The Mousetrap and Other Plays (24 page)

RAYMOND
. No. I . . .

MRS
.
BOYNTON
.
You'll keep out of her way.
You'll be rude to her.

RAYMOND
. No . . .

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. (
With force
)
You'll do what I want.

RAYMOND
. I—I . . .

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. You'll do what I tell you.

RAYMOND
. (
After a pause; dully
) Yes. Yes, I suppose so. (
He sits Left of the table.
)

(
SARAH
enters Right.
)

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. You'll avoid Sarah King.

RAYMOND
. I'll avoid Sarah King.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. So that's settled. You understand? You're giving up Sarah King.

RAYMOND
. I'm giving up Sarah King. (
He buries his face in his hands.
)

SARAH
. (
Crossing and standing above the table
) Extraordinarily interesting. I'm glad I heard it. Cheer up, Ray—I'm not giving
you
up.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. Tell her to go away.

RAYMOND
. I . . . Please go away.

SARAH
. I'm not going.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. Tell her to leave you alone.

RAYMOND
. I . . . You'd better—leave me alone.

SARAH
. Your mother and I are going to have a talk.

RAYMOND
. I . . . (
He looks at
MRS
.
BOYNTON
.)

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. Go away, Raymond.

SARAH
. Yes, please go away, Ray.

(
RAYMOND
rises and exits slowly to the marquee.
SARAH
and
MRS
.
BOYNTON
look at each other.
)

What an extraordinary futile and silly old woman you are.

(
MRS
.
BOYNTON
quivers.
)

Yes, you didn't expect that. But it's true. (
She moves to Left of the table.
) You like to make yourself out a kind of ogre. Really, you're ludicrous—almost pathetic. Why don't you give up this silly sadistic business?

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. How dare you speak to me like that?

SARAH
. It's time someone did. It's time someone showed you what you really are. You've wanted to feel powerful, haven't you—you've enjoyed hurting and torturing people? It's made you feel grand and important. But you're only a petty little domestic tyrant. You've acquired a certain amount of hypnotic influence over your family. But the influence can be broken.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. Who's going to break it?

SARAH
. I am.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. You think you'll get Raymond, do you? I know the sort of girl you are—man mad. Pretending to be professional and all the time running after some man or other.

SARAH
. (
Sitting Left of the table, calmly
) Saying things like that won't upset me. I'm going to fight you, Mrs. Boynton.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. You'll lose.

SARAH
. No, I shall win.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. You little fool. I've got Raymond—I've got all of them, like
that.
(
She makes a gesture with her thumb.
)

(
LENNOX
enters Right and sits in the deckchair down Right.
)

SARAH
. You really are quite incredible—like something in a medical textbook. I shall win all right. I've two strong weapons on my side.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. And what are they?

SARAH
. Youth and sex.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. Aren't you ashamed to say a thing like that?

SARAH
. I love Raymond. I'll fight for him with every weapon I've got.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. I'm stronger than you are. I've experience behind me—years of experience. (
With force
) I can do things to people's minds.

SARAH
. Yes, you've got knowledge—a lot of evil knowledge. But you haven't got—very long to use it.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. What do you mean?

SARAH
. There's something else on my side—time. (
She rises.
)

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. Time?

SARAH
. I'm a doctor and I know what I'm talking about. (
Slowly
) You haven't got long to live. I give you—at the most—six months.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. (
Badly shaken
) Six months? Rubbish!

SARAH
. Ask Doctor Gerard if you don't believe me.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. (
Stricken
) Six months . . .

SARAH
. It's the truth. You've got an appointment—an appointment you'll have to keep—an appointment with death. When you're dead, your family will be free. So you see, death's on my side, as well as life.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. (
Convulsed with rage
) Get out of my sight. Go away.

SARAH
. Can't you stop hating? It's not too late for that.

MRS
.
BOYNTON
. Get out! Get out! Get out! (
She strikes the table with her stick.
)

(
SARAH
looks at
MRS
.
BOYNTON
,
shakes her head, shrugs her shoulders and exits to the marquee.
COPE
and
NADINE
enter down the slope Left
,
COPE
leading.
)

NADINE
. (
As she enters
) It's too hot to walk far. (
She moves down Left.
)

(
COPE
moves to the marquee entrance.
MRS
.
BOYNTON
says nothing. She sits glaring in front of her and shaking with rage.
)

LENNOX
. Nadine.

NADINE
. Yes? (
She signs to
COPE
to go.
)

(
COPE
exits to the marquee.
)

LENNOX
. (
Rising
) Nadine.

(
NADINE
crosses to
LENNOX
.
MRS
.
BOYNTON
fumbles with the bottles on the table.
)

Is it true—that you're going away with Cope?

NADINE
. Yes.

(
NADINE
looks at
LENNOX
,
then turns, crosses and exits to the marquee. There is a pause. The
ARAB
BOY
enters from the marquee. He carries a tray with a cup and saucer on it.
)

BOY
. (
Moving to
MRS
.
BOYNTON
) I bring you tea, lady, tea.

(
MRS
.
BOYNTON
strikes the table with her stick.
)

(
He squeals, drops the tray on the ground and runs to the marquee entrance.
)
Allah Kerim
! Very bad devil. Very bad devil . . .

(
The
ARAB
BOY
runs into the marquee.
RAYMOND
enters from the marquee, looks at
MRS
.
BOYNTON
then crosses to
LENNOX
.)

LENNOX
. (
Quietly
) That's it. One of us has got to kill her.

(
RAYMOND
stares at
LENNOX
,
then crosses to
MRS
.
BOYNTON
,
who rises.
RAYMOND
helps her up on the rock up Right and settles her on the stool outside the cave.
LENNOX
stares out front.
RAYMOND
comes down and stands slightly behind
LENNOX
.)

RAYMOND
. What did you say?

CURTAIN

Scene II

Scene:
The same. Three hours later.

When the Curtain rises, it is just before sunset.
MRS
.
BOYNTON
is seated at the mouth of the cave up Right, but the cave is now in very deep shadow.
GINEVRA
enters cautiously from the marquee, hears voices off Right and slips back again. The
DRAGOMAN
,
HIGGS
and
LADY
WESTHOLME
trail in Right in single file. They are tired, hot and cross.
HIGGS
crosses and collapses into the chair Left of the table.
LADY
WESTHOLME
crosses and sits in the chair Right of the table. The
DRAGOMAN
stands Centre.

HIGGS
. (
Mopping his brow
) Well, I reckon we've earned our supper. Ah reckon Miss Pryce knew what she was about, turning back wi' headache. I'm fagged out, I am.

LADY
WESTHOLME
. I never feel fatigue.

HIGGS
. I see—you're as strong as a horse.

DRAGOMAN
. Yes. You very strong lady. You walk up, down over—you just like goat.

LADY
WESTHOLME
. (
Indignantly
) Mahommed!

HIGGS
. (
Laughing
) Aye, that's it, Abraham, like a goat.

(
LADY
WESTHOLME
freezes, and if looks could kill . . .
)

(
He mops his brow
) Eh, but I'm in muck sweat.

LADY
WESTHOLME
. (
At last finding her tongue again
) Your sense of humour, Mr. Higgs, is only equalled by your choice of epithet. “Muck sweat” is applied to
horses.

HIGGS
. Now I come to think of it, you look more like a horse than a goat. (
To the
DRAGOMAN
) Bring a big bottle of beer along to my tent, Abraham—aye, and take the same along to 'er ladyship, and charge it oop ter me. That'll show there's no ill feeling.

LADY
WESTHOLME
. Thank you—but I prefer a pot of tea.

DRAGOMAN
. Too late make tea, lady. Supper now.

LADY
WESTHOLME
. Nonsense, there must be a kettle on the boil.

DRAGOMAN
. No, lady, kettle him not boil now.

HIGGS
. (
Rising
) That's the best o' beer, yer doan't 'ave ter boil it. Yer know, I doan't reckon much to this afternoon—why, we didn't see nowt.

DRAGOMAN
. (
Crossing to
HIGGS
) oh, yes, please. You see maiden hairyfern, all hang down.

HIGGS
. Well, ah can see that hanging oop in me green-'ouse at 'ome. Ah doan't want to come abroad to 'eathen parts to see it 'angin' down.

DRAGOMAN
. Very good, I get beer.

(
The
DRAGOMAN
crosses and exits to the marquee.
HIGGS
crosses to Right Centre.
)

HIGGS
. (
Looking up at
MRS
.
BOYNTON
) And I see we've got our 'eathen idol with us still. Sitting oop there for all the world like summat out of Old Testament. Moloch, was it, as they used to sacrifice children to? How their parents fell for it beats me. Ee, they moost 'ave been daft.

LADY
WESTHOLME
. It was an age of crude superstition. Nowadays . . .

HIGGS
. Nowadays there's still sacrifices going on. I've kept my eyes open since I've been 'ere, and I tell you my 'eart bleeds for those kids of 'ers. That old image up there sees to it they're sacrificed all right. She's what them psycho-whatnots call a bluddy sadist.