Let Them Come

The following scene was actually adapted from a story I wrote for a writers group I'm in. When I wrote it in March, I really had no intention of using it in my script. But once Zoe made an appearance in the "Running to Stand Still" sequence, well, it just sort of happened.

***

INT. FARMHOUSE SHED - NIGHT

Jack closes the door behind him. It CREAKS again. He turns
and sniffs the air, looking around. We go where the beam of
his flashlight goes, and we hear is breathing- labored but
he tries to keep it quiet.

The floor of the shed is wooden, but covered with a layer of
dirt. Tools and yard equipment are covered with a thick
layer of sawdust. A ceiling fan above.

Jack visibly relaxes, twirling the machete in his hand.
Then, there is a SHUFFLING sound and he stiffens. He whirls.
He tucks the machete into its sleeve and pulls the shotgun
over his shoulder in one fluid motion. The beam finds a
hunched figure in the corner of the shed.

But this is no zombie. This one is living. ZOE BELLE, late
teens, beautiful, but clearly rattled and looks a mess. Her
blond hair is matted. She sits with her knees tucked into
her chest. There is blood on her face and neck from a cut on
her eyebrow. Trails of recent tears make lines on her dirty
cheeks.

ZOE
We were supposed to go to Disney
World. Summer vacation. Just the
family, before I left for school.
Now...

Jack lowers his gun and steps forward.

ZOE (CONT’D)
Now they’re dead. They’re all dead.

Jack slides the shotgun back over his shoulder and kneels in
front of Zoe. He looks her over and notices she’s holding a
kitchen knife in her hand. It moves back and forth against
her leg, where it has cut a hole in her jeans and and sliced
her skin open.

JACK
What’s your name?

ZOE
Dead, they’re-

JACK
(interrupting)
Hey! Look, you can’t do anything
about that now. Tell me your name.

ZOE
Zoe.

JACK
Are there any more-

ZOE
(interrupting, angry)
Zombies?

The knife moves faster against Zoe’s leg. Jack reaches
toward her and she stiffens.

JACK
You’re not doing yourself any
favors. Open wound just makes it
easier for you to get infected.

The knife stops moving.

JACK (CONT’D)
What happened to your family?

ZOE
Attacked, turned, and now... all
dead.

JACK
You...

ZOE
I killed them.

A tight look at Zoe’s face. Her eyes are cold, her features
hardened. Her features soften as she continues.

ZOE (CONT’D)
I did the right thing, didn’t I?

Zack lays the flashlight on the ground, angled to light the
space in between them.

JACK
Absolutely. No other way. If you
hadn’t, you’d have suffered the
same fate.

Zoe begins crying and drops the knife. Jack hesitates, then
slides to her side. He tosses the knife away and puts his
arm around her. She leans into his shoulder and cries
harder. They are quiet for a time. Only the sound of her
sobbing and the wind blowing a wind chime.

JACK
I always liked the pirates ride.
Yo-ho, yo-ho. The fog, the sounds
of the storm, that one crazy drop
into darkness. The cannons firing
and splashing up the water.

ZOE
Peter Pan. I used to beg my parents
to ride that over and over. Flying
high above the city. London, I
think. I read a book about how they
built the models so they triggered
your perceptions just right.

JACK
Lord, to be seventeen forever.

ZOE
(pulling away)
What?

JACK
It’s a song, but you know, Peter
Pan complex. Not wanting to grow up
and all.

ZOE
How old are you?

JACK
Thirty-three.

ZOE
Where are you from?

JACK
Georgia. Atlanta.

ZOE
(looking worried)
Are they there too?

JACK
Don’t know. I’m on vacation.

The room dims as the flashlight loses its charge. Zoe gives
a worried look.

JACK (CONT’D)
It’s OK. Plenty of batteries.

The white light turns yellow and then fades out. Darkness.
Then there is a strange sound. Something DRAGGING ACROSS
DIRT. Zoe BREATHES IN sharply. Jack gets to work replacing
the batteries in the flashlight.

The sound gets louder, closer. The wind outside picks up.
Tree limbs CREAK. Jack flicks on the flashlight.

JACK
You may want to...

He turns to Zoe and sees she’s already standing, the kitchen
knife in one hand, and a silver handgun we haven’t seen
before in the other.

ZOE
(coldly)
Let them come. I’m ready.