The Absence of Eden (2023) Movie Script

1
If you're looking for Shipp,
you got him.
Hey, Shipp,
it's your old man.
I know you're probably not
listening to these messages,
but I'm gonna keep
leaving them anyway.
Raining here today.
Been raining all damn week.
What else?
Oh, yeah.
Janice drug me into that
church of hers yesterday.
Something struck me sideways.
Preacher going on
about man being made
in God's image.
It made sense to me
that God's a man,
because the way
I experienced it,
God's only been good
at two things.
Being violent
and being absent.
M-M-Maybe that was me.
Maybe that's why you ain't
listening to these messages.
I don't know.
Anyhow, I was thinking on you
and wondering
what you were up to.
What kind of man
you're becoming.
All right, I'll talk to you.
If you're lucky,
this will be the only weapon
you'll need to discharge.
But if you're gonna inflict
it on somebody out there,
you need to know
exactly how it feels.
Nothing like 50,000 volts
to make you think twice.
Who's up first?
I'll go.
All right. Come on up.
Stomach down,
shoulder blades up.
WOMAN
No.
Where are you from?
Not too far.
You?
Alaska.
No shit?
How's it up there?
Fucking hell.
Not much of an upgrade.
Says you.
Sticky heat's underrated.
What made you want to catch
bad guys for a living?
Piss off my dad, I guess.
That's good a reason as any.
Get down.
Move!
Shots fired! Shots fired!
We're good.
Let's go! Let's go!
This your first action?
I froze.
Hey, look at me.
You saved my fucking life
in there.
You're good.
Do you have a boyfriend?
No.
Well, sort of.
What does that mean?
His name is Gabriel.
He's smart, funny...
and also my son.
Right.
How old?
He's 11.
That's a good age.
Yeah.
Is his dad in the picture?
No.
You live around here?
Yep. Right around the corner.
How long?
Always.
I still live
with my grandmother.
Well, it's cheap rent at least.
Yeah, at least.
You?
What about me?
Do you live around here?
I just moved here.
Mm.
Police?
Something like that.
It means "pretty face."
You're the one
with the pretty face.
Thank you.
No! No!
That one.
Hey.
The farm is owned
by the Cardozas.
We have solid intel
that not only is nearly
every employee illegal,
but the owner started
a side business
and there are stash houses
on the property.
Each unit should be looking
for barns,
attics, storm shelters...
...any space
that can house bricks.
It is our primary goal.
We're casting the net,
so catch as many fish
as you can.
Stay safe out there
and watch each other's 6.
When we make good choices,
we all come home.
Americano? S or no?
- S or no!
- Take it easy.
Nobody's running.
Nobody's running.
You're okay.
All right,
round them all up anyway.
Nobody here is legal.
Hey, and tell Lieutenant Crower
that we're still looking.
- I got one!
- Shit.
Dobbins, stop!
You're lucky my partner's here.
What the fuck?
Stand down. Stand down!
Why?
Why?
Come on.
You understand now?
It's us or them.
Why?
You speak English?
Yes, I do.
All right.
Okay, get in the truck.
But not her.
She's alone.
She doesn't have anybody.
Not my problem. Just you.
Okay.
Hey, whatever you say.
Come on, come on.
No, no, no. Up front.
There's water for the kid.
Go on up.
Come with me.
Hey
Don't take your life away
You serious about me?
I'm not sure what you mean.
Is this a relationship,
or are you just having fun?
I thought we were both
having fun.
Hmm.
You know what I mean.
Are you serious about me?
Yes.
Well, then I'm serious
about you.
So we're together.
We're together.
I want you to meet Gabriel.
I'd like that.
Hello?
Wait, what?
Yes, he's my dad.
What happened?
Okay.
I understand.
Thank you.
Where is she?
She's fine.
Where is she?
The girl is fine.
Hey, hey!
Let me out of the car!
Hey, you don't
give orders here, chica.
Where is she?
We have a job for you.
A good job.
But this is an opportunity.
I played nice
with the kid, huh?
If you don't want to work
for us, I'll go back in,
grab her, and take her
somewhere not so nice.
No...
Make my money that way.
Okay, then. You have a job.
You should be thankful.
Very fucking thankful.
Compadre,
how can I be helpful?
She's a new employee.
Set her up.
Roger that.
What is this?
The best-case scenario.
I don't want to do
anything illegal.
Who said anything
about illegal?
How clean can you get
a toilet bowl?
I like to see my reflection.
Follow me.
You keep this on you.
You'll receive a text
when someone's on the way.
Be here within five minutes
of the text.
You answer the door.
Deliver the goods.
Take the money.
They pay, you provide.
No, I'm not doing this.
Yes, you are.
You're Room 129 now.
And you're gonna get paid too,
weekly,
depending on how much
you earn, chica.
No.
You want to see
the girl again? Hmm?
There's a number
programmed in there.
You go anywhere,
you let me know.
You always call.
Understand?
Oh, she's asking where
your family's from.
Um, not far.
Uh...
Was raised
just outside of Dallas.
Got in trouble, mostly.
Didn't really know her.
Not really. No.
Um...
He died last week apparently.
So...
Um, so I guess
I gotta sign some things.
Why didn't you tell me?
These enchiladas are great.
I want you to know
I really like your mom.
And I have good intentions.
Hope we can be friends.
I'm sorry about your dad.
Hey. Hey.
You okay?
Hmm?
Will you stay
with me tonight?
Yes.
Yes, of course.
It's okay. It's okay.
I love you.
You got a lady, right?
Yeah. Why?
I'm dating this girl.
She asked me if I had
any friends. I said, "Why?"
She said she don't trust
a man with no friends.
So I said,
"I got tons of friends."
She said, "Well, do any
of your tons of friends
have wives or girlfriends?"
I say, "Of course."
She says, "Well, let's go
on a double date then."
And so I say,
"All right, sounds good."
Then I realize I don't really
have any fucking friends,
and most of the guys
I run with are pussy hounds.
So I thought of you.
You want to go
on a double date?
Thanks, bro.
So how long
have you two been together?
Just a few months.
This is our fifth date.
Fourth. No, fifth.
No, it's the fifth.
You're right. Sorry.
We met in the bank.
I'm a teller, so...
You know, I went in for cash
and withdrew the digits
and got her.
That's one way to put it.
Mm-hmm.
Um, have you been
an officer long?
No, Shipp just
showed up this fall.
Oh, do you like it? The job?
Well, better than what
I was doing.
And what were you doing?
Whatever I wanted.
That doesn't sound so bad.
Oh, you'd be surprised.
I'll have another one too.
Coming right up.
So, Yadira,
where are you from?
It's "Yadira,"
and I'm from here.
Like, here, like "here" here?
- Like, born here?
- Yes. Here.
Where were you born?
Me? Oh, um, Austin, Texas.
I was just asking, bro.
Your parents,
they immigrated here?
Yes.
You still got family in Mexico?
What is this,
an interrogation?
No. Bro, no, no, no.
Not at all.
I'm literally-- I'm just--
I'm just trying
to get to know you.
Okay, then.
I have a son.
I live with my grandmother,
and I work at Margot Elementary.
Happy?
My life's very boring.
Boring?
Not tonight it ain't.
Tequila? Yeah.
Hey, chief, can we get some
tequila rounds up here?
- Tequila?
- Yeah. Two for each.
Coming right up.
Yeah?
Yeah.
Need more than chips
to get the party going.
Here you go, fuckers.
It's not opening.
There we go.
Get me out of here.
Thanks for the ride, asshole.
Yeah, have fun,
you fucking pussy.
You're gonna drop me!
Whoa.
You're in high heels, come on.
You have to go.
Who are they?
Just trust me.
Who are they?
Just trust me. Go.
I don't have a car.
Go! Go! Go!
Shit.
You gonna get that?
Okay.
Just hold up
for a second, okay?
What's happening?
Brother, I am sorry to be
the bearer of bad news here.
But I ran your girl's address
and I did some digging--
Oh, fuck you.
No, not fuck me, Shipp.
It is not her grandma's house.
The owner has filed several
formal complaints.
He believes the tenants
to be illegals
and it is a potential
stash house
that has been on our hit list
for two fucking months.
Take a look for yourself.
I also rang up
Margot Elementary.
There is no one by the name
Yadira who even works there.
Listen.
Don't beat yourself up.
This shit happens.
I mean it. It does.
These illegal chicks
are everywhere.
Who the hell else
are we supposed to fuck?
Don't fucking look at me
like that.
I'm doing you a favor.
I'm just saying,
that if I was you,
I would keep
my fucking distance, bro.
She just went to the top
of my shit list,
because if you lie to one of us,
you lie to all of us.
I'm just saying
you're wrong about this one!
She already made a fool
out of you.
Don't make it worse.
Hey, man.
Is your mom around?
No.
Do you know where she is?
It's real important.
At work.
At the school?
Hey.
It's okay. I know.
It's not a problem.
I just need to know
where she is right now.
She might be
in big trouble, okay?
It's okay. You're okay.
I'm looking for Yadira.
She's in 127.
127?
Yeah.
It's in your best interest
to start telling me the truth.
Tell me.
What are you doing here?
Huh? Why?
What are you doing here?
You follow me?
Are you an American citizen?
Yes.
Don't you lie to me.
Are you an American citizen?
Yes.
Don't fucking lie to me!
No! No! I'm not!
Is this your only job?
No.
Then what else do you do?
I help my brothers.
Those guys from the house?
Yes.
What do you do for them?
I stopped.
I don't do it anymore.
What did you do for them?
They work for Tencha,
all right?
They-- They bring things
across the borders.
Sometimes people.
And they're with the cartel?
I don't know. I don't know.
Huh?
Are there drugs and guns
in that house?
Are there drugs
and guns in that house?
I don't know!
I tell them not to,
but they're my fucking
brothers. I don't--
What about Gabriel?
No, he was born here.
He was born here.
Okay.
Are you gonna arrest me?
Hmm? You're not gonna
arrest me, right?
I don't know.
Don't--
Don't take him away from me.
Don't take my baby
away from me, please.
Please. Please.
It's not his fault.
Please.
I'm sorry.
I'm sorry.
You did the right thing.
I don't want to talk about it.
I didn't realize
she was running a stash house.
I was happy enough just to round
her up and send her ass home.
I just feel bad for the kid.
Clear. Go, go, go. Go.
Cover me.
Pop it.
Immigration
Customs Enforcement!
Everybody, hands in the air!
Let's go. Move, move.
Fuck!
Clear!
There's nothing here.
They were tipped off.
I didn't do it.
I swear to God.
Fuck you didn't.
You piece of shit.
Pretty new girl sure knows
how to brighten a room.
That's nice of you to say.
I'm a nice guy.
I say nice things regularly.
I'm-- I'm done
with my day today,
so where do people go
for downtime?
Local watering hole
is just down the highway there.
Oh, good to know.
Now let me guess,
you're a tequila girl, right?
I do like tequila.
Want to go for a quick drink?
With you?
Why not?
Mr. Nice Guy, right?
I thought we established that.
Let me go change.
Do that.
Do you smoke?
Huh?
I thought I had a good read
on the type of girls
they bring to the motel,
but I admit,
you have
an unexpected quality.
I'm trying to put
my finger on it.
How long have you had maids
like me work for you?
A few years now, I guess.
Been a wild ride.
So you know what's happening?
Yeah, sure.
I mean, I stay out of it,
you know?
Dolore's just the contact.
They pay for the rooms.
It's none of my business
what they do with them.
To be honest, I don't think
they're gonna need
the motel much longer.
The boss is buying
a local business.
What kind of business?
Cantina of sorts.
I'm sure you'll
find out about it. Mmm.
Guess I'll take care of this.
Phil, can I ask you
a question?
Let her rip.
If I wanted to go someplace
for the afternoon...
could I borrow your car?
I don't know about all that.
Where are you trying to go?
I wanted to go see a relative.
It would just be
for a few hours.
Dolore wouldn't go for that.
No, but we don't
have to tell him.
You can--
You can cover for me.
That sounds like
a real bad idea.
Phil, Phil,
I would be indebted to you.
Shit.
What's she doing here?
Easy. The girl likes tequila.
What can I say?
I was hungry.
I asked him
if he can take me out
to get a bite to eat,
and he did.
When you leave,
you have to call.
Am I a prisoner here?
If this is the way
you handle your business,
we may need to rethink
our arrangement.
Entiendes?
Get your shit,
take her back to the hotel.
Come on. Let's go.
Come on.
Dobbins. Shipp.
Will you shut the fuck up?
I need backup.
I got a code 11.
Javier Hotel.
Hey.
Hey, what are you doing?
What are you--?
What are you do--?
Okay.
Come on.
Let's go to the Jacuzzi.
Okay. All right.
What the fuck?
Open it!
What?
Are you disappointed?
Do you want to take me?
Yeah.
Want to take my body?
Yeah.
You want to take it all?
We come here,
plant your seeds
with our dirty hands.
And then we help them grow
while you get
to put your feet up.
Your crops.
Your children.
Your future.
We make it all grow.
And what do you do?
You just take,
and take, and take,
and take, and take, and take!
You take because you're empty!
Your trampling feet
will have no shadow.
Your sun--
There'll be no sun
for your seeds.
You will know loneliness.
You will know pain.
Like me.
I'm empty now.
I'm empty.
And I will take from you...
until you are dry.
You're fucking crazy.
You are fucking cra--
You're fucking crazy!
Open this door!
Shit! Open it up right now!
Come out with your hands up!
Come on out!
I'm gonna do us both a favor.
I'm gonna put the gun away.
I just want to talk to you.
Shut up.
Come on.
Please, don't hurt me.
I'm not gonna hurt you.
I just want to ask you
a few questions.
Just walk.
Please, sir,
I didn't do anything.
Please,
you have to believe me.
Yeah?
Please. Please.
What were you doing
at that hotel, huh?
Do you work there?
Yes. Yes, I do, but--
What do you do there?
They picked me up.
They picked me up and they
took me to this hotel.
Is there anything in this car
that I should be aware of?
He wouldn't let me leave.
Huh? What's in this car?
Is there anything in this car
I should be aware of?
Yes, but it's not mine.
Sir, please,
you have to believe me.
Where in the car?
I was trying to get away.
Where in the car?
Ma'am?
I was trying to get away.
Where in the car?
Where in the car?
It's in the front seat.
Please. Look at me.
Please listen to me. My--
There was a little girl
with me.
There was a little girl with me,
and they took her.
They took her.
Where'd they take her?
Where'd they take her?
Okay. Okay, this is--
It's a storage place.
They're keeping
children there.
Please. No, no.
I didn't do anything. No!
Shut up.
Whoa.
Look at you.
I'm impressed, bro.
Don't do this.
I said shut up.
Oh! You gonna let her go too?
I told you not to run.
Huh?
Huh?
I told you not to run!
I was trying to help you!
I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
I'm-- I'm sorry.
Please help me.
How's this?
Good luck finding
that girl of yours.
I don't--
I don't know her-- Her name.
Get a blanket.
What?
Get a goddamn blanket.
Hey, it's okay. It's okay.
I'm here to help you.
Everything is gonna
be okay, okay?
What happens to them?
They go back,
like everybody else.
End of the day...
it's for the best.
There's no coming back from what
those kids have been through.
They are not our problem.
Understand?