SCRIPT

FADE IN:

EXT. MICHELLE’S HOUSE - MORNING

A series of shots from outside of the house to the inside

Where we see lots of signs

The wind blows the grass and the trees.

Michelle walks up to the window inside the house. She stops and looks

at the sky. Dark, heavy clouds are moving in.

She sips a drink from a mug, places it down and closes the blinds before picking up her mobile to make a call.

RELATIVE

…Hello?

MICHELLE

They’re getting worse.

RELATIVE

Are you safe?

MICHELLE

I’m not so sure anymore.

RELATIVE

Don’t forget what happened to {enter other relative}

MICHELLE

I know, I know, I just have to clean up the place before selling and then I’m out.

RELATIVE

Well good luck and stay safe.

MICHELLE

Yeah thanks, I’ll see you soon hopefully.

Michelle ends the call and sets the phone down on the counter.

At this moment, a montage of INT. paranormal events begin.

Noted in Michelle's Diary as they happen.

INT. MICHELLE’S HOUSE - (CONT’D)

The floor creaks, glass moves, moving shadows.

INT. JACOB’S OFFICE - EVENING

The office is a dark and gloomy place. The desk is old, wooden, and covered with occult and satanic bric-a-brac.

JACOB leans back in his chair.

JACOB

I want to set the record straight.

My associates and I, we don’t do

exorcisms. We don’t penetrate the

veil of the unknown to contact the

spirits of the past. We just.

Eat ghosts.

Across the table MICHELLE nods.

MICHELLE

I think that’s what I need.

Michelle pulls out a manila folder and begins to spread out

the contents on the desk in front of Jacob.

MICHELLE (CONT’D)

I inherited a house.

JACOB reaches into the pile and pulls out a photo of the

house. It is old and creepy-looking.

JACOB

And you think it’s haunted?

MICHELLE

I’ve heard stories about it for

years.

JACOB

Noises in the night? Visions? That sort of thing?

MICHELLE

Yes.

JACOB

Have you checked it for gas leaks?

MICHELLE

Excuse me?

JACOB

Carbon monoxide poisoning. A lot of

these old houses have little leaks,

letting out toxic fumes.

MICHELLE

That sounds dangerous.

JACOB

It is. But at low levels it doesn’t

kill. It just causes

Hallucinations.

MICHELLE

Like voices and images.

JACOB

Exactly.

MICHELLE

But this house has a history.

Michelle pulls out a newspaper clipping from the folder. The

headline proclaims a multiple homicide. The photo in the news

article is the house.

JACOB

Now this... this is interesting.

MICHELLE

I think it was a house on the

Underground Railroad or something.

Michelle shows Jacob more documents. Photos of crime scenes

and old newspaper clippings.

JACOB

Go on.

MICHELLE

There was a raid or something and a

lot of people were massacred. A

guest house full of people was

burned to the ground.

JACOB

Fascinating.

MICHELLE

No one has lived in it for more

than a year. People go insane and

kill their families.

JACOB

Are you sure it isn’t something...

hereditary? I hear depression can

run in some families.

MICHELLE

My family is screwy, but not that

screwy.

JACOB

You are, of course, unbiased.

MICHELLE

I have a realtor who will take it

off my hands, but I need to make a

show of faith first.

JACOB

I’m not sure I understand.

MICHELLE

If I can say I’ve done something to

get rid of them, you know, the

ghosts, it will help me unload the

thing.

JACOB

Ah. So you need to clean the house.

MICHELLE

That’s it.

JACOB

I would like to do a little more

research on the property, but, yes,

I believe my associates and I can

take the case.

MICHELLE

Thank you. This means so much to me.

JACOB

Believe me, this arrangement should

be... mutually beneficial.

JACOB holds up the picture of the house.

JACOB (CONT’D)

Yes, this house looks quite lovely.

The photo of the house stands in the frame. The image slowly

begins to fade.

EXT. HAUNTED HOUSE - AFTERNOON

The same house as in the picture, this time real. The wind

blows the grass and the trees.

MICHELLE walks up the path to the house. She stops and looks

at the sky. Dark, heavy clouds are moving in.

She fumbles with the keys to the door and goes inside.

INT. HAUNTED HOUSE FRONT HALL - CONTINUOUS

MICHELLE stands in the front hall. It is an old and creepy

house; the only sounds are of an old grandfather clock

ticking. She walks through the house, looking at all of the

old, dusty furniture.

INT. HAUNTED HOUSE DINING ROOM - CONTINUOUS

The light slants into the room through the antique windows as

dust drifts through the air.

MICHELLE opens an old liquor cabinet. She takes out a tumbler

and holds it up to her face. She wipes it off with her sleeve

and pulls out a half-full bottle of whiskey. She pours

herself a drink, takes a swig, and makes a face as it burns

the back of her throat.

INT. HAUNTED HOUSE LIVING ROOM - MOMENTS LATER

MICHELLE lifts the cover off of an old chair. Dust goes

everywhere. She sits down and looks out the window, taking a

sip of the whiskey. A shaft of waning afternoon light cuts

through the clouds and shines on a chair. The light is warm

and inviting. She relaxes into the chair and drifts off to

Sleep.

INT. HAUNTED HOUSE LIVING ROOM - NIGHT

BOOM!

MICHELLE wakes up with a start and looks around.

Darkness is everywhere. The wind is blowing more audibly now

and there is a distant sound of thunder.

BOOM!

Another sound comes from the front door. MICHELLEwalks

toward it.

BOOM!

INT. HAUNTED HOUSE FRONT HALL - CONTINUOUS

The front door of the house swings open on its own. In the doorway is a dark silhouette. It moves toward MICHELLE.

MICHELLE

Hey you can’t just-

As the shadow gets closer to her, she realizes it is JACOB.

JACOB

I’m sorry. The door was stuck.

MICHELLE lets out a nervous laugh.

MICHELLE

It-it’s okay. I fell asleep.

JACOB

Of course you did.

JACOB holds up two bags of fast food.

JACOB (CONT’D)

I brought some dinner in case you

were hungry.

MICHELLE

You know, that sounds great.

INT. HAUNTED HOUSE DINING ROOM - NIGHT

MICHELLE and JACOB sit around a table, eating fast food by

candlelight. The sound of the storm outside is getting worse.

JACOB

You were right about this house. It

has quite the history. Really

fascinating.

MICHELLE

Mom would never say anything when I was growing up, but Dad... Dad

would tell me stories about it.

JACOB

Were you scared?

MICHELLE

Terrified. He told this one about

how his great uncle kept hearing

voices in the walls.

JACOB

It was probably just rats.

They hear a faint scratching noise. MICHELLE looks around,

startled. JACOB keeps eating his food, completely unaffected.

JACOB (CONT’D)

If it sounded like that, it was

definitely rats.

MICHELLE

I don’t know if that makes me more

comfortable or not.

A doorbell rings. JACOB looks at his watch.

JACOB

And that should be my associates.

INT. HAUNTED HOUSE FRONT HALL - NIGHT

JACOB opens the door to three tall, gaunt PASTY WHITE MEN in

suits, trench coats, and dark glasses. A flash of lightning

shoots through the sky behind them.

JACOB

Right on time.

The three men glide past the two people and into the house.

MICHELLE

These are your associates?

JACOB

It takes a special person to eat

ghosts.

MICHELLE and JACOB watch the pasty white men walk through the

house. The men sniff the air and make a soft hissing noise.

MICHELLE

I’m not sure what I was expecting,

but this is a notch or two up in

terms of creepy.

JACOB

I prefer to think of my associates

as eccentric, not creepy.

MICHELLE

As long as they get the job done, I

don’t care.

INT. HAUNTED HOUSE STAIRWAY - NIGHT

One of the pasty white men walks up the stairs, sniffing the

air.

JACOB (V.O.)

Despite what you might think,

ghosts are actually very rare.

INT. HAUNTED HOUSE UPSTAIRS HALLWAY - NIGHT

One of the pasty white men walks slowly down the hall,

dragging his long pasty fingers along the wallpaper.

JACOB (V.O.)

If someone develops a taste for

spirits, that person spends a lot

of time simply looking for food.

INT. HAUNTED HOUSE BEDROOM - NIGHT

One of the pasty white men gently caresses a pillow.

Something scuttles for a second. The pasty white man turns

and looks at a little bureau. There is a CREEPY DOLL sitting

on the bureau.

The pasty white man touches the doll. Something moves in the

darkness. The pasty white man throws his head back and makes

a loud shriek.

INT. HAUNTED HOUSE FRONT HALL - NIGHT

MICHELLE looks to JACOB.

MICHELLE

What was that?

JACOB

Pay dirt. There’s a basement in

this house, right?

MICHELLE

Yes.

JACOB

We should probably hide there for a

few minutes. Things are about to

get exciting.

INT. HAUNTED HOUSE BEDROOM - NIGHT

All three pasty white men stand with their backs next to each

other, forming a little triad.

They lean back their heads, open their mouths, and let out

long, loud, harmonic screeches.

Screaming white ghosts seep out of the walls as they are

sucked into the mouths of the pasty white men. The wails of

the dead mix with the screeching of the pasty white men.

INT. HAUNTED HOUSE BASEMENT - NIGHT

JACOB and MICHELLE stand in the basement. They look at the

ceiling, listening to the muffled ruckus.

JACOB

You know how ghosts are made?

MICHELLE shakes her head.

JACOB (CONT’D)

There are two factors - the place

and the person. The place needs to

be one of death and fear.

Sacrificial rocks. Battlefields.

And some houses. We’re in a place

like that. But the person... the

person needs to die confused and

frightened, not fully understanding

what is happening to her.

Michelle stares at him, glassy-eyed.

JACOB (CONT’D)

For example, if someone is

poisoned, there is a fairly solid

chance the person will come back as.

A ghost..

MICHELLE starts to wobble. JACOB begins to walk away from

her, up the stairs out of the basement.

JACOB (CONT’D)

Usually when we find a suitable

haunting place, we like to seed it

with new souls. You’re lucky enough

to be the first.

MICHELLE tries to follow JACOB up the stairs, but can barely

stand. She begins to convulse slightly as JACOB reaches the

top of the stairs. MICHELLE lurches towards him, but

collapses on the stairs and slides back down to the ground.

JACOB reaches the top of the stairs and turns to MICHELLE. He

looks down on her and smiles. She can only muster a moan.

JACOB looks down on MICHELLE.

JACOB (CONT’D)

Thank you so much for finding this

house for us.

MICHELLE makes a guttural groan.

JACOB (CONT’D)

Yes, I had a splendid evening, too.

Rest assured, we will meet again.

Probably for dinner. Oh, speaking

of dinner, I have to go or there

won’t be anything left.

JACOB smiles and, for a moment, his face flashes with pasty

white hunger and rage.

JACOB closes the door, leaving MICHELLE alone in the dark.

FADE TO BLACK.