217 - April 26, 1967

[bunniefuu]

[voice over]
- My name is Victoria Winters.

It is late afternoon at Collinwood,

and lengthening afternoon shadows

are beginning to creep across the walls of the great house.

For one man, a man who has been struck down

by a mysterious illness,

there is terror in the coming nightfall,

danger in the lengthening shadows,

and his heart is numbed by fear.


- [gasps]

What time is it?


- A few minutes to :, Willie.

Why?


- I gotta leave, I gotta get out of here.


- You're too sick to go anyplace.

Now, just lie back there, lie back and rest.


- Rest? No, I can't rest.


- You've got to rest, Willie, you're sick.


- I don't want to.
- Why not?

What's the matter with you?


- I don't know.


- I'd better get a doctor.


- No!


- Willie! Why do you always say that?


- I don't need a doctor.


- Willie, what's under that bandage?


- Nothing.


- I want to see.
- Oh, there's nothing there.


- Then you won't mind if I take a look at it.

Well, you're right, there's hardly anything at all.

Just that tiny little cut.


- I told you.


- Well, your arm looks kind of strange.


- Does it?


- Well, I don't see any veins.

Your skin is a strange color, kind of gray.


- What about it?


- It's
-
- It's almost as if
-
-


- Almost as if what?


- Well, it's almost as if this arm had been drained of blood.

♪♪


- Drained of blood?


- I mean it looks like you've lost a lot of blood.

But how? Surely not from this.

That's hardly more than a scratch.


- That's right, hardly more than a scratch.


- How did you get it, Willie?


- Well, it doesn't matter, it's just a scratch.


- But I want to know.


- I got it in a fight.


- Now, Willie, who were you in a fight with?


- Some guy. Some guy I met in a bar.


- And that's how you got sick, huh?


- Yeah.
- From this?


- Yeah.
- This tiny little cut?


- Well, this guy, he cut me with a razor.

You see, the cut is small, but it went pretty deep.

I guess I lost a lot of blood.
- Willie.

Willie, are you telling me the truth?


- Sure, why would I lie?


- 'Cause you still haven't told me

why you disappeared, you know?


- I just wanted to get away.


- Without the money I got for you, Willie?

That doesn't make sense.


- I wanted to go, I wanted to get away.


- What are you talking about?


- Go...


- He's not making any sense at all now.


- I wanted to go.


- Oh, now you can hardly keep your eyes open.

Oh, come on.

Just lie back and just rest a while and we'll talk later.


- Rest? I can't rest.


- Willie... rest.


- Willie, he's back?


- Yes, and I'm afraid he's going to be staying here for a while.


- Staying?


- Vicky, I don't like the idea any better than you do, but...

...he's sick.

Mother had very little choice but to let him stay.


- What's the matter with him?


- I don't know exactly, but he looks awful.

He collapsed right there.

Mother and Jason found him.


- You mean he fainted?


- That's right.

Jason had to carry him up the stairs.


- Have you called the doctor?


- I offered to, but Jason said he'd take full responsibility.


- I don't like the idea of having Willie in this house,

even if he is sick.


- Vicky, nobody does.

But there's very little we can do about it

as long as he's sick.


- I guess not.


- Willie frightens me in a way he never frightened me before.


- What do you mean?


- I know this sounds crazy,

but it's almost as if he isn't Willie anymore.


- Isn't Willie?


- It's... almost as if he's become another person.

An entirely different person.


- Another person?


- I know it sounds crazy.


- Yes, it does.


- Vicky, you haven't seen Willie,

you haven't talked to him.


- In what way has he changed?


- In every way.

He's not behaving like Willie.

Not like the one we know, he's... quiet.

Almost too quiet.

And sort of, I don't know, passive.

It's
-
- It's as if he were recovering from

some kind of terrible beating,

and he doesn't want to hurt anybody

and he doesn't want anybody to hurt him.


- Well, this could all be in your imagination.


- I hope so.

Jason, how is Willie?


- Well, he came to for a few minutes.

Still very sick, he's sleeping now.


- Have you any idea what it could be?


- Well, he seems to have a cut just above his wrist,

and he's lost a great deal of blood,

but that wouldn't account for it.


- Shouldn't you call a doctor?


- Willie doesn't want a doctor.

He says a doctor can't help him.


- Are you sure he's not just pretending to be sick?

So he can stay here in the house?


- My dear girl, you saw him.

You spoke to him, did he seem to be pretending?


- No.

No, he did look sick, I'll admit that.

Well, I can assure you, he is very sick.


- Then why won't you call a doctor?


- Well, I'm not objecting to it, it's just Willie.

Well, if he gets any sicker,

I'll call one whether he wants one or not.


- Good.


- Excuse me, Miss Winters, would you do me a favor?


- Of course.


- Would you ask Mrs. Johnson to prepare a tray for Willie?

He's very weak,

and I think he'll need some nourishment when he wakes up.


- I will.
- Thank you.


- Jason.

Will you come in here for a minute?

I'd like to talk with you.


- Of course.

What is it?


- Where did Willie go, after he disappeared?


- I don't know.

The only thing I could get out of him

was that he said he'd been around.


- And that's it?


- That's all I could get him to say.


- I'm not sure I believe you.


- Well, it happens to be the truth.

I'm as much in the dark

about Willie's disappearance as any of you.

Now, that's all I can tell you.


- All right.

Forgetting about Willie for a moment,

what did you mean the other night?


- The other night?


- When you told me to stop asking so many questions

or I could get my mother into trouble.


- Yes. I recall saying that.


- What kind of trouble could I get her into?


- Serious trouble.
- That's no kind of answer.


- Well, it's the best answer I can give you.


- Why?


- Because I happen to be your mother's friend,

I'm protecting her.


- Protecting her? From what?


- That's all I can tell you, Carolyn.

As your mother's friend,

and I'm sure she wouldn't want me to tell you any more.


- Are you really such a good friend of my mother's?


- Well, I'd like to think that I am.

And I'd like to be your friend, too,

if you'd let me.


- Would you?
- Well, why not?

You're Elizabeth's daughter.

And you're a very lovely girl.

I wish we could be friends.

I wish you could stop being so suspicious of me.


- I know that my mother is in some kind of trouble

and you're the cause of it.


- Well, I'm sorry you believe that.


- I'm sorry you ever came here.

And I'm even sorrier your brought Willie.

I know that something is happening,

something weird, and I don't like it.

I don't like it at all.

[panting]


- It can't get dark again.

Oh, don't
-
-

Don't let it get dark again!

Don't let it happen again!

I'm scared! I'm scared!

[plate bangs]
- Who's there?


- It's Vicky.
- Oh, Vicky.


- I'm sorry I woke you.


- What do you want?


- I brought you a tray.

Mrs. Johnson made you some dinner.


- Dinner?

It's dinnertime?


- Almost.


- Is it dark outside?

L
-look out the window.


- It's starting to get dark.


- But there's still some light?


- Yes.


- There's still time.


- Time for what.
- Nothing.


- What do you want me to do with your tray?


- I don't know, put it anywhere.


- Well, I'll put it over here near your bed,

you won't have to get up.


- Okay, sure, thanks.


- Willie, can I get you anything?


- No, nothing.
- Are you sure?


- Yeah, yeah, you can do me one favor.

You can get out of here!
- What?


- Look, look, please go.

I'm okay, just go.


- All right.

[groans]


- There's still time. Still time.

Jason.


- What are you doing up?

Where do you think you're going?


- I gotta go, Jason.

I gotta get out of this house.


- Why?
- Well, I just do.


- Where do you have to go, Willie?


- Just out of here, out of this house.


- Why do you have to leave this house?


- It's just the people here, they don't like me.

They don't want me here, and I want to leave.


- Now, that's crazy, Willie.

You're too sick to leave here.

You're a sick man.


- I'm okay.
- Okay?

You're barely able to stand up.

Come on, now. You're too sick to go anyplace.


- I tell you, I'm okay.


- I'm not going to argue with you anymore,

now, off with that Jacket, come on.


- All right, all right.


- You get back into that bed.


- Okay.
- This time you stay there.


- Okay.


- What's the matter with you, anyway?


- Nothing is the matter.


- I don't like the way you're behaving.

I wish you'd tell me what's wrong.


- Nothing is wrong.

Look, Jason, I'm tired.

Real tired. I want to go to sleep now.


- It's because you don't want to talk to me, Willie.


- It's because I'm tired, I really am.

I'm starting to go to sleep.


- I ought to stand right here and watch over you,

see that you don't do anything stupid again.


- I won't try anything, just
-
-

Just leave me alone so I can sleep.


- You better not try it, you better not,

'cause I'm going to
-
-

Well, I'm going to take care of you, Willie,

whether you like it or not.

Willie?

Willie?

[gasps]


- It's too late!

It's dark. It's too late, too late.

[heart beating]


- I hear you.

I hear you calling me.

I hear.

And I'm coming.

[heart beating]


- Willie!


- Let me go!


- Where do you think you're going?


- Let me go, Jason, please.


- Answer my question.
- Out.


- Where do you think you're going?

Out where?
- Nowhere, just out.


- No idea where to go out, Willie?


- I just do, let me go, Jason, please.


- I'm not letting you go 'til you do some explaining, boy.

Now, where do you have to go that's so important?


- I don't have to go anywhere important.

I just gotta leave this house.


- Why?
- I just do.


- Willie, that's not much of an answer.


- Please, Jason, let me go.


- You're not going anywhere, except back to bed.


- No!


- You're so sick, you can barely stands up.

Now, come on, back to bed.


- All right, all right!


- Come on, then.

I don't know what's the matter with you?

When I get you upstairs, I'm going to ask you to
-
-

Willie!

Willie!

Willie!

[car drives away]

[car approaches]

[door opens]

Willie?

Willie!

Willie?

Willie!

[heart beating]

Willie?

Willie!

Willie?

Willie?

[heart beating]

♪♪

[announcer]
- "Dark Shadows" is a Dan Curtis production.