Psycho Page #4

---

She breaks off, distracted by the SOUND of the door opening.

MR. LOWERY and his oil-lease client, TOM CASSIDY enter the

office. Lowery is a pleasant, worried-faced man, big and a

trifle pompous. Cassidy is very faced loud and has a lunch-

hour load on. He is a gross man, exuding a kind of pitiful

vulgarity.

CASSIDY:

Wow! Hot as fresh milk! You girls

should get your boss to air-condition

you up. He can afford it today.

Lowery flashes an embarrassed smile at Mary, tries to lead

Cassidy toward the private office.

LOWERY:

Mary, will you get those copies of

the deed ready for Mr. Cassidy.

Cassidy pauses beside Mary's desk, hooks a haunch onto the

desktop, smiles a wet smile at Mary.

CASSIDY:

Tomorrow's the day! My sweet little

girl...

(laughs as Mary looks

up at him)

Not you, my daughter! A baby, and

tomorrow she stands up there and

gets her sweet self married away

from me!

(pulling out wallet)

I want you to look at my baby.

Eighteen years old... and she's never

had an unhappy day in any one of

those years!

(flashes photo)

Mary glances, cannot bring herself to smile or make some

remark, continues sorting out the deed copies, tries to ignore

the man's hot-breath closeness.

LOWERY:

Come on, Tom, my office is air-

conditioned.

CASSIDY:

(ignoring Lowery)

You know what I do with unhappiness?

I buy it off! You unhappy?

MARY:

Not inordinately.

(puts deed copy into

Cassidy's too-close

hand)

CASSIDY:

I'm buying this house for my baby's

wedding present. Forty thousand

dollars, cash! Now that ain't buying

happiness, that's buying off

unhappiness! That penniless punk

she's marryin'...

(laughs)

Probably a good kid... it's just

that I hate him.

(looks at deed)

Yup! Forty thousand, says here...

(to Lowery)

Casharoonie!

He takes out of his inside pocket, two separate bundles of

new $100 bills and throws them onto the desk, under Mary's

nose. Caroline's eyes go wide at the sight of the glorious

green bundles of bills, and she comes close to the desk.

Cassidy leans terribly close to Mary, flicks through the

bills, laughs wickedly.

CASSIDY:

I never carry more than I can afford

to lose!

(closer to Mary)

Count 'em!

LOWERY:

(shocked, worried)

Tom... cash transactions of this

size! Most irregular...

CASSIDY:

So what? It's my private money!

(laughs, winks, elbows

Lowery)

And now it's yours.

CAROLINE:

(staring at the money)

I declare!

CASSIDY:

(whispering)

I don't! That's how I'm able to keep

it!

(laughs)

LOWERY:

(hastily interrupting)

Suppose we just put this in the safe

and then Monday morning when you're

feeling good...

CASSIDY:

Speakin' of feeling good, where's

that bottle you said you had in your

desk...

(laughs, as if having

given away Lowery's

secret)

Oops!

(to Mary, patting her

arm)

Usually I can keep my mouth shut!

Rate this script:3.8 / 12 votes