"Morning." "Morning, sir." "Halt." "Prepare to dismount." "Dismount." "May I help you?" "Your manager in?" "He's back there." "Go get him." "Yes?" "There's a soldier out here to see you." "Ma'am." "You MacCready?" "Yes, I am." "Fred MacCready's the name." "How may I help you gentlemen?" "Cpl. Smitherman says you might have a place where we can put this." "Did the corporal give you a message for me?" "Hey, look at that." "Now, who are they?" "Everything seems to be in order." "Sorry I had to check, but you understand security these days." "ls there a safe we should take this to?" "Best one in the state." "But first you'll have to sign for it." "Sure." "Now, where are you men from?" "Camp over that way, about 20 miles to the East, near a swamp." "That right?" "Who's your lieutenant over there?" "We ain't got a lieutenant right now." "Capt. Louison's around, though." "What are you all doing here in town?" "We got some business at the bank." "I'm afraid you're going to have to wait a few minutes." "Nope." "Can't wait." "You hold it right" "Nobody move!" "Don't!" "I don't think so." "No!" "Hey, there." "You cut the teller, Annabelle?" "I didn't even see that." "Those bags heavy, Joseph?" "Hell, yes." "About time." "Here they come." "Stop right there!" "Halt!" "Wait up, little brother!" "Shit." "You all ride on ahead." "We've got a ways to that Hollister place." "How many do you think will be after us?" "Not many at first." "Those would be the only ones who could catch us." "You're hit." "l know." "I'm fine. lt's just my shoulder." "I can move it around all right." "It's not even close to the bone or anything." "Where now?" "This way." "William, tell us we ain't lost." "We ain't lost, Clyde." "We got a couple more miles of this, and then we'll be there." "Hey, old man!" "Did you get you some deserters?" "Eight today." "We was looking for that old Hollister place." "Hollister." "Never heard of it." "You sure about that?" "There should be a large farm house right past the creek." "There's no creeks around here." "Not for miles." "I have seen servants upon horses, and princes upon the earth." "You'd best be moving on!" "We'll keep heading up this way." "Can't be more than a couple miles out." "He ain't got the slightest notion where we're going." "Yeah, well, another good plan." "Shit." "Crazy old man." "Do you see a pathway up to the house anywhere?" "Must have grown over." "ls that it?" "l said it'd be here." "Hey!" "Come look at this." "Looks like a man." "Don't look like no scarecrow." "You want me to take it down, Ms. Annabelle?" "No, it just scared me a bit." "Let's move on, shall we?" "Good shot, Sam." "What the hell is that?" "Jesus, Joseph!" "Somebody shaved the skin right off that boy." "Don't look like any kind of mountain cat l ever seen." "Looks like a wild boar or something." "Let's get to that house." "The sooner we get inside, the better." "Big storm coming in tonight, William." "Listen up, let's get that gold inside." "Bring your lanterns." "We head out for Mexico in the morning." "Who'd you say runs this house?" "No one." "No one?" "Belonged to a soldier I knew once." "But he's dead now." "So the place is empty, I reckon." "Place looks deserted." "No shit. I think we got that figured out." "What the hell?" "I just stepped on a bird." "Yeah." "Come on. I want to get that bullet out of you before it gets infected." "Yeah, all right." "Dog!" "Hell." "What's going on?" "It's probably just some tramps." "Let's look around and find them." "There's only two of them." "All right, but let's all be careful." "It's real." "Don't chew on the gold, Joseph." "You and Clyde go have a look upstairs." "Todd and I will check this floor." "I ain't never been in a house this big." "So many rooms." "Whoever built it must've been pretty damn rich." "I guess we're richer than him now, though." "We ain't richer than nothing." "Not yet anyhow." "How you mean?" "Don't hurt yourself trying to think or nothing... but right now that gold's downstairs." "Ain't mine until it's in my pocket." "That's the truth." "And I'll feel a lot easier when we're in Mexico, holding our shares." "If William thinks we're taking the same share as that nigger... he's got another thing coming." "You check that room. I'll look in this one." "You hear me holler, you come running, get it?" "You, too." "Todd?" "I think I heard something." "You can't get it open?" "No, it's stuck good." "Door knob's turning. it ain't locked." "We'll find something to pry it open." "Let's come back to it." "is anyone here?" "Come on, get out!" "Why'd you do that?" "Hell, like the breeze through the trees, Corporal." "Anything in here?" "No." "Find anything?" "Just some clothes." "Looks like a guest room or something." "The bed's still made." "Let's check the barn out back next." "There." "We're done." "God damn it, Annabelle!" "That'll do." "You could have told me you were going to do that." "Stop whining." "What is this place?" "Slave quarters." "There's a book over here." "Any of this mean anything to you?" "Spells." "For raising the dead." "How much do you figure our share will be, looking at that gold?" "Less than it should." "Sure would be easier if it was divided by two. instead of...." "That kid already got a bullet in him." "I reckon you could take care of our lady friend." "You find anything in here?" "No, it's empty." "Might not be a bad time for a storm." "It could wash away any tracks we left." "Ground will be muddy tomorrow." "We'll leave tracks that'll last for days." "You hear me ask your opinion, boy?" "'Cause I didn't." "There ain't no boys in here, speculator." "I wasn't speculating on you." "I wouldn't have no use for you." "None at all." "I don't see any pine trees for you to hide behind up in here." "Boy, I'd knock those eyes straight in your head." "Shut up, the both of you." "I wonder how they got up in there." "There ain't no ladder." "This place is gonna turn me into a little girl." "If there was anyone here, they're long gone by now." "Come on." "Ante up over there." "I swear." "That's big, isn't it?" "I know what you got." "Two." "Two." "They said there were some beds upstairs." "Wanna go lie down for a little while?" "Three." "I'll have three." "My bet." "Come on now, boy." "l got...." "Do you remember the hospital where we first met?" "The first time we talked after you woke up?" "You, me, Jeffy Hollister." "When he told us about this place." "Did he ever say anything about the folks he inherited it from?" "No, some great uncle or something." "Had he ever been out here?" "I don't think he had." "He carried around all those maps." "It was awful watching him go." "He called me Belle." "I wanted you the first time I saw you." "I think I killed a kid in town today." "Did you see it?" "I'm out. i'm done." "Wise decision." "Wiser than our friend here... who's looking to lose his share of the gold before he gets to count it." "You know, Clyde... you'd do a lot better at bluffing if you played it down a bit." "I see your three." "Come up five." "Hell, I best get these horses in... before that storm hits." "You do that." "Hell, I bet you're as tired as I am." "There's a rough day ahead of us, boys." "Nothing to worry about, you're in here, storm ain't gonna hurt you none." "Be good till it passes." "I'm going to get you all fed and watered now." "I guess you don't need this." "I do." "Be right back." "Please help me!" "Get me out of here!" "Somebody down there?" "Please hurry." "Get me out of here!" "I can't see you." "My daddy threw me in here!" "Hell." "My Lord!" "I'm gonna throw a bucket down to you!" "Hurry!" "Please!" "I'm cold!" "Just grab hold on it." "I'm gonna pull you up out of there." "Hurry." "Got it?" "Yes." "All right, grab hold, both hands." "Come on." "Damn!" "Damn, boy!" "You okay there, Sam?" "I don't know." "This thing's itching me." "Means it's healing." "I guess so." "How long do you think Joseph's been gone?" "Belle." "I'll be back for you, Jeffy." "Ain't she beautiful?" "I think she's the most beautiful girl I've ever seen." "As soon as I heal up and get out of here, we're gonna get married." "She told me so." "Bastard!" "What is it?" "Joseph's gone." "What do you mean, he's gone." "He's disappeared." "He went to take the horses to the barn... and he hasn't come back yet." "We're all out looking for him." "I'll be right down." "Todd and Clyde are out back." "Are you coming?" "Yeah, I'll be along in a minute." "Dog!" "Joseph?" "You seen him?" "No, I thought I heard Dog out in the corn field." "I went out after him, but I must've gotten turned around in there." "You couldn't find your way out there in daylight... much less at night with a storm coming." "Yeah." "Joseph!" "He'll either come back or he won't." "Let's all keep our pistols handy." "I got to take care of something." "I'll be around in a minute." "We shouldn't leave the gold unattended again." "We've been lucky so far." "Especially with those two around." "You think they're planning on something serious?" "Things are different now." "From now on... one of us three stays with the gold at all times, no matter what." "At least until we figure out what's going on here." "Got that?" "Yeah." "All right." "Dog?" "Shit." "Annabelle." "Stay with the gold." "What is it?" "There was a boy in here." "A boy?" "He ran out." "You all right?" "Yeah, I'm fine." "He just scared me, that's all." "Maybe it was the light." "Was this a young kid?" "Yeah, he was young, he was small." "If there was a boy here, Sam will find him." "We're the only ones on this floor." "Could he have gone out a window?" "l don't see how." "He didn't go downstairs." "We would've passed him." "Sure you weren't dreaming?" "He was here." "He could have gone out another way." "lf there was a boy here-- -lt wasn't a dream, William." "Sam?" "Sam." "On your feet." "You all right?" "Yeah, I'm fine." "I just got queasy after running up all those goddamn stairs." "Okay, you need to lie down and get some rest." "I'm all right." "Just give me a minute." "Lie down." "Come on." "Annabelle?" "I believe you about the boy." "Get some rest." "I didn't say that I don't believe you." "No, you just said I had a bad dream." "I heard you the first time." "Christ, Annabelle." "Sam's wound's infected." "He's not going to be in any condition to ride if it gets much worse." "All right, fine." "You got any suggestions?" "Just that there's something wrong with this place." "There was something awful about that boy upstairs." "Why can't we just leave now?" "There's no chance of us going anywhere tonight, not in this." "We can't just leave Joseph here." "He could just be passed out somewhere." "What have you been doing?" "You see Joseph come by?" "I could have sworn I saw him moving around in there." "Sure it was him?" "I saw a head and shoulders moving through the rows, but...." "What?" "But I didn't see it no more." "It was either him or something pretty big." "Our Father who art in heaven...." "My parents used to lie together in this bed." "This is where my mother was when the consumption took her." "I had to do it." "I put the children where they'll never be found... by anyone." "I tried to bring my wife back, but they tricked me." "They changed my children into demons." "Who are you?" "Where is my wife?" "Where is she?" "Clyde here says he saw Joseph and Dog." "Or some kind of animal." "We're planning on keeping this gold out all night?" "We'll stand watch over it." "Why?" "I say we divide the gold up now." "So we're each carrying our own shares." "Seems safer." "And I said we divide the gold up when we get to Mexico." "Not before." "Doesn't make any sense, William." "Joseph's missing." "We don't know where." "The way it is, Clyde." "Part of this gold is mine." "And you'll get it when we're out of the country." "It's the way I say it is." "That's final." "Doesn't make any difference, I guess." "I'm going to go get some rest." "You do that." "Who's there?" "How'd you get in here?" "Hey." "Listen, kid... you need to tell me if there's someone else in this house." "Did something happen?" "How'd you get in here?" "Please help me." "Please let me go." "I didn't do nothing." "I won't tell nobody about the others." "Are you a runaway?" "I didn't see nothing. I didn't see nothing." "They used rawhide on you." "Oh, God, it hurts." "I know, I know." "Please" "Hurry!" "l'm gonna cut this off you." "Oh, God." "He's here." "What?" "He's here." "Oh, God." "I don't see anything." "Just hold on." "Hold on." "What are you screaming about?" "Joseph?" "Sam." "The gold." "Clyde." "You stay here with Annabelle, you understand?" "Sam." "Where's William?" "Where's the gold?" "Will's taking care of it." "What's that?" "A door." "A page from that book." "What are you talking about?" "It's no door that you would understand." "It's for sacrifice." "First all the slaves... all the cheap ones, females past their prime." "You have to follow certain rituals to be heard." "Most think of them as spirits or ghosts." "They've always been here." "They exist in a world around our own." "They want to change what is in this world." "They want to torment us." "I don't understand." "This really hurts." "I think something's wrong." "All right, let me look at it." "What is that?" "I don't know." "Sam, we have to get you to a doctor." "You have some sort of an infection." "I may be able to get you something for the pain." "No." "It don't hurt no more, Belle." "What?" "What did you just call me?" "I want to show you something." "Here." "Come on." "Don't you want to see what they did to me?" "You were shot, Sam. I was there, remember?" "No." "The preacher said shooting's too good for me." "They just left me up there to rot for what I did." "Sam, what are you talking about?" "I can't...." "Stop calling me that." "Stop this." "Where did you put the bodies?" "Where are your children?" "Where they belong!" "Hoist him up there." "I opened a door." "They're here forever." "Fine, we'll see you get a little taste of hell in this world... before you pass on to the next." "You'll see." "Just wait!" "Come on, Jeffy." "You'll know, neighbour." "Just you wait." "You have no idea." "Clyde!" "Joseph!" "Where the hell are you?" "God damn it." "What is it?" "I saw everything." "What exactly did you see?" "What wrong with Sam?" "I don't know." "Sam?" "He's dead." "What the hell happened here?" "l don't know." "What?" "Was it his wound?" "No. lt's this place." "This place did something to him." "What do you mean, this place?" "Why would Jeffy Hollister send us here?" "What did he know about this farm?" "What are you talking about?" "lt was a trap, William." "The farmer that lived here, he sacrificed his slaves... as some sort of a ritual to bring his wife back." "He killed them because they turned into beasts." "Demons. I saw it." "We need to get out of here, William." "Sam's dead, Todd." "Where the hell have you been?" "We need to get as far away from this farm as we can." "We're not leaving here without the gold." "The gold?" "Yeah." "The gold." "Remember?" "We left you here watching it." "Two against one, Todd." "What are you thinking about?" "You know I'll kill him, Ms. Annabelle." "You ain't that quick." "Maybe." "He won't be lonely long, if you do." "Should've left you all here when I had the chance." "You watch yourself." "I've ridden with you a long time." "I've saved your life more times than I can count." "That don't make it yours." "Put the gun down, Todd." "You had no part in this?" "That gold don't mean nothing now." "It's gone." "No." "We find Joseph and Clyde, we find that gold." "Can you hear that?" "What?" "Now it's gone." "Todd." "Forget about Joseph and Clyde." "Your brother's dead." "Let's just get on our horses and get the hell out of here right now." "I don't care what you decide." "It don't matter what you do." "Wait just a goddamn minute." "What could have done this?" "Looks like I'm walking!" "What in the hell could have done this to the horses, William?" "You hear that?" "Hear what?" "I'm up here." "Bring me back." "No more." "I can't trust my eyes anymore." "There are worse things than dying, you know." "I'm not leaving here without that gold." "I am." "Annabelle, you wanna leave, you go with Todd. I'm staying here!" "Sam's not dead." "He walked out of here." "He didn't look like he was walking anywhere." "He's not here now!" "He was dead, William!" "Whoever took his body took it to keep us here." "We have to find him." "William, listen to me." "What is it?" "Someone must've come through here." "Let's keep moving." "No." "Hold on a minute." "Let's go." "No, wait." "That's Clyde up there." "Here." "He's all tied up with hemp." "Hold on." "God." "What did they do to him?" "Have you got your razor?" "Slow down." "William, where are you?" "Who's out there?" "Dog." "What in God's name is that?" "Hold up back there!" "That is the ugliest damn thing I've ever seen." "That thing just jumped right out at us, didn't it?" "Gave me a bit of a scare." "Unless you're fixing to eat it, just leave it alone, God damn it." "We need to git." "Mount up." "Captain?" "Maybe somebody should check the house, sir, if they came this way." "Johnson and I can check the area, we'll catch up with you later." "All right, but I want you back with us before sundown." "Move it out, men, we've wasted enough time on this." "What's this all about?" "Here, look at this." "is that gold?" "Where'd you find it?" "Get off of me, will you?" "Right here." "Must've dropped it." "All right, come on." "Johnson." "What?" "Here's another one." "Another one?" "Damn, he was ugly."