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She's gonna get out of there. She's gonna escape - and be free. She and the others, they're gonna escape from this place, they're gonna find paradise, and savor every breath of fresh air outside these oppulent cells. But she asks the girls anyway; what's he like? She wants to be prepared. Just in case.
'He's handsome, from what I've seen,' Blondie tells her. 'But I've only seen him a couple of times in the audience. And it's been a while.'
'He's rich,' Rocket adds.
'He's specific,' Sweet Pea states with an air of finality. 'He comes here for only one type of girl.'
Amber touches her shoulder. 'I'm sure he's not all that bad.'
'Besides,' Rocket adds, whispering conspiratorily, 'We'll be long gone by the time he's here for you.' She smiles.
Babydoll smiles back. But she still wants to know more. What to expect if...if they're not long gone by the time he's there for her. 'Which girls have...had him for a client?'
'None of the girls here,' Blondie informs her. 'After he comes, we never see them again.'
Rocket and Amber look down awkwardly. Sweet Pea says nothing.
Babydoll swallows. She doesn't ask any more questions.
- She asks Sweet Pea in hushed tones if she's ever seen the doctor coming for her.
'A couple of times. He doesn't come around us,' she tells her. 'He comes, and if any girls are scheduled, he takes care of them. Then he leaves. He's not cruel,' she adds with glassy eyes.
It helps a little. -
She's gonna get out of there. All of them are. They're gonna soar, free as birds. Find new lives outside the cages and the bars.
He'll be there in one day.
But she's gonna get out of there.
- Babydoll sits in the theater for the last time and takes in the sight of each and every girl. She goes over the plan one more time in her head.
The doctor will arrive tomorrow morning, and he'll trap her here forever.
But she's gonna do some damage before then. She's gonna set Sweet Pea free, because Sweet Pea doesn't deserve this. She deserves this; she's lost it, there's enough left to know it.
Sweet Pea's different. It's this place that broke her. She's got a chance outside these walls, because outside these walls, she can heal.
Babydoll was fucked before stepping foot inside this wretched place. She doesn't think she'll ever heal; even if she had all the time in the world. She doesn't think she'd ever be able to heal.
The doctor comes for her tomorrow, and Blue's staring at her again. -
They're dead. They're all dead - her mother, her sister - Rocket, Amber, Blondie. They're gone.
It's just her and Sweet Pea now.
The High Roller is waiting for the show.
Blue's laying defeated on the floor.
Rocket, Amber, and Blondie aren't breathing anymore.
Babydoll cries, because it wasn't supposed to be like this. They were all supposed to be free. They were gonna get out of this place, and fly free. Fly away to paradise. She was gonna set them all free.
It's her fault - her sister's laying cold in the closet - they're dead.
But she's gonna be free. She goes and finds Sweet Pea. They're gonna be free.
- She tells Sweet Pea to run as fast as she can. Run free. She doesn't try for it, because it won't work.
Even if she gets out of there, it won't work. She's broken now, and there's just no mending her.
Soon the doctor will be there for her. And Babydoll doesn't mind it so much anymore, because he's gonna take her away forever. He'll tuck her mind away somewhere safe; paradise.
Just like Blue said.
Paradise. A place where he can't have her. Ever. -
It hurts when the fist slams into her face. But it's worth it; Sweet Pea's free. The perfect victory.
A deep sacrifice. It had to be her; maybe she always knew. Maybe that's why she asked the girls about the High Roller. She wanted to be prepared, because this was always bound to happen.
It's warm in the room where she wakes up. The bed is soft, and the High Roller is watching her.
He's handsome. He's tall and broad and intimidating in all the ways Blue isn't. He's gonna take her away forever; does he lock his girls up when he's done? After picking the flowers, does he discard them, or put them in water to slowly wither?
Babydoll is scared; she isn't prepared for this - the cold of the room, the harsh, sterile smell - the lightheadedness and the scent of scotch and cigar smoke.
The High Roller speaks, and his voice is husky and smooth, and full of promise.
- He doesn't say a word to her. He comes in as the nurses strap her into the chair, and he closes the curtain. He looks normal and nice and not like a man who holds her future in his hands.
She wants to say something. Ask him not to. Tell him about Blue. Ask him if it will hurt. Tell him she's sane.
But she doesn't. She doesn't know if he'll believe her, or even speak to her. Maybe she's just a procedure to him. -
'I'm going to give you freedom,' he promises her. 'Freedom from pain. Guilt. From regret. All you have to do, is give yourself willingly to me.'
She believes him. Babydoll isn't sure why. Maybe because she wants this; she wants to take charge, be in control. She wants an experience that isn't about a man forcing her into something and not giving a damn if she likes it or not.
Blue - her step-father - didn't care if she liked it. He just wanted it. He wanted to take it. He wanted her to stop making it so difficult. Didn't matter if she was willing or not. Just if she stopped struggling.
The High Roller wants her to want it. And then he'll give her what she really wants.
Tit for tat.
Babydoll watches the two women he's with remove his jacket. She watches them leave, watches him come close. And then she pulls him to her, her lips on his, and it's electric. A shock to her system, and she feels heady from the power of starting something.
She wants it. She stares up at him, licks her lips, and whispers, 'Do it.'
- He hits the hammer against the icepick, and she's gone.
In one instant, gone. There's a little bit of blood, a fleeting second of pain.
And then she's soaring, flying free. Off to paradise, while he can only stare in shock.
For one brief moment, he saw a whole other life in her eyes. He thinks. Then it's gone, and she's smiling just a little, and he's not sure what he saw. -
In her eyes is a whole other world, and he can't stop watching her. He can see all the crazy fantasies she's been clinging to, and all the dreams she's tucked away. He watched her eyes lose focus when he entered her, watched her drift off to somewhere only she can go.
There's a little blood. There was a little pain.
Now she's soaring, flying free, and he wants to come along for the ride. She's holding onto him, staring up at him, but she's not really there.
When she comes back, he'll take her far away from there. Take her to paradise, and set her free.
The High Roller is a man of his word.
- Babydoll sits in the chair, smiling.
Blue is gone. She doesn't really know this, but he's gone. He couldn't drag her back, couldn't bring her down from paradise.
Babydoll sits there, smiling.
The perfect victory.
The doctor is still there while the police ask questions. He stays near Gorski, who stays near Babydoll. He stares at her, her smiling face, and whispers, 'I'm sorry,' even if it's not his fault.
Babydoll sits, smiling, because she's not sorry at all.
He set her free.