IT'S A DONE DEAL OVER BLACK: Faint sounds of Christmas-themed music. FADE IN: EXT. SNOWY MOUNTAIN ROAD - DAY An SUV drives along the winding, tree-lined road. INT. SUV - DAY (MOVING) At the wheel, RONNY CARTWRIGHT, 30s, dressed for the weather in a wool-trimmed sheepskin coat and furry hat. She sings along to the cheery jingly Christmas-y music on the radio. EXT. SNOWY MOUNTAIN ROAD - DAY A sign comes up, BENDED KNEE - Pop. 157 - 1 Mile INT. SUV - DAY (MOVING) Ronny taps the phone clipped to the dashboard. RINGING... CLICK CLICK... MALE VOICE (ON PHONE) Ronny. What's the weather like? RONNY Forking awful. I'm not staying here one minute longer than I have to. Straight in and straight out again. Not even stopping to pee. MALE VOICE (ON PHONE) Whatever suits you. We'll-- The phone call cuts off, Ronny glances at the phone, NO SIGNAL. Ronny looks up at the surrounding mountains. RONNY Well, sh!t. Her eyes return to the road just in time to see a DEER. Ronny YELPS and turns the wheel instinctively. A lot of bouncing motion, she grimly holds onto the wheel. WHOOSH! The airbag deploys, Ronny's hat comes off. The bouncing stops, all is still and quiet, the engine has cut out. Ronny pushes the airbag down. She's looking at trees. RONNY Aw come on! EXT. SNOWY MOUNTAIN ROAD - DAY The SUV lies off the road at an angle, its nose against a thick tree. A plume of steam rises from the grill. INT. SUV - DAY Ronny tries to start the engine. WHEEZING NOISES from under the hood. RONNY Aw come on! EXT. SUV - DAY She opens the door and climbs out. Reaches back inside and snatches her hat and sticks it on her head. EXT. SUV - DAY She examines the SUV. Notes the plume of steam. She looks up and down the road. No sign of other cars. RONNY God dammit. She doesn't see, behind her, a shadowy figure approaching through the trees. EXT. WOODS - DAY From a POV behind the shadowy figure, he's wearing leather boots with his pants legs tucked in. And he's carrying a wood axe, the head hanging down so it's in sight. EXT. SUV - DAY Ronny reaches into the SUV and takes out her phone. She holds it above her head, trying to catch a signal. She stands on the running board to gain that extra few inches. Nada, no signal. The shadowy figure emerges from the trees behind her, axe in hand. It's a ruggedly handsome man, JACK, 30s. JACK Excuse me, Miss, can I--? That's as far as he gets, Ronny spins and leaps and in one fluid motion karate chops his neck, WHACK! Jack's eyes roll and he topples sideways and crunches face-down into the snow. Ronny looks down at him. She gives him a nudge with her boot toe. No response. RONNY God dammit. She looks around, the road is still empty. She happens to look through the trees, and catches a glimpse of a pickup parked a short ways off. INT. CLEARING IN WOODS - DAY Ronny steps out from between trees. The pickup she saw sits near to a tree stump that's surrounded by split logs. Jack wasn't an axe murderer, he was chopping wood. Ronny peek into the pickup. A key fob hangs from the ignition. Tire tracks lead to a trail road running off through the trees. Ronny climbs into the pickup driver's seat. Turns the key. The engine turns over first time. EXT. THE TOWN OF BENDED KNEE - DAY It's a small place, there's a hotel, a diner, some stores. Ronny stops the pickup outside the hotel. She climbs out and goes into the hotel. INT. HOTEL RECEPTION DESK - DAY Ronny takes in the Xmas tree and decorations and the big glossy MERRY CHRISTMAS - WELCOME ALL sign hanging from the ceiling. She dings the desk bell, which summons SALLY, 40s, from through the back. SALLY Hi, what can I do for you? RONNY I'm here to talk to the manager. SALLY He's not in right now, can I help? RONNY When will he be back? Somewhere through the back, a door slams. SALLY That could be him now, let me go see. Sally goes to check. Ronny waits, lightly drumming her fingernails on the desk top. A cop, DARREN, 30s, comes inside. He acknowledges Ronny with a smile. Cranes his neck to look for Sally, who returns at that moment. SALLY (to Ronny) He'll be with you in a moment. (to Darren) What's up? DARREN THE COP Jack? SALLY He's out chopping some firewood, he might be another hour, I guess. Darren points over his shoulder with his thumb. Sally sees Jack's pickup in the street, and is puzzled. SALLY If he came in, I didn't see him. RONNY Actually... Sally and Darren stare at her. RONNY Jack let me borrow his pickup, my car came off the road, bumped into a tree, I couldn't get the engine started. DARREN THE COP When did this happen? RONNY Well not that long ago, I was trying to get going and Jack, that's how he introduced himself, Jack said he'd look at my car, and I should drive his pickup into town. DARREN THE COP Huh. RONNY I wish I'd hit that deer now. DARREN THE COP May I ask who you are and why you're in town? RONNY Unless you think I've committed a crime, I don't think your asking me anything is appropriate. I'm here on business. I'd also like to get someone to look at getting my car fixed. DARREN THE COP Didn't Jack say, he's our local mechanic. Anyone can get it going, it's Jack. FREDDIE, the manager of this here hotel, 50s, thinning, ambles through from the back. FREDDIE What'd I miss? DARREN THE COP Young lady here dunked her car on the way into town, Jack's looking at it. FREDDIE As good as fixed. (to Ronny) You looking for me? (to Sally) Bert and his band will be here around five to set things up. SALLY I'll keep them away from the punch bowl. FREDDIE Fine idea. RONNY Are you... never mind. I'm Ronny Cartwright. I'm a senior partner at Quincy Devereaux Cartwright Holdings. She slides a business card across the desk. Freddie picks it up and reads it. He shows it to Sally. Their blank looks tell Ronny the name means nothing to anyone here. RONNY Last year we bought the deeds to this hotel. Unfortunately the returns have fallen way below expectations. I'm here to inform you that we're selling up. You have to close the doors and stop doing business by midnight tonight. We'll be sending a team to supervise asset removals. You'll be paid up until the end of the month. This should be regarded as severance. Freddie and Sally look at each other, bewildered. RONNY Any questions, just call the number on the card. Nice to meet you. Ronny heads for the front door, job done. SALLY Wh-what did she say? Ronny goes to open the door but Jack opens it first. They stare at each other. Jack seems perfectly calm. Ronny expects something other than calm from him. His appearance is disheveled, as if he's been lying down in snow. JACK Hello. RONNY Hi. DARREN THE COP You okay, Jack? JACK I guess I am. (to Ronny) You doing okay? RONNY Yes, I was... just leaving. JACK You were? RONNY Assuming my car is okay. JACK The radiator hose had come loose, and the starter motor popped a connector cable. Kid's stuff. SALLY She's closing us down, Jack. JACK (to Ronny) You are? RONNY It's a business decision. Nothing personal. (she waves airily) It's just not viable. There's no profit to be made. JACK Well that's a crying shame. (to Sally) We still having our shindig tonight? SALLY We gotta close at midnight. JACK Then that's plenty of time. (to Ronny) You'll be staying for the dance, right? RONNY Wasn't planning to. JACK I insist. You'll love it. Ronny wants out of here... but Jack holds her in place with his cold gaze. Darren the cop is right there. Does she want to risk Jack telling what happened? RONNY Well maybe I could. It's not going to change anything, though. It's a done deal. JACK (to Sally) All right if our guest here joins us this evening? SALLY It's up to you, Jack. RONNY I never brought a change of clothes with me, never mind a dress. JACK Casual is fine. Why don't you go across the street to Ma's Diner and have yourself a coffee to warm you up? I'll join you in a minute. Ronny is torn... does she have a choice? RONNY Okay. Jack holds the door open for her and she exits. He closes it behind her. Watches through the glass as she crosses the street. Darren steps up beside him. DARREN THE COP She's a cold one. JACK She is that. SALLY What are we going to do? Can we do anything? FREDDIE I don't know, Sal, I just don't know. DARREN THE COP Bended Knee has taken a lot of hard knocks. If the hotel closes, it's going to turn into a ghost town. Jack watches as Ronny enters Ma's Diner and finds a seat at the window. She picks up the menu and reads it. As if sensing she's being watched, she looks across at the hotel. Makes eye contact with Jack. Looks away quickly. JACK I'm gonna make her fall in love with me. Darren, Sally and Freddie stare at him. JACK It's the magic of a small town at Christmas time. These big city folks have no defense against it. He opens the door and steps outside. FADE OUT

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