The New Howell Theater

presents

Night

of the

DRAGON'S
BLOOD



A Screenplay by

Ronald L. Ecker



Copyright 1989, 2010 by Ronald L. Ecker
All Rights Reserved



Log line: (Comedy-Horror.) Hitler the vampire plots to conquer the world.





The New Howell Theater





"Night of the Dragon's Blood" has been divided into four Web pages, which helps with the downloading time. A "Go to" link at the bottom of each page will take you to the next page.







               FADE IN:

               EXT. A CENTURIES-OLD CASTLE - NIGHT

               The castle is dark and foreboding.  

               SUPERIMPOSE: "Nazi-Occupied Transylvania, 1944"

               Black-uniformed Nazi SCHÜTZES (SS privates) guard the castle.
               A four-door sedan arrives in the moonlit courtyard.

               INT. THE MAIN HALL - NIGHT

               Romanian COUNTESS BORCA, 40-ish, in a red satin gown, looks
               livid as she paces.  She's attractive in a spooky sort of way.   

               Schützes stand guard about the hall.  An OBERFÜHRER (SS
               colonel), 45, is in charge, idly admiring the Countess.  

               The front door opens.  Pudgy SS Obergruppenführer (General)
               DORSCH, 55, swaggers into the hall, SCHÜTZE #1 holding the
               door for him.  All the Nazis snap to attention.

               The Countess looks coldly at Dorsch as he joins her, a smirk
               on his round porcine face.  He doffs his peaked cap.

                                   DORSCH
                         Countess Borca.  I am Obergrup-
                         penführer Dorsch of the Schutz-
                         staffel.

                                   COUNTESS
                         May I ask why the S.S. has invaded
                         my castle?

                                   DORSCH 
                         To protect you, dear lady.  You
                         must come to no harm.  Shall we
                         sit down?

               They sit down at a nearby oak table.

                                    DORSCH (cont'd)
                         I've searched all Transylvania
                         for someone like you.  I had
                         almost decided that you didn't
                         exist.

               Dorsch takes out a cigarette case.  Opening it, he holds it
               out to the Countess.

                                    DORSCH (cont'd)
                         Care for a Lucky Reich?   

                                   COUNTESS
                         No, thank you.

               He notes cunningly that she casts no reflection in a mirror
               in the case.  She pays no attention.

                                   DORSCH
                         You do not smoke, Countess Borca?

                                   COUNTESS
                         No.

               He draws her attention to the mirror.

                                   DORSCH
                         No reflection on you.

               She slaps the case from his hand with an upward blow.
               Cigarettes fly, the case hits Dorsch in the face.

               They both rise in a huff.  Then the Countess regains her
               composure.

                                   COUNTESS
                         I am sorry.

               She casually steps over to a large, leafy plant, which bears
               roselike red flowers.

                                    COUNTESS (cont'd)
                         I do not like mirrors.

                                   DORSCH
                         Of course not.  You are a vampire.

               The Countess smells one of the flowers.  Dorsch joins her by
               the plant, some Schützes gathering his smokes off the floor.

                                   COUNTESS
                         Who told you such nonsense?

                                   DORSCH
                         The local peasants.  But I had to be
                         sure.  You know how superstitious
                         they are.

               Dorsch feels one of the plant's branches.

                                    DORSCH (cont'd)           
                         A lovely plant. What is it called?

                                   COUNTESS
                         Dracaena.  

                                   DORSCH
                         Dracaena?  I have never heard of
                         it.  Does it grow only here in
                         Transylvania?

                                   COUNTESS
                         Are you here to talk about plants?

                                   DORSCH
                         Of course not.  I am here for one
                         purpose.

               The Oberführer steps forward with Dorsch's cigarette case,
               open to show it has been refilled.

                                   OBERFÜHRER
                         Your cigarettes, sir.

               Taking the case, Dorsch notes again with amusement how the
               Countess is not reflected in its mirror.

                                   DORSCH
                         Now you see her, now you don't.

                                   COUNTESS
                         What do you want of me?

               Dorsch re-pockets the case.

                                   DORSCH
                         You must come with me to Berlin.

                                   COUNTESS
                         To Berlin?  But why?

                                   DORSCH
                         Because those are my orders.

                                   COUNTESS
                         I will not go.

                                   DORSCH
                         You will go.

               She turns toward the stairway.  Schützes block her way.  She
               turns to glare at Dorsch.

                                    DORSCH (cont'd)          
                         You cannot escape us.

               A beat.  The Countess smiles evilly at Dorsch, as if she is
               about to do something clever.

                                    DORSCH (cont'd)
                         Do not try the bat thing I have
                         seen in the movies.  You cannot 
                         fly away.

               The Countess transforms into a BIG BLACK BAT.

                                    DORSCH (cont'd)
                         She is trying the bat thing.

               The bat heads for an open window.

                                    OBERFÜHRER 
                         Close that window!

               Schützes slam the shutters shut, the bat veers away.

               The bat wings toward two Schützes guarding the top of the
               stairway.  They raise their weapons.

                                    DORSCH
                          Do not shoot!

               The men obey.  The bat turns away.

               Dorsch watches the bat fly desperately about the room.

                                    DORSCH (cont'd)
                         Countess Borca, it is useless.
                         You cannot get away.  You might
                         as well come to roost.

               Some batshit lands in Dorsch's face.  Schützes try not to
               laugh.  Dorsch wipes some of the crap from his face with 
               a handkerchief.

                                   DORSCH (cont'd)
                         Another bat thing.

               EXT. A MANSION - DAY

               Luxurious in an upper-class suburb of Lima.

               SUPERIMPOSE: "Lima, Peru, 1952"

               Two lovely, 30-ish LATINAS come out of the mansion together. 
               They talk and laugh as they leave.

               INT. A SITTING ROOM - DAY

               Handsome DIEGO VARA, 32, lies languidly on the couch in a
               robe.  

               The 50-ish butler ALFREDO brings in MCKAY, a 50-ish Britisher
               in a business suit, his fedora in hand.

                                   ALFREDO
                         This is Mister McKay, sir.  The man
                         looking for Hi Hickenlooper.

               Alfredo leaves.

                                   MCKAY
                         Mister Vara.

                                   DIEGO
                         Excuse me for not getting up.  I
                         have been up for over twenty-four
                         hours.  Why do you need to see Hi?

                                   MCKAY
                         I've got a job for him.  

               Diego chuckles.

                                   DIEGO
                         Hi is hardly in need of a job.  

                                   MCKAY
                         I know.  The point is, we are in
                         need of Hi.  But I can't seem to
                         find him.  I thought perhaps you
                         could help me.  I understand you're
                         his best friend in Lima.

                                   DIEGO
                         What kind of job is it?

                                   MCKAY
                         I will discuss that with him.

                                   DIEGO
                             (beat)
                         Alfredo!  Then you will have to
                         find him.  Good luck.

               Alfredo returns.

                                   DIEGO (cont'd)
                         Show this gentleman out.

                                   MCKAY
                         What if I said the job involves
                         Adolf Hitler?

                                   DIEGO
                             (beat)
                         Never mind, Alfredo.  

               Diego sits up as Alfredo leaves.

                                   DIEGO (cont'd)
                         Who do you work for?  

               McKay strolls over to a display of Peruvian Indian pottery.

                                   MCKAY
                         Let's just say I work for Western
                         intelligence.  Can you tell me
                         where Hi is?

               Diego rises.  He walks over to join McKay by the pottery.

                                   DIEGO
                         I'm afraid he is in tristeza.

               McKay picks up one of the pottery pieces.

                                   MCKAY
                         Tristeza.  Is that far from here?

                                   DIEGO
                         I mean he is in mourning.

               Diego looks proudly at the piece that McKay scrutinizes in
               his hand.  It features two human figures copulating.

                                   MCKAY
                         Pornographic pottery?

                                   DIEGO
                         Pre-Columbian.  This piece is a
                         priceless antiquity.

               McKay closely regards it in his hand.

                                   MCKAY
                         Hi is in mourning for whom?

                                   DIEGO
                         Eva Perón.  She just died of cancer
                         in Argentina.

                                   MCKAY
                         I know.  What does she have to do
                         with Hi?

                                   DIEGO
                         Everything.  Hi and Eva Duarte were
                         lovers, before she ditched him for
                         Juan Perón.

               McKay is so stunned that he drops the pottery.  It shatters 

               on the floor.  They both look down at it.

                                   MCKAY
                         I'm sorry, I . . .

               McKay bends down as if to pick up the pieces.

                                   DIEGO
                         Leave it for the butler.

               McKay straightens up again.

                                   MCKAY
                         Tell him to try Elmer's Glue.
                             (beat; musingly)
                         Hi and Eva Perón were lovers?

               Diego looks crushed about the pottery.

                                   DIEGO
                         Before she married Juan.  Hi never
                         got over her.  He started drinking. 
                         He hasn't stopped.  Now he has lost
                         her forever.

               McKay gazes thoughtfully into space.

                                   MCKAY
                         I'm afraid this could complicate
                         matters.

                                   DIEGO
                         Hi's drinking?

                                   MCKAY
                         No.  His relationship with Eva.

               Diego looks down sadly at the destroyed pottery.

                                   DIEGO
                         The finest damn piece in the world.

               McKay looks at Diego.

                                   MCKAY
                         Eva Perón?

                                   DIEGO
                         No.  This pottery.

                                   MCKAY
                         Oh.  I said I was sorry.

                                   DIEGO
                         I ought to smash your face in,
                         McKay.  Alfredo!

                                   MCKAY
                         Where is Hi, Mister Vara?

                                   DIEGO 
                         In Buenos Aires, for the funeral.
                         If they are ever going to have it.

               Alfredo comes in.  He sees the shattered pottery.

                                   ALFREDO
                         My God.  What happened, sir?

                                   DIEGO
                         Do we have any Elmer's Glue?

               INT. ARGENTINE LABOR MINISTRY - AN UPPER LOBBY - NIGHT

               Eva's CORPSE lies in a closed coffin, the MOURNERS who file
               past viewing her through glass in the lid.  

               Handsome HI HICKENLOOPER, 34, moves in the line.  He looks 
               sadly, lovingly, at Eva for the brief moment that he has.

               EXT. A BUENOS AIRES STREET - NIGHT

               Hi walks morosely along the street.  (He always has a little
               spring in his gait, due to a slight clubfoot.)  PASSERSBY
               look mournful.  There are wreaths on the lampposts.  

               Following Hi, as if for some sinister purpose, is SOTO, 42,
               a trim, mustached Latino in a pin-striped suit and fedora.

               INT. CUCO'S CABARET - NIGHT

               A modest but respectable nightclub.  A 30-ish female CABARET
               SINGER, accompanied by PIANO PLAYER #1, sings a sad song
               for the joyless PATRONS.

               Hi sits somberly at the bar.  The BARTENDER, 35, brings him 
               a scotch on the rocks.

                                   HI
                         The place hasn't changed much. 
                         Except for the singer.

                                   BARTENDER
                         When were you here last?

                                   HI
                         Ten years ago.

                                   BARTENDER
                         You ought to come around more often.

               Soto, watching Hi, sits alone at a table.  Soto lights a
               cigarette as WAITER #1 serves him a drink.

               Hi, sipping his scotch, gazes wistfully at the singer in 
               the large mirror behind the bar.  

               FLASHBACK - INT. THE CABARET - NIGHT (1942)

               Brunette EVA DUARTE, 23, accompanied by PIANO 
               PLAYER #2, sings a bluesy love ballad (written by 
               the screenwriter), in English and badly off key, for the 
               PATRONS.

                                   EVA
                             (sings horribly)
                         Like a castaway at sea, / I was
                         drifting aimlessly, / So alone 
                         and so far from any shore . . .

               Sharply dressed Hi, 24, sits watching and listening at a
               table.  He looks like he's fallen in love.  Eva eyes him
               flirtaciously as she murders the song.  

               30-ish WAITER #2 brings Hi his drink.

                                   HI
                         What's her name?

                                   WAITER #2
                         Eva Duarte.  She is an unemployed
                         actress, filling in for our regular
                         singer.

                                   HI
                         She doesn't sing very well.

                                   WAITER #2
                         We have found that out.  She was
                         hired because the boss likes her
                         looks.

               The waiter moves off.

                                   HI
                         So do I.

               LATER

               Eva joins Hi at his table, where a drink is already in place
               for her.  

               While they speak, Eva accepts a cigarette, Hi lights it, then
               lights his own.

                                   EVA
                         I'm Eva.

                                   HI
                         I'm Hi.

                                   EVA
                         Hi, Hi.

                                   HI
                         Hi.

                                   EVA
                         You are North American?

                                   HI
                         Yeah.

                                   EVA
                         Why aren't you fighting in the war?

                                   HI
                         Got a clubfoot.  You wouldn't know
                         it, though.

                                   EVA
                         I would like to see it sometime.

                                   HI
                         You show me your feet, I'll show
                         you mine.

                                   EVA
                         What do you do, Hi?

                                   HI
                         I look for lost cities.

                                   EVA
                         Really?  How many have you found?

                                   HI
                         None so far.  

                                   EVA
                         How long can you afford to keep
                         looking?

                                   HI
                         It's not out of my pocket.  My dad
                         dreams of finding El Dorado or the
                         next Machu Picchu.  There's always
                         the chance.  

                                   EVA
                         He is wealthy?

                                   HI
                         You've heard of Hickenlooper Foods?

                                   EVA
                         Yes.  I think I have a can or two
                         at home.  Baked beans or something.   

                                   HI
                         That's my dad.  It all started with
                         a hamburger stand.

                                   EVA
                         Where do you look for lost cities?

                                   HI
                         The Amazon jungle.  I work out of
                         Lima.  Came down to B.A. for a
                         break.  

                                   EVA
                         I'm glad that you did.

                                   HI
                         So am I.  You speak English well. 
                         I like to watch you speak it.  

                                   EVA
                         Thank you.  I know all the slang
                         words, like "cool" and "dig" and
                         "go ape."

                                   HI
                         Know any real dirty ones?

                                   EVA
                         Sure.  Want to hear one?

                                   HI
                         Let's talk dirty later.  What time
                         do you get off work?



               INT. CABARET - NIGHT 

               Hi sits remembering at the bar as before.

                                   BARTENDER
                         Would you like a refill?

                                   HI
                         Make it a double.

               Hi notes Soto in the mirror behind the bar, looking at Hi
               from his table.  Hi notes how Soto averts his eyes and tries
               to obscure his face with his hand, holding a lit cigarette.

               A WOMAN enters.  She is dressed in black, but for the moment
               she is seen only from about the knees down.  She walks slowly
               forward in black stylish shoes.

               Hi studies Soto in the mirror, then turns with a casual air
               to look over the room.

               Hi now sees the woman.  In her black as if in mourning, her
               face pale behind a thin veil, she stands near the middle of
               the room, looking the place over as if with nostalgia.  

               She looks a lot like Eva behind the veil.

               Hi, staring at her, pays no attention to the man standing
               behind her - a large blonde German, pale but muscular, about
               40, in a business suit and hat.  (He is WOLFGANG.)

               When the woman sees Hi, her eyes widen.  She turns quickly to
               leave.  Wolfgang calmly turns to follow.

               Hi heads after her.  His way is briefly blocked by a group of
               patrons, then he makes it to the door.

               EXT. CABARET - NIGHT 

               Hurrying outside, Hi looks around in light fog, as a few
               PEOPLE pass.  Hi sees no sign of the woman.

               Hi thinks, then quickly moves off.  Soto comes out of the
               cabaret and looks off after Hi.  Soto follows him.  

               INT. LABOR MINISTRY BUILDING - A STAIRWAY - NIGHT

               Mourners stand in line on the stairway.  Hi comes hurrying
               past them up the steps.

               INT. UPPER LOBBY - NIGHT

               Hi breaks in line at Eva's coffin.  Hi hurriedly studies the
               corpse he viewed earlier.

               POLICEMEN #1 and #2 grab Hi by the arms.

                                   HI
                         It's not her.

               Hi smiles as the policemen tote him away, mourners watching
               and listening.

                                   HI (cont'd)
                         She's alive.  It's not her.

               EXT. A BUENOS AIRES STREET - NIGHT 

               The fog now is thicker.  JORGE, a 50-ish, well-tailored 
               gentleman, stops to light a cigarette as he walks.  Few
               PEOPLE are about.

               Jorge walks, then stops again.  Down the street he sees a
               WOMAN IN BLACK, leaning alone against a wall, looking off.

               The woman's features are not clear in the darkness and fog,
               yet she is obviously the same Eva whom Hi saw earlier, now
               minus the veil.

               Jorge approaches her.  She continues looking off, not giving
               him a full view of her features.  But what he does see, the
               remarkable resemblance to Evita Perón, clearly amazes him.

                                   JORGE
                         I am Jorge.  Who are you?

                                   EVA
                         María.

                                   JORGE
                         How much would you cost me, María?

                                   EVA
                         One thousand pesos.

                                   JORGE
                         It's a deal.

               Eva walks away (in the same black stylish shoes seen at
               Cuco's), in a manner clearly inviting Jorge to follow.  He
               follows.  

               Wolfgang calmly steps from around a corner and follows too.

               INT. A HOTEL ROOM - NIGHT

               On the bed, nude Eva, advancing from the foot of the bed,
               kisses Jorge's nude body till she reaches his neck.  She's
               holding down his arms.

               Eva opens her mouth, exposing sharp canines, out of Jorge's
               view.  Eva starts biting his neck.

                                   JORGE
                         It feels like you're biting my neck.

               Two streams of blood flow down the side of the bedsheet.

                                    JORGE (cont'd)
                         You're not actually biting, though,
                         are you?  Of course not.  You're
                         just nibbling, right?

               Eva props up on her hands over Jorge.  To his horror, there
               is blood on her lips.  She licks them, and a drop hits his
               chest.

                                    JORGE (cont'd)
                         What have you done?

               Eva quickly rises to dress.

                                    JORGE (cont'd)
                         What are you?

               While Eva dresses, Jorge rises and goes to a mirror.  He
               gasps at the sight of the two bloody holes in his neck.

               He doesn't see Eva in the mirror.  Turning, he sees her 
               still dressing.

                                    JORGE (cont'd)
                         My God.

               Jorge quickly gets a handkerchief from his pants on the floor.

                                   EVA
                         I'm sorry.  There should be no
                         effect.  One quickie, as they
                         say, doesn't do it.

               Jorge presses the handkerchief to his wounds.

                                   JORGE
                         No effect?  What about these
                         holes in my neck?

                                   EVA
                         I am sorry.  They will heal.

               Jorge looks in the mirror again at the holes.  When he turns
               again, Eva is gone.

               On a table he sees his one thousand pesos.  He goes over and
               picks up the money.  He looks mad.

                                   JORGE
                         She wasn't even a whore. 

               EXT. HI'S RENTED BUNGALOW - NIGHT

               Dense fog.

               INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT 

               Hi sits thoughtfully finishing off a scotch.  There are
               knocks at the door.  Hi gets up and goes to the door.

                                   HI
                         Who is it?

                                   DIEGO (O.S.)
                             (outside)
                         Diego.

               Hi unlocks the door and opens it.  He greets Diego and McKay
               with handshakes as they come in.

                                   HI
                         Hello, amigo.

                                   DIEGO
                         Nice little place.

                                   HI
                         I had to rent on short notice.  Are
                         you staying here or - ?

                                   DIEGO
                         We checked in at the Corrientes
                         Hotel.  This is the British agent 
                         I wired you about.

                                   MCKAY
                         McKay.

                                   HI
                         You work for M.I. Six?

                                   MCKAY
                         Let us say there is more than one
                         nation concerned with the subject
                         at hand.  I am here on the free
                         world's behalf.

                                   HI
                         Fair enough.  What are you guys
                         drinking?

                                   DIEGO
                         A Bloody Mary for me.

                                   MCKAY
                         Brandy, if you have it.

               Hi starts fixing drinks.

                                   HI
                         Diego, you'll never guess what
                         happened tonight.

                                   DIEGO
                         You saw a flying saucer.

                                   HI
                         Something stranger than that.

                                   DIEGO
                         What was it?

                                   HI
                         Let's hear from our English friend
                         first.  I want to know about this
                         job involving Adolf Hitler.

               Reaching into his coat, McKay walks over to Hi.  McKay hands
               him a photo of Countess Borca.  

                                   MCKAY
                         Countess Borca of Romania.
                         Transylvania, to be exact.

                                   HI
                         Not bad.  Transylvania, eh?  She
                         looks like a vampire.

                                   MCKAY
                         She is - or was.  She was the talk
                         of Transylvania.

               Hi, clearly skeptical, returns the photo, which McKay hands
               to Diego.

                                   HI
                         And this vampire has something to
                         do with the Führer?

                                   MCKAY
                         In nineteen forty-four, she was
                         taken to Berlin by Hitler's elite
                         guard, the S.S.

               Hi hands McKay his brandy.

                                   HI
                         I suppose you're going to tell me
                         that the Führer had this lady put
                         the bite on him.

                                   MCKAY
                         Exactly.  For the Führer, to
                         become a vampire was to become
                         immortal.  Losing the war would
                         be losing one battle.  He would
                         live to fight again.

               Diego returns the photo to McKay.

                                   HI
                         This is all a bit hard to believe.

                                   MCKAY
                         Truth, as they say, is stranger
                         than fiction.

                                   HI
                         On occasion.  Where is Hitler now?

               Hi hands Diego his drink.

                                   MCKAY
                         Somewhere in the Amazon jungle.
                         We know he has already contacted 
                         a few South American leaders.

                                   HI
                         What did he tell 'em?  He'd like 
                         to have their countries?

                                   MCKAY
                         His aim is to rule first South
                         America, then the world, through
                         bribery - by offering world leaders
                         something far more precious than
                         power or gold.  Immortality.

                                   HI
                         You've got to be kidding.

               Hi takes a sip of his scotch.

                                   MCKAY
                         His first South American contact
                         was Juan Perón.

               Hi gets scotch down his windpipe and coughs.  

                                   HI
                         Wait a minute.  Did this involve
                         Eva?

                                   DIEGO
                         You okay?

               Hi nods "yes," but coughs wetly.  He yanks out a handkerchief
               for his running nose.

                                   MCKAY
                         We know that Eva Perón traveled,
                         as her husband's emissary, to
                         Hitler's secret jungle headquarters.

               Now Hi can't stop coughing.

                                    MCKAY (cont'd)
                         She never returned.

               Hi acts like he's going to strangle.

                                    MCKAY (cont'd)
                         According to our Argentine sources . .  .

               Hi reels into the bathroom.

                                    MCKAY (cont'd)
                         . . . Perón believes she fell
                         for the Führer.

               Hi (o.s.) throws up.  The toilet flushes, McKay and Diego
               waiting.  

               Hi returns, over the coughing, but breathing heavily, wiping
               his tearing eyes, trying to clear his throat.  He still has the
               glass of scotch.

                                   HI
                         Eva became a vampire?

                                   MCKAY
                         That would seem likely.  And Perón
                         faked her death, to cover up the
                         humiliating truth of her absence.

                                   HI
                         You're right about one thing. 
                         That's not her body in the
                         ministry.  I saw her tonight,
                         Diego.  In downtown B.A.

                                   MCKAY
                         Who was she with?

                                   HI
                         One man, I think.  I didn't pay
                         much attention.  I was staring at
                         her.  In shock.  Then she ran. 

                                   DIEGO
                         Where did this happen?

                                   HI
                         Cuco's Cabaret.

                                   MCKAY
                             (beat)
                         Back to Adolf Hitler.  Here's 
                         the proposition.  We need your
                         assistance.  No other man in the
                         world knows the Amazon jungle as
                         well as you.  

               Hi smiles cynically.

                                   HI
                         So all my fruitless lost-city
                         expeditions have paid off, eh?

                                   MCKAY
                         You're the logical choice to help
                         lead a special team.  

                                   HI
                         And I'm good for something after
                         all.

               Hi sips his scotch.

                                   MCKAY
                         You also speak German, should we
                         need it, so you fill that slot 
                         as well.  We must destroy him -
                         destroy, before it starts, his
                         vampire empire.  We must save the
                         world from Hitler Part Two.

                                   HI
                         I sure thought we had him at the
                         end of Part One.

                                   MCKAY
                         That's why the world must never
                         know that we didn't.  It would
                         detract from the free world's 
                         hard-fought victory.  This mission 
                         is therefore top secret, now and
                         forever.  What do you say?

                                   HI
                             (beat)
                         You want me to help you go in and
                         really get Hitler.

               Hitler finishes off his scotch.

                                   MCKAY
                         Liquidation of him and his vampire
                         henchmen.  We don't know how many.

                                   HI
                         I'd do it with relish.  But what
                         about Eva?

                                   DIEGO
                         If Eva is with him, what is she
                         doing in Buenos Aires?  That is,
                         if it was really her you saw.

                                   HI
                         I saw her, Diego.  I'd like to
                         think she walked into Cuco's - the
                         place where we met - just to see 
                         it again.

               Hi heads for the bar for a refill. 

                                   MCKAY
                             (aside to Diego)
                         What maudlin crap.

                                   HI
                         What did you say?

                                   MCKAY
                         I said, "We mustn't dawdle, old
                         chap."

                                   HI
                         Yeah?  Don't try to rush me into 
                         a Hitler hunt.  

               Hi walks over to McKay.

                                   HI (cont'd)
                         I won't do anything that might
                         endanger Eva.  And you know what? 
                         Neither will you.

               A beat as they stare at each other.

                                   MCKAY
                         I don't wish to rush you, Mister
                         Hickenlooper.  Sleep on what we've
                         discussed.  We'll talk more in the
                         morning.

                                   HI
                         Tell me this.  How can you be sure
                         that Eva's been staying in the
                         jungle with Hitler?

                                   MCKAY
                         I can't be sure.  But that's where
                         she went to meet with the damnable
                         creature.  By way of Manaus,
                         Brazil, to a destination unknown
                         even to her.  She never came back.  

                                   HI
                         Well you're wrong about her not
                         coming back.  I've seen her.  I
                         guess she got homesick.

                                   MCKAY
                             (beat)
                         Perhaps.

               McKay finishes his brandy.  As he sets down the glass,

                                   MCKAY (cont'd)
                         I'll need your answer tomorrow.  Or
                         we'll have to go to Plan B.  A
                         couple of explorers named Bates and
                         Crowley.

               Hi smiles.

                                   HI
                         If you can find them.  Right now
                         Bates and Crowley are in the jungle
                         somewhere in Brazil.

                                   MCKAY
                         What are they doing there?

                                   HI
                         Trying to find a lost city before 
                         I do.

               EXT. THE BUNGALOW - NIGHT

               The fog is thicker.

               INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT

               Half-drunk Hi, his two visitors gone, sits drinking on the
               couch, a bottle of scotch, about three quarters empty, on 

               the coffee table.

                                   HI
                         Eva a vampire.  With Hitler.  Eva,
                         how could you do it?

               Hi swigs, then sadly looks off.

                                   HI (cont'd)
                         Remember the last time we made 
                         love?

               FLASHBACK - INT. A NICE HOTEL ROOM - NIGHT

               Hi and Eva, who is now a blonde, make love in bed.  

               INT. BUNGALOW - LIVING ROOM - NIGHT

               Hi morosely gazes off.

                                   HI
                         Remember when we smoked together
                         afterwards?

               OVERLAP SOUND:

                                   HI (V.O.)
                         I don't believe what you're saying.

               FLASHBACK - INT. HOTEL ROOM - NIGHT

               Hi looks incredulously at Eva as they lie smoking cigarettes
               in bed.

                                   HI
                         You're going to marry Juan Perón?

                                   EVA
                         He asked me.  I said yes.  

                                   HI
                         And give up your acting career?

                                   EVA
                         Yes, what there is of it.

                                   HI
                         You've picked a fine time to tell
                         me you're getting married.

                                   EVA
                         I would have told you before, but
                         I wanted to make love with you one
                         more time.

                                   HI
                         I'm really that good, eh?  Then
                         what's this shit about Perón? 

               Hi crushes out his cigarette in a bedside ashtray.

                                   EVA
                         Please understand, Hi.  It's been
                         wonderful what we've had together.  
                         But I must think of the future.  

               Eva takes a long drag on her cigarette.

                                   HI
                         Don't suck on that thing.  Talk 
                         to me.

               Eva lets Hi take the cigarette.

                                   HI (cont'd)
                         What do you mean "think of the
                         future"?  You think I can't 
                         provide for you?  I'm my father's
                         sole heir.

               Hi puts the cigarette on the rim of the ashtray, and turns
               back to Eva.  The cigarette falls on the floor. 

                                   EVA
                         It's not about money.  Juan is a
                         colonel.  He is also Minister of
                         War.  With luck, or a coup, he
                         could be the next president.

                                   HI
                         Eva, I thought you loved me and -

                                   EVA
                         I do love you, Hi.  But you have
                         your lost cities to look for, and -

                                   HI
                         Forget the lost cities.  There's
                         not even one out there.

               Hi and Eva are unaware of the cigarette catching the shag
               carpet on fire.

                                   HI (cont'd)
                         We'll go live in the states.  I
                         didn't want this job anyway. 

                                   EVA
                         What did you really want to do, Hi?

               The fire spreads on the floor by the bed.

                                   HI
                         I had no idea.  That's why I
                         majored in English.  Dad thought I
                         was majoring in business.  But I
                         dreaded having to run that damn
                         food company.  Then I found you.  
                         As long as we're together, I -

                                   EVA
                         This is my home, Hi.  My people.  
                         I don't want to leave Argentina.

               Smoke is rising by the bed, Hi and Eva not noticing.

                                   HI
                         Okay, we'll stay in Argentina.  If
                         Dad disinherits me, so what?  I'll
                         still have you.  

                                   EVA
                         What would you do here?

                                   HI
                         Anything.  I'll get a job teaching
                         English.  I'll drive a taxicab.

                                   EVA
                         I'm sorry, Hi.  My future is with
                         Juan.

               INT. BUNGALOW - LIVING ROOM - NIGHT

               Hi sadly remembers as he drinks.

                                   HI
                         That night we stood together for 
                         the last time . . .

               FLASHBACK - EXT. HOTEL - NIGHT

               Hi, Eva, and other SPECTATORS stand watching the hotel burn
               down.  Hi is dressed in a bedsheet, Eva in a blanket.

                                   SPECTATOR
                         Did everyone get out?

                                   HI
                         Yes.  Luckily I spotted the fire 
                         in time.

               Hi looks forlornly at Eva, who watches the fire.

                                   HI (cont'd)
                         But this is one catastrophic loss.

               INT. BUNGALOW - LIVING ROOM - NIGHT

               Hi slugs down some more scotch.

               EXT. REAR PATIO - NIGHT

               Dark and foggy.

               INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT

               The bottle on the coffee table is now empty.

               Hi lies semiconscious on the couch.

                                   HI
                         Eva . . . God, if I don't find a
                         lost city soon, Bates and Crowley
                         will beat me to it . . .

               EXT. PATIO - NIGHT

               In the dark and fog, a large BAT lands on the patio.

               INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT

               Hi lies asleep, still clothed, on the couch.  

               A shadowy INTRUDER enters from the patio, and approaches
               sleeping Hi.  The intruder's shadow falls over him.

               The intruder reaches down and grabs Hi by the collar with 
               one hand, Hi awaking.  

               The intruder powerfully lifts Hi to his feet with one hand. 
               It is Wolfgang, still in coat and tie.  Hi punches Wolfgang 
               in the gut.  Wolfgang just smiles.  

               Hi grabs the empty bottle from the table and smashes it over
               Wolfgang's head.  This seems to make Wolfgang mad.  

               Hi, still held by his collar, draws back a fist as if to
               punch the oaf in the face, but then seems to think better 
               of it.

                                   HI
                         Okay, you win.  

               Wolfgang pulls Hi close by the collar, to stare him hard in
               the eye.  Hi looks defiant.  

                                   HI (cont'd)
                         If you're here to kill me, get it
                         over with.

                                   WOLFGANG
                         Someone wishes to see you.  Perhaps
                         I can kill you later.  I don't like
                         being hit with a bottle.

               EXT. A SECLUDED MANSION - NIGHT

               Darkness and fog.  A car arrives in front.

               EXT. A WINDOW - NIGHT

               It appears to be Eva who peeks out from a curtained window.

               EXT. CAR - NIGHT

               Hi wears a blindfold as he and driver Wolfgang get out.

               INT. MANSION - A STUDY - NIGHT

               Eva, in black, steps to a wall mirror to check her hair, only
               to be reminded that she has no reflection.

               Adjusting one of her earrings, which have wooden pendants,
               Eva moves to an easy chair.

               Sitting down, she lights a cigarette, then strikes a calm pose.

               Hi, blindfold off, walks in.  Wolfgang stays outside, closing
               the door.

                                   EVA
                         Hello, Hi.

               Seeing Eva again, Hi seems to hold in his emotion.  He sits
               down in an easy chair across from hers.

                                   HI
                         Hello, Eva.  What brings you out of
                         the jungle?

                                   EVA
                         You know that much already?

                                   HI
                         Yeah.  A little bat told me.  Just
                         visiting?

                                   EVA
                         Yes.  I missed Buenos Aires.  It was
                         such a surprise to run into you.

                                   HI
                         You were surprised?

               Hi watches her lovely lips blow out smoke.

                                    HI (cont'd)             
                         You ought to quit smoking.  It'll
                         shorten your life.

                                   EVA
                         How did you quit?

                                   HI
                         I took up drinking instead.  Who's
                         the clown with you?  

                                   EVA
                         His name is Wolfgang.  S.S.  He is
                         assigned to protect me.

                                   HI
                         A vampire too, I take it.  Strong
                         as an ox.

                                   EVA
                         Everyone out there with Adolf is 
                         a vampire.  Hi, what are you doing
                         in Argentina?  So far from lost
                         cities.

                                   HI
                         I'm here for the funeral.  Haven't
                         you heard?  You're dead.  Everybody's
                         in mourning.  That's right, I forgot,
                         you were in mourning too.  At Cuco's.

                                   EVA
                         You must forget about me.  Life
                         must go on.

                                   HI
                         They even fooled me with the body.
                         The first time.  But then tonight 
                         I saw it.  One mistake.

                                   EVA
                         What?

                                   HI
                         They forgot the tiny wart.

               Eva touches a little wart below her jaw.

                                    HI (cont'd)
                         Nobody's perfect.  But you were
                         so close.

               Hi rises to pace, getting mad now.

                                    HI (cont'd) 
                         You fell for the Führer?

                                   EVA
                         Not really.  He did the falling.
                         I was so sick of Juan.  

                                   HI
                         What's wrong with Juan?

                                   EVA
                         What isn't?  The worst thing is, I
                         found out he has a young mistress.

                                   HI
                         Was that really a surprise, even
                         though he has you?

                                   EVA
                         She's thirteen years old.

                                   HI
                         Now that's a surprise.

                                   EVA
                         I confronted him.  I said, "She's
                         thirteen."  He said her age is no
                         problem, he's not superstitious.

                                   HI
                         That's sick.

                                   EVA
                         You said it.  Then I met the
                         Führer.  He offered me immortal
                         power.

                                   HI
                         That's sick too.  But pretty hard
                         to turn down, eh?  You're really 
                         on a power kick.

                                   EVA
                         I was.  I should have stuck with my
                         acting career.  And you.  But I 
                         did do some good for my country. 
                         Till I met him.

                                   HI
                         What happened to his first Eva?    
                         Braun.

                                   EVA
                         She didn't want to be a vampire.  So
                         he left her to die - supposedly with 
                         him - in the bunker.

                                   HI
                         Nice guy.  You can't be in love
                         with him.  Can you?

                                   EVA
                         Of course not.  I'm ashamed to be
                         with him.  I can't get far enough
                         away from him.  I've moved my
                         quarters to the bottom floor of our
                         building.  I told him that I don't
                         like heights.

                                   HI
                         You can really pick 'em, Eva.

                                   EVA
                         I picked you, didn't I?  That
                         proves I can do something right.

                                   HI
                         Then do something right now.  Why
                         go back to him?

                                   EVA
                             (loudly)
                         What choice do I have?

               She glances toward the closed door, as if suspecting that
               Wolfgang is listening.  

               Crushing out her cigarette, Eva rises to pace, speaking
               quietly again.

                                   EVA (cont'd)
                         Do you think Adolf would let me
                         leave and not return?  Do you
                         think he sends Wolfgang only to
                         protect me?  No.

               She stops by a wall painting, a portrait of herself as first
               lady.  She wistfully regards it.

                                    EVA (cont'd)
                         There is no other place for me.
                         Not now.  I've made the mother of
                         all mistakes.  But I had to see
                         Argentina again.

                                   HI
                         Maybe get a little Argentine blood?
                             (on her look)
                         Sorry.

                                   EVA
                         Don't come after us, Hi.  Please.

                                   HI
                         Concerned for my health?

                                   EVA
                         Yes.  I didn't stop loving you
                         when I married Juan.

                                   HI
                         You might as well have.

                                   EVA
                         And you didn't stop loving me.

                                   HI
                         No, I didn't.

                                   EVA 
                         May I kiss you goodbye?

               She walks over to him.  They gaze into each other's eyes. 
               Her lips move toward his.

                                   HI
                         Just don't go for the neck.

               While they kiss, Hi half-opens his eyes, looking for some
               reason at Eva's earring with its wooden pendant.

               Their lips part.  Their eyes lock longingly, then,

                                   EVA
                         Goodbye.

               She moves off toward the door, Hi watching her.





     
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