Hunter Tom interview in progress

EXT. HUNTER'S PATIO - DAY

HUNTER: When did you find my mother's obituary and what led you to look for her?  

TOM tells the story. 

HUNTER: What's your wife's name and how long have you been married?

TOM: Wanda. It'll be twenty-five years September second. 

HUNTER: Kids?

TOM: Wanda had a daughter from a previous marriage.

HUNTER: You?

TOM: No previous marriage and no kids. 

HUNTER: What's in Texas?

TOM: My sister Ruth. We're goin' in on a house in the Kerrville area. Gonna drive around, check in on a couple open houses. Wanda would be along but she stayed to be with a friend whose husband just passed. 

HUNTER: Where's your sister?

TOM: Outside a town called Comfort.

HUNTER: Other siblings?

TOM: No sir.

HUNTER: Parents living?

TOM: No sir. 

HUNTER: What's your middle name, Tom?

TOM: Travis.

HUNTER: Thomas Travis.

TOM: Yessir. For my grandfathers. Thomas for my dad's dad, Travis for mom's.

HUNTER: Where in Texas did you grow up?

TOM: Born and raised in a town called Bandera. Bout an hour northwest a San Antonio.

HUNTER: Hill country.

TOM: Yessir.

HUNTER: Hunter is fine.

TOM: Yessir. Hunter.  

to be continued.

barbara, john, jan, hunter's call 1

LOCATION TBD - DAY

Barbara, Jan and John re Hunter.

Hunter's RINGTONE, Barb picks up.

BARBARA: Were your ears burning?

They're right here.

I'm here, Hunter. Nonplussed. 

(John and Jan take note.)

Hunter, if you're fine with leaving your house to a complete stranger I'm going to trust your judgement. 

And what plate is that?

Cowboy boots?

I expect a picture or two. 

Okay.

Love you too.

(She sets phone.)

JOHN/JAN: Drumroll.

BARBARA: Tom Walker is at Hunter's house. Having arrived in a pickup truck with Wyoming plates. If Chloe's cool with it, he's spending the night.

JOHN: She doesn't know.

BARBARA: He arrived about the same time her flight left.

Long pause.

JOHN: A middle name would be helpful.

BARBARA: Check. 

“We weren’t in Vietnam.”

“We were in Laos”

Thus begins Cedric’s War Story re meeting Tom.

Cedric, Hunter, Gil and John.

“Unofficially. I wasn’t flying the helicopter that got shot down over the jungle Tom and two other marines didn’t find us in. Until they did after enough time had passed for it to become official. Gil, you’ve probably heard this.

Gil, shocked, shakes head.

GIL: Cedric, I’ve never heard the word Laos come out of Tom’s mouth.

Cedric considers this, nods.

GIL (CONT.) What helicopter were you not flying?

CEDRIC: I was not flying a Bell A-H one, like two other pilots were not. 

HUNTER: Cobras.

CEDRIC: Yessir. Out on sunrise recon looking for bad guys. We found them. We spun like a merry-go-round into the trees. Both other birds got hit, both made it back to base, one gunner dead, one pilot shot in the arm he lost.

to be continued.

Howdy in progress

TOM: Howdy. My name is Tom Walker.

Hunter surveys him from the crack in the door.

HUNTER: Tom Walker who was in Reno, Nevada about this time fifty-two years ago.

TOM: One of 'em anyway. July twenty through the twenty-third.

HUNTER:  From Texas?

TOM: Born and raised in Bandera.

to be continued.

John, Jan, Barbara, Chloe 1: Location located

INT. RESTAURANT - DAY

All seated at table with window view to airport.

Merely Perfect.

Spirit of San Luis Restaurant.

roundtable 3: Hunter, Ruth, Wanda

INT. DINING ROOM - NIGHT

Hunter, Ruth and Wanda in three of four chairs around the table, same dark wood as the hutch. Curtains closed across window, view into adjacent kitchen. Large oil on canvas still life, peaches in a wooden bowl on a wooden table lit by shaft of sunlight. Each with a half-empty glass of red wine at hand, the bottle near two photo albums. 

HUNTER: Tom mentioned he'd been in Vietnam.

RUTH/WANDA (beat): Yes.

RUTH: Mentioned.

HUNTER: It came up in reference to that being the end of his rodeo aspirations.

RUTH: Yes.

HUNTER: That was it. We were going to pick it up later.

RUTH: Gil can be more helpful in that regard, I think.

Ruth looks at Wanda, who nods.

HUNTER: Was Gil in Vietnam?

RUTH: He was. He and Tom for their draft cards the same day. But Gil can tell you that story and others. 

HUNTER: So, it turns out that Barbara's aunt Kate's husband Cedric crossed paths in Vietnam.

RUTH/WANDA: Really?

HUNTER: Tom confirmed that. They were going to meet. Cedric called me last night. We're going to meet for the first time in Jackson at the end of September.

WANDA: Small world. And as many times as we've been through Wilson.

They drink.

RUTH: I'm gonna get on to bed, y'all.

WANDA: Right behind you.

HUNTER: Me too after I get Chloe caught up.

They finish their wine, stand.

HUNTER (CONT.) But first, tell me something about the painting.

Wanda smiles.

RUTH: Oil on canvas.

HUNTER: Thanks.

RUTH: I painted that over the course of a summer a long time ago.

HUNTER (beat): It's lovely.

RUTH: Thank you.

HUNTER: Are there others?

Ruth nods.

WANDA: We have two in Laramie.

RUTH: Gil has one in his greeting area. There are a few in the studio.

HUNTER: Where's the studio?

RUTH: Out in the oaks. We'll take a walk to it before we leave in the morning.

HUNTER: How long have you been painting?

RUTH: I started with watercolor about a year after Earl and Eric died. So, round it off to thirty-five years. I thought we'd leave on the early side and have breakfast at Tom's favorite diner.

Wanda nods.

RUTH: Is eightish okay with you, Hunter.

HUNTER: It's a dateish. I'm up before the sun.

WANDA/RUTH: Like Tom.

They empty their glasses, set them on the table. They leave into the kitchen and out of view, Hunter in the middle, arms around their waists. 

DINING ROOM LIGHT DIMS TO BLACK, LIKE THE KITCHEN LIGHT a moment later.