But maybe I won’t. I like you. Live quiet and I’ll maybe leave you alone, little red face.

(Moving closer to him.) As long as we both know that any time I liked… any time I liked I could just walk in here, stamp on your bairn’s head, slice your wife’s throat and fuck your sister on the floor in front of you and you couldn’t raise a finger to stop me. As long as we both know that.

Actually, that sounds like a plan. Shall I do that? Or maybe I’ll slice your bairn, stamp on your sister’s head and fuck your wife? She looks like a better shag to me. Is she?

JAMES is half-seeing the nightmare, half-seeing WILLIAM, looking for an escape.

JAMES (quiet). Stop it… stop it… get away from me…

WILLIAM (laughs). Look at you… look at the state of you… are you scared of me, wee boy? Are you looking for a box to hide in?

(Points.) Shall we use that one? Aye, why don’t we do that? You get in the box and put your fingers in your ears and I’ll shag your pretty wee wife. Is that a plan? Just get in the box, Jamie, you like that, don’t you? You feel safe in your wee box, eh? Get in the box.

He’s blocking JAMES’s path – however JAMES moves, WILLIAM is blocking him.

What’s the matter, Jamie? Just get in your box.

Where’s your box, wee man?

Get in the box!

Get in…

Before he can finish the sentence JAMES has knocked him down. He grabs the knife and stabs WILLIAM twice.

WILLIAM screams.

JAMES steps back.

WILLIAM is struggling on the floor, shocked and bleeding. He’s not quite dead. It’s all been horribly quick.

WILLIAM makes a horrible, blood-choked noise and struggles to get up. JAMES instantly rushes at him again kicking, punching stabbing him to death.

ANNABELLA (screaming). Stop it! You’ve killed him! Stop it!

MARY is screaming.

MARY. Murder! Murder! Help us!

JAMES is collapsed near WILLIAM’s body.

ANNABELLA is frozen with shock. MARY is soothing the baby.

ANNABELLA. We should have… we should have…

MARY (rubbing at it). There’s blood… they put blood on the baby…

ANNABELLA. Why didn’t we stop him? Why couldn’t we…?

MARY. There’s blood!

ANNABELLA. Mary, what do we do? Mary?

MARY. Laise mon fils!

(Quieter.) No one touches my son! No one.

MARY and ANNABELLA exit.

WILLIAM’s body lies broken on the ground. JAMES just sits, staring at it. There is a ragging sound approaching from the shadows, rasping breathing.

ISABELLA crawls out of the darkness. She stops as she sees JAMES, taking in the scene.

ISABELLA. Is that your work? Clever wolf-killer. That was my guess.

They were always trouble, the Douglases. I hate them too.

JAMES. He’s my friend.