![]() Part 2
Two weeks go by, and the two pilots, carrying a piece of bread, return to the Spindrift from yet another useless search.
Mark is looking over rough schematics of the ship while Val, Fitzhugh, and Barry, his dog following after him, stack firewood.
MARK: Find ANYTHING?
STEVE: No.
DAN: But we did find this.
They put the bread on the table.
The others look at it sadly.
VALERIE: I'm not hungry.
BARRY: Neither am I.
They sit down on the chairs.
DAN: Steve looks from one to the other, concerned.
STEVE: Look, you all have to eat something!
MARK: Fine! You can have my portion!
Looking indifferently at the food, Steve surrenders his bravado.
STEVE: I'm not hungry myself.
He sits down just as dejected as the others.
DAN: There's got to be a way to find her. If only I could remember what the giant said.
MARK: What do you mean?
DAN: He said she looked like something. A bird STEVE: I didn't even hear it. Nothing the papers or handbills?
BARRY: No, sir.
VALERIE: Nothing.
MARK: Even Kobick's office was fruitless!
At the nightclub, Millo has purchased a two-story furnished doll house, along with some new clothes for Betty, which he sets on the dining room table in the living quarters.
Sadly the little woman slowly wanders around the house, staring forlornly at the blank walls and empty mantle over the fake fireplace. Outside, she can hear Millo and Gale arguing as the singer changes behind a screen.
MILLO: Hurry up, will ya!
Nightingale comes out from behind the shield dressed in a duplicate of Val's white gown..
MILLO: Hey, you look terrific!
GALE: It's a beautiful gown, Millo, but do you really think…?
MILLO: …honey, this is exactly what ya needed. A change in pace, a change in style, though class ya already had. If this doesn't do it, nothing will.
GALE: MILLO: Right, sure. I'll let ya two rehearse, but remember ta keep it quiet! I don't want our little secret getting out too soon.
He leaves, giving a quick tap on the closed door. Gale smiles, locking it. Hearing the door locked, Millo gives a final tap good-bye then leaves. Going to the living room, Gale sits down on the couch as Betty comes out of her "house".
GALE: You ready?
BETTY: I guess so.
But neither makes a move to rehearse. After a couple minutes of lost thoughts, Gale lets out a sigh and stands up.
GALE: Well, I suppose…
There's a knock at the door. Gale waits until Betty is safely inside the doll house before opening it. When she goes, she is shocked to find a handsome man before her.
GALE: Salvan!
SALVAN: Hi, honey.
Rushing to him, she hugs and kisses him joyously.
SALVAN: Let me look at you.
She steps back at arm's length letting him look her over.
SALVAN: The dress is beautiful. You're beautiful.
GALE: Thank you.
He pulls her back into his arms.
SALVAN: I've missed you.
GALE: I've missed you too.
SALVAN: Are you coming home any time soon?
GALE: I can't. Millo has me booked through till next summer.
SALVAN: The price you pay for being a star. You realize you've missed the holidays four years in a row now?
GALE: Van, we both knew it was going to be rough. And you know how much I've wanted this, how hard I've worked to get it.
SALVAN: I do. I also realize I'm losing you.
GALE: No, you're not.
SALVAN: Maybe because you're too locked into your career to see it.
GALE: I'm am not locked in!
SALVAN: Yes, you are! Come home with me, right now, right this minute! You deserve a vacation. Why not take it now?
GALE: I can't just walk out…..
SALVAN: No. That was the one thing I loved about you. You're loyal to a fault. But I guess if it was meant to be, it was meant to be. Letting her go, he leaves without look back. Gale slowly closes the door, locking it. Then, going into the living room, she watches as Salvan gets into the taxi and drives away. Pondering if she did the right thing, she returns to the couch as Betty once again comes out of the house, noticing her solemn mood.
BETTY: You're very close to your family, aren't you?
GALE: Was. BETTY: I miss my home too.
GALE: How long have you been here?
BETTY: Almost two years.
GALE: Two years! Where have you been living?
BETTY: In the…places.
GALE: Are there others like you?
BETTY: GALE: It's Monday night and the club's closed. I feel like getting drunk!
BETTY: So do I!
The giant woman goes to a cabinet and pulls out a bottle of wine and a glass as Betty fetches a glass from the doll house. After both glasses are filled, Betty raises hers in a mock toast.
BETTY: To home!
GALE: And family!
As they drink it down, Gale takes a chair from the second floor of the doll house, giving Betty something to sit on. She then refills the glasses. Over the next several hours the two talk about their careers, how they miss their families and friends, and what their dreams are -- or were.
BETTY: I dreamt of being married and having a family someday. And had I been on Earth, it might have happened.
GALE: I thought the same thing too. I never really believed I'd become as much of a success as I have, that's why it's so hard for me to give it up. Refill?
BETTY: She glances gloomily at the window. Outside the sun is starting to set. In the little people's camp, Valerie is tending Dan's injured hand as Steve and the others watch.
STEVE: Be careful the next time you grab a hot pot.
DAN: Betty always handled the cooking.
FITZHUGH: That's because you burned everything.
DAN: Not everyone can be a gourmet, Fitzhugh.
VALERIE: DAN: VALERIE: Just call me Florence Nightingale.
DAN: Nightingale, where have I… STEVE: Who?
DAN: The giant who took Betty! That's what he called her!
MARK: Florence Nightingale? What kind of a name is that?
VALERIE: Steve picks up the hatchet and smiles.
STEVE: Let's go get her.
It's after dark by the time the travelers (minus Chipper) reach the street in front of the nightclub, hiding beside a fire hydrant. The building is dark and quiet as they survey the situation.
DAN: I don't like it. the place looks like it's closed.
VALERIE: It probably is. Some places shut down at least one day a week to clean up and make repairs.
STEVE: And my guess would be they have a supplies entrance. They run quietly down the alley and slip under the service door. Assembling on the other side, they peer down the long, dark hallway.
FITZHUGH: How are we ever going to find her in this place?
![]() |