1883

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OPEN ON: Nothing. The world is black. There is no sound. Except -- A heavy exhaled breath. Then silence. Then air whistled in through tight nostrils and held, then exhaled. Then the pattern repeats ... VOICE

I remember the first time I saw it, tried to find words to describe it, but I couldn’t ... Nothing had prepared me -- no books, no teachers, not even my parents ...

A FACE FILLS THE FRAME. Or most of one. Eyes the color of caramel sit in a face freckled from a life spent outside. They stare into the distance toward an ocean of pale yellow grass ... VOICE (CONT’D)

I heard a thousand stories, but none could describe this place. It must be witnessed to be understood. And yet ...

Hard to say where lands ends and sky begins -- the yellow grass bleeds into the pale blue sky in a hazy soup of color -- as if God was frustrated by the horizon for some unknown offense and smashed earth and sky together. BACK WITH THE EYES -- Blinking. Tears run from them, cutting a path through the dirt on her face. VOICE (CONT’D)

I’ve seen it ... And understand it even less than before I first cast eyes on this place.

The eyes and freckled face belong to a girl, seventeen maybe. Long and lean, like a young horse. Her name is ELSA. Somehow, Elsa lays in shade while the world around her is bathed in sunlight. She peeks out at the sunny world like a terrified child peering out from under her bed ...

ELSA (V.O.) Some call it ‘The American Desert’, others ‘The Great Plains’, but those phrases were invented by professors at universities, surrounded by the illusion of order and the fantasy of right and wrong ... To know it you must walk it. Bleed into it’s dirt. Drown in its

rivers. Then it’s name becomes clear. It is hell. And there are demons everywhere. Slowly, she crawls to the light. Disappears into it ... WITH HER AS SHE STANDS -- She is tall. As tall as most men these days. Her hair is the color of straw. She turns back and looks behind her -- The shade was provided by a covered wagon. A wagon that is now engulfed in flames. Like the horizon, the angry flames reach to the sky, then fade into it ... Elsa walks from the burning wagon. Looks to her right and spots more wagons -- all burning. THE THUNDER OF A GUN SHOT SHATTERS THE SILENCE. She looks to her left, sees -- From a wagon, bullets punch through white canvas and into two men painted the color of the sky -- blue and white. They fall back from their horses as more men scream and fire flaming arrows into the wagon, which bursts into flames as well ... More rifle rounds erupt from the wagon, then a man leaps from the rear of it, firing as he runs ... The LAKOTA WARRIORS race after the man on horseback, firing rifle rounds and arrows into him. He drops, screaming. The warriors’ horses dance around him as they fire arrows into the man’s chest and stomach. Then he is silent ... Elsa looks to her burning wagon then the endless horizon, then runs ... The Lakota watch as she runs, look over the other wagons, then give chase ... Elsa hears the horses’ hooves behind her, sees the body of a man in front of her.

Races toward it, leaps on the dead man and begins pulling a pistol from the dead man’s holster as an arrow slams into his back. She looks back at a Lakota warrior staring down at her. He shakes his head ‘no’. Her hand is on the pistol butt. The warrior knocks another arrow ... WARRIOR I said no. ELSA Will you let me go? WARRIOR I will sell you. She pulls the revolver from the holster. He raises the bow. WARRIOR (CONT’D) Or I will kill you. ELSA You speak English ... HOW CAN YOU DO THIS?!?!?!?! WARRIOR You speak English. And all your people do this ... She raises the pistol as she stands. He fires an arrow that pounds into her side as she pulls the trigger and blasts the man backwards off his horse ... Three more Lakota warriors ride toward her at a gallop, firing as they approach. She walks toward them, screaming like an animal and firing in return ... ELSA (V.O.) But if this is Hell, and I’m in it, I must be a demon too. And I’m already dead ... She runs toward the men shooting as the men race toward her doing the same -- raping the silence with bullets and screams. EXT. FARM HOUSE -- SEGUIN, TEXAS -- 1881. Giant oaks spread their branches over the roof of a house like worried parents shielding it from the sun. Not a mansion or a manor, but not a peasant’s house either: it’s a home ...

A MAN sits alone on the porch. Stares out at nothing. If one can look past the sunburn and sadness etched into his face, one would call him handsome. But it is impossible to look past the sadness. His name is SHEA BRENNAN(45) ... His powerful shoulders are slumped forward. His thick neck drops, exhales heavy breaths then sucks emotion deep inside him -- never to return. He stands and walks in the house. INT. FARM HOUSE -- SEGUIN, TEXAS -- 1881. Shea walks down a hallway. Comes to a door. Takes a moment to find the strength to open it. Finds it, pushes open the door. INT. BEDROOM -- CONT. He walks into the room, stares at a bed and the form of a girl. She lays on her side, knees tucked to her chest. Blonde hair peaks from blankets. Shea walks to the bed, stares down ... The blanket is pulled over her head. Shea exhales rapid breaths -- seeking more strength, then scoops the girl up, blanket and all ... INT. FARM HOUSE -- BRENHAM, TEXAS -- 1881. Shea carries the blanketed girl up a flight of stairs and disappears from view. CAMERA stares at an empty staircase as his footsteps echo, then silence ... INT. UPSTAIRS BEDROOM -- SEGUIN FARMHOUSE -- MOMENT LATER. Bedroom door opens. Shea stands at the threshold, cradling the blanketed girl. Walks toward another bed, lays the girl down beside another body bundled in blankets ... Shea walks around the bed, looks down -- The lifeless eyes of a woman stare up at the ceiling. Her skin is littered with pustules -- looks like a thousand ticks have burrowed into her face and feasted to the point of bursting. Shea pulls the girl’s pustule-covered hand from beneath the blanket and places it over the woman’s heart.

Shea looks down at them and clenches his teeth so tight they might break. He kisses the tips of his fingers, then places them to the woman’s head, turns and walks out of the room.

EXT. FARM HOUSE -- SEGUIN, TEXAS -- 1881. Shea stands in front of the house. He holds an axe wrapped in cloth. He lights a match and holds it to the cloth. Lets the fire engulf it, then hurls the axe through the front window. The drapes catch first -- fire devours them, then curls out the broken window, as if to scowl at the man who set it free. Flames hiss and curl their way up the stairs, snapping boards and bursting windows. It seems the house itself is screaming as fire overtakes it ... EXT. NORTH TEXAS MEADOW -- APRIL 9TH, 1882. Shea sits in a field staring at the horizon -- silhouetted by the orange sphere of flames as it rises. He looks up at the sky -- the deep indigo of night and all her stars dissolve into the pale lavender of dawn ... Shea looks to the pistol in his lap. Curls his lip in contemplation. Places the barrel to his temple. Closes his eyes and cocks the hammer ... VOICE Captain. SHEA ... Yeah. VOICE We’re ready. A tall man stands behind him: African American. Maybe 40. Not an ounce of fat on him, but there’s no fat on anyone out here -- fat is a rich man’s jacket. And these aren’t rich men ... His name is THOMAS. He wears the coat of a UNITED STATES CAVALRY OFFICER. The hat of an officer. The rest is the wardrobe of a cowboy. THOMAS You coming? SHEA Thinking about it.

THOMAS Think on it quick -- if I’m digging a hole I’d rather do it before the sun’s high.

Shea takes that in. Lowers the pistol. SHEA I’m coming. Shea stares at the rising sun for a moment, then stands and walks toward Thomas ... It is only now that we see the PINKERTON DETECTIVE AGENCY badge on his chest. He takes the reins of his horse, swings into the saddle. They turn their backs to the sun and ride like they are running from it ... EXT. RIVER VALLEY -- MORNING. CAMERA looks down on a wagon pulled by four horses through a field. Fast ... Behind it, five men on horseback race after the wagon. One rider comes alongside it and a gunshot echoes out over the valley ... The rider wheels his horse away and another races up, readies a pistol to shoot the wagon-driver, when the wagon pulls to a stop and the rider suddenly finds himself ahead of the wagon. BOOM. The man is blasted off his horse. The wagon resumes hauling ass away from its pursuers ... ANGLE ON -- Shea and Thomas look down from a ridge overlooking the wagon and its attackers. THOMAS Pretty smart. SHEA They won’t fall for it again. Soon enough they’ll just shoot his horses. THOMAS

Horses is probably what they’re after. Farmers ain’t got nuthin’ else worth taking.

SHEA They’ll shoot ‘em anyway. Then the farmer.

The farmer leans out the side with a shotgun, blasts both barrels at an approaching rider, knocking both him and horse over ... WITH THE FARMER -- He is maybe 40. A mustache that was once kept neat is beginning to go wild. The rest of his face saw it’s last shave a week ago. His name is JAMES DILLARD DUTTON. James reloads the shotgun. Watches as the thieves run wide of his wagon and race out ahead of him. They stop their horses and turn back toward James and his wagon ... James pulls his team to a stop. Studies the men just sitting there, horseback. James sets the shotgun on the seat of the wagon, reaches back and grabs a long, leather scabbard ... James steps from the wagon and walks out into the field. WITH THE THIEVES -- They study the man walking out through the field as their horses pant and suck heavy breaths. One thief looks to the other -- a man with a scar running the length of his cheek. THIEF What’s he doing? SCAR CHEEK Don’t know. Don’t give a shit. Scar Cheek reloads his pistol, spurs his horse toward James, who now stands alone in the field of waist high grass. As the riders race toward James, he lays down in the grass. James pulls a rifle from the scabbard -- a long, brass scope runs the length of the barrel. He sits, using his knees as braces for his elbows, and shoulders the rifle. Looks down the scope ... THROUGH THE SCOPE -- James places the cross-wire reticle over scar cheek’s heart, pulls the trigger. Smoke fills the frame, then rises and fades from view, revealing -- Scar cheek’s riderless horse runs wildly through the field.

The other thieves pull their horses to a stop, then turn and race toward the safety of the distant trees. James racks the lever of his rifle, places the cross-wires on one of the fleeing thieves and pulls the trigger ... That man falls as well. The last man spurs his horse to run faster, if that’s possible. James settles the scope on the man’s back, pulls the trigger ... WITH SHEA AND THOMAS -- They watch as the last thief falls from his horse. THOMAS Good shot. SHEA Yep. Shea clucks to his horse, begins walking down the ridge toward the field. Thomas follows him ... James stands from the grass, walks toward scar-cheek’s horse, grabs the reins, and begins leading him toward his wagon. Freezes when he sees -- Shea and Thomas walk in his direction. James shoulders his rifle ... THROUGH THE SCOPE -- He sees Thomas’s uniform and Shea’s badge ... James lowers the rifle, keeps walking. Ties the thief’s horse to an iron ring on the back of the wagon. Shea and Thomas ride past him. JAMES DILLARD Thanks for the help. SHEA You seemed to have it figured. THOMAS Don’t take the horse. JAMES DILLARD I figure I earned it. SHEA Thieves run in pretty big packs around here. (MORE)

SHEA (CONT'D)

If one of his pack sees it ... You’re just advertising for the next gunfight.

James chews that as Thomas and Shea ride past him. James unties the horse, pulls the saddle from its back and yanks off the bridle, tosses it on the ground. Climbs back in his wagon. Looks toward the two men as they fade into the trees in the distance ... It is only now that the adrenaline begins to leave him. Sweat pours from his brow and soaks through his shirt. He leans over and vomits off the side of the wagon ... James takes a drink from his canteen, spits the water to the ground, then slaps the reins against his wagon team and begins moving them toward the forest ... EXT. HELL’S HALF ACRE -- FORT WORTH, TEXAS -- DAY. James leads his wagon team through the commercial center of Fort Worth. Seems there are people and horses and wagons everywhere -- Travelling salesmen sell everything from human scalps to Buffalo pelts to bottles of liquid sworn to cure anything. Casinos and saloons and brothels line the streets, as do supply houses, barbers, clothiers -- if you want it and have the money, you can find it here. James pulls past the madness toward the stockyards and a livery stable. Stops his wagon, steps off. A line of men stand holding their horses as LIVERY WORKERS call out numbers. LIVERY WORKER THIRTY-ONE, THIRTY-TWO, THIRTY- THREE ... Three men walk toward him, leading horses. James walks to a small kiosk where a LIVERY MANAGER sits. JAMES DILLARD Can you take a wagon and team? LIVERY MANAGER How many in your team? JAMES DILLARD Four.

10.

The livery manager looks up at the wagon, stands and walks to it. Peers inside ... Foot lockers and bedding are neatly stacked inside along with a chair and cooking equipment. The livery manager shakes his head ... LIVERY MANAGER

Folks leave their wagons out back, but ... They’re empty when they do it. All this shit’ll be stolen by morning. JAMES DILLARD Ain’t got nowhere you can keep it? LIVERY MANAGER I’ll put it in the hay barn for ten dollars. But I can’t make any promises it won’t get robbed there either. JAMES DILLARD It’s the promise I’m paying for. LIVERY MANAGER For twenty I’ll have someone stay with it. JAMES DILLARD How much for the horses? LIVERY MANAGER Two apiece.

James hands him another eight dollars. JAMES DILLARD There a decent hotel? LIVERY WORKER Just you? JAMES DILLARD

Got my family with me. Six total.

The man stares at James.

LIVERY MANAGER You don’t want your family here. Go to Dallas. JAMES DILLARD Here’s where they’re meeting me.

11.

The man shakes his head.

JAMES DILLARD (CONT’D)

Best bet’s the Calhoun. The manager hands him four numbers branded into leather squares. LIVERY MANAGER You’re seventy-seven, eight, nine, and eighty. Hands him another patch of leather, this one a circle with an H branded in the middle. LIVERY MANAGER (CONT’D)

For the wagon. If you ain’t settled up in thirty days, everything goes to auction. JAMES DILLARD What’s the rule about firearms in this town? LIVERY MANAGER This place’ll pick you clean if you ain’t got one. But if you pull your

pistol in this town, mister ... You’d better know how to use it. James pulls his shotgun from the wagon and walks down the street ... EXT. STREET -- FORT WORTH, TEXAS -- MOMENT LATER. James walks past a crowd that lines both sides of the street. They shout and cheer and wave money in the air as two horses blast past at forty miles-per hour -- their cowboy riders whipping their flanks to run faster ... He rounds the corner past impromptu card tables where three card monte is played. Prostitutes linger outside a brothel. James walks past, carrying his bag and shotgun -- everything about him screams out-of-towner -- and they zero in on him. PROSTITUTE You should come in for a shower and bath. The women laugh at him as he ignores them. PROSTITUTE (CONT’D) Hell, I might let you bathe me.

12.

Another prostitute, wearing a red and white dress, puffs on a cigar like a man, and eyes James as he walks past ... RED DRESS Forget the bath, baby. You come climb mama like a tree. Seems the whole city knows he is from out of town -- eyes follow him everywhere. James’ gaze shifts from one man to the next, sizing the threat in each of them. A large man slams into him, almost knocking him down. Another man reaches in his coat so quick, James never feels his wallet lifted from his pocket. BIG MAN WATCH WHERE THE HELL YOU’RE GOING. James touches his jacket, feels the emptiness in his pocket. JAMES DILLARD Give it back. BIG MAN Give what back. JAMES DILLARD My wallet. BIG MAN I didn’t take your fucking -- James swings the shotgun like a golf club into the big man’s groin, doubling him over, then swings it again into the big man’s chin, knocking him backward onto the sidewalk. James leaps on him, begins tearing through his pockets yanking wallets, pocket watches, and coin purses, then tossing them on the ground beside him. James looks up, sees a skinny man in his twenties looking back at him. Then the skinny man turns and runs. James shoulders the shotgun and fires a round of buckshot into the man’s ass. He shrieks, falls down, stumbles to his feet and keeps running. A boy points at the skinny man and shouts -- BOY PICK POCKET. A cowboy slams his arm into the skinny man as he runs past, knocking him to the street where the mob begins kicking him as the skinny man curls into a ball. ANGLE ON --

13.

Shea and Thomas watch from across the street as James stands and marches toward the skinny man as men tear and pull at his coat. THOMAS Farmer ain’t scared to use that shotgun ... SHEA Farmer’s gonna pick a fight he can’t win before long. They watch as James walks up to the skinny man and reaches into his jacket, retrieving his wallet. TOWN MARSHALS rush toward the chaos as the street is now a shouting mass of people crowding around the pick pocket. Two marshals rush up to James, push him back -- shout questions at him, but the crowd is so loud it’s impossible to hear a word the man says ... The big man has gotten to his feet, but a dozen cowboys attack him like a swarm of wasps. Before long, he is back on the ground with cowboys raining punches down on him ... One cowboy slams a whiskey bottle into the back of his head, splitting his scalp in two ... More cowboys have fashioned a noose and are hoisting the skinny man up -- hanging him from the sign over the brothel. It is madness ... Marshals rush to the skinny man’s aide and fight with cowboys to release him. As the skinny man is being lowered, a GUNSHOT rings out from the crowd, and the skinny man is shot in the side of the head. The crowd scatters like quail in every direction. More gunshots ring out. James takes in this insanity, then turns and walks down the street in the opposite direction. Shea watches him disappear around the corner, then steps inside two double doors. Above the doors is a sign that reads: PINKERTON DETECTIVE AGENCY. INT. PINKERTON DETECTIVE AGENCY -- CONT. ABOUT FIFTY MEN, WOMEN, AND CHILDREN COWER IN THE BUILDING. They stare out the windows. Women huddle behind chairs and sofas, holding their children close ...

14.

SHEA Thomas, stay by the door. Don’t let any of that bullshit spill in here.

Shea looks to the crowd.

SHEA (CONT’D) That should answer any questions about how dangerous this journey will be. It will be that and worse, all the way to Oregon.

All eyes now shift to Shea as he leans against a table. He studies the faces staring at him. Studies their clothes ... None are dressed for the West. The men wear ill-fitting suits, the women heavy, wool dresses. The men are clean-shaven. The women have the heavy features of Eastern Europe. Everyone stares at Shea as if he is speaking a foreign language, because to them, he is ... SHEA (CONT’D) Does anyone speak English? One man leans forward. Dark hair and features. Broad shoulders of a laborer. His name is JOSEF(38). JOSEF I speak English. SHEA Does this group have a leader? Josef points to a man in his sixties. NIKOLAI(63). Grey hair. Hollow cheeks. SHEA (CONT’D) But he doesn’t speak English. JOSEF No English for him. Shea exhales. SHEA You have wagons? Josef nods. JOSEF And ox to pull them. SHEA Ox ...

15.

Josef nods. Shea shakes his head. JOSEF

Ox won’t make the trip. Heat and no water will kill them. Sell the ox. Get horses. JOSEF (CONT’D) We don’t know horses.

Shea shakes his head.

SHEA Where’s your gear? JOSEF Gear ... SHEA Your supplies. Your suitcases. What you take with you.

Josef nods.

JOSEF In the room. In the back. SHEA Show me.

INT. SUPPLY ROOM -- PINKERTON DETECTIVE AGENCY -- CONT. Shea, Thomas, and Josef look over a large room filled with everything from dinner tables to pianos. SHEA What is all this shit. JOSEF Everything we brought from home. SHEA Should have left it there. None of this will make the trip. JOSEF It must. Shea looks at Josef. JOSEF (CONT’D) This is everything we own.

16.

Shea looks at a piano, walks toward it. SHEA

How am I supposed to load this on a wagon and get it across A FUCKING RIVER?!?!? AND OVER MOUNTAINS ...

Thomas studies the man.

THOMAS He don’t have a pistol. JOSEF No. SHEA Against your religion? JOSEF Against our laws. We weren’t allowed. SHEA None of you have firearms? JOSEF ... Do we need them?

Shea stares at him, then laughs. SHEA Do you need them ... Thomas looks at the ground, shakes his head.

SHEA (CONT’D) We need more men. To protect you. To help hunt for food. Talk to your group and see how much money you can come up with so we can hire them. JOSEF More money ... Two hundred per family is the price. SHEA There’s a new price. JOSEF The church warned us about people like you. You try to change rules. (MORE)

17.

JOSEF (CONT'D)

You try to rob us. You take us FOR FOOLS -- Shea grabs Josef by the throat and slams him into the wall. SHEA

You have no horses. No guns. Can’t ride. YOU ARE A FUCKING FOOL. For thinking you can travel two thousand miles with no skills to survive it. THOMAS Captain.

Shea looks back -- the emigrants stand at the door, horrified at what they are witnessing. Shea releases Josef and turns to them. SHEA Take the train to Portland. You won’t make this trip. The old man speaks. Josef translates. JOSEF We can’t afford the train. SHEA Then I suggest you buy farms around here. JOSEF Here is hot. Here is dry. We come from mountains. Mountains we know. He speaks to the old man in Slovak. Then looks to Shea. JOSEF (CONT’D) How much do more men cost. SHEA Hundred apiece maybe. Maybe more. Let me ask around. Shea walks to the door. JOSEF So, in the morning we leave? SHEA We leave when you’re ready and you won’t be ready in the morning.

18.

Shea and Thomas walk out the door.

INT. SOUTHERN PACIFIC RAILWAY -- LATE AFTERNOON. Elsa sits in a packed rail car. She gazes out the window as pine trees give way to prairie ... A MAN IN HIS 30’s -- smile of a salesman, sits across from her. Studies the soft curves of her cheek. She feels him looking. His name is CALVIN. CALVIN You’re staring out that window like there’s a prize to be had. You ain’t half-wrong. ELSA Never seen a sunset. CALVIN Sun don’t set where you’re from? Elsa smiles. ELSA The pine trees block it. CALVIN Tennessee ... ELSA How’d you know? CALVIN I know the pines. And I know the accent. Where you headed? ELSA West. CALVIN ... All by yourself? ELSA With my family. Calvin smiles. CALVIN I don’t see much family. Just see you ... Elsa’s smile fades.

19.

ELSA They’re um ... Our seats are in the back. I just wanted to look out the window so I --

Calvin laughs. Waves her off. CALVIN

Sit here as long as you like. Then just a little bit longer ...

Her smile returns.

CALVIN (CONT’D) I question your father’s judgement, though. If had a daughter as pretty as you she would never leave my sight. Elsa blushes, looks down. Calvin leans back. CALVIN (CONT’D)

Don’t do that. Don’t hide from it. Beauty is meant to be admired. Let me look ...

Elsa feels a charge of electricity move through her body. Dares herself to look up at the handsome man. He smiles in return, nods. CALVIN (CONT’D) Yes. Look at you ... A small purse smashes into Calvin’s perfect smile. He recoils back, looks up as the purse swings back toward him again, thumping him on top of the head, hard. MARGARET DUTTON (40) pulls the purse back for another swing. CALVIN (CONT’D) ALRIGHT!!! I GET YOUR POINT, MA’AM. MARGARET Elsa, let’s go. Elsa stands, moves into the aisle. Margaret looks down at Calvin. MARGARET (CONT’D) Good day to you, sir. Margaret pushes Elsa down the aisle.

20.

MARGARET (CONT’D) You will be the death of me, I swear. ELSA I was just looking out the window. MARGARET Mmhmm. Window sure wears a fancy suit. Margaret pushes her through the rear door of the rail car. INT. COACH CLASS -- CONT. Immigrant families and luggage -- some holding chickens -- are packed like sardines into the rear car. Elsa looks toward the windows, which are obscured by the huddled mass of passengers. ELSA Where’s Spencer? MARGARET With your aunt. Margaret pushes through the crowd toward a five year-old SPENCER DUTTON, sitting on the floor in front of a plain looking girl in her late teens. ELSA (Mumbles)You left him with her ? MARGARET You left me no choice. Sit. Elsa sits. The armpit of a heavy man hovers above her head, she turns from his stench, drops her head and hides from it. ELSA Someday I’ll only ride in the front of the train. MARGARET

That’s a child’s goal. A woman’s goal is never ride a train again. Because she has a home she never wants to leave. ELSA I guess we’re both a ways from our goal then.

21.

They stare hell at each other, then both turn away -- ignoring the noise and the stench that surrounds them. Margaret stares at CLAIRE DUTTON(38), her fierce eyes focused on Margaret ... CLAIRE Ought not let her talk to you like that. If she were my daughter ... MARGARET Think you can get her to listen? No sooner has Margaret spoken than the full force of Claire’s palm is slammed into Elsa’s cheek. CLAIRE Traipse off into harm’s way then back-talk your mother for saving you? ELSA I wasn’t in harm’s -- Another slap. This one harder. Margaret draws a breath to object when Elsa says -- ELSA (CONT’D) I’m sorry. Another slap. CLAIRE It didn’t worry me. Apologize to her. Elsa’s face whips to her mother. ELSA I’m sorry, Mama. Tell her to stop. Margaret stares, stunned at her daughter -- seems as intimidated by Claire’s actions as Elsa. Margaret steps in front of Elsa, facing Clair. MARGARET You proved your point. CLAIRE

You’ll hit a stranger, but not your own daughter -- when it’s exactly what she needs. Spare the rod, Margaret, and the freedom will ruin her. If it hasn’t already.

22.

Across from Elsa sits a girl a year or so younger. Her name is MARY ABEL DUTTON(17), brown hair, plain in every way. She has spent the past three days on a train marveling at Elsa’s beauty -- and absolutely hating her for it ... She leans toward Elsa as she wipes tears from her swollen cheek, smiles. MARY ABEL You had it coming. INT. RESTAURANT -- CALHOUN HOTEL -- NIGHT. The place is packed. Barely room to move. Shea and Thomas sit across from two cowboys in their late twenties, WADE(28), AND ENNIS(26). WADE How’s it pay? SHEA Hundred a month. ENNIS It’ll take four months to get

there, then we’re stuck in Oregon for the winter. We’ll burn through the money waiting to get home. SHEA We can send you back on the train.

Wade and Ennis look at each other. WADE

Look, Captain ... I’ve pushed cattle all the way to Omaha and come across a fair amount of these emigrant wagons: these sons of bitches are trying to die. Can’t swim. Can’t ride. Bandits gonna plague you all the way to Nebraska and when you get to the Indian country ... THOMAS Indians are on reservations. ENNIS They’re on reservations ‘till they ain’t. And when they see you coming ‘round the bend they gonna saddle up and pluck y’all like chickens.

23.

Wade pushes back from the table. WADE

It’s dangerous enough around here -- I ain’t gotta go two thousand miles to find trouble. All the trouble I’ll ever need is right outside the door.

Wade and Ennis stand and walk out. THOMAS

We could have a look in the saloon. SHEA If they’re in a saloon when we find ‘em I don’t want ‘em. Shea looks across the restaurant, sees James Dutton eating alone. SHEA (CONT’D) Look who it is. THOMAS That farmer’s everywhere at once, ain’t he. Shea stands. Walks toward James. Thomas follows. SHEA Mind if we sit? James looks up at the men. JAMES DILLARD Whatever you’re selling I ain’t buying. SHEA ... Mind if we sit. James stops eating. Shea and Thomas sit. Shea sets a few dollars on the table. SHEA (CONT’D) For your dinner. For the interruption. JAMES DILLARD I can pay for my own dinner.

24.

SHEA Four horses to your wagon. What are you hauling?

James studies them. Says nothing ... SHEA (CONT’D)

Wagon moved pretty fast to be full. My guess is you’re filling it in town. Then headed ...

James says nothing. Shea laughs ... THOMAS

Mister, if we wanted to rob you we’d have done it long before now. We’re leading a wagon train north. Thought you might be headed the same way. We could use some capable men with us. And you seem to be that ... SHEA That’s all we’re asking. JAMES DILLARD My family meets me tonight. We’re headed up north tomorrow. SHEA North where. JAMES DILLARD Don’t know. SHEA You don’t strike me as a man who travels without a plan. JAMES DILLARD I got a plan. They wait for more. But more doesn’t come. Shea laughs. SHEA You will make a man work for an answer, won’t you. JAMES DILLARD

Don’t have the answer myself. Everybody running off west and north and they ain’t even seen the country. Don’t even know if it’s worth the journey. Not me. (MORE)

25.

JAMES DILLARD (CONT'D)

I’ll head north ‘till I find country worth the journey. THOMAS How many in your group. JAMES DILLARD Six. SHEA How many men.

James just looks at them.

SHEA (CONT’D) We could help each other. JAMES DILLARD

Ain’t looking for help. I’m worried enough about my own family to be worrying about somebody else’s.

Shea nods without agreeing. Stands. SHEA

You got lucky in that field. Got lucky on the street. Hope you got some luck left for the folks coming with you. Shea and Thomas stand and walk out of the restaurant, leaving James alone to ponder the truth of that statement. INT. TRAIN -- NIGHT. People, packed like sardines, sleep. Or try to as the train rolls and bounces down the tracks. The door opens, and a BELLMAN stands there, earning his name by ringing a bell. BELLMAN NEXT STOP FORT WORTH. He turns and walks out, closing the door behind him. Passengers begin shifting, standing -- gathering belongings and children. Elsa bolts upright, stands and rushes to the door. MARGARET ELSA! ELSA I’M JUST LOOKING OUTSIDE.

26.

Elsa yanks open the rail car door. Steps outside ...

EXT. RAIL CAR -- NIGHT. Elsa hangs over the rail, looking toward the lights of Fort Worth, Texas. The gas lights of town glow a dim orange, like stars through a mist. She lets the wind whip through her hair as she stares out. Breathes in the warm air ... ELSA (V.O.)

The air was different. The air at home is heavy, like a musky soup. Here it is light. With a strange scent of pollen and smoke, like burning flowers ... It smelled wild. Untamed. It was beautiful.

EXT. RAIL STATION -- FORT WORTH, TEXAS -- NIGHT. The rail station is mostly empty -- a few baggage handlers, a night watchman, a couple of husbands and fathers. James stands on the platform, watching them. And watching more men who stand off in the shadows ... The distant light of the train creeps slowly closer. The tracks moan softly as the air horn of the train screams its arrival. As it gets closer, the smoke from its stack becomes visible, churning out in angry plumes. A wall of noise moves ahead of the train -- three hundred tons of metal racing along iron tracks makes a sound that can only be compared to thunder, if thunder were somehow beneath the ground rather than above it. The chugs of the engine sound like angry, exhaled breaths of this giant, steel monster racing toward them. Then a screech -- the shrill, deafening cry of brakes gripping tracks. Sparks plume out as the engine screams past. Seems to be going to fast to stop -- seems as if the conductor has given up on stopping at all and is headed to the next town ...

27.

INT. RAIL CAR -- CONT. It’s even louder inside the rail car. Sparks can be seen outside the window, then the momentum of the train comes almost instantly to a stop with everyone and everything hurled forward in a brief, painful lesson of physics ... As the train stops, people steady themselves -- those who fell to the floor stand and dust themselves clean. A RAILROAD WORKER opens the door and people begin pushing their way out, any sense of courtesy for other passengers completely abandoned ... Margaret, Claire, Spencer, hell -- all of them, get pin balled around by the rushing crowd. CLAIRE JUST WAIT FOR EVERYONE TO GET OFF. MARGARET DO YOU SEE ELSA?? Claire looks at Margaret. MARGARET (CONT’D) ELSA, DO YOU SEE HER? Claire shakes her head in disgust. CLAIRE ... You lost her again? EXT. RAIL CAR -- NIGHT. Elsa stands alone on the little platform between cars, exhilarated, looking out over the city. ELSA (V.O.) If ‘possible’ can describe a

feeling, that’s how I felt. The whole world felt possible. And I was ready for it ...

EXT. PLATFORM -- NIGHT. James walks along the train, scanning the massive exodus for a familiar face. Sees none. Keeps walking. Worry creeps in, as worry is known to do, and his walk becomes a jog. He scans every face, every form. Then hears something. Stops. Hears it again ...

28.

ELSA (O.S.)

Daddy! He turns to the sound. Hunts for it.

ELSA (O.S.) (CONT’D)

Daddy!!! Her calls echo. She sounds behind him. He looks back. ELSA (CONT’D) DADDY. He turns and sees her, standing alone on the tiny walkway between cars. Walks to her. JAMES DILLARD How did you get there? ELSA There’s a door. JAMES DILLARD Go back through it. ELSA Too many people now. I have to wait. He walks closer. ELSA (CONT’D) I can’t wait. She swings a leg over the railing. Claire makes her way down the stairs, looks to her left and sees -- Elsa scaling down the side of the rail car, her skirt halfway up her legs. CLAIRE OH MY GOD. Elsa jumps to the ground and runs to her father, buries him in a hug. JAMES DILLARD If you keep growing I’m gonna stack bricks on your head. ELSA You need a shave, Daddy. Mama’s gonna throw a fit.

29.

JAMES DILLARD

She might like it. Margaret leads Spencer off the train, spots Elsa with James. Shakes her head ... MARGARET That girl ... She walks to them. MARGARET (CONT’D) How did you get down here? No worry of punishment when she’s in the presence of her father, Elsa smiles, says simply -- ELSA I jumped. MARGARET She is your daughter and you can have her. Margaret hugs James deeply. Looks at his face. MARGARET (CONT’D) You look like a ruffian. JAMES DILLARD I was planning on a shave. MAGRARET Should’ve planned harder. JAMES DILLARD I’ll get one first thing tomorrow. She holds a hand to his cheek, studies his face, gives him a sly smile ... MARGARET Well ... There’s no rush now. James looks down at Spencer. JAMES DILLARD I see you survived the journey. SPENCER Barely. The man beside me shit hisself in Mississippi and I had to smell it all the way here.

30.

Claire walks up with Mary Abel, dragging her suitcase behind her, shaking her head in disgust. CLAIRE James, you’re children are feral. Absolutely feral. JAMES DILLARD Hello Claire. Sorry about Henry. He was ... A patient man. CLAIRE Nothing to be sorry about. It’s the Lord’s will. Can’t believe in heaven then be sad when people go there. James moves them all toward a row of horse drawn carriages. Leads them to one. Hands money to the driver. JAMES DILLARD The Calhoun. James helps the ladies in, then Spencer. Elsa looks out at the city. JAMES DILLARD (CONT’D) Elsa. She turns, walks to the carriage. JAMES DILLARD (CONT’D) This is a dangerous town. No wandering. ELSA I don’t wander. JAMES DILLARD All you do is wander, and you ain’t doing it here. Promise. ELSA I promise. She steps into the carriage. James closes the door, climbs up on the seat beside the driver. INT. CARRIAGE -- FORT WORTH, TEXAS -- NIGHT. The carriage moves through Hell’s Half Acre and its endless row of bars, brothels, and gambling houses.

31.

MUSIC filters out windows and doors. As does shouting. Two men fight in the middle of the street -- pounding drunken, angry punches into each other as a young woman laughs and drinks right from a bottle of whiskey. YOUNG WOMAN WHIP HIS FUCKING ASS!!! Claire covers Mary Abel’s ears. SPENCER What did she say? MARGARET Nothing, honey. Elsa stares out the window, fascinated. There are people everywhere -- dancing, shoving, laughing, shouting ... EXT. CARRIAGE -- FORT WORTH, TEXAS -- CONT. James clocks every danger as they pass. The carriage driver looks over at James. CARRIAGE DRIVER Staying in Fort Worth long? JAMES DILLARD Not if I can help it. CARRIAGE DRIVER INT. HOTEL CALHOUN -- NIGHT. James, Margaret, Claire, Mary Abel, Spencer, and Elsa -- in that order -- make their way up a long, dark flight of stairs. They reach the top and turn down a long hallway of hotel rooms. Second floor of the hotel is no escape from the revelry either -- laughter filters down the hallway. People push their way past the Dutton clan. James stops beside a door, unlocks it. JAMES DILLARD Claire. She walks to the door, peeks inside like a weary animal. You know ... There’s some real nice parts. You just ain’t in one of em.

32.

CLAIRE Mary Abel, let’s go. Don’t have to tell her twice. She hurries into the room, Claire closes the door behind them. JAMES DILLARD Losing her husband didn’t soften her much. MARGARET

You could soak that woman in buttermilk for a month and not soften her. James unlocks another door, swings it open. JAMES DILLARD Spencer, you and your sister are here. SPENCER Where are you? JAMES DILLARD Right next door. Margaret looks at Elsa. MARGARET Look after your brother. ELSA I will. MARGARET Yes ma’am. ELSA I said I will. MARGARET I know what you said. What you didn’t say is ‘yes ma’am’. ELSA Women don’t say that to each other. MARGARET Oh, you’re a woman now. ELSA Aren’t I?

33.

Elsa closes the door behind her. Margaret fights her frustration with a weary laugh. MARGARET That child ... JAMES DILLARD She ain’t wrong. James unlocks their door. Margaret walks in. MARGARET Oh, so you’re ready for her to start courting. JAMES DILLARD Not a chance. MARGARET What I thought. Margaret looks around the room -- it’s a step above decent. Two steps even. Not lavish, but nice. Attempts were made at luxury. MARGARET (CONT’D) How much did you spend on this room? JAMES DILLARD It’s the last room we’ll see for a while. You deserve it. She looks at the copper bath tub opposite the bed. MARGARET A bath. JAMES DILLARD Imagine that. MARGARET I wonder if there’s hot water in the lobby. JAMES DILLARD There’s hot water. She raises an eyebrow.

34.

MARGARET I read about a hotel in New York where they pipe directly to the rooms. You turn a faucet and out it comes. Imagine that ... JAMES DILLARD For now, you’re gonna have to imagine me carrying it up the stairs. MARGARET I can do that.

He smiles, walks out the door ...

INT. WHITE ELEPHANT SALOON -- FORT WORTH, TX -- NIGHT. This is the heart of Fort Worth’s hedonistic half acre -- a long bar runs the length of the wall. Gas lamps illuminate red fabric walls. The place is packed with every cowboy, gambler, gunman, prostitute, show girl, and saloon maid in North Texas. Gambling tables are filled. Music bounces off the wood ceiling. One must shout to be heard. Shea sits in the corner at a table. His eyes move absently over the crowd. A young prostitute spots him. Slinks her way in his direction ... Sits beside him. Studies his drink. Picks it up, Sniffs it. She speaks with an accent. Could be French. Could be fake. Who knows ... All we know is it works, and it is beguiling. Her name is MELODI(28). MELODI Absynthe? SHEA Soda water. MELODI I don’t know this water. SHEA You probably use it to remove stains. MELODI Why do you drink it?

35.

SHEA Because I don’t drink alcohol. MELODI Why not. SHEA Because I don’t. MELODI Don’t gamble either. SHEA No. MELODI Do you dance? SHEA Not anymore. MELODI Maybe you should go home and sleep. Let me guess: you don’t sleep either. SHEA Not much. MELODI So you sit here and drink your

drink that isn’t a drink and watch people do all the other things you don’t do. SHEA That’s a fair observation. MELODI Why ... Melodi fascinated by the odd contradiction of a man sitting across from her. MELODI (CONT’D)

It’s not money. Poor men stare across this room little puppies hungry for a scrap. You have money. SHEA I have enough.

36.

MELODI You don’t want to be alone with memories is why you don’t sleep. So, you sit here until you are too tired for memories. SHEA You’re too smart to be working here. MELODI I make more money than bankers. I’m right where I’m supposed to be. What was her name. Shea stares at her for an eternity. He seems surprised when he says -- SHEA Helen. Melodi stands from her seat, then sits in his lap. He lets her. She leans close. Her hand runs across his chest -- more comforting than sexual. MELODI And you’ve known no one since. He shakes his head ‘no’. MELODI (CONT’D) You can call me her name. He looks at her as she runs her fingers across his face. MELODI (CONT’D) Shea hurls her from his lap. SHEA Get the fuck off me. She stares at him, as do other patrons around him. One of the DEALERS turns around, eyes Shea. DEALER He causing problems? MELODI He pushed me. You can close your eyes and call me her name and you can be with her again. I can give that to you --

37.

The dealer grabs a sawed off axe handle from beneath the table, turns to stand. Shea pulls his pistol so quick most don’t notice until the barrel is pressed beneath the dealer’s chin. SHEA Know what I’m doing here? Looking for a reason. You want to be my reason? DEALER No, I do not. SHEA Then sit down. Shea stands, walks to Melodi who stares at him like a snake. He leans close, his mouth to her ear, whispers -- SHEA (CONT’D) Helen. He pulls back, looks at her. SHEA (CONT’D) Didn’t work. Shea turns and walks out of the bar ... INT. ELSA’S HOTEL ROOM -- NIGHT. Elsa looks out the window onto the street, watches revelers laugh and stumble along the red brick road ... Sees A COUPLE walk hand in hand, then turn into an alley. The man presses the woman against the wall, devours her in a kiss. The woman tears at the buckle of his belt. The man yanks at the draw string of her dress, pries it open. Runs his hand against her breasts ... She tosses her head back and emits a moan so passioned, it almost sounds angry. She raises her leg and wraps it around his waist as he tears at the buttons of his pants, then thrusts himself inside her. Elsa watches, fascinated. She looks back -- checks that her brother is sleeping, then places her hands on the window and slowly pushes it up, allowing the woman’s moans inside.

38.

ELSA (V.O.) All I knew of sex was rumors. Stories traded among friends as we tried to imagine what that word really meant. Now I knew ...

As the woman’s moans grow louder, Elsa grows worried -- she closes the window, and watches them make love in silence ...

INT. JAMES AND MARGARET’S HOTEL ROOM -- NIGHT. James and Margaret sit in the tub, facing each other. She runs a straight razor across his cheeks. She shakes the razor clean in the water, then returns it to his face. MARGARET I’ve read a lot about Wyoming. JAMES DILLARD Not enough rain in the east, too much snow in the west. MARGARET So, no to Colorado, no to Wyoming. JAMES DILLARD Oregon. Washington. Plenty of rain. Not much snow. Cool summers and mild winters. MARGARET Sounds like a song. JAMES DILLARD To you it sounds like a song. James runs a hand over her neck, pulls her to him. MARGARET James ... JAMES DILLARD

You think I carried forty gallons of water up those stairs to get clean? I’m wooing you. MARGARET Ohh, you’re wooing me ... JAMES DILLARD Yes ma’am.

She kisses him.

39.

MARGARET Those water buckets sure looked heavy.

Kisses him again.

JAMES DILLARD

They were, honey. MARGARET Poor thing. She kisses him, presses her body into his, and they lose themselves in each other ... INT. ELSA’S HOTEL ROOM -- NIGHT. Elsa lays awake, staring at the ceiling. The sounds from the street now come from her parent’s room next door. But they are different sounds. Sounds more like joy than passion -- stifled giggles then silence. Then something like a moan ... ELSA (V.O.) So much I don’t know about life. We

learn to read, we learn rules, learn scripture and manners, and how to avoid saying or doing things that make others uncomfortable. All those things seem to be the opposite of life. Seem to strangle it. But now, I’m sleeping on the edge of civilization, and soon we leave the edge behind. Then no rules. Then only life. What an adventure. What an adventure for all of us ...

INT. HOTEL CALHOUN -- FORT WORTH, TEXAS -- NIGHT. Clock on the wall reads 3am as a man stumbles past it, stumbles into the wall, bounces off it and makes his way to the stairs. Teeters his way up them ... INT. HALLWAY -- HOTEL CALHOUN -- FORT WORTH, TEXAS -- NIGHT. Up the stairs, the man leans against the wall. Fishes out his room key, stumbles down the hall ... He is a big man, dirty beard, dirty everything ... Manages to stumble his way to his door. Puts the key in, turns. Key doesn’t turn ... Pulls it out, tries again.

40.

Key slides in but still doesn’t turn. Hmm. Man puts the key in one last time, twists -- nothing. The man then grabs the door knob and twists so hard the knob breaks. He pushes open the door, closes it behind him ... INT. ELSA’S HOTEL ROOM -- CONT. The drunk man starts pulling off clothes, stumbles toward the bed and lets his body fall on it. Elsa’s eyes open as she feels a new presence in the bed. She is frozen stiff. Doesn’t move. Looks to the floor beside her where Spencer sleeps on a blanket. Tries to stop her breathing. Listens -- Hears nothing but the big man breath in and out. Then a stir. His weight moves and it shifts her like a wave on open water. Then silence ... SLOWLY she turns her head around and sees -- The big man is staring right at her, as surprised as she is. He pulls back the blanket and sees the imprint of her body against her nightgown. His hand moves to her mouth, grips it tight -- no air can leave her much-less sound. He moves on top of her and she jabs her finger into his eye socket -- and doesn’t remove it until his hand releases her mouth. She leaps out of the bed, grabbing Spencer as she goes. She screams as she runs for the door, the big man now finding his feet and racing after her ... She races to the door, swings it open, and shoves Spencer through it. As she steps from the hotel room, a giant hand grabs her. ELSA NGHAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!! Her scream is more animal than human as the man wraps her in his arms and pulls her back in the room. She kicks and flails and slams her head into his face until his nose is bloody, then he tosses her to the ground. As she looks up, his fist thunders into her cheek, knocking her senseless ... She looks up from the floor as he looms over her. Then his head explodes and he disappears from her view ... She rolls to her stomach, gets to her knees and sees her father standing shirtless, pistol in his hand, arm outstretched.

41.

She runs to him and he pushes her into the hall. JAMES DILLARD GO TO OUR ROOM.

She runs to her mother’s arms and Margaret pulls her into the hotel room. James spins and faces the open doors of every room -- men poking out their doors, pistols in hand ... JAMES DILLARD (CONT’D) ANYBODY ELSE?! ANYBODY ELSE WANT TO COME AFTER MY FAMILY?!?!? Doors close as quickly as they opened. James leans into his hotel room, watches his wife cradle his terrified daughter. Watches his son rock back and forth, wailing for comfort -- and not understanding that he isn’t the one who needs it. James leans against the doorway and watches them, wondering what the hell he’d gotten his family into, knowing there was no way to get them out. They had no choice but to endure. Yes, what an adventure indeed ... EXT. STOCK YARDS -- MORNING. Shea and Thomas stand with the STOCK YARD MANAGER(50), looking over a corral filled with ox (bulls that were not castrated until adulthood, then trained to be draft animals, for those who don’t know ...) STOCK YARD MANAGER What the hell am I gonna do with these? SHEA Sell ‘em. STOCK YARD MANAGER To who? SHEA Farmers. STOCK YARD MANAGER

Farmers don’t use ox no more. They got these steam engines now that can pull a plow all day. All you gotta do is feed the furnace. SHEA Never seen one. And neither have you. Swap me even.

42.

STOCK YARD MANAGER

I’ll swap you for mules. SHEA We want horses. THOMAS These folks can’t handle mules. They’re real green. STOCK YARD MANAGER Green’s their problem. Not mine. SHEA I’ll take a mix, but it needs to be half horses. STOCK YARD MANAGER Alright. But don’t give me any lip about the horses -- they are what they are. They cowboys got all the good ones these days. Let’s see how much we can teach them first. I want to give them a chance. THOMAS Hey, it’s a job, Captain. And we took it. All I got’s my word and I’ll see it through, but half these folks ain’t gonna make it, and we both know it. It’s a free country and this is what they chose. We’re doing what we can, but we need to get moving or winter’s gonna kill us all. SHEA They aren’t ready. THOMAS They won’t ever be ready, Captain. SHEA Just ‘cuz they won’t survive doesn’t mean we don’t try.

Shea and Thomas walk back toward town. THOMAS When you want to pull out? SHEA

43.

THOMAS Never said it did.

INT. CONFERENCE ROOM -- PINKERTON DETECTIVE AGENCY -- DAY. Shea and Thomas stand in front of the emigrant families. In front of them is a table filled with taxidermied animals and dried plants. Josef stands beside them, translating everything they say. Shea holds a stuffed rattlesnake. Hands it to the crowd, who passes it around. SHEA

This is a rattlesnake. They hide under logs, under rocks -- if it’s cold at night they will look for warmth and if you are sleeping on the ground that warmth is you. A bite will kill you ... Shea grabs dried plants pressed in wax paper. SHEA (CONT’D)

This is poison oak and poison ivy. They won’t kill you, you’ll just wish you were dead. Do not touch them. Do not walk in them.

Shea looks at Thomas.

SHEA (CONT’D)

What else.

THOMAS

Water.

SHEA Do not drink water from the ground. When we make camp we will choose a latrine away from our water source.

Josef looks back.

JOSEF What is latrine. SHEA Rest room. Doesn’t know that either.

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