"The Riverbank"
by
Chris Messineo

Off Stage Films, LLC
293 Charnwood Road
New Providence, NJ 07974
www.OffStageFilms.com
(908) 508-1942

“THE RIVERBANK”

FADE IN:
EXT. RIVERBANK - DAY
The trees shiver in the breeze.
A twig floats on the water and comes to rest against a
woman’s hand.
Lying on the bank, with a knife in her chest, is the body of
EMILY THOMAS.
CUT TO:
INT. HOLDING CELL - DAY
JACK THOMAS sits handcuffed.
Across from him sits DETECTIVE PEARCE.
JACK
I’m innocent.
DETECTIVE PEARCE
You can do better than that, Jack.
Detective Pearce pulls out an evidence bag containing the
bloodstained knife.
DETECTIVE PEARCE
You recognize this?
JACK
I think so.
DETECTIVE PEARCE
Don’t think so much. This is your
knife, isn’t it?
Yes.

JACK

DETECTIVE PEARCE
We found it sticking out of your
wife’s chest.
JACK
I didn’t put it there.

2.
DETECTIVE PEARCE
So you’ve said.
Detective Pearce takes the knife back.
DETECTIVE PEARCE
You should know, we’ve spoken to
your girlfriend as well, a Miss
Heather Monroe.
CUT TO:
INT. BEDROOM - DAY
Heather and Jack are getting dressed.
HEATHER
I can’t do this anymore.
JACK
Not this again.
HEATHER
Do you love me, Jack?
JACK
You know I do.
HEATHER
I won’t be your whore.
Calm down.

JACK

HEATHER
I am calm. It’s simple. I will
have all of you or I will have
nothing at all.
JACK
What about Emily?
HEATHER
Emily can go to hell.
Heather starts for the door.
Wait.

JACK

Heather stops.
JACK
I’ll tell her.

3.
Heather looks at him.
I will.

JACK
I promise.

Jack pulls Heather into his embrace.
JACK
I love you.
HEATHER
You know, she won’t let you go.
JACK
I won’t give her any other choice.
CUT TO:
INT. HOLDING CELL - DAY
Jack is rattled and Detective Peace is in pursuit.
DETECTIVE PEARCE
Is that when you decided to kill
her?
JACK
I just talked to her.

That’s all.

DETECTIVE PEARCE
Isn’t that pleasant. What did you
talk about?
CUT TO:
INT. BATHROOM - DAY
The bathroom door slams shut.
Emily?

JACK (O.S.)

Emily locks the door.

She is crying.

EMILY
Leave me alone.
Jack knocks on the door.
Emily?

JACK (O.S.)

4.
EMILY
How could you do this?
JACK (O.S.)
I’m sorry. I never meant to hurt
you. I didn’t mean for any of this
to happen. It just did.
EMILY
Is that you best apology, Jack.
It’s pathetic. You’re pathetic.
It’s going to take a hell of a lot
more than that for me to take you
back.
There is an awkward silence.
JACK (O.S.)
I’m not coming back.
Emily opens the door.
What?

EMILY

JACK
I don’t love you anymore.
leaving you, Emily.
You can’t.

I’m

EMILY
I won’t let you.

JACK
Try and stop me.
CUT TO:
INT. HOLDING CELL - DAY
Detective Pearce is moving in for the kill.
DETECTIVE PEARCE
Now I understand. You had no other
choice. You had to murder her.
JACK
You keep saying that, but it
doesn’t make it true.
DETECTIVE PEARCE
No, Jack, it doesn’t. The evidence
does.

5.
JACK
What evidence?
DETECTIVE PEARCE
Your boots.
My boots?

JACK

DETECTIVE PEARCE
We found mud all over them and
their tracks were all around the
body.
CUT TO:
EXT. RIVERBANK - DAY
A pair of men’s boots come sloshing through the mud.
CUT TO:
INT. HOLDING CELL - DAY
JACK
That’s impossible.
DETECTIVE PEARCE
I assure you, it’s very possible.
JACK
It wasn’t me.
DETECTIVE PEARCE
If it wasn’t you Jack, then who
killed your wife?
CUT TO:
EXT. RIVERBANK - DAY
Standing in Jack’s boots is Emily, carefully leaving tracks
in the mud.
CUT TO:
INT. GARAGE - DAY
She tucks the dirty boots into the corner of the garage.
CUT TO:

6.

INT. BASEMENT - DAY
Emily takes Jack’s knife from his workbench.
CUT TO:
EXT. RIVERBANK - DAY
Emily kneels at the edge of the river.
and runs her finger along the blade.
She looks out on the river.

She opens the knife

It is beautiful.

She holds the knife to her chest.
EMILY
Til death do us part.
Emily closes her eyes and then thrusts.
As the knife finds it home, Emily sucks in one last breath,
her eyes open, and she falls to the ground.
CUT TO:
INT. HOLDING CELL - DAY
Jack is scared.
JACK
I’m innocent. I swear.
to believe me.

You have

DETECTIVE PEARCE
I’m tired of this. I’m tired of
you and your lies.
Detective Pearce stands.
DETECTIVE PEARCE
I’m going to see to it that you’re
wife gets justice. You’re going to
get the chair for this, Jack.
You’re going to pay for this with
your life.
FADE OUT.