- David Koresh: This morning, I woke up with this funny feeling right here in my gut. And it took me some time to put a name on that sucker; I thought I ate something bad, but that wasn't it. Then I realized what it was. Joy. But how could that be out here in the middle of nowhere? No running water, no stuff. In this rickety old house, out here in the middle of the Texas plains? Joy? See, I don't know about you, but I wasn't raised out of joy. I didn't have much joy growing up. But now, after all this time... how is it a man can find joy here? Wayne. You got your law degree from Harvard. Was that enough for you, Wayne?
- Wayne Martin: Nope.
- David Koresh: No. Mike. You ran your own pool company. Was that enough?
- Mike Schroeder: Sure wasn't.
- David Koresh: "Sure wasn't." Steve. Professor of theology. Amazing. You lived with your wife Judy in paradise on the beach in Hawaii. Enough?
- Steve Schneider: Not even close.
- David Koresh: "Not even close"! See, that's the big trick. It's never enough, no matter what you do. So how is it a man can find joy here? I'll tell you. Joy doesn't come from having something, or being something. It comes from becoming. Becoming more than you are today.
- Gary Noesner: You got a minute?
- Peter Hardwick: Sure. What's on your mind?
- Gary Noesner: The, uh... Ruby Ridge report? I have some concerns.
- Peter Hardwick: Mm-hmm?
- Gary Noesner: It says that Mitch "acted appropriately".
- Peter Hardwick: Well, in all fairness, he wasn't trying to kill Vicky Weaver.
- Gary Noesner: No, but he did break the rules of engagement in the field. He should be facing an investigation, not getting a pat on the back.
- Peter Hardwick: This mess belongs to the ATF. Look, the boys upstairs are worried that if we reprimand Mitch, then we're admitting fault.
- Gary Noesner: But we are at fault. He issued a "kill on sight" command and a woman was killed. Look, my dad used to say "You don't earn trust by telling people how good you did. You earn it by saying the hard stuff." Now, our greatest asset as an agency is that people believe in us. But if we lose that trust, we might not ever get it back.
- Judy Schneider: Steve, you men, with all your talk of suffering and sacrifice. You go ahead and feel sorry for yourself for everything you sacrifice for your faith. But you know what? I'm that sacrifice. You sacrificed me.
- Steve Schneider: [trying to shrug her off] No, no, no, no.
- Judy Schneider: No! I begged you to leave when David had his revelation. I didn't want to be one of his wives. I wanted to be your wife. But you wouldn't go. And now I am his wife, and I'm having his child. We wanted a baby. We couldn't have one, and now one's on the way. I know you feel like this baby is a curse. But I gotta tell you... it's a miracle.
- Gary Noesner: Hello, Mr. Weaver. My name's Gary Noesner. I'm head of negotiations for the FBI. Now, I know you've been shot. And I know your son is dead, and there is nothing I could ever say to make that right. But the question is where do we go from here? I guess if I were you, I'd be thinking "How do I make these people pay for what they've done?". If you want to strike back in the place that'll hurt them the most, you come out peacefully. Take your day in court, you tell the world what really happened up here at Ruby Ridge. You see, dead men don't get a trial. You die, you give everyone a free pass. And Vicky, I'm sure you're angry about losing Sammy, too. But you have a husband and three daughters who still need...
- Randy Weaver: You killed Vicky!
- Gary Noesner: What'd you say, Randy?
- Randy Weaver: You shot her! You killed my wife!
- Mitch Decker: Couldn't get him to engage?
- Gary Noesner: Your guy killed his wife.
- Mitch Decker: What?
- Gary Noesner: Your sniper. He missed Weaver and shot his wife. Doesn't help our cause much.
- Mitch Decker: We can't afford to drag this out much longer, Gary. We're in a compromised position here.
- Gary Noesner: I'm aware of the position we're in, Mitch. But sometimes the best strategy is just wait regardless of the circumstance.
- Mitch Decker: That's your plan? Just wait?
- Bo Gritz: [getting out of an SUV and fighting off an FBI agent] Get your hands off me, boy.
- Gary Noesner: Nope.
- Bo Gritz: Where the hell's Noesner?
- Gary Noesner: That's my plan.
- Bo Gritz: Why'd you bring me up here? I don't even know Randy Weaver.
- Gary Noesner: Well, when I can't get a man to trust me, I try to find someone he will trust. I was thinking that might be you. You're a fellow Green Beret, similar opinions about the government. I mean, you're a hero to the radical right. You may not know him, but he sure as hell knows you.
- Bo Gritz: Uh-uh. Nope. I ain't helping the god damn FBI with none of this nonsense.
- Gary Noesner: Now, you know how you move a man? Fear. You figure out what someone's scared of, you can get him to do pretty much anything. Now, these hotheads down here, you know what they're scared of? They're scared that Vicky and Sammy Weaver are dead and if that ever goes to court, it's gonna be a problem for 'em. And poor Randy Weaver's scared if he comes out of his cabin, someone's gonna shoot him. Now, I'm scared that if I can't get you to talk them out, these boys are gonna go in there anyway and more people will get hurt. And I don't know, but I imagine you're scared that your friends will see you help the feds and turn on you. But what you should really be scared of is if those kids die, and you know you could've done something to stop it. Mm. How's that gonna feel?
- David Thibodeau: [taking a water pail from Michelle] Hey, let me get that.
- Michelle Jones: Oh, thanks.
- David Thibodeau: Yeah.
- Michelle Jones: Thanks, Thibs. You're always so nice.
- David Thibodeau: Yeah, well, you're my homie. That's what homies do.
- Michelle Jones: What's a "homie"?
- David Thibodeau: Sometimes I feel like I traveled back in time to be here, like I'm an alien from the future. Sent back to the 1800s to teach people the important things; like the word "homie".
- David Koresh: You think you could remain celibate if you stay?
- David Thibodeau: Seriously?
- [seeing David's expression]
- David Thibodeau: No.
- David Koresh: Yeah. Well, four years ago, I had this revelation that really shook things up. Lost some dear friends. I had this vision that we're all slaves to our own sexual desires, that our sexuality keeps us bound to the lower parts of our beings. And believe me... it's not easy for anyone. But without sex, it opens up. It becomes clear.
- David Thibodeau: And what about the married guys?
- David Koresh: They're celibate, too. I've assumed the burden of sex for us all. But not for my own kicks. Book of Revelation tells of twenty-four elders that will sit in judgment over the end times. The kids we're generating, right here... they'll be those elders.
- David Thibodeau: I don't know, man. I'd... I'd have to think about it. If I could just understand its purpose. I'd like to learn more.
- David Koresh: It's a toughie. Some people only focus on what they give up. But I'm telling you... those that stay, they gain so much more.
- David Koresh: You happy here, Thibs?
- David Thibodeau: Yeah. Yeah, it's been real nice. I'm afraid my mom thinks I've lost my mind, moving in with a Bible study group.
- David Koresh: Have her come visit, see for herself.
- David Thibodeau: Nah. Trust me, you want no piece of my mom.
- David Koresh: Yeah. You want no piece of mine, either. Thing is... we don't allow tourists to stay here.
- David Thibodeau: You think I'm a tourist?
- David Koresh: Doesn't matter what I think. Are you a tourist? Are you really willing to do this?
- David Thibodeau: I'm for real.
- David Koresh: Listen up. No one do anything stupid. I'm gonna go out there, talk to them, work this out. All right? Go on.
- Cyrus: Can we stop?
- David Koresh: Cyrus. That was terrible. You gotta pace yourself. You came out way too hot.
- Cyrus: Bossy, bossy.
- David Koresh: Yeah, well... when I was your age, I didn't have a dad around to be bossing me. Be grateful.
- FBI Trainee: [during a negotiation simulation] What happened?
- Gary Noesner: What happened? Killed himself. And his kids. Hmm. Contain. Open communication to de-esclate tension. Stall for time, lower expectations, lower the pulse. But the real key is to listen. I mean, you gotta think if someone's talking to an FBI negotiator, they're having the worst day of their lives. And your voice, it might be the only keeping them alive. So remember, how you say something is as important as what you say. That's all for today.
- Peter Hardwick: How's the new batch of trainees?
- Gary Noesner: None of them is as instantly brilliant as I was.
- Peter Hardwick: God held us all. Got your go bag with you?
- Gary Noesner: Always. Where you sending me?
- Peter Hardwick: [handing him a folder] Ruby Ridge. Idaho. Read up. It's a quagmire. Mitch Decker and HRT are on their way. I need you on a plane as soon as possible.
- Mitch Decker: Mitch Decker, FBI Hostage Rescue Team. What do we have here?
- Barry Skinner: Cabin's 250 yards up the hill. Highly fortified. Inside is Randy Weaver, his wife Vicky, their three daughters, and another adult male, Kevin Harris.
- Mitch Decker: What do we know about Weaver?
- Barry Skinner: Former Green Beret, turned white separatist and anti-government. Guy's highly trained in explosives.
- Mitch Decker: Have you made contact?
- Barry Skinner: Negative. They don't have a phone.
- Mitch Decker: Why haven't you blocked off these roads?
- Barry Skinner: We have a perimeter. There's no way the Weavers can make it that far.
- Mitch Decker: I'm less worried about them getting out than those who want to get in. We're in the middle of an Aryan Nation stronghold here. They band together, decide they don't want us in their woods, they got enough firepower to turn this thing into a modern-day Alamo.
- Barry Skinner: [turning to another agent] I need the road sealed off for one mile out.
- Mitch Decker: [to another HRT agent] Make sure all the barricades say "ATF" on 'em. I don't want anyone thinking we made this mess.
- David Koresh: Hey, where y'all going? You know I have a show tonight, right?
- Steve Schneider: McMahon had an extra spot at the gun show in Austin tomorrow, so... I'll send Paul.
- David Koresh: I mean, aren't we waiting on permits, anyways?
- Wayne Martin: Came in a couple of days ago. We're all set.
- David Koresh: Hey, uh, try and sell some of those vests. I know they're not moving, but...
- Steve Schneider: Have you seen those vests?
- David Koresh: I have seen the vests, yeah.
- [Wayne takes one out to "model"]
- David Koresh: Yes, Wayne, I've seen them.
- Steve Schneider: They're pretty ugly.
- David Koresh: The women are proud of 'em, so just try and move 'em. And remind Paul we're not just in it for the money. There's a lot of lost souls at those gun shows. Mission first.
- Wayne Martin: We're never gonna move those vests.
- Steve Schneider: Not a chance. But you heard the man. We gotta try.
- Wayne Martin: Maybe Paul can sell them to some garbage cans on the way home.
- Steve Schneider: [snickering] At a discount.
- Mitch Decker: What if we brought the APCs from the north side to insert the gas into the cabin? Would that at least push him out?
- Gary Noesner: A little premature for an assault, isn't it?
- Mitch Decker: He's dug in, Gary. He ain't coming out.
- Gary Noesner: Guys, can you give us a minute?
- [the other agents leave]
- Gary Noesner: Thanks. Mitch, I know he's dug in. But his son's already dead, and there's three more kids in there. Now, do you really want to engage in close combat with more children?
- Mitch Decker: What do you propose we do?
- Gary Noesner: Give me a chance. Let me talk to him. It's what I'm here for, isn't it?
- David Koresh: You know, you can tell a lot about a man by the way he plays his music.
- David Thibodeau: Yeah?
- David Koresh: Yeah.
- David Thibodeau: What does my playing say about me?
- David Koresh: You play loud and aggressive. Like you're scared if you don't make enough noise, the whole world might just forget about you. I see it. 'Cause the whole world almost forgot about me, too. For a little while, at least.
- David Thibodeau: Yeah? How's that?
- David Koresh: When I was a kid, I couldn't read too hot, and I stuttered. Then one day, my mama comes over and she says "I'm gonna put you in a class for special kids." And I'm like "Wow! This is great!". And I go to class, and it is great. Finally, no kids picking on me anymore. Recess comes up, I walk outside. This kid comes over and he shouts "Hey, look. Here come all the retards." And I turn around to see who he's pointing at. There's no one there. I was that retard. Then it all just switched. Instant night.
- David Thibodeau: You know, my mom worked nights, so... I spent a lot of time by myself. But I... I remember one night, I was, like, twelve. I was standing at the counter eating, and I saw our neighbors through the blinds. Sitting in their dining room, just... just eating together.
- David Koresh: Mm.
- David Thibodeau: And, I don't know, it just... it just pissed me off. So I opened up all the windows and just... played my drums as loud as I could. Just... just wanted to ruin their night.
- David Koresh: I get it. I'm glad we met. 'Cause I can show you you don't have to play that loud anymore if you don't want to.
- David Koresh: You know what Scripture is, right?
- David Thibodeau: Uh... l-like the Bible?
- David Koresh: No. It's not just the Bible. It's everything. All human knowledge. Everything that can be known by the human mind. All wisdom in one book.
- David Thibodeau: I'm sorry, man. I'm not really into that.
- David Koresh: Believe me, I get it. But we all have something broken in us. And whether you believe it or not, I'm telling you, Scripture's the only way to fix it. Anyways, I don't wanna sell you a bill of goods you don't want. I best be going. Where you off to?
- David Thibodeau: Uh, back to L.A.
- David Koresh: At this hour? Don't drive through the night. I got a place not far from here where a bunch of us stay, with an extra room if you want it. But I'm warning you, it is a hellhole. Nothing fancy, no running water. We built it ourselves. But we play music. And we study. And we live as a family. And it's kinda fun.
- Judy Schneider: What's going on Steve?
- Steve Schneider: You know what's going on. You don't know how hard this has been for me. Trying to have a baby for ten years, and now you're having David's child. It's too much. Maybe I didn't think this through. Maybe it was a mistake to go along with David's "New Light Revelation". Maybe we should have left like Mark and Elizabeth.
- Judy Schneider: If you didn't like it, why did you accept it?
- Steve Schneider: I just thought... well, if your wife has a chance to marry the Lamb of God, who am I to hold her back? Right?
- Judy Schneider: Steve.
- Steve Schneider: No. I don't wanna talk to you. I need some time to think.
- David Koresh: Hey, uh... you hear Judy was pregnant?
- Rachel Koresh: Mm-hmm. I had my suspicions.
- David Koresh: Well, you didn't say anything. And I had to hear it from Wayne.
- Rachel Koresh: I just didn't want you to get your hopes up.
- David Koresh: My hopes up?
- Rachel Koresh: At her age, there's a chance it doesn't work out.
- [he laughs]
- Rachel Koresh: What? Don't look at me like that.
- David Koresh: You don't have to worry. Cyrus will always be my little superstar.
- Rachel Koresh: I'm not worried.
- David Koresh: Good.
- David Thibodeau: So, you're David's best friend?
- Steve Schneider: On some days.
- David Thibodeau: So how'd you meet him?
- Steve Schneider: That is a long story.
- David Thibodeau: If you don't wanna talk, that's cool.
- [Steve gets into bed and turns off the light; after a moment of silence]
- Steve Schneider: About seven years ago, my wife Judy and I were living in Hawaii, and I was working on my PhD in theology. And this friend of mine, he gave me an audiotape of David's interpretation of the Seven Seals. And it struck me.
- David Thibodeau: The Seven Seals?
- Steve Schneider: Yeah. The Seven Seals. It's, uh, in the Book of Revelation. It's considered to be the most mysterious and unknowable passage in the whole Bible. You know, I didn't believe him at first. And I was trying to catch him out. I even had one of my professors come down to argue with him. But David... I mean, I've been... I've been around this stuff my whole life. I'm raised Seventh-Day Adventist. You know, I'm going to college for it. His ability to understand Scripture was like nothing I'd ever seen. He's memorized the entire Bible.
- [derisive laugh]
- Steve Schneider: Who does that? So, it didn't take me long to realize something... miraculous going on here with this guy.
- David Thibodeau: [skeptical] Miraculous?
- Steve Schneider: Okay, let explain it another way. Do you believe that things can happen that are beyond our capacity to rationalize because we have this very, like, limited temporal view of reality?
- David Thibodeau: I guess, yeah.
- Steve Schneider: Well, stay here. Spend some time with David. And you're gonna see things like that. Miracles.
- Barry Skinner: You wanted to see me, sir?
- Edward Wiggins: DOJ report came out. They're pinning Ruby Ridge on us.
- Barry Skinner: Aw, that's bullshit.
- Edward Wiggins: Politicians are so short-sighted. Congress are talking about shutting us down, and Clinton's saying he'll support it.
- Barry Skinner: FBI shot Vicky Weaver. How is that our fault?
- Edward Wiggins: It was our crappy case to begin with. March 10th, they're talking about defunding the ATF. Come March 11th, we might all be out of a job.
- Barry Skinner: What can we do to stop it?
- David Koresh: Getting those go-karts may be the worst idea I ever had.
- David Thibodeau: Brad's a beast on that thing. I was right behind him the day he flipped it.
- Barry Skinner: I need you to look at this.
- Edward Wiggins: What is it?
- Barry Skinner: A UPS driver found a box of grenade casings headed for a religious group in Waco, Texas.
- Edward Wiggins: What do we know about the group?
- Barry Skinner: They're called the Branch Davidians. Their leader is a guy named David Koresh, born Vernon Howell. One prior for armed assault. A former member of their group estimates they spent close to 200 grand on guns and parts in the last couple of years.
- Edward Wiggins: Whoa! What are they planning on doing with all those guns?
- Barry Skinner: I don't know, but get this. That guy's a polygamist. He's got a bunch of wives and children, and our informant, he believes some of those kids are being abused. Now, Child Services has investigated twice, but can't make a case. And we could stop it.
- Edward Wiggins: If we come out of that compound with a bunch of innocent kids and loaded guns, it might remind Congress why they need us.
- Barry Skinner: I'll get a surveillance team set up top of next week.
- Edward Wiggins: [Skinner starts to leave] No. Start one tonight.
- Gary Noesner: [Mitch gets on the elevator with a bottle of wine in hand] Birthday?
- Mitch Decker: No. Justice Department just upped my budget another 10 million bucks.
- Gary Noesner: [dryly sarcastic] Congratulations.
- Mitch Decker: Thanks.
- Carol Noesner: You coming to bed soon?
- Gary Noesner: In a bit.
- Carol Noesner: What's wrong?
- Gary Noesner: Nothing.
- Carol Noesner: What's going on? Talk to me.
- Gary Noesner: I wanted to be an FBI agent since I was twelve years old, you know? I saw J. Edgar Hoover on "The Micky Mouse Club" and I was hooked. I couldn't imagine a better thing to be. But what if, after all these years, I've been believing we're better than we actually are?
- Carol Noesner: Where's this coming from? What happened?
- Gary Noesner: They gave $10 million to HRT.
- Carol Noesner: And you want them to give more money to your department?
- Gary Noesner: No. The balance of power is shifting. We're militarizing. We're changing... into something I didn't sign up for.
- Carol Noesner: Well, then, if you're that concerned, you just need to talk to Hardwick. You two are friendly.
- Gary Noesner: I did. It fell on deaf ears.
- Carol Noesner: Well, then talk louder.
- Steve Schneider: [Opening scene]
- [Enters room]
- Steve Schneider: David?
- [David Koresh still stares outside]
- Steve Schneider: DAVID!
- David Koresh: [Turns to Steve] They're coming for me.