I Walked with a Zombie

by

Curt Siodmark

&

Ardel Wray

EXT. BEACH - DAY
                  
FADE IN on two distant figures who walk across a sunny BEACH parallel to the 
surf: a tall, thin, bare-chested black man and a shorter white woman in a 
nurse's uniform.

				BETSY 
			(voice over) 
		I walked with a zombie.  
			(laughs a little, self-consciously)
		Does seem an odd thing to say.  Had anyone 
		said that to me a year ago, I'm not at all 
		sure I would have known what a zombie was.  
		I might have had some notion that they were 
		strange and frightening, even a little funny. 
   
								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. SUGAR COMPANY - DAY

The sign above the door of a SUGAR COMPANY, obscured by falling snow.

				BETSY 
			(voice over) 
		It all began in such an ordinary way...

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. SUGAR COMPANY OFFICE - DAY

A civilized office that keeps out the cold.  WILKENS, a balding man with 
a British accent, seated at a desk in front of a window overlooking the 
snowfall, asks BETSY CONNELL a series of questions and carefully checks off 
her answers on a form.  Betsy, a pretty twenty-something brunette, attempts 
an air of no-nonsense solidity that's meant to cover her insecurities, her 
naivete, and her incurable romanticism.

				WILKENS 
		You're single?

				BETSY 
		Yes.

				WILKENS 
		Where were you trained?

				BETSY 
		Memorial Hospital, here in Ottawa.

				WILKENS 
		Now, this last question's a little 
		irregular, Miss Connell.  I really don't 
		know quite how to begin.  Do you believe 
		in witchcraft?

				BETSY 
		Well... 
			(laughs) 
		They didn't teach it at Memorial Hospital 
		but I had my suspicions about the 
		directress of training.

				WILKENS 
		Now, as to salary.  It's quite good.  Two 
		hundred dollars a month.

				BETSY 
		That is good.  But I'd like to know a 
		little bit more about the case.

				WILKENS 
		I'm afraid I can't tell you much.  Only that 
		the patient is the wife of Paul Holland with 
		whom we do considerable business.

				BETSY 
		Oh, that'll mean another interview...

				WILKENS 
		No.  This is quite final.  You see, Mr. 
		Holland is a sugar planter.  He lives in 
		St. Sebastian in the West Indies.

				BETSY 
			(surprised) 
		The West Indies?

				WILKENS 
		That's not so bad.  Sit under a palm tree, 
		go swimming, take sun baths.

Betsy considers this for a moment, the heavy snowfall visible in the window 
behind her. She rather likes the idea.

				BETSY 
			(to herself) 
		Palm trees.

								FADE OUT

EXT. CLIPPER SHIP - SUNSET

FADE IN on a clipper SHIP at sea, silhouetted against the sunset.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE SHIP'S DECK - NIGHT

The crew CHANTS "O Marie Congo" and prepares dinner.  The mate stands at the 
wheel.  And the imposing figure of PAUL HOLLAND stands, hands in pockets, his 
back to the crew, watching the sea.  Paul is handsome, moustached, square-
jawed, worldly, and entirely sure of himself.
                    
				BETSY 
			(voice over) 
		It seemed only a few days before I met Mr. 
		Holland in Antigua.  

Paul turns to see Betsy at the boat's railing, lost in thought, gazing at the 
star-filled sky.

				BETSY 
			(voice over) 
		We boarded the boat for St. Sebastian.  It 
		was all just as I'd imagined it.  I looked 
		at those great, glowing stars.  I felt the 
		warm wind on my cheek.  I breathed deep and 
		every bit of me inside myself said, How 
		beautiful!

As if in answer, a harsh British-accented voice intrudes.

				MAN'S VOICE
		It's not beautiful ...

Betsy turns to see Paul Holland behind her.

				BETSY  
		You read my thoughts, Mr. Holland.

				PAUL 
		It's easy enough to read the thoughts of a 
		newcomer. Everything seems beautiful 
		because you don't understand.  Those flying 
		fish.  They're not leaping for joy.  They're 
		jumping in terror.  Bigger fish want to eat 
		them. That luminous water.  It takes its 
		gleam from millions of tiny dead bodies. The 
		glitter of putrescence.  There's no beauty 
		here.  Only death and decay.

				BETSY 
		You can't really believe that.

Just then, they both see a falling star.

				PAUL 
		Everything good dies here.  Even the stars...

Abruptly, he walks off and returns to where he stood when first seen, gazing 
at the sea, his back to the crew as they continue their chant and eat their 
dinner.  Betsy leans against the ship's rail, no longer watching the sky.  
She stares at Paul who stands just behind the mate at the ship's wheel, his 
back to her.

				BETSY 
			(voice over) 
		It was strange to have him break in on my 
		thoughts that way.  There was cruelty and 
		hardness in his voice.  And yet something 
		about him I liked.  Something clean and 
		honest.  But hurt.  Badly hurt.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE DOCK - DAY

Early the next day, on the noisy, busy DOCK at St. Sebastian, a crewman 
secures the ship and men carry cut sugar cane up the gangplank.  As Betsy 
disembarks, she takes in the local culture.  A sad, old black COACHMAN 
carries her luggage.  She boards the coachman's horse-drawn carriage.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE HORSE-DRAWN CARRIAGE - DAY

Minutes later, the CARRIAGE on its way to Fort Holland. Betsy sits in back 
while the coachman -- a friendly man, not the least bit sinister -- holds the 
reins.

				COACHMAN 
		Time's gone, Fort Holland was a fort, and 
		now, no longer.  Holland's a most old 
		family, miss.  They brought the colored 
		folks to the island.  The colored folks 
		and Ti-Misery.

				BETSY 
		Ti-Misery?  What's that?

				COACHMAN 
		A man, miss.  An old man who lives in the 
		garden at Fort Holland.  With arrows stuck 
		in him and a sorrowful, weeping look on his 
		black face.

				BETSY 
			(alarmed)
		Alive?

				COACHMAN 
		No, miss.  He's just the same as he was in 
		the beginning.  On the front side of an 
		enormous boat.  

				BETSY 
			(relieved)
		You mean a figurehead.

				COACHMAN 
		If you say, miss.  And the enormous boat 
		brought the Long Ago Fathers and the Long 
		Ago Mothers of us all, chained to the 
		bottom of the boat.  

Betsy allows the scenery to distract her.

				BETSY 
		They brought to you to a beautiful place, 
		didn't they?

				COACHMAN 
		If you say, miss.  If you say.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. FORT HOLLAND - DAY

The carriage pulls up at the iron gates of FORT HOLLAND, a converted military 
fort surrounded by high walls.  The coachman helps Betsy out.  While he 
collects her luggage, Betsy peers through the gate: at the great house, the 
garden, its stone pathway, and the small fountain in which is mounted the 
striking teakwood figurehead of Ti-Misery (or St. Sebastian, as the whites 
call him) -- a black man, its face contorted in pain, long iron arrow shafts 
emerging from its torso.  

				BETSY 
			(voice over) 
		Fort Holland.  From the gate, it seemed 
		strangely dream-like.  The garden had life 
		of its own.  I was to know all the nooks 
		and crannies of that great house.  To love 
		them or hate them according to what happened 
		there.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. THE STUDY - DAY

Fort Holland's STUDY, by daylight.  No one in sight.

				BETSY 
			(voice over) 
		In that house, I was to hear a strange 
		confession.  A confession only madness could 
		have wrung from the lips of a sane person.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. THE STUDY - NIGHT

Another view of the STUDY, at night.  Warmer, almost romantic. But still no 
sign of life.

				BETSY 
			(voice over) 
		And yet it was in the same room with the 
		candles lit that I made the discovery of my 
		own love.  Knew happiness deep through the 
		heart.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. BETSY'S BEDROOM - DAY

Betsy's BEDROOM, on her first day at Fort Holland.  As empty as the other 
rooms.

				BETSY 
			(voice over) 
		My room.  I can still remember my delight.  
		Unpacking, getting ready for dinner.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. BETSY'S BEDROOM - NIGHT

Another view of Betsy's BEDROOM, that evening as she sits down to her 
dressing table, puts on a bracelet and brushes her hair.  

				BETSY 
			(voice over) 
		And yet all the while, I wondered at the 
		stillness of Fort Holland.  The fact that 
		I saw no one on the garden paths or in the 
		rooms.

She pauses when she sees a man's shadow cast on her wall from her doorway.  
The man KNOCKS.  She turns to the door.  It's CLEMENT, the head servant.

				BETSY 
		Yes?

				CLEMENT
		Miss Connell?  It's dinner.

				BETSY 
		Oh, thank you.

She rises and crosses to the door.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. THE DINING ROOM - NIGHT

A handsome man leans against the wall smoking a cigarette.  This is WESLEY 
RAND, a rugged, ingratiating he-man with an American accent and a sense of 
humor that just manages to conceal his turbulent drives and emotions. He 
crosses to Betsy as she enters and shakes her hand.

				WESLEY 
		Miss Connell?

				BETSY 
		Yes?

				WESLEY 
		I'm Wesley Rand.  Paul wanted me to 
		introduce myself.

He leads her to the large, empty dinner table.

				WESLEY 
		Seems we're dining by ourselves, Miss 
		Connell.  But I think I'll introduce you 
		to everyone anyway.  
			(off a chair at the head of the table) 
		Here in the master's chair, sits the master, 
		my half-brother Paul Holland.  Oh, but 
		you've met him already?

				BETSY 
		Yes.  On the boat.

				WESLEY 
			(off an elegant chair against a wall)
		That chair in the corner is the particular 
		property of Mrs. Rand, mother to both of us, 
		and much too good for either of us.  Too 
		wise, in fact, to live under the same roof.  
		She prefers the village dispensary.

				BETSY 
		Oh, she's a doctor?

				WESLEY 
		No.  She just runs the place.  She does 
		everything else though.  An amazing woman, 
		mother.  You'd like her.

				BETSY 
		I like her already.

				WESLEY 
		That's my chair.  And this is Miss Connell, 
		who is beautiful.

He pulls her chair out for her.  She sits.

				BETSY 
		Thank you. 

Betsy notices one last chair at the far end of the table.

				BETSY
		Who sits there?

				WESLEY 
			(darkly)
		My brother's wife.  
			(quickly changes the subject) 
		Here, here, this isn't cozy at all.  Makes 
		me seem aloof and I'm anything but that.

Rather than his own seat, he pulls a spare chair over to the table and sits 
down right next to Betsy.  

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. THE DINING ROOM - NIGHT

After dinner, later that night.  Clement brings out a tray and sets it on the 
table.  Wesley pours himself a drink.  Betsy sits, drinking coffee. They're 
in the middle of a conversation.

				BETSY 
		But you're an American.

				WESLEY 
		I went to school in Buffalo.  Paul went to 
		school in England.

				BETSY 
		Well, I wondered about your different 
		accents.  I'm still wondering about your 
		names.  Rand and Holland.

				WESLEY 
		We're half-brothers.  Paul is mother's first 
		child.  When his father died, she married my 
		father. Doctor Rand, the missionary.

At the sudden sound of voodoo DRUMS, Betsy looks apprehensive.

				WESLEY 
			(mock ominous) 
		The jungle drums.  Mysterious.  Eerie.  
			(matter-of-fact) 
		That's the work drum over at the sugar mill.  
		St. Sebastian's version of the factory 
		whistle.  

Betsy grins at this.

				WESLEY 
		As a matter of fact, it means that the 
		sugar syrup is about ready to be poured.

The DRUMMING stops.

				WESLEY 
		I'm afraid you'll have to excuse me.

				BETSY 
		Of course.  It was nice of you to spend 
		this much time with me.

				WESLEY 
		Don't worry.  I wasn't missed.  The only 
		important man around here is the owner.

				BETSY 
		Mr. Holland?

				WESLEY 
		Yes, the redoubtable Paul.  He has the 
		plantation and I, as you must have noticed, 
		have all the charm.

				BETSY 
		Oh, I don't know.  He spoke to me on the 
		boat last night and I liked him very much.

				WESLEY 
		Ah, yes.  Our Paul.  Strong and silent and 
		very sad.  Quite the Byronic character.  
		Maybe I should cultivate it.

The DRUMMING resumes.

				BETSY 
		Maybe you ought to go to the mill.

				WESLEY 
		It'll wait.

Wesley starts to pour another drink, just as Paul enters.  Wesley sees him 
and immediately stops pouring.

				WESLEY 
			(to Paul)
		I was just going to the mill.  
			(abruptly, to Betsy) 
		Good night, Miss Connell.

				BETSY 
		Good night.

Wesley leaves.  Paul watches him go, then turns to Betsy as Clement arrives 
carrying a dinner tray.

				PAUL 
			(to Betsy)
		Have the servants made you comfortable?

				BETSY 
		Yes, thank you.

Paul inspects the tray.

				PAUL 
		Looks very nice, Clement.  I'll take it 
		to Mrs. Holland.

Paul takes the tray and Clement leaves.

				BETSY 
		Oh, can't I take it for you?

				PAUL 
		No, thank you.  Tomorrow's soon enough for 
		you to start work.

Betsy watches Paul leave the house and carry the tray to a tower on the other 
side of the garden.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. BETSY'S BEDROOM - NIGHT

Betsy's BEDROOM at bedtime, that night.  She wears a robe, blows out a 
candle, crosses to her bed while winding an alarm clock, blows out another 
candle, and starts to arrange her pillows.  But stops and crosses to her door 
and looks out into the garden.  From this distance, she sees a mysterious 
figure in a flowing white dress -- JESSICA HOLLAND, Paul's wife, blonde and 
blank-faced -- wandering the grounds as if she might be sleepwalking in a 
trance.  A puzzled Betsy returns to her bed and removes her robe.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE GARDEN - NIGHT

The eerie figure of Ti-Misery in the GARDEN. The night wind shakes the nearby 
plants.  A hushed RUSTLING noise.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. BETSY'S BEDROOM - NIGHT

Later that night.  Betsy, lying in bed, awakens at the echoey sound of loud 
SOBBING.  Betsy rises, puts on her robe and heads out into the GARDEN.  

EXT. THE GARDEN - NIGHT

The sobbing seems to be coming from the fort's nearby tower.  Betsy slowly 
crosses the garden to the tower's door.

INT. THE TOWER - NIGHT

Betsy opens the wooden door and enters the darkened tower.  A long steep 
stone staircase leads upstairs, the apparent source of the sobs, though the 
echo of the tower makes it hard to be sure.  Betsy slowly crosses to the 
staircase and climbs.  Halfway up, the sobbing ceases.  Betsy pauses.

				BETSY 
		Mrs. Holland?

Betsy continues and reaches the second floor.  It's empty.

				BETSY 
		Mrs. Holland?

At the bottom of the stairs, a figure in white appears.  It's Jessica 
Holland.  She is a willowy blonde with a sad, blank expression that never 
changes. Jessica begins to climb the stairs. She is slow and zombie-like in 
her movements, like a sleepwalker. On the second floor, Betsy continues to 
peer into the darkness.

				BETSY 
		Mrs. Holland?

Betsy suddenly sees Jessica reach the top and walk toward her.  Betsy 
approaches the oncoming Jessica.

				BETSY 
			(apologetic)
		I didn't mean to get you up, Mrs. 
		Holland.  

But Jessica does not respond. She keeps walking, threatening to plow into 
Betsy.  Jessica's vacant stare begins to unnerve Betsy.

				BETSY 
			(quietly)
		Mrs. Holland...

Jessica keeps walking toward Betsy, forcing her to backtrack. Betsy backs up 
against the stone wall.  Staring into Jessica's frozen face, Betsy panics and 
SCREAMS, rushing past Jessica and pressing herself up against the opposite 
wall.  As if in a trance, Jessica turns and slowly pursues her.  Meanwhile, 
on the first floor of the tower, two servants stand nervously in the doorway, 
while Paul, in a robe and carrying a flashlight begins to mount the stairs.  
Jessica closes in on Betsy just as Paul reaches the top.

				PAUL 
		Jessica!

Jessica suddenly pauses, inches away from a terrified Betsy.  Paul joins them 
and guides Jessica away while turning to ALMA, the black maid, who, along 
with Clement, has followed him up the stairs.

				PAUL 
		Take Mrs. Holland to her room, Alma.

				ALMA
		Come, Miss Jessica.  Come with Alma.

Alma leads Jessica downstairs.  A relieved Betsy still stands against the 
wall.

				BETSY 
		I heard someone crying.  A woman.

				PAUL  
		A woman crying?  There's been no crying 
		here.

				CLEMENT 
		Mr. Paul?  Yes, there was crying tonight.  
		It was Alma.  Her sister was brought 
		a-birthing.

				PAUL 
		Thank you, Clement.

Paul gives Betsy a disapproving look, then walks off.  Paul, Betsy and 
Clement head back down the stairs, Clement leading the way with a lantern.  
At the bottom of the stairs, Paul and Betsy head for the tower door.  Alma 
pokes her head out of Jessica's bedroom door, near the bottom of the stairs, 
and whispers to Clement.

				ALMA 
		Clement?  I'm gonna stay with Miss Jessica 
		in case the nurse-lady takes to roamin' 
		again.

				CLEMENT 
		Don't you go crying no more.  That's what 
		frightened Miss Betsy.

				ALMA 
		Well, she didn't suit me any [wandering?] 
		around in the tower.

				CLEMENT 
		Sssshhhhh!

								CUT TO:

EXT. THE GARDEN - NIGHT

Paul and Betsy walk back to the house.

				BETSY 
		Why was the maid crying?

				PAUL 
		I'm not sure I can make you understand.

They pause in front of Ti-Misery.

				PAUL 
			(off the figure) 
		Do you know what this is?

				BETSY 
		The figure of St. Sebastian.

				PAUL 
		Yes.  But it was once the figurehead of a 
		slave ship.  That's where our people came 
		from.  From the misery and pain of slavery.  
		For generations they found life a burden.  
		That's why they still weep when a child is 
		born and make merry at a burial.

Paul pauses to watch Clement returning to the house.

				PAUL 
		I've told you, Miss Connell, this is a sad 
		place.

Paul walks to the house, leaving Betsy with the figure.

								FADE OUT

INT. BETSY'S BEDROOM - DAY

FADE IN on Betsy's BEDROOM, the next morning as Alma enters with a breakfast 
tray for Betsy who is still asleep in bed.  Alma sets the tray on an end 
table and wakes Betsy by lifting the blanket off her foot and gently wiggling 
her toe.  Betsy opens her eyes.

				ALMA 
		Good morning, miss.

				BETSY 
		Thank you for waking me.

				ALMA 
		I didn't want to frighten you out of your 
		sleep, miss.  That's why I touched you 
		farthest from your heart.

Betsy smiles at this and starts to get up.  

				ALMA 
		Oh, don't get up, miss.  

Alma crosses back to the tray and starts preparing breakfast for Betsy.

				ALMA 
		I brought your breakfast.  Just like I do 
		for Miss Jessica.

				BETSY 
		But I'm Miss Jessica's nurse, Alma.  You 
		don't have to do that for me.

				ALMA 
		I know it, miss.  But I like to do it.  I 
		like to tend for Miss Jessica and I want to 
		tend for you.  You settle right back, now, 
		and I'll make sure you're comfy.

Alma places a big pillow behind Betsy.

				BETSY 
		Thank you.

				ALMA 
		Miss Jessica used to say this is the only 
		way for a lady to break her fast.  In bed, 
		with a lacy cushion to back her head up.  
		If you'd only seen her, Miss Connell.  
		She looked so pretty.

Alma places the tray in Betsy's lap.

				BETSY 
		She must have been beautiful.  What happened 
		to her, Alma?

				ALMA 
			(matter-of-fact)
		She was very sick and then she went	
		mindless, miss.

				BETSY 
		Well, we'll see if we can't make her well, 
		Alma.  You and I.

				ALMA 
		I do my best every day I dress her just as 
		beautifully as if she was well.  It's just 
		like dressing a great big doll.

Alma places a huge pastry on the tray.

				BETSY 
		What's this?

				ALMA 
		A puff-up, I call it.  But Miss Jessica 
		always says "brioche."

				BETSY 
		It looks like an awful lot of breakfast.  I 
		don't know if I'll be able to get away with 
		it.

Betsy touches the pastry with her fork and it instantly deflates much to her 
and Alma's amusement.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. THE STUDY - DAY

The STUDY, a little later that morning.  Paul sits at his desk talking to 
Betsy who wears her nurse's uniform.

				PAUL 
		I made it clear in my letter to the 
		company.  This is not a position for a 
		frightened girl.

				BETSY 
		I'm not a frightened girl.

				PAUL 
		That's hard to believe after what happened 
		last night.

				BETSY 
		If I were as timid as you seem to think, 
		Mr. Holland, I wouldn't have gone to the 
		tower in the first place.

				PAUL 
		And what's so alarming about the tower, 
		Miss Connell?

				BETSY 
		Nothing really, but...  You must admit, it's 
		an eerie sort of place.  So dark.

				PAUL 
		Surely nurses aren't afraid of the dark.

				BETSY 
		Of course not.  Well, I used to be afraid 
		of the dark when I was a child, but I'm not 
		afraid any more.

Paul rises to file some paperwork.

				BETSY 
		Frankly, it was something of a shock to see 
		my patient that way for the first time.  
		Nobody had told me Mrs. Holland was... 
		a mental case.

Paul turns abruptly from the paperwork.

				PAUL 
		A mental case?

				BETSY 
		I'm sorry.

				PAUL 
		Why should you be?  My wife is a mental 
		case.  Please remember that, Miss Connell.  
		Particularly when some of the foolish people 
		on the island start regaling you with local 
		legends.  You'll find superstition a 
		contagious thing.  Some people let it get 
		the better of them.  I don't think you will.

				BETSY 
		No.

				PAUL 
		Come along.  I'll introduce you to Dr. 
		Maxwell and your patient.

Betsy rises and they walk off.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. JESSICA'S ROOM - DAY

Later that day, Betsy and Dr. Maxwell enter.  As distinct from the rest of 
the tower, the room is quite pleasant, kept up nicely by the servants.  A 
harp and stool sit silently by the window.

				DR. MAXWELL
		I can't tell you how glad I am to have you 
		here, Miss Connell.

				BETSY 
		I know I'll enjoy working with you, Doctor.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		I have an enormous amount of respect for 
		nurses, but most of them scare me.  I always 
		feel them behind my back, looking at their 
		training manuals, noting my mistakes.

				BETSY 
		I'll keep tabs on you.

They approach Jessica who lies in bed, staring into space.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		She makes a beautiful zombie, doesn't she?  

Betsy looks shocked by the comment.

				DR. MAXWELL 
			(explains)
		I knew Jessica.  We were friends.  
		Sometimes it's better for a doctor to 
		laugh than pull a long face when things 
		are hopeless.

				BETSY 
		Yes, I know.  But I don't know about 
		zombies, Doctor.  Just what is a zombie?

				DR. MAXWELL 
		A ghost, the living dead.  It's also a drink.

				BETSY 
		Yes, I tried one once.  But there wasn't 
		anything dead about it.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		We've a more serious problem to deal with, 
		Miss Connell.  You want to know about your 
		patient, don't you?

				BETSY 
		Please.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		I'll try to put it simply.  Mrs. Holland 
		had a tropical fever.  Very severe.  We 
		might say that portions of the spinal cord 
		were burned out by this fever.  The result 
		is what you see.  A woman without any will 
		power.  Unable to speak or even act by 
		herself, though she will obey simple 
		commands.

				BETSY 
		Does she suffer?

				DR. MAXWELL 
		I don't know.  I'd rather think of her as 
		a sleepwalker who can never be awakened.  
		Feeling nothing, knowing nothing.  There's 
		very little we can do except keep her 
		physically comfortable, light diet, some 
		exercise.  

				BETSY 
		She can never be cured?

				DR. MAXWELL 
		I've never heard of a cure.

				BETSY 
		Could you give me some details of treatment 
		and diet?

				DR. MAXWELL 
		I prepared these for you last night.

Dr. Maxwell hands Betsy some papers from his medical bag.  He collects his 
hat and the bag.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		I'll drop by in a day or so to see how 
		you're getting on.

They both head for the door.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE GARDEN - DAY

Minutes later, Betsy reads the papers while walking to the house. Paul, 
reading a newspaper on the VERANDA, turns to her.

				PAUL 
		You didn't find your patient so frightening 
		in the daylight, did you?

				BETSY 
		Mrs. Holland must have been very beautiful.

				PAUL 
		Many people thought her beautiful.

Betsy is about to enter the house.

				PAUL 
		Tell me, Miss Connell. Do you consider 
		yourself pretty?

				BETSY 
			(taken aback)
		I don't know.  I suppose so.

				PAUL 
		And charming?

				BETSY 
		I've never given it much thought.

				PAUL 
		Don't.  You'll save yourself a great deal 
		of trouble and other people a great deal 
		of unhappiness.

Betsy thinks about this for a moment and then enters the house.

								FADE OUT

EXT. THE TOWN - DAY

FADE IN some days later, as Betsy walks through St. Sebastian's main town, or 
what passes for it.  Wesley, in sugar planter's work clothes, rides up to her 
on horseback, pleasantly surprised to see her.

				WESLEY 
		Betsy!  Where are you going?

				BETSY 
		It's my day off.  

				WESLEY 
		What in the world can you do with a day 
		off in St. Sebastian?

				BETSY 
		I was just beginning to wonder.  Aren't 
		there shops, restaurants and things here?

				WESLEY 
		Well, "and things" is a better description 
		of what you'll find.

Wesley dismounts.

				WESLEY 
		I'd better come along and show you the town.  

				BETSY 
		Don't you have to work?

				WESLEY 
		By a curious coincidence, it's my day off, 
		too.

He leads her, and the horse, away.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE CAFE - DAY

An outdoor cafe by the seaside, a bit later. The townspeople crowd around a 
guitar-playing CALYPSO SINGER who does a rendition of "British Grenadiers":

				SINGER 
			(sings)
		Some talk of Alexander 
		And some of Hercules
		Of Hector and Lysander 
		And [?] such [?] as these
		But of all the world's great heroes
		There's none that can compare....

TI-JOSEPH, a waiter, clears a table.  Betsy and Wesley share a table around 
the corner from the singer.  The song plays under their conversation.

				WESLEY 
		Say, Joseph.  Bring me another.  I have to 
		keep the lady entertained.

				BETSY 
		It must be hard work entertaining me if it 
		requires six ounces of rum.

				WESLEY 
		Six ounces?

				BETSY 
		Higher mathematics.  Two ounces to a drink, 
		three drinks, six ounces.

				WESLEY 
		Well, how did you know there were two 
		ounces in a drink?

				BETSY 
		I'm a nurse.  I always watch people when 
		they pour something.  I watched Ti-Joseph 
		and it was exactly two ounces.

The singer begins a new song.  Wesley grows immediately uncomfortable, but 
Betsy is curious. 

				SINGER 
			(sings)
		There was a family that lived on the isle
		Of St. Sebastian a long, long while
		The head of the fam'ly was a Holland man
		And the younger brother, his name was Rand 
		Ah, woe! Ah, me!
		Shame and sorrow for the family...

Wesley tries to divert Betsy's attention from the song.

				WESLEY 
		Listen, did I ever tell you the story 
		about the little mule on the plantation?  
		The little mule...

				BETSY 
		Wait a minute, I want to hear this.

				SINGER 
			(sings)
		The Holland man, he kept in a tower
		A wife as pretty as a big white flower
		She saw the brother and she stole his heart

Ti-Joseph arrives with Wesley's drink and Wesley gives him a disapproving 
shake of the head.  Ti-Joseph crosses to the singer and whispers something.

				SINGER 
			(sings)
		And that's how the badness and the trouble start --

The singer stops and turns to a colleague, in annoyance.

				SINGER
		Ti-[?], [?]. Why do you wish to [trouble?] 
		me for?  You saw Mr. Rand go in there.  
		Why don't you tell me?  Apologize, that's 
		what I'll do.  Creep in just like a little 
		fox and warm myself in his heart.

The singer hands his guitar to the colleague and heads over to Wesley's 
table.  Betsy talks with Wesley who looks down, embarrassed.

				BETSY 
		I wouldn't have listened, Wesley, if I'd 
		realized. I --

The singer appears before them and bows deeply to Wesley.

				SINGER
		Mr. Rand? I've come to apologize.

				WESLEY 
		All right.

				SINGER
		Just an old song I picked up somewhere.  
		Don't know who did make it up.

				WESLEY 
		All right. All right.

				SINGER
		Some of these singers on this island, they 
		tattle-tale on anybody.  Believe me, Mr. 
		Rand, I never would sing that song if I'd 
		known you were with a lady.

				WESLEY 
			(boils over) 
		Get out of here!

The singer takes two steps back, bows deeply to Wesley, and quickly departs.

				BETSY 
		Don't let it bother you so, Wesley.

				WESLEY 
		You heard what he said.  Shocked?

				BETSY 
		I just wish I hadn't heard.

				WESLEY 
		Why?  Everybody else knows it.  Paul saw 
		to that.  Sometimes I think he planned the 
		whole thing from the beginning just to 
		watch me squirm.

				BETSY 
		That doesn't sound like him.

				WESLEY 
		That's right.  He's playing the noble 
		husband for you, isn't he?  Well, that won't 
		last long.

Wesley starts another drink.

				BETSY 
		I think we'd better go now.  Will you take 
		me home?

				WESLEY 
		One of these days he'll start on you, just 
		like he did on her.  "You think life's 
		beautiful, don't you, Jessica?  You think 
		you're beautiful, don't you, Jessica?"  
		What he could do to that word 'beautiful.'  
		That's Paul's great weapon, words.  He uses 
		them like other men use their fists.

A concerned Betsy looks at Wesley nervously.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE CAFE - NIGHT

A lamp near the CAFE being lit, that night. All is quiet.  In the cafe, 
everyone has gone home, except for Ti-Joseph, who is cleaning up; an 
unconscious Wesley who is face down on the table; and Betsy who stands over 
him trying to awaken him.

				BETSY 
		Wesley?  Wesley, it's time we started home.

The calypso singer emerges from the darkness, this time with his guitar, and 
sings to Betsy the rest of the "Fort Holland Calypso Song."   Unlike earlier, 
his manner is ominous and unapologetic.  With a view of the turbulent ocean 
behind him, the singer slowly walks toward Betsy as he plays, unnerving her.

				SINGER 
			(sings)
		The wife and the brother, they want to go
		But the Holland man, he tell them no.
		The wife fall down and the evil came
		And it burned her mind in the fever flame.
		Ah, woe! Ah, me!
		Shame and sorrow for the family!

A scared Betsy shakes the unconscious Wesley.

				BETSY 
		Wesley!  Wesley, we must get back to Fort 
		Holland.

The singer draws nearer, staring at Betsy.

				SINGER 
			(sings)
		Her eyes are empty and she cannot talk
		And a nurse has come to make her walk.
		The brothers are lonely and the nurse is young
		And now you must see that my song is sung.
		Ah, woe! Ah, me!
		Shame and sorrow for the family!
		Ah, woe! Ah, me!
		Shame and sorrow for the family!

As the song concludes, an older woman appears and her commanding presence 
seems to cause the singer to stop and instantly depart.  This is MRS. RAND, 
Paul and Wesley's mother, a self-assured woman who wears her authority 
lightly.  She sees Wesley just as he's waking up.

				MRS. RAND 
			(to Betsy) 
		I think you need some help.

				BETSY 
		I'm afraid so.

				MRS. RAND
		Ti-Joseph?

Ti-Joseph crosses to Wesley.

				MRS. RAND 
		Help Mr. Rand onto his horse and start him 
		toward the fort.

Joseph helps Wesley out of the cafe.

				BETSY 
		Oh, but he's in no condition to ride.  I-I 
		don't think he could even sit in the saddle.

				MRS. RAND 
		Don't worry about a sugar planter.  Give 
		him a horse and he'll ride to his own 
		funeral.

The sound of the horse's HOOFBEATS recede into the distance.

				MRS. RAND 
		I really intended going out to the fort 
		and meeting you long before this, Miss 
		Connell.  I am Mrs. Rand, Wesley's mother.

They shake hands.

				BETSY 
		Oh, Mrs. Rand.  I --

				MRS. RAND 
		Now, don't tell me you're sorry that I 
		should meet you this way.  I'm even a 
		little glad that Wesley's difficulties 
		brought us together.

Mrs. Rand picks up Wesley' bill from the table, studies it, takes some money 
from her purse and leaves it on the table with the bill.

				BETSY 
		Believe me, he doesn't do this often.  
		It's --

				MRS. RAND 
		Nonsense.  I know Wesley's been drinking 
		too much lately.  I know a great deal more 
		about what goes on at the fort than you'd 
		think.  And I know all about you.  That 
		you're a nice girl.  Competent.  And kind 
		to Jessica.  The fort needs a girl like you.  
		Come, I must get you back there.  I'll walk 
		back with you and stay the night.  The change 
		will do me good.

				BETSY 
		Thank you, Mrs. Rand.

They start walking.

EXT. THE TOWN - NIGHT

The two women walk side by side down a deserted road.

				BETSY 
		I think you're every bit as nice as 
		Wesley says you are.

				MRS. RAND 
		So, he says I'm nice?  He's a nice boy, 
		too, Miss Connell.  A very nice boy.  
		I'm worried about his drinking though.  
		You could do me a great favor.

				BETSY 
		I'd love to.

				MRS. RAND 
		Use your influence with Paul.  Ask him to 
		take the whiskey decanter off the dinner 
		table.

				BETSY 
		I have no influence with Mr. Holland.

				MRS. RAND 
		Try it.  You may have more than you think.

								FADE OUT

EXT. THE VERANDA - DAY

FADE IN on Paul and BAYARD the planter, walking through the fort carrying 
some cane stalks, early the next morning.

				PAUL 
		No, it's not a drought, Bayard.  Rain's just 
		a little late, that's all.

				BAYARD
		I've seen the drought before, Mr. Holland.  
		Cane's too dry.  It's dangerous that way.

They meet Betsy coming in the opposite direction.  She wears her nurse's 
uniform and carries a tray.

				PAUL 
		Good morning.

				BETSY 
		Good morning.

				PAUL 
		I heard about your little misadventure 
		yesterday.  On your first day off, too.

				BETSY 
		Oh, I had a good time, up to a point.

				PAUL 
		Wesley can be very entertaining.

				BETSY 
		Yes, he can.  But I was wondering. You 
		know, if you could leave the whisky decanter 
		off the table --

				PAUL 
		It's always stood there, Miss Connell.  I 
		can remember it in my grandfather's time.  
		And my father's.

				BETSY 
		But it must be an added temptation to 
		Wesley.  And... though your brother's not 
		an alcoholic yet, Mr. Holland, I can tell 
		you as a nurse that it won't be long.

				PAUL 
		Miss Connell, I engaged you to take care of 
		my wife, not my brother.  I'm afraid the 
		decanter will have to stay where it is.

Paul abruptly turns and he and Bayard walk off.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. THE DINING ROOM - NIGHT

That night, Clement serves dinner to Paul, Wesley and Betsy.  A weird horn-
like SOUND causes them to react.

				WESLEY 
		There they go.

				PAUL  
		Bayard told me they were going to ask 
		Dumballa for rain. Fields are dry as dust.

				BETSY 
		But what is it, Mr. Holland?

				PAUL  
		It's a big seashell.  A conch.  They make 
		a sort of bugle out of it to call the 
		faithful to the Houmfort.

				BETSY 
		But I don't know what a Houmfort is.  Or 
		a Dumballa.

				PAUL 
		It's voodoo.  The Houmfort is the temple.

				WESLEY 
		And Dumballa is one of the gods.  The big 
		Papa God.

				BETSY 
		You don't seem very disturbed by it.  I 
		thought voodoo was something everyone was 
		frightened of.

				PAUL 
		I'm afraid it's not very frightening.  They 
		sing and dance and carry on.  And then, as I 
		understand it, one of the gods comes down and 
		speaks through one of the people.

				WESLEY 
		For some reason, they always pick a night like 
		this.  This hot wind even sets me on edge.

Wesley reaches for the whisky decanter, but it's not there.

				WESLEY 
			(to Clement) 
		Clement. You've forgotten the decanter.

				PAUL 
		I think from now on, Wesley, we'll try 
		serving dinner without it.

				WESLEY 
		That's odd.  What are you trying to do?  
		Impress Miss Connell?

				PAUL 
		You'd make a better impression without 
		whisky.

				WESLEY 
		Thank you.  You've always had such tender 
		concern for me.  And for Jessica.

				PAUL 
		Let's drop it, Wesley.

				WESLEY 
		Why?

				PAUL 
		It isn't considered polite to quarrel 
		before ladies.

Betsy looks down, embarrassed.

				WESLEY 
		Oh, I see.  Let's be reserved and 
		gentlemanly.  You were so reserved and 
		gentlemanly, so polite that night with 
		Jessica.

Wesley rises.

				WESLEY 
		I remember --

				PAUL 
		Wesley!

Paul rises and turns to Betsy.

				PAUL 
		Miss Connell, I think it would be better 
		if I had Clement bring the rest of your 
		dinner to your room.

An uncomfortable Betsy rises and walks off.

Paul and Wesley stand in awkward silence at the table. 

								FADE OUT

INT. BETSY'S BEDROOM - NIGHT

Later that evening, Betsy sits on the arm of a chair listening to the MUSIC 
of Chopin's E Minor Etude. Paul plays it, not brilliantly, but not badly on 
a piano in the STUDY. After listening for a few moments, Betsy rises and 
walks to the study.  

INT. THE STUDY - NIGHT

As Betsy enters and closes the door behind her, Paul stops and turns to her.

				BETSY 
		I heard you playing.  I --

				PAUL 
		I often do.

				BETSY 
		I know what you went through tonight.  I 
		kept thinking of what you said.  That-that 
		all good things died here, violently.

Paul rises from the piano and crosses to her.

				PAUL 
		Why did you come in here?

				BETSY 
		I don't know.  I wanted to help you and now 
		that I'm here, I don't know how.

				PAUL 
		You have helped me.  I want you to know 
		that I'm sorry I ever brought you here.  
		When I thought of a nurse, I thought of 
		someone hard and impersonal.

				BETSY 
		I love Fort Holland.

				PAUL 
		And what you saw tonight -- two brothers set 
		against each other and a woman driven mad by 
		her own husband -- do you love that?

				BETSY 
		You didn't drive her mad.

Betsy touches Paul's arm.  He looks down at this gesture, surprised.

				PAUL 
		Before Jessica was taken ill, there was a 
		scene.  An ugly scene.  I told her she 
		couldn't go.  That I'd keep her here by 
		force if necessary.  You never knew Jessica 
		as she was.

The distant sound of the DRUMS begin again and all at once Paul is in no mood 
to talk. 

				PAUL 
			(chilly)
		I think it will be best for all of us not 
		to discuss this again.  Thank you.  I know 
		you meant to be kind.

A stunned Betsy leaves. Paul closes the door behind her.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE BEACH - NIGHT

That night, on the hills overlooking the BEACH, Betsy walks amid the rocks 
and sand, looking down at the crashing waves, deep in thought.

				BETSY 
			(voice over) 
		I don't know how their own love is revealed 
		to other women.  Maybe in their sweethearts' 
		arms, I don't know.  To me, it came that 
		night after Paul Holland had almost thrust 
		me from the room. Certainly from his life.  
		I said, I loved him.  Even as I said it, 
		I-I knew he still loved his wife.  And then 
		because I loved him, I felt I had to restore 
		her to him.  To make her what she'd been 
		before.  To make him happy.

								FADE OUT

INT. JESSICA'S ROOM - DAY

FADE IN on Paul in Jessica's ROOM, the next day.  Also in the room are Betsy, 
Doctor Maxwell and Jessica.

				PAUL 
		All that you say comes to the same thing.  
		You're asking me to pass a sentence of 
		life or death on my wife.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		Insulin-shock treatment is an extreme 
		measure, Paul, as Miss Connell pointed out 
		when she suggested it to me, but --

				PAUL 
		You admit that this is terribly dangerous.  
		So, why do you advise it?

				BETSY  
		I've worked with it.  I've seen cures.  
		It's at least a hope.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		It's the very danger itself, Paul, that 
		makes the cure possible.  Insulin produces 
		a state of coma.  Then the patient is 
		revived by a violent shock to the nerves.  
		That shock can kill, but it can also cure.

				PAUL 
		I don't know.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		It's a hard decision to make.  But yours is 
		only a technical responsibility.

				PAUL 
		Technical responsibility, real responsibility.  
		Question is, will she live or die?

				BETSY  
		You're wrong, Mr. Holland.  It isn't a 
		question of life or death.  Your wife isn't 
		living.  She's -- she's in a world that's 
		empty of joy and meaning.  We have a chance 
		to give her life back to her.

But Paul seems unsure.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. JESSICA'S ROOM - NIGHT

That night, Betsy and the doctor, at Jessica's bedside, monitor their patient.
Paul leans against the doorway.  The tension is thick. Betsy crosses to Paul.

				PAUL 
		Well?

				BETSY  
		She's alive.  That's all.

She starts to walk away, when Paul reaches out to her with both arms and 
clutches her shoulders.

				PAUL 
		Don't take it so much to heart, Betsy.

				BETSY  
		I imagined it so differently.

				PAUL 
		I've been waiting for hours, trying to 
		imagine Jessica well again.

				BETSY  
		And I come bringing you nothing.

				PAUL 
		Instead, you come bringing me sympathy, 
		Betsy.  And a generous heart.  Don't forget 
		that.  Don't call that nothing.

A downcast Betsy quickly walks back to Jessica, just as Wesley emerges from 
the shadows behind Paul to confront him.

				WESLEY 
		Very sad.  Very sweet.  The noble husband 
		and the noble nurse comforting each other 
		'cause the patient still lives.  I've been 
		imagining, too, Paul.  Only I didn't have 
		to wonder how I'd feel. I knew.  I'm not in 
		love with another woman.

Wesley strides off. Paul watches him go.

								FADE OUT

EXT. THE GARDEN - DAY

FADE IN on the GARDEN, the next day, where the servants cluster around Alma's 
sister Melisse and her newborn baby, laughing and commenting on how adorable 
the little child is.  Betsy emerges from the tower carrying a tray.

				ALMA 
		Oh, I'm sorry, Miss Betsy.  
			(off the tray) 
		I'll take it right away.

				BETSY  
		Oh, that's all right, Alma.

Betsy puts the tray down.

				BETSY  
		Oh, is this your sister's baby?

				ALMA 
		Yes, Miss Betsy. This is little Ti-Victor 
		and my sister Melisse.

				BETSY  
		Oh, I'm so glad I came out.  I've been 
		wanting to meet you, Melisse.

				MELISSE
		More so, miss.

				BETSY 
			(off Ti-Victor) 
		Oh, he's a wonderful baby.  Beautiful.

The baby smiles at Betsy.

				MELISSE
		He's chosen you, miss.

				ALMA 
		That's what we say, Miss Betsy, when a 
		baby first goes visiting.  Those he smiles 
		at will be his friends.

				BETSY  
		That makes me very proud.  Here, Ti-Victor.

Betsy removes a silver pin from her lapel and pins it to the baby's swaddling 
clothes.  The servants gasp at what, for them, is an extravagant gift.

				BETSY  
		That's so you won't forget I'm your friend.

				ALMA 
		Thanks, Miss Betsy!

Betsy and Alma watch the other servants walk into the house, chattering and 
laughing.

				BETSY  
		It's nice to see people so happy.

				ALMA 
		They're not always happy, Miss Betsy.

				BETSY  
		I suppose not.

				ALMA 
		Things so bad, nobody can help.  Not even 
		Dr. Maxwell.

				BETSY  
		Doctors and nurses can only do so much, 
		Alma.  They can't cure everything.

Betsy and Alma start to walk through the garden.

				ALMA 
		Doctors that are people can't cure 
		everything.

				BETSY  
		What do you mean doctors that are people?

				ALMA 
		There are other doctors.  Yes?  Other doctors.  
		Better doctors.

				BETSY  
		Where?

				ALMA 
		At the Houmfort.

				BETSY  
		That's nonsense, Alma.

				ALMA 
		They even cure nonsense, Miss Betsy.  Mama 
		Rose was mindless.  I was at the Houmfort 
		when the Houngan brought her mind back.

They stop walking.

				BETSY  
		Was Mama Rose like Mrs. Holland?

				ALMA 
		No.  She was mindless, but not like Miss 
		Jessica.  But the Houngan cured her.

				BETSY  
		Are you trying to tell me that the voodoo 
		priest could cure Mrs. Holland?

				ALMA 
		Yes, Miss Betsy.  I mean that.  The Houngan 
		will speak to the [?] drums and the drums 
		will speak to Legba and Dumballa.

Betsy remains unconvinced.

				ALMA 
			(whispers)
		Better doctors.

Betsy walks away.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. THE DISPENSARY - DAY

Betsy watches as Mrs. Rand helps a very young boy into his shirt after having 
given him a check-up.  He wears a voodoo charm around his neck.

				MRS. RAND 
			(to the boy, off the charm)
		Ti-Peter, how do you ever expect to get to 
		Heaven with one foot in the voodoo Houmfort 
		and the other in the church.  Ah, get along 
		with ya.

The boy walks off. Mrs. Rand washes up and straightens the room.

				MRS. RAND  
		Some of this native nonsense. The Houngan 
		has his prescription and Dr. Maxwell and 
		I have ours.

				BETSY  
		You never talked about voodoo before, 
		Mrs. Rand.

				MRS. RAND 
		Haven't I?  I suppose I take it for granted.  
		Just part of everyday life here.

				BETSY  
		You don't believe in it?

				MRS. RAND 
		A missionary's widow?  Isn't very likely, 
		is it?

				BETSY  
		Well, I don't mean believe in it like 
		believing in a religion.  I mean, do you 
		believe it has power?  Do you think it 
		could cure a sick person?

				MRS. RAND 
		Frankly, my dear, I didn't expect anything 
		like that from a nice level headed girl like 
		you.  What are you driving at?

				BETSY  
		I heard the servants talking about Mama Rose.  
		She said she'd been mindless.

				MRS. RAND 
		Her son drowned.  It affected her mind.  
		The Houngan cured her by giving her a 
		little practical psychology.

				BETSY 
		What if I took Jessica to see him?

				MRS. RAND 
		You don't know what goes on at the Houmfort.  
		It might be very dangerous to take her 
		there.  Dangerous for both of you.  These 
		people are primitive.  Things that are 
		natural to them might shock and horrify you.

				BETSY 
		I'm not easily frightened. 

				MRS. RAND 
		That may be the pity of it.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. FORT HOLLAND - NIGHT

That night, Paul works in the STUDY while Wesley sits on the VERANDA, 
drinking.  All is quiet, except for a stiff breeze RUSTLING through the 
trees.  Betsy, with a dark cape over her white nurse's uniform furtively 
leads Jessica through the GARDEN to the tower where Alma awaits them.  

				BETSY  
		I'm going to the Houmfort, Alma.

Alma opens the wooden door to the tower and the three women enter.
 
								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. THE TOWER - NIGHT

The inside of the darkened TOWER, moments later.  While Betsy stands over her 
with a flashlight, Alma pours corn meal from a bowl onto the floor.  Using 
her finger, Alma draws a map in the meal while giving directions.

				ALMA 
			(whispers)
		You go right from the mill to an [?] sign 
		in the cane.  Here, you turn and face a [?] 
		tree on the hill.  Walk toward it and keep 
		walking.  Keep walking, miss [and then?] 
		you come to the crossroads.

Alma pulls two voodoo patches from her dress and pins them to Betsy and 
Jessica's shoulders.  Betsy's is white, in contrast to her dark cape.

				ALMA 
			(whispers)
		There's a guard there, Carre-Four.  He 
		keeps the crossroads.  But he won't do you 
		no harm when he sees the voodoo patches.  
		He'll let you pass.

Jessica's patch is black, in contrast to her white dress.

								DISSOLVE TO: 

EXT. THE SUGAR CANE FIELD - NIGHT

The seven foot tall figure of Carre-Four, the voodoo guard, stands immobile 
at the crossroads in the sugar cane FIELD, silhouetted against the moonlight, 
later that night.  The stiff breeze shakes the cane stalks.  

Elsewhere in the field, Betsy leads Jessica through the cane.  An odd MOANING 
sound causes Betsy to stop and turn toward it.  She shines her flashlight on 
cow's skull mounted on a stick -- the wind blowing through the hollow skull 
makes the noise.  Betsy leads Jessica past it.  The two women emerge into a 
clearing.  Betsy is taken aback by the sight of a dead lamb's carcass hanging 
from a tree.  They press on, back into the cane.  Another weird sound -- an 
ominous vibrating noise -- leads Betsy to stop and look around.  She turns on 
her flashlight and approaches a hollow gourd suspended from a wooden scaffold 
-- the wind blows through holes in the gourd making the noise.  The women 
cross under the scaffold and continue to walk through the cane.  Betsy shines 
her light on a human skull lying on the ground in the middle of a circle of 
stones.  The night seems to be getting darker and the cane seems to be 
getting thicker, more claustrophobic.  The sound of a conch and the drums 
causes Betsy to stop once again and look around.  After a moment, the two 
women press forward -- and Betsy fails to notice that her voodoo patch has 
caught on a cane stalk and been torn from her cape.  

Betsy points her light at the ground as they make their way forward. 
Suddenly, a man's foot appears in its beam.  Betsy instantly points the 
flashlight at the man's face -- revealing the spooky, bug-eyed, blank stare 
of Carre-Four, the voodoo guard.  Startled, Betsy gasps but quickly recovers, 
only to notice that her patch is gone.  She claps her hand to her shoulder 
and looks up at the towering guard.  Is Carre-Four smiling?  Hard to tell.  
Betsy sees that Jessica still wears her patch.  Clutching Jessica close to 
her, Betsy leads Jessica very slowly past Carre-Four, keeping her flashlight 
trained on him and watching him nervously.  But he makes no move to stop 
them.  Once they have passed, Carre-Four suddenly turns and walks off in 
another direction.  

The DRUMS grow louder and are now accompanied by intense CHANTING, a 
call-and-response chant -- "O Legba" -- with a male voice answered by a 
chorus of voices.  Betsy and Jessica emerge from the cane field and enter the 
open-air HOUMFORT.

EXT. THE HOUMFORT - NIGHT

Betsy and Jessica mingle unnoticed with the large crowd of worshipers -- all 
black and wearing voodoo patches.   Surrounding the center of the Houmfort, 
the worshipers CHANT and focus their attention on the handsome, young SABREUR 
who performs a sensuous sword dance.  Betsy and Jessica stay at the edge of 
the crowd, watching as the Sabreur is joined by a woman who seems to be in a 
trance.  A voodoo priest anoints her brow as the Sabreur dances around her.  
The priest withdraws and the dance continues until she collapses to the 
ground.  The chanting stops, men come and lift her unconscious body away, and 
the DRUMMING intensifies.  Women appear and circle the drummer with a 
vigorous voodoo dance.  At the climax, two women stand forehead to forehead 
over the drummer.  The DRUMMING stops.  A charged moment of silence and then 
-- a muffled voice from a small HUT at the edge of the Houmfort -- the god 
speaks through a mortal:

				VOICE
		Where are my [children]? Let them bring 
		their [sick]. Let them dance and be happy.

The CHANTING and DRUMMING resume.  People begin to move to the hut, lining up 
to talk to the god through a closed door.  Betsy leads Jessica to the line.  
The first man in line removes his hat, leans his head to the door, and 
speaks, his words drowned out by the music.  After a few moments, he leaves.  
Betsy watches as the woman in front of her does the same.  Then, it is her 
turn.  She leads Jessica to the door of the hut.

				BETSY 
		Dumballa, this woman is ill.

The door abruptly opens, a hand reaches out and pulls Betsy inside the hut.  
The Houngan voodoo priest follows her in and shuts the door behind him.  
Jessica stands alone.

								CUT TO:

INT. THE HUT - NIGHT

A BLACK SCREEN.  Suddenly, a match is struck, a lantern is lit, and Mrs. Rand 
is revealed to an amazed Betsy.

				BETSY 
		Mrs. Rand?

				MRS. RAND  
		I knew you'd come.  I couldn't let you go 
		back without [?].  I came here to tell you 
		again.  Jessica cannot be cured.

				BETSY 
		What are you doing here?

								CUT TO:

EXT. THE HUT - SAME TIME

The CHANTING and DRUMMING continue. The voodoo worshipers stare 
at Jessica.  One of the women gives the Sabreur a meaningful look and then 
hands him a new sword.

								CUT TO:

INT. THE HUT - SAME TIME

Mrs. Rand is in the middle of a conversation with Betsy.

				MRS. RAND  
		And when my husband died, I was helpless.  
		They disobeyed me.  And, accidentally, I 
		learned the secret of how to deal with them.  
		There was a woman with a baby.  Again and 
		again I begged her to boil the drinking 
		water.  She wouldn't.  Then I told her the 
		god Shango would kill the evil spirits in 
		the water if she boiled it.  From then on, 
		she boiled the water.

				BETSY 
		But that still doesn't explain why you're 
		here.

				MRS. RAND  
		Perhaps not.  But I am here.  It seemed so 
		simple to let the gods speak through me.  
		I should have known there's no easy way 
		to do good, Betsy.

								CUT TO:

EXT. THE HUT - SAME TIME 

The Sabreur confronts Jessica with his sword.  He abruptly raises his arm 
and, as if hypnotized, she raises hers in response.  He takes her 
outstretched hand, turns her to face him, and violently plunges the sword 
directly into her arm.  Jessica doesn't react.  The DRUMMING stops.  The 
voodoo worshipers GASP.

								CUT TO:

INT. THE HUT - SAME TIME
 
Mrs. Rand looks up, realizing something's wrong.

								CUT TO:

EXT. THE HUT - SAME TIME

The voodoo worshipers gather around Jessica, whispering in disbelief.

				MAN
		She doesn't bleed.

				WOMAN
		Zombie.

				MAN
		She doesn't bleed.

								CUT TO:

INT. THE HUT - SAME TIME

The voodoo priest quickly blows out the lantern, and Mrs. Rand and Betsy rush 
for the door, open it, and take in the scene just outside the hut.  

								CUT TO:

EXT. THE HUT - SAME TIME

Jessica stands unhurt, the sword no longer in her arm, surrounded by gaping 
worshipers.

				MRS. RAND 
			(quietly)
		Get her back to the fort, Betsy.  

Betsy hesitates.

				MRS. RAND 
		Do as I say.  They-they won't hurt you.

Betsy crosses to Jessica and leads her away from the crowd.  The worshipers 
begin to follow but the Houngan voodoo priest gestures to them and says in a 
calm deep voice:

				HOUNGAN
		Leave them alone.  Let them go.

The crowd obeys.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE SUGAR CANE FIELD - NIGHT

Betsy leads Jessica back the way they came earlier.  They rush past the dead 
lamb's carcass and plunge into the sugar cane.

								DISSOLVE TO: 

EXT. FORT HOLLAND - NIGHT

Just outside the TOWER at Fort Holland, later that night.  Betsy has just 
returned Jessica to her room and now carefully heads through the GARDEN to 
the house.  As she approaches, Paul appears, wearing a robe, and confronts 
her.

				PAUL 
		Where have you been, Miss Connell?

				BETSY 
		I wanted to help you.

				PAUL 
		Help me? How?

				BETSY 
		I took Mrs. Holland to the Houmfort.  I 
		thought they might cure her.

				PAUL 
		There's no telling what you may have 
		started with this insanity.  Because you 
		wanted to give my wife back to me?  Why 
		should that mean so much to you?

				BETSY 
		You know why.  You saw it the other night, 
		at the piano.

				PAUL 
		What I saw the other night, I could hardly 
		believe, Betsy.  I thought I was looking at 
		a woman who had compassion for me.  Who 
		loved me.  And yet you made that trip to 
		the Houmfort to bring Jessica back to me.  
		You, the nurse who's afraid of the dark.  

				BETSY 
		Yes.

				PAUL 
		You think I love Jessica.  Want her back.  
		It's like you to think that.  Clean, 
		decent thinking.  I wish it were true.

The voodoo DRUMS begin in the distance.

				PAUL 
		Perhaps for your sake.

Both hear the drums and look apprehensively in their direction.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. FORT HOLLAND'S GATE - DAY

Just inside the GATE at Fort Holland, the next afternoon.  Alma holds the 
reins of a horse that's eating some of the garden's plants.  She tries to 
pull it away from the plants.

				ALMA 
		Mind me now, horse.  Come away from there.

Alma gives up pulling on the reins and tries pushing the horse's head out of 
the plants.

				ALMA 
		Are you ever stubborn, just like that old 
		[stableman?] at the Houmfort.  Sticking 
		your nose in places where it isn't wanted.  
		Making trouble for everybody.

Betsy appears in her nurse's uniform.

				BETSY  
		Alma.  Try it this way.

Betsy grabs the reins, turns her back to the horse and leads it away.

				BETSY 
		Turn your back on him.  See, that's the 
		way it is with a horse.  You can't look at 
		him and lead him at the same time.

				ALMA 
			(laughs)
		Sounds sort of man-like, doesn't it?

				BETSY 
		Who's horse?

				ALMA 
		The police horse.

				BETSY 
		Police?  I didn't know there was a 
		policeman on the island.

				ALMA 
		Oh, just this horse, Miss Betsy.  When they 
		asked the Commissioner if any policemen 
		were wanted, he said, "My horse is all the 
		police we need on St. Sebastian."

				BETSY 
		Commissioner?

				ALMA 
		Yes, Miss Betsy.  I expect there's some 
		trouble.

Alma looks in the direction of the house where some men are talking.

				ALMA 
		Not just little trouble like Mr. Rand gets 
		into when he's been drinking more than a 
		little, but real big trouble.

				BETSY 
		You don't suppose it's because I took Mrs. 
		Holland to the Houmfort, do you?

				ALMA  
		They haven't been talking loud enough for 
		me to hear, Miss Betsy, but I've been 
		holding this horse for coming on close to 
		an hour.  And they been just talkin' and 
		talkin'.  I feel it's something very bad.

Betsy hands the reins back to Alma and starts to leave.

				BETSY 
		Well, you have a horse to hold, Alma, and 
		Mrs. Rand has asked me to have a cup of 
		tea with her.

The moment Betsy leaves, the horse starts misbehaving again.

				ALMA 
		Horse, you stand still.

But the horse has other things in mind and drags her away.

								DISSOLVE TO: 

EXT. THE HOUMFORT - NIGHT

That night, to the sound of DRUMMING, a blonde voodoo doll is being clothed 
in a white dress.  The Sabreur waves his hand over it as a small crowd 
watches.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. JESSICA'S ROOM - NIGHT

Betsy finishes putting Jessica to bed when Paul enters.

				PAUL 
		You're staying here with Jessica tonight, 
		Betsy?

				BETSY 
		Mrs. Rand thought it might be best.

				PAUL 
		She's right.

				BETSY 
		I've caused you so much trouble, Paul.

				PAUL 
		Oh, no.  It was bound to come.  As a 
		matter of fact, that's why I'm here.  I 
		want to talk to you.  Perhaps when you're 
		finished in here you'll come into the 
		garden.

				BETSY 
		Is it about this afternoon?  I saw the 
		Commissioner here.

				PAUL 
		Jeffries?  Yes, he was here.  He and Maxwell.  
		They're in a great stew about it.  Seems 
		those people at the Houmfort won't stop 
		drumming and dancing until they've got 
		Jessica back and finish their ritual tests.  
		Something of that sort.  For their own 
		safety, Jeffries and Maxwell want Jessica 
		sent away to St. Thomas.  To the asylum.

				BETSY 
		Might be best.

				PAUL 
		Maybe.  But Wesley insists she stay here.

				BETSY 
		But he hasn't the right.  

				PAUL 
		Oh, he hasn't any legal right, if that's 
		what you mean.  But he says that I'm 
		responsible for Jessica's illness.  That 
		I deliberately drove her insane.

				BETSY 
		You couldn't have done that, Paul.

				PAUL 
		I don't know.  I've gone over it and over 
		it and... I don't know.

								CUT TO:

EXT. THE HOUMFORT - NIGHT

The voodoo ceremony continues.  The expressionless Carre-Four holds the 
blonde voodoo doll in his hand.  As the crowd watches, the Sabreur removes 
the doll from Carre-Four's grasp, takes a few steps backward and then beckons 
Carre-Four to come forward and grasp the doll again.  He does so.

								DISSOLVE TO: 

INT. THE GARDEN - NIGHT

Paul talks with Betsy.

				PAUL 
		I want you out of it.  I want you to go 
		back to Canada, Betsy.

				BETSY 
		Why?

				PAUL 
		Because of Jessica.  Because of myself.  
		Because I don't want you to be made 
		miserable and unhappy.

				BETSY 
		But I want to stay.

				PAUL 
		I'm afraid it's not what you want.  I want 
		you back in Canada.

				BETSY 
		Naturally, as my employer, you have the 
		right to dismiss me.

				PAUL 
		Don't, Betsy.  You know that isn't what I 
		mean.  You remember the first night I saw 
		you?  You [were looking] at the sea.  You 
		were enchanted.  And I felt I had to destroy 
		that enchantment, make you see ugliness 
		and cruelty.

				BETSY 
		You were trying to warn me.

				PAUL 
		No.  I was trying to hurt you.  It was the 
		same way with Jessica.  I had to hurt her.  
		Everything she did or said made me lash 
		out at her.  That's why I want you to go.  
		You see, Betsy... since you've been here, 
		I've seen how fine and sweet things can be 
		between a man and a woman.  How love can 
		be calm and good.  I'd rather not have that 
		sort of love than have it and destroy it.

				BETSY 
		You want me to leave?

				PAUL 
		That's why I want you to go.  It's no good 
		for you to stay so long as I have this fear 
		of myself.

Betsy buries her head in Paul's chest as they embrace.

								DISSOLVE TO:

INT. JESSICA'S ROOM - NIGHT

Later that night, all is quiet.  The wind blows through the curtains.  Betsy 
sleeps on the sofa.  The long shadow of Carre-Four falls on the stone path of 
the GARDEN, then across the wall of Jessica's ROOM.  The noise of his 
shuffling feet awakens Betsy.  The footsteps stop.  Betsy rises, crosses to 
Jessica's bed, and sees that she's still asleep.  Betsy puts on one of 
Jessica's white robes and heads out to the GARDEN.  

EXT. THE GARDEN - NIGHT

Betsy looks around, but sees and hears no one.  A frog CROAKS and jumps into 
the Ti-Misery fountain.  Betsy is startled by a shrill SCREECH and looks up 
to see an owl on a tree branch above her.  She's momentarily relieved but 
suddenly sees a shadow moving near the tower. She ducks behind some plants 
and turns to see:  the shadow of Carre-Four walking toward her, toward the 
woman in white.  Betsy's eyes widen in fear. She runs to the house and calls 
for Paul.

				BETSY 
		Paul!  Paul!

The shadow creeps closer. Paul emerges in a robe just as Carre-Four, now 
visible, slowly closes in.

				PAUL 
			(to Carre-Four)
		What are you doing here?

But Carre-Four does not stop.  Paul confronts him.

				PAUL 
		Get out of here.

Carre-Four extends his arms.  He's only a few feet away.  But a woman's voice 
rings out sharply.

				A WOMAN'S VOICE
		Carre-Four!

Carre-Four pauses.  Mrs. Rand, in a robe, has emerged from the house.

				MRS. RAND 
			(gently, as if to a child)
		Carre-Four, go back.

Carre-Four obediently turns and slowly walks away.  Paul tries to follow him.

				MRS. RAND 
		Paul.  Let him go.  Don't touch him.  
		Don't try to stop him.

Paul and Betsy watch in silence as Carre-Four shuffles out the front GATE.

								FADE OUT

INT. THE STUDY - DAY

FADE IN on the STUDY, the next day. Betsy joins Mrs. Rand who addresses a 
package.

				MRS. RAND 
		I can send this off by the next boat.  If 
		you have any letters, you'd better get them 
		ready, Betsy, to go with this parcel.

				BETSY 
		Any news I have can wait till I get home.

				MRS. RAND 
		Be pretty stale by that time.

Paul joins them.

				PAUL 
		Perhaps not, mother.  Betsy is leaving us.

				MRS. RAND 
		Why, Betsy, we can't lose you.  We've grown 
		to depend on you.  I have, and I know Paul 
		has.

				PAUL 
		Mother, Betsy has her reasons.

				BETSY 
			(to Mrs. Rand)
		I hope you won't feel I'm deserting you or 
		think badly of me.

				MRS. RAND 
		Think badly of you, Betsy?

All three turn at the SOUND of a door opening.  It's Wesley and Dr. Maxwell.

				WESLEY 
			(to the others)
		Dr. Maxwell has some unpleasant news for us.

				PAUL 
		An accident at the mill?

				DR. MAXWELL 
		No, it's about Jessica.  A result of our 
		discussion the other day I'm afraid.

				PAUL 
		What about her?

				DR. MAXWELL 
		Well, in view of all the circumstances, 
		some of the things Wesley's been saying, 
		and the fact that one of the voodoo people 
		got into your house last night, the 
		Commissioner's decided on a legal 
		investigation.

				PAUL 
		In other words, I'm on trial.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		Oh, I wouldn't put it that way, Paul, but 
		-- there's been a lot of talk.  The whole 
		thing's getting out of hand.

				WESLEY 
		A pretty scene.  Half the island crowding 
		into the courtroom to watch your dirty 
		linen get a public scrubbing.

				PAUL 
		Wait [a bit], Wesley.  Let's talk this over 
		with the...

				WESLEY 
			(explodes) 
		Talk it over!  Talk now, Paul, and tell 
		them that you're not responsible.  That 
		every bit of this doesn't rest squarely 
		on your shoulders.

Paul turns to a subdued Mrs. Rand who crosses to Dr. Maxwell.

				MRS. RAND 
		If you'll be good enough to take me to the 
		Commissioner, Doctor, I think there'll be 
		no need of an investigation.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		But why, Mrs. Rand?  What could you have 
		to tell him?

				MRS. RAND 
		Jessica is not insane.  Please, take me to 
		the Commissioner.  I can explain the whole 
		thing to him.

				PAUL 
		Mother, what are you trying to say?

				MRS. RAND 
		She is dead.  

				DR. MAXWELL 
		Now, Mrs. Rand...

				MRS. RAND 
		She is dead.  Living and dead.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		Mrs. Rand, you're not seriously trying to 
		tell me that my patient is a zombie?

				MRS. RAND 
		I'm not mad.  It's true.  I did it.

				WESLEY 
		Mother...

				MRS. RAND 
		Wesley, let me explain.  I wanted to so 
		often.  Now, I have to. 
			(to Betsy) 
		Betsy, tell them about the Houmfort.  Tell 
		them what you saw there.  You must, Betsy.  
		They'll have to believe you.

				BETSY 
			(reluctant)
		Well, Mrs. Rand was at the Houmfort.  But 
		there's nothing wrong with that.  She's 
		gone there for years, trying to take care 
		of those people.  To help them.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		I think I understand.  I've often talked a 
		little voodoo to get medicine down a 
		patient's throat.

				MRS. RAND 
		But it was more than that, Doctor.  I 
		entered into their ceremonies.  I 
		pretended I was possessed by their gods.  
		But what I did to Jessica...  was when she 
		wanted to go away with Wesley.  That night 
		I went to the Houmfort.  I kept seeing her 
		face -- smiling because she was beautiful 
		enough to take my family in her hands and 
		tear it apart.  Drums, the chanting, the 
		lights.  I heard a voice speaking in the 
		sudden silence.  My voice.  I was speaking 
		to the Houngan.  I was possessed.  I told 
		him the woman at Fort Holland was evil and 
		asked him to make her a zombie.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		Then what happened?

				MRS. RAND 
		I hated myself.  On the way home, I said 
		over and over again, there are no such 
		people, no strange drugs, there's no such 
		thing as a zombie.  

				DR. MAXWELL 
		You were right.

				MRS. RAND 
		I said it, and I made myself believe it.  
		But when I got here, Jessica was raging 
		with fever.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		She was raging with fever.  A fever with a 
		long Latin name.  And a bad reputation for 
		its after-effects.  Usually some form of 
		insanity.

				PAUL 
		Dr. Maxwell is right, mother.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		You were tricked by your own imagination, 
		Mrs. Rand.

				MRS. RAND 
		But I am not an imaginative or fanciful 
		woman, Doctor.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		As I understand it, in order to turn a 
		person into a zombie, whether by poison 
		or... hocus-pocus, you must first kill 
		that person.  Is that right?

				MRS. RAND 
		Yes.

				DR. MAXWELL 
		She  was feverish.  She was delirious.  
		But I don't remember her dying.  Or even 
		being in a state resembling death.  No 
		coma.  Nothing.  I'm afraid you are an 
		imaginative woman, Mrs. Rand.

				MRS. RAND 
			(embarrassed)
		Of course.  Of course.

A shaken Mrs. Rand leaves the group and climbs the stairs in a daze, while 
Wesley puts what appears to be a sympathetic hand on Paul's shoulder.

								FADE OUT 

EXT. THE HOUMFORT - NIGHT

FADE IN on the blonde voodoo doll on the floor of the HOUMFORT, that night.  
The DRUMS beat loudly.  As the voodoo worshipers watch, the Sabreur gestures 
to the doll.  It inches toward him.

								CUT TO: 

EXT. FORT HOLLAND - SAME TIME

Simultaneously, Jessica emerges from the TOWER and heads for the gate.  A 
concerned Betsy follows behind.

				BETSY 
		Jessica?  Jessica?

Paul sees the two women from the HOUSE and quickly joins them.

				BETSY 
		Jessica? 
			(scared, to Paul)  
		She won't obey me.

				PAUL 
		Jessica!

Betsy quickly closes and locks the GATE before Jessica can exit.

								CUT TO:

EXT. THE HOUMFORT - SAME TIME

The blonde voodoo doll moves across the floor of the Houmfort.  Despite the 
DRUMS, the doll stops.  The Sabreur continues to gesture to it.

								CUT TO:

EXT. FORT HOLLAND'S GATE - NIGHT

Wesley, apparently having just come back from a night of drinking, appears on 
the opposite side of the gate, joining Paul, Betsy, and Jessica. 

				WESLEY 
		It's the Houmfort.  They're trying to get 
		her back.

				BETSY 
		But how can they?  How could they make her 
		understand?  How would she know?

				WESLEY 
		They know how. They have charms that can 
		draw a man halfway around the world.  Opiate 
		tricks, magic.  Everybody knows that.

				PAUL 
		We may have believed all that when we were 
		boys, Wesley, but we're grown men now.  We 
		know it's all nonsense.  

				WESLEY 
		Do we?

				PAUL 
		Yes.

				WESLEY 
		You've forgotten --

				PAUL 
		I've not forgotten.  I could see what was 
		in your mind when Maxwell was talking.  
		Just because he didn't know about Jessica's 
		coma, you thought everything he said was 
		wrong.  And that mother's story was right.  
		But that's ridiculous.

				WESLEY 
		It is true.  
			(off Jessica) 
		Why did she come out here?  How can they 
		make her move, do anything they want?  
			(as much to himself as the others) 
		They can make anybody do what they want.

				PAUL 
		You're thinking just as they want you to 
		think.  That's what it's for.  Conches, 
		their cheap mummery.  

				WESLEY 
		Let me in.

				BETSY 
		Come with me, Jessica.

Betsy leads Jessica back to the tower as Wesley opens the gate and enters.

				WESLEY 
			(off Jessica's escape attempt)
		You saw that.

				PAUL 
		I saw nothing that would convince a sober 
		man.  You better get some sleep, Wesley.

Paul heads for the house, but Wesley stays behind, lost in thought.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE GARDEN - NIGHT

The statue of Ti-Misery, not long after.

								DISSOLVE TO: 

EXT. THE GARDEN - NIGHT

A little later that night, Betsy -- having left Jessica in the tower -- heads 
for the house, but seeing Wesley sitting dejectedly nearby, crosses to him.

				BETSY 
		Why don't you go to bed, Wesley?  It's 
		been a hard day for all of us.  

Wesley doesn't respond.

				BETSY 
		I'm sorry, Wesley.  I think I know how 
		you must feel.  And I am sorry.  I only 
		wish there was something I could do.

				WESLEY 
			(as if to himself) 
		She ought to be free.  
			(to Betsy) 
		You could free her, Betsy.  You could do 
		it.  You're a nurse.  You have the drugs.  
		It'd be so quick.

				BETSY 
		Her heart beats.  She breathes.  That's 
		life, Wesley.  I once took an oath to guard 
		life.

				WESLEY 
		I shouldn't've asked it of you.  But it 
		was only because I can't make you believe 
		that she's already dead.  Wait a minute.  
		There's one other thing.  You love Paul.  
		Then, what good will ever do you if 
		Jessica's still a --

				BETSY 
		Wesley.  I'm afraid I love him too much 
		for that.

				WESLEY 
		I'm sorry.

In a daze, Wesley wanders off.  Betsy watches him go, then enters the house.

								WIPE TO:

EXT. THE GARDEN - NIGHT

Later that night, Wesley, on the VERANDA, looks up from his drink to see 
Jessica emerge from the TOWER and slowly cross to the GATE. He watches as she 
pauses there, unable to open it and leave.

								CUT TO:

EXT. THE HOUMFORT - SAME TIME

The blonde voodoo doll has once again stopped.  The Sabreur, frustrated at 
the lack of progress, turns and whispers to a colleague.

								CUT TO:

EXT. THE GARDEN - SAME TIME

Wesley continues to watch Jessica as she stands at the gate.  He rises and 
crosses to her.  Without a pause, he opens the gate for her.  She immediately 
leaves.  Wesley watches her go, then turns and crosses to Ti-Misery and, with 
some effort, pulls out one of the iron arrows embedded in the figure.  He 
turns and heads for the gate, following Jessica.

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE HOUMFORT - NIGHT

The Sabreur squats over the blonde voodoo doll and knocks it over so that it 
lies on its back.  He then slowly lowers a large needle to the doll.  The 
rhythm of the DRUMMING accelerates. And as he plunges it into the doll's 
heart, the DRUMMING instantly stops.

								CUT TO:

EXT. THE BEACH - SAME TIME

On the silent, deserted BEACH, Wesley crouches over Jessica's dead body.  He 
rises slowly, the arrow shaft in his hand, and looks right and left.  As he 
does, he sees the figure of Carre-Four walking toward him.  Wesley bends down 
and lifts the lifeless Jessica into his arms.  He gives Carre-Four a worried 
glance and then begins to carry Jessica down to the ocean.  Carre-Four 
extends his arms and pursues Wesley as he crosses the beach.  Wesley twice 
turns to look at Carre-Four and finally backs into the ocean, walking until 
the surf overwhelms him.  When both Wesley and Jessica have disappeared under 
the waves, Carre-Four lowers his arms and merely stands motionless at the 
edge of the water, silhouetted in the moonlight, looking out at the sea, as 
the waves wash up on the beach around him.

								DISSOLVE TO: 

EXT. WATER - NIGHT

Some time later, Jessica's body floats face up in shallow WATER.

								DISSOLVE TO: 

EXT. WATER - NIGHT

Torch-bearing native fishermen slowly make their way through the darkness and 
the knee-high WATER, spears in hand, CHANTING "Walee Nan Guinan."  One of 
them stabs a fish and it wriggles in pain as he tries to stuff it into a 
pouch on his belt.  They keep walking.  Suddenly, one stumbles across 
Jessica's body.  They hold a torch close to her face as a VOICE OVER 
begins -- what sounds like the deep voice of the Houngan voodoo priest 
performing a Christian burial service: 

				HOUNGAN 
			(voice over) 
		O Lord God most holy, deliver them from 
		the bitter pains of eternal death. 

One of the fishermen lifts Jessica's body from the water.

				HOUNGAN
			(voice over)
		The woman was a wicked woman...

								DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE GARDEN - NIGHT

A group of men bearing torches and the bodies of Wesley and Jessica enter 
through the gate.

				HOUNGAN 
			(voice over) 
		...and she was dead in her own life. Yea 
		Lord, dead in the selfishness of her 
		spirit, and the man followed her...

On the veranda, the servants, Paul, and Betsy stand with Mrs. Rand, who 
weeps, her hands covering her face.  Paul looks at her sympathetically, then 
turns to the processional.

				HOUNGAN 
			(voice over)  
		... Her steps led him down to evil, her 
		feet took hold on death. ...

Four men carry Wesley's body.  Carre-Four trails behind the others, carrying 
Jessica.  They pass by the statue of Ti-Misery.

				HOUNGAN 
			(voice over) 
		... Forgive him, O Lord, who knowest the 
		secrets of all hearts. Yea Lord, pity them 
		who are dead ...

Paul and Betsy comfort one another with an embrace.

				HOUNGAN 
			(voice over)  
		... And give peace and happiness to the 
		living.

The final image is of the figure of Ti-Misery, its face twisted in pain.

										FADE OUT