Blood Sports

by Eden Robinson

  [00:04:48]

  The remaining 00:00:03 of a previously recorded scene that has been taped over. Although the camera is moving fast and the images are blurred, screaming can be heard, and the sound of dogs growling and clothes ripping. This is followed by 00:05:29 of static.

  [00:10:20]

  A male of average height and weight struggles as two men in black balaclavas and clothes hold his arms, which are cuffed in front of him. The victim is of undetermined race as he is splattered in green paint. The men drag him along a trail.

  UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you think that was funny? Fucking laugh it up now, you useless cunts. You better –

  They reach a coffin with silver handles beside a grave-sized hole. The unidentified victim begins to scream.

  [00:11:22]

  The victim struggles to exit the coffin. He is held in place by Mr. Rieger, who has removed his mask.

  J. RIEGER: Any last words, rat?

  UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I didn’t say anything! I will never say anything –

  J. RIEGER: No, you won’t. Close it up.

  The victim screams as the coffin lid is shut and locked. Mr. Rieger shushes the other people who have begun to laugh.

  The men lift the coffin up, shake it, and drop it beside the hole. They shovel dirt over the coffin. The victim screams louder and pounds the coffin lid. The males struggle not to laugh out loud, covering their mouths and moving away from the coffin. One of the men ties a thick white rope to the handles.

  [00:13:38]

  Rusty Letourneau rides like a surfer on top of the coffin, which is attached to a pickup truck. They drive down a gravel logging road.

  J. RIEGER: Go, Rusty, go!

  People laugh near the camera when Mr. Letourneau falls off the coffin and lands in the ditch.

  [00:14:44]

  Mr. Rieger is in a clearing. Five men wearing black balaclavas have formed a circle with the sixth man holding the camera. Mr. Rieger steps into the centre of the circle. He removes his pants. The other men begin to hoot. Rusty Letourneau steps forward and removes his balaclava. He smiles at the camera and aims his air rifle at Mr. Rieger.

  J. RIEGER: Lower.

  R. LETOURNEAU: Take it like a man, Rieger.

  J. RIEGER: Maybe you like it in the ass, but –

  Mr. Letourneau shoots Mr. Rieger in the lower legs. Mr. Rieger drops to the ground and screams.

  J. RIEGER: Jesus fucking Christ! [screams] Fuck! Fuck that hurts!

  The other men laugh. One by one they step into the centre of the circle and Mr. Letourneau shoots them and then, after initial screaming and swearing, they move back to their places. Mr. Rieger stands at the end of the sequence and shoots Mr. Letourneau in the lower legs. Mr. Letourneau hops on one foot, then the other, but doesn’t scream or swear.

  R. LETOURNEAU: That’s how it’s done.

  J. RIEGER: Okay, John Wayne, you –

  [00:31:49]

  Paulina Mazenkowski screams. She jumps up and down and claps her hands. She poses on the hood of the Jaguar.

  P. MAZENKOWSKI: What kind of engine does she have, Jer?

  J. RIEGER: The manual’s in the glove compartment.

  P. MAZENKOWSKI: Manual? Let me peek under the hood. I’m a hands-on kind of girl.

  J. RIEGER: Baby, anything you want.

  P. MAZENKOWSKI: I want to drive this hot bitch.

  J. RIEGER: Anything but that.

  P. MAZENKOWSKI: Come on, Jer. Let me show you what I can do.

  [00:33:53]

  The camera is waist-high, pointed up. Paulina Mazenkowski leans over and stares into the camera.

  P. MAZENKOWSKI: Are you sure it’s working?

  J. RIEGER: It’s working. The hole is on this side of the duffle. Point and shoot.

  Ms. Mazenkowski crosses the street and enters Chuck Wagon Burgers. Tom Bauer stands at one of the four tills. He wears an orange uniform with brown piping.

  T. BAUER: Welcome to Chuckie Burgers. Can I –

  P. MAZENKOWSKI: Hi, Tom.

  T. BAUER: Oh. Hi, uh. Paulina.

  P. MAZENKOWSKI: Missed you at practice this morning.

  T. BAUER: You did? Hey. Um. A bunch of us thought. Um. You should have got the solo.

  P. MAZENKOWSKI: Thanks.

  T. BAUER: I mean it. I’m not just saying that cause you’re, uh, you know, but you nail the runs. And Eileen fudges them. If she didn’t suck like a Hoover, you’d have it.

  P. MAZENKOWSKI: God, I know. “You’re fifty-two? Really? I didn’t think you were a day over thirty!”

  Mr. Bauer laughs.

  UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can I get some service around here?

  Mr. Bauer sighs.

  P. MAZENKOWSKI: A small Diet Coke, Tom.

  Mr. Bauer pours Ms. Mazenkowski’s drink.

  T. BAUER: I got it.

  P. MAZENKOWSKI: Thanks. See you tomorrow, Tom.

  T. BAUER: Later. [pause] Welcome to Chuckie Burgers.

  Ms. Mazenkowski exits Chuck Wagon Burgers and returns to Mr. Rieger, who is waiting in a blue Ford pickup truck.

  J. RIEGER: And?

  P. MAZENKOWSKI: I dunno, Jer. This is creepy. Why –

  [00:41:08]

  Tom Bauer dismounts his black and yellow ten-speed at 2177 Granville Street, a salmon-coloured, two-storey stucco house with terra cotta roof tiles. He sneaks around the side of the house. He knocks on a basement window. The light in the basement goes on. Mr. Bauer proceeds to the back of the house.

  [00:42:03]

  2177 Granville Street viewed from the alley. Mr. Bauer exits the detached garage with Mike McConnell, a mid-teens, Caucasian male with a small build, and shoulder-length red hair. They shush each other, staggering to the basement.

  [00:45:25]

  Patricia McConnell wears a navy sheath dress. She looks behind her toward the open back door.

  PATRICIA MCCONNELL: Anytime this century, Michael!

  MIKE MCCONNELL: Don’t get your thong in a knot, Patricia!

  P. MCCONNELL: You will not use that tone with me, Michael!

  M. MCCONNELL: Stop fucking yelling at me!

  P. MCCONNELL: Get in the Jeep. Now.

  M. MCCONNELL: I’ll take the bus.

  P. MCCONNELL: If you skip classes again, you are grounded! Do you hear me?

  M. MCCONNELL: Fucking deaf people in Tokyo can hear you!

  Ms. McConnell enters the garage. A green Jeep exits at a high speed. Mr. McConnell waits and then opens the back door. He punches in the security code. Mr. Bauer appears. They go to the garage and exit on their bikes.

  [00:46:19]

  Looking down at the Food Court in the atrium in the Granville Mall: Mr. Bauer, in a blue baseball cap, pushes through the lunchtime crowd. He bumps into a tall man who wears jeans and a Blue Jays jacket. They speak. Bauer continues to walk and, within a few feet, hands off a tan wallet to Mr. McConnell, who walks in the opposite direction.

  J. RIEGER: Score one for the geezer.

  [00:47:36]

  Tom Bauer stares at the floor in front of the bathroom mirror.

  J. RIEGER: See how the cut of the jacket gives you the illusion of shoulders?

  Mr. Bauer sighs. He glances at his reflection in the mirror and then back at the floor.

  T. BAUER: You put food in the fridge and you paid the bills. You’ve done enough, Jer. I can’t accept these clothes. It’s too much.

  J. RIEGER: Nice try.

  T. BAUER: Give my clothes back, you jerk! I paid good money for those clothes!

  Mr. Rieger laughs.

  T. BAUER: Jer, I’m not you. If I wear this crap to school, I’m going to get a shit-kicking.

  J. RIEGER: You look great.

  T. BAUER: Can I please, please, please have my real clothes back? Please. Please, Jer.

  J. RIEGER: Dumpster divers have more sartorial sophistication than you. It’s embarrassing.

  T. BAUER: So? Why do you care? Why can’t –

  J. RIEGER: This discussion is over.

  [00:48:57]
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  Mr. Rieger crushes four white tablets and sprinkles them into a can of Pepsi. The television plays music videos loudly in the background. Richard Patolmic is briefly visible as he strides past the kitchen. Mr. Rieger pauses and turns his head.

  J. RIEGER: Tom?

  Mr. Rieger gives the can of Pepsi a shake. A loud thump can be heard coming from another room, quickly followed by the sound of Richard Patolmic’s raised voice. Mr. Rieger runs into the hallway.

  T. BAUER: I don’t know!

  R. PATOLMIC: You’re lying! Where is she!

  Mr. Bauer shouts. Continuous thumps and shouts.

  R. PATOLMIC: You smug, smart-mouthed little puke! You don’t want to piss me off!

  Mr. Rieger runs back into the kitchen. He carries a baseball bat. He pauses to shut off the camera.

  [00:56:08]

  Richard Patolmic lies on the floor of the storage room in apartment 304 of The Woodcourt Apartments. Mr. Patolmic is unconscious and has extensive bruising to his face and his leg rests at an angle that suggests it has been broken.

  The camera swings quickly to show the hallway. Tom Bauer’s face is slack. His mouth and nose are bleeding. His neck shows extensive bruising. He walks aimlessly through apartment 304. He appears to be sleepwalking. Loud knocking can be heard.

  J. RIEGER: Door’s open!

  Mr. Bauer continues to move through the living room. Guy Francis enters the room and studies Mr. Bauer.

  J. RIEGER: Spooky, huh? He used to do this when we were kids.

  G. FRANCIS: What the hell’s wrong with him?

  J. RIEGER: Some kind of seizure. [pause] I’ve got a surprise in the storage closet.

  G. FRANCIS: Are you fucking out of your mind?

  VHS 3

  Title: RABBIT SEASON

  Date: 15-04-1993

  Duration: 01:56:19

  [00:00:00]

  Mr. Rieger pins Mr. Bauer to the floor in the living room of apartment 304. Mr. Bauer struggles, but Mr. Rieger is kneeling on his arms and straddles him. Fading bruises are visible around neck and lower lip.

  J. RIEGER: Someone is still mad about Paulina.

  Mr. Bauer turns his face from the camera.

  J. RIEGER: Poor Tom. All rejected.

  T. BAUER: Get off me!

  J. RIEGER: You can’t see it now, but I did you a favour. She is one wild –

  Mr. Bauer frees an arm and the recording stops.

  [00:05:13]

  Mr. Bauer stands with his hands on his knees. He appears out of breath.

  J. RIEGER: Let’s make this interesting. If you can make it past me to the lobby, I will forgive all your debts.

  Mr. Bauer stands straight and presses his hands into his left side. Mr. Rieger makes drum-roll sounds.

  J. RIEGER: On your mark! Get set! Go!

  Mr. Bauer does not move. He glares at the camera.

  J. RIEGER: I said go.

  Mr. Bauer attempts to sit on the couch.

  J. RIEGER: Meep! Come on, Tommy. Let’s see some go-get’um attitude!

  Mr. Bauer turns his face from the camera.

  J. RIEGER: Give up? Smart boy. You wouldn’t even make it to the –

  Mr. Bauer suddenly runs toward the hallway, but does not head toward the front door.

  J. RIEGER: You moron! The other way! [laughs] He makes it too easy. Tick-tock, time’s up!

  Mr. Rieger follows Mr. Bauer into the bedroom, where the window is open. Mr. Rieger leans out the window. Mr. Bauer shimmies down the drainpipe. As he reaches the ground, he makes an obscene gesture before sprinting to the side of the building and disappearing from view.

  J. RIEGER: Firebug, I owe you an apology. What a sneaky little shit.

  [00:06:27]

  Christa Bauer cries on the couch in the living room of apartment 304.

  J. RIEGER: Of course you can accept it. It’s a gift. The camera focuses on a large-screen TV and an entertainment centre.

  C. BAUER: You bought this with blood money!

  J. RIEGER: Blood money? What are you talking about?

  C. BAUER: I’m sorry, honey, but you have to leave. I can’t have drugs in my house. How –

  [00:07:05]

  Guy Francis is in the driver’s seat. The camera flashes by him as it follows Mr. Bauer, who is on his black and yellow ten-speed bike. Mr. Bauer appears unaware that he is being followed as he weaves through downtown traffic.

  [00:10:57]

  Mr. Bauer rides on Low Level Road beside the railway tracks in North Vancouver. There are no houses along this stretch of road. Bauer rides east toward the Ironworker’s Memorial [Second Narrows] Bridge. Traffic is light. The reflective lights on Mr. Bauer’s pedals circle as they are spotlighted by the vehicle following him.

  J. RIEGER: Get closer.

  G. FRANCIS: He’ll make us.

  J. RIEGER: Bring me right beside him.

  The vehicle pulls over to the side of the road.

  J. RIEGER: You’re losing him!

  Mr. Bauer’s reflector lights disappear from view.

  G. FRANCIS: Don’t you think your aunt is going to go, “Hmm. I kicked Jer out yesterday and today Tom’s been squashed by a car.”

  Mr. Rieger turns the camera on Mr. Francis.

  G. FRANCIS: Kick the shit out of him later. We need to move. Now. Before this gets any more fucked up than it is.

  J. RIEGER: Prioritize.

  G. FRANCIS: Prioritize.

  J. RIEGER: I don’t know why he makes me nuts.

  G. FRANCIS: Family does it to you every time.

  [00:12:43]

  Christa Bauer chews her nails. She realizes she’s being recorded and removes her fingers from her mouth. They are standing at the arrivals lounge of the Vancouver Airport.

  J. RIEGER: Relax. She’s checking up on me, not you. I’m the one with naughty friends.

  C. BAUER: Then why does she want to stay with me? Why doesn’t she stay with you in the hotel? She thinks this is my fault. Anything goes wrong and they all say, “Oh, that Chrissy.”

  J. RIEGER: You can’t let her ride you.

  C. BAUER: I hate to say this about my own flesh and blood, but sometimes I wish she’d – oh! Look! Faith! Yoo-hoo! Over here! Oh, my!

  An attendant pushes Faith Rieger in a wheelchair up to Mr. Rieger and Ms. Bauer. Mrs. Rieger rises out of the wheelchair slowly. Her tremors are more noticeable. She embraces Ms. Bauer, who cries. She then embraces her son.

  FAITH RIEGER: I’m so glad you’re both sober.

  J. RIEGER: Hello, Mother.

  [00:13:39]

  Ms. Bauer opens the oven door in the kitchen of apartment 304. She checks her roast.

  C. BAUER: Go knock on the bathroom door and tell Tommy to hurry.

  J. RIEGER: Will do.

  Mr. Rieger passes the hallway and pokes the camera in the living room. Mrs. Rieger is watching television.

  J. RIEGER: How’re we holding up?

  F. RIEGER: Are you sure you don’t need any help?

  J. RIEGER: We’ve got it covered. Sit, sit.

  A hand knocks on the bathroom door. The sound of the shower can be heard.

  J. RIEGER: Rear in gear, buddy. Chow time!

  C. BAUER: The corn, Jeremy! Not the creamed stuff!

  J. RIEGER: Got it, Aunt Chrissy!

  [00:14:52]

  Two patrol officers stand in the hallway of apartment 304. VPD constables Daniel Hanson and Edward Roglaski are recorded together and then individually.

  J. RIEGER: I’m recording this now!

  F. RIEGER: Jeremy, calm down.

  J. RIEGER: I can’t believe you’re just standing there when someone stole my Jaguar!

  DANIEL HANSON: Mr. Rieger, we’ve done everything we can do right now. We have –

  J. RIEGER: No! Dust for prints! Canvass the neighbourhood! Do something!

  D. HANSON: Mr. Rieger –

  J. RIEGER: Could you be more useless? Could you try and be more useless?

  Mrs. Rieger appears in front of the camera. She bri
ngs her hand up to cover the lens.

  F. RIEGER: That’s enough, Jeremy.

  [00:15:56]

  The camera is at waist-level and approaches a Caucasian male, late-twenties with long brown hair who wears a black leather vest over a black T-shirt with a toxic symbol in neon green on the front. He sits at a table in a bar. A hand reaches out and puts a pitcher of beer on the table.

  UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, thanks.

  J. RIEGER [off-camera]: No problem. What was his name again?

  UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He was pretty drunk. Wilber or Willy or something. He’s got a twin, though, who’s got the same tattoo, right here [points to his neck].

  J. RIEGER: What else did he say?

  UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bunch of horseshit. Your boy’s having a fine old time. Buying drinks for the ladies, cabbing it everywhere.

  J. RIEGER: So you’re sure about this address?

  UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your car is gone, man. Take the insurance and ride, baby, cause that Jag is toast.

  [00:17:19]

  The 1992 silver Jaguar XJS has been gutted. It sits in what appears to be a chop shop. To the left is a partially dismantled red Lamborghini. The camera examines the remains of the Jaguar.

  [00:20:41]

  The roof of a corrugated aluminum-sided industrial building burns against the night sky. The sound of footsteps on gravel grows louder and then stops.

  G. FRANCIS: Our thief’s name is Willy Baker.

  J. RIEGER: Address?

  G. FRANCIS: 1334 Woodcourt Street, apartment 206. Coincidence?

  Emergency vehicles can be heard approaching.

  J. RIEGER: Shall we be neighbourly?

  [00:21:49]

  Paulina Mazenkowski waves the camera away as she laughs. Guy Francis shakes his head and laughs. They are in an unfinished basement.

  J. RIEGER: It’s not funny. This isn’t funny, guys.

  P. MAZENKOWSKI: Not to you.

  G. FRANCIS: I warned you, Jer. I hate to say I told you so, but sometimes you just have to. I told you so.

  J. RIEGER: I don’t understand how he could do that.