(SIREN BLARING)
THE MAN: She shivers in the wind like the last leaf on a dying tree.
l let her hear my footsteps.
She only goes stiff for a moment.
Care for a smoke?
Sure. I'II take one.
Are you as bored by that crowd as I am?
I didn't come here for the party. I came here for you.
I've watched you for days.
You're everything a man couId ever want.
It's not just your face.
your figure. or your voice.
It's your eyes.
AII the things I see in your eyes.
What is it you see in my eyes?
I see a crazy caIm.
You're sick of running.
You're ready to face what you have to face.
But you don't want to face it aIone.
No.
I don't want to face it aIone.
The wind rises electric.
She's soff and warm and almost weightless.
Her perfume a sweet promise that brings tears to my eyes.
l tell her that everything will be all right.
That l'll save her from whatever she's scared of and take her far, far away.
l tell her l love her.
(GUN FIRING)
The silencer makes a whisper of the gunshot.
l hold her close until she's gone.
l'll never know what she was running from.
l'll cash her check in the morning.
HARTlGAN: Just one hour to go. My last day on the job.
Early retirement. Not my idea.
Doctor's orders. Heart condition .
"Angina" , he calls it.
l'm polishing my badge and getting myself used
to the idea of saying good-bye to it.
lt, and the 30-odd years of protecting and serving and tears
and the blood and terror and triumph it represents.
l'm thinking about Eileen's slow smile.
About the thick. fat steaks she picked up at the butcher's today.
And l'm thinking about the one loose end l haven't tied up.
A young girl who's out there somewhere.
helpless in the hands of a drooling lunatic.
Damn it. Hartigan. I won't Iet you do this.
You're gonna get yourseIf kiIIed.
You're gonna get us both kiIIed. I won't Iet you. I'm warning you.
Let go of my coat. Bob.
You're dragging me down with you.
I'm your partner. They can kiII me. too.
I ain't putting up with that.
I'm getting on the horn and caIIing for backup.
Sure. Bob. We'II just wait.
Sit on our hands whiIe that Roark brat
gets his sick thriIIs with victim number four.
Victim number four.
Nancy CaIIahan. age 1 1 .
And she'II be raped and sIashed to ribbons.
And that backup that we're waiting on wiII just so happen to show up
just Iate enough for Roark to get back to his US Senator daddy.
Take a deep breath. Hartigan.
SettIe down and think straight.
You're pushing 60 and you got a bum ticker.
You ain't saving anyone.
You got a great attitude. Bob.
ReaI credit to the force. you are.
EiIeen's at home waiting for you. Think about EiIeen.
Heck. Bob.
maybe you are right.
I'm gIad to hear you're finaIIy taIking sense.
HARTlGAN: Hell of a way to end a partnership.
Hell of a way to start my retirement.
Nancy Callahan, age 1 1 .
For all l know, she's dead already.
You've been a very good girI. Nancy.
You've been very quiet.
(NANCY WHIMPERS)
Don't be scared.
We're gonna be taking you home reaIIy soon.
But first. we're going to introduce you to somebody.
He's a very nice man.
HARTlGAN: Halfway to the warehouse where
weevil said they took her, and it hits.
wicked spot of indigestion .
At least that's what l pray it is.
(GRUNTS)
The briefest induIge-ment in automotive pIeasure.
For cheap thriIIs. Such short-Iived durabiIity. Mr. ShIubb.
You wouId risk engender-ating iII wiII on the part of our empIoyers.
HARTlGAN: Burt Shlubb and Douglas Klump,
two any-dirty-job-there-is thugs with delusions of eloquence.
This Jaguar you so pin-headedIy covet.
temporariIy remanded to our custody though it may be.
remains the property of the son of Senator Roark.
Gotta keep this quiet. Take them down fast.
A singIe dent. the merest scratch thereupon.
and the before mentioned consequences
of which I so recentIy made mention shaII sureIy be athwart us.
(CLANKS)
(HEAVY HEARTBEAT)
(GROANS)
Catch your breath. Give your heart time to slow down.
But it won't slow down.
Get over it.
She needs you.
We're aII done here. Benny.
Let's give them some time together. Give them some privacy.
Be with you in a minute. Lenny.
I'm just making sure they get aIong reaIIy weII.
And what kind of beast couIdn't get aIong
with a precious IittIe girI Iike this?
You must be awfuIIy scared now.
But you've got nothing to be scared of.
(NANCY WHIMPERS)
AII we're gonna do is have a nice IittIe taIk.
That's aII. Just a nice taIk. Just you and me.
(SOBBING)
Don't you cry now.
HARTlGAN: Doctor said it'd be like this.
Just take the pill he gave you .
(GRUNTS)
No need to play it quiet.
Not any more.
Breathe steady, old man . Prove you're not completely useless.
what the hell? Go out with a bang.
He likes to hear them scream.
l've seen his victims and their twisted little faces.
all wide-mouthed and bug-eyed,
frozen in their last horrible moment of living.
No screams.
Either l'm just in time, or l'm way too late.
(GRUNTS)
lt's nothing. Barely a flesh wound. On your feet, old man.
HARTIGAN: Roark. Give it up.
Let the girI go.
You can't do a goddamn thing to me. Hartigan.
You know who I am.
You know who my father is.
You can't touch me. you piece of shit cop.
Look at you. You can't even Iift that cannon you're carrying.
Sure. I can.
(SCREAMS)
Cover your eyes. Nancy. I don't want you watching this.
I mean it. baby. Cover your eyes right now.
HARTlGAN: l take his weapons away.
(SCREAMS)
Both of them.
(SHRIEKS)
(GROANS)
(NANCY SOBBING)
Hell of a way to end a partnership.
BOB: For God's sakes. don't make it any worse.
-Don't make me kiII you. -Doing fine. Bob.
Never better.
(ROARK GROANING)
I'm ready to kick your ass.
HARTlGAN: Keep him talking. Buy time.
Just a few more minutes. Just till the backup gets here.
Sit down and stay down. I'II kiII you if I have to.
Keep his mind off the girl, skinny little Nancy.
He can't kill her once the backup gets here.
Run home. Nancy. Run for your Iife.
Hey. Don't Iisten to him. He's a crazy man.
-What a tough man you are. huh? -You stay right where you're at.
You shoot your partner in the back then you try to scare a IittIe girI.
BOB: Maybe I'II puII my spare rod.
pIug you a coupIe of times. show you how it's done.
We couId've worked something out. but you've bIown that.
Sit down or I'II bIast you in haIf.
-You're so sIow. you'II never stop me. -Sit down.
You'II never be abIe to stop me.
(SCREAMS)
(SIRENS BLARING)
HARTlGAN: l finally sit down, just like you told me to.
The sirens are close now.
She'll be safe.
Things go dark. l don't mind much .
Getting sleepy. lt's okay.
She'll be safe.
An old man dies.
a little girl lives.
Fair trade.
MARV: The night is hot as hell.
lt's a lousy room in a lousy part of a lousy town .
l'm staring at a goddess.
She's telling me she wants me.
l'm not gonna waste one more second wondering how l've gotten so lucky.
I want you.
She smells like angels ought to smell.
The perfect woman .
The goddess.
I need you.
Goldie.
She says her name is Goldie.
Three hours later and my head is feeling several sizes too big.
And that cold thing happens to my stomach .
And l realize Goldie's dead. Not a mark on her.
You'd have to check her pulse or notice those perfect breasts of hers
aren't moving like they would if she was breathing.
She was murdered and l was right here when it happened.
Lying next to her, stone drunk, just like she was.
Damn it, Goldie. Who were you and who wanted you dead?
Who were you besides an angel of mercy,
giving a two-time loser like me the night of his life?
lt sure as hell wasn't my looks.
So why the sleazy saloon?
why the kindness, Goldie?
(SIRENS BLARING)
The cops, they're telling me too much ,
showing up before anybody but me and the killer
could know there's been a murder.
Somebody paid good money for this frame.
No reason at all to play it quiet.
No reason to play it any way but my way.
Whoever killed you is gonna pay, Goldie.
(BANGING ON DOOR)
POLICEMAN: Open up. poIice!
I'II be right out.
(GUNS FIRING)
(SIRENS BLARING)
l don't know why you died, Goldie.
l don't know why and l don't know how l never even met you before tonight,
but you were a friend and more when l needed one.
And when l find out who did it.
it won't be quick and quiet like it was with you .
lt'll be loud and nasty, my kind of kill.
And when his eyes go dead, the hell l send him to
will seem like heaven after what l've done to him.
l love you, Goldie.
(SIRENS WAILING)
(HELICOPTER WHIRRING)
(SIRENS BLARING)
(LATCH SQUEAKS)
CIaire?
Now. don't worry. LuciIIe. I was just grazed.
-You got any beers around this pIace? -No way am I giving you any aIcohoI.
Besides. it's not what you came here for anyway. is it?
No.
Go ahead. You're worse without them.
Thanks. You're the best.
MARV: Lucille's my parole officer.
She's a dyke, but God knows why.
With that body of hers she could have any man she wants.
The pills come from a girlfriend who's a shrink.
She tried to analyze me once but she got too scared.
Haven't seen you Iike this in a whiIe.
Got in a fight with some cops.
Didn't happen to kiII any of them. did you?
Not that I know of.
But they know they've been in a fight. that's for damn sure.
How the heII do you suppose I'm gonna square this with the board?
There ain't no squaring it. Not this time.
This isn't some barroom brawI.
Or some creep with a gas can trying to torch someone.
Hey. hey. This is big.
-SettIe down. Marv. Take another piII. -Hey. there ain't no settIing down !
This is bIood for bIood. and by the gaIIons.
This is the oId days and the bad days. the aII-or-nothing days.
They're back. There's no choices Ieft.
And I'm ready for war.
Prison was heII for you. Marv. It's gonna be Iife this time.
HeII's waking up every goddamn day and not even knowing why you're here.
But I'm out now.
It took somebody who was kind to me getting kiIIed to do it.
But I'm out. I know exactIy what I gotta do.
MARV: So you were scared, weren't you, Goldie?
Somebody wanted you dead and you knew it.
So you hit the saloons, the bad places,
looking for the biggest, meanest lug around and finding me.
Well, l'm gonna find that son of a bitch that killed you ,
and l'm gonna give him the hard good-bye.
walk down the right back alley in Sin City. . .
Leave your hands off Nancy.
. . .and you could find anything.
That coat Iooks Iike Baghdad.
So does your face. Take off!
(YELLING)
He's new here. Marv. He didn't know.
Kadie's is my kind of joint.
Nancy's just getting started with her gig,
but already the crowd's breathing hard.
Plenty of nights l've drooled over Nancy,
shoulder to shoulder with all the other losers like me.
But that's not what l'm looking for tonight.
What'II it be. Marv?
A shot and a brew. SheIIie. and keep them coming.
Sure. honey. You take it sIow. now.
DWlGHT: Most people think Marv is crazy.
He just had the rotten luck of being born in the wrong century.
He'd be right at home on some ancient battlefield.
swinging an axe into somebody's face.
Or in a Roman arena
taking a sword to other gladiators like him.
They'd have tossed him girls like Nancy back then .
Show's over. dickwad. Drink up.
Now. that's one fine-Iooking coat you're wearing there.
Your kiIIing days are over.
you over-the-hiII. do-gooder son of a bitch.
l love hit men . No matter what you do to them, you don't feel bad.
-Take it off. -What?
A fine coat Iike that. and you're bIeeding aII over it.
AII right. it's aII yours. Oh. God !
It wasn't you Iosers who kiIIed GoIdie.
The guy who did that. he knew what he was doing.
So teII me. man. Who sent you?
I don't hear you giving me any names.
So I guess when I shot you in the beIIy I aimed a IittIe too high.
(SCREAMS)
MARV: You keep holding out on me like this,
and l'm gonna have to get really nasty.
It was TeIIy. . . TeIIy Stern passed me the order.
He runs the tabIes over to the TripIe Ace CIub.
Thanks again.
(GUN FIRING)
MARV: Then the damnedest thing happens.
For a second, l smell the angel smell that belonged to my Goldie.
Just need my medicine, is all.
Bastard.
You're gonna pay for what you did to me.
FeeI Iike taIking. Louie?
How many got paid off for the frame. Louie?
How many for the kiII?
It was ConneIIy. He set me up.
He'II never taIk.
I don't know about you. but I'm having a baII.
MARV: Connelly talks. They all talk.
(BELL CLANGS)
PRIEST: And what have been your sins. my son?
MARV: WeII. Padre. I don't want to keep you up aII night.
so I'II just fiII you in on the Iatest batch.
These here hands of mine. they got bIood aII over them.
You're speaking figurativeIy.
When I need to find something out. I just go out and Iook for somebody
that knows more than me. and I go and I ask them.
Sometimes. I ask pretty hard.
By way of a for instance. I kiIIed three men tonight.
Tortured them first.
You might say I been working my way up the food chain.
First two were minnows. smaII-time messengers.
But it was ConneIIy. the money man. who fingered you. Padre.
(WHISPERING) Dear Lord. man. this is a house of God.
Just give me a damn name.
Roark.
You reaIIy are pushing your Iuck. Padre.
feeding me garbage Iike that.
It can't be that big.
There's a farm at North Cross and Lennox.
It's aII there. Find out for yourseIf.
And whiIe you're at it.
ask yourseIf if that corpse of a sIut is worth dying for.
MARV: Worth dying for.
Worth kiIIing for.
Worth going to heII for.
Amen.
MARV: His keys say the padre drove a Mercedes,
or at least that's what they're passing off as a Mercedes these days.
Modern cars. they all look like electric shavers.
(ENGINE ACCELERATING)
(TIRES SCREECHING)
GoIdie.
GoIdie!
(GRUNTS)
MARV: lt couldn't be Goldie.
lt's my own fault, and nobody else's, that l got confused.
l've been having so much fun l forgot to take my medicine.
That wasn't Goldie back there.
Goldie's dead.
and that's the whole reason that l've been doing what l've been doing.
When you got a condition , it's bad to forget your medicine.
The cold thing,
it creeps into my gut and tells me one more time it won't let go.
This is a bad place, this farm.
People have died here,
(DOG GROWLING)
the wrong way.
I don't want to fight. pooch.
I got no gripe with you.
Easy. boy.
(DOG WHIMPERS)
No way l was gonna use my gun on you , buddy.
lt's whoever owns you l'm curious about.
because there's blood on your breath , and l think l know what kind.
So l sniff around to see what's buried.
Here we go.
lt's impossible. Nobody can sneak up on me.
l go blind. Not a sound. Nobody's that quiet.
Nobody except the one who snuck into that hotel room two nights ago.
It was you. you bastard. You kiIIed her.
You kiIIed GoIdie.
It was. . .
l blew it. Goldie.
l found your killer, but he was better than me.
Too quiet, too quick.
A killer born.
why didn't he finish the job?
He keeps the heads. He eats the rest.
-LuciIIe? -It's not just that woIf of his.
The woIf just gets scraps.
Bones.
It's him.
He eats peopIe.
-He cooks them Iike they were steaks. -Let's get you warm.
Just Iike they were steaks.
Now he's got both of us.
It's aII right. Take a nice. sIow breath.
Just Iook at the heads on the waII.
The heads on the waII.
Son of a bitch ! He kept smiIing that damned smiIe.
He made me watch him suck the meat off my fingers.
-He made me watch. -Oh. Jesus.
He made me watch !
Christ. I couId use a cigarette.
MARV: Dames. Sometimes all they gotta do is let it out.
And a few buckets later. there's no way you'd know.
You've brought us some big troubIe this time. Marv.
Whoever's behind this whoIe thing
has his connections right in the department.
Any Ieads?
One guy I taIked to toId me it was Roark running the show.
Whoever it is. he knew I was checking out
that hooker aImost before I did.
-What hooker? -The one you've been obsessing over.
The dead one.
GoIdie.
I didn't know she was a hooker.
Doesn't make any difference about anything.
-But I didn't know that. -She was high-cIass stuff.
She must have shown you quite a time.
Quiet. There's a car coming.
(CAR APPROACHING)
MAN: Kevin.
MARV: All l've got is a face and a name.
I'II see you Iater. Kevin.
(EXHALES)
Let's go.
They're done checking the house.
They're coming this way.
Bastards. I'II show them.
You're not gonna get either of us kiIIed. Marv.
No. don't shoot. PIease.
Listen to me. I'm his paroIe officer.
He's unconscious and unarmed.
so there's no need to kiII him.
Captain. the target. there's no sign of him.
Here's a sign.
That there is one damn fine coat you're wearing.
MARV: l keep coming back to that cop l just killed and what he told me.
l was pretty steamed about what he'd done to Lucille.
so l took my time with that son of a bitch.
lt wasn't till l showed him all those pieces of himself that he said it.
Just a name. Patrick Henry Roark, man of the cloth .
Could've become president, but he chose to serve God.
Along the way, he just happened to become
the most powerful man in the state.
He's brought down mayors and governors like they were nothing.
He even made his rotten brother a US senator without breaking a sweat.
And here he's gonna get killed in the name of a dead hooker.
l'm getting used to the idea.
More and more. l'm liking the sound of it.
Then it hits me like a kick in the nuts.
what if l'm wrong?
l've got a condition .
l get confused sometimes.
And with Lucille dead. l can't get my medicine.
what if l've imagined all of this?
what if l've finally turned into what
they've always said l was gonna turn into?
A maniac.
A psycho killer.
Can't kill a man without knowing for sure you ought to.
l've gotta know for sure.
The merchandise is on display
by the time l make my way to Old Town.
For an hour or so. l asked around about Goldie.
l don't get any answers, but l know l'm bound to.
Lucille said Goldie was a hooker.
and if she was. she has roots here.
friends, maybe even family.
(GROANS)
You can't be GoIdie. GoIdie's dead.
GoIdie. Yeah. sure. right.
I haven't eaten anything or taken my medicine for days now.
No wonder I'm seeing things.
Bastard.
(MARV LAUGHING)
He's crazy.
Hit him again. Wendy. Harder.
Wait a minute. Why did she caII you Wendy?
Because that's my name. you ape.
GoIdie was my sister. My twin sister.
I guess she was the nice one.
GoIdie and the other six. where are they?
What did you do to them?
You crazy goddamn broad.
Just take a Iook at this mug.
WouId any of you dames Iet me get cIose enough to you to kiII you?
None of you wouId. but GoIdie.
And she onIy did because she thought I couId protect her.
And I'II bet those cops didn't do a damn thing about those other girIs. did they?
But as soon as they had me for a faII guy.
they showed up. guns bIazing.
But they didn't get me.
and I've been kiIIing my way to the truth ever since.
So. go ahead. doII.
Shoot me now. or get the heII out of my way.
Aw. nuts.
Okay. I'm gIad we got aII that sorted out.
-What the heII? -I tied those knots. That's my speciaIty.
You sat there and took it.
when you couId've taken my gun away from me any time you wanted to.
WeII. sure. I thought I might be abIe to taIk some sense into you.
And I probabIy wouId have had to paste you one.
and I don't hurt girIs.
I need a pair of handcuffs.
What styIe do you want? I got a coIIection.
Just give him the ones you got with you. GaiI.
It was a farm boy named Kevin who kiIIed GoIdie.
but it was CardinaI Roark who was behind it. and I don't know why.
I know that sounds crazy.
No. it doesn't. GoIdie worked the cIergy.
MARV: Just like that, a whopper of a puzzle piece falls smack in my lap.
l'm too dumb to put the whole picture together yet,
but she fires up two cigarettes and hands me one.
and l taste her lipstick on it.
And suddenly, my heart's pounding so loud l can't hear anything else.
l want to reach over and touch her
and taste Goldie's sweat one more time.
But she isn't Goldie.
Yeah , yeah . This'll do.
I'm aIso gonna be needing a dozen two-foot Iengths of this rubber tubing
and a spooI of razor wire
and a pair of those speciaI gIoves that'II Iet me handIe the wire.
MAN: Beefing up the oId home security. huh?
MARV: You can bet your ass.
WENDY: She was my sister. so I'm in this one to the end.
But why are you wiIIing to go up against Roark
for someone you bareIy knew?
She was nice to me. gave me something I didn't even know existed.
I wasn't never even abIe to buy a woman.
You know. the way I Iook.
MARV: l take my mind off her and l crawl back inside myself.
lt's almost killing time, and l'd better get sharp.
l check the list. rubber tubing, gas, saw,
gloves, cuffs, razor wire, hatchet,
Gladys and my mitts.
-We're cIose enough. PuII over. -Yes. Marv.
Keep the engine running.
If I'm not back in 20 minutes. you get the heII outta here and don't Iook back.
KiII him for me. Marv.
KiII him good.
I won't Iet you down. GoIdie.
Heading downstairs to the kitchen .
Getting himself a midnight snack, and l can guess what kind.
Come on. you son of a bitch.
Damn . he's slick.
(YELLS)
Is that the best you can do. creep?
That's right. Get personal, get close. l can take it.
I got you. you IittIe bastard. Let's see you hop around now.
l try to slow my heart down and breathe the fire out of my lungs.
My muscles make me a thousand promises of pain to come.
Let me do it. Marv. She was my sister. Let me finish him.
You wasn't supposed to come down here. Wendy.
Oh. but I want to. . .
l'm sorry, kid, but l haven't even started with this creep,
and l don't want you watching the rest. lt'll give you nightmares.
MARV: God. I gotta teII you. I'm good and bushed.
And it's not that fight of ours that did me in. either.
It's aII that sawing and tying.
It's not as easy as it Iooks.
CouId have been a reaI mess around here
if I didn't have that tubing for tourniquets.
I gotta admit. there was a spurt or two.
to get the scent in the air.
to get that friend of yours to come running.
WeII. what do you know?
Look who's here.
Here he comes.
(GROWLING)
That's a good dog.
He doesn't scream. not even when the mutt's had its fill
and Kevin's guts are lying all over the place.
Somehow the bastard is still alive. still staring at me.
Not even when l grab the saw and finish the job.
He never screams.
l put in a call to Kadie's and ask Nancy to get her clothes on
and meet me at her place. She says, "Yes" , like always.
Hey. Nancy. you got any beers?
Sure. Marv. Who's the babe?
There isn't much of anything Nancy wouldn't do for me.
Not since a year back when a frat boy roughed her up
and l straightened him out but good.
lt really gets my goat when guys rough up dames.
So. what do you want me to do with her?
WeII. your best bet is drive her aII the way up to Sacred Oaks.
What about you? Are you Ieaving town?
HeII. no. I Iike it here.
(BELCHES)
l hot-wire a parked cab and stay under the speed limit
so as not to get any attention .
My head starts to clear. Things start to make sense.
l owe you, Goldie.
l owe you one and l'm gonna pay up.
So, if going after Roark means dying, win or lose,
hell, l'll die laughing if l know l've done this one thing right.
Quiet as a grave out here. No sign of target.
MAN ON RADlO: All right, keep a lookout.
-Kevin? -What's Ieft of him. anyways.
The dog ate the rest.
Oh. my God. You monster.
You demon.
Don't scream or I'II pIug you.
He had the voice of an angeI. yet he spoke onIy to me.
And he's dead now because of one stupid whore.
It's not a reaI good idea for you to taIk about GoIdie that way whiIe I'm around.
When he came to me
he was a tormented boy.
Tormented by guiIt.
I tried to counseI him.
But the eating. it fiIIed him with white Iight.
TearfuI. he swore to me that he feIt the touch of God AImighty.
What the heII do you know?
I know it's pretty damn weird to eat peopIe.
He didn't just eat their bodies.
he ate their souIs.
And I joined in.
They were aII whores.
Nobody cared for them. Nobody missed them.
And then your GoIdie aImost ruined everything.
She stayed in public places.
And then with you .
You were so convenient.
You'd broke a man's jaw that very night.
Who wouId beIieve a thug Iike you?
Kevin killed her.
l ordered the police in for you , but you wouldn't be caught.
You wouldn't stop.
And now he's dead and you're here to
eIiminate me.
WiII that give you satisfaction. my son?
KiIIing a heIpIess oId fart?
The kiIIing. no.
No satisfaction.
Everything up untiI the kiIIing wiII be a gas.
Kevin.
we're going home.
You can scream now if you want to.
lt's beautiful. Goldie. lt's just like l promised, only better.
And when his eyes go dead,
the hell l sent him to must seem like heaven after what l've done to him.
MAN 1 : Freeze! MAN 2: Oh. my God !
(MARV GROANS)
MARV: Jerks.
They should've shot me in the head, and enough times to make sure.
lt's so stupid.
Everybody knows what's coming,
but they go through the motions anyway.
what a waste of time.
Months fall off the calendar while l breathe and eat through tubes.
Night after night, l wait for somebody to come and finish me off.
After a while. l realize it's not gonna be so easy as that.
l'm on my feet for about 1 0 minutes
before the cops kick them out from under me.
They don't ask me any questions.
They just keep knocking the crap out of me
and waving a confession in my face.
And l keep spitting blood all over it
and laughing at how many fresh copies they come up with .
Then along comes this worm
assistant district attorney who turns the recorder off
and says if l don't sign their confession , they'll kill my mom.
l break his arm in three places and l sign it.
From then on . it's the circus everybody wants it to be.
They nail me for the works, not just the people l did kill,
but even Lucille and the girls that Roark and Kevin ate.
and even Goldie.
The judge is all fire and brimstone when she hands down the sentence.
Midnight and my death are only a few hours away,
when l get my first surprise in 1 8 months.
My only visitor.
l'm ready for anything but that scent.
I got them for you good. didn't I. GoIdie?
I'm sorry. Wendy. I got confused again.
Just seeing you Iike this.
You can caII me GoIdie.
She smells like angels ought to smell.
The perfect woman .
The goddess.
Goldie.
She says her name is Goldie.
They fix me a pretty decent steak for my last meal.
They even throw in a brew.
lt's the first l've had since back at Nancy's.
Then they shave my head and fix me with a rubber diaper and get to it.
And it's about damned time. if you ask me.
"Yea. though I waIk through the vaIIey of the shadow of death. . ."
WouId you get a move on? I haven't got aII night.
You heard the man. Hit it.
(STATIC CRACKLING)
Is that the best you can do. you pansies?
He's gone.
(KNOCK ON DOOR)
Forget it. man.
You can bang on that door aII night if you want to.
There is no way in heII I'm Ietting you in.
I can't beIieve you're doing this to me. SheIIie.
Everything we've shared. it has to mean something to you.
It meant pIenty.
PIenty of Iost pay on account of how nobody wants to fIirt with a waitress
whose face is aII purpIe and swoIIen up with bruises.
I know you're angry. baby.
And I forgive you for that without you even asking me to.
There's a difference between getting honked off
at a guy who's generaIIy not so bad.
and finding out that you've been sweet-taIked by a totaI jerk Ioser
who skips out on a wife that he doesn't even teII you about
every time he gets drunk. which is way too often.
EspeciaIIy the kind of totaI jerk Ioser
who has to beat up on a girI to make himseIf feeI Iike a man.
That hurt. SheIIie.
It's one thing for you to pIay hard to get.
but don't go trying to cut my nuts off.
I am impossibIe to get.
Do yourseIf a favor. Jackie Boy. and get heIp. Iike a shrink.
Get heIp and get Iost.
Just open the door.
Go ahead and open the door. SheIIie. I'II take care of this.
Just open the door and you'II see how wrong you've been about me.
ObIige him. SheIIie. I'm ready for him.
No! If he knew that you were here with me.
you don't know how bad this couId get.
This cIown's got a big. mean drunk on.
And he's got four friends out there in the haII.
breathing hard and just as drunk as he is.
Hey. I couId swear I heard somebody in there with you just now.
Somebody! Jackie Boy. it's a reguIar African Iove fest in here.
-I'm no racist. -I mean. I got me aII five starters.
and haIf the bench of the Basin City BIues keeping me company.
You feeI Iike taking them on?
JACKIE BOY: You are teasing me. baby.
Some of my best friends. . .
But you're reaIIy pushing my buttons.
And the whoIe time you've been doing me Iike this.
I've been too poIite to point out that at any time I want to.
I couId kick this damn door to spIinters.
Okay. baby. you know what I can do.
-You know what I can do. One. two. . . -AII right. then.
AII right. AII right. aII right.
Troops. make yourseIf at home.
You brought your whoIe pack with you?
None of these bozos got Iives. they gotta hang out with you?
You're gonna Iove this. baby.
You're gonna caII up some of your friends who work in the saIoon.
With you and the bunch of us. we're gonna hit every joint in town.
and it's gonna be great.
I ain't caIIing up nobody.
That's a man's shirt. and I'm sure as heII it ain't one of mine.
You got somebody's Iove stink aII over you.
You've been with another man and you've been with him tonight.
-Who is he? -He's Superman.
He fIew out the window just as soon as he heard you were coming.
'cause you scared him so bad.
JACKIE BOY: You think I have no feeIings at aII.
SHELLIE: If you're gonna sIug me.
just go ahead and get it over with. you sick bastard.
JACKIE BOY: There you go. Iying about me again.
right in front of my friends.
I have never hit a woman in my Iife.
(MAN LAUGHING)
That's showing her. man.
You goddamn bastard. You goddamn coward.
Baby. we're aII here to have a good time.
Yeah.
I gotta take a Ieak.
Wish you'd dropped by earIier. Jackie Boy.
Then you couId've met my boyfriend.
CouId've seen what a reaI man Iooks Iike.
There you go. after my nuts again.
But I forgive you.
I'm a generous guy.
He is generous. But that temper of his. . .
You never shouId have picked on him Iike you did.
My temper you don't have to worry about.
Shut up and keep your hands to yourseIf
or I'II cut your IittIe pecker off.
Oh. I've been toId.
Hey. baby. I don't hear you making those caIIs.
Answer me.
Oh. I don't need this grief.
Hi. I'm SheIIie's new boyfriend and I'm out of my mind.
You ever so much as taIk to SheIIie again.
you even think her name.
and I'II cut you in ways that'II make you useIess to a woman.
You're making a big mistake. man. A big mistake.
Yeah?
You aIready made a big mistake yourseIf.
You didn't fIush.
(MUFFLED SCREAM)
(BELCHES)
Troops. get outta here.
No questions. damn it. No questions.
Now!
(GUN FIRING)
(SIREN BLARING)
(HELICOPTER WHIRRING)
Dwight. what in the deviI did you do to him?
I just gave him a taste of his own medicine.
I don't think he'II be bothering you again.
-How's your jaw? -I've been sIapped around worse.
Dwight. he was from a whiIe back.
before you showed up again with that new face of yours.
And it was onIy 'cause I feIt sorry for him.
And it was onIy once.
I've done some dumb things.
Seeing as how I'm one of those dumb things.
I can't give you too hard a time about that. SheIIie.
But this guy. he's a menace.
He might kiII somebody if I don't stop him.
I'II caII you Iater.
No. don't go.
DWlGHT: Shellie shouts something l can't quite make out
over the racket of a passing police 'copter.
Stop!
lt sounds like "stop" , but l can't be sure.
lt's a chance l shouldn't be taking,
but l can't just go home and forget about it,
and let Jackie Boy and his pals find their fun .
They're a pack of predators
and they're out for blood tonight, a woman's blood.
Damn it. Dwight. Damn it.
You fooI.
You damned fooI.
l cut my Caddy across the park
to pick up Jackie Boy heading like a bat outta hell up the hill.
l'm speeding.
That's a good way to get yourself noticed.
And if you're a murderer with a new face
who's one fingerprint check away
from the fast track to the gas chamber like l am,
the last thing you want is to get noticed.
(SIREN WAILING)
l don't have nearly enough cash on me to bribe this cop, and even if l did,
there's always the outside chance he's one of the honest ones.
Do l try to talk my way out of this,
or do l take this cop down and risk it all?
Then Jackie Boy saves me a great, big, steaming pile of trouble.
Watch it. Jack.
Cops. They're right on our ass.
Not for Iong. Not where we're headed.
My gut tightens up.
Jackie Boy's leading us straight to Old Town.
The cop shuts off his siren .
He knows he's not the law. not in Old Town.
The ladies are the law here. beautiful and merciless.
lf you've got the cash and you play by the rules,
they'll make all your dreams come true.
But if you cross them, you're a corpse.
Hey. baby. Hey. baby.
Hop in. sugar. We'II get you there.
Sweetheart. I work the day shift and it's been a Iong day.
Besides. I don't do group jobs.
Get in the car. baby. We'II just taIk. It'II be nice.
I don't do taIk jobs. either.
BabydoII. I've had me one heII of a bad day.
I've been beat up every time I turn around.
But the day I get turned down by a hooker
when I got good. hard-earned cash to pay her with.
WeII. there's onIy so much a man can take.
Go try the AIamo over on DiIIon Street.
That's the AIamo. not the Amigo.
The Amigo's a fag joint.
Are you having a good time humiIiating me
Iike this for no damn reason at aII?
GAIL: That's far enough. Dwight.
We've been on top of these peckerwoods
since they first showed up with that cop behind them.
Everything's under controI.
Enjoy the show.
DWlGHT: There's no use arguing with her.
The ladies are their own enforcers.
So. how's the barmaid?
You know. the one that never shuts up?
Not right now. GaiI.
Wound up a IittIe tight. aren't we?
That's your whoIe probIem. Dwight. You worry too much.
That. and your Iousy taste in women. These days. anyway.
Damn it. GaiI. Not right now.
Those cIowns down the way. they some of the barmaid's boyfriends?
One of them thinks he is.
He's outta controI.
I foIIowed him here to make sure he didn't hurt any of the girIs.
Us heIpIess IittIe girIs.
All kinds of death is about to hit less than 20 yards ahead of us,
and still it's hard to take my eyes off her.
Us girIs are safe as we can be. LanceIot.
Those boys in that ChrysIer are one mistake away
from seeing what Miho can do.
And she's been aching for some practice.
She guides my glance upwards to the pixie perched on the roof's edge.
Deadly little Miho.
BECKY: You're running out of aIIey. cowboy.
Turn around. Save yourseIf and your buddies a ton of grief.
JACKIE BOY: You're a sassy IittIe thing.
You ain't hardIy in any kind of position to be making threats.
The trap is set, locked and ready to spring.
So what? They're scum. They deserve what's coming.
So why this rotten feeling in my gut that something is awfully wrong?
They haven't kiIIed anybody I know about.
It got pretty bad at SheIIie's pIace. but they didn't kiII anybody.
And they won't.
why this rotten feeling?
Something Shellie said. l can't place it.
Okay. okay. okay. I sounded off a IittIe more than I shouId have.
-I'm a IittIe on edge. -Over the edge.
It's not a woman you need. It's a good night's sIeep.
You couIdn't handIe a woman. the state you're in.
She's saying you ain't got what it takes. Jack.
You wanna see it?
You wanna see what I got?
I've seen aII shapes. aII sizes.
You seen this one?
Get in the car.
Sugar. you just gone and done the dumbest thing in your whoIe Iife.
Oh. God. no.
This is crazy.
Out of nowhere. for no reason at aII.
Go ahead.
Go ahead. Go ahead.
-He's got the drop on her. -He's got squat.
He's dead. He's just too damn dumb to know it.
I got you right where I want you.
This is a career-ending wound. whore.
-And there's gonna be heII to pay. -Watch your step. Jackie Boy.
Yeesh.
This isn't funny.
Don't anyone Iaugh. I got friends you can't imagine.
Every one of you is gonna burn.
DWIGHT: Hang it up. She's just pIaying with you.
-You're onIy making it worse. -You shut the heII up.
Don't puII the trigger. She bIocked the barreI. It'II backfire.
I toId you to shut up.
I can't see.
What's happening?
I can't see.
I can't hear anything.
For God's sake. Miho. finish him.
Yeah. Make it quick. wiII you?
She doesn't quite chop his head off.
She makes a Pez dispenser out of him.
Then it's straight to business,
stretching the corpses out on the alley floor
and going through their pockets, divvying up cash when they find it.
l'm fishing around in Jackie Boy's pants.
His wallet is packed.
MasterCard. Discover. Platinum American Express,
and nearly 300 bucks worth of twenties
that l'm not too proud to stuff into my own pockets.
Then l find an atom bomb.
Jackie Boy,
you son of a bitch .
There was a helicopter that kicked up such a racket,
l couldn't quite make out what she said.
l thought Shellie said "Stop."
She said "Cop" .
Detective Lieutenant Jack Rafferty.
lron Jack, the papers call him.
A goddamn hero cop.
lt's held for years, the shaky truce.
The cops get a slice of the profits
and free entertainment when they throw a party.
The girls get to administer their own brand of justice.
They get to defend their own turf.
lf a cop blunders into the neighborhood
and he's not shopping for what the girls are selling,
they send him packing, but they send him back alive.
That's the rules.
That's the truce.
The cops stay out.
That keeps the girls free to keep the pimps and the mob out.
Old Town will be left wide open.
lt'll be war.
The streets will run red with blood.
women's blood.
The cops. The mob.
Things are gonna go back to the way they used to be.
The heII they wiII. We got guns.
We'II fight the cops and the mob
and anybody eIse who tries to move in on us.
-We'II go to war. -DWIGHT: Don't be stupid. GaiI.
You wouIdn't stand a chance. Get me a car.
Make sure it's a hardtop with a decent engine.
I'II hide the bodies.
Did you forget that cop car that traiIed them here?
The cops know Rafferty came here.
They'II check the river. they'II check the sewer.
They'II find him and they'II come gunning for us.
I'II hauI the bodies to the pits. The cops won't check the pits.
Get that gun out of my face or I'II smack you.
Who do you think you are. giving orders?
-You got what you wanted out of us. -Shut up. GaiI.
You got what you wanted out of me.
And you were gone. off pIaying with that barmaid.
Gone untiI you brought this unhoIy mess on us.
Miho moves to my back.
One word from Gail and she'll cut me in half.
They'II be watching the roads. They'II catch you.
It'II be the bad oId days aII over again.
The pimps. the beatings. the drugs. the rapes.
They won't be watching the roads. Not yet. they won't.
Get me a damn hardtop.
If I don't make it. you can have your war.
Get that gun out of my face now.
(YELLS)
Bastard !
I forgot how quick you are.
My warrior woman .
She almost yanks my head clean off,
shoving my mouth into hers so hard it hurts.
An explosion that blasts away the dull, gray years
between the now and that one fiery night when she was mine.
A hardtop with a decent engine.
And make sure it's got a big trunk.
I'II aIways Iove you. baby.
AIways and never.
Where'd you find that heap?
Just Iook at that trunk. We'II never fit them aII in.
GaiI? UnIess there's something eIse you want me to do.
you think maybe I couId go home?
AII this bIood and stuff's got me kind of feeIing Iike maybe I'm gonna hurI.
Sure. Becky. go home.
But don't you taIk to anybody. not even your mom.
They'II never fit in that trunk.
Not Iike this. they won't. Miho.
Dry your hair as soon as you get home.
You'II catch coId if you don't.
Yeesh.
Hey. Becky. GaiI said no caIIs.
I just want to hear my mom's voice. I won't teII her nothing.
PIease. don't say nothing to GaiI.
Hey. Mom?
DWlGHT: Dizzy dames.
what were they thinking,
sticking me with a beat-up bucket of bolts like this?
we were barely able to get the trunk to stay closed as it was,
we packed it so tight.
There wasn't anything we could do but pile Jackie Boy in right next to me,
out where anybody who cares to look will see him.
Go ahead, take one of his cigarettes.
lt'll help.
It's got you smoking there. bud.
You shut the heII up. Jackie Boy.
You're dead.
I'm just imagining this. so shut the heII up.
WeII. it teIIs you something about your state of mind. don't it?
It's got you hearing things.
It's got your nerves shot.
It's got you smoking.
You know it's true.
Nobody ever reaIIy quits.
A smoker's a smoker when the chips are down.
-And your chips are down. -I'm fine. You shut the heII up.
WiII you Iook at that?
Those hookers Iet you down.
What are you gonna do when you run outta gas. caII AAA?
You sucker for the babes. you.
You ain't even gonna make it to the pits.
You shut the heII up. I'II make it.
Not unIess you keep your eyes on the road. sugar pie.
Watch it!
This is great.
Just Iike being in a buddy movie.
Shut up!
(CHUCKLES)
(SIREN BLARING)
Boy. you're screwed.
It's over.
You're fIushed.
This time. I can't bring myseIf to teII him to shut up.
Sure. he's an asshoIe.
Sure. he's dead.
Sure. I'm just imagining that he's taIking.
None of that stops the bastard from being absoIuteIy right.
I don't have a chance in heII of outrunning this cop.
Not in this heap.
PuII over.
The onIy question Ieft is whether I'm gonna kiII him or not.
Tough caII.
For aII I know. he's an honest cop. reguIar guy.
a working stiff with a mortgage. a wife and a piIe of kids.
My hand moves aII on its own.
sIiding one of my guns to my Iap and thumbing back the hammer.
I don't know what to do.
You better stop. You're making him mad.
Whatever you say.
(TIRES SCREECHING)
Your friend here. party a IittIe too hard tonight?
I'm the designated driver.
You're driving with a busted taiI Iight.
I'II Iet you off with a warning.
What next?
(GRUNTS)
DWlGHT: The tank goes dry a quarter mile from the pits.
l shove the T-Bird the rest of the way.
A few minutes' more work and it'll all be over.
Jackie Boy will go into the damn tar pits,
l'll catch a train out of Sacred Oaks. go home and call it a. . .
(GUN FIRING)
No more questions. DaIIas. Do what I say.
CLEAR THE STREETS. WE'RE IN LOCKDOWN.
We're not seIIing any taiI in OId Town.
Not tonight.
(GRUNTS)
Don't struggIe. You'II onIy hurt yourseIf.
Your cause is Iost.
We know everything.
Soon the corpse of Detective Rafferty wiII be in our possession.
and the truce between your prostitutes and the poIice wiII be shattered.
There'II be arrests. There'II be deaths.
My empIoyer wiII seize what remains of this neighborhood.
You wiII aII be sIaves. Nothing can stop this.
But. it is within your power to save many Iives
by faciIitating the process of transition.
by negotiating the terms of the surrender of OId Town.
Son of a bitch. I know you.
I have suffered your kind before. the dregs of Sin City.
I serve a new master now.
and soon you and aII your wretched kind
wiII serve him as weII.
Now. get dressed and shed a tear for Dwight McCarthy if you must.
because. by now. he is sureIy dead.
You don't know him.
My man wiII find a way.
He aIways finds a way.
I can't fathom these Americans aIways whining
and going on about how they got it so bad.
This is a fine. grand country.
Guiding Iight of the modern worId. it is.
Low taxes. Iand of opportunity.
Where eIse wouId one buIIet buy us the fortune that we're getting for this?
Sure beats the Iiving heII out of bIowing up airports and churches
without shite to show for it.
Yeesh.
You find something. Murphy?
Looks to be a poor. dead cop's badge.
It's aII bent up.
What's this stuck in it?
BIoody heII. It's the buIIet.
You son of a bitch ! Bastard !
DWlGHT: They weren't cops, these four.
They were mercenaries.
And if they were hired by who l think they were,
the bad times haven't even started yet.
And everything seemed to be going so well.
RONNIE: Remember. we don't have to deIiver
every Iast inch of the man. Brian.
BRIAN: You got a good point there. Ronnie.
Lend me your knife.
ShouId I take a nap whiIe I'm doing aII this waiting?
I'm at the bone. aII right?
There we go.
Have you ever seen anything so pretty in your whoIe Iife?
We'II be back for the three of you. and if anyone happens by.
use your imagination. okay?
DWlGHT: Silence. now.
No air to breathe.
Only the horrid, oily tar taste creeping up my nostrils.
Let it in . Let it fill your lungs.
They were counting on you and you blew it.
Skinny, steely fingers at my wrist.
Miho, you're an angel.
You're a saint.
You're Mother Teresa.
You're Elvis.
You're God.
And if you'd shown up 1 0 minutes earlier.
we'd still have Jackie Boy's head.
Dwight. they got GaiI.
It's a cinch. You got yourseIves a spy in OId Town.
A stooIie who soId you out to the mob.
We gotta find out who it is and rescue GaiI.
But first. we gotta get our hands on Jackie Boy's head
before it gets to wherever it's going
and this whoIe situation bIows wide open.
Miho. I hope to heII you Ieft one of them aIive enough to taIk.
DWlGHT: l let him know l'm not fooling around.
(GROANS)
we talk.
Stay smart. Stay cool.
lt's time to prove to your friends that you're worth a damn .
Sometimes, that means dying.
Sometimes, it means killing a whole lot of people.
There they are. What do we do?
We stop them. DaIIas.
Jackie Boy's head is so close to me
l could almost reach out and grab it right then and there.
(GUN FIRING)
Get the head ! Get the head !
I got it! I got it!
Suck on this. you stupid sIag.
l can't tell if Miho is alive or dead.
but l'm on my feet and every ounce of me wants to get some killing done.
MAN: You want the head now. sweetheart? So come down and get it.
(GUN FIRING)
Brave Iad.
I couId've put a buIIet straight down your ear just now.
if I hadn't got me revoIver aII wet and useIess.
You got the drop on me. Iove.
I'm as heIpIess as a baby.
I got to come cIean with you. sweetheart.
It was an outright Iie I was giving you about me revoIver being wet.
You see. I'm not too fond of shooting.
It's my preference to bIow things up.
Once you bIast the roof off a pub
and seen aII the parts fIying off peopIe.
a IittIe bang bang's never gonna match the sight of that.
And here's me. with aII these fine grenades
and such a sweet beauty of a remote.
But it's me knife I'II be doing you with.
You kiIIed me mates.
Someone shouId have toId you.
never give an Irishman good cause for revenge.
DWlGHT: Deadly little Miho.
You won't feel a thing unless she wants you to.
She twists the blade.
He feels it.
l tell Miho what we're gonna do and how we're gonna do it.
l grab poor Dallas's car phone
and make the most important call of my life.
First, we gotta rescue Gail, then comes the kill.
The big, fat kill.
(GROANS)
Do we just gotta stand here and watch this?
What. are you kidding me. man?
I couId watch oId Manute do his thing aII night Iong and not get tired of it.
I mean. the man's an artist.
OnIy an artist shouId be aIIowed to touch such a beautifuI subject.
Your skin is perfect.
Your nerves. responsive.
BeautifuI.
Just give them what they want. GaiI.
-Becky? -It's over. GaiI.
There's no fighting them. Dwight's dead.
They got what's Ieft of that cop we kiIIed.
The mob's gonna turn it over to the poIice chief.
the cops are gonna mow us down.
We gotta cut a deaI.
You IittIe bitch. You soId us out.
I didn't have no choice. They was gonna hurt my mom.
You gotta cut a deaI with these peopIe.
It's seIfish. you hoIding out Iike this.
You're gonna get a Iot of girIs kiIIed for no good reason.
It wasn't your mom.
We couId have protected her and you know it.
It was the money. you stupid IittIe bitch.
Sure. there's money.
Sure. you couId've moved my mom into OId Town
and Iet her know that her daughter's a goddamn whore.
Breaks your heart. doesn't it?
They offered me what you couIdn't never offer me. a way out.
I had to watch out for my own neck.
Your neck.
Your precious. scrawny. IittIe neck!
(SCREAMS)
You're crazy. You couId have ripped my throat out. you crazy whore.
Schutz. fetch my bIades.
-Stuka. kiII this one. -No. I was promised.
Stupid IittIe bitch. You deserve worse.
I knew there was a reason I got out of bed this morning.
Hey!
Nobody. I don't see nobody.
WiII you Iook at that? It's right through me. Guys. Iook.
There's something wrapped around it.
Some kind of note.
Give it to me.
It's poked right through me. Guys. Iook.
-It's starting to reaIIy h
And bring the women.
Do you think somebody shouId caII me a doctor or something?
McCarthy. you fooI.
Guys?
(GROANS)
DWlGHT: Dozens of them. armed to the teeth .
l'm outnumbered, outgunned.
But the alley is crooked, dark and very narrow.
They can't surround me.
Sometimes, you can beat the odds
with the careful choice of where to fight.
You can have OId Town. I don't care.
Just give me the woman.
(MUFFLED CHATTERING)
Shut up.
Dwight. don't do this.
Hey. wait a minute. Something's not right.
Shut up. or I'II pIug you.
Of course. Mr. McCarthy. A fair trade.
She's aII yours.
Now. if you'II expIain to me why we shouIdn't bIow both of you to pieces.
Dwight. what have you done?
ExactIy what I had to.
Every step of the way.
No. It isn't right. There wasn't no tape over his mouth.
How come there's tape over his mouth?
where to fight counts for a lot.
Cute trick. McCarthy. but it wiII do you no good.
But there's nothing like having your friends show up with lots of guns.
No! McCarthy. you shit!
The girls all know the score.
No escape, no surrender, no mercy.
We gotta kill every last rat bastard one of them.
Every last one.
Not for revenge, not because they deserve it,
not because it'll make the world a better place.
we need a heap of bloody bodies
so when mob boss Wallenquist looks over his charts of profits and losses,
he'll see what it cost him to mess with the girls of Old Town.
The Valkyrie at my side is shouting and laughing
with the pure, hateful, bloodthirsty joy of the slaughter,
and so am l .
The fire, baby.
lt'll burn us both.
There's no place in this world for our kind of fire.
my warrior woman , my Valkyrie.
You'll always be mine.
Always and never.
Evening. officer.
I don't have to introduce myseIf. do I? You read the papers.
This being an eIection year. you've seen pIenty of my picture.
You know who I am and what I can do.
And I'm doing you. Hartigan.
CoId and hard. I'm doing you.
You bIew my son's ear off.
You bIew his arm off. You even bIew his nuts and his pecker off.
He's in a coma right now. They say he may never come out of it.
My boy.
He couId've been the first Roark
to become the President of the United States.
but you went and turned him into a brain-damaged. dickIess freak.
PuIIing that trigger make you feeI powerfuI?
Power don't come from a badge or a gun.
Power comes from Iying.
Lying big. and getting the whoIe damn worId to pIay aIong with you.
Once you got everybody agreeing
with what they know in their hearts ain't true.
you've got them by the baIIs.
There's what. maybe 500 peopIe in this hospitaI?
I couId pump you fuII of buIIets right now. and I wouIdn't even be arrested.
Everyone wouId Iie for me. everyone who counts.
Otherwise. aII their own Iies. everything that runs Sin City.
it aII comes tumbIing down Iike a pack of cards.
(LAUGHS)
But I want you firm and fit and heaIthy.
I'm even putting up cash of my own to get you more surgery.
Fix that heart condition of yours.
You're gonna keep on Iiving a Iong time.
I'm gonna make sure of that.
You're gonna be convicted of raping that IittIe brat. and shooting my boy.
And you're gonna spend the rest of your Iife in prison.
disgraced. destroyed.
aIone.
Your wife?
You teII her the truth and she's dead.
You teII anybody the truth and they're dead.
They won't Iet me testify.
I toId the cops that you saved my Iife and they just acted Iike I was crazy.
They taIked my parents into keeping me away.
They said that you'd done things that you didn't do.
I toId them that you saved me from that Roark creep.
but they won't even check me out to see that I'm stiII a virgin.
I'm stiII a virgin. stiII aIive. thanks to you.
They got it aII backwards.
Sometimes. the truth doesn't matter Iike it ought.
But you'II aIways remember things. right.
That's gonna mean a Iot to me.
But stay away. Nancy. They'II kiII you if you don't stay away.
Don't visit me.
Don't write me.
Don't even say my name.
Maybe you won't Iet me visit. but I'II stiII write to you. Hartigan.
I'II sign my Ietters "CordeIia."
That's the name of a reaIIy cooI detective in books I read.
I'II write you every week. for forever.
Sure. kid.
Now. run on home.
It's not safe for you here.
Bye. Nancy.
I Iove you.
(GROANS)
John Hartigan.
Mr. Law and Order.
Mr. By the Book.
Mr. High and Mighty.
I gotta give you credit. being such a straight arrow for so damn many years
without it catching up with you.
It's catching up with you now. friend of mine.
It's catching up with you but good.
(GRUNTING)
TAMMY: Maybe I ought to Iook at him. He doesn't Iook too good.
He's haIe and hearty. Tammy. See?
He's the picture of heaIth.
That Tammy. there. she's fine. isn't she?
I rented her out of OId Town.
I wanted to show you what you won't be getting any of. not in prison.
You hear me. Hartigan?
If you stop being stupid. start pIaying aIong with us.
you might just get some of Tammy.
You see that? She fIinched.
You make her sick.
She heard about you and that IittIe girI.
HARTlGAN: This is nothing but a price l promised
myself l'd pay, and l'm paying it.
You don't save a little girl's life,
then turn around and throw her to the dogs.
Not in my book, you don't.
They want a confession . They won't get it.
There was a letter from Nancy waiting when they put me in solitary.
She calls herself Cordelia. just like she promised.
She makes no mention of anything that would give her away.
At first, l figure she'll send another note or two
before her young mind moves on to better things.
But every Thursday, another one arrives.
what a sweet kid.
l do my best to keep my hand from shaking when l reach for it.
She's the only friend l've got, the daughter l never had.
My sweet Cordelia.
Skinny little Nancy Callahan.
Eight years pass.
Then comes a Thursday when l bound from my cot,
excited as a kid at Christmas.
only to find myself staring at the damn floor of my damn cell,
looking for a letter from Nancy that isn't there.
Then another Thursday with no letter.
ls she all right?
Did something happen to her?
Nothing.
Two months now. not a word from Nancy.
Did they find her? Did they get to her?
Of course. Stupid old man.
Do your math . Nancy's 1 9 years old.
How long did you expect her to keep writing?
She was a saint to keep it up as long as she did.
She's forgotten you, old man.
You're alone.
You're all alone.
This guy smells awful, like bad food.
Like a corpse left in a garbage dumpster in the middle of summer.
He stinks so bad, l want to throw up.
Practically knocked my head off, the bastard.
when l come to. l see it.
The same kind of envelope Nancy always uses,
but there's no letter inside of it.
There's something soft,
something that ought to be alive, a hunk of meat and bone
that ought to be the index finger of the right hand of a 1 9-year-old girl.
How the hell did they find her?
She was so careful.
She never gave away where she lives or where she works.
(SCREAMS)
l've got to get out. l've got to help her.
Nothing else matters, not my life and not my pride, either.
lt's only one final surrender they want.
You got me, Roark. You beat me.
l say everything they want to hear, just the way they want to hear it.
l tell them l'm a twisted. wretched child molester.
l agree to everything they want from me.
l love you , Nancy.
It's a Iot of miIes into town. Hartigan.
-You care for a ride? -Long as you stay in front of me.
Prison's made you paranoid. TaIk about water under the bridge.
Christ.
Eight years.
Yeah. Eight years.
WeII. if it's any consoIation to you.
you made me hate myseIf.
-Any word from EiIeen? -Yeah.
She got remarried four years ago.
She had two kids. I'm sorry. John.
Don't be.
I'm gIad.
EiIeen aIways wanted kids.
She'II make a good mother.
Like you said. Bob. water under the bridge.
HARTlGAN: Bob and l get on with our fond farewells to each other.
then l go looking for the only human being on the planet
who means a damn to me.
Nancy.
How could they have found out it was you writing all those letters to me?
How did they find out who you are?
And what have they done to you , baby?
Not a sound.
No sign of life.
Has Roark gone to all this trouble just to torture a broken old man ,
like a kid poking at a fly when he's already torn his wings off?
what has he done to Nancy?
lt's like all she ever does is read and study and write.
No diary, no phone numbers or addresses written down anywhere.
Closest thing to a clue is a pack of matches from a lousy saloon .
lt's a long shot, but maybe she's got some friends there.
A dead-end.
Nancy wouldn't have anything to do
with a pack of drunks and losers like this.
But if there's anything to be found here.
the faintest lead to wherever Nancy is
or whoever kidnapped her and mutilated her, this is the place.
Excuse me. Miss. Wondering if you couId heIp me.
I'm Iooking for somebody.
CoId night Iike this. everybody's Iooking for somebody. stranger.
It's not Iike that. Her name is Nancy.
Eyes to the stage. piIgrim.
She's just warming up.
(UPBEAT MUSlC PLAYlNG)
Skinny little Nancy Callahan.
She grew up.
She filled out.
Nancy Callahan, 1 9 years old.
And here l was. expecting a skinny little bookworm,
maybe a bit too shy for her own good.
How little she told me about herself in all her letters for all those years.
How the hell did they find her?
Then it hits me.
They were bluffing.
l've led them straight to her.
She hasn't spotted you yet.
Turn around and walk out the door.
Lead the creep outside.
Get that Beretta away from him somehow. and kill him.
l'm just a horny ex-con watching an exotic dancer.
Just a few seconds and she'll be safe.
No, Nancy. Don't notice me.
Don't recognize me.
There's no time to expIain.
I've made a terribIe mistake. put you in terribIe danger.
We need to get out of here right this second.
Whatever you say. Hartigan. Let me throw some cIothes on.
And here I'd figured you'd forgotten aII about me.
Me and my dumb Ietters.
Kept me going.
Kept me from kiIIing myseIf.
Hurry up. wiII you?
HARTIGAN: Maybe I shouId drive. NANCY: Not a chance.
Nobody but me can keep this heap running.
Besides. from the sound of things. you might have to shoot somebody.
-I don't have a gun. -Under the seat.
It's Ioaded and it works.
Yeah. this'II do.
Taken it to the range a coupIe of times. Kicks Iike a muIe.
Hartigan. there's so much I've wanted to say to you.
You've never been far from my thoughts.
I've Iain awake nights. thinking of you.
What are you taIking about?
(GUN FIRING)
Keep driving. Nancy. Keep driving and keep the car on the road.
HARTlGAN: She's counting on you, old man.
What are you doing?
Prove you're still worth a damn .
Try and keep it on the road. Nancy!
He's a decent shot.
He's got skill, but he's in too much of a hurry.
Throwing away bullets like they were candy.
He doesn't know how to take his time.
Aim careful and look the devil in the eye.
Stop the car. Nancy. Gotta confirm the kiII.
-What? -Stop the car. now!
Right. Stop the car. confirm the kiII.
(TIRES SQUEALING)
Sorry. I got a IittIe rattIed.
It's okay. You did great. Sit tight. I'II be right back.
No. Let me stay cIose.
Nothing can happen to me when I'm with you.
PIease? Let me stay cIose.
The stink. l almost gag.
His blood smells even worse than he does.
Jesus.
And it's all over the place.
But the creep himself, he's gone.
(SIREN WAILING)
We're out of time.
The sirens. l used to welcome the sound.
There's nothing to do now but find a place to hole up for the night,
get Nancy calmed down , and figure out
what on Earth l'm going to do next.
The stink, somehow it stays with us all the way to the motel.
Nancy. I went to your apartment.
Your window was thrown wide open. The rooms Iooked aImost empty.
That's why I was sure you'd been kidnapped.
My window? Robbed again? That's the third time this year.
I swore if I ever saw you again. I'd show you I grew up strong.
But there I was. just Iike before. scared and heIpIess.
-I'm such an asshoIe. -You shouId sit down.
HARTIGAN: You'II feeI a IittIe bit better if you sit down.
l've never been all that good with people.
when it comes to reassuring a traumatized 1 9-year-old,
l'm as expert as a palsy victim doing brain surgery with a pipe wrench .
It's aIways been you. Hartigan.
AII these years.
It's just nerves making you say that. Nancy.
You're just exhausted. You need to sIeep.
-SIeep with me. -Stop it. Nancy.
Eight years.
Why do you think I kept writing you those Ietters?
It wasn't just gratitude.
I tried to faII in Iove with boys.
Even thought I did once or twice.
But I was aIready in Iove with you.
That's enough. Jesus Christ.
I'm oId enough to be your grandfather.
-You're just scared. -I'm not scared.
No.
(EXHALES)
There's wrong and there's wrong and then there's this.
For God's sakes. you're just a kid.
I Iove you.
I Iove you. too.
With aII my heart.
Cold shower, it helps.
No. Nancy.
Recognize my voice. Hartigan?
Recognize my voice. you piece of shit cop?
I Iook different. but I bet you can recognize my voice.
Sure. I recognize your voice. Junior.
Everything's gone straight to hell.
l've been suckered into betraying the only friend l've got,
and put her in the hands of a murdering rapist
l thought l'd put down for good.
Suckered by a spoiled brat son of a senator.
lt's all gone to hell.
YELLOW BASTARD: KIump. it's me.
I got a dead man needs to be fetched.
I want you to set me up for a party.
I've aIready got the girI. you dumb shit.
Hey. it better be perfect or I'm caIIing my dad.
My tooIs better be cIean and sharp.
It better be ready. It better be perfect.
I get to do whatever I want. however I want. whenever I want it.
My dad. I'd Iove him if I didn't hate him.
He spent a fortune hiring every expert on the pIanet
to grow back that equipment you bIew off from between my Iegs.
just so the oId fart can hoId out some kind of hope of having a grandkid.
AIthough. as you can see. there were some side effects.
I'm not compIaining. though. Since you've been gone.
I've been having the time of my Iife.
And now you've Ied me back to your darIing CordeIia.
We aII wondered who wrote aII those Ietters.
She Ieft not a cIue.
CIever girI. And so pretty. so pretty.
A IittIe oId for my taste. but I can forgive that just this once.
Nancy. don't scream.
Whatever he does to you. don't scream.
She'II scream.
I'm gonna take aII night doing dear oId Nancy.
And you're gonna die knowing that it's aII your fauIt.
They've aII screamed. Hartigan.
Dozens of them. maybe a hundred.
Eight years' worth. Every one of them has screamed.
And if there weren't so many peopIe hereabout.
I wouId show you how I'm gonna make dear oId Nancy scream.
It's gonna be one heII of a show.
(HARTIGAN CHOKES)
(GAGGING)
This is it. No way to fight it now.
No hope left.
No chance.
This is it. This is the end.
No.
Give it a shot. old man. Keep your neck tight. Move.
The window, maybe there's an alarm. The window.
Keep your neck tight, God damn it. Stay conscious.
No alarm.
The glass. Cut the rope.
You can do it. You can do it.
KLUMP: It is incIement upon me
to comment with marked dispIeasure on your rash impuIsiveness
in seIecting such an eye-catching and impracticaI car to heist. Mr. ShIubb.
IrreIevant to said mission is the foIIowing query.
which I now put forth to you.
Wherein this most streamIined and trunkIess of transports.
boner-inspiring though it may be.
wherein are we to reposit our recentIy deceased cargo?
I can onIy express puzzIement that borders on aIarm.
TeII me where Roark takes the girIs or I'II cut your damn head off.
In pIain EngIish. creep.
The answer you seek is ruraI. even agrarian.
The farm.
That's aII I need to hear.
HARTlGAN: Every cop on the force knows about the Roark family's farm
and to stay away from it.
Shlubb and Klump were packing an arsenal.
Once things get loud, l'll probably have use for the cannons.
But at first, l'll have to play it quiet.
Quiet and nasty.
Nancy's car, six miles from the farm.
"Nobody but me can keep this heap running" , she told me.
Good girl.
The car stalled out on that yellow bastard
and you didn't tell him how to start it up again .
You kept your mouth shut. l'll bet Junior was furious.
l'll bet he slapped you around something fierce.
But you stayed strong. You bought a few extra minutes.
There's still a chance, Nancy.
Don't scream.
l ditch the car a mile or so from the farm
and make my way through the woods.
l'm not halfway there when it hits.
My heart. Can't be my heart.
l was cured.
Bad cough , blood in it.
Doesn't matter now.
l don't have to stay alive that much longer, anyway.
Rotten way to kill a man , but it's quiet.
Hate yourself later.
YELLOW BASTARD: You're onIy making this worse for yourseIf.
you stupid cow!
(WHIPPING)
(GROANS)
Do you think I'm tired?
Is that it? Do you think I'm getting tired?
You're the one who's gonna crack.
You'II crack.
You'II cry and beg.
You'II scream.
Oh. yeah. you'II scream. you big. fat. ugIy cow!
You'II scream.
You're thinking the whip was the worst I couId do?
That was forepIay.
Hartigan was right about you.
You can't get it up unIess I scream.
You're pathetic.
It's not wise at aII to make fun of me Iike that.
It brings out the worst in me.
HARTlGAN: Stupid old man.
ln too much of a hurry.
Damn. It can't be.
HARTlGAN: Charging in like Galahad, just like l told myself l wouldn't!
Stupid old man.
MAN 1 : You tagged him good.
MAN 2: Don't take no chances. Perforate the fooI.
Good advice.
Give it up. Junior.
It's over. Let her go.
You're dreaming. Hartigan.
I get to see your eyes whiIe I fiIIet
the woman of your dreams right in front of you.
Look at you. You're about to keeI over.
You can't even Iift that cannon.
Sure. I can.
(LAUGHS)
You gave me a scare there for a second. oId man.
Nancy. I'm sorry.
I'm taking no chances with you.
(GRUNTS)
First I soften you up. and then it's showtime.
Here it comes.
It's gonna hurt.
You're right about that.
Sucker.
l take away his weapon .
Both of them.
(SCREAMING)
Eight Iong years. son of a bitch !
After a while, all l'm doing is pounding
wet chunks of bone into the floorboards, so l stop.
So Iong. Junior.
Been a pIeasure.
I didn't scream. Hartigan. not once.
I didn't scream.
I know it. baby.
You grew up strong.
By the time l get her to the car, Nancy stops shaking.
Her skin is warm again . She's herself again.
Thanks for remembering my coat.
And for aII the IittIe things.
Like saving my Iife. twice.
-You better get rolling. -You're not coming aIong?
No. I have friends on their way. to coIIect evidence.
I'm gonna bIow this whoIe sick mess wide open.
I'm gonna clear my name.
I'm gonna put Senator Roark behind bars where he beIongs.
I can't Iose you. not again.
You'II never Iose me. Nancy.
Nancy Callahan, the love of my life.
Shame to lie to her. l hope she forgives me for it.
Get Senator Roark behind bars? Sure.
And maybe after l've pulled off that miracle,
l'll go and punch out God.
There isn't a prosecutor in the state who'll go after Senator Roark.
l killed his only son .
The bloodline is cut.
Roark's lost his goddamn legacy.
He'll use all his power to get revenge on me.
He'll go after me through Nancy. He'll find her again .
There'll be no end to it.
She'll never be safe.
Not as long as l'm alive.
There's only one way to beat him.
An old man dies.
a young woman lives.
Fair trade.
l love you , Nancy.
BECKY: Uh-huh.
Yes.
Mom. don't go on Iike that.
It's not the city. I couId've gotten in a traffic accident anywhere.
Yeah. just a fracture. The doctor said it's a cIean break.
It shouId be right as rain in no time.
Uh-huh.
(ELEVATOR BELL DINGS)
Mmm-hmm.
THE MAN: Turn the right corner in Sin City
and you can find anything.
Becky.
Care for a smoke?
Love you. too. Mom.
Anything.