REINDEER GAMES

Nick looks back at Ashley.

                        NICK
           Because every time I read her
           letters, Rudy ... you listened.
                 (to Ashley)
           Keep your gun on him.

Nick forces Rudy inside, unties the belt from his wrists and
lashes them to the bottom of the steering wheel.

                        NICK
           Five Santas walked into that Tomahawk,
           Rudy. That's what the witnesses'll say.
           So we gotta have five Santas not
           walk out. Gotta have five...
                 (working)
           This'll burn right away...in the
           fire...

Nick gets Rudy's wrists locked to the wheel. He laughs.

                        NICK
           Hell, you never needed to convince
           Ashley you were me. Just the dumb
           fucking truckers. I figured I'd
           talked enough about the Tomahawk
           in the pen for you to get by--

                        RUDY
           Talked about the old man's weapons stash,
           probably forgot I'd remember

                        NICK
           Hm. Well. They'd have killed you if
           you weren't me, Rudy. We knew you'd
           start convincing 'em soon enough.

Nick slams the car door, locking Rudy in.

                        NICK
           They had the weapons and the
           willpower. We just gave them their
           inside man.

                        RUDY
           You gave them me.

                        NICK
           I gave them me.
                 (shrugs, smiles)
           Said some nice things about me,
           Rudy. I appreciate it. But don't
           worry. I do love her. And she
           loves me.  You had that right all
           along.

Nick reaches across him, releases the brake. Puts the car into
"Drive." Turns to Ashley:

                        NICK
           Sweetness! Let's light up the tree!

Ashley steps toward the ramp, taking out a matchbook. Nick steps
further into the trailer, to the back of the Nova.

IN THE CAR

Rudy immediately wriggles his hands, trying to touch his wrists
together. Trying to press together the white cuffs of his Santa
suit. Trying to get the right pressure point-

--as a BLADE suddenly springs out of the cuff! The switchblade
he'd stolen from the Blazer -- it's lashed to his right wrist!
Rudy starts sawing his wrist back and forth, cutting through the Santa
belt--

--his hands at the bottom of the wheel, too low for either Ashley
or Nick to see--

IN THE TRAILER

Ashley is at the hood of the car, LIGHTING her match. Nick is at
the back bumper, ready to push it down the ramp--

                        NICK
           Goodbye, Rudy! Nice spending
           time with you!

IN THE CAR

The belt breaks! Rudy snaps his hands free! But instead of trying
to escape, he reaches under the steering colum, RIPPING its panel
away and pulling wires free!

As Ashley tosses her match onto the hood, and EIRE races over the
body of the car, TONGUES racing inside, over the dash, over the
Seats, lapping at Rudy--

--who ducks his head beneath the wheel, frantic to locate the
right leads--

IN THE TRAILER

Ashley jumps out of the way, to the snow. Nick pushes the flaming
car to the trailer's edge--

--starting on down the ramp, the ravine ahead--

--and as gravity starts to take the metal bonfire--

IN THE CAR

Rudy sparks two wires together, FLAMES eating at him--

                        RUDY
           LIKE RIDING A BIKE, LIKE RIDING
           A BIKE, LIKE RIDING A BIIIIIKE!

--and the ENGINE IGNITES!

Rudy slams the gearshift into "Reverse", grabs the wheel and looks
over his shoulder at shocked Nick behind him--

                        RUDY
           RULE ONE! NEVER PUT A CAR THIEF
           BEHIND THE WHEEL!

--and SLAMS the accelerator.

ON FULL SCENE

As the burning Nova races backwards up the ramp, and back into the
trailer--

Terrified Nick turns to run but there's nowhere to go--

--and the car SLAMS into the trailer's back, CRUSHING Nick's legs
between metal and metal!

                        ASHLEY
           NOOOOOOO!!!

Then Rudy faces front, pounds the shift into "Drive."

                        RUDY
           RULE TWO!

Ashley stands at the bottom of the ramp, vengeance and rage. She
grabs her handgun, OPENS FIRE--

--and Rudy SLAMS the gas again, shooting down the ramp--

--as he flings open the car door, dives and rolls--

--while the burning Nova COLLIDES with Ashley, throwing her onto
the hood, and sending the tandem inferno speeding off the ridgetop--

--arcing slowly as it PLUMMETS into the ravine, a smoking,
blazing shooting star with a woman's figure hanging on.

The shooting star hits Earth and explodes.

                                                  SLOW DISSOLVE TO:

INT. CASINO/EXT. SNOWY ROAD - MONTAGE

The same four shots that opened the film. The Santa on the floor
of the cage (Pug), the Santa on the hood of the car (Merlin), the
Santa in the hallway (Jumpy).

And the Santa lying face-down on the snowy road. Gabriel.

EXT. RAVINE'S EDGE - SAME

The last of the opening images. Rudy's motionless Santa figure,
upside-down on the snowy incline, bits of his suit still aflame.
He opens his eyes.

ANGLE ON SNOWY ROAD

Rudy staggers to his feet. Battered and dazed. Looks at Gabriel's
body. Then looks to the trailer.

Inside, Nick is still alive, bones broken from the waist down.
He's mumbling madly, staring at the ceiling:

                        NICK
           ...Rudy...help me ... Rudy...

Rudy climbs the tire ramp. And pulls the trailer gate shut.

He climbs into the rig's cab. Starts the engine. Puts the truck in
reverse, taps the accelerator and hops out.

                        NICK (o.s.)
           ... Rudy! Rudy! HELP ME!!!

The truck rolls backwards. And into the ravine.

Rudy listens to its TUMBLING SOUNDS all the way to the bottom. He
then looks up the road one way. Then the other.

And notices the two money sacks sitting in the snow.

He stares at them.

A long time.

                                                       DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. RUDY'S JOURNEY - MONTAGE - NIGHT/DAY

In his burnt and battered Santa suit, Rudy's figure trudges the
snowy night. Two sacks over his shoulder.

walking empty roads and highways. And passing a roadsign that
reads "Sidnaw -- 35 Miles."

He passes rural roads and driveways, and every time he comes
across a mailbox ... he puts a stack of cash inside.