Barkskins (2020) s01e08 Episode Script

The Black Sun

COOKE:
I came here merely to store
-excess barrels.
-And if you agree to my terms,
you will leave
with a French wife.
Previously onBarkskins
GAY BILL:
I should like
to have those barrels
of pistols you promised.
They are lost to me.
Is that so?
-You left this.
-CROSS: Let me go.
I'll walk into the woods
and begone.
You've lost your mind, Randall.
[grunts]
BOUCHARD:
When I have settled
this Iroquois matter,
you and I,
we might go for a stroll.
Tell him I saw what the ram's
insides spoke of.
What are you talking about?
-Tell him I saw his end.
-Get out!
You are still Wyandot.
Leave Theo with us.
Fight for your place
with Trepagny.
Please.
RENE:
The Englishman
wants us to come for them.
It's a trap.
BOUCHARD:
They want French.
We send
an Englishman.
Pistols for the dead.

[man panting]
Pitié.
GAY BILL:
What's this one on about?
He wants mercy.
GAY BILL:
Does he?
I'll hear your last words,
French.
Come on, now, friend.
What else have you achieved
besides skinning pelts
and trudging through snow?
Now, there's a life's work.
What else?
He's given it.
No. No, he's got more to say.
We are all animals.
Now there's a final truth.
Give it if you're
going to give it.
I will guide the wood
into your heart.
[gasps]
Dead man's ring
will bring dead man's luck.
-[Iroquois whooping]
-[gunshots]
[woman screaming]
[woman crying]
Help me.
Is this what you wanted?
Enough. We're done
killing innocent people.
Done?
A Company man's work
is never done, Hamish.
We aren't until every
French settlement is torched.
She has no stake in this.
Let her go.
She stays here.
You're gonna remind Mr. Cooke
of the deal he struck
for the pistols.
And when he has his pistols?
He's agreed to go north,
take the settlement
at Pont-Rouge.
Wobik's well-defended.
Even he knows that.
-I'll go with you.
-HAMISH: No.
This is my burden to bear.
Stay here, watch the girl.
You will control them.
Your Indian will make sure
she's safe until your return.
Hopefully.

-[door opens]
-[bell jingles]
[exhales]
-Captain.
-Mathilde. Delphine.
There is a fierce,
damp cold this morning.
-It will be an early winter.
-Mm.
If it is another walk you're
after, Captain, I am busy today.
I am preparing Monsieur
Trepagny's wedding feast.
And it is a feast
that will put the harvest
celebration to shame.
That is the exact topic
I came to speak to you about.
Ah. Outside, if you must.
[quietly]:
There is a mighty fondness
lurking in that girl
for rabbits.
MATHILDE:
Renardette.
Tell Captain Bouchard
what you have named it.
Bouchard.
Oui?
[chuckles]
That is a proper name
for such a beast.
Hopefully it doesn't
end up in the cook pot.
Has she told you
where her parents are?
I She will tell it
when she is ready.
For now,
I keep her engaged
in simple tasks.
Mathilde, now is not the time
to be traveling to Trepagny's,
with the Iroquois about.
We will be with the intendant
and his men.
Besides, Mother Sabrine
has returned the dead
and Mr. Cooke
has proved his mettle.
I do believe
the Iroquois matter
is behind us.
I am going to Trepagny's.
He has hired me.
That is the end of it.
[sighs, grunts]
Then I will escort you to
this cursed wedding celebration.
See that you get there safe.
Your clothes will need a wash.
I'll see to that.
Good.
Now leave me to my business.
[smack]
[humming a tune]
You were gone a long time.
Yes, I-I stopped
to watch a bird.
A bird.
A cunning black bird.
It was going after a woodchuck.
And after, where did you go?
If you wish,
I will fetch Rene Sel
down from his work
so you can ask him.
Or perhaps Mari can
bring the basket herself
so you can peck at her
with your questions.
I only have one question
that matters.
Have you found
a solution to Mari?
No, not yet.
But look, we have these baskets
of well-prepared food each day.
Mari does not cross your path.
She is in the cabin,
you're here,
in the manor house.
It works, Melissande.
I will not banish her.
Her presence
is a challenge to me.
Do you own the land?
I look and see smoke from her
cabin and I know she is here.
Well, there is no dark magic
to undo the past.
My ancestors tried.
They were burned at the stake.
I don't wish to undo the past,
just fix the present.
[sighs]
What if you
gave her to Rene?
He has eyes for her.
I've seen it.
This is all I want
for our wedding celebration.
To know that we are bound
and there is no woman
with a claim on you.
So it is a clever fix.
-Well, it is afix.
-Good.
Then talk to him.
[grunts]
Monsieur Sel!
You should come up.
Have a look.
No.
I will save it for the ceremony.
Melissande and I will
see it together
as we look out over the Doma,
properly bound, man and wife.
It will be my gift to her.
That is a good gift, sir.
Yes.
There is another she asks of me.
Uh, it is something
you can help me with.
I'll come down.
Yes, the favor?
Say it and it shall be done.
You came here to New France
in search of land
and to build a family.
Yes.
What if I were
to give you that land?
And in return,
you take Mari to be your wife.
I have seen the way
you look at her.
-Supping together
-No.
-I have never looked
upon her like that.
-Do not lie.
She is a woman, you are a man.
You have looked at her,
is it not so?
Yes.
I have looked.
Then she could be your wife.
But she is yours.
And she will never agree to a
match she has not made herself.
She is not mine.
She never was.
I simply wish to know
that she is taken care of,
not tossed from the Doma,
as my dear Melissande
would have me do.
Land, Monsieur Sel.
I will give you the cabin
and all the land around.
Perhaps even a lake.
Say you will talk to her.
Yes.
I will talk to her.
Good man.
It is better this way.
-[knocking]
-[clears throat]
Shall I come in?
Yes.
Yes, of course.
Yes, we mustn't waste a minute.
I've prepared tea.
Oh, please, I
Let me do it.
No, of course not.
You're my guest.
And, uh, a good man serves.
Merci.
Something wrong?
Oh, no.
Everything is fine
and beautiful.
This feels, uh, very formal.
Yes, you're right,
this is not, uh,
appropriate for our purposes.
Uh, an interaction.
Which is not business.
[chuckles softly]
Might there be a more, uh,
comfortable place for us to sit?
I have a fire.
-Shall we sit there?
-Uh, yes.
I will take the tea.
I need a word with Cooke.
He's engaged at the moment.
Unengage him.
He should like to hear
what I have to say.
Go on.
[Cooke exhales]
Mathilde said we should talk.
Mathilde. Yes.
We should see where
our-our paths might intersect.
I would like that very much.
First, might I show you
something?
It is a claw. Of a tiger.
This came to me in a barrel
from a Dutchman
with contacts in China.
It is beautiful.
You see, the tiger
is the lord of all creatures.
Men worship them,
build temples, light candles
to their wickedness.
[laughs softly]
That's impossible to imagine.
Oh, but the world
is much smaller
than you think, Delphine.
It comes to me in barrels.
Pieces of it.
And I send pieces
of this place back.
Give me your hand.
You see
the world rests
in the palm of your hand.
Is there anything about me
you would like to know?
Well, I hope that we may
come to know one another,
in time.
We are all
criminally strange
to one another.
That is what I believe.
Do you think so?
Each day we reveal
ourselves anew.
That is what I believe.
Yes. Indeed.
Would you care to take
a trip to the Orient with me
to see a tiger, Delphine?
-[door opens, closes]
-CHARLES: Sir?
What?
Oh
I'm busy, Charles.
There is something that, uh,
requires your attention.
I'm sorry.
Excuse me.
[door opens, closes]
Mr. Goames.
What brings you here?
I shall be direct.
The pistols in exchange
for your life.
Sorry, tell me,
when did you become
errand boy for Bill Selby?
It should be a comfort to you
that I am here,
as it is Bill's plan to ambush
you and cut your throat.
Well, pistols can
be had elsewhere.
Mr. Selby knows this.
You should know that failing to
do good on your part of the deal
will result in Selby
and the Iroquois
putting Wobik to the torch.
Now,
I wish to avoid that.
I wish to save
the good people of Wobik
and for you to die.
Well, the intendant has called
for further reinforcements,
so, rest assured,
Wobik will be well-defended.
If they don't get the pistols,
they will save you
to last, Cooke.
They will peel off your eyelids
and make you eat them.
And then they will
lash you to a rock,
and let the sun burn your eyes
out of your head.
If you go back on your deal,
I cannot stop them.
Mr. Cooke no longer
has the pistols.
You are both full of lies.
COOKE:
Yes.
As are we all.
It is truths
that we pay dearly for,
Mr. Goames.
Here is a truth:
you made a deal for your life.
Yes, but I make many deals.
Soon I will have a deal
for a French wife.
Shall I summon Captain Bouchard?
No, thank you, Charles.
Mr. Goames is a smart man.
No need to involve the captain.
I can be found
out by the creek path.
The Iroquois have
set up camp nearby.
[door opens]
[door closes]
Renardette!
Renardette.
Monsieur Bouchard.
Mr. Goames?
-Has Cooke reconsidered?
-No.
Then I shall not waste
another minute of my time.
-Lives are at stake.
-That is a shame,
as a few minutes
might provide you
with the pistols you seek.
-You have them?
-Cooke does.
He intends to turn
them over to Bouchard.
And you would stop this?
For a price.
I will hear your offer,
keeping in mind
the risk I am taking.
Bring them to me at the camp,
and we will discuss terms.
I will not barter with savages.
This is our deal.
The path behind the creek.
A lookout will bring you
into the camp.
Then I should like
some coin now.
For my end of the risk.
-[coins jingle]
-The rest upon delivery.
See that you come alone.
Bonne chance.
[dogs barking]
[exhales]
What happened?
Bill.
The girl?
She's all right, for now.
Did you get the pistols?
Take the girl and leave.
I'll manage the rest.
Manage them?
Now go.
GAY BILL:
Sneaking off to read some verse,
Mr. Kirkpatrick?
-Dryden.
-Dryden.
I should like to hear
some of that.
Is there one you favor?
You're welcome to join me.
HAMISH:
Let him go.
We have much to discuss.
I suppose so. Perhaps later.
Oh, Mr. Kirkpatrick,
don't read yourself out.
Where are the pistols?
Cooke's man is bringing them.
Well, it's good that Cooke
has found his part of the deal.
No. He's not found
his part of the deal.
Cooke's man
is getting them for us.
Can this man be trusted?
The English, the French,
your precious Company--
none of you can be trusted.
They'll likely send more French.
Soldiers this time,
instead of nuns.
No.
It is as I say.
Just Cooke's man.
I think Mr. Goames
is a man of his word.
Make sure he's alone
and with the pistols.
[insects trilling]
If it's food you are after,
it will have to wait.
No.
I wish to have a word.
[sighs]
Go on then.
-It's Trepagny.
-It is always Trepagny.
Mari, please.
Listen to me.
Out with it.
He has asked something of me.
He believes
we could be together.
As husband and wife.
He told you this?
It is not as it sounds.
Go on then.
Tell me more, and I will
tell you how it sounds.
He has made me an offer
of land in return.
For taking me off of his hands.
This could be a new start
for both of us.
A chance for you
to stay in the cabin
and for us
to be together.
This is his idea?
It is not so bad an offer.
Could you take a man such as me?
We could be a good match.
I will think on it.

MARI:
Bouchard.
It's fine, I work for Mr. Cooke.
Come on.
MELISSANDE:
What did she say?
TREPAGNY:
Rene Sel is proposing a fix.
MELISSANDE:
She would be smart to agree,
or you must cast her off.
That is how I see it.
I see only you in that dress
and how you will look
floating above the trees.
I will have her decision
before Mathilde
and the rest
of the guests arrive.
Yes, of course.
Now step into the light that
I might see the glow of you.
No.
I will be alone tonight.
[grunts, exhales]
Renardette!
Come inside!
Oh. It's late.
Renardette.
Renardette?
She was watching the barrels
for me. That was her job.
-Cooke's barrels?
-Yeah. Yes.
-What was in them?
-I don't know.
Well, then let's ask Mr. Cooke.
Cooke, you scheming bastard.
What new offense are you here
to accuse me of?
Renardette has gone missing.
Taken!
I set her to watch your barrels.
-Now they are ransacked.
-The barrels are empty?
Pray tell, Mr. Cooke,
what was in those barrels?
Nothing.
Come now, Mr. Cooke.
S-Salt.
Brick.
Stop! We are wasting time.
Renardette is missing,
that is what matters.
Pistols.
The barrels were packed
with pistols.
Goames wanted them
for the Company,
the Company wanted them
to arm the Iroquois.
I don't know what the girl
had to do with it.
He told me to meet them
in the path by the creek.
No, Mathilde. Mathilde!
It's too dangerous
to go at night. Huh?
We'll go at first light.
We'll find her, don't worry.
[branches snapping]
Pistols.
What more do you want?
I have what I came for.
Then take your coin and begone,
before they think better
of the trade.
[insects trilling]

I thought we might talk.
There is nothing to talk about.
It would be better
if it was settled.
I am just given to Sel.
That is the end of it.
Very well.
Come. Sit.
Have some food.
-I should get back.
-It is not much.
Just some soup.
One last supper,
as we used to do.
[laughs softly]
Yes, I would like that.
[fire crackling]
I cooked our first meal
in this pot.
Yes.
I remember.
When there were only
trees and rain
pressing down on us.
We made do.
Yes, we did.
You made do.
Yes.
I suppose that is right.
Tell me what the ram augured.
Nothing.
His insides were spoiled.
Go on.
Serve yourself.
You'll have to get used to it.
[chuckles]
Yes.
Yes, of course.
[sniffles]
This is good.
[insects trilling]
[panting]
[panting]
[birds chirping]

[chickens clucking]
[men speaking French]
MATHILDE:
I am going with you.
It's not safe.
I am going,
and that is the end of it.
-[men yelling, whooping]
-[speaking in Mohawk]
You're going to Wobik,
aren't you?
We had a deal.
That was ourdeal.
But as for the Iroquois,
a man may as well cup his balls
and call lightning down
from the sky.
TEHONIKONHRAKEN:
I don't know how it is
where you are from,
but here, we avenge
the death of our sons.
Well, maybe you would
like to know
who put your son in the tree.
It was the English
who killed your son.
Not the French.
Go on, then. Speak.
It was Bill and Cooke's plan.
They recruited your son
to burn the settlement
along the creek path.
And when they were done
using him, they killed him.
My son was hung
from a tree in Wobik.
Aye.
That wasCaptain Bouchard.
That is true.
But the people of Wobik
are innocent.
Spare them.
I know Bill here is a
vicious savage.
I always knew that.
But you
GAY BILL:
We're all savages.
But we're not French.
You will not attack Wobik.
That is not the deal we made.
TEHONIKONHRAKEN:
I will not have two Englishmen
cutting deals for
Now you have one Englishman.
[groaning]
[speaking in Mohawk]
I want you to draw him
into quarters
-and feed his liver to the dogs.
-[grunting]
MELISSANDE:
Where was he last night?
Mari's.
And now he's dead. Where is she?
I don't know.
-We can't leave him here.
-Why not?
This is the end of everything
for both of us.
He deserves better.
Just take him.
[grunting, gasping]
[grunting]

[panting]
[Rene grunting]

MATHILDE [whispers]:
Renardette.
-Renardette.
-[shushes]
What is it?
Take her and go.
I will stand with you.
You will not.
Now run and don't look back
until the creek hits the river.
Go. Go!
DEPUTY:
We have to go, Mathilde.
Come, you savages!
-Come!
-[men yelling, whooping]
[men clamoring, shouting]
[panting]
Go on. Do it.
[grunting]

Here. You're safe now.

[indistinct chatter]

[Delphine exhales]
[distant gunshot]
[people screaming, shouting]
DELPHINE:
What's happening?
This is payment due
for my misdeeds.
[gunfire continues]
[people screaming, shouting]

[wind whistling]
[gasps]

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