mátame

ACT THREE, SCENE TWO

(enter CLAIRE, ALBERT & DULCINEA)

In the small salon, albert attempts to establish a conversation with the one who is no longer there. claire watches over him while she reads on the couch, dulcinea comes in and listens. the house is unusually quiet.

DULCINEA what is he doing?

CLAIRE playing.

DULCINEA playing with my mother?

CLAIRE —― playing with the dead.

DULCINEA i ―― what?

ALBERT i tried to teach her tag you're it, but she doesn't seem to know the game. we played hide and seek but she never hides and rarely seeks. i tried many games, she's very good at playing dead.

CLAIRE albert, it's almost tea time. why don't you set the table and tell everyone to come by.

(exit ALBERT)

DULCINEA that boy is an idiot.

(DULCINEA walks towards her mother's corpse, CLAIRE follows her)

CLAIRE what are you thinking about?

DULCINEA do you love your mother?

CLAIRE yeah —— i do.

DULCINEA does your mother love you?

CLAIRE why wouldn't she?

DULCINEA why would she? ―― have you ever doubted? have you ever thought if you were a different person she'd be able to love you just enough?

CLAIRE i don't know, i've never thought it through.

DULCINEA that's obvious.

CLAIRE what about you? did your mother love you?

DULCINEA even if she did, her love would always be like hearts being drawn with a knife across my skin.

CLAIRE oh, i ―― why do you think that?

DULCINEA well, i am my mother's least favourite child.

CLAIRE don't say that.

DULCINEA someone has to be, i know it was always me.

CLAIRE i —— i meet your husband, he'll make you a lucky wife.

DULCINEA do you think so?

CLAIRE he's handsome and charming and easy to love. his skin is pale and soft like the feathers of a dove.

DULCINEA he has darkness in his eyes, and blood under his fingernails —— i wouldn't go as far as to confuse him with an easy prey.

CLAIRE you don't like him?

DULCINEA i do —— but i've never liked boys.

CLAIRE then my mother was right to say you prefer to play with toys.

DULCINEA it's not like that —— i liked julia, there's that.

CLAIRE julia? —— who's julia? isn't that a girl's name?

DULCINEA the beekeeper's daughter, they live down the road. they make rosemary honey and complain about nothing at all. i used to go to her when my parents fought, she was all my comfort and now there's none.

CLAIRE what happened?

DULCINEA she —— left.

CLAIRE where did she go?

DULCINEA she's dead.

CLAIRE oh ——

DULCINEA i like tom just fine ——he's a good boy, he'll keep me in line—— there are none like her so i guess he's the best there is to find.

CLAIRE i'm sorry.

DULCINEA don't be, it's alright. if you want to after tea time i could show you the bees and the hives——

CLAIRE i'd like that.

DULCINEA ——and the place where julia rests since that dreadful day in the ides of may.

(exit CLAIRE & DULCINEA)