INT.
A WOMAN’S SHELTER, DAY.
Milwaukee,
a shelter, Julia on the phone, looking through the window blinds. Through the
scene, she is also organizing the office files, because she knows she won’t be
coming back.
JULIA.
Emily -- Where are you and the girl, are you safe? ...Is
he with you now?...
Emily
and ZOE Duncan, and Tara enter, Emily holding up her phone, smiling. Zoe is
ten.
EMILY.
He calls over and over. He puts a chalk mark on my
tire and checks my odometer, so he can see when I go out.
JULIA.
I got a mechanic who will see if there’s a GPS in
your car. You have your panic bag packed? Clothes, papers?
EMILY.
Almost done.
JULIA.
You went to court again,
right?
EMILY.
Don’t know why I keep trying. First time he got
probation, it was a joke. The court put my new address in the court papers and
set him free without telling me – he was on my doorstep the next day!
JULIA.
But this time the judge issued the restraining order
–
EMILY.
But my husband ignores it; buying guns, calling me, showing
up where he isn’t allowed, hanging around the daycare center, to try to scare
me, and then he told the cops he didn’t understand the rules, or it was a
coincidence, or he missed seeing the kids.
JULIA.
[holds Emily’s hand tight]
Tell your boss about Wayne – he might show up at
your office. Get new bank accounts and credit cards, send the bills to a PO box.
EMILY.
I gotta get a job....I’m trying the trick where you
steal a dead girl’s birth certificate...
JULIA.
No! Get a name change and a new social number. Stay
legal. Stay off the drugs.
EMILY.
But you break the law all
the time...
JULIA.
[progressively more
agitated]
I’m already beyond the law. I’m being hunted by a
rich man and his brother’s a cop. I can’t ever go into a courtroom. But you,
stay clean. If he ever hits you again --
EMILY.
Jesus, slow down. It’s not like this is the last
time we’ll be talking this through....
[sees the look on Julia’s
face]
Oh, man, what happened?
JULIA.
Sorry, it’s nothing, it’s... complicated ....If he
hits you again, go to the doctor, make sure there’s evidence, witnesses,
pictures, torn clothes. Stay calm when the police come, stay cool in court. The
system isn’t always fair.
EMILY.
How hard can it be to nail
him, really?
JULIA.
Listen up, Emily: OJ Simpson. OJ killed his wife, he
left DNA evidence all over LA, and he still walked....So if Wayne beats you in
court, keep fighting: he’s trying to wear you down....
[She crosses to Zoe.]
You must be Zoe. I’m Lia. Back in Jersey, I have a
girl about your age.
She
takes Zoe by the hand, looks at her for a long moment, touches her hair.
JULIA.
I’m sorry, am I freaking you
out?
ZOE.
Not too much...
[smiles]
It’s okay.
JANE,
a teenager, enters.
JANE.
Are you Miss Lia?
JULIA.
Yes, where’s your family,
sweetie?
JANE.
[unsteady, she sits]
My father’s in Texas.
JULIA.
Texas??
JANE.
My Mom disappeared a year ago. My Dad hit her a lot
so she ran. Then he started hitting me. And then
[looks warily at Zoe]
some other stuff. I ran away to Chicago and a
policeman told me to come here and find you.
JULIA.
Christ, does the whole world know where I’m hiding?
JANE.
They said you could find my
Mom.
JULIA.
Your Mom is trying really hard not to be found.
JANE.
[murmurs]
Oh my God --
JULIA.
We’ll just have to try a little harder.
Jane
begins to fade out.
JULIA.
Hey! Did you eat today? Did you sleep last night?
JANE.
I’m starving.
JULIA.
Emily, I’m sorry –
EMILY.
What, are you kidding? We’ll talk later.
[Jane gets up and staggers; to Jane]
Baby, we’re going to see a doctor, and then pizza.
JULIA.
That’s perfect, I shouldn’t be on the street right
now.
Emily
looks warily at Julia, who shrugs helplessly.
EMILY.
[to Zoe]
Come on, baby. Stay close to
Mama.
[Emily, Jane and Zoe leave the shelter.]
JULIA.
[grabs Tara’s shoulder – she doesn’t want to be
alone]
God, girls like this just kill me...So Tara, you’re Emily’s
friend, right? Okay, are you really going to stick with her? Because --
[looks at her]
You’re one of us. Aren’t
you?
TARA.
How did you – ...lucky guess. That’s twice now – I
thought I was so hard to read, and here I am, I’m the big E on the eye chart.
[smiles]
I got out two months ago. My husband wants me back.
He wants a baby.
JULIA.
Emily needs one friend who will hang in there when
things get rough. Dealing with all this is going to wipe her out.
TARA.
I’ve been helping her to keep her chin up. A lot of
Chunky Monkey.
JULIA.
Be patient and listen to her. Don’t talk down to
her, she needs to make her own decisions. And don’t pass judgment on her:
people are going to criticize her no matter what she does....Help her to be a
good mom. She’s got a little girl...
TARA.
Are you okay?
JULIA.
[deep breath]
Help her to hang tough when she starts to get weak,
when she’s thinking about letting him back into her life. Put yourself between
her and him. You tell her every day: “It’s not your fault, you didn’t deserve
this, and you’re not alone”. Every day.
TARA.
So how do you do this every
day?
JULIA.
Well, after tonight, I probably won’t be able to
work here at all, so Emily is going to need you....Emily and Zoe, this is an
easy one.
[picks up files]
When these girls come in, it’s not just to cry over
the cuts and bruises. They bring in their baggage. So every Saturday night, I’m
Oprah, I get all their problems.
[flips through files]
Sexual problems, rape,
drugs. Drinking!
[laughs]
They actually come to me for advice on drinking....
Money problems, jail, guns...
TARA.
Problems with the kids?
JULIA.
Absolutely...Cheating, migraines, anorexia, mental
problems, stalking ...It’s like I live at the end of a long country road – the
only people I see are the ones who are totally lost....I can see them coming a
mile away. This guy says “she lied about me hitting her, she hit me” -- wife
beater. They go to counseling, they make promises... nothing changes.
TARA.
I saw one of those movies, the battered wife, it was
either Jennifer Lopez or somebody else, she got revenge and hunted down her
husband, killed him. Tempting!
JULIA.
Yeah, I saw that, I wanted to kick my TV in. Women
who do that end up in jail, or dead. You don’t try to outmuscle a man, you get
the hell out of there.
[looks up
at Tara]
You got this far -- don’t go all ninja on me. I’m
tired of going to funerals.
Green
enters.
JULIA.
....Oh thank God.
[sees the look on his face]
Greenie....what?
GREEN.
Remember the Walker girl, you put her in your safe
house? Her co-worker wanted to bring her some clothes? Well, she’s actually
Walker’s new girlfriend, she was helping him track down his wife and our safe
house. The Walker girl showed up at the station -- lucky we were open.
JULIA.
So the safe house has been
blown?
GREEN.
Yeah, everybody in town knows where it is now.
JULIA.
Dammit! There’s two girls we have to put on the
railroad.
GREEN.
The railroad...?
JULIA.
The railroad....Don’t ask. You’re a cop. You don’t
get to play this part of the game.
TARA.
[holding her keys]
Hey. You need an extra set
of wheels?
JULIA.
[looks hard at her]
Yeah, thanks, come on.
GREEN.
Here, I can follow you over....
JULIA.
You’re a cop! What happens if some bonehead lawyer
forces you to testify about the railroad? You give up the railroad, or you lose
your job and your pension.
GREEN.
Lia –
JULIA.
[touches his cheek]
Sweetie, thank you, but really, get the hell out of
here. I’m on this one.
[kisses him]
Here’s a kiss for the baby....
He
leaves; she picks up a handful of files, then throws them.
JULIA.
Damn it!
EXT. OUTSIDE A SAFEHOUSE – NIGHT.
Milwaukee. Bailey at a crime scene with an
ambulance.
BAILEY
[on
her personal cellphone]
Yes, sir, adult white
female, she coded on me, bled out. If you could get Children’s Services up and
running...I know it’s late, but there’s a little girl I can’t find...
She turns to see Julia running down the street at
top speed toward the safehouse, until Julia sees the ambulance, the crew in no
hurry to take the body to the morgue. Julia watches the ambulance pull away
slowly, and walks behind it. As the ambulance rolls down the street, women
watch from their windows, some because they knew the dead woman, some because
they have the same troubles in their own homes. Julia stops and looks at one of
the women, who quickly shuts her curtains when her husband appears at her
shoulder.
INT. MILWAUKEE LIQUOR STORE – NIGHT.
The LIQUOR STORE OWNER, an Egyptian
with a New York accent, is tidying; there are no customers. Julia wobbles in and
goes to the shelves.
JULIA.
As
salam aleikum.
LIQUOR
STORE OWNER.
Wa
aleikum –
[he sees the look on her face.]
Hey,
kid, you okay?
[she puts down a pint of whisky]
You’re,
like, my biggest customer, but...you’re not drinking that alone, are you?
JULIA.
You think
I would give this crap to someone I care about? Just me myself, and I, having a
little celebration…..
OWNER.
What
are you celebrating?
JULIA.
You’d never
believe me if I told you...Crap, I’m fifty cents short….
OWNER.
Jesus,
kid, just take it. Want a bag?
JULIA.
Hell
no.
[opens the bottle, tosses him the cap]
And
I definitely won’t be needing that.
[wanders out]
Bailey enters.
BAILEY.
Hey,
Abdul –
OWNER.
Hey, man,
I told you, it’s Abdul-Sharif. Abdul is only half a name, it doesn’t mean
anything by itself.
BAILEY.
Sorry man,
geez. Have you seen Julia? I figure if there’s anybody who sees her every day,
it’s you.
OWNER.
Just left.
She was in shitty shape.
BAILEY.
She’s
having a really shitty night. I need her to find somebody for me.
Bailey exits. In a minute, Hunter’s GOOMBAH
walks in and looks the place over.
GOOMBAH.
We’re
looking for a woman.
OWNER.
Aren’t
we all.
GOOMBAH.
A
comedian. ...Nice little store. Your pal the cop is long gone, by the way.
[looks the owner over]
And
where are you from?
OWNER.
Brooklyn.
Maybe you’ve heard of it.
GOOMBAH.
The
woman, she’s about that high,
[describes Julia]
…Was
she in here tonight?
OWNER.
Haven’t
seen her.
GOOMBAH.
Look, we
know she comes here. She practically keeps you in business.
OWNER.
[pulls up the register tape]
Look for
yourself. I haven’t sold a damn thing all night.
While the goombah looks at the tape, the owner puts his hand over the
cap to Julia’s bottle.
GOOMBAH.
You were
probably better off where you came from.
[rolls his eyes]
Brooklyn...I’ll
be back.
INT.
AN APARTMENT – DAY.
Dawn.
Milwaukee. Julia is drunk in Anna’s apartment. Sound of a LIQUOR BOTTLE FALLING
but not breaking. Turner does not go all mushy in this scene; he doesn’t do
“mushy”.
TURNER.
Are you alright in there?
She
picks up a baseball bat, opens the door with the chain on. She picks up the
bottle and sits next to the door.
JULIA.
What the hell do you care?...Just another liquor bottle
bites the dust. Drinking to yet another victory. So you came to the circus to
see the freaks?
Turner
sits in the hallway outside the door.
TURNER.
[firm]
Oh come on. You are not a freak....A freak. You’re
just somebody who didn’t want to be hit anymore. It wasn’t bad enough that he
beat you, ground you down -- he made you believe that you deserved it. After
all they put you through, you’d have to be a little crazy not to be a little
crazy, but if they persuaded you that you were the one who’s really off the
beam, then they beat you after all.
JULIA.
What do you mean “they”? Go
away.
[sighs]
There’s nothing left for you
to take.
[looks at the bottle, blows on it, making a noise]
I’m empty.
TURNER.
No you’re not. There’s nothing wrong with you, you
don’t need fixing, you need...healing. You’re not a freak. You are...what’s the
word...
[he chuckles]
a miracle, that nurse was right. You could be a
force of nature, like a tornado. I can’t wait to see what the hell you’re going
to do next.
JULIA.
Yep, I’m just what every man dreams of....I’m not
normal.
TURNER.
Normal is boring. You are never boring ....I think
maybe you are a little crazy: no matter how many times you’ve been hurt, you
can still...love people, more deeply, than anybody I ever saw. I saw that at
the shelter. You can’t help yourself, loving people. You just never learn. ...Look
at those scars of yours. Half a dozen detectives couldn’t hunt you down. An
entire town tried to crush you, but they couldn’t. Hate didn’t kill you. Love
and heartache didn’t kill you.... But loneliness? Loneliness will kill you.
Julia
starts going to pieces. She is curling up away from the door – she doesn’t want
him to see her falling apart.
TURNER.
You know all about being lonely, don’t you? You’re
tough, but you’re not hard on the inside. The really hard people can survive
being alone, but you’re not one of them.
JULIA.
Please stop.
TURNER.
You’re dying, out here....
Julia
is losing it.
TURNER.
You have more friends than you think. When I was
asking about you back in Jersey, a bunch of those people told me to go screw
myself, they covered for you. You are not alone anymore ....All those girls on
the railroad, you’re propping them up. But who’s propping you up?
Emotionally,
Julia has completely lost it, a long-overdue catharsis. But she has no
intention of wallowing in it. She gets up, slams the door, catches her breath. Turner
gets up to leave. Still holding the bat, she slides the chain off, opens the
door a bit, peers at him. She backs into the apartment. He follows her.
JULIA.
[waves the bat, shouting]
You came to my house??.... Who the hell are you?
TURNER.
Now, you see, when a woman comes to the door to say
hello to me, I want it to be just like that, every time. I mean with the bat
and everything. “Hello, honey, I’m home!”
Still
in shock from the events of the night, she looks down at the bat and finally
busts out laughing.
JULIA.
Yeah,
right.
[waves bat]
“Honey, I got a casserole in the oven for ya!”
She
puts down the bat.
TURNER.
I am pleased and a little surprised to see you alive....Look
at that face. Real tears.
JULIA.
Yeah, I’m a real weakling....But I can take a punch.
TURNER.
Laughing and crying all in the same day. This is a miracle....How long has it been
since you laughed?
[She sighs and shrugs.]
JULIA.
[picks up the bottle]
My anesthesia.
A spasm of pain, she puts down the bottle,
puts a hand on his shoulder and leans a bit.
JULIA.
Oh shit!...My ribs, can’t breathe ....Like an idiot
I ran all the way to the safe house, for all the good it did. And then you made
me laugh – yeah, it’s been a while.
TURNER.
Julia. The woman at the safehouse. I heard.
JULIA.
[still shaky]
Yeah. She had a daughter. Five years old. Nobody
knows where she is. So today, this is nothing -- tomorrow morning I get to go
find the daughter. And then...I get to tell her about her mom. How the hell am
I supposed to look that kid in the -- ...I promised her I would keep her safe.
[starts to lose it again]
TURNER.
Who were you, before all this? What did you want?
They took all your plans, they took everything you ever dreamed about, they
took everything away from you, and turned you into this. I mean, look at you,
you’re a jungle animal, answering the door with a baseball bat, beating people
up in the street, sleeping off your hangover in the cellar of a strip club....
JULIA.
Thanks a lot, you really picked me up there.
TURNER.
I think your husband, turning you into that
[gestures at her]
that was even more terrible than just beating the
crap out of you. The real you – must be somebody amazing, and he just threw her
away. Is Julia still in there somewhere?
JULIA.
I don’t remember who I was – I disappeared and
nobody even noticed. Maybe this is all that’s left of me, after your boss ran
me through the grinder.
TURNER.
No. Go back and figure out who you are inside, under
all the armor. Not to get all fortune-cookie on you, but -- I want to see what
happens when you climb out of that cocoon, and become something, I don’t
know...
JULIA.
What? Something beautiful?
[snorts]
Yeah, right.
TURNER.
Show everyone what you showed me... Always boxing
outside your weight class, and you’re still on your feet. Kind of. Ten years,
you carried this crap all by yourself. I don’t think there’s anything you can’t
do.
JULIA.
[weary]
Hooray for me.
TURNER.
You showed some serious James Bond moves. That stunt
with the two cabs at the Atlanta airport, six detectives had you cornered, and
you disappeared. Who do you think you are, the girl with the dragon tattoo?
JULIA.
Yeah, I read that book. Libraries, free
entertainment!... The dragon tattoo girl, the crazy bisexual kickboxer
super-genius hacker millionaire biker babe with photographic memory?...I can
barely turn on a computer, I’m broke, if I had any brains I never would have
gotten into this mess, and I’ve been beat up more than anyone I know.
TURNER.
And no motorcycles...?
JULIA.
Yeah, like I don’t spend enough time in the ER. And
I’m not tangling with Russian spies, serial killers...just my husband. All I
have in common with the tattoo girl is, I have bad luck and I drink – it’s a
big club.
TURNER.
He
holds out a handkerchief and she uses it.
TURNER.
You’re the coolest person I know. Jersey housewives
are cool – who knew?
JULIA.
Funny, a new dream has popped into my head: a nice boring dream. Nursing school. I
spend half my life in the ER, either I have broken ribs, or I’m helping some
other girl in the same jam. I know more about bruises than the Packers’
trainer. What about you? This can’t possibly be what you dreamed of doing....
TURNER.
I’ve been thinking about giving up this work. They’re
hiring in the San Francisco police.
JULIA.
You’re going to rejoin the human race. Bravo. Sounds
like somebody really wants that statue in the park...
TURNER.
Right now, I’d settle for being able to look in the
mirror in the morning, so I can shave.
JULIA.
I don’t want any more adventures. I want to go home.
TURNER.
Which is...where?
JULIA.
I can’t believe I’m actually taking your advice. You
gave me that picture of Lily, and it just hit me. I need Lily like I need...oxygen.
It’s time to get my girl back. And since you screwed up Milwaukee for me....Go
tell your boss. I’m coming home.
[She points the bat at him.]
Out.
INT.
TWO APARTMENTS -- DAY.
Alternating
-- Emily talking to the audience, Wayne talking to Emily in their Milwaukee apartment,
David talking to Julia in theirs in Jersey.
EMILY.
When I got married, I learned a lot about myself
that I didn’t know before.
WAYNE.
The trouble with you is you’re nagging, whining.
DAVID.
Blowing it up out of
nothing.
WAYNE.
The trouble with you is you’re over-sensitive,
overreacting.
DAVID.
Pushing my buttons!
WAYNE.
The trouble with you ...
DAVID.
I know what you really mean
by that.
WAYNE.
You say you’re sorry but you don’t mean it.
DAVID.
You’re rude, you dress like a tramp.
WAYNE.
You don’t think.
DAVID.
Lazy.
WAYNE.
Stupid.
DAVID.
A slob.
WAYNE.
Shut up – you just don’t
listen.
EMILY.
He’s a take-charge kind of
guy.
DAVID.
You’re trying to tell me
what to do??
WAYNE.
My house, my rules. No wife of mine...
DAVID.
I wear the pants in this
house.
WAYNE.
I’m the king and this is my
castle.
DAVID.
You’re lucky I’m here.
WAYNE.
And what did I tell you to do?
DAVID.
I know what’s best for you.
WAYNE.
I take care of you, and you owe me. I’m teaching you
a lesson.
DAVID.
This is for your own good.
WAYNE.
Where have you been?
DAVID.
Who did you see?
WAYNE.
Where do you get these
ideas?
DAVID.
Who are these friends you’re hanging around with?
WAYNE.
All they do is badmouth me!
DAVID.
I’m taking your keys.
WAYNE.
What do you need money for?
DAVID.
What do you need a job for? Your job is right here!
EMILY.
And somehow he’s never put a foot wrong.
DAVID.
But baby, it’s not my fault.
WAYNE.
Baby, I was drunk.
DAVID.
I was abused when I was
younger.
WAYNE.
I lost control.
DAVID.
Of course I lied, you get upset when I tell the
truth.
WAYNE.
Of course I lied, I didn’t want to hurt your
feelings.
DAVID.
I never did that, there’s something wrong with your
memory!
WAYNE.
You’re imagining things.
DAVID.
Sure I have other women, but that doesn’t mean I’m
cheating on you.
WAYNE.
What’s the big deal?
DAVID.
I was only joking.
WAYNE.
You have to forgive me.
DAVID.
You made me do it!
WAYNE.
I did it because I love you.
DAVID.
It’s what you deserve.
WAYNE.
You’ve got to give me another
chance.
DAVID.
This isn’t my fault, this is your fault, it’s you
who don’t treat me right, like all the other women in my life.
WAYNE.
You’re hysterical.
DAVID.
You’re crazy.
WAYNE.
You’re the only one who thinks there’s a problem –
so what’s wrong with you?
EMILY.
The day you walk out can be quite an experience.
WAYNE.
I can’t live without you.
DAVID.
I decide when this relationship is over.
WAYNE.
I’ll hurt myself.
DAVID.
I’ll hurt you.
WAYNE.
I’ll hurt the kids.
DAVID.
No one will believe you.
WAYNE.
I’ll cut off the child
support.
DAVID.
I’ll wreck your job and your reputation.
WAYNE.
Nobody – nobody! Will ever love you like I do.
Emily
stands and speaks quietly.
EMILY.
You’re damn right, nobody will ever “love” me like
that.
She
looks at him.
EMILY.
Never again. I won’t allow
it.
INT.
AN APARTMENT – DAY.
Milwaukee.
Julia and Anna on couch, eating Chinese, drinking wine. Television PLAYS
SOFTLY.
ANNA.
Next time can we do something besides Chinese?
JULIA.
[looks at TV in front of them, throughout the scene]
Next time?
[laughs sadly]
You know, ten years now, either I was trapped in my
own house, or running all over the country, you know how many honest-to-God friends
I’ve had, the whole time?...You’re it. The only one....
ANNA.
Man.
JULIA.
No kidding -- to me, you are just plain...beautiful,
top to bottom, inside and out. I mean, the parts that really are beautiful,
those demonic eyes of yours, and
[waves her hand]
all that other stuff.
ANNA.
What in the world...? What
do you mean, “other stuff”?
JULIA.
When you come home to me every night, curling up in
front of the TV, that’s when I’m happy. I actually feel normal here with you. A
vacation from reality.
ANNA.
How much of that wine have you had? I told you,
girl, you need to dial it back.... Alright, what’s going on?
JULIA.
I’m saying goodbye. I’m not doing a good job of it.
I have to go find my daughter. I’ve got a battle on my hands.
[gets up, picks up duffel
bag]
If you like to get a bet down, the smart money says
I lose. But I can’t hide anymore. Vacation’s over.
ANNA.
Baby, it’s suicide. You can’t just get on the interstate
like that, let’s go out somewhere –
JULIA.
[deep breath]
No, then I’d have to say goodbye to you twice – I
can barely handle this one...
INT.
EMILY’S BEDROOM – DAY.
Milwaukee.
Tara is looking into a bedroom mirror, Emily and Green behind her, also looking
into the mirror. Tara is possibly brushing her hair, or putting makeup over a
black eye.
TARA.
Seriously, this is the last time I go back to him. I
can’t believe how bad I screwed this up...
EMILY.
Tara, are you going to make me give you the “It’s
not your fault” speech? ...Here, look at this magazine. Pretend that this
picture is Ethel, the worst wife in the world. She’s in the Guinness book.
TARA.
Ethel? That’s Angelina Jolie.
EMILY.
Pretend it’s Ethel. Worst wife in the world, she
drinks, she smokes, she tokes, the house is a mess, the kids are a mess. She
spends money like a drunken sailor, she sleeps around, she even hits her
husband. Worst wife in the world.
TARA.
And...?
EMILY.
Even the worst wife in the world doesn’t deserve to
get hit. Nobody deserves to get hit. And you’re not Ethel. There’s no way in
the world he can beat you over and over, without persuading you that you
deserve it. And persuading you that you’re Ethel. No matter how lowdown he tells
you you are, no matter how lowdown you think you are, you’re not Ethel.
TARA.
He tells me I’m worthless. When I look in the
mirror, that’s what I see.
They all look in the “mirror”,
facing the camera.
GREEN.
I
see a woman who has survived in a man’s world since the day she was born.
EMILY.
I
see a woman doing the hardest job in the world, marriage, with the worst
possible partner.
GREEN.
A
woman dealing with the worst possible betrayal...
EMILY.
The
man who promised to love her above all, becoming her worst enemy.
GREEN.
Doing
all he can to make all her choices painful, impossible.
EMILY.
I
see a woman who survived the friends and family who betrayed her, she survived
the judges who didn’t believe and the cops who didn’t care –
GREEN.
Hey!
EMILY.
[smiles]
Except
for Greenie....I see a girl who brushed off broken bones and burns and bruises
that would reduce most men to blubbering idiots.
GREEN.
I
see a woman who has come closer than anybody I know, to the real threat of
death – real as a heart attack -- and
she didn’t collapse.
EMILY.
Like
a war veteran, only she isn’t getting any medals for her heroism.
GREEN.
I
see a woman who has been held hostage by a terrorist, and she didn’t flip out.
EMILY.
A
woman who has had to live like a fugitive.
GREEN.
A woman who did it!
EMILY.
She escaped!
GREEN.
Turning
her whole life upside down, new home, new work, new school.
EMILY.
That’s
enough stress to kill most normal people.
GREEN.
Even
though she was totally not prepared for all this – there’s no boot camp for
wives of psychopaths.
EMILY.
I
see a woman with more patience and sacrifice than a church full of nuns.
GREEN.
If
I had to go on some dangerous spy mission in a hostile country, this is the
woman I would take.
EMILY.
Because
she can do anything, solve anything, endure anything.
GREEN.
You
couldn’t write a book about her life because no one would buy it, it’s too
incredible.
[points]
Angelina
Jolie would have to play her in the movie, but she’d need months in the gym
just to keep up with all the stunts.
EMILY.
I
see a girl who...blossomed, a long time ago, and she’s ready to blossom again...Don’t
be rolling your eyes at me!...Now come out to the kitchen, so we can polish off
the last of my husband’s bourbon.
TARA.
You
know I lost most of my family. All of my friends.
EMILY.
Then
you make a new family.
GREEN.
Start
with us.
EMILY.
Kid,
as long as you love people, you may get hurt, but you’ll never be alone. Never.
Just think of it! And there are always people who need love. They’re all around
you. Now stop moping and put on your drinking shoes.
TARA.
[perks up]
I’ve never got drunk on Bourbon
before.
EMILY.
[wary]
Oh boy.
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