CUCA (as mother. Hatefully, biting the words). You make me sick. (Wrenching the veil off him.) I don’t know how I gave birth to such an abortion. I’m ashamed of you, ashamed of your whole life. And now you want to save yourself? No way; forget about salvation . . . Drown yourself. Die. Do you think I’m going to let you, you of all people, criticise me, in front of visitors? Don’t you see what you are? You’re a cretin! (To the imaginary person.) I’m so sorry, Angelita. Please don’t go. (In her previous harsh and firm tone of voice.) I’ve been asking you to help me for ages. There are loads of things to clean in this house: the dishes, the fridge, the dust, and those marks on the mirrors. So much to be done: mending, darning, sewing. (LALO goes up to CUCA.) Get out. You want to turn this house upside down and I won’t allow it. Not over my dead body. The ashtray goes on the table. (Puts the ashtray on the table.) The vase goes on the table. (Puts the vase on the table.) Who do you think you are? I’ll tell your father right now . . . (With disgust and rancour.) You wretch, what would you do without us? What have you got to moan about? Do you think we are stupid? Yes? Well, I’ll tell you, we’re no better or worse than anyone else. But if you think we’ll let you order us around, you’re very wrong. Do you know what I’ve sacrificed to keep this house running smoothly? Do you think we’ll just give it up like that? If you want to go, go. I’ll pack your bags myself. There’s the door.
CUCA stands with her back to the audience. LALO approaches the table and contemplates the knife with indifference. He picks it up and caresses it. He stabs it into the centre of the table.
LALO. How much longer? How much longer?
BEBA. Don’t get impatient.
LALO. If only we could do it today.
BEBA. You’re being stupid.
LALO. Right now.
LALO grabs the knife from the table. He looks at his two sisters and rushes upstage.
BEBA. Don’t do it.
CUCA. You’ll be sorry.
BEBA. Be careful.
CUCA (sings weakly). The living room is not the living room.
The two sisters are in position, BEBA stage right, CUCA stage left. They have their backs to the audience. Simultaneously, they utter a frightful, shattering scream. LALO enters. The two sisters fall to their knees.
LALO (holding the knife). Silence.
BEBA and CUCA (start singing quietly). The living room is not the living room, the living room is the kitchen. The bedroom is not the bedroom, the bedroom is the bathroom.
LALO. Now I feel calm. I’d like to sleep, sleep, sleep forever . . . But I’ll do that tomorrow. Today I have a lot to do. (The knife slips from his hands and falls to the ground.) How easy it all is . . . ! You just walk into the room. Slowly, on tiptoes. The slightest noise would mean disaster. And you move forward, hanging in mid-air. The knife doesn’t tremble. Nor does your hand. You know what you’re doing. The wardrobes, the bed, the curtains, the vases, the carpets, the ashtrays, the chairs: they all push you towards the naked, wheezing, sweating bodies. (Pause. Determined.) And now we must clean up the blood. Wash them. Dress them. And fill the house with flowers. Later on, we’ll dig a deep, deep hole and wait until morning . . . (Pensively.) So easy . . . so terrible.
The two sisters have stopped singing. CUCA picks up the knife and starts cleaning it on her apron. Long pause.
CUCA (to BEBA). How do you feel?
BEBA (to CUCA). All right.
CUCA (to BEBA). It’s tiring.
BEBA (to CUCA). The worst thing is, you get used to it.
CUCA (to BEBA). But some day . . .
BEBA (to CUCA). It’s like everything.
LALO. Open the door. (Beats his chest. Exalted, wide-eyed.) An assassin. An assassin. (Falls to his knees.)
CUCA (to BEBA). What’s all this?
BEBA. The first part has ended.
Blackout.
Act Two
As the curtain rises, LALO is on his knees, his back to the audience, his head hanging low. CUCA is standing up, looking at him and laughing. BEBA impassively takes the knife which is lying on the table.
CUCA (to BEBA). Look at him. (To LALO.) That’s how I like to see you. (Laughing.) Now it’s my turn. (Laughs long and hard.)
LALO (imperiously). Shut the door.
CUCA (to LALO, closing the door). I can’t stand you!
BEBA (to CUCA, looking at LALO disdainfully). You’re pathetic.
CUCA (to LALO). What’s wrong with you? Listen, little one: we’ve got to carry on. We’re not going to do things by half this time. I’m fed up with leaving the job unfinished.
LALO (crestfallen). We always have to begin again.
CUCA. Fine. I agree. But I still say that today . . .
LALO (annoyed). Yes, yes . . . Whatever you say.
CUCA. Whatever I say, no. Whatever must be. Or am I now the inventor of all this? That’s a good one!
BEBA (annoyed. To CUCA). But you love . . .
CUCA (offended). And what do you want me to do, little girl?
BEBA. Anything but that.
CUCA. No, my sweet, the time has come and I have to see it through to the end.
BEBA. You know I’m right.
CUCA. I don’t care.
BEBA. Then I’m going.
CUCA. You’re staying.
BEBA. You’re trying my patience.
CUCA. Don’t threaten me.
BEBA. I can scratch and kick.
LALO. That’s enough arguing.
CUCA (to BEBA). That’s right: pipe down.
BEBA. Hah! I don’t believe it. I am not going to let myself rot away behind these walls. I hate this place. You two like all this rubbish. But I’m young, and one of these days I’m going to get out of here and not come back and then I’ll be able to do what I like. What do you think of that? (Pause.) You didn’t want to do it at the beginning, did you? But now you’re capable of killing to get what you want. It’s as if the salvation of your souls were at stake . . . Yes, your salvation . . . Don’t look at me like that. Salvation from what? Maybe you just want to save your own skin? (Deliberately.) That’s why you called the police. That’s why you’re about to start the investigation and the interrogation. Did you do this? No, no. You didn’t do it? Hey, officer, how could I have done it? But we’ve found a clue. There are the fingerprints. One of you committed the crime. Do you think you can fuck with us, eh? Do you think you can take us for a ride? I don’t want to get involved in that.
CUCA. You have to see it through to the end.
BEBA. It never ends.
CUCA. Don’t give up.
BEBA. I’m tired. It’s always the same. Do this. Do that. Why do we go round and round like this . . . ? (More intimate.) Anyway, I don’t want to get mixed up . . . (Changes her tone of voice.) It’s no fun.
CUCA. Everything you’re saying is complete crap. (Like her mother.) A right little gem you’ve turned out to be! Do you think I’m just going to sit back and watch after what he has done? I will defend Mum and Dad’s memory. I will defend them against anything.
BEBA. Don’t touch me.
CUCA (as mother, with authority). Put that knife back where you found it. (BEBA obeys and drops the knife on the floor.) Not like that.
BEBA (furiously). You do it then.
CUCA (slyly, with a smirk). Control yourself. Come on, let’s have everything back in its proper place. (Changes her tone of voice.) The best is yet to come. (BEBA replaces the knife in a satisfactory way.) We must be very careful.
BEBA (furiously). Count me out.
CUCA (mentally arranging the room). The lamps, the curtains . . . It’s a mathematical question.
BEBA (furiously). Go and find someone else. Or do it all yourself.
CUCA. You’ve been in on it from the start. You can’t pull out now.
BEBA. We’ll see about that.
CUCA (authoritarian, as mother.) Nobody can foul up.
BEBA. Let’s hope the unexpected happens.
CUCA. I’m depending on that as well. (To LALO
.) Get up. (LALO doesn’t reply.)
BEBA (furiously). Leave him alone. Can’t you see he’s suffering?
CUCA. Keep out of this.
BEBA. You should have waited. Maybe . . . Just a moment.
CUCA. I know what I’m doing.
BEBA (with subtle sarcasm). It’s all right by me. But remember I’m on my guard. Ready, at any moment . . .
CUCA (rapidly, furiously). To do what?
BEBA. To break out.
CUCA. Really? So you are against it . . . ? Well, listen very carefully to what I’m going to say: don’t even think I’m going to let you interfere. You’re just a tool, a cog, a screw . . . You should be happy about that. (Pause.) Don’t make that face. (In a threatening tone of voice.) All right, but you’ll have to take the consequences. In this house, everything is part of the game. (She moves around, trying to arrange things, and listing them.) Vase, knife, curtains, glasses . . . water, pills. The police will be here in a minute . . . Syringe, ampoules . . . All we have to do is disappear . . . vanish. (BEBA makes as if to leave. CUCA stops her.) No, my sweet. Don’t be silly. You understand? (CUCA’s sarcastic tone of voice makes BEBA flinch.) What? You don’t like what we’re doing? Do you want to throw a spanner in the works . . . ? We’ll be invisible. Do you have anything to add? We are innocent. Do you want to take sides? (To LALO.) Get up. It’s late. (To BEBA.) Are you going to defend the indefensible? Perhaps he’s not an assassin? (To LALO.) Tidy yourself up a bit. You look like a corpse. (LALO gets up clumsily. BEBA puts a pack of cards on the table and then spreads them out. To BEBA.) That would never have crossed my mind.
LALO (his back still to the audience. To BEBA). Bring me some water.
CUCA (imperiously). No, that’s not allowed. (Approaching LALO, straightening out his clothes. Quite tenderly.) You have to wait. (As mother.) That collar is a scandal . . . You look like a tramp.
LALO. My throat is dry.
BEBA (as mother, quite tenderly). Did you not sleep well?
LALO. I need to go outside for a while.
CUCA (violently). You’re not going anywhere.
LALO. Just for a minute.
CUCA. Absolutely not. Everything is ready. What are you trying to . . . ? Are you playing with me? Well, I won’t let you.
CUCA tries to stop LALO, who moves to escape. She grabs him by his shirt collar. They struggle violently. For a moment, BEBA just watches them in amazement. Then she becomes morbidly interested in the fight and starts to walk around CUCA and LALO.
LALO. Let go of me.
CUCA. No way.
LALO. Who do you think you are?
CUCA. Who do you think you are?.
LALO. You’re scratching me.
CUCA. All part of the game. This is life or death. And you can’t escape. I’ll do anything to see you put away.
BEBA runs to the dark side of the stage where the door is.
BEBA (screaming). The police, the police.
The two siblings stop fighting. LALO falls into a chair, beaten. BEBA stands beside the closed door. CUCA stands on the other side of the door, also upstage.
CUCA (in her previous tone of voice, furiously). I’ll never forgive you. It’s your fault. All your fault. If you want to die, go ahead and die.
BEBA. Sshh! Be quiet.
Long pause. BEBA and CUCA start to move slowly, almost in slow motion. They are now the two policemen who discover the crime.
CUCA (as policeman 1). Very dark in here.
BEBA (as policeman 2). Smells horrible.
CUCA (as policeman 1). Bloodstains everywhere.
BEBA (as policeman 2). Looks like they’ve killed a couple of pigs.
CUCA (as policeman 1). It was pigs what did it.
BEBA (as policeman 2). Swine.
The two sisters walk as if in a darkened gallery. LALO remains in the chair. The sisters stop in front of him and pretend to shine a torch on him.
BEBA (as policeman 2). Got him.
CUCA (as policeman 1). What a fight he put up. (To LALO, violently.) Get up. Come on, move it, move it. (LALO tries to shield himself from the torch’s glare.)
BEBA (as policeman 2). Hey, boy . . . One move and I’ll blow your head off.
CUCA (as policeman 1). Come on, get up.
BEBA (as policeman 2). It’s curtains for you, boy. (LALO gets up and puts his hands up.) We’d better be quick.
CUCA (as policeman 1). Frisk ’im.
BEBA (as policeman 2). This guy is dangerous. (Frisks LALO’s clothes and body.) Where are your papers? What’s your name? (LALO makes no reply.) Can’t you see you’re under arrest? If an officer of the law asks you a question, you answer him. Now who screamed?
CUCA (as policeman 1). Have you killed someone?
BEBA (as policeman 2). Where’s all the blood from?
CUCA.(as policeman 1). Do you live with your parents?
BEBA (as policeman 2). Do you have any sisters and brothers? Answer.
CUCA (as policeman 1). You did ‘em in, didn’t you? Answer. It’s in your own interest.
LALO (very vaguely). Don’t know.
BEBA (as policeman 2). What do you mean, ‘don’t know’? Do you live on your own?
CUCA (as policeman 1). And all these clothes . . . ? Let him be. (Smiles.) He’ll talk in the end.
BEBA (as policeman 2). Nobody can save him now, mate. (Smiles. Crudely.) He’s a hard bastard. He probably started by robbing them. But that wasn’t enough, so he decided to kill them. (To LALO.) Your own parents? I can hardly believe it. Did you poison them? (Holds up the box of pills and puts it back on the table.) How many pills . . . ? (LALO doesn’t reply. He occasionally smiles.) Come on, out with it . . . If you talk, it’ll be easier for you. (To CUCA, showing her the syringe.) Look. He probably . . .
CUCA (as policeman 1). It looks like this crime’s a real whopper. (To LALO.) Where are the bodies? (To BEBA.) No sign of them.
BEBA (as policeman 2). Where did you hide them? Did you bury them?
CUCA (as policeman 1). We’ll have to search the house from top to bottom. Comb it, every inch of it.
BEBA (as policeman 2). Why did you kill them? Answer. Did they abuse you?
LALO (dryly). No.
CUCA (as policeman 1). Time’s up, sonny. Why did you kill them?
LALO (confidently). I didn’t do it.
CUCA (as policeman 1). You’ve got a nerve!
BEBA (as policeman 2). Were they asleep?
CUCA (as policeman 1). Don’t play tough-guy with me. So you didn’t kill anyone? Not your parents? Not your brothers? None of your relations? (LALO shrugs his shoulders.) Then what have you done?
BEBA (as policeman 2). Did you smother them with their pillows?
CUCA (as policeman 1). How many times did you stab them?
BEBA (as policeman 2). Five? Ten? Fifteen?
CUCA (as policeman 1). You’re not going to tell me this is all a game. There’s blood all over the shop. Look, you’re covered in it yourself. How can you deny it? I’ve never seen such a crime. (Suddenly.) Where are your parents? Stuffed in a trunk? (Pause. Reconstructing the scene.) You walked slowly, on tiptoes, so as not to make a noise . . . Your parents were snoring. You were holding your breath and the knife in your hand didn’t even tremble . . .
LALO (proudly). Wrong. You’re lying.
CUCA (as policeman 1). Then what did happen? (Exhausted.) Ah, this house is a labyrinth.
BEBA (as policeman 2. He has been examining the room). Here’s the proof. (Points to the knife.) We’re getting there. (Stoops to pick it up.)
CUCA (as policeman 1, shouting). Don’t touch it.
BEBA. (as policeman 2). We have to check it for fingerprints. (Picks the knife up with a handkerchief and puts it on the table.)
CUCA (as policeman 1). If he continues refusing to . . .
BEBA (as policeman 2). I’ll sort him out in a moment. (To LALO.) Come here. You better talk or else I’ll . . . Look. I don’t want to have to resort to violence. But who do you think we ar
e? We’re not just here for decoration. (In a tone of voice which is both threatening and persuasive.) Talk, it’s in your own interest. You’ve had plenty of time to think. (In a friendlier tone of voice.) Talk, come on, it’s for your own good. (Looking at CUCA.) It’ll all be taken into account, don’t worry. (CUCA goes to the side of the stage, searching for clues.) You’ll feel much better once you’ve told us all about it. It’s very easy, very, very easy. (In an almost familiar tone of voice.) How did you do it? Why did you do it? Did they abuse you verbally or . . . ? Was there some kind of robbery? What really happened? Perhaps you’ve forgotten? Try and remember . . . Let’s see, take your time.
LALO (very haughtily). None of you could understand.
BEBA (as policeman 2, persuasively, smiling). Why do you say that? (More intimately.) Come on, boy, own up.
CUCA (as policeman 1, offstage). Don’t worry. I’ve found it. (Comes on stage, rubbing his hands together.) Just take a look! It’s a disgusting sight! Horrible! It’d make anyone’s hair stand on end. (Reconstructing the scene.) There’s a pick and a shovel. He’s dug this massive hole. I don’t know how he did it on his own . . . And there, at the bottom are two bodies with a little earth on them. (Going up to LALO and slapping him on the back.) So this young gentleman did nothing, did he? (BEBA goes over to the place from where CUCA has come.) Yes, yes, I understand. (With a smile of satisfaction.) The young gentleman is innocent. Well, well, well . . . (Stares at him disdainfully.) This young gentleman’s days are numbered. (In a vulgar tone of voice.) You’ve signed your own death warrant, Sonny-Jim.
BEBA (coming on set, no longer as policeman 2). It’s awful.
CUCA (as policeman 1, in a vulgar tone of voice). Don’t get melodramatic.
BEBA. It made me go weak at the knees.
Latin American Plays Page 9