02x07 - God & Monsters

[bunniefuu]

Previously on SurrealEstate.

Eat a heaping bowl of sh*t, Hasan!

You're a sociopath!

I hate your job. All of it!

[RITA WEISS] That's real estate, kitten.

- I think I've found your mom.

- [PITCHING MACHINE CLUNK]

Trying to track her through a

couple of towns over the years.

Any word from the adoption people.

You and Anthony will

be the best dads ever.

You haven't heard from, uh, Susan?

[VOICE MAIL] You've

reached Susan Ireland.

I'm sorry that I forgot

how good you really are.

[RECAP SCORE FADES OUT]

[DOGS BARKING]

[TENDER SCORE]

[WOMAN] Morris, it's time for bed!

Read to me!

Oh, it's late.

You have school tomorrow.

Thirsty.

Oh

Don't go. Not yet.

Morris.

Please, just a little longer.

There's nothing to be afraid of.

- Did you check all of the

- I checked

behind the dresser and in the closet.

- How about under the bed?

- Under the bed, too.

Morris,

you're getting too big for this.

There's nothing to be afraid of.

Now, go to sleep.

Open a little?

[DOOR HINGES CREAK]

[RECEDING FOOTSTEPS]

[CREEPY SCORE]

[WHISPERING] Morris.

[MORE INSISTENT] Morrisss!

Morris, I am soooooo hungry!

Eventually you'll fall asleep.

Yes, you'll fall asleep!

And your little hand

will fall out of the bed

just a little, a little,

and that's when I'm gonna grab it

and then I'm going to eat

your fingers like weenies!

[CROSSFADE SCORE TO OPENING THEME]

[MAN SCREAMING]

His name is Morris Truby.

His mother just passed so

he's settling the estate.

What seems to be the problem?

I'm not sure. Truby doesn't talk much,

kind of rough around the

edges. A little scary.

It's the house he grew up in, so it's

gotta be kind of emotional.

So we treat it like a Normie?

Think we do a standard

PKT, just in case.

I got Phil doing a quick

workup on the history,

but the Trubys are the original owners

so I don't expect more there.

Still, better safe than sorry

before we start trooping

buyers through the place.

Sounds like you don't

trust Mister Truby.

He didn't mention anything

specific, but, uh

I got the feeling he was holding back.

- Uh

- [TENDER SCORE]

A feeling?

I still get 'em, you know.

Good to know.

[ELEVATOR ARRIVING CHIME]

[SCORE FADES OUT]

Hey! Anything new on the Truby place?

Uh, no.

I mean, yes!

There-there's stuff on Truby

that's not much at all, but, um

this is something else.

What is it?

- Your mom.

- [TENDER SCORE]

I-I-I know there's a lot of

stuff going on right now, but

I thought that this

kind of took precedence.

After all it's it's your mom.

Okay.

It's all here. Her name,

where you can find her.

You know, whenever you're ready.

So, what's new on the adoption front?

Uh [LAUGHS]

We wait.

- I worry about Anthony.

- How so?

Well, it's dangerous to want anything

as much as he wants this baby.

It'll all work out.

So, Truby.

Eleanor Truby bought

the house new in the 70s.

She, uh, lived there

until she died last year.

- Left it to her only son.

- Morris.

Morris' history is, uh,

a lot more cinematic.

Bunch of misdemeanors as a

kid, as*ault, petty theft.

Joined the Navy,

got a barely honorable discharge.

Graduated to the big

leagues as a young man:

Extortion, racketeering.

Spent some time in

prison for manslaughter,

which is lovely.

Just got out a few months

ago and here we are.

Man did his time.

Not judging. Just doing what I do.

[DRAMATIC SCORE]

[APPROACHING FOOTSTEPS]

- They're here.

- Excuse me?

About a thousand resumes.

You know, the people you

want to replace Susan with.

[LUKE SIGHS]

You know, I wish you

wouldn't put it that way.

She quit, remember?

We can't make her love

us if she doesn't

Okay, Bonnie Raitt. Thank you.

But we care about Susan

here and this is just wrong.

And she quit, Zooey! She chose

not to work here anymore

and we have to respect that.

So, the issue is what do we do now?

We have a record number of listings,

thanks in no small

part to Susan's efforts,

- and we need help.

- [GENTLE SCORE]

Okay, fine.

I could still help on a limited basis.

And I'm going to need

you to, but you are new

and your heart just isn't in it.

I need an experienced pro.

I need a rainmaker

and a closer both in the same body.

And it would be nice if they wouldn't

run screaming into the

night at the sight of our

target demographic.

I think

I might know somebody.

[DEVICE BEEPS, CLICKS]

[BEEPING, RISING FLASH CHARGING TONE]

Hey!

What's all this?

It's science.

This is private property.

You need to get your a*s outta here.

[CROWS CAWING]

[BROODING SCORE]

You're with Roman?

Okay.

You, uh, find anything interesting?

Too early to tell.

[CROWS CAWING]

[DOOR OPENING]

[TENDER SCORE]

[SIGHS]

[SIGH]

[SCORE BECOMES DARKER]

[SIGH]

[DEEP BASS RUMBLING]

[SIGHS]

Welcome home,

Morris!

[SCORE CRESCENDOS, FADES OUT]

[BIRDS CHIRPING]

[GENTLE PIANO MUSIC]

[GENTLE SOBBING]

[MOURNERS QUIETLY WHISPERING]

Lomax.

Roman.

Haven't seen you since the Whitby deal.

Well, I'm sorry about

how that turned out.

Buyer pulled out. Not your fault.

Only it actually kinda was.

Our firm was controlling

Whitby's second choice,

so I whispered in his ear.

He bailed on your property

and then we became his first choice.

I knew you did that.

[SNIFFLES]

No, you didn't.

I know when people are lying. I get a

Kinda itch in my nose. It's a thing.

So why'd you quit?

You were their biggest producer.

They made my nose itch.

A lot.

[quiet footfalls

How did you know where to find me?

Saw you at the cemetery.

I was visiting my father.

Common ground.

So, who's he?

Tonito, Gabriel R.

Tonito.

Yeah, I know. It sounds like a snack.

What did he do?

He died.

Before that.

Large animal veterinarian.

He was performing a

rectal exam

on an Arabian stallion

when his heart gave out.

He was just, sorta

just dangling there until

the paramedics arrived.

It was very sad.

So he died as he lived.

With his arm up a horse's

Do what you love and you will

never work a day in your life.

So on that subject:

Are you looking to get

back into real estate?

[LAUGHING] Huh!

Maybe.

I don't know.

I'm just here helping my folks out.

My dad wants me to take

over the family business

but this just this isn't my thing.

[GENTLE SCORE]

So, the reason I'm here

we may have an opening.

I need talent, experience

and an open mind.

- I'm in.

- It gets weird sometimes.

The Roman Agency tends

to handle a certain

Number one, I know what you guys do.

Number two, I currently

sew dead people's lips shut

and scoop out their guts

like a Halloween pumpkin,

so whatever kind of

"weird" you got is

a lateral move at best.

May only be temporary.

Everything's temporary.

Just ask Mr. Tonito.

[BROODING SCORE]

Susan?

[CLUNKS, WHOOSHING]

- [ZOOEY] Susan?

- [KNOCKING ON DOOR]

[PHONE BUZZING]

[CLICK]

Hello?

Yeah. Okay, I guess.

Okay, yeah, I'll be

back in just a minute.

Yeah, I'll gather the troops.

Okay. Bye.

- [CLICK]

- [SIGH]

Damn it.

[BROODING SCORE

CROSSFADES TO GENTLE SCORE]

Hey.

Do you know what this is about?

Zooey says show up, I show up.

Anything on Truby?

The house is rather strange.

There is something there,

but it isn't tripping the MEE.

Something friendly? A Swayze?

Possibly.

But have you met Mister Truby?

Uh, read his rap sheet.

There is anger rolling off the man.

- [ELEVATOR ARRIVING CHIME]

- He just got out of prison.

[AUGUST] I could tell from the ink.

What do you know about prison tattoos?

- More than I care to.

- [SCORE FADES OUT]

- [APPROACHING FOOTSTEPS]

- Phil, August, this is Lomax.

She's going to be working

with us for a while.

We're pretty informal around here.

- What's your first name?

- Clytemnestra.

Ah! Wife of Agamemnon, twin

sister to Helen of Troy.

My Mom's Greek and

my dad's just mean.

Lomax it is, then. Welcome aboard.

Lomax worked at Halostone Properties

- for six years.

- Halostone? They're huge.

She was their number one in sales

and she ate my lunch on a deal

so I'd rather have her

with us than against us.

[APPROACHING FOOTSTEPS]

Hey, Luke. Mister Truby's here.

Where you been?

Around. We'll talk later.

- [MISCHIEVOUS SCORE]

- Delighted to meet you.

I'm Zooey. I run things here.

Lomax. I sell sh*t.

Send him in.

That's it.

Okay.

[SCORE FADES OUT]

Lomax

Mister Truby,

this is, uh, Lomax,

one of our top agents.

[BROODING SCORE]

She needs to get out of here.

This is between you and me.

No. We work as a team.

Then maybe I fire your a*s.

Well, the exit is clearly marked.

Okay, look, I-I really

need your help with this.

I think you owe Lomax an apology.

Sorry.

Good. Now

why don't you tell us

what is really going on in your house.

The truth, please.

It started when I was about seven.

This voice started talking

to me from under my bed.

You gotta understand, I was a kid.

My mom and I barely got

away from my dad alive.

We had to start over.

[TENDER SCORE]

She worked her a*s off

to keep us in that house.

We loved that house.

- And yet?

- This voice under the bed

it kept saying it was gonna

eat my fingers, my-my toes,

my feet

anything that extended

past the mattress.

And you believed it?

Were you listening? I was seven!

I made a lot of mistakes.

I hurt a lot of people,

[INHALE, EXHALE]

including my mom.

It wasn't my fault.

It was the voice.

That's why I need you to k*ll it

before it does the same

thing to some other family.

k*ll it?

That's

that's what you do, right?

Maybe.

[SCORE FADES OUT]

So, that's the brand of

weird you were talking about?

The cast changes regularly,

but the story is pretty consistent:

There is something in the house

making it hard for us to sell

and we make it go away.

You're serious.

Well, you can always head back

to the relative moral clarity

of the embalming table.

There's still time for that.

[PHONE RINGS, BEEPS]

- Hello, Zooey.

- Hey. Todd from Cold Basin Developments

wants to know when you're gonna

take another run at the squatte

- in Marsden Towers.

- Oh, man.

Might be a good job for the new girl.

Maybe scare her away.

I don't scare that easy.

Ah, uh

Sorry. You're breaking

up. Can't hear you.

- [ZOOEY VOCALIZES STATIC]

- [CALL HANGUP BEEP]

I like Zooey.

She lies with style and flair.

So here's the deal: Our developer client

is razing an old housing

project to turn into a new condo.

Paying the current

tenants a ton of money

to get them out way over market

but there is one woman

who is not on board.

There's always somebody.

Yep. We have sent over

three different reps already.

I've even gone myself. [SCOFFS]

She won't even answer the door.

Give me a shot.

Really?

Put me in, coach.

- So

- [SCORE FADES OUT]

to be clear, you'd like

us to put out a hit on

- the boogeyman?

- I don't think I said that.

A monster under the bed.

Yeah. So what do we do to make it

go away?

Interesting.

I don't know that

we've had one of these.

Well, Truby was

genuinely terrified of it.

Truby is packing.

Yeah, there is a lot of

clutter in that house.

No, he's packing.

Carrying a gat, a

piece, a roscoe, a g*n.

Sign of the times.

No, much more.

Truby is out on parole.

If he's caught with a

g*n, he goes right back in,

so something must be

frightening him terribly.

So, what, you think he

wants to sh**t the monster?

Hm, I doubt that would be effective.

Well, find us something that will.

[GENTLE SCORE]

[DOOR CLOSES]

Hm

[DRAMATIC BOOM]

[SCORE FADES OUT]

Ms. Amaranth? Hello?

Hello? Ms. Amaranth!

Ms. Amaranth, I'm pretty

sure you're in there.

Go away.

Ms, Amaranth, uh, my name is Lomax

and this is my first day on a new job.

My boss sent me over here to talk to you

and if if you don't so

much as just open the door,

he's gonna write me off as

an underachiever on day one.

You don't want me look

bad on my first day, do ya?

[MULTIPLE LOCKS DISENGAGING]

[DISQUIETING SCORE]

Hi.

Can I come in?

Thank you.

[DOOR HINGES SQUEAK]

- Huh.

- [DOOR CLOSES]

You're the first woman they've sent.

Mostly they've been workmen; Hardhats.

Then lawyers

I think one of them

was a real estate guy.

Ooh. My boss.

You're all wasting your time.

I'm not leaving.

Actually, you are 'cause

they have a warrant,

which means they could,

literally, pull you out of here

kicking and screaming and

throw your stuff on the lawn.

Or,

you could leave with dignity

and enough cash to buy yourself

some place bigger, nicer.

And wouldn't the press

make a meal out of a

greedy developer throwing a

nice old lady out of her home.

That's why their offer is so generous.

But, Ms. Amaranth

Elsa.

Elsa

There is no way this ends with

you staying in this apartment.

How long have you been here, anyway?

Hm.

Seems like forever.

It only talks to me when I'm alone.

And that's why we're going to

Cyrano de Bergerac the sh*t out of it.

I'll be listening in the other room.

- I can tell you what to say.

- [SCORE FADES OUT]

We can't just incinerate

the little turd?

No. And Morris

Give me your g*n.

[LAUGHS]

Not gonna happen.

It's not going to work against him.

- [OMINOUS SCORE]

- We don't know that.

Give me the g*n.

[SCORE INTENSIFIES]

[SIGHS]

[MORRIS SIGHS AGAIN]

[SCORE FADES OUT]

[TRAFFIC IN DISTANCE, CAR HORNS HONKING]

[SUSPENSEFUL SCORE]

Milk and sugar in your tea?

Uh, no. Straight up is fine.

[TEACUP RATTLING]

These vintage photos are amazing.

Who's this in this really old one?

She looks just like you.

Yes.

She does, doesn't she?

[DISQUIETING SCORE]

Hello?

[EDGY SCORE]

So where are you?

Aren't you gonna scare me?

Threaten to eat my fingers or

Morris.

You're such a scared little rabbit.

Tell him that you are not afraid.

- Tell him

- Your friend lies!

He's a lying liar! You are afraid.

You'll always be afraid!

Tell him he's not real.

[RADIO SQUELCH]

You're not real.

- What if he's right, Morris?

- [STATIC, INTERFERENCE]

What if I'm nothing but your trembling,

bed-wetty worry-worries

whispering in your ear?

Tell him again.

You're not real!

What's worse, Morris?

A coward or a fool?

Or a bad son

who couldn't even protect his mother,

a son so bad his own father ran away?

[MORRIS SCREAMS]

[APPROACHING FOOTSTEPS]

[RATTLING]

- I've had it.

- Morris.

I've had it. I'm done.

Morris, you need to calm down.

Nobody talks that sh*t to me! Nobody.

I am gonna burn that

damn house to the ground

and torch that sh*t along with it!

- [CAR ENGINE REVVING]

- [TIRES SQUEALING]

[EDGY SCORE]

[GASP]

Now, Elsa

put the knife down.

Oh, I will, dear.

[SQUEALING TIRES]

[g*nshots]

[SQUELCHING]

[LOMAX SCREAMS, GASPS]

I can't die.

- [SQUELCHING]

- [BLADE RINGING]

Nothing can k*ll me.

[VOCALIZING]

Nothing I've found, anyway.

[SCORE FADES OUT]

Okay

[TEA SLOSHING]

So, you've been

I've been alive for over 500 years.

I've lived here for over a 100.

So you

you see why I don't want to leave.

Why I can't.

[TEA SLOSHING]

When was the last time you were outside?

I, uh can scarcely remember.

[GENTLE SCORE]

The w*r had just ended.

Which w*r?

Oh, pick one.

[SHAKY INHALE]

I remember

I went outside.

People were celebrating in the streets.

A man grabbed me and kissed me

and I was so frightened that

I went inside and I

haven't been out since.

Oh, there's always been someone

to bring me groceries and

and books.

And then Amazon and DoorDash

and COVID 19 came along

and the world caught up with me.

Still

I just grew so tired

of seeing friends

lovers

children, everybody I cared about

grow old and die while I just

stayed the same.

Like a bug caught in amber.

- You know, I feel you.

- [SIGHS]

I can understand the

downside of living too long.

But I gotta say there are a

lot of people who live too short.

I met some of them on my last job.

I crave permanence.

This was supposed to be my forever home.

Let me show you something.

These

are houses

you can buy with what the

developer is going to pay you.

Some of them are really nice. Look

they'll move your furniture

and all your stuff in there

and you can be every

bit as comfortable there

as you are here.

Even more so because people

like me will stop bugging you.

[PAPER CRINKLING]

Thank you. I-I have a home.

I'm not giving up.

[BROCHURE DOWN ON TABLE]

It was very nice talking to you.

Well, it's not like you

have anyone to compare me to.

And just so you know,

present company excluded,

any poor schmuck can die.

But to live, to truly live?

Takes work.

[RECEDING FOOTSTEPS]

[DOOR OPENS]

[DOOR CLOSES]

[SCORE FADES OUT]

[INDISTINCT POLICE RADIO CHATTER]

[GENTLE SCORE]

I didn't see the sh**ter.

Uh, the car was a sedan. White, I think.

You're pretty quiet, Mister Truby.

Never saw 'em before.

You've got quite a colorful history.

See, the important

word there is history.

Old news.

Make sure we have your

contact information.

- We'll be getting in touch.

- We gave the officer my card.

[RECEDING FOOTSTEPS]

- [CAR DOOR CLOSES]

- Hey, thanks.

- You actually saved my life.

- [SCORE FADES OUT]

Not to mention what would have happened

if that cop found me carrying a g*n.

[SIGHS] Let me buy you a drink?

Do you know who took a shot at you?

I owe them money.

And they're trying to k*ll a dead man.

The headaches started

when I was in prison.

- I thought it was lack of sleep.

- [INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS]

The nightmares were coming back hard.

The voice under the bed.

Yeah.

Then a few months ago I had an MRI.

[TENDER SCORE]

They call it a grade 4 glioblastoma.

Brain tumor.

Last dance.

I'm sorry.

So, basically,

I made up a checklist of

three things I needed to do

while I was vertical and lucid:

Sell my mom's house;

Settle the score with

that thing under the bed;

And then I gotta get to Elko, Nevada.

What's in Elko, Nevada?

My daughter.

She's 19.

I haven't seen her since I got out.

She never gave up on me.

Nice.

Yeah, well,

so far I am zero for three.

[PHONE ONTO COUNTER]

I am gonna get rid of

that house and that thing

one way or another.

Morris, the voice,

the monster, what it said

about your mom and dad

No. It was just trying to piss me off.

- Maybe there's more to it?

- Let it go.

It's not something I

really want to talk about.

That is what I'm saying!

I know a little about how complicated

the whole parent thing

can be dads, moms.

You can ignore it.

But it's always there

because it's a part of you.

It's where you came from.

And until you confront it,

it's your unfinished business.

- [GLASS DOWN ON BAR]

- Stick to real estate.

You're a lousy shrink.

- [CASH ONTO COUNTER]

- Now, if you'll excuse me,

I have some boxes to check.

[GLASS DOWN ON COUNTER]

See, the MEE is flat.

It's not malevolent.

- [SCORE FADES OUT]

- It wants to eat his fingers.

The MEE does not measure rhetoric;

Only intent.

It does not wish him ill.

I gotta ask:

That prison tattoo thing?

My big brother.

I idolized him. He was

smart in all the ways I was not.

So what happened?

He was stopped at the wrong intersection

by the wrong police officer

with the wrong companion.

- Damn.

- It was only two years.

- [TENDER SCORE]

- 24 months.

But

he came out of jail

with the hard look of

someone I didn't know.

And lots of ink,

just like Mister Truby.

I'm sorry.

He died a quiet death

12 weeks later.

A knife in the guts.

My brilliant brother.

[PHONE BUZZING]

[SUCKS TEETH]

[BUZZING CONTINUES]

You know, I am so sorry.

I gotta take this.

Phil Orley.

Yeah, Anthony is my husband. Is he okay?

- When?

- [SCORE BECOMES DARKER]

All right, I'm on my

way. Where should I ?

Emergency?

[SCORE FADES OUT]

[ELEVATOR ARRIVING CHIME, DOORS OPEN]

[LUKE SIGHS]

- Morning.

- Late night?

Kinda. August in?

Yeah. Hey, Luke, um

- I'm worried about Susan.

- We talked about this.

No, no, no, no, no!

Listen, listen, listen, okay?

I went by her new place

and it is like nobody

even lives there. I mean,

the drapes are closed

in the middle of the

day and at night it's

- How often do you drive by?

- [GENTLE SCORE]

I'm just worried.

Okay? I-I call her and

her voicemail's full.

I email and nothing.

I-I text, I get nothing.

Or something that I can't

even imagine Susan would say.

I'll give her a try.

Yes! Please. Thank you.

The voicemail box of

Susan Ireland is full.

- Goodbye.

- [APPROACHING FOOTSTEPS]

- [KNOCKING ON DOOR]

- You got a sec?

Yeah.

[SIGHS]

I struck out on the squatter.

I'm not surprised.

She is determined to stay for

reasons.

But you talked to her.

She opened up to you.

Opened up is what she did, yeah.

[EDGY SCORE]

What happened to your

"monster under the bed" guy?

I'm worried he's going

to do something dumb.

[CROW CAWING]

[SCORE CRESCENDOS, FADES OUT]

[TENSE SCORE]

[LIQUID SLOSHING]

[MEASURED EXHALE]

[DEEP INHALE]

I hate you.

I hate what you did to me.

You made me a bully and a criminal.

You made me a monster.

[SOB] Goddam you!

You've made me just like you!

So tonight

I am going to burn it all down.

I am gonna die.

But first

you are gonna burn.

[MONSTER LAUGHS]

Don't die.

What do you what do you mean?

Don't die!

I wasn't I didn't

be to make you afraid!

It was to stop you afraid!

I don't believe you.

But you do! You do believe!

Oh, Morrisss,

I live to make you scared

of me so you become tough!

Haaarrrd!

Not scared of nobody ever again!

Not the bad man, not nobodeee!

The bad man?

But then you got so mean, Morris.

So mean!

I'm sorry, soooo sorry.

Why are you still here?

I only live for scare you, Morris!

But never enough.

You stay hard and mean.

- [MORRIS SOBS]

- I get tired.

I fail.

So sorry, Morrisss.

If I stood up to you

once, just-just one time,

would my life have been different?

I'm sorry, Morrisss.

I don't want you to die.

[MORRIS SOBBING]

[TENDER SCORE CONTINUES]

[LOUD INHALE]

[WAVERING EXHALE]

[CALM EXHALE]

[SCORE FADES OUT]

[PHONE DINGS TWICE]

[CLICK, SWOOP]

[GENTLE SCORE]

[BUTTONS CLACKING]

[SWOOPS]

- [BUTTONS CLACKING]

- [SWOOPS]

[SWOOP]

[SWOOP]

[BUTTONS CLACKING]

[SWOOP]

[CLICK]

Until you confront it,

it's your unfinished business.

[PENSIVE SCORE]

[KNOCKING ON DOOR]

[BABY CRYING]

[COOING]

[ANTHONY] Hm.

[SCORE FADES OUT]