 |
|
120. Verdict
Directed by: Gilbert Shilton
Written by: Robert Cochran
Guest Starring: David Calderisi, Eric Peterson
Transcribed by Jean
[Note: Transcript dialogue only until updated.]
PARK
Michael interacts with a woman who climbs into a car. The car explodes. Nikita observes.
BREIFING
OPERATIONS: Jovan Mijovich. Recently elected premier of his new nation after a decade of bloody chaos. Some of you may remember him from an earlier assignment. He certainly remembers some of you. He’ll be inaugurated next week. We’re informed by a source of Michael’s that a contract has been taken out on Mijovich’s life. If he dies, the region will destabilize rapidly once again. Our mission is to prevent that from happening.
BIRKOFF: Who’s the hitter?
OPERATIONS: Another newcomer named Griffin. So new, we don’t even have a physical description.
OPERATIVE 1: Any good?
OPERATIONS: Good enough to take out Michael’s source with a sophisticated car bomb. Though fortunately for us. Not before the intel was passed on. The hit is expected to take place during the inaugural ball, Saturday night. Everything will proceed as planned. Mijovich’s people will handle general security. Our job is to stop Griffin. Michael will lay out the mission parameters tomorrow morning. Team will fly out in the afternoon.
NIKITA: Who’s you’re source?
MICHAEL: Someone who happened to have dealings with Griffin.
NIKITA: A friend or…
MICHAEL: Why?
OPERATIONS: Michael.
NIKITA: Just curious.
OPERATIONS: A word please. The girl in the car, did she mean something?
MICHAEL: She was a contact.
OPERATIONS: Nothing more. This is an important mission Michael. It’s about protecting Mijovich. It’s not about revenge.
MICHAEL: I don’t let personal considerations interfere with my work.
MIJOVICH’S RESIDENCE
MIJOVICH: My dear Nikita. How wonderful to see you again.
NIKITA: You too, Premier Mijovich.
MIJOVICH: Please. We are old friends, hmm? You must call me Jovan.
NIKITA: Ah, your Excellency that would not be proper. I’m on duty.
MIJOVICH: Always the professional. Hmm? What a pity!
NIKITA: Congratulations on the election.
MIJOVICH: It was a miracle we managed to have elections at all. If you knew what my countrymen had been through. And now, some fool wants to start the whole mess over again by putting a bullet in my head.
NIKITA: We will not let that happen. I assure you.
MIJOVICH: God knows there’s been enough pain. Everyone suffered loss. I lost a brother, my only son. God rest their souls.
NIKITA: I’m sorry
MIJOVICH: Which is why the ceremonies must proceed as planned. It’s a statement to our people. We are no longer at the mercy of thugs and terrorists.
NIKITA: You’ve changed. You’re Excellency forgive me but, when we met before you seemed…
MIJOVICH: A bit of a lightweight. Well, I hope I’ve grown up a little since then. So, this man that’s after me, this uh…this Griffin. He’s good?
NIKITA: Yes but operatives will be stationed throughout the room and I’ll be posing as your companion for the evening.
MIJOVICH: Excellent!
THE BALL
MICHAEL: Nothing so far.
BIRKOFF: Perimeter’s quiet too.
OPERATIONS: He’s there somewhere.
OPERATIONS: How many more guests are coming?
BIRKOFF: None expected.
OPERATIONS: So, Griffin’s already inside.
BIRKOFF: Is he going through with the hit?
OPERATIONS: Everything we know about him says he will.
MICHAEL: Birkoff?
BIRKOFF: Still no sign.
OPERATIONS: Give me his profile.
BIRKOFF: Again?
OPERATIONS: Yes. Again.
BIRKOFF: He’s uh, young, European, aggressive. Still all we have that’s reliable.
OPERATIONS: According to Michael, not many in the room fit that profile.
BIRKOFF: Griffin should stand out. Most of the men are older, generals, diplomats.
OPERATIONS: But some of them maybe with younger women. Michael, Is it possible for Griffin to be a woman?
MICHAEL: She’s fainted. We’ll give her some air.
OPERATIONS: Is Michael in the van?
BIRKOFF: Just now.
OPERATIONS: Michael report.
MIJOVICH: It’s over. Griffin’s dead.
OPERATIONS: Was there much disruption?
MICHAEL: Most of the people think a woman fainted. Those who know otherwise are being discouraged from spreading rumors.
OPERATIONS: Good. Give me an ID on Griffin.
BIRKOFF: I’ll get the lab on it right away.
OPERATIONS: I don’t mind telling you Birkoff, this is a relief. Powers that be were really breathing down our neck on this one.
MIJOVICH: My dear, I’m so sorry. I’ve been neglecting you.
NIKITA: No. Not at all.
MIJOVICH: Any sign of our friend?
NIKITA: Come and gone.
MIJOVICH: Are you serious?
NIKITA: Very. And I can assure you she won’t be back.
MIJOVICH: She? Oh yes, the more deadly half of the species. You and your colleagues are indeed miracle workers.
OPERATIONS: Michael, what’s going on?
ZORAN: Down on the floor!
MICHAEL: I’m not sure. The palace has been sealed off. I’m out. I think Nikita is still inside.
ZORAN: Now, or he dies. Keep calm.
ZORAN: And keep quiet.
MICHAEL: Nikita report.
ZORAN: Jovan Mijovich, for crimes against your country and against humanity, I hereby denounce you to the world… and sentence you to death.
THE BALL
ZORAN: Vakul. Do you remember it?
MIJOVICH: I have no idea what you are talking about.
ZORAN: Yes, why should you? After all, it was just another village to be destroyed for your pleasure. Women, children, tortured, murdered but I promise you, before the day is over, you will remember Vakul and so will the rest of the world.
OPERATIONS: Download everything you can about a town called Vakul.
ZORAN: These?
ALEXEI: Yes. I checked their IDs.
ZORAN: You are all released except these five. Get up and move slowly to the door.
OPERATIONS: Nikita. You stay and find a way to keep Mijovich alive. Do you understand?
NIKITA: I understand…uh...that you hate Premier Mijovich. I just don’t understand why.
ZORAN: You will know soon enough. Come on, leave with the others.
NIKITA: No.
ZORAN: If you stay with this man, you may die with this man.
NIKITA: Then I will die with this man.
ZORAN: If you wish.
ALEXEI: Papa, these windows make us look too vulnerable. We should move to the other side of the building.
ZORAN: Good Alexei. We’ll move now. Go on.
BIRKOFF: Vakul was a small town in the North. 5 years ago while the men were away fighting, women and children were wiped out by commandos from the opposite side. The men swore vengeance. Their leader was named Zoran Bruner.
OPERATIONS: In other words, we’re outflanked by a collection of farmers.
MICHAEL: We were deployed to stop a lone assassin.
OPERATIONS: Michael, Mijovich must not die.
MICHAEL: Nikita will buy time. We’ll develop a plan and infiltrate.
OPERATIONS: Coordinate with Nikita on Tac channel 2. Call up a dossier on Mijovich.
BIRKOFF: I’m on it.
MICHAEL: Nikita. Answer if you can. We need intel. (We then see
Nikita and Mijovich going down a staircase into a kitchen heading
somewhere.)
ZORAN: Move it. This way, this way.
NIKITA: You’re committing suicide. There are security forces all around and there are only four of you?
ZORAN: Move!
NIKITA: There are more aren’t there? That’s why there’s a cellular phone.
MICHAEL: Four inside with a cellular. Run a frequency scan and find out who they’re talking to.
ZORAN: Please, be seated. My name is Zoran Bruner. You have been detained because your credentials identified you as journalists. Uh, journalists seek stories right? Well, tonight I am going to give you a story that will make the world sit up and take notice. The story of a man who poses as the savior of his country but who is in reality, a butcher, drenched in innocent blood.
BIRKOFF: Here’s the file on Mijovich
OPERATIONS: Michael, tell Nikita Mijovich was at a peace conference in Brussels when the village was wiped out.
MICHAEL: Nikita…
MIJOVICH: I have no idea what you are talking about.
ZORAN: Liar!
NIKITA: You made a mistake. He was in Brussels when your village was destroyed.
ZORAN: That’s nonsense
NIKITA: Don’t you think it’s worth a phone call to be sure?
ZORAN: All calls would be intercepted by his lackeys. Stop wasting time with your foolish questions.
NIKITA: Mr. Bruner, one thing. What do you think they are going to say when you let them go? What story do you think they’ll tell?
ZORAN: I told you. The story of a man who pretends to…
NIKITA: No. They’ll tell a story of a bunch of thugs that invaded an inaugural ball and killed the leader of a new country.
ZORAN: He is a sadistic murderer.
NIKITA: We have only your word for it.
ZORAN: That will have to be enough
NIKITA: It won’t be enough. Without proof, in the eyes of the world, you’ll be the murderer. Look, if you came here to kill Mijovich, then no one can stop you. But if you came for justice, you’ll need proof, witnesses.
ZORAN: The village was wiped out. I lost my wife and three of my daughters. Raped, tortured, murdered by this…
NIKITA: Three of your daughters?
ZORAN: My youngest, at any rate was not murdered.
NIKITA: So there is a witness. Bring her here.
ZORAN: You don’t know what you’re saying.
NIKITA: Mr. Bruner, you wanted the world to watch. They will, but now you have to show them something.
ZORAN: Call your lackeys. I will tell you where they can find Maria. If a hair on her is harmed, you’ll die on the spot. And the woman too!
SECTION VAN
MICHAEL: Birkoff do you have the plans of the building?
BIRKOFF: I’m downloading now. Michael why not grab the daughter and trade for Mijovich?
MICHAEL: Too risky. Let her come in and buy us time. Find me a way in.
PALACE
ALEXEI: Yes papa.
ZORAN: Maria!
MARIA: Father.
NIKITA: She’s blind.
MICHAEL: Use it.
ZORAN: Maria, there are reporters here. Tell them what happened.
MARIA: Soldiers came to our village. They wanted to know where our men had gone. We did not tell them. Nobody told them anything. They stayed for a week. The children and the old women they killed. The young women they played with. Play for them was torture and mutilation. The leader he was the worse. He raped me and he blinded me and he left me for dead. But as you can see, I am alive.
ZORAN: Stand up. Speak.
MIJOVICH: My poor child, I can’t tell you how sorry I am for what happened to you but it was not I who did it.
ZORAN: Maria, the voice, the smell, it is him.
MARIA: Yes.
NIKITA: But you’re not sure, are you?
MARIA: Who are you?
NIKITA: My name is Nikita. I’m a friend of Premier Mijovich.
MARIA: Then of course you defend him.
NIKITA: The fact remains that if you want justice you must be certain.
MARIA: I am.
NIKITA: N, you’re not. I don’t believe you would risk killing an innocent man. Not to mention the thousands who would die in the aftermath.
ALEXEI: This one could talk the angels down from heaven. Ignore her. Come.
MARIA: No, wait. Come He has the same features, the same round face.
NIKITA: So do a million other people.
ZORAN: Maria, come, that’s enough.
MARIA: No, first I have to be sure.
ALEXEI: Don’t let her confuse you Maria. You know what you know.
NIKITA: She came to identify Mijovich. If she cannot, then the trial is over.
MARIA: Just like that?
NIKITA: yes
MARIA: What are you wearing?
ALEXEI: A white silk gown with a diamond brooch.
MARIA: And if she is with Mijovich, no doubt, she is beautiful.
ALEXEI: Yes.
MARIA: What does a woman like you know of suffering? Do you know what it is like to beg for mercy but receive only agony? Have you ever been so tormented that you’ve prayed for your own death?
NIKITA: Yes I have.
MARIA: No, I don’t believe you.
NIKITA: Maria, I know pain.
MARIA: If that is true, then how can you defend him?
NIKITA: Because he’s not guilty.
ZORAN: Maria, is Mijovich the man?
MARIA: I don’t know. I just don’t know anymore.
SECTION
BIRKOFF: There’s a system of heating shafts throughout the structure.
MICHAEL: External access?
BIRKOFF: North wall.
MICHAEL: Three guards, we have line of sight and fortified positions.
OPERATIONS: Bruner senses any trouble, he’ll kill Mijovich on the spot.
MICHAEL: Maybe not… if he thinks we tried to get in and failed.
OPERATIONS: Proceed.
MICHAEL: Let’s go. We’ll take separate routes. Go in from the Northeast.
MICHAEL: Birkoff, I’ve gained access to the ventilation system. Scan the cell frequency to see if I was detected.
ZORAN: An attempt was made to infiltrate the building. It failed. You better hope there are no more heroes out there. Next time, you are the first to die.
OPERATIONS: Michael progress.
MICHAEL: I’m moving.
OPERATIONS: We don’t have much time.
MICHAEL: Nikita, fifteen minutes. Be ready.
NIKITA: Maybe we don’t have to intervene.
MICHAEL: What do you mean?
NIKITA: Michael, there’s been a mistake. There is no bad guy here.
MICHAEL: There are always bad guys Nikita.
NIKITA: Not this time. Um, what are you doing?
ZORAN: Sending her back home.
NIKITA: And Mijovich?
ZORAN: I’ll deal with him when she’s gone.
NIKITA: In other words, murder him? Is that what you want Maria?
ZORAN: It’s not up to her.
NIKITA: Why not? She’s the one that suffered most not you.
ZORAN: Open your mouth again and I’ll kill you.
NIKITA: Then you’ll be the criminal you say he is.
MARIA: Father, no. She is right. If Mijovich is not the one, then this is all for nothing.
ZORAN: He is the one.
MARIA: We have to be sure… beyond any doubt.
ALEXEI: You ask too much of yourself. It’s not possible Maria.
NIKITA: Maybe it is. Maria, the truth is in your mind. You just have to find it.
MARIA: No.
NIKITA: Maria, please. Just try to remember.
MARIA: I have spent years trying to forget.
NIKITA: You must Maria. Go back in time. Remember everything you can.
MARIA: Before it began, the worst of it, I mean. He touched my face. It was almost gentle.
MICHAEL: Birkoff that branch is off.
BIRKOFF: Stay to the East. You’re 50 feet from the outlet. You’re right next to the dinning room, Michael. Be careful.
NIKITA: Go on Maria
MARIA: When he finished, he went away. I thought he was ashamed for what he had done but he came back. He started worse. No, I can’t.
ZORAN: That’s enough.
NIKITA: But we still don’t know the truth.
ZORAN: Leave her alone.
MARIA: No father, it’s okay. A ring, he wore a ring. It had a very sharp setting and he used it like a knife.
MARIA: There is no ring.
MIJOVICH: I have never worn a ring.
ZORAN: It means nothing. He stopped wearing one or he gave it to one of his whores.
NIKITA: Please. Maria, what else do you remember?
MARIA: Perhaps it does not matter.
ZORAN: What do you mean?
MARIA: If we kill Mijovich, there will be a war. Thousands more will suffer like I did. I would rather have died than to be the cause of all that.
ZORAN: The man who harmed you, he must pay.
MARIA: It wasn’t Mijovich.
ZORAN: You don’t mean that.
MARIA: Yes, I do. I am certain.
MICHAEL: I’m in position.
OPERATIONS: One minute.
MICHAEL: Nikita, sixty seconds.
NIKITA: It can end peacefully. No one has to die.
MICHAEL: She wants time. Let’s give her another minute.
OPERATIONS: One minute more that’s final.
NIKITA: Can you guarantee safe conduct?
MIJOVICH: For the girl, of course.
NIKITA: And the rest of the family?
MIJOVICH: This incident will be reported worldwide. We can’t pretend it didn’t happen. A public crime requires a public punishment.
ZORAN: What punishment?
NIKITA: What if he agrees to leave the country?
MIJOVICH: Prison is necessary.
NIKITA: Prison! This family’s suffered long enough. Make this a symbol of reconciliation.
MIJOVICH: The courts will decide that.
NIKITA: The courts will decide whatever you tell them to.
MIJOVICH: Sentenced to ten years in prison. Released in two.
ZORAN: No.
NIKITA: Two years in prison, suspended sentence.
MIJOVICH: Five years. And I promise, you will never see the inside of a prison.
MARIA: Father, please let it end here.
ZORAN: All right.
NIKITA: It’s over
MICHAEL: Delay the assault. But stand by.
ZORAN: It’s over. Put down your guns.
MIJOVICH: You have worked a miracle here.
NIKITA: No, we’ve all worked a miracle.
OPERATIONS: Secure the perimeter.
ZORAN: Laslow, the vent. Oh, we’ve been betrayed.
MARIA: No!
NIKITA: Bruner, NO!
MARIA: Father!
NIKITA: Bruner!
MARIA: Father! Father? Father? What happened? Where is my father? Take me to my father! Where is my father? No, no, no…
MIJOVICH: You had no choice. You were sworn to protect me and you did it. And I thank you for it.
NIKITA: It’s a ring line.
MIJOVICH: Hm? Oh, yes. I was married, for many years.
NIKITA: You said that you never wore a ring.
MIJOVICH: It was war Nikita. Terrible things were done on both sides. You think Bruner didn’t do as bad, or worse? It was one incident. What is one incident, however regrettable, compared with a fate of a country? The girl will be looked after. Her every need will be met. I swear it.
MICHAEL: Well done, Nikita.
NIKITA: Well done?
SECTION ONE
MICHAEL: Mijovich made good on his promise. Maria was provided for.
NIKITA: Yeah? He’s even more of a hero than he was before. You know what I think? I think she knew.
MICHAEL: That Mijovich was guilty?
NIKITA: Mhmmm. She pretended otherwise for the sake of her country.
MICHAEL: Then she’s a remarkable woman.
NIKITA: But section knew all along, didn’t they? Mijovich was never in Brussels. He was in the North region near Vakul, right? Operations fed you a lie. Knowing you would pass it on to me. Making me a much more convincing advocate, right?
MICHAEL: So?
NIKITA: So, Mijovich was guilty. Surely, the truth must count for something, even here.
MICHAEL: And because he’s still alive, thousands of people won’t have to suffer as Maria suffered. That is also the truth.
NIKITA: Yeah? So is this. I killed a man whose only crime was he loved his family and wanted justice.
MICHAEL: You had no choice.
NIKITA: I don’t know how much longer I can keep this up.
|
|