1210 - February 12, 1971

[bunniefuu]

[eerie music]

NARRATOR:The great estate of Collinwood,

in parallel time, .

The tension grows and grows,

for the family has ignored the legend that,

in each generation, one member, chosen by lottery,

must spend the night in a mysterious locked room,

and if the person emerges sane, the curse is over.

But, if the body is found or,

if living, insane, the curse will go on.

And this night, Quentin Collins,

determined to find out why the curse exists,

how it started, conducts a seance to try and summon up

Brutus Collins, who in ,

seemingly was the curse's first victim.

We seek the spirit of our dear, departed ancestor,

who remains so very close to all of us.

His pain is our pain.

Come to us now, Brutus Collins,

so that we may free your spirit

as you may free ours.

Can you hear us?

Give us a sign.

[Melanie exclaiming]

Lottery.

Now.

Lottery!

Now!

Or all will die.

Plague!

Die!

Plague!

Die!

Plague!

Die!

[eerie music]

The plague!

- The plague! - What do you mean, plague?

Carts, going through the village.

The Black Plague?

Is that what you mean?

Bodies burning.

The smell of bodies burning.

It just couldn't be the Black Plague.

It belongs to the Middle Ages.

It will happen, unless the door.

The locked door.

One goes in, one,

one must go in.

Who are you?

No one will escape.

How do you know these things?

Yes, how do you?

Tell us.

He was cruel.

Who, Brutus Collins?

He k*lled.

He was so cruel.

QUENTIN: Did he k*ll you?

The plague.

It is just!

It is just!

Now, tell me.

Why is it that the spirit demands

that one of us sacrifice ourselves?

I can tell you no more.

The room.

Go to the locked room.

Go.

[moaning]

- Oh Melanie. - Melanie.

FLORA: Melanie, darling?

Darling, are you all right?

Melanie?

Oh.

I had, I had one of my att*cks, didn't I?

Quentin?

Did I say who I was?

No, but it's my guess that you are the same woman

as you are when you're having the att*cks,

because when you have the att*cks,

you seem to know something about the curse.

You remember how she was when

she was at Father's coffin.

[Melanie sobs]

Oh Quentin, we'll discuss it later.

No, we won't.

But the child isn't well.

And she won't be well until this is solved.

Did you at least find out why the curse

was placed upon the family?

No, we didn't.

But we got a clue.

The Plague.

Now, it's obvious that the disease is in this house,

because a generation of the family,

at one time, refused to go along

with the legend of the locked room.

Now, it may be a coincidence

that the disease is in this house.

It's entirely possible that a seafaring man

from the Orient came here just at the right moment,

but that would be easy to prove by the family history

or the village archives.

Quentin, I don't feel that we know any more than we did.

You know it's also possible that the woman

who has possessed Melanie,

is also the same woman who has put

the curse on the family.

Can't we please, please talk of something else.

Oh darling, I know how terrible it is for you.

Mama, how can you possibly know what it's like?

Melanie, please.

Now listen, you've helped us very much.

Now, I'm going to go into the village

and find out all that I can.

[knocking at door]

Who could that be at this hour?

I will go, Mama.

Quentin, we shouldn't have put her through that.

We had to.

I'm terrified she's going to become that

other person all the time.

She's been so nervous since Stella was k*lled.

We should have kept that from her.

Now, listen to me.

We've got enough secrets in this house.

If she k*lled Stella, she deserves to know it.

What is it, Melanie?

Who's there?

[startling tone]

It's, it's the police.

They want to question us about Stella's m*rder.

[tense music]

We knew we'd have to go through this questioning.

Look, I want you to take a deep breath

and be as calm as you can be, all right?

Gentlemen.

Come in, please.

My wife.

I have a secret, a secret I'm afraid to tell.

Well, you can tell me, can't you?

It's something I thought I'd never say in this house.

In fact, I'm almost afraid to say it now.

What are you talking about?

My secret is that I'm happy.

I'm very happy.

Thank you.

Oh, Morgan.

I do so much want to make you happy.

And I was so afraid I wouldn't.

You're thinking of Bramwell.

No, but you are.

The chance you took because of me.

Perhaps I learned something that morning.

Perhaps I learned, for whatever reason, I can win.

Didn't you know that?

In this house, sometimes it's difficult to know,

but it's going to be different now that you're here.

Quite different.

I hope so.

I'll never be unpacked.

- I must finish. - Oh, tomorrow.

No, tonight.

Is there anything you don't do gracefully?

Many things.

I don't believe that.

But, you'll learn.

Oh, if we only had the time.

Think of all the wonderful things

we're going to learn about each other.

We'll have the time, Morgan.

When you say that, I almost believe it.

We'll spend many years in this room.

I can feel it.

Oh, Morgan.

Let's start a family as soon as we can.

I do so want to have children, your children.

What's wrong?

It's out of the question.

We will not discuss it.

What?

We will never have children.

- Oh you don't mean that. - How can we, Catherine,

knowing what they'd have to go through?

The lottery?

Having to go into that room?

No, Catherine.

We will never mention that again.

I can't believe you're saying this.

What other choice do I have?

You have the choice whether or not

to let that room dictate your life.

MORGAN: The fact is--

The fact is that you

believe too strongly in a legend.

But you know my father.

You know what happened to my father

after he went into that room.

And Melanie, she tried to k*ll you, Catherine.

You know what happens to people who even enter it.

Now, I don't wish to discuss this any further.

But we will discuss it.

I intend to live my life here as I would

if I lived in any other house.

But you can't.

You see, Morgan, you married the wrong woman

if you think I'll give in to superstition.

No, that's not it.

Until it's proved otherwise, that's what I'll believe.

You're a fool.

Morgan!

Just a few moments ago, you told me how happy you were.

You won't be happy long,

not unless we live our lives as others do.

Morgan, we must have children.

We must.

I never want you to mention that again.

[tense music]

They're gone.

They know I k*lled Stella.

Then they know more than we do.

They kept watching me.

Every time they asked a question,

they were watching me.

Honey it was just your imagination.

It was not.

They didn't believe anything any of us said.

Then we can blame Stella's brother for that.

Oh, no, we cannot.

We can blame ourselves because we were lying.

Every one of us.

You were saying that Stella left the house suddenly,

and Quentin is saying that he saw her leave.

And me, me most of all.

Melanie, let's go to our room.

Melanie, hey.

Oh, come on, now.

Look at me.

The police believed every word we told them.

Now, look at me.

Who could deny the word of a Collins?

Quentin, I do so hope you're right.

- Good night. - Good night.

She's right, you know.

Well, we weren't at our best.

I'm afraid our questioning has just begun.

[tense music]

Bramwell.

My darling, I have just left your house.

How unbelievable it is to me

that I shall not see you again for months.

Or years.

But, I love you so much that I will make it months.

In the city, I will have success.

I will get money.

I will be able to give you everything you ever wanted.

Your love will make me perform miracles

that I couldn't do alone.

We will be together soon, I promise you

and once we see each other again,

we will never be parted.

You have my heart, Bramwell.

Catherine.

I, uh.

I just wanted to say good night.

Thank you, Melanie.

You're not...

you're not afraid when, when I come into your room, are you?

Oh, no.

I know it's going to be terribly hard for us

to become friends.

We will.

MELANIE: Catherine?

You've been crying.

It's just a mood, that's all.

I'm afraid I've never learned to control my moods.

I was just thinking of all the choices

one has to make in life.

Or, or the choices that are made for us.

Oh, I believe we make our own.

Even here?

At Collinwood?

Yes, even here.

I don't know.

I always believed that I had the right

to do anything I pleased with my life, but now...

Well, I guess that each of us has

a secret we must live with.

Yes.

Plague?

Off on another wild chase.

Listen to this.

In , Mortimer Collins spent five guineas

to have a tooth extracted by a dentist.

Then he spent a whole paragraph complaining about it.

Now, if any of the Collinses had The Plague,

believe me, it'll be in here.

What does it mean if he really did have?

Oh, really, Quentin. A seance?

And with a mad girl as your medium.

The sooner you all realize that Melanie is mad,

the better off we're all...

Quentin, you're not listening to me.

Morgan, The Plague was at Collinwood.

It says so, right here.

It started in this house in .

Four members of the family d*ed.

Spread to the village.

Carts with the dead went daily to the burning ground.

All spread by a diseased ghost no doubt.

The first symptom was a raging fever,

then black marks appeared.

It's all right here, dear brother.

Well, that's quite encouraging.

If none of us have to go into that room

until after The Plague starts again,

we could live for generations.

The Plague stopped as mysteriously as it started.

The villagers insisted that it ended so quickly

because of some strange supernatural force.

Oh, Quentin.

Please don't bring up any more legends.

We have quite enough as it is.

Now, put down that book.

I want to talk to you, seriously.

This is much more important than The Plague.

It's about Bramwell and his mother.

I want them out of the Old House and off the property.

Morgan, you won the duel.

Isn't that satisfaction enough for you?

MORGAN: It is not.

Father gave Bramwell's parents the house.

Well, isn't there something we can do?

Yes, there is. Live up to Father's agreement.

Now, forget it.

I can't.

As long as Bramwell is on this property,

he's going to make trouble for me.

I know it.

Catherine, you're going to be very good

for all of us here in this house.

I really mean that.

Thank you, Melanie.

I hope so.

I'm going to try.

Good night.

[ominous music]

A wife is not supposed to argue with her husband.

She's supposed to just accept.

I'm afraid I've never learned how to do that.

You will.

I'm not so sure that that's true, Morgan.

I'm afraid you'll have to try.

What's this?

It's a letter from Bramwell, isn't it?

Isn't it?

[tense music]

You have my heart.

CATHERINE: It was written years ago.

I don't believe you!

You can look at the date.

Give it to me.

You are my wife.

Why are you reading his letters?

I found them while I was unpacking.

- You're lying. - My maid put them there.

I didn't know they were there.

You brought them here?

CATHERINE: No, she put them there.

You're lying.

You're still in love with him.

I'm married to you, Morgan.

Give me his letters.

Morgan!

All right, I'll look for them myself.

You have no right to--

Yes, I do.

You are my wife.

You will never read these letters in this house again.

Ever!

Will you forbid me never to think of him?

Am I allowed to have no past,

even one that has ended?

Are you Collinses born and bred in this house

the only ones allowed a past?

That's wrong.

That's so wrong!

Catherine.

Oh, Catherine, love me.

Love me as much as I love you.

Please, love me.

[sad music]

[twinkling]

What did we do to deserve this?

God, how much must we go through?

Do we have to go through this now?

When will the punishment end?

QUENTIN: Mother?

Oh, no.

She's dead.

Melanie's dead.

FLORA: I can't believe it.

She d*ed in my arms.

You shouldn't have gone in her room.

I had to. She was crying.

I heard her.

You must take her body to the village.

No, Mother.

She must be b*rned.

She had The Plague.

She had The Plague.

She must be b*rned.

It's not our fault.

For everyone's sake, she must be b*rned.

b*rned.

b*rned.

- No, no. - b*rned.

No.

No.

No!

[door closes]

No.

Melanie.

Melanie?

b*rned, b*rned.

What's wrong?

I'm burning, burning.

Don't touch me.

Oh, my God, the fever.

Mother, stay out.

FLORA: What is it?

The Plague.

The Plague.

What's she saying?

The Plague.

It has come back.

[ominous tones]

[eerie music]