ACT FOUR
FADE IN:
EST. THE INSTITUTE - DUSK
Sunset again.
CUT TO:
INT. LAB ROOM
Josh is in his usual place when Dr. Bennett walks in, studying
an open folder.
BENNETT
Josh, what's wrong with these
correlations?
Josh looks up, and shrugs helplessly.
JOSH
They're all just numbers to me,
Dr. Bennett.
BENNETT
(sighing)
It's just—I don't understand these
results. They're just...almost
gibberish.
She closes the folder and walks over to his terminal.
BENNETT (CONT'D)
Let me see what you're doing.
Josh slides back to let her in, and as soon as she sees the
screen she gasps.
BENNETT (CONT'D)
Josh! This is the wrong template!
JOSH
(confused)
It's just like the ones I did
before.
BENNETT
No! These have to be done on the
d-lot template! Didn't you see
the directions?
She starts flipping through the stack of papers Josh was
working from.
JOSH
There weren't any directions, Dr.
Bennett. Just a note from you to
get it done ASAP. And the forms
look exactly like the other ones.
Dr. Bennett fishing her shuffling, obviously not having found
what she was looking for.
BENNETT
Rodriguez was supposed to show you
the d-lot template and get you
started.
JOSH
Oh—he was here for a second this
afternoon. But then he got called
out to one of the beach sites. I
haven't seen him since.
BENNETT
(under her breath)
Ay, Miguel...
JOSH
(embarrassed)
I'm sorry, Dr. Bennett. It's my
fault—I should've checked...
BENNETT
No, it's not your fault, Josh.
There was no way you could've
known.
JOSH
But...
BENNETT
Please, don't start taking
responsibility for things you
aren't responsible for.
JOSH
But I still feel bad.
BENNETT
(pacing)
Oh, God, if these reports aren't
in Fish and Game's mailbox when
they walk in the door in the
morning, we're going to be in a
world of trouble.
JOSH
Look, just show me what to do, and
I'll redo it.
BENNETT
Josh, that would take hours.
JOSH
Come on. You said it had to be
done by morning, right?
BENNETT
(sighs)
You know, if I didn't really,
really need your help, I wouldn't
let you do this.
JOSH
Well, if you really, really need
my help, we'd better get started.
BENNETT
(shaking her head)
All right.
She leans over and starts tapping keys, while Josh looks on.
BENNETT (CONT'D)
Okay, here's the template...
CUT TO:
INT. BROOKE'S HOSPITAL ROOM - EVENING
Brooke is reading when Mike and Sam come in, arm in arm.
BROOKE
(looking up)
Dad! Hey, Sam.
SAM
Where's Harrison?
BROOKE
I sent him to eat. I had to
threaten to get his old nurses up
here before he'd go.
When they get to Brooke's bed, Mike leans over and kisses her
forehead.
MIKE
How are you holding up?
BROOKE
Besides going stir crazy from not
being able to get up, just fine.
(to Sam)
How'd it go?
Sam's face falls at the memory, and she sits down heavily in a
chair.
SAM
I tanked.
MIKE
It wasn't that bad.
SAM
(shaking her head)
I SO tanked. It was just awful.
BROOKE
(concerned)
What happened?
SAM
The defense lawyer made it look
like Nicole was just minding her
own business, and everything was
OUR fault.
BROOKE
(grimacing)
If I could get outta this bed...
MIKE
Don't worry. The jury isn't going
to buy Nicole's Little Miss
Innocent act.
(to Sam)
Sam?
SAM
(brightening)
Oh!
She leans forward and hands the papers to Brooke, who looks
them over.
BROOKE
(gasps)
The adoption papers! You're
really going to—?
MIKE
(nods)
If that's all right with you...
BROOKE
Dad!
Sam gets up and hugs Brooke.
BROOKE (CONT'D)
Oh my God, Sam, this is just...
We're really going to be sisters.
SAM
Yeah...wow.
EFFECT CUT TO:
MONTAGE
INT. LAB ROOM
Scenes of Josh pecking away, Dr. Bennett walking around and
doing various things, and a wall clock, which progresses from
7:30 to 12:45.
DISSOLVE INTO:
THE LAB ROOM
Josh taps in his final entry, turns the last paper over, and
then leans back in his chair, blowing out his breath.
JOSH
Done!
Dr. Bennett rushes by, a palmtop computer in her hand.
BENNETT
Hang on, hang on...
She leans over another terminal, tapping keys and looking
between the screen and her palmtop. Finally she straightens
up, smiling.
BENNETT (CONT'D)
Now, that's more like it.
She walks over to Josh's terminal and enters a few commands.
INSERT: THE COMPUTER SCREEN
A box pops up with the message "Transferring to Dept. of Fish
and Game" and a progress bar which rapidly fills up.
Dr. Bennett leans on the edge of the desk and stretches.
BENNETT (CONT'D)
And we're done. Thanks to you,
Josh.
JOSH
It wasn't any big deal, Dr.
Bennett.
BENNETT
What do you say we get the hell
out of here?
JOSH
Sounds good to me.
Josh gets up and they head for the doors together.
BENNETT
I have a good idea: let's both
take the morning off.
JOSH
Can we do that?
BENNETT
Yeah, I think we can do that.
I'll leave a message for Dr.
Rutherford.
Dr. Bennett flips the lights off as they walk out.
For a few long moments there is only silence in the darkened
lab. Then comes the sound of the door swinging open, and
footsteps padding across the floor.
ANGLE: ONE OF THE MONITORS
exploding in a shower of sparks as a baseball bat is put
through it.
BLACK OUT.
END OF ACT FOUR
THE END