The Property of Edward James

by Paul Preston

  Brother William: What I want matters little. I release you for the greater glory of God.

  Magdalena: What if I don’t want to be released?

  Brother William: I believe in my heart it is the right thing to do.

  Magdalena: Inquisitor, may I say, this is only a fantasy. A dream. Why not give into it? You know what it is I want from you, don’t you?

  Brother William: It would be a sin. A venal sin.

  Magdalena: But you are asleep. How can it be a sin if it’s not really happening? It is just a dream. The morning bells are about to ring. We have very little time left. You know what I want you to do. Pick up the paddle. My Lord.

  Brother William: I dare not.

  Magdalena places the paddle in the monk’s hands.

  Magdalena: You may be too shy to admit it, young man, but I know you want to do it to me. Now I’m going to bend over and allow you to give me a spanking. Don’t you think I deserve it? I’ve been such a naughty girl. You shouldn’t let me go so easily. Feel free to spank me as hard as you want. I have a little cushion there to protect me, so don’t hold back. I want you to do it, William. How can it be wrong if I’m asking to be spanked?

  Magdalena stands up, places her palms on the wall, bends over and arches her ass. Overcome by desire, William kneels, embraces the rounded curves of her hips, kissing the flesh of her backside tenderly. The morning bells start ringing. He stands up and taps her lightly on the backside with the paddle.

  Magdalena: You’re so sweet, William, and that feels nice, but I know you can do better than that, can’t you?

  Brother William: I don’t wish to hurt you.

  Magdalena: It won’t hurt me.

  Brother William: But I love you, Magdalena.

  Magdalena: If you love me, show it.

  Brother William slaps her more firmly with the paddle, once on each cheek. Magdalena moans and trembles at the contact.

  Magdalena: Mmmm. That’s better, William. But I can feel you’re holding back out of kindness to me. Perhaps if I blew out the candles, you would slap me a little more firmly in the dark?

  Magdalena blows out the candles. In the darkness, the sound of the paddle sharply slapping Magdalena’s flesh several times is heard. The morning bells begin to ring. Brother William awakens from his dream. He notices his bed sheet is sticky and wet. He looks around feverishly for Magdalena and realizes she’s not there. He quickly dresses in his robe and runs out to morning prayers.

  Scene 6: The Happiest Man Alive

  Brother William is lying on the floor on his sleeping mat tossing and turning, as if in the midst of a nightmare. Father England kneels beside the mat, holding a cold compress on his forehead. Periodically, Brother William calls out for Magdalena in his agitated mental state.

  Brother William: Magdalena!

  Father England: My dear boy, she’s not here. I’m Father England and I shall pray for your soul.

  Magdalena enters Brother William’s bedchamber, carrying a small sack.

  Father England: Sister, I’m so glad you’re here.

  Magdalena: What’s wrong with Brother William? Is he ill? What happened?

  Father England: I’m not quite sure. He collapsed while begging for alms in the town square today. The brothers carried him back here and put him to bed.

  Brother William: Magdalena! Where are you?

  Magdalena: I’m right here beside you, Brother William.

  Magdalena takes Brother William’s hand. She feels his forehead.

  Magdalena: Father England, why must the poor boy sit in the hot sun all day without food and water? He’s feverish.

  Father England: It’s a necessary part of his training to prepare the young man to enter the religious life. All the monks in our Order have gone through it. The Doctor said he may have become dehydrated. He was given fluids and some powders to help him sleep, but he won’t rest. He keeps muttering your name. Could you sit with him until his fever breaks?

  Magdalena: Certainly, Father.

  Father England: I will leave him in your capable hands then.

  Father England leaves the room and Magdalena takes the cloth off William’s forehead, refreshes it in a bowl of cold water and places it back on his head. Brother William opens his eyes.

  Brother William: Magdalena…

  Magdalena: I’m here, William.

  Brother William: Are you really here? Or am I dreaming of you?

  Magdalena: I am really here, William.

  Brother William: Please don’t leave me.

  Magdalena: I won’t. Here. Drink this water. I’ve also brought you something to eat. I stole it from my husband’s kitchen and snuck it into the monastery, God forgive me.

  Magdalena helps William sit up on his mat and drink.

  Brother William: What is it?

  Magdalena: Fresh baked bread and cheese.

  Magdalena hands William the food and he eats it in large bites, with great appetite.

  Magdalena: You must be starving, William. Perhaps after your meal, you’ll feel better. I don’t understand how going all day without eating or drinking will make you a better Christian. Here. I have brought some red wine to drink. My husband was to donate it to the Mission to act as the Blood of Christ, but so be it. He’s drunk half the time, so he won’t notice it missing.

  Magdalena hands the wine bottle and William greedily takes large swallows of it. She watches him eat and drink with satisfaction. After the meal, he leans back against the wall, satiated. She checks his forehead again with the back of her hand.

  Magdalena: There now. Do you feel better? I think you’re fever has broken.

  Brother William: I feel much better now, Magdalena. How can I ever thank you? You’ve saved me.

  Magdalena opens the top button of her dress. William stares at her bosom ravenously.

  Magdalena: Father England said you were dehydrated. Please take some of my breast milk. It may help you.

  Magdalena slowly takes off her dress and exposes her breasts as William watches her, transfixed.

  Magdalena: Go ahead, William. It’s quite all right. You may suck upon my bosom.

  William takes her breasts one at a time into his mouth and sucks upon her nipples passionately. She tilts her head back and presses him against her as he swallows mouthfuls of her breast milk. Holding her breasts, William looks deeply into her eyes.

  Brother William: Is this actually happening? Am I dreaming this?

  Magdalena: Does it feel real to you, William?

  Brother William: It does.

  Magdalena: Can you taste me?

  Brother William: Yes. Your milk tastes very sweet to me.

  Magdalena: Then it must be real. This is not a dream.

  Brother William: May I take more?

  Magdalena: You may. My breasts are yours, William.

  Brother William squeezes and sucks upon her breasts with great pleasure. After a moment, William sits back, satiated. Magdalena buttons up the front of her dress.

  Magdalena: Lie down and rest now. You need to regain your strength.

  Brother William: Thank you, Magdalena. Please sit with me. I need to talk to you. Hold my hand.

  Magdalena: I suppose I could stay for a moment.

  Brother William: Magdalena, I’ve thought a long time about us and I’ve come to a decision. Last night I dreamed we ran away together. I want to leave this wretched village with you.

  Magdalena: You mean escape together?

  Brother William: Yes. You and I. Tonight. As soon as possible. I’m in love with you Magdalena. I want to take you away from all this and give you a better life. I promise I will never hurt you and I’ll try to take care of you and your child. I’ll love you for the rest of my life.

  Magdalena: But what about my Father? You don’t have a trade or money.

  Brother William: I’ll find a way to support you and buy your Father the medicine he needs, I promise. I’m in love you, Magdalena. I can’t live another moment without you. Meet me later tonight w
ith your child, at midnight. We’ll escape this village together.

  Magdalena: This is all so sudden. I need time to think.

  Brother William: If you come away with me, your husband will never harm you again.

  A knock is heard.

  Magdalena: One moment please.

  Magdalena quickly puts her dress back on and buttons it. She packs the empty wine bottle and food wrappings in her sack. William pretends to be asleep.

  Magdalena: Come in.

  Father England enters. Magdalena puts the cloth back on his forehead.

  Father England: So how is our young patient faring?

  Magdalena: Much better I think. His fever has broken. I think he’ll be fine, Father. He’s resting comfortably.

  Father England: Your attention to our novice is greatly appreciated. Could you perhaps check on him tomorrow morning?

  Magdalena: Of course, Father.

  Father England bows and leaves the room. Brother William opens his eyes, holds out his hands to Magdalena and she takes them.

  Brother William: He’ll be gone for the night. He won’t be back until morning prayers, but we’ll be long gone by then.

  Magdalena: William, are you sure that this is the right—

  Brother William: I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life, Magdalena. I’m in love with you and I want to spend the rest of my life taking care of you and your child. Perhaps we can even have our own child one day, to give your baby a little brother or sister. Would you like that, Magdalena?

  Magdalena: William, I don’t know what to say. I thought you wanted to devote your life to serving Christ.

  Brother William: I know now why I came to this monastery. Everything in my spiritual path has led me to you. I love you, Magdalena. We were meant to be together.

  Magdalena: It’s too late for us. I’m married, William.

  Brother William: You told me you didn’t love him. It’s not too late for us. Come away with me. I promise I’ll make you happy.

  Magdalena: I care about you very much, William. I do. I’d like nothing better than to start my life over with you—

  Brother William: Then it’s decided. Go home, pack a small bag and take whatever food you can carry. Take your baby and leave quietly without your husband hearing you.

  Magdalena: Are you strong enough to travel, William?

  Brother William: There’s a horse and cart we can borrow in Father England’s stable. We can get miles away from here before anyone knows we’re gone.

  Magdalena: Wouldn’t that be stealing?

  Brother William: I’ll work in the fields or as a brick-layer until I can pay a man to return the cart to the monastery. We need to use it now to get away, far away from here. Do you have feelings for me too, Magdalena?

  Magdalena: I do.

  Brother William: Then trust me. Our new life is just within reach. Go home and come back as soon as you can. I’ll take a short nap to gather my strength and I’ll meet you in the stables. Go now, my love, and hurry back to me with your child. Will you?

  Magdalena: Alright. I will. I promise.

  Brother William: You’ve made me the happiest man alive. I’m happy, truly happy, for the first time in my life.

  Brother William kisses her with passion and she hurries off. Brother William shuts his eyes, smiling.

  Scene 7: In the Presence of God

  Church bells ring for morning prayers, awakening Brother William. The door to his chamber opens and Magdalena enters.

  Brother William: Magdalena! I fell asleep. Are you ready to –

  Brother William sees Father England enter the small room, flanked by a hooded monk.

  Brother William: Father England…

  Father England: Put on your robe, William.

  Brother William puts on his brown robe.

  Father England: Well, well, well. Brother William. We’ve just had quite an interesting conversation about you with our Sister here. It turns out you are one exceptionally naughty and perverted little monk, aren’t you? It seems you have developed a bit of an obsession about our lovely Sister here.

  Ashamed, Magdalena bows her head.

  Magdalena: I’m sorry, William. I didn’t want to tell, but I had to talk to the Father.

  Father England: Perhaps you could answer a few brief questions, young man.

  Brother William: What about morning prayers?

  Father England: They’ve been postponed indefinitely for you, I’m afraid. So, Magdalena tells us you’ve developed quite the attraction for her.

  Brother William: It’s true. I’m not ashamed to say it. As God is my witness, I am in love with her.

  Father England: How sweet. Romance blossoms within the walls of our humble monastery.

  Brother England: Magdalena means everything to me, Father.

  Father England: So let me see if I understand the situation here correctly, Novice. If I make an erroneous statement, please enlighten me. You were brought here to our doorstep by your parents, penniless. They have washed their hands of you after shaming them with your lustful attraction toward your neighbor’s wife. You kiss my hand and ask to join this monastery as a monk in service to Our Lord. Though we are impoverished and hardly have enough food to feed the monks already here, we kindly take you into our Mission, another mouth to feed. The minute you arrive here, you desecrate this holy sanctuary with your lustful thoughts for our kind and loyal hand servant, Sister Magdalena, a young mother with a devoted husband and a six month old child upon her breast. On top of working hard in her kitchen baking bread for this town and taking care of her husband and child, Sister Magdalena spends what little free time she has bringing food for the church and keeping the monastery tidy. Though their business is struggling, her generous husband continues to donate the bread for our meals. And you, young monk, have responded to their kindness and generosity by falling madly in love with Sister Magdalena, our benefactor’s wife. Though she has been completely chaste and has given you no reason to think she is interested in you in the slightest, you plot a romantic escape with her. You plan to steal our monastery’s only possession, our cart and horse, and whisk our Sister away in the dead of night. One can only imagine the sordid acts of animal lust you have enacted with her in your fevered dreams. Am I correct in my depiction of the events of the last few days, Brother William?

  Brother William: You are, Father. Every word you say is true. I am not fit to be a monk here.

  Father England: Obviously…

  Magdalena: He has confessed to his weakness, Father England. None of us are perfect. Could he be forgiven and given another chance?

  Father England: He is already forgiven by the Divine Grace of Our Lord, but I’m afraid he can’t remain here, Sister. He has already betrayed our trust.

  Magdalena: It’s not his fault, Father. It’s true I was being especially nice to him. He was such a kind, lonely boy. I’m sure he just misunderstood my intentions. Please, Father. What’s to become of him?

  Father William: Brother William, remove the belt around your waist and hold your wrists out.

  Brother William nods and removes his belt. The hooded monk steps forward and binds Brother William’s arms tightly with the rope.

  Magdalena: No! What are you doing? That’s too tight. You’re hurting him. You said nothing will happen to him if I confessed!

  Father England: I assure you, Sister Magdalena, our young monk will be given the best of care.

  Magdalena: Where are you taking him?

  Father England: Why to the madhouse of course.

  Magdalena: NO!

  Magdalena collapses at the feet of Father England, kissing his hand.

  Magdalena: Please, Father, I beg of you. Let him go. It’s not his fault. I led him astray. I’ll confess to everything. I love him too! I led him down the path of wickedness!

  Brother William: You’ve done nothing wrong, Magdalena. Please don’t worry about me, Sister. I knew the madhouse was waiting for me, sooner or later, calling out my na
me. My parents always said I’d end up there. I guess they were right. I’ll be fine. I belong there. Please don’t be upset. I can’t bear to see you upset.

  Magdalena: No…

  She weeps. Father England helps Magdalena rise to her feet.

  Father England: You truly are a Christian woman, to take his sins upon yourself, Sister. Let not your heart be troubled. He will get the care he needs at the asylum.

  The monk begins to lead William away.

  Magdalena: Wait! May I have a last moment alone with Brother William?

  Father England: Do you think that’s advisable in his mental state?

  Magdalena: Please, Father. I need to have a word with him.

  Father England: Alright. Just a quick minute. The monks are waiting to be led in their prayers.

  Magdalena: Thank you, Father.

  Father England: We will be just outside the door if you need us.

  Father England and the hooded monk step outside. Magdalena covers her eyes and weeps. With bound hands, Brother William hands her a cloth from his bedside table. She dries her eyes.

  Magdalena: My God, what have I done? I didn’t mean to—

  Brother William: Please don’t feel bad for me, Magdalena. I’m not upset at all. I’m quite relieved to go there. It’s not your fault. Will you come visit me?

  Magdalena: I’ll try, William. The asylum is several hours away. I may not be able to come until the baby is older.