TEASER
FADE IN:
INT. A HALLWAY –
DAY
We follow as ROGER walks quickly down the hallway. It is
darkly lit, but his fear is still very obvious. The hall is filled with glass
window through which we can see magical things happening. People levitating,
mythical beasts, that kind of thing. The ROGER walks by these things as if he’s
seen them all before a hundred times. They are not his concern. Finally, he
turns into a door. (BOSS) sits inside at a desk. She is a middle aged woman who
has a lot of crap in her time. She looks up to see ROGER standing in the
doorway, and looks like she immediately regrets it.
(BOSS)
Please
tell me you’re here because you enjoy my company.
ROGER
There’s
been another incident.
(BOSS)
Jesus,
I can’t turn around without another person almost giving us
away. What happened?
ROGER
A man showed one of them magic. We don’t know
his identity
yet, but he’s caused quite a mess.
(BOSS)
Obviously.
Why don’t you know his name?
ROGER
Because
he disappeared right after it happened.
(BOSS)
Of
course he did. Why can’t people just keep it a secret.
ROGER
I
suppose people like showing off. Doesn’t matter whether they’re
magic or normal.
(BOSS)
And
I’m the one who has to clean up the mess afterwards.
ROGER
I’ll
take care of it.
(BOSS)
Do
that. Our secrecy is dangling by a thread as it is. At, this point
all
it would take is the wrong combination of people to blow the whole operation
out of the water.
Cut to:
INT. A LARGE FANCY
BEDROOM. CONTINUOUS
GINA, a woman who looks to be in her late twenties. She is
wearing completely normal, not sexy spy clothes. No heels because that would be
unrealistic. She’s standing in front of (RICH DUDE) who is tied up and she’s
interrogating him. She’s holding an envelope.
ALEX
Where
did you get this?
(RICH
DUDE)
Do
you really think I would tell you.
ALEX
Not
really, but I’d thought I’d ask anyway.
She casually turns around and looks through the content of
the envelope. Behind her, (RICH DUDE) starts trying to reach the phone, which
is on the floor a few feet away from him. He doesn’t make any noise, but she
magically knows what he’s trying to do anyway.
ALEX
I wouldn’t
do that if I were you.
(RICH
DUDE)
How’d
you know what I was doing?
ALEX
I
have a sense about these things.
(RICH
DUDE)
You’re
one the special people aren’t you? Super powers, magic,
whatever
it is.
ALEX
Alright,
you’re testing my patience. Tell me where you got this or-
Her phone starts ringing, interrupting her midsentence.
ALEX
Wait,
one minute. (she answers the phone). Hey, I’m kind of in the
middle
of something here.
Cut to:
EXT. A SKETCHY
LOOKING PARKING LOT. CONTINUOUS
ROWAN paces, looking worried, with the phone to her ear.
She’s about GINA’s age. She keeps looking around her like she’s waiting for
someone.
ROWAN
Yeah,
sorry about that. I-
Cut
to:
INT. A LARGE FANCY
BEDROOM. CONTINUOUS
ALEX
I’ll
be there in about twenty minutes. I just have to finish up with a
client.
Cut to:
EXT. A SKETCHY
LOOKING PARKING LOT. CONTINUOUS
ROWAN
Gina,
on second thought I think you shouldn’t come.
Cut
to:
INT. A LARGE FANCY
BEDROOM. CONTINUOUS
ALEX
Wait,
why? What’s wrong.
Cut
to:
EXT. A SKETCHY
LOOKING PARKING LOT. CONTINUOUS
ROWAN
Nothing.
Just don’t come. (she hangs up)
Cut
to:
INT. A LARGE FANCY
BEDROOM. CONTINUOUS
ALEX
Rowan?
She hung up.
She stares at the phone for a moment. We can tell by her
face that she senses something is very wrong.
ALEX
She’s
always nagging me for being late. She’d never cancel last minute like that.
(RICH
DUDE)
Why
are you telling me this?
ALEX
Because
you’re here. A captive audience so to speak. (she looks at
her
phone again, thinking hard. Then she makes her decisions) Alright, I’m going
anyway. Here, you can have this back.
She tossed the envelope onto his lap.
(RICH
DUDE)
Seriously,
after all that, you’re just gonna give it back?
ALEX
What
can I say? Friends come before work.
She leaves the room through the window.
Cut
to:
EXT. THE NEIGHBORHOOD
– NIGHT
ALEX gets into her car a drives down the street. We follow
her until she passes an open garage. Then we zoom in on the people inside.
Cut
to:
INT. OPEN GARAGE –
NIGHT
Two older men are sitting on an old couch watching a police
show on an ancient TV. JAY is leaning up against a wall behind them. He is good
looking and at first glance seems pretty carefree, but also has a guarded
sense. He is quietly watching the show and has probably been there for a while,
but neither of the men have noticed their visitor.
MAN
1
I
bet it’s the uncle who’s the killer.
JAY rolls his eyes, apparently knowing better.
MAN
2
Hey.
Shut up. Can’t I watch my show on my own TV in peace without comment from the
gallery?
MAN 1
Alright,
alright. Sorry.
The show reveals that it is, in fact the uncle who committed
the crime.
JAY
What?
That’s your mystery! He was the obvious choice! I thought you were supposed to
surprise people! Even that idiot could figure that ending out!
Oddly, neither of the men are offended, or even seem to have
heard his outburst. They watch as the show ends, before GUY 2 stands.
MAN 2
Alright.
Show’s over. Get out. And don’t bother coming back next week if you’re gonna
talk.
Then MAN 2 abruptly turns and walks straight through JAY
without even noticing. JAY takes this casually. He’s very used to it. As the
two men say their goodbyes he turns to leave.
JAY
(Over
his shoulder) Don’t expect me back. Not with plots that predictable. How hard
is it to write a decent mystery?
Cut
to:
INT. NATHAN’S OFFICE
– NIGHT
NATHAN sits at his desk while his assistants, IRENE and JESS
stand behind him. They’re done working and have been having an argument already
for a few minutes. Throughout the entire scene is the sense that even while
they’re arguing they actually care about each other, and no one is being hurt
by the discussion.
IRENE
I’m
just saying, you could use a mystery.
NATHAN
No.
JESS
Why?
NATHAN
Because.
IRENE
Why?
NATHAN
Because
I’m not interested. Do I need more of a reason than that?
IRENE
All
I’m saying is I think you miss it.
NATHAN
You
are a crazy lunatic who wants way too much control over my life. (To JESS) and
you shouldn’t encourage her.
He gets up and starts to leave.
NATHAN
Where’s
my brief case?
He turns around to see IRENE holding it. He reaches for it,
but she backs away.
IRENE
I’m
a crazy lunatic who wants too much control over your life?
NATHAN
Yes,
but an extremely talented and beautiful one.
She sighs and hands it to him.
IRENE
You’d
better believe it.
NATHAN
How
could I not with you constantly reminding me?
JESS
You
heading home?
NATHAN
Yeah.
And you should too.
JESS
Crap
where’s my wallet?
NATHAN
Where’s
the last place you left it?
Instead of getting insulted by this question, she thinks it
over carefully.
JESS
In
the cafeteria, I think.
NATHAN puts his hands to the side of his head (or some other
gesture of thinking) and we
Cut to:
INT. THE CAFETERIA – DAY
This is all happening in NATHAN’S mind. He has a
photographic memory and is able to project his memories so other people can see
them. NATHAN stands in the middle of the cafeteria in the same pose we last saw
him in. All the people in the cafeteria are frozen except for NATHAN, IRENE,
and JESS. Then he and (JESS) look around. The wallet is on the ground near the
trashcan. After a moment, he sees it.
NATHAN
Found
it.
He blinks and then we
Cut to:
INT. NATHAN’S OFFICE – NIGHT
Everything is just how it was before. Only a couple of
seconds have passed. NATHAN opens his eyes.
NATHAN
On
the floor by the trashcan. Though the cleaning crew has
probably
found it buy now. I’d ask one of them.
JESS
Thanks.
IRENE
I
still think you could use a real mystery.
NATHAN
I
still think I don’t care.
Cut
to:
INT. DARKENED PARKING
LOT - NIGHT
JAY walks through it muttering to himself.
JAY
Even
I could write a better mystery than that.
Then he sees GINA. He obviously knows her very well, and is
shocked to see her.
JAY
Gina?
She doesn’t notice him, but he follows her. She looks
around, clearly waiting for someone. She starts getting worried when she can’t
find ROWAN. JAY follows her looking just as confused.
ALEX
Where
the hell is she?
While she says it, JAY goes around a corner and sees ROWAN
lying dead.
JAY
That’s
not a good sign.
ALEX finds ROWAN and looks terrified as she looks around as
if expected ROWAN’S murderer to still be there.
ALEX
Oh
my god. Rowan? Can you hear me? Rowan! (gets out phone)
911.
There’s been a murder.
JAY
(sighs)
they are definitely going to make us go to base for this.
END OF TEASER
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