So we should probably check to see if any of their female teachers or employees have failed to show up for work. Eliminate by profile...

OGLETREE

Oh, we do profiles now.

LONGWORTH

Approximate height, weight, age. No children.

Ogletree annoyed at being told how to do his job.

OGLETREE

Not my first picnic, you know. Still say she'll turn out to be a tourist.

LONGWORTH

Bad cop work sticking to one theory, mi amigo.

When ARF ARF ARF and we WIDEN to see Ogletree lowering the fresh bowl of water he just filled to a yappy piece of shit white Maltese.

LONGWORTH

Did you bring your dog to work?

OGLETREE

Nah, swung by the house. Promised the wife I'd look after it. Last thing I need is to come home to the neighbors pounding on the door that the damn thing barked all day.
(beat)
I'll check with the school and get back to you.

And Ogletree hangs up. Off Longworth...

EXT. FISHEATING CREEK - SERIES OF DISSOLVES - DAY

Longworth with his 9-iron, sifting through the detritus of a local hangout - beer and soda cans, crumpled packs of cigarettes, cigarette butts, condoms, lotto scratchers, a Slushie cup and straw.

When he sees something near the bank of the creek. Steps for it, stopping and kneeling closer to get a better look.

An area of WET MUCK, FLAT and TACKY from the SOLES of FLAT, HEAVY SHOES. He looks at the bottom of his Vans, checking its TREAD and PRINTS in the muck against the prints left by the flat-soled shoes.

He looks back around, listening, turning things over. Sees and then moves for something back by the weeds. Picks it up.

A SALES RECEIPT, from a local package store named Darby's. Which he looks at. Over which --

LONGWORTH (V.O.)

A blow pop, two Red Bulls, a bag of corn nuts and lotto tickets.

INT. DARBY'S PACKAGE STORE - DAY

Longworth talking to the genius CLERK behind the counter.

LONGWORTH

She buy anything else?

The CLERK stuck on his photo of hot Erin, doesn't respond.

LONGWORTH

Beer, whisky, maybe offer to have sex with you?

That gets his attention.

CLERK

What?

LONGWORTH

Did she buy anything else? Maybe came in with someone?

CLERK

No. She came alone. Our ATM was down, she asked where the nearest

one was. I told her across town.

LONGWORTH

Notice anything odd or suspicious about her behavior?

CLERK

Seemed kind of pissed off about
something. A little wired for two o'clock in the morning...

The clerk stuck on the photo.

LONGWORTH

You can keep that if you want?

CLERK

Really?

Longworth looks at him like "no you can't keep it," snatches it back, then leaves with his purchases.

EXT. CONVENIENCE STORE - MINUTES LATER

Longworth comes out, gets in his sedan. Stops. Sees Jeff and some rough looking, older kids, smoking, jacking around on the side of the building.

Jeff sees Longworth. They look at each other. Jeff takes a long drag from a cigarette, blows smoke. Goes back to his buddies.

INT. TAMPA GRACE MEDICAL CENTER - DAY

Longworth with Callie, at her desk. Callie applies iodine tincture to his wound, distracted by work, studies...

CALLIE