Open to an office setting, we see Kevin and Anne sitting side by side, Marguerite sitting on another chair and a lawyer sitting behind a desk with a briefcase open. All looking shocked and disgruntled.
Anne:
“That is ridiculous, she couldn’t have left everything to Kevin. What about Marguerite! That’s just not fair or right!!”
Marguerite:
“It’s alright, Anne. I guess I should have known that was coming, everything is always left to the oldest male in the family.”
Kevin:
“It’s ok Marguerite, you can have it all. In a few days we are going back to Connecticut anyway and you can do what you want with the place, sell it or keep it. I don’t care, I don’t want it.”
Lawyer:
“Not so fast Kevin, Helena’s had a stipulation put into her will, and I can’t find a way around it. In fact when I told her I didn’t agree with it she had another lawyer do it up, and its binding in every way.”
Kevin:
“What’s the stipulation?”
Lawyer:
“It states that you must live here at Sea Oaks, if you do not live on the property then the entire estate ALL of it goes to fortress. Which means if you do not stay Marguerite can’t stay here either.”
Anne:
“What!! She would put her own daughter out on the street?? That’s nuts! There has to be a way around it.”
Lawyer:
“I’m afraid it is binding, Helena was smart to because she has also stipulated that Kevin must live here for 10 years after that he can do what he wishes with it, but if he leaves before the 10 years are up he looses it all.”
[Fade out]
Open to a bedroom, we see Kevin and Anne sitting on either side of the bed, neither looking very happy.
Anne:
“I just don’t know Kevin, I don’t think I can live here.”
Kevin:
“I know Anne but like the lawyer said there is no way around the terms of the will, and just think I could finally open up our own little bed & breakfast, the kids seem to like it here, and there’s also Marguerite to think of.”
Anne:
“I know all of that Kev, but I don’t know what I want and I need to think about it, just just let me think ok.”
Kevin:
“Why don’t you go for a drive to clear your mind?”
Anne:
“I think your right I think that’s just what I need is to just get off this island for a bit then I’ll be fine.”
We see Anne head to the foyer grab a set of car keys and head out the front door into the rain. We see Anne climb into a car and notice that the storm is really picking up outside and the rains are coming down harder than just a moment before. We follow the care to the end of the causeway where Anne stops the car for a moment to watch, The storm seems to have lightened up a bit. Anne starts out across the causeway, about midway we see a huge wave come up over the cause way and smash into the car. We see the lights on the car dim out then come back on just in time for another wave to hit the car, the lights on the car go out. A third wave comes and takes the car and Anne along with it off the other end of the road into deep waters.
[Cut to ballroom]
We see Marguerite putting out candles, Julie and the other 5 girls are stretching, when the power goes out. The girls all give a little scream then they all including Marguerite head out of the room and downstairs.
Mary-Beth:
(to the other girls) “I don’t know why we even come anymore, all we do is sit around and watch Julie dance. It USED to be fun.”
Jenny:
“Come on Mary-Beth, its just because Julie is way better than the rest of us and she’s a really good dancer!”
Mary-Beth:
(angrily)“I don’t have to stand here and listen to this, I’m going home!”
Marguerite:
“Mary-Beth, honey you can’t go home, not in this storm, it will pass soon enough alright.” (Marguerite puts her hand on Mary-Beth’s shoulder, Mary-Beth shakes her off)
Mary-Beth:
“You can’t tell me what to do! I’m going home and I’m leaving now!! And I’m not coming back to your stupid dance class either, its not fun anymore!”
We see Mary-Beth pull on her shoes in a rush and struggle into her jacket as she pulls the front door open and runs out into the storm and disappears down the driveway.
Marguerite:
(to the girls) “You girls stay here, I have to go and try to talk her into coming back, the storm is getting worse, she won’t be able to cross the causeway soon.”
The girls all nod to Marguerite, we see Marguerite pull on a rain jacket and boots and limp out after Mary-Beth into the storm.
[cut to Mary-Beth]
We see Mary-Beth crying and sitting by the causeway looking across trying to determine weather it is safe to cross, she hears her name on the wind and backs into some nearby bushes. Mary-beth looks up just in time for us to see a large
rock smash down into her skull.
[cut to living room]
We see the girls sitting in the living room chatting amongst themselves when Kevin walked into the room…
Kevin:
(to Julie and the girls) “Julie where is your Aunt Marguerite and Mary-Beth?”
Julie:
“Aunt Marguerite went to look for Mary-Beth.”
Kevin:
“What do you mean went to look for Mary-Beth?”
Jenny:
“Mary-Beth was upset Mr. Devereaux, because Julie’s a better dancer than the rest of us. She said she was going home and ran out into the storm. Miss Marguerite went to try and find her to bring her back.”
Kevin:
“In this?? She left in this weather?? Julie, you girls stay here, I’m going to get them both and bring them back, once this storm lets up I’ll take the rest of you home.”
The girls all nod a Kevin but say nothing, we see Kevin get ready and head out in the storm as well.
Julie:
(to Jenny) “ Do you think he’ll find them?”
Jenny:
“I think so, but I don’t know about Mary-Beth, she’s really stubborn and if she doesn’t want to be found I don’t think they will find her.”
We hear a rapping on the window, All the girls jump and scream, then we hear a voice coming through…
Marguerite:
“Julie…Julie honey it’s me Aunt Marguerite, open the door I forgot my keys.”
We see Julie run to the door and let her aunt in. Marguerite is soaked to the bone.
Julie:
“Where is dad?”
Marguerite:
“What do you mean? Isn’t he here?”
Julie:
(shakes her head) “No he isn’t, he just left to look for you and Mary-Beth, didn’t you see him?”
Marguerite:
“No I didn’t, I couldn’t find Mary-Beth either before everything got too dark, so I came back here.”
Kevin walks through the door, soaked as well.
Kevin:
“Marguerite, did you find Mary-Beth?”
Marguerite:
“No, everything got too dark so I came back. Maybe she made it across the causeway before it got too bad. When the phone’s come back on we will have to call her mother.”
[Fade to black]
Open to a sunny morning, Kevin is sitting in the kitchen looking worried, he keeps picking up the phone to hear nothing. We hear a knock on the front door and watch Kevin go to answer it. Kevin opens the door to a grim looking police officer.
Kevin:
“Good morning Will, How can I help you today?”
Will:
(sadly) “It’s Anne, Kevin… There’s no easy way to tell you this but….well….her body…it washed up on the shore this morning. We found the car too. It looks like she was coming across the causeway and got washed off. She had almost made it out and the seatbelt got caught around her ankle. Damn things were meant to save lives not take them…
Kevin staggers and drops into a chair by the door, buries his face in his hands and is overcome with grief.
[Fade to Black]
On the screen we see printed ‘2 weeks later’.
Open to a tree house in backyard. We see Jeff and Toby sitting in a tree house sipping coke out of cans and eating cookies…
Toby:
“What do you think happened to Mary-Beth? She still hasn’t shown up at home.”
Jeff:
(wide-eyed) “I think grandmother killed her! I’ve seen her ghost out back in the night and Ruby says that when she comes back it means somebody died!”
Marguerite:
(angrily from below) “Jeff!! Don’t say things like that. You come down here right now. You should be ashamed of yourself, you should never talk that way.”
Jeff and Toby Scramble out of the treehouse…
Marguerite:
(to Toby) “I think you should go home now Toby.”
Toby:
(scared) “Y-yes Miss Marguerite.”
Toby takes off around the house..
Jeff:
(sobbing) “You can’t talk to me that way, Your not my Mother!!”
We see Jeff run into the house and Marguerite is looking as though she has been slapped, she shakes her head and sighs..
Marguerite:
“I’ve never understood little boys, and I never will….”
[Cut to beach]
We see Julie laying on the sand, beside her is a teenage boy, Jenny is also there.
Julie:
“So my dad is thinking he’s going to turn the house into a small hotel, well more of a bed and breakfast really. But I think it will do some good for the town. He plans to have a golf course put in on the island and really fix it up.”
Jenny:
“But who would come here?”
Julie:
“Everyone! Come on look at this beach we have the best beach around! Come on Kerry lets go for a swim!”
Julie gets up and heads into the water, Kerry and Jenny follow. Julie feels something bump against her leg.
Julie:
“AHH….Something just bumped into me.”
Kerry:
“It’s probably a sea turtle, next time it bumps you grab it and pull it out of the water.”
Julie:
(cautiously) “O.K”
We see a dark shape bump into Julie’s leg again under the water, Julie reaches her hands into the water grabs on to the thing and pulls up. We see Mary-Beth’s bashed bloated head surface and Julie’s fingers are tangled in Mary-Beth’s hair. Julie and Jenny start screaming while Kerry tried to get Mary-Beth off of Julie. Jenny scrambles out of the water.
Kerry:
(yelling) “Julie, Julie…just let go! I’ll get her off just give me a sec.”