CONTINUED:

SMITH (CONT.)
Your father was convinced that the
gun knew not to fire on him. That,
somehow, the gun knew when it was
time for a person to die, and it
wouldn't fire unless it was
supposed to.

Anthony and Fred exchange a quick glance, and Tom puts his hand on Anthony's shoulder.

SMITH (CONT.)
And, you know, when your father got
home, your mother, God bless her,
told him she was pregnant with you,
Anthony. After that, your father
became more diplomatic, less
violent.

CAAN
Okay, I think that's enough for me
for one night. I think I'm going
to check out.

MARLEY
Yeah, that sounds like a good idea.

The two of them set their empty bottles on the floor and walk toward the door.

Suddenly, Fred grabs the gun out of Marley's hands and points it in Marley's face.

FRED
So, you're telling me that if I
pull this trigger right now, then
it will only go off if you are
supposed to die? I say we put that
to the test.

Shock waves run through the group, but before anyone can grab the gun from his hand, it goes off with a loud BANG, leaving a bloody stump where Smith's head was.

The room explodes with noise, everyone screaming and jumping away from the CORPSE as it slumps to the floor, gushing blood all over the floor.

Fred drops the gun to his side and slumps into a chair at the table.

Tom grabs Anthony and brings him in close so Marley and Caan can't hear.

TOM
Anthony, you need to get Marley and
Caan out of here before they do
something.

ANTHONY
(quickly)
Yeah, okay, all right. You're
right.

Anthony walks over to the two men.

ANTHONY (CONT.)
Can I talk to you out in the hall?

Marley and Caan silently nod their heads and follow Anthony into the hallway.

CUT TO:

INT. HALLWAY - CONTINUOUS

The three men step into a dirty hallway. Fake wood paneling lines the walls and a single light bulb dangles from the ceiling.

Anthony is clearly shaken by the shooting, but the other men are calm.

ANTHONY
Guys, I'm really sorry about,
about, about -

CAAN
About Freddy shooting Smith in the
face.

MARLEY
Yeah, Freddy shot Smith in the
face.

ANTHONY
Yeah, that. Look, I'll try to take
care of Freddy, but I want you guys
to know that that won't happen
again. I can't even begin -

CAAN
Anthony, Anthony, stop, will
you? It's okay. He was going to
die anyway.

Anthony steps backward slightly, taken aback by the statement.

ANTHONY
What . . . What are you talking
about?

MARLEY
He had cancer. He was going to die
in a month or two. He didn't want
to tell you, but he was going to
die.

CAAN
Actually, he probably would have
preferred to go out this way. He
was in a lot of pain, and he always
said he wanted to die by the sword.

MARLEY
And, Anthony, we want you to know,
that whatever it is that you plan
on doing with The Turk, we will
support you. We owe your father
that much.

CAAN
You just need to rein in that
brother of yours.

MARLEY
Before he gets out of control.

Anthony stares at the two men, not knowing what to say for a moment. Marley puts his hand on Anthony's shoulder.

MARLEY (CONT.)
You're in charge now, son. Take
charge.

Marley and Caan turn and walk down the hall, the floorboards CREAKING as they go.

Anthony stands in the hall for a moment, trying to assemble his thoughts.

ANTHONY
(to self)
He had cancer?

He opens the door and goes back inside.

CUT TO:

INT. THE HIDEOUT - CONTINUOUS

Tom is crouching in front of Fred, who is still staring off at nothing. Tom snaps his fingers in front of Fred's eyes.

Anthony walks over to Fred and takes the gun from his hand. The hand falls back down limp at his side.

Anthony takes the gun and wraps it in a TOWEL from the kitchen. He stows it in a cabinet.

ANTHONY (CONT.)
Tom, come here for a second.

Tom gets up and walks over to Anthony. They speak quietly so Fred can't hear them.

TOM
Tony, man, your brother's in bad
shape. You need to -

ANTHONY
Am I doing the right thing?

The two stare at each other for a second.

TOM
You mean with going after The Turk?

ANTHONY
Yeah.

Tom thinks for a moment. He sighs deeply.

TOM
Tony, whatever you want to do, I
will support you fully. I'm not a
hundred percent on open warfare
with The Turk, but I don't think
you can turn back easily now.

ANTHONY
So you think I should keep hitting
him?

TOM
Yeah. That's the only thing we can
do.

ANTHONY
I can always count on you,
Tom. Consigliere.

TOM
Thanks, Tony. Well, what about
Freddy?

They both look over at Fred, still catatonic. The headless Smith lies at his feet, the blood pool still growing.

ANTHONY
I got it.

He walks over to Fred and stands in front of him for a brief second. He smacks him, full force, across the face.

Fred snaps awake and almost falls out of the chair. He looks up at Anthony, clearly hurt.

FRED
Bro, I'm so sorry.

ANTHONY
Clean up your mess. If you want to
play with the big boys, then you'll
have to act like one.

FRED
Anthony, I'm so sorry. I -

ANTHONY
Stop apologizing and clean up your
mess. I'll see you at home.

Tom and Anthony walk out the door, leaving Fred alone, staring at the task in front of him.

ANTHONY (V.O.)
When Freddy was six, he poured hot
wax on our dog. I got over the
act, but not what he said.

Fred looks at the corpse, studying it intently. He laughs, but cuts himself off.

ANTHONY (V.O. CONT.)
He told me he wanted to watch it
suffer, he just wanted it to feel
pain.

The laugh comes up again, stronger.

Fred crouches next to the body and puts his hand on the
chest, as a priest would in giving the last rites to a dying man.

FRED
It was just your time, old
man. Nothing personal.

He laughs again, long and loud.

ANTHONY (V.O.)
There's no way to control a man
like that, no telling what he could
do.

FADE OUT.

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