i'm sorry for the screw-up. but i couldn't help it it's too late to go trick-or-treating now. i couldn't help it i had to stop at penny's for the costume. and you were hungry, remember.
yeah.
those are the hoyts.
can't you see.  look out there. nobody's got their porch lights on anymore. it's too late. those hoyt kids are just out to get in trouble. see, they put shaving cream all over that mailbox there. they chopped down herb crane's new bushes. little bastards. jesus h. christ.
do what?
break stuff?
i guess they're stupid.
well, yeah. sort of. nothing really mean. me and my pals, me and my brothers. it was kind of funny then. stealing pumpkins, soaping windows. stuff like that.
to us it was.
it's not funny now. i'm a cop and i gotta listen to all the complaints people make. i'm not a kid anymore. you change.
what are you talking about?
no. i didn't used to be bad. no sir. where do you get this stuff? from your mother?
got here just in time. go ahead. jump in line. maybe you'll win a prize.
go on, jill. some of those kids you still know.
why? why not? you know these kids from when you went to school here. it hasn't been that long.
what then?
it's fun.
oh, jesus, come on, will you? don't mess this up anymore than it's already been messed up. join the other kids. do that and before you know it you'll be as happy as a goddamned clam.
what are you boys up to?
you're going to have to move your pickup.
don't mind if i do.
where's that gun you were bragging on today?
got you for -- 450, 500 bucks?
don't forget to move your truck.
some party, huh? sorry i lost sight of you. i had to step outside for a smoke. you find anybody you know here? there must be some kids you used to know from school. you want to go tomorrow? see your old teachers? be more fun than hanging out with me all day.
no what?
you are home. there are lots of kids you still know here.
jesus. listen, jill, tell you what. tomorrow morning, you still want to go home, i'll drive you down. i'll get off work or something.
what? you called mommy? just now?
jesus, why?
come and get you! shit! it's a damn half hour drive each way. why didn't you talk to me about it first?
yeah. yeah, right, i'm mad. what'd you tell her, for christ sake?
well, i guess i am. i planned this, i planned all this, you know. i mean, it's sort of pathetic, but i planned it. you shouldn't have called your mother. c'mon, we're gonna call her before she leaves.
she's gone already! gone already! couldn't wait.
that's all you got to say? "yes".
she won't be here for a half hour. think you can stand it that long?
where do you expect to wait for her? obviously downstairs with the other kids isn't good enough.
sit right there by yourself if you want. wait for her by yourself. that's fine with me. just dandy. i'm going downstairs.
i thought i told you to move that truck!
you gotta be more careful about that shit. gordon or one of those guys sees you smoking that wacky tabacky around me they'll expect me to bust you. and i'll be outta a job.
not here.
evan. he's a mucky-muck union official from massachusetts. you're lucky.
how'd you get the job?
toothache. you should get close to him. make yourself irreplaceable. guy's loaded.
right. the sonofabitch couldn't get along without me.
right!
shit.
my ex-wife lillian and her husband. that was them in the audi that just passed us.
aw, shit, she's here to get jill. me and jill had a little argument. jack, i got to get back, get back to town. move this thing, will you? see if you can get back to the town hall before they get there, okay?
lillian!
me and jill, we just had a little spat. she felt kind of left out, i guess, from not knowing some of the new kids --
she told me she wanted to wait for you. inside.
yeah.
oh, jesus, lay off, will you? it looks like you've won this fucking round already, so lay off a little, for christ's sake.
horner! leave her be. this's got nothing to do with you, so just act like the chauffeur. got it?
i don't want her to go, lillian.
i'm not making it any worse. you are. me and jill could've worked this thing out. it's normal, it's even normal for me to get a little touchy about it. believe it or not. how do you think this makes me look, treating her like some tragic victim or something?
just wait till we're through, goddamnit!
don't you say a word. i didn't hit him. i'm not going to hit anybody.
for a while.
okay. she's fine.
you be careful of that little bastard. he's dying to get in your pants, you know.
see you tomorrow, maybe.
yeah.
tomorrow, gordon.
lugene? wade. hoya doin? look, i was wondering, with the snow and all, if you got school today? how the hell do i know? you're the principal. all i'm supposed to do is direct traffic from 7:30 to 8:30. yeah, okay, i'm sorry -- i only just now saw it was snowing, that's all. my whole day is fucked. i gotta plow all day. if i don't get over to lariviere's early enough, i'm stuck with the grader. i was just hoping you'd have called school off. you check the weather bureau? okay, i hear you. i'll be over in a bit.
did you see that sonofabitch in the bmw? he could've killed somebody.
i know who it is.
mel gordon.
from boston. evan twombley's son-in- law -- he was driving. i know where they're headed. up the lake, agaway. the old man's out deer hunting with jack hewitt, so they probably got some big weekend party planned.
where's the plow?
his son-in-law damn near killed me.
at the school crossing. in his bmw. coulda hurt some kids. i'm gonna bust his ass.
what am i -- a security guard? you hired me, you and your selectman friends.
i'm not saying that.
fuck you.
cold. how you think?
school. traffic crossing. i gotta quit these things.
rolfe.
just do it.
jesus, lacoy, you got nothing better to do than sit around and tell stories. pity is, some college student will come some day and believe this shit cause you're the only one dumb enough to talk to him. take care.
you just needed a drink.
nothing.
it don't look right.
the sign. it looks like it's spelled wrong or something.
i'm not finding fault. it's a good idea, good for you, good for the town. real modern too.
aw, c'mon, i was only saying there's something wrong with "home made cooking", that's all. the sign's fine. what it says is wrong.
yeah.
said what?
forget it.
i'm going to start one of those custody suits. i don't give a fucking shit. you know?
yeah. i mean that.
the hell she isn't. lillian's been trying to nail me to a cross since the day i met her. i'm gonna hire me a fucking lawyer from concord and get this thing, this divorce thing, rearranged. i've been thinking about it a lot. it's like she owns jill or something. nobody owns nobody, especially not kids. and i pay her.
that goddamned woman. thinks she can cart jill off and leave me alone like this. i'm more than pissed, margie. i'm a whole lot more than pissed. i been that plenty and i know the difference. this is different.
tonight. let's get together.
not since last night. he took a guy hunting.
jack?
where.  how'd you hear that?
no, i.  i've been out on the grader all morning. twombley's summer people. massachusetts. friend of gordon's. it was his idea for jack to take him hunting. i gotta go.
a hunting accident. jack and twombley.
i figured you already heard.
twombley's shot. i heard that. not jack. he's okay, i assume.
you mean twombley?
he more than likely just shot himself in the foot or something. that's what usually happens.
i wish you had. i'd rather be deer hunting instead of freezing my ass on that fucking grader.
like hell.
you want me to follow them to littleton?
will he make it?
i seen 'em. near ran me over.
it ain't done, if that's what you mean.
yeah. a few things.
where'd twombley get shot?
no, i mean whereabouts.
you bring him up yourself? that's a steep climb.
you stayed away?
where'd you get the blood?
on your sleeve.
i gotta make a report to fish and game. i was just wondering, that's all. what'd he do, to shoot himself, i mean?
i never seen a man shot before. not even in the service. must be something.
sure you did.
saw him do it?
you musta seen him get shot. i know you did.
there's your old twenty-gauge, and that there's the new browning you was showing me last night. this must be twombley's gun. brand new. very fancy tooling. probably fired one time. it's a beautiful piece of work. but what the hell, jack, i guess you deserve it. right's right.
twombley sure as hell won't be shooting it again.
rolfe.
yeah, brother, look, i was calling cause -- has there been anything on tv in boston about a hunting accident with a guy named twombley, evan twombley?
yeah, i know him -- the kid that was with him. maybe you do too. jack hewitt. he works for lariviere with me. he's my best friend.
no, not tonight. i'm in bed too. i'm calling because i need you to listen. you're supposed to be a smart guy. you're a professor. i got this theory. jack says he didn't see twombley shot but he did.
it'll come out jack lied and the kid'll get hung for it.
who?
no shit.
well, it was an accident.
lillian was here. in lawford.
the night before the shooting.
picked up jill. she was supposed to visit for the weekend for halloween. she wanted to go home.
jill. i was thinking of getting a lawyer. maybe you can help me.
a divorce lawyer. a custody lawyer. you know, 'cause of jill.
yeah, i guess.
i get to feeling like a whipped dog some days, rolfe, and some night i'm going to bite back. i swear it.
no, no, i haven't. not really. i've growled a little, but i haven't bit.
i was.  i'm wade whitehouse. i was wondering, is your husband here?
well, yes, i'm.  i want to say that i'm real sorry about your father, mrs. twombley.
well, yeah, i suppose. sure. i just had a little business to settle with mr. gordon. i'm the local police officer.
oh, no. no, it's a.  it's a traffic thing. no big deal.
how's that?
jesus christ. mr. gordon, when i come all the way to serve somebody a summons, i don't call ahead for an appointment.
i'm issuing you a ticket. moving violation.
yesterday morning, you passed a stopped school bus, which was flashing its lights, then you--
don't ever put your hands on me, mr. gordon.
don't give me a hard time, mr. gordon. i'm just --
yes. here's your ticket.
there's something funny about that shooting. there's lots funny about it, actually.
i'm sure, i'm positive it didn't happen the way jack says it did.
i've been wondering if maybe jack shot twombley, instead of twombley shooting himself. i've been wondering maybe jack shot him on purpose.
money.
everybody needs money. except guys like twombley and that sonofabitch son-in-law of his. people like that.
lots of people. guy like evan twombley, boston union official, probably got lots of people want to see him dead. the government's been investigating his links with the mafia.
no, i just know jack's lying about what happened. he just seemed -- i know that kid, what he's like inside. he's a lot like i was at his age.
no. not for money. but, if somebody'd given me half a damned excuse -- i was pretty fucked up, you know.
i can see what you looked like as a kid.
yeah, but never what you looked like. not really. never really studied your face, like now. i was never able to see you as a kid when you were a kid until now, this way.
after making love. i like it. it's nice to see that in a grown-up person.
i'm her father -- supposed to be, but i'm not able to. yes. yes, i am. it may be the only thing in my life i've been so clear about wanting. even if it takes a big fight.
there's another thing i've been thinking about. i don't know how you feel about the idea, margie, because we've never talked about it. but i've been thinking lately, i've been thinking we should get married sometime. you and me.
i've been thinking about it, that's all.
it was to the same woman. i was just a kid.  it's not like a marriage proposal or anything, just a thought. something for you and me to talk about and think about. you know?
good.
don't you think it's proper for a fella to introduce his girl to his parents?
i just want to pick up my divorce papers. for the lawyer. it won't take long.
the truck's here. looks like they've stayed inside since the snow started.
strange.
of course! i would've heard.
i don't know for christ's sake!
pop, pop, you okay?
jesus, pop, how can you stand the cold, dressed like that? where's ma?
you remember margie fogg?
how you and ma doing? haven't seen you in town for a while.
yeah.
jesus. nothing's changed around here.
where's ma?
ma? it's wade. can i come in?
oh, lord.
yeah.
is there something wrong with the phone?
why didn't you call and have the furnace fixed?
shouldn't we get this show on the road, now that rolfe's here?
pointless to stand around in church with nothing to do, i guess.
anyone else want one? rolfe?
yeah. i forgot.
i'm fine, fine.
this is nuts.
pop! don't do this now, pop.
listen, it's no big deal, pop.
if you ever touch her again, i'll kill you. i swear it.
i'm glad you're here. can you stay for a while?
you ever come to your father's grave anymore?
we should talk.
it's just.
let's dig out pop's truck before the skin of the snow freezes up.
what about her?
yeah. she'll probably quit her job and stay out here with pop. we can't leave him alone here, he'll set the damn place on fire. with jill here a lot, it'll be good to have margie around. things are going to change in that department, by the way. i got a custody lawyer in concord. i'm gonna see him tomorrow. all hell's gonna break loose, but it's worth it.
i want to let the gas run out. i don't want the bastard driving drunk, and he's always drunk now. after, we'll hide the keys.
i guess it was an accident, like everybody thinks.
find them everywhere.
which is?
then who shot him?
motive. you gotta have a motive.
who'd pay him that kind of money? not the mob. they got their own guys. specialists.
i don't know. you tell me.
yeah, the guy with the bmw i told you about. i did, didn't i?
so mel gordon wouldn't want a professional hit. that'd make the feds dig deeper. he wants an accident.
shit, around here, you shoot somebody in the woods, you say it was an accident, you get fined fifty bucks and your hunting license lifted. jack's probably saying the guy shot himself cause he ain't got his deer yet and don't want his license pulled.
it's too neat. things ain't that neat. it makes me mad. that somebody can pay to kill somebody, his own father-in-law, and not be punished for it. don't that piss you off?
right's right, goddamnit! don't you care what's right?
yeah.
of course it happened. why would i lie about it?
you think i wouldn't remember a thing like that?
we'd have to go digging in vietnam to ask him.
well, i never heard that one.
that's what you think.
morning, gordon.
lawford?
why don't you quit now, you want out so bad?
i mean it -- you got enough money now. head out for california. surf's up, jack, and you're digging wells in the snow.
looney tunes, jack. fucking looney tunes!
i screwed up the divorce. i agreed with everything she said. i wanted her to like me. i just want to be a good father.
i plan to. soon.
this spring.
it looks pretty hopeless, don't it?
yes.
jesus. how much.  how much will the whole thing cost?
oh.
yeah. i know. the custody suit thing was just my getting back at her. i'm not as dumb as i look. whatever you say. i love my daughter. i'll send you the five hundred.
sorry about the long lunch. my clutch is going out again.
on what you pay me?
what do i have to do for it?
i saw mel gordon in here this morning.
he say anything about the summons i tried to give him? sonofabitch wouldn't accept it.
you? why?
that was before twombley was shot. before he knew.
want to buy?
i won't. you interested?
you and mel gordon?
always count on old wade for a good screwing. why should i always pay more, sell cheap? why should you guys make all the money. you and mel and jack. right's right.
jesus christ, pop, let's go home. i got waylaid. sorry.
pop, for christ's sake!
i wish you would die.
no shit, rolfe, i glanced up and there he was, only it was me. but it was like i had never seen myself before. it was a stranger's face. hard to explain. you fly on automatic pilot, like i was doing all night, and you disappear.
then you accidentally see your body, or your face, or whatever, and you don't know who the hell it belongs to. strange. it's the business with the old man, i know, and how incredibly pissed i was at him, and also chasing jack hewitt like that, and the goddamned truck going through the ice, not to mention margie's being so upset -- one thing on top of another.
but you gotta hear this. you won't believe it. mel gordon had come by to visit lariviere and so now i'm in his office.
you got yourself a computer, alma.
no. black.
yeah, sure. why? i got this damned tooth, i got a few things bugging me, like everybody else. but i'm okay.
alma, i think there's some dirty business going on in this town.
this is maybe worse than you and i are used to. what i'm talking about, i'm talking about murder. among other things.
evan twombley, the union boss who got shot. somebody murdered him.
you know jack hewitt, the kid i work with?
if jack told the truth, he could be free by the time he's my age.
you don't believe me?
i know he's due for the last two years. i was thinking of paying it when the insurance comes in.
as a mater of fact, yes. lariviere.
what is the northcountry development association?
twombley involved?
he musta found out. they had to get rid of him. and jack'll get blamed.
you sneaky sonofabitch! i've got your number now, gordon! all these years i actually thought you were a decent man. can you believe that?
you two, don't you get it? he's using you. you're his slaves. jesus christ, jack, don't you see that?
yeah, you can have the key. it's the key that's kept me locked to you all these years. i give it to you with pleasure. now i'm free. see how easy it is, jack? all you got to do is give back what the man gave you, and you're free of him. i've got to call my brother.
i know what it means. i'm just running out of ways to use it.
to help, jack, of course -- and to nail those sonsofbitches, the two gordons. that's what alma calls them. jesus, rolfe, whose side are you on?
just tell me when you'll have it fixed.
yeah. i know about that.
tell me.
he can't fire me. lariviere already did that this morning.
what do you mean, you can't take me today? i told you --
it's my tooth! my fucking tooth! i can't even think anymore because of it.
look, that's temporary, believe me. there's so much shit gonna hit the fan the next few days, my getting fired by lariviere and merritt won't matter a bit.
i'll get another job. people are going to need me. after this is over, they'll make me into a goddamned hero. you wait: you'll see, i'll deliver. i'll be the best father who ever lived. you need me, even pop, for christ's sake, he needs me. this town needs me. maybe now they think they can send me howling into a corner like a kicked dog, but my god, it'll be different soon.
leave the bottle out!
yeah, lots.
hi honey.
no problem. look, i.
low as what? what have i done? it's bad to want to see your own daughter?
yeah. my car's in the shop. this'll be fine.
it belongs to pop.
grandpa. my father. it's his.
how about a big mac?
c'mon, we can always sneak a big mac. and a cherry turnover. your favorite. what do you say?
what do you want, then?
you can't have nothing, jill. we need lunch. mr. pizza?
i know what mommy says. i'm in charge today, though.
nothing, i guess. i guess i can wait till we get home. maybe we'll stop by wickham's for a hamburger when we get to lawford. that suit you? you always like wickham's.
fine.
oh, jesus, jill, i'm sorry. what's the matter, honey?
please don't cry. please, honey.
i don't know. for the food business. i guess. i just thought, you know, we'd sneak a big mac on mommy, like we used to.
you can't.
i know.
nope. not anymore. i'm nothing anymore.
jillie, you want a cheese grilled sandwich?
jill, please, it's alright. nothing happened.
okay, let's go home, then.
his office. you mean my old office.
he got his deer yet?
going somewhere, margie?
don't lie to me. you're leaving me, i can see that.
marg.
you don't know me. you don't know me! so fuck you. fuck you.
love! what the fuck do you know about love?
call it what you want.
yeah.
you and me.
crawl!
i don't know you. my goddamn father and i don't know you.
i know you now. i love you too.
joke. you scared me.