"All right." "You can go on in." "You know the way?" " Yes, I do." "Thank you." " Okay." "Oh, I'm sorry I'm late." "I had car trouble again." "Would you believe it?" "I'll think up something for you tonight." " Are you sure?" " Oh, yeah." "Bye-bye." "Hey, Bill, you left the lights on again." "The dishes are on the table." "The refrigerator door was open." "I hate this." "The whole place is a mess." "Hi, Mom." " Hi." " Hi." "Any calls?" "No, your boyfriend did not call." " You sure?" " lf he called, I'd tell you." "Phone didn't ring." "How would you hear it if it did with the radio going like this?" "I've got good ears." "What's that all about?" "Hmm?" "I don't know." "What do you mean you don't know?" "What's your school counselor want to see me for?" "I don't know, Mom." "Your halo's burning." "Are you in trouble?" "Look, Mom, believe me, this is meaningless, okay?" "Just don't worry about it." "Throw it away." "You going to come in soon?" "Yeah. I'm just gonna finish up." "I'll be in in a minute." "Mom!" " No, no, no!" "Oh, Billy!" " What?" "What?" "Billy." "He's in the room!" "Look around the room!" " Who?" "Who?" " Look around the room!" "Come here." "Come here." "Mommy!" "Mommy, what happened?" "They're locked." "I'll look in the bathroom." " Mommy!" " What happened?" " Mommy!" " Mommy!" "Look in the closet!" "Mommy." "It's empty." " Look around the house!" " Mommy." "Mommy." "Mom." "Mom, there's nobody here." "Call the police." "Call the police." "Mom, there's no one in the house." "The front door's locked." "No one came through the garage." "You didn't see anybody?" "You didn't hear anyone?" "No." "Only when you screamed." "Mom, you must have had a bad dream, that's all." "Come on, stop crying." "Kim." "Kimmy, you've had bad dreams." "Now Mommy's had one." "That's all." "I'm sorry." "I'm sorry." " You okay, Mom?" " Sure." "Bill!" "Ohh!" " There's something coming!" " What?" " We've got to get out of the house." " What are you talking about?" "We've got to get the kids!" "Come on!" " Come on." " Come on, baby." "Come on, baby." "No." "No." "No." "We've got to get out of the house." " What's happening?" " lt's in my room." " What?" " Come on." "Come on." "Get her in the car." "Here." " Oh, my God." "The keys." " l'll get 'em." "No!" "Stay right here." "I'll be right back." "Come on." "Stop crying." "Stop crying." " Come on." " Why are we leaving?" "Don't worry about it." "We're just going somewhere, all right?" "But we don't want to leave." "I'm scared." "Shh." "Shh." "Shit." "Shit." "Shit." "Did you hear it?" "Hear what?" "I'll get some pillows and some blankets." "Billy, honey, can you help me?" "Ohh." "Good." "There." "Now, let's see." "We'll put Julie over there and Kim and Mom here." "And, oh, gosh, looks like it's the floor for you, Bill." "Honey, you coming to bed or not?" "In a minute, George." "Here, here, here." "Here, we'll take care of this." " What" " You just" "Listen." "Thank you." "Nonsense." "What are good friends for anyway, huh?" "Don't you be bashful, because there's plenty of food in the refrigerator for the morning, and..." " Yeah." " You know." "Get a good night's sleep." " You too." " All right." "Night." "You all right?" "Yeah, if you're all right." "I don't understand, Mom." "I don't understand what's going on." "I don't either." "Are you all right?" "Just go to sleep, okay?" "Just go to sleep." "I've gotta find Captain Raccoon." "I have a telegram for him." "Good morning!" "Carla, I'm sorry." "I didn't mean to scare you." " Hi." "How you doing?" " How'd you sleep?" " Great." " Good." "We helped ourselves to cereal, and I made coffee." " Great." "Love some." " You want some?" "Okay." " Did you make it strong?" " Of course I made it strong." " What do you think?" " Good girl." " You want some milk and sugar?" " Yeah." " Okay." " Okay." "Hey, this is pretty nice, being served in my own home." "What about George and I?" "We keep you awake last night with all our snoring and stuff?" " No." " The kids?" "Anybody fall off the couch?" "No." "They're used to it." "So... what happened to you guys last night, anyway?" "Nothing." " You want one or two?" " Two, please." "Thank you." "Beautiful day outside, isn't it?" "Nothing like good old Southern California for lots of sunshine." " l was raped." " Yeah" " What?" " l was raped." "Oh, Carla, baby." "I'm so sorry." "I had no idea." "Oh, my God." "I feel all rotten inside." "Ohh." "How did it happen?" "Um... well, I was alone in my room, and... something grabbed me and smothered me." "Did you call the police?" " No." " Why?" " There was no reason to." " What do you mean?" "There was nobody there." "Well, did you check the doors, the windows?" "Yeah, I checked everything." "Everything was locked." "There was nobody there." "Oh, Carla." "Oh, wait a minute." "l-- honey, I don't really understand this." "You were attacked, or you weren't?" "It happened." "And when he-- when it was over, he vanished like he'd never been there." "You see?" "There's no answer, is there?" "I mean, I have flipped out." "I've flipped out twice, Cindy." "Carla, are you taking drugs?" "No. I'm not on drugs." "Well, then I think you need to see a doctor." "Carla, you're one of the most stable people I know, and you are definitely not insane, but when men who aren't actually there come into your room and have intercourse with you, then it is time for you to see a good psychiatrist." " l can't afford it." " Oh, yes, you can." "Betty Rivers, I happen to know she goes over to the walk-in clinic at the university, and payment is whatever you can afford." " l hate the thought of it." " Oh, I know you do." " l'm not crazy." " Of course you're not crazy." "I'm not crazy." "You're not crazy." "You may be crazy." "Cindy, where's that coffee?" "He's crazy." "Sure." "Listen, just think about it, huh?" "You be honest with yourself, and everything'll be okay." " l'll think about it." " Good girl." "I'd like a cup of coffee, honey." "Coming, George." "Looky here." "Nice and hot, just like you love it." "is she going to leave today?" "Well, honey, I haven't had a chance to talk to her about that yet." "God damn it, Cindy." "You told me you were going to tell her this morning." "I am going to tell her, you see, but first of all, I have to tell you." "What's happened to her is just a terrible thing." "What happened?" "She probably got her butt evicted 'cause she didn't pay the damn rent." "We're not going to lend her any money." "George, don't raise your voice to me like that." "I can raise my voice in my own home if I want to." "I just don't want to hurt her feelings." "She's been through enough already as it is, and she is my best friend." "I've known her all my life." "Don't you cry on me." "Don't you cry on me." " lf you'd stop yelling at me..." " l'm going to set her straight." "Are we going to stay here all night, Mom?" "You guys stay here." "Wow." "Do you hear that?" "You did hear that, didn't you?" " l heard it, Mommy." " What was it?" " The keys!" " lt came from under the house!" " Don't go!" " Mommy, what's happening?" "Bill, we've got to get out of here!" " Mommy!" " Where are you going?" "No, don't do it!" "Don't go under the house!" "There's something there!" " Billy!" " Don't!" " Mom, leave me alone." " No!" "Come back!" "Bill, come back!" "Here, here." "Calm down." "Calm down." "Bill, we've got to get out of here!" "Shh." "Will you answer me?" "Bill!" "I've found it." "This is it." "Look." "When I touch this pipe, it makes a noise." "See?" "Then who touched it before?" "Mom. I'll leave the door open, okay?" "Great." "Girl, didn't your mama teach you any better manners than to leave somebody's house without even telling 'em goodbye?" "Oh, I see the couch is already taken." "Well, good." "I'll take the bed, then." " What story did you tell George?" " Oh, that old sourpuss?" "He thinks I'm with my sister in Reseda." "Not that I give a particular damn what he thinks after the way he behaved this morning." "Oh, that's all right." "Shoot. I ought to leave him, you know." "If I had the courage, I would." "He's gotten to be like a bad habit." "You know something, Carla." "I've been thinking." "Maybe you ought to just move out of this old house." "How can I?" "I can't afford it." "I haven't even paid this month's rent." "I have a lease." "How can I?" "When you've finished that typing school thing, you ought to be able to get a real good-paying job then, huh?" "I hope so." "I'm counting on it." "You know, Carly, when he gets back into town, you and Jerry really ought to get married." "George says he's making a bundle now." "He loves you so much, and he absolutely dotes on the kids." "Hell's bells, girl." "Marry him, and you'll be living on easy street." "Now, what's all this baloney about you sleeping on the couch?" "Which side of the bed do you want?" "What side do you think?" "The good side." "Well, doesn't make any difference to me." "I am so tired tonight, I could sleep on a rock." " Good night, sugar." " Good night." "Julie likes the chips, and Kim likes the Fritos, okay?" "Mm-hmm." "Don't you worry about a thing." "I'm going to get them dressed and fed and off to school on time." "You're great." "Here. I'll trade you." " Okay." " Okay." "Thanks." "You're welcome." "You look so pretty." " l'll call you later." " All right." "Don't let Bill be late for school, okay?" "Won't do it." " Bye." " Bye." "That's right." "At Mr. Tibby's Car Radio/Stereo, do we have boosters?" "Do we have limiters?" "Ask yourself, "How much should I give to the Lord?"" "What's going on?" "Stop!" "No!" "Stop!" "Stop!" "No!" "Stop!" "No!" "Stop!" "Stop!" "Stop!" "Stop!" "Stop it!" "Stop!" "Hi." "I'm Dr. Sneiderman." "I'm one of the staff psychiatrists here at the clinic." "Are you cold?" "Sometimes there's a draft, comes from the outer lobby." "Tell me, is this the first time something like this has ever happened?" "No." "No, the first time was different." "I was raped." "Where?" "In your home?" "You were raped by whom?" "I don't know." "There was no one there." "Okay." "So in other words, it wasn't a real man that raped you?" "He evaporated." "I see." "But you felt him in you, though?" "Definitely." "And he felt like a man?" "A big man." " Were you in pain?" " Yes, of course I was in pain." "He was foul." "You mean you smelled him?" "I see." "Did he ejaculate?" "I... I think so." "But when my son came in, there was nobody there." "Right." "And what did he think?" "Your son." "He thought I was dreaming." "Mm-hmm." "And what do you think happened?" "Okay." "That's okay, Carla." "is this the only other time something like that happened?" "No." "It started to a second time, and... he didn't get me." "We went to my friend's apartment." "And then this morning, I was driving to work..." "And he tried to kill you?" "What do you think?" "Go ahead, and be honest." "Just tell me." "You think I'm insane?" "Insane?" "That means different things to different people, Carla." " So there's nothing you can do?" " Well, not at the moment, Carla." "First, we have to find out what the problem is." "In the meantime, I'll be dead." "No, I don't think so." "Look, Carla, you've done a very good thing by coming here." "You've already made a commitment to get better." "Really, that's the first step, and it's the hardest one." "Huh?" "Look, I'd like you to take a few medical and psychological tests now." "They're very routine." "Nothing hurts." "There's no surprises." "It takes about two hours." "Mostly it's just boring." "I'd appreciate it if you did not fall asleep while taking these tests." "Right now?" "Yeah, I'd like to, if you can spare the time, okay?" "Come on. I'll take you down to the lab, okay?" "What are you doing up?" "I couldn't sleep." "I was worried about you." "Where is everybody?" "Billy's out working in the garage, and Kim's already asleep." "Did the doctor hurt you?" "No, baby." "We just talked." "Mommy, what happened to your hand?" "No, don't worry about it." "You just get to sleep." " Mommy?" " What?" "is everything going to be all right?" "Of course it is." "I love you so much." "I love you too." "You go to sleep now." " Hi." " How do you feel?" "Oh, I'm all right." "I'm just stiff." "What about the car?" "Can you fix it?" "Yeah, I can fix it, but it won't be cheap." "Listen. lf Jerry calls, don't tell him anything, okay?" "Good night." "Oh, my God." "Please, God." "Carla, this is Mrs. Hilliard." "You want to hop up there now, show us what you're talking about?" "Right here." "There's one." "And right there." "And in back." "Do you see that?" "Mm-hmm." "And right here." "You said something about your thighs?" "Yeah." "There... and there." "How about those bruises on your ankles?" "How did they happen?" "Oh, thank you very much, Mrs. Hilliard." "That will be all." "Okay, look, Carla, why don't you come down, make yourself comfortable, okay?" "Okay." "Can you tell me about those bruises on your ankles now?" "I'm not sure." "It felt like my legs were being held, almost as if he had help." "Uh-huh." "Are you saying that he wasn't alone?" "It felt like there was someone on each leg." "I see." "So what are you saying?" "That there were two more like him?" "I guess so, but they seemed smaller." "Mm-hmm." "You mean like children?" "Oh, no, no, no." "These aren't children." "They're strong." "Dwarfs?" "I don't know what they were." "I couldn't see them. I felt them." "They're real, aren't they?" " l mean, these..." " Mm-hmm." " bites and bruises are real." " Mm-hmm." " They're real." " Yes, yes." "The bites are real." "The bruises are real." "All pain is real." "Your feelings?" "They're real." "Oh, no, no." "These are in places I couldn't have bitten myself." "Carla, I've seen cases of hysteria that have raised welts, caused blindness, loss of hearing." "Well, haven't your tests told you anything?" "Mm-hmm." "Yeah." "We know that there is nothing wrong with you medically, physiologically, that is." "And as far as we can tell, your intellect seems to function as well, if not better than normal." "So that leaves only one area for us to explore-- early psychological development, emotional development." "What does that mean?" "Well, the general idea is that certain phases of our life never really die." "They continue to exist within us, all of us." "Now I'm talking about you, me, everybody, and they affect us the rest of our lives." "For certain reasons, they come back." "By coming back-- and sometimes they come back with a vengeance-- they can cause delusions, anxieties, hallucinations." "So simple." "Look, Carla, what I'm going to do is I'm going to give you some tranquilizers, okay?" "They won't knock you out, but they will reduce your anxiety, which can be as bad as the delusion itself." "I want you to take two before you go to sleep." "Now, when you go home tonight, I want you to take a long, hot bath, relax, get your kids in bed early, and I want somebody to be with you at all times, okay?" "I don't want you to be alone." "I want you to get some sleep tonight." "That clear?" "It's going to take a long time, isn't it?" "It could." "Why don't we just take it one step at a time, though, okay?" "Paging Mrs. Newman." "Call extension 376." "Carla?" "What are you still-- wait a second." "I'll be right there." "Wait." "Wait." " Gonna go late?" " Yeah." " You gonna be on tomorrow?" " Yeah." "Okay." "Then I'll see you in P.M." " Good." " Carla, what's wrong?" " No." " What are you still doing here?" "Oh, I called a cab twice." "It never came." " Yeah?" "What else is new?" " l'd better call again." "Look, why don't I give you a ride?" "I'm parked right down here." " No, really. lt's all right." " No, come on." "Don't be ridiculous." "I'm right here." "It's no problem." "Come on." "Thanks for the ride." "Sure." "Hope my driving didn't frighten you." "That's how I find out if my patients trust me." "There's something there." "There's really something there." "Carla, I'd be interested in taking a look inside." "Would you mind?" " All right." " You sure it's okay?" " Hi, Bill." " Hi." "The kids get to the Greenspans' all right?" "Yeah, yeah." "They all went to get some pizza." " They should be back soon." " Good." "This is Dr. Sneiderman." " This is Bill." " How do you do?" " How do you do?" "'64?" " Yeah." "What do you have in there?" "2 15 or 235?" " A 235." " All right." "This the girls' room?" "Cute." "Would you like to show me where those attacks took place?" "All right." " May I?" " Yeah." "Okay." "You said something about the bedroom, didn't you?" " Through there." " That way?" "Carla, your house isn't haunted, no more than your car is." "Why do I see and feel these things?" " l started to explain to you why" " Yeah, I know what you told me, that terrible things happened to me in my youth might come back to haunt me." "Yeah, essentially." "Well, terrible things did happen to me, and I didn't have a normal childhood, but..." " Mm-hmm." " How many people do?" " Carla." "Carla." " l mean, did you?" " How many people have normal" " Carla." "Some things are more terrible than other things." "Some children are more sensitive than other children." "Make yourself comfortable." "So, you really think talk could fix all this, huh?" "I don't know, but it's a good start." "All right." "I'll talk a blue streak if it'll stop all this from happening." "As a kid, I experienced every cliché in the book." "I was afraid of the dark." "I was scared of my father." "He was a minister, if you can believe it." "He actually spoke with "thee" and "thou."" "I was six before I realized not everyone talked that way." "It was quite a shock." "Why were you afraid of him?" "Because when he held me, it wasn't the way a father should hold a daughter." "How did he hold you?" "You know what I mean." "Mm-hmm." "Did your mother know?" "I think so." "So I ran away, and... I got as far as New York, and that's where l met Mario." "Billy's the spitting image of him." "It's very strange." "Really?" "Must have been quite handsome." " Billy's a good-looking kid." " He was." "Can you tell me about him?" "I was 16." "That says an awful lot right there." "I was-- l'd never met anyone like him." "He was exciting." "What do you mean, "exciting"?" "Exciting in bed?" "Yeah." "He was exciting in bed." "He was exciting in many ways." "But you did like making love with him?" "Mm-hmm." "At first, and then it turned bad." "The sex?" " Everything turned bad." " l see." "I mean, I got pregnant." "Before I knew it, he started drinking, taking pills." "It was a mess." "Everything was a mess." "What happened to him?" "He got himself killed on his motorcycle." " l see." "How old were you?" " 16." "Gee." "So Billy wasn't born yet?" "No. I mean, I was pregnant." "How did you feel when he died?" "How do you think I felt?" "I don't know." "Why don't you tell me?" " He was my husband." " Yeah, I know that, but I still don't know how you felt." "I thanked God. I did." "I thanked God when he died." "I also thanked God for Bob Garrett." " Bob Garrett?" " Julie and Kim's father." "Ah, right, right, right." "He was older." "He knew a lot." "He made me see that life was good, that men and women loving each other was good, healthy, having children was good, simple." "So Bob was your second husband?" "Well, no." "We were never legally married." "Uh-huh." "Where is he now?" "I don't know." "He was never the kind to stay in one place very long." "I'm impressed." "By what?" "By what?" "Your independence, knowing who you are, what you want, keeping your family together, doing it the hard way." "I do need your help." "I really do." "And I won't fight you." "Because if it is me, if it's really me creating all this, if I'm that sick... then I have to be stopped." "But if it isn't me... then we have to make a deal, you and I, to accept that fact and find about a way to stop it, okay?" "Okay." " Mommy!" " Mommy!" " ln here!" " Mommy!" "Hi." "Hi, you guys." "How you doing?" " Fine." " This is Dr. Sneiderman." " This is Kim." "This is Julie." " Hi, Kim." "Hi, Julie." " You guys full?" " Yeah." "Aw, you don't have any room for dessert." " Yeah, I do." " l'm hungry for dessert." "Okay, okay." "I think it's time for me to go." " Okay. I'll walk you out." " Bye-bye, girls." "Nice meeting you." " Bye." " Bye-bye." "I'm nervous about tomorrow." " What, about the staff meeting?" " Yeah." "Oh, don't be silly." "They're perfectly routine." " Good night." " Bye-bye." "But there's still something here." "Mommy, I can't wait." " Okay." "Don't cheat." " This is almost perfect." " We're so hungry." " This is the best part." " Right, Mom?" " Okay, okay." " Mommy!" " We got it." "Okay." "Now hold on." "Don't look yet." "Okay." "Now look." "Mommy!" "Okay, I'm going to go get a chair." "Hey." "You can't use your hands." "Come on." "Come on." " Come on." " Don't start without me." "Bill." " Bill." " Mom!" "Help!" " Mom." " No!" "Help me!" "Help!" "Get off her!" "Get off her!" "Get off her!" "Stop!" "Help me." "Mom!" "Mom!" "Mom!" "Aah!" "Mom!" "Well, Dr. Sneiderman explained it was like a very powerful dream." "Mrs. Moran... did you believe him?" "I tried to." "But you... cannot." "Hmm?" "Why?" "Because he hurt my son." "He broke his wrist." "Because my children feel it." "Because of the marks on my body." "They're in places l-- l can't do it to myself." "Even in a dream." "Why does he attack you, Carla, not anyone else?" "I don't know." "I suppose he chose me." "Chose you?" "Why?" "I suppose he finds me attractive." "Would it be a reflection on you as a woman if he left you, or if you were cured?" "No. lt would not be a reflection on me." "I hate this whole thing." "It's like a nightmare, I can't wake up." "I want to get rid of him." "Of course you do, Carla." "And we're trying to help you." "Well, I'm not sure how much good all this talking's doing." "Well, it's our way of trying to understand." "Well, so far, it hasn't helped." "It hasn't with Dr. Sneiderman." "Look, you'll have to excuse me." "I have an appointment." "I have to meet someone at the airport. ls that all right?" "Certainly, and thank you very much, Carla, for letting us talk to you." " Sure." " All right." "Quite a young lady." " Yep." " How did you meet her?" "I was on call one night at the clinic, she walked in." "Just came in out of the blue?" " Please." " There you go." " Thank you." " A walk-in." "That's how it happens." " Yeah." " She's masturbating." "This entire circus, she has invented it to cover up what every little girl does." "Well, with all due respect, sir, that was my initial diagnosis, but I think we can all agree that that's not some teenager with an identity crisis, and now she tells us that her children are feeling this thing too, so... lt's a mass illusion, folie à quatre." "Hysteria is contagious." "Given the right circumstances, anyone can see and feel things that simply aren't there." "Her children are just supporting Mama's delusions." "Okay, classically correct, sir, but her mind is giving her very strong and explicit images." "Why is she going to such lengths to support this delusion?" "lt" "Phil, look at the record." "She believes that her father has incestuous desires." "She falls in love with an adolescent, a typical overgrown kid." "He tries to prove he's a real man, and he's not." "After which, she picks up with this..." " Jerry Anderson?" " No, Garrett." " Oh, Garrett." " Bob Garrett, right?" "A man old enough to be her father." "See a pattern here?" "I think I know what you're suggesting." "I don't know that I agree, though." " Safe sex." " Well-- lt's the story of Carla's life." "She's consistently refused to get involved in the real thing." " She has three children." " What does that prove?" "It doesn't take sex to make babies." "That is a fact I wasn't aware of." " Well, now you know." " Not real sex." "Now, for 32 years," "Carla goes along very smoothly, and all of a sudden, she meets this fellow" " What's his name?" " Jerry Anderson?" " Now you have it." " Ah, now I'm on it." "Okay." "And, pow, she drifts into a Dionysian fantasy." "Don't you see?" "It's exactly the kind of situation that can energize this sort of breakdown." "What, Anderson?" "Certainly." "A real man." "Sure." "She wants the real thing." "No more faking it with kids and old men." "And faced with the real thing, Carla buckles." "She falls back into an infantile reality." "Now, I suggest you dig a lot deeper." "I think you're going to find out more, and maybe you'll find out that Carla is not what she seems to be." "Hear, hear." "You look different." " How?" " l don't know." "The face, this serious look." " So's yours." " No, no." "Your eyes have... changed or something." "What is it?" "It's been a long time." "You know, it's been too long." " Something's wrong?" " No." " Billy?" " No." "Me, right?" "Come on." "No." "Just nothing. lt's... I'm only afraid." "You know, I'm just-- when you're not around, I'm afraid of losing you." "That's all." "You won't lose me, honey." "I go crazy thinking about it." "Don't go crazy either." "What if I did?" "What if I went crazy?" "Now, you're not going to go and do that right now." "What would you do if I did?" "Would you leave me?" "You'd still be my Carla." "Why are you carrying on tonight?" "Are you ready for my surprise?" "Yeah." "I'm going on the road again, Carly, but this is the last time." "When I get back, it's for good." "I'm taking over the LA office." "We're going to be a family, Carly, all of us." "Take me with you." "Please?" "Just put me in your pocket and take me with you." "Honey, I can't." "You know that." "Don't ask that." "What the hell are you asking, to take you with me?" "Where?" "On the road?" "Yeah. I'll go anywhere with you." "Okay, what about yourjob, your school?" "How about the kids?" "Who's going to take care of them?" "Yeah, all right." "Okay." "You're right." "It was just a pipe dream." "You have to go on the road, and I have to go through what... I'm going through." "What you're going through?" "You know, you're not telling me everything." "What the hell are you going through?" "What I'm going through's being without you." "That's really what I'm going through." "Car, it's all going to change." "Oh, sure." "When you get back." "Just one more trip." "Do you know it's been the way it's been ever since we met?" ""Just one more trip."" "No, I'm sorry." "I don't feel like it." "I'm sorry." "Look, I have to-- l think I should go home." "It's late, and I have to get up early." "Okay?" "I'll take you home." "No." "You call me a cab." "You don't have to bother." "Ohh." "Oh, God." "Get out!" "Get out!" "Get out!" "Why did you tear up your room?" "Why did you yell at Billy?" " Because I had an orgasm." " What?" "I had an orgasm." "An orgasm?" "Yeah." "But he tricked me." "I was asleep." "I was asleep, and I was dreaming." "And I'm ashamed." "I'm ashamed." "Mm-hmm." "Carla, I want you to sign yourself into the hospital." "No. I won't let myself be committed." "No, you're not being committed." "It's just going to be for a two-week observation period." "That's all." "It amounts to the same thing." "You know it." "Carla, do you know that if we wanted to, we can insist that you stay here." " No, you can't." " Oh, yes, we can." "Yes, we can, for trying to commit suicide." " What are you talking about, suicide?" " You know what I'm talking about." "What do you think you were doing when you crashed your car?" " He was trying to murder me!" " lt was a suicide attempt, Carla." "We could have you in here before the day is out." "No, you can't." "There were no witnesses." "I won't say a thing." "It's my decision." " What, to stay sick?" " To stay alive." "No matter what you think, he's stronger than you are." "He'll kill me if he has to." "Why, to keep you from getting better, right?" "However you want to call it, yes." "Yes, that's what I want to call it." "Exactly." "How about Jerry?" "What are you going to do with him?" "How are you going to deal with him?" "How would I deal with him from a padded cell?" "What about your kids, Carla?" "Carla, listen to me." "You're running the risk of harming your children." "No." "They won't be harmed." "Billy has already broken his wrist." "Beyond that, you're harming them psychologically." "There's nothing wrong with my children." "Carla, that's not the environment they need." "You know that." "Look, I know you think I'm crazy." "It doesn't matter about your theories." "Whether it's me or something else is beside the point now." "What are you telling me?" "You're going to stay home and be victimized?" " Yes." "Yes." " Yes?" "I'll stay at home. I'll see you." "I'll go to secretarial school." "When I graduate, I'll look for a betterjob." "But the one thing I won't do is to go into any hospital." "Mm-hmm, and you'll be beaten and frightened." " No." "No." " No?" "No?" "Why not?" "'Cause I'm going to cooperate with him." "Carla, you're a very intelligent woman." "I know you'll always listen to reason, so now I want to talk to you reasonably, okay?" "No more questions and answers, hmm?" "You know, there was a time when people believed in the supernatural." "Here. I want you to look at these pictures." "Pretty frightening, huh?" "Bats, werewolves, dragons, demons, all sorts of goblins, okay?" "They were supposed to abuse people sexually." "They were supposed to impregnate people." "Do you think these things really exist in there?" " l am not stupid." " l didn't say you were stupid." "But why do you think these people saw these things, huh?" "Why do you think they saw them?" "Hmm?" "Can you take a guess?" "Do you know why?" "Because it was a way of expressing something that was frightening to them." " lt has nothing to do with me." " Wait a second." "Carla..." " it has a lot to do with you." " lt has nothing to do with me." "Oh, no, it has a lot to do with you." "It has an awful lot to do with you." "These ghosts and demons were only ideas, but people saw them." "Look, Carla, let's say a man who wanted to be good had a desire for his neighbor's wife." "He knows it's wrong, he feels terrible about it, but the desire is growing and growing." "Desire can be a very frightening and powerful sensation." "How does he deal with it?" "He invents a creature, an evil, ugly, evil-tempered creature which is just a picture of his own desire, Carla." "I have no need of inventing anything, Dr. Sneiderman." "Come on, Carla, stop it." "You have a lot of need." "You were scared of your daddy." "He was a minister." "He held you in a way" " he shouldn't have held you." " Stop it." " You were pregnant at 16." " Oh, shut up!" "A drug-crazed guy went off and killed himself." " Stop it!" " Another guy left you with two kids." "Now, Carla, stop it!" "Come on." "Do the work, Carla." "What was evil to your family?" "All sorts of things were evil to my family." "You know that." "Carla, we know your family well enough to know what was evil to them." "As a child, you knew what was evil to him." "What?" " Sex." "They were afraid of sex." " Sex." "Sex." "Sex." "Sex." "Sex." "They were afraid of sex." "Exactly." "So let's use our imagination a little bit, okay?" "Let's try putting some things together." "Like a dream, it's getting all mixed up." "Your creature is a symbol, Carla." "A symbol of what?" "I don't know yet." "Maybe we'll find out." "Could be a specific person, a fear of someone, a desire..." "No, I'm not hiding from anybody or anything!" "Carla." "Carla, let's talk about your visitor friend, okay?" " Dr. Sneiderman, I'm so sick of this." " Take a good look at him." "What do we know about him, Carla?" "Come on." "Let's use your words." "What do we know about him?" "We know that he is big, we know that he is strong." "It's frightening how strong this guy is, isn't it?" "You told me, unbelievably strong." "So why does he need help?" "But he has two helpers, right?" "Two little ones?" "Right?" "Those are your words." "One big one and two little ones." " Oh, you're obscene." " Billy's a good-looking kid." "What you're suggesting is obscene." " He's a strong kid." " You're obscene!" "You're having trouble with Jerry, and" " You're obscene." " Carla, calm" " Carla!" " l'll calm down, but not here!" " Carla!" "Shit." "He was talking about two little ones and a big one." "He was implying that I wanted to make love with Billy." "It was just obscene, you know?" " Really." " lt was obscene." "There's no other word for it." "No. I think he just pushed too far." "He pushed too far. lt was disgusting." "It was sickening." "I mean, I know he has to probe into painful areas" " and everything, but..." " That's not probing." "I'm not going back." "I'm never going back." "Oh, no." "Wait a minute." "Maybe you're overreacting" " a little bit, Carla." " l'm never going back." " Honey?" " What?" " You ready to go?" " Yes, I am, George." "Just give me a minute, please." "Well, I'm going to get the car, 'cause I don't want to be late." "Okay, honey." "No, we're not going to be late." "I don't want to cause any trouble..." " No." " between you and George." "I shouldn't have barged in." "I should have called." "No, no, no." "We just have" " to make an appearance..." " l just wanted to talk." "at this boring wedding reception." "It's important to George, you know?" "Well, I'm going to see you tomorrow." "No, I want you to stay here." "We're going to be back in less than an hour." "Now come on, Carla." "I need to talk to you some more about this." "Carla... will you wait here until I get back?" " Yeah." " Please." "You look so tired." "Why don't you sit down and have something to eat?" "Have fun." "Okay. I'll see you in a little bit." "Okay." "Hi, Bill." "How are the girls?" "How's everything?" "Okay?" "Dr. Sneiderman?" "You didn't tell him where l was?" "I don't want to talk to him." "Good." "Look, you have the number here." "If there's any problem, call me, okay?" "I'll be home in a couple of hours." "All right." " What was that?" " What the hell?" "Was that our place?" "Carly?" "Ohh." "Oh, my God." "Carly." "Christ, she tore the fucking place apart." "No, she didn't." "You saw it." "She couldn't have done all this." "We both saw it with our own eyes." "We stood right there and saw it, George." "You saw it?" "Yes." "Yes, we did." "We saw it." "You saw it?" "Please forgive me, Carly." "Please?" "I never should have sent you to that clinic." " You saw it?" " l'm so sorry." "Please forgive me." "You saw it." "You saw it." "Ohh!" "You saw it!" "Yeah, I need "The Empty Fortress" and "Love is Not Enough."" "Carla?" "Look." ""lmprobability of the impossible."" ""Psychic Self-Defense."" " ls this a $ 12.95 book?" " This is great." "You look at that." "I'm going to go over and check out the psychology section." "All right." "Let's just look at Rogers McGibbon, okay?" "No. lt's just not that good a case." "There's just not enough independent verification of the phenomena." "Yeah, but so much of it fits the classic patterns." "There's cold spots." "There's the smell." "There's objects moving around randomly, and, in this case, there is the appearance of an apparition." "Yeah, but that's just it." "The appearance of an apparition and the sudden movement of objects just don't occur simultaneously." "Excuse me." "Excuse me." "They do." "I have them all." "You do?" "Everything broke loose and went crazy, and everything was shaking." "The bed was shaking, and the walls were shaking." "Like an earthquake?" "No, it wasn't like an earthquake." "It was much stronger than any earthquake." "And I tried to get out of here, and I wanted to get the kids out, and I called Bill." "Bill was in his room." "And then the door slammed." "It was just a horrible thing." " Where is Billy now?" " He's out in the garage." " You can talk to him if" " Door slam like that?" "Stronger." "Much stronger." "Hmm." "And the bathroom." "This is where-- well, you know about that attack." "And l-- this was the door. lt was stuck, and I couldn't get out of it, and I tried, and I just couldn't get out of it." "It was stuck that night." "Yeah." "This is the girls' room." "They're asleep right now, and I don't want to disturb them." "Did they sleep through this whole attack?" "Yeah, they managed to sleep through it." " Sound sleepers." " They are." "It's one of the good things about kids." "The living room." "This is where Billy got the lightning." "It was like it was lightning going into him, and he fell down." "He broke his wrist" "By lightning, you mean an electrical discharge?" "I don't know what it was." "It was like lightning was going into him" " and I was on the couch." " Like an arc?" "Was it kind of like..." "You don't believe me, do you?" "Mrs. Moran, please understand." "We want to believe you." "We want to believe you very much, but it's-- lt's just we want to do it right, Mrs. Moran." " You want some coffee?" " Yeah, sure." "Yeah." "That'd be real nice." "Oh, my God." "Do you smell that?" "Jesus." "It's awful." "You see?" "I wasn't lying." "Mrs. Moran, I think it might be worthwhile after all for us to set up some of the equipment we've got with us in the car." "Yeah." "Joe!" "Gene, let's get her out of here!" "Mrs. Moran, are you all right?" "Mrs. Moran?" "Gene, let's get out of here." "No, don't be frightened." "He's weak." "He's weak!" "He can't touch us!" "Gene, shoot it!" "Ha!" "I don't believe it." "He can't touch us." "Die, you bastard!" "Die!" "Die!" "You can't touch us!" "Die!" "Die." "He can't hurt me anymore." "Not with you here." "He can't hurt me." "Oh, thank you, God." " Did you see it?" " l think so, yes." " Did you get it?" " Yes." "Oh, thank you!" "I'm going to go get the kids." "Gene, we're going to need an ion detector." "Hey, wake up." "Wake up, everybody." "It's a gorgeous day." "Gorgeous day." "Come here." "Come here." "Isn't it a beautiful day?" "Isn't it a beautiful day?" "Come here." "Did you check the wiring?" "It could be a short circuit, current leakage." "She spoke to it as if it were real, like it were alive and she knew it." "Isn't it possible she was hallucinating?" "How do you photograph a hallucination?" "This looks like some kind of electrical discharge." "What about this forking, right here?" "Couldn't this be a head?" "Couldn't this be a shoulder?" "We feel that this photograph constitutes proof, Dr. Cooley." "I don't know." "Takes a long time before you can come up with something reliable." "You have to check every possible alternative." "What about the smell?" "And the shaking?" "That's classic poltergeist activity." "It also could be a dead cat and a tremor." "I don't know what you think you've discovered, but you're playing with fire." "I suggest you start with the traditional world and move outward." "We'll need more equipment to do that." "Maybe I'll authorize it when the time comes." "You say she was seeing a psychiatrist?" "That's right." "I'd like to know what the diagnosis was." "Well, that's no problem." "She was seeing someone right here." "I got it." "Get that blue one." "Yeah, well, we're doing the best that we can." "Oh, we got a lot of people here, lot of folks, yeah." "Well, we're wiring the place up for any kind of movement that we might get and putting x-ray plates up also." "No, we're hanging up wires and stuff." "Excuse me." "I'm looking for Carla Moran." "Are you here to observe the phenomena?" "Observe the phenomena?" "No, I'm Phil Sneiderman." "I'm a resident in psychiatry." "Carla's my patient." "Oh, hi. I'm Gene Kraft, Department of Psychology." "How do you do?" "Nice to meet-- what branch of psych you in?" "Clinical?" "Dr. Morris?" "No." "Parapsychology." "Dr. Cooley." " Gene." " Oh, Parapsychology." "Gene, hand me a roll of tape, would you, please?" "Yeah." "What are you guys doing with all this stuff?" "We're trying to gather some hard data on the phenomena that's occurring here." "Oh, really?" "I take it you've already looked under the beds and in the closets." "( laughs ) Yeah." "We're leaving no stone unturned," " but thanks for the tip." " Sure." "As a matter of fact, we got some highly interesting" " electrical formations..." " Did you?" "possibly caused by the entity itself." "The entity?" "The entity?" "You know, I hope you guys will excuse me for saying so, but if you guys want to go on TV talk shows, bend spoons, entertain people, I'm all for that, but this lady is under my care, and what you're doing isn't helping her." "Well, thank you very much for your professional opinion, Dr...." "Sneiderman." " Sneiderman." " Uh-huh." " Where's Carla?" " She's in the back." "...think it is." "I don't think so, 'cause you haven't been here during it." "Just to line it up, huh?" " Yeah." " Carla?" "Go over the doorway." " Hi." " Hi." "Boy, you got a lot of company." "You missed your appointment yesterday." "I was worried about you." "That's very sweet of you." "You look terrific." "I've never felt better, Dr. Sneiderman." " Really?" " Mm-hmm." "Look, is there someplace that we could go and talk?" "Yeah." "I can't blame you for not coming back." "I really did push a little too hard." "I think you need to understand something." "I feel very fine now." "There are no more attacks." "I have no reason to see you." "Carla, do you remember that book I showed you in the office?" "The bats and the dragons?" "That's what those guys are looking for, fantasies." "No, they have photographs." "Okay." "Look, Carla, how about you and me, we make a bargain, okay?" "You can see me and still... have your scientist friends help you." "I don't see any point in that." "Well, it's like seeing two different doctors, you know, getting different opinions, a bone specialist and a blood specialist." " They work together." " No, I'd rather not." "Why?" "What have we got to lose?" "I believed in you." "You know I did." "I really needed to believe in you." "But every time you discovered something new about me, something worse happened, and I got sick of hearing that it would all go away as soon as we got down to the basic problem, as though it was in me." "It is in you, Carla." "I think you better leave." " Hi, Billy." " Hi." " Billy." "Billy!" " Yeah?" " Look, would you do me a favor?" " What?" "Don't pretend next time." "The next time your mother thinks she sees something or she hears something, she wants you to corroborate it, and when you do, it's that much more difficult to convince her that it's all in her head, it's a delusion." "I didn't get a broken arm by pretending." "Look, Billy, there's a lot of logical explanations that could have caused something like this." "All I'm telling you, that is, if you care about your mom, you will not pretend next time." "I care about my mother, yeah." "But I was not pretending." "I'm not lying to you." "Want to know why she's not coming back?" " Mm-hmm." " She's fallen in with some schmucks who are supporting her fantasies." "You ought to see her house." "They're watching her visitations, got it all wired to look for poltergei" " Entities." " Wait a minute." "That's what they called it, an entity." " What schmucks?" " l don't know." "They say they're from the university here." "Parapsychology." "Ooh." "A Dr. Cooley." " Elizabeth Cooley." " Yeah." "Parapsychology." "It's fly-by-night psychology." "Okay." "So how do we get rid of 'em?" "Well, not very easily." "I mean, these are not snake-oil peddlers, Phil." "These are supposedly academic brethren." "Academic brethren, bullshit." "Come on." "They're dangerous." "They're feeding her delusion." "By the time they get through with her, she's really going to be off her rocker or worse." "Well, there's not much you can do, not legally or medically." "It's her life, her house, her delusions." "No, until she crosses the line of legal sanity, nobody can touch her." "Come on." "Come on, show yourself, you coward." "Now that I've got my forces here with me, let's just see how brave you are." "is that all you got the guts to do?" "A couple of itty-bitty lights?" "Come on." "We don't want fireworks." "We want you!" "Show yourself, damn you!" "Are you trapped in this environment?" "Will you appear to us now?" "You won't appear." "You won't appear, because you're a devil out of hell, and you're afraid." "You'll wait till I'm alone, won't you?" "Then you'll come forth to hurt me, to hurt my children." "Show yourself." "Joe, turn on the lights." "Did you see it?" "Yes, Mrs. Moran." "We saw it." "Thank you." "Would you excuse us?" " ls it over?" " For now." "Yeah?" "Are you okay?" "All right." "Okay, then I'm going to go to bed, okay?" " Okay." " Good night." " Good night." " l'll see you." " Good night, Billy." " Excuse me." "Thank you." "We'll be leaving shortly." "What are you two doing up?" " ls everything okay?" " We heard you, Mommy." "Everything's fine." "Come on." "Well?" "I've never seen anything like it before." "Do you think that we were in some kind of hypnotic state and that this was a mass hallucination?" "I've always believed that there were several planes of existence, distinct and separate... and we, as human beings, inhabit only one." "Isn't it possible that some sort of external intelligence, some discarnate entity, has crossed into our plane of existence?" "How are we going to prove it?" "We have to isolate it." "We have to draw it in somehow, find a way to bring it into a controlled situation." "Yeah, me too." " Put it in." " Okay, we got it." "Good night, Mrs. Moran." " Good night, Mrs. Moran." " Thank you." "We've got some real good ideas on how to proceed." "Thanks a lot." " You've got the tape, right?" " Yeah." "Mm-hmm." " Jerry." " Hi, cutie." "Excuse me." " What gives?" " Why didn't you call?" "I did." "Every time, I got a different voice on the line." "What's going on?" "Those people are from the university." "The university?" "I missed you." "Look at me. I'm shaking." "I think we'd better have a drink." "Got some good wine." "Um, yeah, well, you go ahead." "I don't think I'd really better." "No, no, you're going to have one." "This is my homecoming." "Come on." "What was that all about?" "They're trying to help." " Help who?" " Me." "I don't know what you mean." "I've been sick, Jerry." "Sick?" "What kind of sick?" "Things have come to me... in the night." " Nightmares, you mean?" " Yeah." "Like nightmares." "Exactly." "I mean, those people you saw in the house, they're psychologists." "They're doctors, and they have a theory that there's something in the house that... is keeping me from sleeping, and they're trying to fix it." "Some of them looked pretty young to be doctors." " Oh, you're mad." " No, it's not a question of mad." " Yeah, okay, since you ask." " Yeah, you're mad." "I mean, who brings a university full of kids into their house because they can't sleep?" "You can't sleep, you take a pill." "You go see a regular doctor." "I'm not giving a party, Jerry." "I'm really not." "Hey, all I'm asking for is a simple explanation." "I still don't know what's bugging you." " Yeah." " Don't treat me like a jerk." " l'm not a jerk, okay, Carly?" " l'm sorry." "Trust me." "Just tell me what the hell's happening." "I don't know." "I mean, I don't know-- l don't know the difference between what is happening and what I think might be happening." "The only thing I know for certain is that it started when you left." "And I don't say that with any kind of blame or accusation, but that is when it started." "When what started, Carly?" "What?" "All right." "Okay. I was-- l was attacked." "And it's not happening now, so don't worry, but I was attacked." "You were attacked?" "By who?" "Who attacked you?" " Nobody." "Nobody." " You were attacked?" "No, nobody." "Nobody." "Nobody you can see." "Oh, God." "This sounds so crazy." "I mean, it was like a horrible dream." "Shit. I don't know how to explain it." "It sounds crazy every time I explain it." " Ohh." " lt sounds crazy." "God, baby." "Oh, Carla." "Do you know, for a second, you had me worried?" "I mean, I thought you were really attacked." "I thought that somebody attacked you." "Honey." "I know why you can't sleep, but I am with you right now." "I will guarantee you that these dreams or nightmares or whatever the hell they are will never bother you again." "Because I'm staying this time." "No more trips." "No more one-night stands, baby." "Starting tonight, it's going to be forever." "Hey." "Let's go to bed." "Huh?" "Hey, can we go to your place?" "Uh-uh." "Remember, I'm with you, and as long as I am, nothing bad is going to happen." "Do you believe that?" "I got something for you." "What?" "What is this?" "You'll see." "Oh." "Aw, it's beautiful." " Mmm." " lt's pure silk." "It feels good." "Go put it on for me." "Come on." "It's my homecoming." "Put it on." "Look, honey." "You know what I was thinking?" "If we" "Please." "Help me." "Help me." "Help me." "Help me." "Help me." "Help me." "Help me." "Help me." "Help me." "Help me." "Please, help me." "Help me." "Help me." "Help me!" "Help me." "Help me." "Help me." "Help me." "Help me." "Help me." "Stop it." "Stop it." " Get off her." " Help me." " Help me." " Stop it!" "Stop it!" "You son of a bitch!" "You fucking bastard!" "You son of a bitch!" "Dr. Bronstein, Dr. Loomis..." "Okay." "She's going to be all right." " Yeah?" " She's still a little shaky, so when you go in, don't stay too long, okay?" " All right." " Okay." "All right." "Go in." "Go in." "She's dying to see you." "Make a right at the corner there." " First right?" " First door on your right." " Thanks a lot." " You got it." "Don't stay too long." "Please don't." "Okay, Jerry, she's going to be okay." "It was just a slight concussion." "Thank God for that, Doctor." "Thank God." "Look, why don't you go in and see her?" "She'd like to see you." "No way, Doctor." "I can't be around her." "I can't handle what's going on in there." "Come on, Jerry." "What do you mean you can't handle it?" "She needs you now." "I mean, I loved her." "I was going to marry her, you know." "I could've taken anything, I mean, a disease, cancer." "This is a disease, Jerry." "It's the same thing." "Not what she's got living with her." "Jerry, it's just a disease now, okay?" "Now just get it through your head." "It's just in her head." "There was nobody there." "Nobody was there." "Don't tell me that." "There was somebody there." " Okay." "Okay." " l mean, there was." "Okay, okay." "Take it easy." "I couldn't see him with my eyes, but there was somebody there." "I see this-- like something is pressing her." "It's pushing her." "I see her breasts are being touched." "I mean, I see her breasts are being squeezed by fingers, only I can't see the fingers." "I'm sorry." "That's okay." "That's okay." "Hey, what the hell are you guys doing here?" "We're visiting a friend." " l got to go now." " No, no." "Oh, Jerry, look." "She needs you now." "She needs you now a lot." "It's okay. lt's okay." "I really have to go." "Hey, Jerry" " Look at me." " Thanks for calling, Billy." " Come on." " No. I want to stay with Mommy." "Come on." "We've got to go." " l'll talk to you later, Mom." " Okay." "I hope you're all right, Mrs. Moran." "I'll be back." "We never should've left the house. I'm sorry." "Maybe this doesn't seem like the best time for this, but we're afraid for you." "We have an idea that might help." "We want to try to isolate this thing and immobilize it." "We need your consent." "That means going into it with your eyes wide open." "What we have in mind has never been tried before." "We'll take every possible precaution." "I'll do anything... to get rid of him." "That guy Jerry was her only contact with reality." "I want those two guys banished from her life." "I don't see what I can do." "Well, go to the dean." "Maybe he can do something." "Maybe he can pull those creeps back." "Do you realize what you're asking?" " That's a month-long debate..." " Right." "and it could get very complicated." "All this for Carla Moran?" "Somebody's got to look after her." "Let her go, Phil." "You don't have any choice, professionally or personally." "As you can see, this is a freshly cut rose, and this is a container of liquid helium," "473 degrees below zero." "This is the coldest substance known to man." "Anything frozen at this temperature will shatter at the slightest touch." "What we are seeking is to determine if this entity has mass." "If in fact this is the case, then we should be able to freeze it, verify its objective existence, and prove that it isn't just a psychic projection... lt's going to work great, isn't it?" "...but rather an independent force from some other level of reality that has never been isolated." "Here she is." "Mrs. Moran." "Let me take your bag." "It's good to see you." "We're all very excited to get the experiment under way." " Welcome." " Mrs. Moran." "See you later." "Have you made arrangements for your children?" " They're with a friend." " Good." "Let me show you to your new house." "I'm afraid we're not able to provide you with all the conveniences, but we hope you'll find it comfortable" " and familiar." " Watch your step." "I think everyone's done a terrific job in recreating your home." "We did use different colors on the walls." "And there are other differences." "No light switches." "We have to control the electricity." "This, of course, is the children's room." "Yeah, the bed's in the wrong place." "Well, doesn't matter." "There are no ceilings anywhere in the house." "That's for the television monitoring." "Except, of course, in the bathroom." "There is a ceiling, but no plumbing." "We'll supply you with all the water you need." "That's a chemical toilet." "Does this look familiar?" "It's a good simulation." "And remember not to change in here." "The television camera will be watching you, and Gene at the controls." "Now, in the kitchen, we had a bit of a problem." "No gas, but we have a hot plate and a well-stocked refrigerator." "It's like camping out." "Mrs. Moran, I'd like to show you something now." "Looks a lot like your house, doesn't it?" "The living room." "Brought your books." "Just stand over here with me." "Mrs. Moran, this is the protected area that we were talking about." "It's two pieces of double-thick, heat-treated glass with a vacuum in between the panes." "Now, the system is fail-safe." "We can't activate the helium until you're safely behind this enclosure, so when we tell you to go to the protected area, we want you to come directly to this spot as quickly as possible, and we'll take care of the rest." "Okay?" "Now we have to get ready." "You make yourself as comfortable as you can, but you're not alone." "If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask." "I'm not afraid." "If you can get him, I'm not afraid." "Hey." "Where do you think you're going?" " ls this the Cooley experiment?" " Yeah." "Yeah, I'm with the Medical Institute, Dr. Sneiderman." " Go right on in, Doctor." " Thank you." "Carla." "I'd like to talk to you alone." "is there any place that we could go talk?" "That we could talk privately?" "The bathroom." "This is quite a setup they have." "They made a natural environment for him so he'll come here." "Really?" "is that what they're telling you?" "That's what they're doing." "Uh-huh." "And you believe them?" "Oh, yes." "They're dangerous frauds, Carla." "You're their guinea pig." "Carla, do you know that there are tanks of liquid helium outside?" "Did you know that?" " Mm-hmm." " You do?" "Do you know what liquid helium can do?" " Of course." " Of course." "Really?" "You understand what it means to stop all molecular motion, paralyze atomic particles, decompose matter?" " Okay." " Okay?" "What do you mean, okay?" "I mean I'd rather be dead than living the way I've been living." "Do you understand that?" "Yes, I can understand that." "Yes. I also understand that I care very much what happens to you, very much." "And I know that, in your heart, you know the difference between reality and fantasy." "Carla, look at me." "Carla." "Our reason, our intelligence, that's the only thing that distinguishes us between any other species of animal." "Carla, I care about you." "Carla, don't close yourself off now." "It's real important, real important that you maintain contact with at least one person that really cares about you." " l don't know what you're saying." " l'll tell you what I am saying, that you and I can make that contact." "I don't want to make that contact." "Okay." "Hey." "Wait up a minute, will you?" "Really." "I want to talk to you." "I got to hand it to you." "You just don't give up." "Look, get out, and stay out." "Okay." "Now you listen to me, Buck Rogers, okay?" "If you or your trusty sidekick harm one hair on her head..." " Officer." " l will have your ass in court." "You're going to be looking for your ghosts from prison." "Do you hear me?" "You see this face?" "I don't want to see it again." " You got it." " Hey, Mehan, you may have them all fooled, but not me." "I'm going to nail you and that little creep." "I'll tell him." "Come on." "Let's go." " Yes, sir." " Come on." "Mrs. Moran, we are now going to move into the nighttime mode." "I want to get it so bad, I can taste it." "Hang on, Gene." "Hang on." "And pray." "Dr. Sneiderman is here with me, Frank." "He tells me Cooley is using some pretty lethal equipment up there." "Liquid helium." "God only knows what all else." "Frank." "Frank, let's not blow our tops." "I'm just trying to sound you out on this." "Yes, I realize it's your decision." "I can't figure him anymore." "Do we really need his approval?" "You need to learn a lot about campus politics." "Fuck campus politics." "Where are you going?" "I'm going to get her away from those lunatics." "Why not give her the option of tripping that glass enclosure" " herself from down there?" " Too dangerous." "Hey!" " Hey!" "What are you doing?" " Carla!" " Hey!" " Carla?" " Carla!" " What?" "Carla, come on." "We're getting out of here right now." "No, I'm not." " Don't do that." "Let go of him." " Get him out of here!" "Take it easy." "Take it easy." "Take it easy." "Nobody has to be hurt." "Let him go, Officer." "What is it you want, Doctor?" "I want her out of here, Doctor." "That is not going to happen." "If you want to watch this experiment, you go up to the booth." "We have nothing to hide." "I'm very sorry this had to happen, Mrs. Moran." "Everything is going to be all right." "Yeah. I just don't like to see anybody..." " Just try to calm yourself." " hurt." "He's going to be upstairs with us in the booth." "Just try to get some rest." "That's the important thing." "Okay." "Okay." "Okay." "Weber." "Yeah." "Yeah." "Yeah, all right, Elizabeth." "Take it easy." "I'll come and get him." "He's up those stairs, Doctor." "Thank you." " Someone open a door?" " He's here." "Mrs. Moran, move to the protected area." "Mrs. Moran, move to the protected area." "Mrs. Moran, move to the protected area." "To the protected area." "Don't be alarmed, Mrs. Moran." "We're moving into the emergency mode." "Don't activate the compressor yet, Joe." " l didn't." " What do you mean, you didn't?" "It's been tripped." "Oh, my God." " What have you got?" " lt's no good." "Let's run it in parallel." "All right." "All right, bastard." "I've finished running." "So do what you want." "Take your time, buddy." "Take your time." "Really, I'm thankful for the rest." "I'm so... tired of being scared." "So it's all right, it really is." "It's all right." "You can... do anything you want to me." "You can torture me, kill me, anything." "But you can't have me." "You cannot touch me." "That's mine." "For God sakes." "Carla!" "We got it." "We got him trapped." "Oh, my God." "Carla?" "We lost it." "We got nothing." "That's not true." "We got something." "We have a witness." "Isn't that so?" "What?" "You did see it, didn't you?" "Something. l-- l saw something." "But I don't know." "I just don't know." "With all that going on down there, it could have been anything." "You son of a bitch." "Welcome home... cunt." "We made it." "Come on." "Okay, let's close it." "Good." "Now let's get these in." " Mommy!" " Mommy!" "Carla, how in the world did you beat us over here?" "We left right after you called." "Carla, take this." "Mmm. I'll pay you back." "I promise you." " No." " Thank you." "It's a gift." " l love you." " l love you too." " Take care of yourself." " Bye, Cindy." "Bye-bye." "Bye-bye." " See you." " Lock the door, girls." "Lock your door."