"God...damn it!" "Hi, there." "Good mornin'." "It is, isn't it?" "Nice car." "I was trying to fix it." "With a hamer?" "It's all I had." "Is there a town around here?" "Lost Junction's just up the road a piece." "I don't suppose you could give me a lift?" "Well, sure." "I'm going that way first, if you don't mind coming along." "What's your name?" "Jimmy." "Jimmy what?" "McGeee." "What's yours?" "Missy." "So, Jimmy McGeee, what's a guy like you doing out in these parts?" "I was headed over to Charleston." "Where are you from, Jimmy?" "Boise." "Boise?" "Yeah, Idaho." "Oh, yeah." "Boise, Idaho." "Hey, you know anything about banks?" "You mean the kind you put money in?" "Uh, a little bit." "Why?" "Just wondering." "What are you doin' out this early?" "Runnin' an erand." "At 6:.30?" "You're not, like, an escaped convict or anything, are you?" "That's the first time I heard that one." "I'll just be a minute." " Where you goin'?" " Feed the fish." "That's Shorty's place right there." "Usually opens about 8:00, but I think today it might be a little later." "Welcome to my home, Jimmy." "I'll put some coffee on, if you like." "Or I bet you must be starved." "How about some breakfast?" "That sound good, Jimmy?" "You just gonna invite a total stranger into your house?" " You don't even know me." " Sure I do." "You're Jimmy McGeee from Boise, Idaho." "You live here alone?" "Yeah, I do." "Tell me why, tell me why, tell me why" "Sory, I like to sing when I cook." " Why are you sory?" "I like it." " Doc hates it." "Says I sound like a blue jay with its ass on fire." "Who's Doc?" "Just about the meanest man in Lost Junction." "Go ahead, eat." " You're not going to have any?" " Uh-uh." "This is good." "Really good." "Iris says I'm the best cook in town." "Says I can go down to the restaurant, work any day I want." "I don't think I've ever met anyone from Idaho before." "What?" "Well, I was just wondering, after we get Shorty to take a look at your car, would you mind accompanying me to the bank?" "Okay." "You know, somehow I always imagined that when this day came," "I'd be driven down to the bank by a handsome young man such as yourself." " What day?" " Today." "Uh-huh." "Uh-oh." "Can you fix it, Shorty?" "Gonna take a while." " How long?" " A couple of days." "Can't do it any quicker than that?" "Don't have the parts." "Gonna have to make a trip up to the big city." "It's not gonna be cheap, neither." "How much?" "Couple hundred." "Give or take fifty." "Fuck." "It's okay, Shorty." "Ring me up when you get it done." "You sure you don't mind?" "I wouldn't have offered if I did." "So that's my room there, and you can sleep in here." "Bathroom's across the hall." "Just make yourself at home." "I'll get dressed, and we can go down to the bank." "Mr. Thompson?" "Missy Lofton's here to see you." " He'll be right with you." " Thank you." "Well, good afternoon, Mrs. Lofton." " Hi, there." " How are you today?" "Just fine, Mr. Thompson." "It is Thompson, isn't it, Mr. Thompson?" "Yes, of course." "Well, I never expected to see you in here." "Doc usually handles these business matters himself." "Why don't you come into my office and we'll see what we can do for you?" " How is Doc?" " Oh, he's fine." "Just fine." "I haven't seen him around today." " Trust he's feeling okay?" " Oh, sure, he's fine." "He went down to Texas to visit some relatives." "I didn't know Doc had relatives down in Texas." "Oh, sure." "Distant cousins, I believe." "Oh." "And whom do I have the pleasure of meeting here?" "This is Jimmy." "Jimmy McGeee." "Well, nice to meet you, Jimmy McGeee." "You're not from around here, are you?" "No, sir, I'm just visiting." "And that would be from..." " Albuquerque." " New Mexico!" "Well, now that's a long ways away, isn't it now?" "So, Missy, what can I do for you today?" "I'd like to take some money from my savings account." " You would?" " m-hm." "I'm sure that shouldn't be too much of a problem." "How much would you like to withdraw?" "All of it." " All of it?" " Yes." "All of it." " But you can't." " Well, why not?" "Because..." "Well now, Missy, I'd have to talk to Doc about this." "Why do you have to talk to Doc?" "Because both yours and Doc's names are on the account." "Really?" "He'd have to sign it with you, for this amount of money." "Is that true, Jimmy?" "Jimmy knows all about banking matters." "Jimmy, would we both have to sign?" "No." "Think maybe you've confused the regulations regarding joint accounts." "Perhaps maybe you should make a call down to the main office and verify it with them." "Yeah, that's a good idea, Jimmy." "Let's call the main office." "But, Missy, see, you don't understand" "No, Mr. Thompson, you don't understand." "This little book here says "New Liberty Savings and Loan"" "on it right there, you see that, Mr. Thompson?" "If I'm not mistaken, that's where I'm sittin' right now." "And inside this little book, it says, "Missy Lofton, account number 04483."" "And all these little pages, they have numbers on them, and at the end here, it says "$322,000.69."" "You see that, Mr. Thompson?" "Yes." "Then I want it." "I want it all, and I want it now." "In cash." "Mr. Thompson, would you like me to call the main office?" "No, no, that won't be necessary." "Problem is, we don't keep that kind of money at this branch, so I'd have to request it come all the way down from a branch in the city." "I can cut you a check, if you'd like." "A check?" "What good's a check gonna do me?" "I already have checks." "No, cash." "Nothing too large." "Do you mind me asking what this kind of money is for?" "Kidney transplant." "Jimmy here needs a new kidney, and he doesn't have any insurance, so we're gonna drive up to Pittsburgh and get him a new one." "Isn't that right, Jimmy?" "Now how long is it gonna take to get that money down here?" "Uh...a day or two." "I'll expect it tomorow." "Now, when it gets here, you just put it in this little suitcase and you ring me at home." "Thank you, Mr. Thompson." "You do have a nice day." "Come on, Jimmy." " Why did you lie to me?" " What?" "What are you talking about?" "You're the one who lied." "Me?" "I didn't lie to you." " Yes, you did!" " No, I didn't." "You didn't tell me you were gonna make up some lame-ass story about me needing a fucking kidney, for Christ's sake." "Don't say that word." "I hate that word." "I said specifically I wanted you to accompany me to the bank." "Yeah, but you didn't say what for, did you?" "So it's still a lie." "No, it isn't, Jimmy." "You're the one who lied." "Would you mind telling me how?" "You told me you were from Boise." "Well, you told me you lived alone." " I do." " So who the hell is Doc?" "Let's try to be specific this time." "You know what?" "I'm gonna go, all right?" "But, Jimmy, who's gonna drive me home?" "So where are you really from?" "Charleston, originally." "Last couple of years, I've been up near Chicago." "Why'd you lie?" "I don't know." "Just felt like being from someplace else, I guess." "Good evening, Missy." "I don't mean to disturb you none." "Is Doc around?" "No, I'm sory, he's not, Frank." "You have any idea where I could get ahold of him?" "Well, he went to Texas." " He did?" " Uh-huh." "That's funny, 'cause I noticed his car's out there by the garage." "Oh, well, that's 'cause he flew, Frank." "I took him to the airport yesterday." "I'm supposed to meet him in New Orleans on Friday." "Oh, okay, that makes sense." "Took a plane" " Frank." " Uh-huh?" "What do you want?" "I just came by to check up on the Doc and see if everything's all right." "Did Calvin Thompson call you?" "Is that what this is all about?" "Well, Missy, I think he was a little woried that something could have happened to Doc, what with Porter Johnson coming into town, and then..." "Jimmy McGeee here showing up needing a...kidney?" " Frank." " Uh-huh?" "Why don't you just tell these people to start minding their own business?" "Aw, come on now, Missy." "You know how it is around here." "Yeah, and you know how much I hate it when people keep meddling their noses in my affairs." "Yes, ma'am." "That I do." "Right." "So why don't you go tell Calvin Thompson" "I'll be at the bank at 12 sharp." "He'd better have my money, or there's gonna be hell to pay." "Yes'm." "You're somethin' else." "No one in this town seems to take you seriously, yet everyone's scared to death of you?" "How do you do that?" "Just somethin' I picked up." "Should I even ask who Porter Johnson is?" "A friend." "Just an old friend." "I'm gonna go up and take a bath." "Okay." "Missy?" "Um...thanks for letting me stay." "You're welcome, Jimmy." "Jimmy, is that you?" "Hey." "Matt. you jumpinn' tonnight?" "I donn't knnow." "Toad." "How about you?" "I already did!" "Good onne. mann!" "Hey." "Matt!" "Come onn!" "Yeah. come onn!" "All right. grab my hannd." "Now just close your eyes. all right?" " Onn three. ready?" " Come onn!" "Do it. mann!" "Onne... two..." "Good mornin'." "Mornin'." "I thought I'd make us up a picnic basket for lunch." "We could take it out to the lake." " Breakfast?" " Thanks." " You goin' somewhere?" " Yeah, I am." "Aah!" "Damn!" "You all right?" "Yeah, it's just a little cut." "Going to New Orleans?" "Yeah." "Doc's gonna be there?" "That's right." "Well, when you leavin'?" "Tonight." "Where are you headed next?" "I can't really go anywhere until Shorty gets my car fixed." "Yeah." "Well, you're always welcome to stay here until then." "Your car fixed yet?" "Nobody was there." "Your money's here." "Mr. Thompson just called." "You want me to drive you?" "I'd appreciate that." "Jimmy?" "Why do you suppose we met?" "I don't know." " There have to be a reason?" " Shouldn't there be?" "I mean, think of it." "Your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere." "I've lived here most of my life, and until yesterday," "I've never been out here before." "Maybe we both just needed something at the same time." "You mean each other?" "Maybe." "You're beautiful." "Anyone ever tell you that?" "Jimmy, are you trying to get fresh with me?" "Fresh?" "Are you from the 1800s or something?" "No one says "get fresh" anymore." "People say..." "Well, they say "trying to get some."" "Yeah, well, that just sounds so..." "I don't know, that just sounds so crude." "Jimmy, let's not start something we can't finish, okay?" "Okay." "I'm sory." "It's okay." "Nothing to be sory about." "Doc?" "Missy?" "Anybody home?" "What is it?" "Looks like blood." "Oh, Lord Almighty, I knew it!" "They killed him!" "What'd I tell you, Frank?" "Now let's not go jumping to conclusions." "Conclusions?" "There's blood all over the counter!" "Her and that Jimmy McGeee fella's done killed Doc." "That's what they done." "Kidney, my ass." "Listen, a little bit of blood on the counter doesn't mean Doc is dead." "Now you go on back to work and keep this under your hat." "Whose side are you on, Frank?" "No one's." "But going into somebody's home without a warant for evidence, that's against the law." "That is just the stupidest thing I've heard today." " What?" " Nothing." "Just felt like screaming." "Let's put this stuff in the back." "You got something wrong with you?" "What do you mean?" " You're different." " Different than what?" "Than yesterday." "From now on, Jimmy, everything's gonna be different." "My life has changed forever." "You're a strange girl." "Are you trying to flatter me, Jimmy McGeee?" "You're not coming back, are you?" "I don't think so, Jimmy." "Aren't you afraid you're gonna miss it?" "Maybe part of me." "But it's time for a new life." "What was wrong with the old one?" "It just didn't fit anymore." "It's kind of like your favorite old dress." "You keep it around even though you're never gonna fit into it again." "Yeah, I know what that feels like." "Shut up." "So you can't hang around for a few more days?" "No, I gotta keep my word with Doc." "I'll just go pack my stuff then." "Good day, Mr. McGeee." "Hey, Sheriff." "What are you doin' in here?" "Just take it easy, son." "We don't want any trouble." "As far as I know, you can't just come walking into somebody's house without a warant." "I got a warant, all right." "Mind if I take a look at it?" "It ain't got your name on it, son." "So for your own sake, you best just stay out of this." "I'd say that was a pretty good idea if you weren't standing there waving a gun in my face." "Start the car." "Oh, shoot!" "Hold on!" "Damn it!" "Jimmy, wait up!" "Come on!" "Slow down!" "Jimmy, you busted my taillight." "Missy, where we going?" " Look out!" " Yeah, I see him." "What did I just get myself into?" "What are you-- what are you doing, Jimmy?" "Jimmy, why are you stoppin'?" "You better give me a good reason why I should be doing this, or I'm gonna go back." "What do you want from me, Jimmy?" "How about the truth?" "God damn it!" "What are you runnin' from?" "You think I've done something wrong, don't you?" "Look, Missy, no matter how bad it is, I want to know." "Jimmy!" "Jimmy, what are you doing?" "I'm going back." "Jimmy, please, why are you doing this to me?" "Jimmy, don't, okay." "Please?" "Jimmy, don't." "Jimmy, stop!" "How long you and Doc been maried?" "How long?" "!" "Too long." "Why'd you mary him?" "I didn't have a choice, okay?" "You were pregnant?" "It was more complicated than that." " More complicated how?" " It just was, okay?" " Tell me!" " Jimmy, please!" "I swear to God, Missy, if you don't tell me, I'm gonna go back." "Fine!" "You wanna know why I maried Doc, here it is." "Yes, I was pregnant, but it wasn't... it wasn't Doc's baby." "Whose was it?" "It was my daddy's." "It was my daddy's." "Mama refused to believe it was his, so she blamed it on the neighbor boy." "That was Porter." "Porter lived down the street back then, so..." "Anyhow, she took me into Lost Junction to get an abortion." "Doc was kind enough to oblige." "Doc had just lost his first wife, so Mama thought it'd be a good idea for me to have someone else taking care of me." "I guess she thought he'd hit me less then Daddy did." "She was wrong." "Does that answer your question, Jimmy?" "Why I was maried, and why I wanted out of that town." "Is there anything else you want to know?" "No." "I'm sory." "I just figure there's something about me that makes men want to hit me." "You know that that's not true, right?" "Gotta be somethin'." "There you go." "I'll be right back." "Thank you." "Don't make fun of me, Jimmy." " Is this for me?" " Yeah." "You ordered this for me?" "God, Jimmy, that's so sweet." "That feels nice." "You know, Jimmy, from now on, from this night and for the rest of my life, all I want to be is treated like a lady." "Do you think that's too much to ask for?" "I think it's what you should expect." "What do you want, Jimmy?" "You know, out of life." "I don't know." "Well, you must have some idea." "I guess just something to hold on to." "Wake up in the morning, feel like I got something to hold on to." "That is some car!" " It's a '59, ain't it?" " Yes, ma'am." "I used to drive one just like her." "Really?" "She have a name?" "Well, l--I call her Jane." "She used to be Plain Jane but that was before Shorty got his hands on her." "Shorty's the best mechanic this side of the Mississippi." "Yeah, he fixed her up real nice, and now she's just Jane." " Did you name yours?" " No." "My best friend, Nettie May, named her." "She used to clean for me and my husband." "If it wasn't for her, I never would have had the guts to leave the bastard." "Anyway, one weekend, Nettie May and myself picked up a bottle of whiskey and decided to go to the beach down in Pensacola." "I don't think that Nettie May had had a sip of alcohol in her whole life." "So, there she was with the bottle half empty by the time we get to the beach, and the motels just plumb full up." "I tell you, we drove those streets for so long, and every time we'd see a no-vacancy sign," "Nettie May would shout out, "Jessa keep on going!" "Now you jessa keep on going!"" "So we named her Jesse." "Oh, Lord, did we laugh." "Yeah, well, they sure don't make 'em like that anymore." "Oh, let me get you some menus." "Thank you." "Jimmy?" "Here ya go." " You know, we" " Don't you kids want something to eat?" "No, we...we gotta go." " Thank you for the coffee." " Thank you very much." "Well, y'all have a nice evening." " All right, thank you." " Good night." " Evenin'." " Evenin'." "Oh, dear!" "Oh, dear!" "Oh, dear!" "What in the hell are you doin'?" "Whoa!" "What, Missy, you tryin' to get us killed now?" "Trust me, Jimmy, if that cop stops us, it won't matter either way!" "Hold on." " All right, Missy, you can slow down!" " In a minute." "Jesus, Missy, slow down!" " Slow the fuck down!" " Don't say that word!" "I hate that word!" "There's something I need to tell you." "Really?" "Now, you promise you won't get mad?" "Oh, I'm already mad." "Well, then promise you won't get any madder than you already are." " I can't do that." " Why not?" "Because what if it's something that doesn't make me mad now, but might make me mad when you tell me?" "Don't do that, Jimmy." "I'm not that smart." "All right, I promise." "What?" "My husband." "What about him?" "Well... he ain't in Texas." "He's dead." "Yeah." "You lied to me again." " No, I didn't." " The hell you didn't!" "No, I swear I didn't." "No, no, no." "You looked me straight in the face, you said you were gonna meet him in New Orleans." "No, I said he'd be in New Orleans, which he will be." "Jimmy?" "Jimmy, what are you doing?" "No, Jimmy, don't go." "Please don't leave me now!" "Please, I don't think I can do this on my own." "I am this close, Jimmy." "This close." "All we have to do is get to New Orleans and Porter will take care of everything." "Just to New Orleans, Jimmy, please?" " Please?" " You goin' there to be with him?" "I've never been anywhere my whole life." "Answer the question!" "I didn't know anyone else." "Jimmy!" "You got a dead person in your trunk, Missy!" "Jimmy, I'll pay you." "Just get me to New Orleans and I'll give you enough money so you can buy a new car." "You shoulda told me, Missy." "I'm sory." "I'm really sory." "How much?" "As much as you want." "And what if we get caught?" "I'll tell 'em the truth." "You don't even know what that is!" "I know you're the first man I've ever met in my whole life who I know I can trust." "Come on, Jimmy, when we get there, I'll call Frank up." "I'll tell him Doc died in New Orleans." "Besides, you can't just go walking off into the middle of nowhere by yourself." "Well, my whole world's in an uproar" "My whole world's upside down" "I don't know where I'm going" "But I'm always bumin' 'round" "And that's another side to this life" "I've been leadin'" "And that's another side to this life" "Well, I don't know what I'm doing" "Half the time I don't know where I'll go" "I think I'll get me a sailing boat" "And sail the Gulf of Mexico" "And that's another side of this life" "I've been leadin'" "And that's another side of this life" "Well, I think I'll go to Nashville" "Down to Tennessee" "The ten-cent life I've been leading here" "Gonna be the death of me" "But that's the other side to this life" "I've been leadin'" "And that's another side to this life" "We're here." "Hey, Jimmy, look at that." "Look at all those neat little buildings." "They're graves." "It's a cemetery." "Really?" "Oh, maybe we can get one of those for Doc." "You know where we're going?" "Yeah, it's here." "It's somewhere in the French Quarter." "Jimmy, I need coffee." "These pansies here are on sale." "Two for a dollar." "Jimmy, what's the worst thing that ever happened to you?" "Why?" "I don't know." "I wanna know something about you that's real." "Think only the bad things that happen to us are real?" "No, didn't say that." "Just yesterday, something happened to me that was very real and it was wonderful." "What was that?" "Tell me the worst thing that ever happened to you." "Come on, Jimmy, I told you stuff, stuff that I'd never tell anyone." "I pushed my best friend off a cliff." "Why?" "'Cause he was afraid to jump." "Me and him and some other boys used to go out to this quary and drink...cuss, and act like men." "Water was low that day, and we'd had a couple too many." "And those are all excuses." "Things people said to make it not seem so bad." "Anyhow, Matt was always afraid to jump, so I pushed him." "Told him to grab my hand, and then I pushed him." "Did he die?" "No...but he doesn't walk anymore." "That real enough for you?" "Is that what wakes you up at night?" "You can't forgive yourself, can you, Jimmy?" "How am I gonna forgive myself for something like that?" "Since it happened not a day goes by I don't think about it." "Everywhere I go, everything I do... it's always there." "So you tell me how do I make up for something like that?" "I don't know." "You ever asked him that?" "You ever thought about asking him that?" "Well, Jimmy, there's good in everything, no matter how bad it seems." "Some people find it and some don't." "Some just never look for it, 'cause they're too busy blaming someone else." "Maybe your friend..." "Matt?" "Matt?" "Well, maybe he's one of those people who sees the good in things." "How are you gonna know unless you ask?" "'Cause I know what I'd do if it were me." "Should be around here somewhere." "You know what?" "I think it's in there." "Perfect." "Did this guy Porter kill Doc?" "Don't ask, Jimmy." "The less you know, the better." "It's a little late for that, isn't it?" " You're late." " Well, i-it's" "Just kidding!" "Come over here!" " How you doin'?" " I'm good." "Let me look at you." "Turn around." " Missy, girl, you lookin' good." " Thank you." "I thought you said you were gonna be here yesterday." "Who's that?" "Oh, well, that's Jimmy." "Jimmy McGeee." "He's on his way up to Charleston." "He helped me get out of Lost Junction." " Uh-huh." "Come here." " What?" "Does he know anything about Doc?" " Yeah, I had to explain it" " Yes, he knows?" "Missy, this is not good." "This is just" " Porter!" " This is not" " Porter, he's okay!" " No, this is not--not good!" "Jimmy, come on!" " Want a beer?" " No, thanks." "Porter, why is it so messy out here?" "So, Charleston, huh?" "Is that your home?" "Was." "So you're probably heading' out tonight then, huh?" "Yeah, I guess I will." "No, we have to celebrate." "Porter, you can't let him leave yet." "I thought we'd all go down to your club and have us a real night out." "We could have some drinks." "Wouldn't that be fun?" "Well, wouldn't it?" "Yeah, honey, whatever makes you happy." "Ol' Jimbo here may not have the time." "Come on, Jimmy, you can leave for Charleston tomorow." "What do you say, Jimbo?" "You got the time?" "Sure." "Good." "It's settled then." "Give me a truckload of love" "Give me the mighty sky above" "Come back to me, my drifting' baby" "But hey, if you want to go" "Then go your way" "Give me a truckload of love" "Give me the mighty sky above" "Come back to me, my drifting' baby" " Two of my specials." " Porter, this is so much fun." " Thank you." " You are welcome." "How about you, Jimbo?" "You having a good time?" "The best." "So what are you gonna do with all that money?" "I wouldn't wory about Missy here." "I'll make sure she makes some solid investments." "You know, there's a whole lot of opportunity down here." " Yep!" " Where you goin'?" "I can't very well sit around here and talk to you all night, girl." "I've got myself a business to run." " Y'all enjoy." " All right." "Let's dance." "No." "Oh, come on, Jimmy." " Missy, l" " Dance with me!" "I don't wanna dance." "Jimmy, come and dance with me." "No, Missy, I don't want to dance." "Come on, this is our last night together." "Just come and dance with me." "One dance." "Jimmy, are you gonna leave a lady standing in the middle of the dance floor?" "Would you like to know a secret" "Just between you and me" "I don't know where I'm goin' next" "I don't know where I'm gonna be" "But that's the other side of this life" "I've been leadin'" "But that's the other side of this life" "Well, my whole world's in an uproar" "My whole world's upside down" "I don't quite know where I'm going next" "But I'm always bumin' 'round" "And that's the other side of this life" "I've been leadin'" "And that's another side of this life" "Porter, no." "It's been a long trip." "I'm tired." "Come on, Missy, girl." "I been waitin' for years." "Cut it out!" "What are you doin'?" "Train to Charleston leaves in an hour." "I'll just get dressed." "How much money do you want, Jimmy?" "I don't want any money." "But I said I'd pay you." "Well, I wouldn't feel right about it." "Takin' money a man was killed for." "Is that what you think, Jimmy?" "You think... we killed Doc for the money?" "Well, you can understand why it might look that way." "Why didn't you just leave him?" "I'd never kill anyone for money, Jimmy." "I can't believe you'd think that." "Well, I don't know what to think anymore." "All aboard!" "I made you some lunch." "Thank you." " Come with me." " What?" "Go grab your stuff and come with me." "No...no, Jimmy, I can't do that." "Porter helped me out." "I owe him." "You don't owe him anything." "Are you in love with him?" "No." "Well, I don't know." "It's not like that with us." "I've known him all my life." "I thought you wanted to be treated differently." " Porter'll treat me right." " He's already pushing you around." "Jimmy, it's okay." "I'll be fine." "All aboard!" "I gotta go." "Jimmy." "I wasn't gonna tell you this but when you kissed me out at the lake that's how I always imagined it should be." "A kiss." "For the first time in my life, it felt real." "Good real." "I don't know how you thank someone for that." "No, Jimmy." "Why not?" "Because it might make me change my mind." "Jimmy!" "Thanks, Jimmy, for making me feel like a lady." "Jimmy!" "Well, I'll be a son of a bitch!" "What are you doin' here?" "Hey." "I need to talk to you." "About what?" "Is everything okay?" "No, everything's not okay." " Your folks all right?" " Yeah, they're fine." " It's about us." " Us?" "Yeah, you and me." "Well..." "I ain't laid eyes on you in what?" "Since..." "Christmas, three years ago?" "And this is about us?" "Dude, come on." "I pushed you off the cliff on purpose." "Yeah, I know, bro." "I was there." "I did it 'cause I didn't want everybody makin' fun of you 'cause you were afraid to jump." "Wow!" "Wow, so I guess it's all worth it then." " Goddamn it, Matt, don't do that." " Don't do what?" "Make it sound like some sort of joke." "Well, what the hell am I supposed to do, man?" "Huh?" "When this happened, you cried at my bed for days on end, mumbling over and over again how sory you were." "I've always remembered that." "And then, bam!" "You blow out of town and out of my life... except for a couple of times a year during the holidays." "And why?" "'Cause you can't bear to see me." "Huh, is that it?" "'Cause you can't bear to see what you did to me!" "Huh?" "Is it the guilt, Jimmy?" "Is that it?" "Well, newsflash, asshole!" "My life is fine!" "In some ways, I think it might even be better." "And I never, ever forgave you." "Because I never blamed you in the first place." "I'm sory, Matt." "I'm sory." "Pull yourself together before the neighbors see." "I guess Missy was right." "Well, when you're done with your crying," "let's go shoot some hoops." "Who's Missy?" "I swear, dude, I met her, ten seconds later, she's all I can think about." "Whoa, you got it bad." "That's not all, either." " Wanna see something?" " Sure." "What's this?" "That was supposed to be lunch." "Wow." "That's a lot of lunch." " How much you think this is?" " Ten thousand dollars." ""A time to kill and a time to heal." ""A time to break down and a time to build up." ""A time to weep and a time to laugh." " A time to mourn and a time to dance."" " Ten thousand dollars?" "Son of a bitch, Missy." "Sometimes, I swear you do the most stupidest things." "Shut up, Porter." "This is Doc's memorial." "I want it to be special." ""A time to keep silence and a time to speak." ""A time to love and a time to hate." ""Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death..." "Maybe you should have thought of that before you gave that little fucker ten grand of our money, huh?" "Ow!" "Ouch!" " The hell did you do that for?" " Get out of here!" " Son of a bitch!" " Get out of here!" "You know, that's it." "God..." "Go on." "Please." ""We therefore comit his mortal remains to the ground." ""Earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust," ""in sure and certain hope of the resurection of eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ." "Amen!"" "Jimmy, do you know what an accomplice is?" "He was already dead." "What did I accomplice?" "Plenty!" "Think about it!" "The thing is, I just don't understand why you left her down there with this guy." "I tried." "I asked her to come with me." " She wouldn't come." " Tried." "We know how hard you try." "Okay, point is... you said this guy's a real weasel, right?" "Yeah." " Yeah." "And?" " What?" "What if he does to her what he did to her husband?" "Let's go for a drive." "Looks like the rooster's flyin' the coop." "Yeah, okay, Rockford." "So I watch a little TV." "Should we shadow him?" "No, we shouldn't shadow him." "Hang on a second." "Let's go inside." "Look, I told you, he doesn't come around here anymore." "Can you guys find somebody else to arest?" "I'm not looking for him." "I'm looking for a girl." "Her name's Missy Lofton." "Listen, I don't know anything about what happened." "Porter said she went ballistic, and since he's paying me to help out," "I don't ask any questions." "She's down the hall, last door to your right." "So how you doin' today?" "Just friggin' dandy." "They let just about anybody be cops these days, huh?" "Yeah, that Disabilities Act sure helped me out." "Missy?" "Missy." "Hey, there, sunshine." "It's Jimmy." "Jimmy McGeee, what are you doin' here?" "I came to see you." "I don't know if now is such a good time, Jimmy." "You okay?" "Sure, I'm...fine." "I'm just fine." "That's funny, you don't look okay." "I'm just tired is all." "He took my money, Jimmy." "He took all of my money." "Don't wory." "You're gonna be okay." "See, the first shot went in here, down low." "And then the second one kind of hit in behind, and, uh..." "You guys aren't real cops, are you?" "Well, Cassie, it's all right, 'cause, uh... we're here on a" "Whoa!" "Whoa!" "You got the wrong idea here!" "Doesn't look wrong to me." "By law, you're trespassing." "I could shoot you both." "We came down here to help her." "I'm not leavin' here without her." "I'm the one with the gun, asshole." "Who the hell are you?" "Well, that's a long story, Miss, but here's the short version." "Your friend Porter Johnson killed her husband, and it seems cooked up some scheme to get her down here, beat her up, and take her $300,000." "My name is Jimmy McGeee." "I've got some emotional problems, among other things, but for the first time in my life, it feels like I might be doing something right here." "This is my friend Matt." "He's crippled 'cause I pushed him off a cliff when we were younger." "He watches a lot of TV, and through his wisdom, he has pointed out that I might be an accomplice to murder, which I don't want hanging over my head for the rest of my life." "And you..." "what would she be?" "Oh, she'd be..." "aiding and abetting a felon." "Right." "She's getting real heavy, so you can either help us make this right, or you can shoot me while I walk outta here." "There's some money in my left front pocket there." "Take as much as you want." "I knew you weren't real cops." " Sory." " Get out." "For what it's worth, it was nice meeting you today." "This is never gonna work." "Yes, it is!" "How many times will I have to tell you?" "I've seen it on TV." "It works!" "We can do this!" "Okay, Matt, this ain't TV." "You wanna catch this guy or what?" "All we gotta do is find the money." "More than likely, it's gonna be in the office." "Cassie said there's a window in the back of the office that you could crawl through." "Come on, man." "How hard can it be?" "What if it's not in the office?" "Well, we'll jump off that cliff when we come to it." "Give me my coffee." "You're hilarious." "Watch this." "This is detective work in action." "Oh, yeah, look at that." "Here." "Insta-bum." "Here we go." "Hey!" "Hey, I need to use the bathroom!" "I'm sory, bathrooms are for customers only." "Well..." "I'm a customer." "Give me a drink!" "You see that sign?" "You're "anyone." Now get out!" "I need to see the manager!" "'Cause l" "Why aren't there any handicap placards in--in here?" "Look, Buddy." "Go on your own or go the hard way." "You'd better not hurt me." "I'm a cripple." "I want to see the manager!" "What the hell is going on out here?" "I'll tell you what the hell is going on out here." "I'm a cripple, and I deserve to be treated equally, and this freak is discriminating against the handicapped." " Look, man, that's it." " Let--let--let me." " What can I do for you, huh?" " I need to use the bathroom." "Sure, no problem." "Just help yourself." "It's right through there." "Does it have a handrail?" "You know what you should do?" "You should go in there and find out for yourself." "If it doesn't have a handrail, then someone's gonna have to put me on the toilet." "Look, buddy, I'm tryin' to be a nice guy." "If you need to use the john, go ahead." "Otherwise, the front door is right there." "Federal government says that businesses need to preserve and distribute facilities to the handicapped." "I've had about enough of this, all right?" "You have it your way." "I'm gonna call the law." "You don't have to call the law." "I can, uh..." "I'll use the back door." "Hey!" "We're in business." "Shit!" "Whoa!" "Hey, whoa!" "Trunk!" "Jimmy!" "Trunk!" "What is...?" "What is that?" "The trunk!" "Trunk!" "Close the damn trunk, damn it!" "Jimmy!" "Oh, man." "Hi, there." "Y'all want some coffee?" "Yeah, that'd be great." "Thanks." "Can I just get a burger with some onion rings and a glass of water?" "Well, I'll be damned." "You're that fella." "The one who came in here with that girl from Lost Junction who killed her husband." "I may not be very good with names, but I never forget a face." "You were sittin' right over there, in that booth by the window." "Well, I'll be damned." "Can I get a cheeseburger with fries?" "That's all anybody in these parts can talk about." "It's been all over the TV." "The cops even came in here and asked all sorts of questions." "Well, actually..." "...we're on the way..." " Right." "...to talk to the cops." "Hey, Clara, honey?" "How much did that Lofton girl make off with when she offed her husband?" "Half a million, I believe." "Half a million." "Whoo!" "Isn't that somethin'?" "She didn't kill anybody, all right?" "It wasn't her." "Did you get any of that money, honey?" "No, l" "Can we just get our burgers, please?" "To go, maybe?" "Oh, y'all want some burgers?" "Uh, actually, cancel that." " It's gotta be her." " There she is." "Jimmy, where are we?" "We were just gonna stop for something to eat." "Who's "we"?" "Oh, my God!" "Jimmy, why were all those people staring at us like that?" "I don't know." "They probably think you're a celebrity or somethin'." "Oh, okay." "You know, I keep hearing some kind of banging in the trunk." "That's, uh, the luggage shifting' around." "Go back to sleep." "Well, what I would like to know is what she did with the body." "I would." "And don't tell me you don't wanna know, too." "You know what, Matt?" "We're late." "All right, we'll see you soon." "Oh, here, give me those." "Uh, here's some tuna." "It's not much, but at least it's something to eat." "I appreciate that." "Lord Almighty, he was in the trunk." "She put him in the trunk." "Ten thirty-four to one-seven." "Tenn-four." "What is your positionn?" " We're here in front of Shorty's garage." " Here they come." " We got a roadblock set up." " Everybody stay back." "I'll take care of this." "Pull in!" "Right over there!" "Get out of the car!" " All right, take it easy." " You're under arest!" "You gotta listen to me about Porter Johnson" "Stand over there and be quiet!" "Who the hell is this fella?" "Oh, that's my best friend Matt." "He's crippled 'cause" "I told you to be quiet!" "There she is!" "Where's the money, Frank?" "You just go on back to your business now." "We got everythin' under control." "Frank, what's goin' on?" "I think you know what this is all about, Missy." "Do you know where Porter Johnson is?" "He's in New Orleans." "He ain't in New Orleans." "Come on out of there, Porter." "Come on." "Oh, my gosh." "What is he doing here?" "What's he all bound up for?" "How's your head, Frank?" "It's all right." "I'm real sory about that." "Now, I need you to tell me how Porter killed Doc." "Doc?" "Porter didn't kill Doc." "My God, how could you think such a thing?" " Missy, are you sure?" " Of course I'm sure." "Frank, I thought he was in jail for taking my money and for..." "Did he do this?" "Your eye?" "He didn't kill Doc, Frank." "Did Jimmy?" "Lord, no." "No, Doc was already dead before Jimmy even got here." "Then who did?" "I did." "I did it." "I think we'd better get you a lawyer down here before you say anything more." "Is it all right if I stay here, Frank?" "I don't--I don't want to be in the same room with him, you know." "You stay here, Bob." "All right, Porter, you're free to go." "Stan and Bob are gonna give you a ride to the county line." "Frank, what the hell are you doing?" "You ever come back here again, you can count on being buried by a Baptist." "Oh, and Stan, be sure to give him some of that vip treatment." "You got it, Frank." "Why are you lettin' him go?" "Same reason I'm lettin' you go." "She confessed." "What?" "Come on, Frank, you know she didn't kill Doc!" "She's just trying to protect him!" "Look, I got no body, I got no murder weapon, and I got a suspect who just admitted to it." "Right now, I got a District Attorney on my ass who wants her over at Somerville." "Frank, you know where I can get a snorkel?" "You do realize I'm gonna look like a damn fool if you don't pull that gun up from the bottom of the lake." "What makes you think it's a gun?" "What else would it be?" "Whatever it is, I'm gonna find it." "That's good, 'cause I'd hate to have to shoot you with all these people watching." "Do you see anythin'?" "All right, son, it's gettin' dark." "Let's go." "You can go if you want to." "I'm staying here." "I'll find out what she had in that bag." "What makes you so sure she didn't do it?" "'Cause she's too good for that." "And she'd never betray Porter, 'cause that goes against everything she believes in." "No matter what he did to her." "I got it!" "I found it!" "I got it!" "I got it!" " Goddamn, it's a skillet." " Well, I'll be." "I'll leave it open so you can go to the ladies' room if you have to." "Thanks, Frank." "I really appreciate that." "Why are you doin' this?" " Doin' what, Jimmy?" " Protectin' him." "That son of a bitch!" "After what he did to you?" "I'm not protecting him." "You didn't kill Doc!" "You told me you didn't!" "For Christ's sake, Missy, you can't see what's goin' on here?" "Coverin' for him, you're no better off than you were with Doc!" "It's just a different kind of beating!" "I don't need you to save me, Jimmy." "If you'd have just come with me to Charleston, you wouldn't be in this mess in the first place." "Unless you did kill him." "You didn't, right?" "You didn't kill him, did you, Missy?" "Come on, Missy, talk to me!" "Did you kill your husband and just lie to me about that, too?" "!" "I never lied to you, Jimmy." "Well, fuck!" "Yeah, you heard me." "Fuck!" " Fuck!" "Fuck!" "Fuck!" " Cut it out now!" "Fuck!" "Evenin'." "When are they taking her over to Somerville?" "Tomorow mornin'." "Frank... how come you have the same last name as hers?" "Doc was my uncle." "You don't seem too upset about him being dead." "Didn't she tell you what he did to her?" "Yeah." "About how when he did that abortion, he fixed it so she couldn't have any more kids." "Let me take her away, Frank." "I'm afraid I can't let you do that, Jimmy." "You don't think she did it, do you?" "But she's sayin' she did it." "Ain't a thing I can do." "And if it wasn't Porter..." "Have you seen Matt around?" "Over at Shorty's, I believe." "Jimmy, did you really push him off a cliff?" "Yeah, Frank, I did." "Good night, then." "Told you I'd get it." "Gettin' this auto mechanic kid stuff." "I tell you, Shorty, it's easier than it looks." "You're a natural." "Hey, Shorty." "How's it comin'?" "These things take a while." "Don't rush me." "How's she doin'?" "They're comin' tomorow to take her over to Somerville." "Uh, Shorty, you gonna be needin' this?" "Huh?" "In a minute." "How's it comin' over there?" "All right, but could you pass me the" " This here?" "Nut driver?" " Yeah, the nut driver." "I'm gonna go see if she needs anything." " All right." " Well?" "We're doin' all right." "You know how to work one of these things?" "Missy?" "Damn it, Jimmy, why don't you just leave me alone?" "Come on, grab my hand and let's get out of here." " No." " What do you mean, no?" "Grab my hand!" "Come on!" "No, Jimmy." "It's better this way." " How can you say that?" " It just is, okay?" "You don't know everything." "I know you don't belong in here!" "Well, maybe I do." "What does that mean?" "Jimmy, don't you realize that none of this would have happened if it weren't for me?" "You're wrong, Missy." "It's not you." "It's them." "You see, the only way they can control you is to make you believe it's your fault, but no matter what they do you, your goodness will always be stronger, and that kills them inside." "If you stay here and give up, they win!" "You can't let 'em win, Missy!" "You know where your money is?" "Is that why you're doing this, Jimmy?" "No!" "I don't care about the money." "Then why?" "Because I love you." "Damn it, Missy, I've been in love with you since the first time I saw you." "And I wanna wake up every morning holding on to you for the rest of my life." "Let's go." " Let's go." " Come on." "You kids goin' somewhere?" "Sory, Frank." "All I want is the truth." "Did you kill Doc?" "Well, Frank I did always say I'd end up beating' him over the head with a skillet." "And I almost did." "You knnow how he was whenn he was drunnk?" "This stuff tastes like garbage!" "How he'd sit at the table annd leann his chair back onn the legs the way he did?" "Well, that's how he died, Frank." "Puttin' poison in this slop?" "!" "Doc, don't be silly." "He was goinn' onn about Porter showinng up annd he was accusinn' me of." "you knnow. the "f" word." "You told me that boy drove all the way from..." "I had that skillet inn my hannd..." "You let him fuck you?" "But, Porter, he slamed the back door on the way into the house, and scared poor Doc so bad, he lost his balance and fell backwards." "No, Doc!" "Hit his head onn the edge of the counnter onn the way downn." "I--I got your radiator fixed." "And I wished I did it." "And then I just felt so bad," "I took that skillet and I threw it out in the lake." "Frank, Porter said no one in town would believe what happened." "And Doc did always say he wanted to be buried in New Orleans with his first wife, so that's what we did." "What are you gonna tell those people from Somerville?" "I'll tell 'em the truth." "If that doesn't work, I'll tell 'em" "Thompson and I didn't have a warant when we entered your house." "Thank you." "Bye, Shorty." "So long." "Matt, you comin'?" "No, I think I've had enough TV watchin' for one life." "Shorty's teachin' me how to work on cars." "Well, good." "At least I won't have to change the sign again, then." "Thanks, buddy." "I love ya." "You look out for her." "Yeah, I will."