ROGER
No idea.
ED
Do you mind if we take a look?
ROGER
I don't care what the hell you do
to it.
CUT TO:
SOON AFTER
Tight on a section of wood paneling being pried back off
the wall with a hammer.
Widen -- to see Ed sliding the hammer up and down along a
panel's seam to loosen it. He finally pulls it back off
the wall --
Lorraine is the first to see --
-- A SMALL 2' x 2' TRAP DOOR framed within another wall
that latches from the outside via a SLIDE BOLT --
-- A WOMAN'S VERY OBESE HAND, fingers like sausages,
aggressively SLAMS it CLOSED, then SLIDES A LATCH across
to lock it.
Resume -
Lorraine and the others are looking at the trap door.
Ed kneels down. Undoes the latch. Slowly opens the
door. It's too dark to see anything beyond.
ED
Can someone get me a flashlight --
ROGER
Yeah, there's one in our room.
Roger disappears for a moment. Lorraine puts her hand on
Ed's shoulder --
LORRAINE
Let me go in.
Lorraine gets on her hands and knees as Roger comes back
with a small flashlight. Hands it to her. She thumbs
the switch. Shines it into the open door --
-- the light stretches into what looks like a narrow
crawl space framed in wood.
Lorraine slips half her body inside, keeping the light
shining aheadLorraine can barely make it out, but sees that the crawl
space seems to open up.
LORRAINE
Looks like there's some sort of
room.
Her flashlight suddenly dies -- casting her into total
darkness. She palms it a couple of times -- gets the
beam to shine again.
As she points the light down the crawl-space ahead --
-- A YOUNG BOY AND GIRL, full of angst and panic,
scramble toward Lorraine, PASSING RIGHT THROUGH her body -
- it's the two she saw in the photograph earlier.
Resume -
Lorraine is slightly startled, but continues into the
room ahead.
INT. HIDDEN ROOM - CONTINUOUS
Lorraine slowly stands, her flashlight quartering the
darkness. Cobwebs everywhere reflect off the light. It
falls upon a makeshift bed with an old, dust covered
blanket, which has SLINKY TOY sitting on it. Lorraine
picks it up -- sees a wooden box next to the bed with
other toys in it.
She lets her light wander, discovering that every wall is
completely covered with THE SAME PHRASE scrawled in
crayon, over and over. She moves closer. Sees what it
says; I'M SORRY MOMMY. I'M SORRY MOMMY. I'M SORRY
MOMMY. I'M SORRY MOMMY...
Lorraine stops -- senses something. She slowly moves the
light off the wall and angles it to her forearm -- IT'S
COVERED IN GOOSEBUMPS. And for a second, her heart skips
a beat -- there's something else she sees --
-- the light cascading past her forearm down to the floor
illuminates BATHSHEBA'S DIRTY, CRUSTED BARE FEET,
straddling her own -- from behind. Before Lorraine can
turn around --
-- she is aggressively shoved into the wall. The
movement jars the flashlight and slinky from her grasp
and drops to the floor.
SMASH CUT TO:
INT. CLOSET - SAME
Ed reacts the noise and immediately heads into the crawl
space.ED
Lorraine...?
INT. SMALL ROOM - SAME
Lorraine is reaching for the flashlight on the floor just
as Ed crawls in.
LORRAINE
I'm alright.
(beat)
It was her, Ed.
She looks hard to him -- definitely impacted.
LORRAINE (cont'd)
I've never felt anything so dark.
(beat)
We have to get her out of this
house --
CUT TO:
INT. CLOSET - RIGHT AFTER
As Ed and Lorraine come out, Ed looks to Jerome, direct --
ED
Grab the cameras -- I want to see
what we got.
DISSOLVE TO:
INT. DOWNSTAIRS BATHROOM - LATER
Ed and Jerome's movements are fast and precise as they
are busy converting the bathroom into a small darkroom; a
photo enlarger is on the counter with three solution
trays lined up next to it. A small rope has been strung
up along a shower rod. As Jerome pours developer into
one of the trays, Ed finishes screwing in a light bulb
and flips the wall switch, washing the room deep in
crimson.
CUT TO:
INT. LIVING ROOM - RIGHT AFTER
Lorraine is sitting before the monitors, her eyes on the
one revealing the master bedroom, where Roger is cuddling
Andrea on the bed, who is sound asleep. Carolyn is next
to him, doing the same with Cindy, who is also asleep.
Chirping crickets and croaking frogs drift in through an
open window next to her.A loud THUD pulls her attention outside to where she
sees something flopping on the ground by the barn, dust
rising -- as if there were some sort of struggle.
Bruce walks into the room carrying a cup of steaming
coffee.
LORRAINE
Keep your eyes on the monitors for
me, will you. I'll be right back.
Lorraine heads out of the room.
CUT TO:
EXT. PERRON HOUSE - RIGHT AFTER
Lorraine moves toward the flopping movement, which seems
to be slowing with each step she takes. As she gets to
it, the flopping stops. Sees it's an enormous barn owl --
neck broken, eyes wide open. Dead. A compassionate look
sweeps over Lorraine's face, until she hears --
-- A DISTANT BLEND OF VOICES; pained, fearful, full of
anxiety. She follows them to the back of the barn, where
through a thick wall of trees and shrubs, she can barely
make out an old, beaten pathway that threads through.
She heads in.
CUT TO:
EXT. GROWTH - RIGHT AFTER
The VOICES begin to grow in volume as Lorraine walks
deeper into the growth, fighting her way through
overgrown branches, following what's left of the pathway.
She comes out into a small clearing to see where the
voices are coming from.
Before her, surrounded by a crumbling stone wall and
completely overgrown with weeds, is an OLD CEMETERY with
maybe forty tombstones within; some broken, some toppled,
some incredibly worn. The voices seem to be coming from
somewhere on the other side.
She moves into it. A wind begins to tumble pieces of
foliage across the ground, then one tombstone catches her
attention -- the name reads: Bathsheba Sherman. She
moves up to it as the voices get louder and louder --
it's almost deafening, then --
-- THE VOICES INSTANTLY STOP, and things fall into an
awful silence. It becomes unnerving as Lorraine senses
something, a presence -- very close.
She scans the surrounding trees, but everything beyond is
swallowed in the shadows of the night -- she keeps
staring, knowing something is just beyond. After a
momentLorraine turns around to Bathsheba Sherman's grave. Sees
something protruding slightly from the ground before it --
it's a child's hand, half covered with dirt and leaves;
the skin is white, nails chipped -- full of grime. More
leaves blow away, revealing more of a body barely buried.
Lorraine inches closer -- it's a young girl -- matted
hair clings to the porcelain white skin on the side of
her face. The head is turned sideways. As Lorraine
moves around to get a better view --
She looks to the little girl's face -- blanches, it's her
daughter, Judy.
Then, the exposed white skin begins to grey, and
continues to darken and becomes ash-like -- the breeze
blowing every part of her away.
Panic invades Lorraine's body as a slow realization
overwhelms her. She takes off running back the way she
came.
SMASH CUT TO:
EXT. WOODS - PATHWAY - NIGHT
Trees branches claw at Lorraine's clothes as she retraces
her steps on a wild scramble to get back. She can see
the barn up head. She blows out the overgrowth and
continues her sprint past the barn and to the house --
-- barely slows to whip open the front door.
INT. HOUSE - FOYER - CONTINUOUS
As Lorraine dashes into the house and heads to the
kitchen, Bruce looks at her from the living room,
confused by her frenzy of motion.
INT. HOUSE - KITCHEN - CONTINUOUS
Lorraine comes running into the kitchen. She's out of
breath. Immediately goes to the phone on the wall.
Quickly dials. Ed walks in, curious to what's going on.
He's about to say something when she raises her hand to
give her a second.
LORRAINE
(into phone)
Mom, it's Lorraine. Is Judy okay?
(listens)
Can you go check on her, please.
(listens; irritated)
Damnit! Just check -- please.
Lorraine looks to Ed -- tears in her eyes. Keeps the
phone to her earED
Are you going to tell me what's
going on?
LORRAINE
It was Judy.
ED
What do you mean?
LORRAINE
I saw her, out there -- she was
dead --
A VOICE comes back on the phone --
Lorraine breathes a sigh of relief.
LORRAINE (cont'd)
(listens)
Thank you -- I didn't mean to
scare you like that.
(listens)
I'll explain later, okay.
Goodnight.
Lorraine slowly hangs up.
ED
What the hell happened to you?
Lorraine looks to him, troubled. Tears cascading --
LORRAINE
I saw Judy dead in a cemetery. It
was some kind of warning, I know
it. There are spirits trapped
there, I could hear them. She's
dominating both worlds.
ED
You've got to stop.
LORRAINE
(snaps)
Stop what?
He takes her by the shoulders --
ED
This -- you know better. I warned
you.
LORRAINE
I thought something had happened
to her.
ED
C'mere...
He pulls her into an embrace -- gentle, sympathetic.
Whispers