THE RUNNER/SCREENPLAY, BRIAN R. LUNDIN [best classic books to read .txt] 📗

her and roughly pulled the tape off her mouth and freed her hands.

MAN
Understand that youse Jerome’s main black bitch.

EDWINNA
Who are you and what do you want?

Edwinna voice crackled with fear

MAN.
We’re going to send that black muthafucker’ boss of yours a message.

Edwinna heard struggling and suddenly a young black man was thrown into the room. His hands were tied behind his back and there was a strip of tape over his mouth. Blood flowed from the young man, nose and there were bruise on his face. His eyes were swollen and he was crying.

MAN
Shut up, you little black motherfucker.

Someone closed the door.

Edwinna pulled the tape from over the young man’s mouth and untied the ropes on his hands.


EDWINNA
My name is Edwinna Johnson, what’s your name?

YOUNG MAN
Bobby Randle, what’s happening?

EDWINNA
I don’t know.

BOBBY
I know you, you work for Mr. McLemore. My mother plays with you.

EDWINNA
That’s right, who are you?

BOBBY
I work for Pops and the State Street Boys.

EDWINNA
What happened to your face?

BOBBY
Them Italian sons of bitches snatched me off my corner, threw me in a car and took off. I tried to fight, but there were three of them and they punched me around.

Edwinna got a handkerchief from her pocket and wiped the blood off Bobby’s face. The door to the room opened and two men came in the one wearing the apron spoke first.

MAN
You two black nigger’s better keep quiet, any shit and I’ll bust a cap in your black asses.

Bobby snuggled closer to Edwinna as the men left and closed the door. The old wino told Jerome about the abduction of Edwinna and Jerome met with Ted, Marque and Madame Bourneis in Juanita’s Lounge.

INT. JUANITA’S LOUNGE-AFTERNOON

TED
I talked to Pops and he told me that one of his dealers had been abducted shortly after Edwinna was taken. The other dealer with Pop’s guy said that an Italian had snatched Bobby. The wino also told me that the guys who snatched Edwinna were Italian. What’s the plan boss?

JEROME
Detective Baxter ran the license plate and it came back stolen. Pops is meeting us here shortly let’s find out what he knows.

Shortly, Pops, Cinque and two Sambas entered Juanita’s Lounge. Juanita was behind the bar and she motioned Jerome and the other people into her office.

JUANITA
You’ll can have some privacy here.

Juanita closed the door.

TED
What you hear, Pop’s?

POPS
Some of those dago boys I do business with told me that that asshole Vito is behind the snatch. They say he wants revenge for what happened in Bangladesh and he want to fuck you also.

TED
What happened in Bangladesh?

POPS
Some heavy shit went down.

Pops looked at Marque as he related the incident.

TED
We’ve got to move fast, that Vito is a sadistic son bitch and I’m worried about Edwinna and your guy,


POPS
Think we should call Commander Hollis?

JEROME
Naw, it would take the police too long to find out anything, we’ve got to handle this ourselves first we’ve got to find where they are and then make our move.

Vito and Jimmy sat at the table in the kitchen eating spaghetti and meatballs at one of Vito’s tenement apartments in the Patch where Edwinna and Bobby were being held. Vincent Colaro, Louie Parelli, and Tommy Mascino were playing poker in the front room. Edwinna and Bobby had been in the room for over five hours and only allowed out to use the toilet. Bobby began wheezing and seemed as if he was having trouble breathing.

EDWINNA
What’s the matter Bobby? Edwinna asked wiping his forehead covered with sweat.

BOBBY
I’ve got asthma and I need my inhaler, Bobby said almost in a whisper.

EDWINNA
Where is it?

BOBBY
They threw it out the window when they grabbed me.

Edwinna noticed that Bobby was holding his chest and his eyes were closing, Edwinna started yelling as she slid on the floor and snuggled Booby to her chest.
EDWINNA
(screaming)
Help, someone help me.

VITO
Jimmy, go see what is wrong with that black bitch.


Jimmy opened the door to the room and saw Bobby breathing hard, trying to catch his breath. He was slumped in Edwina’s arms. His eyes were glassy and had started to roll into his head.

JIMMY
What’s wrong with that little Nigra?

EDWINNA
He’s having an asthma attack, he need to go to the emergency room!

Edwinna yelled while wiping Bobby’s face. Jimmy hurried back into the kitchen and told Vito what was happening. When Vito looked in the room at Bobby, the young man was laying in Edwina’s arms, not moving.

EDWINNA
He’s dying, you must help him.

Edwinna was pleading and her eyes tearing. Vito called Louie Parelli, and Tommy Mascino.

VITO
Take this Nigra to the hospital.


Louis and Tommie picked Bobby up led him out the room and closed the door.

JIMMY
Fuck a hospital; drop that Nigra in the river.

Jimmy he sat back down to his spaghetti dinner.

INT. HOLLIS OFFICE-MORNING

The following morning Commander Hollis read the Chicago Police Department 24-Hour Report. The report is a summary of reported crimes that has occurred in the past 24 hours. Two items in the reports caught his eye, one read,
“18 YEAR OLD M/B FOUND IN THE WEEDS OF THE SOUTH BRANCH OF THE CHICAGO RIVER, BODY IDENTIFIED AS BOBBY RANDALL. FURTHER INVESTIGATION REVEALED THERE WERE SIGNS OF TRAUMA TO THE BODY BUT DEATH WAS THE RESULTS OF AN ASTHMA ATTACK. RANDALL HAD AN EXTENSIVE JUVENILE AND ADULT ARREST RECORD INVOLVING DRUG SELLS AND GANG RELATED ACTIVITIES. DECEASED WAS REPUTEDLY A MEMBER OF THE STATE STREET BOYS STREET GANG.”
The next report read,
“HOMELESS MAN REPORTED THE ABDUCTION OF EDWINNA JOHNSON, F/B IN THE 2ND POLICE DISTRICT BY TWO UNIDENTIFIED WHITE MEN. NO FURTHER INFORMATION AVAILABLE.”

Sergeant Lundqrin joined the commander in his office.

HOLLIS
What do you think this is all about?

The commander slides the report to Reggie. The sergeant read the report, slid it back to the commander.

REGGIE
Vito! He’s not going to be happy until he starts a war with Jerome McLemore and the State Street Boys and I would put my money on Jerome. Edwinna is one of Jerome’s main people and I don’t think Jerome is going to let this slid. I’ll set up a meet with Jerome and Pops and see what I can find out.

Sergeant Reginald Lundqrin met with Pops, Cinque, Ted, Marque and Madame Bourneis at Juanita’s Lounge
REGGIE
A wino reported the abduction of Edwinna, any word?

JEROME
No, nothing.

REGGIE
Do you know a kid named Bobby Randall?

POPS
(surprised)
Yeah,” he’s one of my guys.

REGGIE
Sorry, they just found his body in the river.

POPS
He was abducted right after Edwinna by some Italian ass holes.

CINQUE
How did he die?

REGGIE
I talked to the Medical Examiner who conducted an autopsy and he believes that he died from an asthma attack, but there were bruises on his face, but nothing that would cause his death.


CINQUE
Those garlic eating cocksuckers got to pay for Bobby.

REGGIE
The commander had a meeting with Vinnie and was told that Vito is acting on his own and is angering a lot of people. Wait and let Vinnie take care of Vito.

TED
By the time Vinnie get involved, Edwinna could be dead.

The sergeant knew that Ted was probably right. Even if Vinnie did get involved, it would be too late.

REGGIE
Well, I guess you got to do what you got to do, but I’ll tell you this, if there is a war and innocent people get hurt or killed the commander will come down hard on everyone involved.

JEROME
We know that.

The sergeant gazed at Madame Bourneis smiled and again he saw the long fangs.

POPS
What we goin’ to do Mr. McLemore?

JEROME
Get your dago customers to find out where they’ve got Edwinna and we will go from there


POPS
Done.

Pops and Cinque left the lounge.

Edwinna sat in the dark room wondering about Bobby and hoped that he had gotten to the hospital in time. A plate of spaghetti and meatball sat on a table but Edwinna could not eat she was afraid and alone. She heard the muffled conversations of the men in another room, but she could not make out what they were saying. She knew that Jerome had to be worried and looking for her, she just hoped he would come soon. Two hours after leaving the lounge, Cinque called Jerome.

CINQUE
We got word that Vito’s crew is holding a black woman at 2626 South Halsted, 2nd floor, and the word is they plan on raping her and sending her head to you.

Jerome told Ted, Madame Bourneis and Marque about the call.

Louie Parelli and Tommy Mascino returned to the apartment and told Vito that they had dumped Bobby’s body on the Chicago River bank.

VITO
Good, after we leave I want you boys to have some fun with that black bitch, then kill her and cut off her head, call me when it’s done, caprice?

PARELLI
Been a long time since I had some black pussy.

Parelli started rubbing his groin. Louie Parelli and Tommy Mascino were wannnabee. They were loyal to Vito and hoped that this loyalty would eventually lead to a better position with the crew. They were tired of being gophers, running errands, getting coffee and doing other menial jobs for the crew. This was a big job; Vito usually assigned most murders he ordered to high-ranking members.

TOMMY
That black bitch is a little too old to fit my taste.

PARELLI
Mine too, but pussy is pussy.

Edwinna was lying on the bed in the room when the men entered. Tommy moved closer to the bed and leaned over Edwinna.

PARELLI
Take your clothes off bitch!

EDWINNA
Fuck you!

TOMMY
.
That’s just what you are going to do fuck us.

Edwinna looked at the two men; both were young enough to be her sons. Why would theses young men want her she thought?

Tommy tore Edwina’s blouse off, while Louie was pulling down her pants. Edwinna struggle, but the two young men were too strong. Tommy had removed Edwina’s blouse and bra and Louie had taken off her pants and underpants, while Edwinna continued to struggle.

TOMMY
Get some tape and tie this bitch up, she’s making me lose my hard.

Tommy hurried out the room while Louie lay on top of Edwinna, holding her down. A strong wind blew through the slightly opened window in the room; the little light bulb went out. Edwinna struggled trying to get from under Louie, when she heard a deep growl. Louie winded from trying to contain Edwinna heard the growl also. It was a sound he had never heard before he had heard strays dogs roaming the Patch barking and fighting over the spoiled meat on the sidewalks but they never sounded like this. Tommy ran back into