REWARD
(CHANCES)
Written
by
Ivan
Efremov
© Ivan Efremov
WGA # 849514
FADE IN
INT./EXT. CHURCH - DAY
SEPTEMBER
9, 2001
A candle flares up as it is lit from another
and the flame doubles as the candle is carried away. An attractive woman, IRA, places the lit
candle before an icon of St. Alexander Nevsky and crosses herself.
IRA
(whispering)
Lord, preserve and protect your servant Alexander … Grant him happiness, oh Lord… Forgive me, Sasha….
Ira brushes away her tears, trying not to smear
her makeup. Sad, she walks out of the
church that houses the icon of the military leader and Sasha’s patron saint
into the street lined with century-old oaks.
EXT. PROVINCIAL
RUSSIAN TOWN - DAY
An overcast day in early fall. Low houses, preoccupied passers-by, muddy
puddles in the road. Ira continues down
the street.
She crosses the street and stops by a blue
mailbox. She takes out a crumpled
envelope from her purse. A tear rolls
down her cheek, leaving a trail of black mascara. She hesitates, then, drops the letter into
the battered mailbox. The choice is
made…
Ira walks over to a car parked by the sidewalk,
opens the car door and climbs in next to the driver. He kisses her and starts up the engine. The LADA merges into the flow of other cars
down a narrow street, away from the mailbox.
Circles form in the puddles on the road as rain
starts to fall.
EXT. ROCKY PLATEAU – DAY
SEPTEMBER 10
The latest model APC-90 is parked at the
top of the hill on a rocky plateau.
There is the increasing roar of an approaching heavy transport
helicopter. The APC, with its motor droning,
drives down the hill, picking up speed.
The helicopter flies over the APC as it dashes across the plateau in
clouds of dust.
The COMMANDER, PILOT, and Navigator of
the Mi-26 helicopter, all peer at the sun-bleached steppe. The commander spots several running saigas
and points them out to the navigator.
The navigator communicates their coordinates over the radio. The pilot slowly turns the control
stick. The helicopter steers north.
Two men with hunting rifles are visible
halfway out of the APC’s top hatch, looking for saigas. The heads of the driver and the radio operator can also be seen
sticking out of the front hatch. One of
the hunters is about 35; others are just over 20. The senior
hunter spots some fresh tracks and shouts to the driver.
SENIOR
HUNTER/DENISOV
Vasya, turn about forty meters to the left!
The APC races along the tracks, full
speed.
INT./EXT. THE APC – DAY
DRIVER
Misha! Turn on
some music! Turn it on!
The driver shouts, trembling with the
adrenaline coursing through him. He is
like a predator chasing his prey. POPOV
chooses a tape, inserts it into the cassette player, and turns the volume up as
loud as the homemade speakers allow. It
plays an old “Time Machine” hit.
TIME MACHINE (V.O.)
Here, a new corner,
And the engine roars.
What will it bring us?
A whirlpool, or a crossing?
You can’t figure it out,
Until you turn
’Round the corner.
Having reached the saigas, the
hunters shoot several times without stopping their vehicle. They kill three, end the pursuit, and pick up
the prey. The driver turns the APC on a
dime and heads south.
EXT. AT THE OUTPOST - EVENING
SEPTEMBER 11
A bend of the Panj River. The border between Tajikistan and Afghanistan
lies in the middle of the river. A
RUSSIAN BORDER PATROL surveys the border.
An officer posts patrol duties on a
small drilling square at the outpost. A
few APC and UAZ military jeeps are scattered around, surrounded by one-story
buildings. The APC-90, with its hood up,
is among them. The senior hunter is
working on the motor, skillfully wielding a wrench. Then, after washing his hands, he heads into
the headquarters. He enters the door
marked ‘Colonel Lakshin.’
INT. RECEPTION ROOM - EVENING
In the small reception room, a SERGEANT
reports to the senior officer over the intercom.
SERGEANT
Engineer Denisov is here to see you.
The sergeant directs
Denisov to the door. Denisov enters the
office.
LAKSHIN is sitting at
his desk watching TV. A large map of
Tajikistan and Afghanistan hangs behind him.
The colonel stands and extends his hand to Denisov.
LAKSHIN
Denisov! We
made quite a kebab from your Saiga. So
good that we even drank to your health.
It’ll be ibex season in the Pamirs soon.
Maybe we’ll go together?
DENISOV
Comrade Colonel, actually I’m here in regard to the
APC...
LAKSHIN
We’ll talk about that later. You better have a look at this.
Lakshin turns the TV towards Denisov. The news is showing a live translation of the
terrorist attacks on New York and Washington.
One of the WTC’s towers is burning and a plane slices into the second one.
EXT.
PANJ RIVER BANK – DAY
SEPTEMBER
12
A well-equipped dugout shelter of the
Russian border patrol on the high riverbank.
Shielded from the scorching sun, one of the soldiers scans the border
through binoculars. He spots a tree
branch washed up on the bank and reports it over his radio.
EXT. PANJ RIVER BANK - NIGHT
It’s dark. A MAN in scuba gear gets out of the water by
the branch. He drags a rubber inner tube
full of something. As he climbs up the steep
riverbank, he runs into an ambush. He
lifts his hands up and doesn’t offer any resistance.
INT. AT
THE OUTPOST - NIGHT
The border patrol officers
bring the smuggler to the outpost. The policeman empties his pockets. Along with various odds and ends, there is a
photograph of a young Afghani woman with children. The rubber inner tube is sliced
open. It contains bags with white
powder.
INT.
OFFICE – DAY
SEPTEMBER 13
lakshin
is in his office. He reads the evidence
against the captured smuggler.
Two border guards with submachine guns bring in the handcuffed Afghani,
who has bruises on his face. KHANSKY, a
dark haired interpreter arrives with him.
Khansky is about 25 and his ethnicity is hard to pinpoint.
LAKSHIN
(in English)
Name?
AFGHANI
Abdul Ali Haravi.
Ask him where he picked up the heroin and where he was
taking it?
Khansky repeats Lakshin’s questions in Pushtu,
and translates Abdul’s answers.
KHANSKY/ABDUL
(translating)
The heroin belongs to Al Qaeda--Osama bin Laden’s network. The customers were to meet him early this
morning by the highway.
LAKSHIN
Where did he get the heroin?
KHANSKY
At one of Al Qaeda’s camps.
Lakshin stares intently at the captive,
then addresses Khansky.
LAKSHIN
Give him a map.
Have him show us the location of the camp.
Khansky unfolds the map in front of Abdul,
interprets Lakshin’s order, and hands him a pencil.
KHANSKY
It’s in Lagman province, between Kabul and the
Pakistani border.
Abdul draws a circle on the map, Lakshin steps
closer.
LAKSHIN
How often does bin Laden visit the camp?
Abdul answers and Khansky translates.
KHANSKY/ABDUL
He comes every month to stay for three or four days… he
travels in an SUV… escorted by three other vehicles.
LAKSHIN
What kind of SUV?
KHANSKY
A black Land Cruiser.
LAKSHIN
Where does he travel from?
Abdul draws another circle, and connects
the two with a line.
KHANSKY
He comes from the direction of Djilalabad, maybe from
Tora Bora.
LAKSHIN
Where does he go from there?
Abdul draws another line in the opposite
direction.
LAKSHIN
(pointing at the
map)
Why doesn’t he show us from where he swam across to get
on our shore? We caught him here.
EXT./INT.
AT THE OUTPOST – EVENING
Khansky walks up to the APC-90 and, seeing
that there is no one around, enters one of the single-story buildings. A row of doors lines both sides of the
corridor. He knocks on one.
LAKSHIN
Come in.
Khansky enters the small room, which
barely has enough room for a cot and desk.
Denisov is sitting at the desk in front of
a laptop. An image of an APC-90 is on
the monitor. On the desk, a framed photo
of the woman who wrote the letter sits among a pile of books, newspapers, and technical
sketches. Denisov stands and offers
Khansky his hand.
KHANSKY
Dima.
DENISOV
(motioning for
Khansky to sit down)
Sasha. You’re the translator, right?
KHANSKY
Sort of. Actually, I’m just in the Army
temporarily. I graduated from Dushanbe
State University with a degree in Linguistics.
Now I’m working on my masters’ dissertation on the translation of
Russian proverbs into the Tajik language.
I pretty much ended up on the border to avoid working on my
Master’s. God only knows why I decided
to learn Pushtu. This assignment is like
being in exile.
DENISOV
Yeah, it’s quite dull around here.
KHANSKY
So, what brought you here?
DENISOV
I’m an engineer at an APC
factory. I helped design the new APC-90,
and I was sent here to carry out some field tests on it. It handles beautifully, so I hope that I’m
not going to be stuck here much longer.
KHANSKY
Listen, I heard that you’re the only
one here with an Internet connection?
DENISOV
Getting connected was one of the
conditions of my business trip.
KHANSKY
You
wouldn’t let me use it for a bit, would you?
DENISOV
No prob. Just let me save this file.
Denisov turns to
the computer, moves the cursor to the motor’s compartment and enlarges it. He removes something from it and closes the
program. He then logs on to his provider
and gives up his place to Khansky. Khansky
quickly opens up a search engine and types in “bin laden, reward”. He picks the most promising link from the
search and opens an FBI site with a portrait of bin Laden.
KHANSKY
(reading in
English)
Most
wanted terrorists. The Rewards for
Justice Program, United States Department of State, is offering a reward of up
to $5 million for information leading directly to the apprehension or
conviction of Osama Bin Laden. An
additional $2 million is being offered through a program developed and funded
by the Airline Pilots Association and the Air Transport Association. Should be considered armed and dangerous. Do you need me to
translate that?
DENISOV
I think I understood. Seven million big ones.
Khansky smiles and
translates the text into Russian.
KHANSKY
Wanna take a stroll?
DENISOV
Sure. But log off first.
Khansky
and Denisov walk around the periphery of the outpost. Khansky, pointing at the row of APC’s,
starts.
KHANSKY
I wonder how far a tank of gas would take you?
DENISOV
Anywhere
from 200 to 400 km, depending on how hard you’re working the engine. I don’t think you’d make it to Osama.
KHANSKY
Well, I’ll tell you something you won’t think is so
funny.
A truck pulls into the outpost and parks
near the Headquarters. The driver
carries a mailbag into the Headquarters and places several letters on the
sergeant’s desk.
One of the letters is brought to Denisov’s
room. Denisov is sitting in front of his
bed, upon which the APC’s technical plans have been spread. With a knife, Denisov carefully opens the crumpled envelope.
After reading it, he looks at
the photograph of his ex-girlfriend, and with a bitter smile smashes the frame
into pieces with his palm. Shaken by the
farewell letter, Denisov gathers up the plans, and lies down on his bed.
Life at the outpost continues
as usual. Several border guards drive a
UAZ, patrolling the border. Some
soldiers clean their Kalashnikovs. The
APC crew messes around with their vehicle.
Finally, Denisov gets up from
the bed and turns on his computer. He
finds the FBI site with Osama bin Laden’s picture, downloads it, and prints it.
Denisov flicks the broken
frame with his ex-girlfriend’s picture onto the floor with the help of the
printouts, and then stacks the sheets on his desk. Osama bin Laden’s picture is on the top page.
EXT. ROAD – DAY
A UAZ drives along a road. A young
border PATROL OFFICER is behind the wheel. Denisov, stretched in the back, is lost in
thoughts. The UAZ comes closer to a construction
site. On the road side huge concrete
letters in Tajik, Russian and English read Nurek hydraulic power plant.
EXT.
CONSTRUCTION SITE - DAY
A towering dam blocks the canyon, filled with the
mountain river water.
A Mi-26 helicopter picks up a power line pole next to
the dam and carries it into the mountains to be planted.
Denisov waits for the helicopter to land and drives up
to it.
EXT. MOUNTAIN RIVER - DAY
On the bank, Denisov and three men from the helicopter
stand by a fire and dress the carcass of a saiga that they have caught.
When the saiga shish kebab is ready, each of the men
has a shot of vodka and Denisov shows them the printout.
DENISOV
Here. Read
this. The Americans are offering seven
million dollars for bin Laden’s head.
They’ll give even more if we get him alive. We’ve got info about his location. If you drop us off in Afghanistan and pick us up after the
operation, we’ll split the seven mil eight ways.
While the helicopter’s crew is deciding what
to do, Denisov walks along the river bank.
After making their decision, the crew goes
over to Denisov.
COMMANDER
We’ll take the chance, and are ready to agree for just
one million from the future award instead of taking three parts. But we need a few thousand to pay for the gas
plus thirty grand in cash up front. You
know, Sasha, we’ve got families...
INT. DENISOV’S ROOM - DAY
SEPTEMBER 15
In the morning, Khansky enters with the
APC’s crew: LIEUTHENANT Usenko, SERGEANT Smirnov, and PRIVATE Popov. The three conscripts sit on the bed.
Denisov opens the Internet site with the
photos of Osama bin Laden, and shows them the printout about the reward.
DENISOV
Now, have a look at this.
Americans offer seven million dollars for Osama bin Laden’s head. That Afghani we caught transporting heroin
told us about one of Osama’s routes.
That road’s three hundred kilometers away from our border. If we want to set up a successful ambush, we
have to get an armored carrier to the road.
I’ve arranged for a Mi-26. It’ll
cost a million dollars from the future reward.
We’ll split the remaining six between whoever agrees to participate in
the operation. That way, we’ll get a
million each.
KHANSKY
Who is the sixth one?
DENISOV
We’ll need a few thousand dollars just to pay
for the fuel on the way there and during the evacuation. And the pilots want 30,000 bucks up
front. If we can invest this sum on our
own, then we can do without Abdul.
Denisov
looks at the “investors”. They all make
a helpless gesture.
DENISOV
This means we’ve got to ask Abdul for help.
Denisov shrugs.
INT. HEADQUARTERS – DAY
Khansky enters the headquarters and approaches the
sergeant.
KHANSKY
I have an urgent report about the Afghani
prisoner for the colonel.
SERGEANT
(pressing a button on the intercom)
Comrade
Colonel, Translator Khansky needs to see you.
COLONEL
Send him in.
The sergeant points to the door. Khansky enters the office.
KHANSKY
Comrade Colonel, that
drug dealer, the Afghani, told us about his connections. They were going to meet on the way to Kulyab,
where the sale was supposed to happen.
Maybe we can find them with the Afghani’s help. If we catch them, we’ll eliminate the
drug route, and there’ll be fewer border crossings. I’ve got relatives in Kulyab who could help
me locate the Afghani’s connections.
COLONEL
Wouldn’t it be easier just to call the local
militia?
KHANSKY
Didn’t you once try that, in vain?
COLONEL
Well, true, we tried…
KHANSKY
For one, the militia might be with them. But this way, they won’t know. I need an APC, the confiscated heroin, and
the prisoner for a couple of days. I
talked about it with Denisov. He’s in
favor of the sting.
COLONEL
I fought in Afghanistan, and I know that
Afghanis have deceit in their blood. And
your drug courier is a fraud willing to say or do anything if he thinks it’ll
give him a chance to escape.
KHANSKY
You are going to have plenty of illegal
border crossings like Abdul’s until you catch the heroin dealers.
COLONEL
Well, I need to think about it.
KHANSKY
Believe me, I know how to do this!
EXT. KULYAB - DAY
Kulyab is a small Tajik town fifteen miles from the
Afghan border. Abdul, dressed as a Tajik
peasant, sits in an open-air chaikhana, a teahouse, near the
town’s market and drinks tea.
A PEASANT joins him with his bowl of tea. Abdul points to a donkey with a bag on its
back that stands next to the chaikhana.
The peasant walks over to the donkey, and examines the
contents of the bag. It contains plastic
bags full of white powder. Without taking
it out, he cuts one bag with a razor blade, and tastes a pinch of the powder.
Then, he returns to the chaikhana, and takes a dirty
sack from under one of the tables to Abdul’s table. Abdul opens it, sees a thick bundle of
dollars hidden under pistachio nuts, and nods.
The peasant
walks out of the chaikhana, straddles the donkey, and spurs it. The donkey grudgingly moves from its place.
The donkey hauls the peasant through the streets of
Kulyab. A UAZ, without license plates,
catches up with it.
Three men in masks and with machine-guns get out of
the vehicle, and surround the peasant riding the donkey. They take the bag with heroin, get in the car
and drive away.
INT./EXT. STEPPE - NIGHT
SEPTEMBER 16
The APC’s searchlight pierces
the nocturnal sky.
There is the sound of an approaching aircraft. Projectors turn towards the stars. Bright field lights illuminate a Mi-26
helicopter as it lands. Six of its
massive wheels touch the ground, but the blades of the propeller continue to
rotate.
The back hatch opens, and the APC rolls
into it. The hatch folds closed again,
the noise of the engines becomes louder, and the propeller gains momentum.
The helicopter takes off with great
effort, and flies away. A cloud of dust
lifts in the air.
INT.
TRANSPORT HELICOPTER - NIGHT
The helicopter flies without turning on its
lights. Only the control panel glows in
the dark cockpit. The APC takes up
almost all of its interior.
The six soldiers all have parachutes. The commander is at the controls; next to him
are the navigator and the pilot.
Dawn is breaking to the left in the starry
sky. The helicopter heads south. As the sky gets lighter, the helicopter flies
over a mountain range and descends.
Denisov and Abdul join the helicopter crew
in the cockpit. They try to locate the
road on the ground below with the help of the Navigator.
At last, flying over a mountainous plateau
covered with tracks left by thousands of feet, hooves, and wheels, the
helicopter lands in a cloud of dust.
As soon as it unloads the APC, the
helicopter, relieved of its burden, takes off again, and heads back towards a
high mountain range, which is illuminated by the first rays of the rising sun.
EXT. ROCKY PLATEAU,
ROAD - DAWN
The road looks like a caravan trail. The APC moves between the hills, but avoids
the road. When the crew finds a suitable
place for the ambush behind a small hill alongside the road, the APC stops.
The soldiers are dressed like Afghanis:
shirts that hang below their knees, wide trousers, cloth jackets, and hand-made
leather shoes. Pistols, grenades,
knives, walkie-talkies, and handcuffs hang off their belts, all, except Abdul.
While three soldiers camouflage the APC, hiding it behind
the hill, Denisov, Usenko, and Abdul climb to the top of the hill to scan the
area.
A sun-scorched rocky plateau covered with
stunted shrubs surrounds them. The
jagged skyline of the surrounding mountains emerges against the morning sky.
A solitary eagle circles high in the air.
Denisov takes a good look at the trail
through his field glasses. It curves and
turns, winding around boulders.
Visibility from the hilltop is several miles. The trail is so narrow that oncoming vehicles
can’t pass each other.
ABDUL
Kabul is about a hundred and fifty kilometers to the
left. To the right, it’s about seventy
to the Pakistan border.
Usenko
and Abdul set up an observation post.
Denisov descends to the APC, which is
already under a camouflage netting.
Smirnov and Popov sit right next to it.
A can of food is being heated on a portable gas stove.
DENISOV
Smirnov, head up to the top.
smirnov
gets up, and, grabbing his hot stew, heads to the top of the hill.
Denisov and Khansky take a mine out of the
APC. They drag it towards the trail, dig
up a hole, and place the mine inside.
Denisov screws in a radio detonator and covers the mine with soil.
EXT. HILLTOP - DAY
The sun approaches the horizon. At the observation post, Khansky writes in
his notebook. Popov again looks at the road through his binoculars, first
in one direction, then in another.
POPOV
Not a single vehicle. Not a single person all day long.
(spots the eagle)
This one’s been circling all day and hasn’t tracked down
anything either.
INT. APC - NIGHT
The second hand circles the face of the
clock. At exactly 21:00, Popov turns on
the radio, and calls the helicopter.
Upon getting a response, transmits a message.
POPOV
Bird, this is Trap.
Bird, this is Trap, over.
HELICOPTER (V.O.)
Trap, Bird has landed.
Do you copy?
POPOV
10-4. Bird, this
is Trap. First day--no prey. Do you copy?
HELICOPTER (V.O.)
We hear you. Over
and out.
EXT. ROAD - DAY
SEPTEMBER 17
Usenko
spots an approaching caravan. He
switches on his walkie-talkie and, hearing Denisov's reply, tries to crack a
joke.
USENKO
Several strange objects are approaching from the left.
DENISOV (V.O.)
On legs, or on wheels?
USENKO
On legs, and with humps.
DENISOV (V.O.)
Range?
USENKO
Over three kilometers.
DENISOV (V.O.)
Stay put!
Out of sight, from behind the boulders, the
crew watches with interest as men and camels pass by, unsuspecting. All the men carry Kalashnikovs and have
grenades hanging from their belts.
Denisov whispers to Khansky,
prostrate alongside him.
DENISOV
They're just as well armed as we are.
KHANSKY
Drug dealers for sure.
In Afghanistan, anyone who feels like it can grow poppies. In these parts especially.
EXT. HILLTOP - DAY
SEPTEMBER 18
On the hill, Khansky and Popov observe an old, beat-up truck
pass by. Then, comes a donkey-driven
carriage. Those are the only vehicles
during their shift. Khansky sees Usenko come up, and heads to meet
him. He descends the hill, and squats
among the tinned cans, deciding on his lunch.
DENISOV
How come you've stopped shaving?
Khansky stands up with a can in his hand.
KHANSKY
Well, the beard is for disguise.
EXT. HILLTOP – DAY
Evening approaches. Usenko, staring at the sky, suddenly pokes
the dozing Smirnov.
USENKO
Look, he's diving!
Smirnov jumps up, and grabs the
binoculars.
Its wings folded, the eagle plummets like a rock. Just above the ground, it extends its wings,
and, having seized its prey, powerfully flaps skywards again, and flies off.
SMIRNOV
Looks like he's got a tortoise. He'll drop it to smash the shell.
The eagle flies higher and higher, then,
unclenches its claws, drops the tortoise, and plummets after it. The bird comes to rest on a large rock near
the place where the tortoise has landed.
EXT. HILLTOP – DUSK
The sun has disappeared already, but the
clouds, gathered at the skyline above the mountains, still reflect its light.
USENKO
Beautiful!
Usenko is delighted with the fantastic
view of the crimson sunset. Smirnov
raises his binoculars.
SMIRNOV
My Voronezh is somewhere over that way.
USENKO
And my Rostov is a little bit to the left.
The
other side of the sky is dark already; the first stars appear.
INT. APC - NIGHT
In
the APC, Popov contacts the helicopter.
POPOV
Bird, this is Trap.
Bird, this is Trap. Second
day--nothing. Come in. Over.
BASE (V.O.)
Trap, this is Bird.
Got you. Bird out.
EXT. ROAD - SERIES OF SHOTS – LATE AFTERNOON
SEPTEMBER 19
Late afternoon.
Day three. Usenko and Smirnov
play chess in the shade of the APC.
Abdul, his legs crossed Asian-style, watches them play.
Denisov, stretched out, reads a book. His walkie-talkie suddenly squawks to life.
DENISOV
Go ahead.
Khansky and Popov are at the top of the
hill. Khansky looks through the
binoculars, and speaks into his walkie-talkie.
KHANSKY
Vehicles in sight!
To the left. Range--four
kilometers. Only the first three are
visible due to the dust.
DENISOV
See if there's a black SUV! Popov, get down! Everybody, places!
Smirnov,
leaving his game of chess, climbs into the APC.
Popov dashes down the hill, while Abdul runs up to the top.
A CONVOY moves
along the trail, raising clouds of dust.
Without
lowering his binoculars, Khansky transmits.
KHANSKY
Range--two kilometers. Looks like five vehicles. About thirty meters between the
vehicles. The first one might have a
machine-gun. The third is a black SUV.
(he aims the
binoculars in the opposite direction)
All’s clear to the right.
DENISOV
10-4!
(to Usenko)
Do not shoot at the black SUV!
They remove
the camouflage netting from the APC.
Usenko takes his place in the machine-gun tower.
Denisov,
grabbing a Kalashnikov, runs toward the trail.
He conceals himself in the hollow selected earlier, next to the
camouflaged transmitter for the radio-detonator.
The convoy
draws closer along the trail.
Abdul reaches
the top of the hill. He sees the car,
and nods to Khansky.
KHANSKY
(transmits)
Abdul says it looks like them. Range--one kilometer. Five vehicles in all. Machine-guns on the first and last. The black SUV is third.
DENISOV
(into his radio)
Crank it up!
The APC starts
its engine.
KHANSKY(V.O.)
Five hundred meters!
Denisov takes the safety catch off the
radio-detonator.
The faces of the AFGHANIS behind the dusty
windows of the first vehicle are already visible through binoculars.
KHANSKY
Two hundred meters!
He flicks off
the safety catch on his Kalashnikov.
Denisov does the same.
An explosion causes the first vehicle to
lurch but does not turn it over. It
continues under its own momentum several meters and halts, ablaze. The remaining vehicles brake sharply. Sporadic firing comes from them.
The APC, its engine howling, emerges from
behind the hill. Usenko shoots twice
into the second vehicle, a Range Rover, riddling its windshield.
From the top of the hill Khansky aims his
Kalashnikov at the driver of the
last vehicle, a Dodge. A report is
heard, and a hole appears in the windshield.
The Dodge sharply turns left, gets off the road, and, turning and
twisting between the rocks, tries to escape.
One of the Afghanis in the cabin climbs to
the back, and opens heavy fire from a machine-gun, but immediately falls,
struck down by shots from the top of the hill.
Khansky fires another burst of shots at the Dodge and another couple of
holes appears in its body.
An Afghani jumps out of the SUV, and opens
fire from an Uzi. Usenko levels him with
a burst of machine-gun fire. Usenko
turns his fire to the fourth vehicle, a truck, which is trying to veer off the
trail.
Automatic rifle fire erupts from its
cabin. The truck runs into a rock and
stops, its windows shattered.
The Dodge, with three Afghanis and a dead body inside, turns round, and
heads back down the trail in the direction it has come from.
The APC stops in front of the black
Lincoln Navigator. Usenko trains the
machine-gun onto the windshield. The passengers remain in the car.
Usenko raises his aim, and fires
once. The bullet ricochets loudly from
the roof, leaving a dent in it, and flies away.
The door of the Navigator opens, slowly,
and the DRIVER, a middle-aged, sinewy MAN WITH A CAMERA around his neck, climbs
out with his hands up. He is wearing a
camouflage jacket with multiple pockets.
A slender WOMAN, of a hard-to-tell age,
gets out from the back seat. They see
Denisov approach with his Kalashnikov, and raise their hands. Denisov yells to the driver of the APC,
pointing to the departing Dodge.
DENISOV
Get ‘im!
The APC’s engine roars, pushes the truck
off the road, and sets off in pursuit.
Abdul runs down from the hill with a
Kalashnikov in his hands, and binoculars around his neck. Khansky follows him. Abdul, backed up by Khansky, cautiously opens
the truck door. Two dead Afghanis are
inside. In the back, there are twenty
cans of gasoline.
Denisov searches the captives, but he
doesn’t find any guns. He checks inside
the Navigator, and pockets the pistol lying on the driver’s seat. He checks the woman’s purse in the back seat.
Khansky approaches the captives standing
with their hands up, and points his Kalashnikov at them. He shouts in English.
KHANSKY
Who are you?!
MAN
Americans.
Khansky takes a pair of handcuffs off his
belt. Relieved to be spared, the
Americans hold out their hands. Khansky
snaps one ring of the handcuffs to the man’s right wrist, and the other ring to
the woman’s left wrist. Denisov gives
him another pair of handcuffs. Khansky
handcuffs Abdul to the left arm of the American man.
Denisov opens the trunk of the
Navigator. There are four bags in
it. He unzips one of them; it is stuffed
with plastic bags. He takes one out, and
tears the plastic with his bayonet. It
contains white powder. Carrying the
packet, he walks toward the captives.
The white powder trails out of the bag.
DENISOV
What's this?
AMERICAN MAN