MY FATHER'S SON – PART FOUR

Opening Scene: Lenni has just left the room. Jake looks after her and then back at Max.

Jake: What's she talking about?

Max: Ghostwriter of course. That's how mom found him before.

Jake: Before?

Max: Did you hear about the subway tunnel?

Jake nods.

Jake: Yeah. Dad went down there…to find a friend of his that was homeless. But his friends…found him.

Max: Exactly. His friends on that list found him…using Ghostwriter. How else would you locate someone trapped underground?

Jake: But…but could he find him now?

Jackie: I don't know. Our parents don't see him anymore.

Max: But he is the key to finding him. We just need…words.

Jake: Words?

Linda: Right. Ghostwriter can find words around your dad…and help us locate him.

Gina: But…we would need words that we know would be with your dad. Like…an ID card or something.

Jake: But he vanished three years ago. And I wasn't even there.

Carlo: (takes out his book) But…your dad was a writer, wasn't he?

Jake: Yeah.

Max: He is?

Gina: Oh yeah. He wrote the Diamond Jones books.

Carlo: (looks at the book) So…your dad must have written this before he vanished.

Jake: Yeah. He was planning to publish it after he got back from his deployment.

Jackie: He wrote a pretty cool poem on your bookmark too.

Jake: (sighs) Yeah. It kinda gives me hope…that I'll find him again.

Max: What poem?

They show Max the poem and he raises his eyebrows.

Max: Woah. You know what this looks like?

Gina: We know. It's just like the one he left for your mom.

Jake: What's this?

Jackie: (taking out her casebook) Well…your dad left this poem for Max's mom. It's just like your bookmark.

Jake reads it and nods.

Jake: Wow. Seems he likes your mom a lot more than mine.

Max: Well…they were friends since they were kids.

Jake: I know. That's why he was writing her letters.

Gina: Of course! The letters!

Everyone looks at her.

Max: The letters?

Gina: Yes. Wouldn't he have your mom's letters with him?

Max: Well…

Jake: (groans) No. The letters are at my house in a box.

Gina: Oh. Well…

Jake: (holds up a finger) But…he would have his notebooks.

Carlo: Notebooks?

Jake: Yeah. Dad had these notebooks. They were different colors…and he carried them everywhere in his bag.

Linda: Do you know what was written in them?

Jake: (sighs) No. Dad said they were private…just like the letters were. They were a gift from the best friends he ever had.

Jackie: From his…friends?

Jackie looks at Gina, who looks at her list.

Gina: But…were they the friends he had here?

Max: (jumps up) Of course! The colonel said he had wonderful friends here…and this is where he was the happiest.

Carlo: So maybe it was our parents who gave him those notebooks.

Jackie: But…would they know what was written in the notebooks?

Gina: We could ask.

Max: (to Jake) And maybe he wrote about what he put in the notebooks in those letters.

Jake: But…the ones I have are the one from your mom.

Jake pauses and looks at Max.

Jake: Does your mom…have the letters from him?

Max: I could ask. Might wait for her to calm down a bit though.

Jackie: You do that. The rest of us will ask our parents about the notebooks.

Linda: And I'll go with Jake to check out the letters at his house. Those might have clues too.

Max looks at her and cocks his head.

Max: (grinning) You'll go with Jake?

Linda: (glares) My dad didn't know the guy, remember?

Jake: And I gotta follow orders.

CUT TO: Jackie's house. Jackie sits on the arm of a chair while her father Jamal sits in it.

Jamal: Well yes. We did give Rob notebooks when he left for Australia. Why do you ask?

Jackie: Well um…we need to know…if you know what was written in them.

Jamal: Um…they were new, Honey. So they were blank. But each of us did write a message on the inside cover.

Jackie: Really? What message did you write?

Jamal: (smiles) I'm gonna miss you, Pink Guy.

Jackie: (makes a face) Pink Guy?

Jamal: Kind of a joke. Rob was called a white boy once…and came to talk to me about it. I told him he was actually pink…so he's a pink guy.

Jackie: (blinks) Someone called him a white boy?

Jamal: (makes a face) Yeah. He didn't say who it was. But see…racism…isn't just against people who are black. It can go both ways.

Jackie: Wow. I guess…I never thought of that.

Jamal: Well Rob didn't either. We had a good talk about it though…and then he goes right back to asking if I had asked out your mother yet.

Jackie giggles as Jamal sighs and shakes his head.

CUT TO: Carlo's house. Carlo sits with his father at the table while they drink tea.

Alex: Of course. Rob opened my notebook first. It said, Keep up the slammin' detective work.

Carlo: (writing) Cool. What did Mom write?

Alex: (carefully) Um…I don't quite remember. Something about…remember…always. And she signed it Love, Tina.

Carlo: (raises eyebrows) Were you jealous?

Alex: Nah. All the girls signed them that way. What're you asking this for anyway?

Carlo: It'll um…give us an edge.

Alex raises an eyebrow as Carlo closes his notebook and sips his tea.

CUT TO: Torres Hardware. Gina has her memo pad while her mother is behind the counter and her father is stocking the shelves.

Victor: You guys gave Rob notebooks when he left?

Gaby: Yeah. He was a writer, wasn't he?

Gina: Did you write anything in it?

Gaby: We all did. Mine said, Stay out of subway tunnels.

Gina: Huh?

Gaby: Long story. (looks at Victor) Did you give him anything when he left?

Victor: Yeah. A gold chain like this.

Victor holds out his gold chain, which has a V and a T on top of each other.

Victor: Only his had R and B…like this…

Victor takes Gina's memo pad and draws an R and puts a B on top of it.

Gina: Cool.

Gaby: I never knew that.

Victor: Well I had it made after he cleared me of vandalizing the school. By the time it was done, he had left for the summer, so I gave it to him when he came back…and done tells me he's leaving for good. Man, the guy almost cried.

Gina nods as her father looks at her.

Victor: But how is knowing this…gonna help you find him?

Gina: Just uh…trust me on this one. Okay Dad?

Gina runs out as Victor shakes his head.

Victor: You know…Rob said the exact same thing.

Gaby: Did he now?

Victor nods as Gaby gives a sly grin.

CUT TO: Jake's house. Jake and Linda are going through a pile of letters.

Jake: Wow. A computer hacker?

Linda: This one talks about a guy involved with drugs.

Jake: Anything about notebooks?

Linda: Well…this one mentions a notebook with poetry in it. But it says…You're always so private about your poetry. I think GW was the only one who ever got to read any of it and that was only because he didn't know you were keeping it private.

Jake: GW? So…Ghostwriter?

Linda: Probably. They could both see him…and he must have read your dad's poetry behind his back.

Jake: Good thing he's a ghost already. Cuz dad would've made him into one if he wasn't.

Linda giggles as Jake looks at another letter.

Jake: Here's something. I saw Double-T today. He brought some friends to the garden to get food for them. He asked about you and I said you were doing great and still writing your poems and stories. I also showed him your rabbits. Gaby takes care of them now and they're doing great. One just had babies so Sally's going to have to get another cage.

Linda: Double-T?

Jake: That's the guy who was homeless…and my dad got trapped in a subway tunnel looking for him.

Linda: Hmmm. I wonder if…

Jake: What?

Linda: Well…would your dad…be homeless now?

Jake: Well…yeah. Either that or dead.

Linda: (frowns) Don't talk like that. I just mean…maybe your dad…would go to this place for food. This garden.

Jake: Oh. Maybe he would. But where is it?

Linda: It's probably the big community garden that Max's grandmother runs. They grow vegetables there for homeless people.

Jake: It's worth checking out. Can we go there now?

Linda: (looks at her watch) It's getting late. I need to get home.

Jake: (sighs) All right. Should I walk you home?

Linda: Jake…I live two floors down. I'll be fine.

Jake: Just making sure. Colonel's orders.

Linda smiles at him and he blushes as she heads for the door.

CUT TO: Mead High School Hallway. Carlo is at his locker as Max stands with him.

Carlo: So what'd your mom say?

Max: Well…she told me what she wrote in the notebook she gave him…but says there's no way she's letting me read those letters. How'd you make out?

Carlo: Well I got the message my dad wrote in his notebook, but for some reason, my mom doesn't want to tell me what she wrote.

Max: Why not?

Carlo: I dunno. I think…she might have mentioned Ghostwriter in it…and doesn't want to say that they could see him too.

Max: (rolls his eyes) Yeah. My mom is like that…even though it's pretty obvious that she knows we can see him. I guess they were always used to keeping him a secret.

Carlo: That's true. And the important thing is that we now have something written that your dad probably still has with him.

Max: Yeah. We gotta find Jake after school…and we can send Ghostwriter out to find those notebooks.

CUT TO: Hurston Middle School Cafeteria. Jake is eating with Gina and Linda, although at a different table.

Linda: Sylvia started coming to lunch sooner.

Gina: Yeah…and does her makeup at the table.

Jake: To each his own.

Linda: So did you find anything?

Gina: Yes. My mother wrote, Stay out of subway tunnels in the notebook she gave to Rob.

Jake: That again?

Linda: Guess it was hard to live it down. What about your dad?

Gina: Well he didn't give him a notebook, but gave him a gold chain with his initials on it. (flips in her memo pad) Like this.

Jake looks at the picture and raises his eyebrows.

Jake: He got that from your dad?

Gina: Yeah. My dad has one like this with his own initials…and had one made for your dad.

Linda: Does he wear it?

Jake: Usually. (rubs chin) And I don't think I've seen it since he disappeared…so he must have been wearing it when he did. Maybe Ghostwriter…could find that.

Linda: We also want to check out the community garden.

Gina: The garden? Why?

Jake: It has free food and helps homeless people. Dad might go there if he's hungry.

Linda: Provided he's in the area anyway.

CUT TO: Outside of Hurston. Carlo, Max, and Jackie come up to Jake, Linda, and Gina. They take out the casebook with all the information written down and Max writes to Ghostwriter.

Max: (writing) We need to find my dad. Please look for these words and what's near them.

GW: Don't worry. I'll find him!

The team waits while other students pass by. Sylvia Ferguson goes by and peers at them. An older man in a suit comes over to her.

Man: Come on, Honey. Your mother is waiting.

Sylvia: Sure Dad.

Slyvia gets in the car but her father also peers at the team before going around to the other side.

Linda: Is it just me? Or does Sylvia's dad seem…creepy?

Carlo: Oh he is. That's the owner of The Party Animal Store. Calvin Ferguson.

Max: That guy?

Jackie: Yep. My dad never liked him either.

Gina: And Uncle Alex really didn't like him.

The team looks at each other as Ghostwriter returns and writes in the notebook.

Max: Vegetables?

Gina: Hey! That's the symbol on the chain my dad gave him!

Jake: Well he definitely found him.

Jackie: But…where?

Carlo: A list of vegetables…volunteers…free food program…

Linda: (gasps) He did go to the garden!

Max: The garden?

Jake: Yeah. The community garden! The one your mom wrote about!

The team looks at each other and then take off. Jackie has her bike and Max and Jake take off on their boards. Carlo hangs back with Gina and Linda.

CUT TO: The community garden. Jackie rides up to the gate with Max and Jake right behind her. The garden is full of people and volunteers.

Max: Wow. So…Dad must be in here somewhere.

Jake: But where? And…would we recognize him?

Max: You man. I never even met the guy.

Jake gives him a look but Jackie points out something.

Jackie: Look. Ghostwriter is over by the rabbits' cage.

Jake: Hey yeah. Your mom mentioned the rabbits in the letter.

Max: Well…that one guy is hanging around over there.

They spot a tall man in an old army jacket by the rabbits' cage. He has long, scraggly hair with an orange bandanna over it and stubble on his face. He wears a black shirt and army pants and combat boots. He has an assortment of chains around his neck, including one that Ghostwriter lights up. Max and Jake look at each other and back at the man, who is stroking a soft baby bunny in his hand.

Jake: Dad?

Max looks at Jake, who carefully makes his way towards the man, who puts the rabbit back. He then turns around and sees Jake and lets out a gasp.

Man: Jake?

Jake: DAD!

Jake jumps in the man's arms and the man starts weeping.

Man: Jake! My son…

Jake: Dad…

Jake finally pulls back from his father and pushes the hair away from his face. His father sighs and shakes his head as he kneels down with Jake.

Man: I'm so sorry.

Jake: Dad…it's not your fault. And it's going to be fine. I'm here with…the colonel.

Man: (eyes wide) My father is here?

Jake: Yeah. He said you were really happy here…so we thought…you would come here.

Man: (sighs and nods) You're right. I was happy here. My friends…the greatest friends…I ever had.

He bites his lip and Jake smiles.

Jake: They're still here, Dad.

Man: What?

Jake: Your friends are still here. In fact…I want you to meet someone.

Jake pulls his father up and waves to Max, who nervously comes over.

Jake: Dad…this is Max Frazier.