*****
Opening
Scene 1
Ian's sitting room. Ian, casually dressed, is seated reading a newspaper, occasionally glancing at his watch. The door bell rings and he answers it.
IAN (off) Hello. Miss Henderson?
SALLY (off) Yes. I'm sorry I'm late - I missed a turning and got stuck at road works.
Ian ushers her through. Her costume though smart is rather short in the skirt and low-cut in the blouse.
IAN They're a devil if you don't know the way round. No matter - I'm not pushed for time. Do sit down. Would you like a coffee - or something stronger?
SALLY Thank you, but better not.
She sits down and prepares to take notes. Ian sits at an angle to her.
IAN Right. Now what's all this about? Your editor or whoever it was seemed rather vague about it. In fact completely vague.
SALLY Sorry, I was on another job, the editor was out too and I had to ask his secretary to make the appointment. There wasn't time to explain. But it's about this GM treaty that's been in the news.
IAN Oh yes?
SALLY I believe you were involved in the negotiations that led up to it, weren't you?
IAN As a technical adviser, yes. Not one of the negotiators - that was a job for the diplomats, thank goodness.
SALLY Yes, so I understand. But from what I've heard it seems that its success or failure hinged on convincing the people actually involved at a working level on the other side to accept a particular approach.
IAN It was an essential step, certainly. We had to satisfy them.
SALLY So I wondered if you could explain the issues in a way that our readers would understand.
IAN I very much doubt it. I don't want to seem patronising, but people without a scientific background seem to have a mental block against technical ideas - especially when there are emotive issues involved.
SALLY In what way?
IAN If you try to explain, at however basic a level, they accuse you of "blinding with science" and trying to throw them off the scent of some horror. If you simply give them the conclusions, of course, you're covering it up. Either way you can't win.
SALLY Isn't that a rather sweeping generalisation?
IAN Perhaps, but … Sorry, we seem to be getting off on the wrong foot. My fault. Can we go back a step or two?
SALLY I suppose you've had some bad experiences. But don't you think the Press could help in putting the ideas across? Explaining them in terms that people actually understand?
IAN To be fair, it sometimes tries - quite often, in fact. But even with serious papers, the results are ... I'm afraid they never seem to get the story right.
SALLY (almost singing) What, never?
IAN (smiling, recognising the allusion) Hardly ever. So you're a Gilbert and Sullivan fan, are you?
SALLY I was in a production of "Pinafore" only a few weeks ago.
IAN As the gallant captain's daughter?
SALLY No such luck. In the chorus.
IAN While I suppose the lead was taken by a lady of mature years and ample dimensions who had to drop an octave for the top notes and would have been far better suited to Little Buttercup.
SALLY How did you guess?
IAN I've been involved with amateur groups - not singing, I might say. Ah, well … But we digress. I'm afraid that on anything at all controversial, most of the Press is inclined to give a very - well, unsatisfactory account. You must have seen what it's been like even over a simple matter like dealing with nuclear waste.
SALLY Simple!!!?
IAN Yes, in essence. A matter of solidifying the stuff and sticking it in a suitable hole in the ground. How to do it has been obvious for years - decades, in principle. But of course there are none so ignorant as those who don't want to know. The real complications are mostly in the politics.
SALLY Well, perhaps we should let that pass for now.
IAN You aren't convinced, I take it.
SALLY Far from it. But that's beside the point. Getting back to the treaty, what I should like is an account suitable for ordinary people of what it provides and why it was so difficult to agree.
IAN Why the interest? It's a fairly arcane subject.
SALLY Well, it was on the national news, and your name was mentioned …
IAN Was it, indeed? I missed that.
SALLY … so it's become a matter of local pride. People want to know what it's all about. Preferably without too many technicalities.
IAN Hmm. A pity you can't ask Sue Collins about that.
SALLY Who's she?
IAN An American State Department lawyer who finally convinced the Japanese officials of what should be done. I haven't much time for lawyers as a rule, but she was really impressive - put it over in terms even a politician could understand.
SALLY I dare say she did, but a junior reporter on a provincial paper can't get at the State Department, and I can get at you.
IAN (wryly) Well put.
SALLY I'm sorry, that must have sounded dreadful.
IAN Not at all; it was accurate, succinct and to the point. I wish all journalism had those qualities.
SALLY Well, thank you. Do I gather you haven't much time for politicians either?
IAN Let's say I have difficulties with them and leave it at that.
SALLY We all do, if we want a straight answer to a question.
IAN That's the least part of it. The main trouble is that they haven't time to take in the details and are liable to pick up superficially attractive fallacies.
SALLY So isn't it worth while to try putting the record straight?
IAN If that's what you really want -... Right, I'll see what I can do. Are you familiar with the general idea of genetic modification?
SALLY Mixing genetic material from two different kinds of plant so that the result could have the desirable qualities of both?
IAN Yes, broadly. That's one aspect of the situation. And for the other, you probably know that pharmaceuticals are extremely big business.
SALLY Who doesn't?
IAN Quite. Not everyone realises, though, that while the profits can be enormous, so is the cost of trying constantly to find new products that will keep ahead of mutations that disease bacteria and viruses evolve to defeat them. And when they are found, some of those products are difficult to make artificially from scratch, but much easier starting from intermediates provided by certain other organisms.
SALLY Like heroin from opium?
IAN An unhappy example, but yes. Unfortunately those other organisms aren't always as co-operative as we'd like. Maybe they won't grow well in production conditions, or they make just a little of the material we want along with a lot of other stuff that is either useless or a positive nuisance. You can probably see where this is leading.
SALLY You take the genes responsible for making the material you want and put them into another plant that can be grown easily without the disadvantages?
IAN That's the general idea.
SALLY But where does the treaty come into it?
IAN Well, there's one particular product - its proper name is about a yard long but for our purposes we can just call it A -
SALLY Thank goodness!
IAN - that can be made by two approaches from quite different intermediates. Both have been studied by different organisations working independently, there isn't much to choose between them technically or economically, and as a result we and the Americans have chosen one route; while the Japanese have gone for the other.
SALLY So?
IAN Unlike ours, the Japanese process could be altered fairly easily to yield product B, which might have very nasty uses in chemical warfare.
SALLY What sort of uses?
IAN We'd best not pursue that.
SALLY Why? - Oh, of course …
IAN Yes. The treaty is to make as sure as possible that it never happens.
SALLY What was
the difficulty? Does anyone really think the Japanese would do it?
IAN Probably not, but the United Nations has insisted on formal verification. Not just for this particular product, but for any that might have dual-use possibilities. Actually, it's probably wise for the sake of public relations if nothing else.
SALLY What sort of verification would that involve?
IAN There lies the problem. Our intermediate isn't on the route to product B, so verification on our plant would be little more than a check on which process was running. For the Japanese it would be much more complicated, involving rather intrusive investigations, and quite understandably they complained of unfairness.
SALLY National pride? Commercial security?
IAN A bit of both, but more importantly it could add quite a lot to production costs and put them at a commercial disadvantage.
SALLY What could they do about it? If it weren't for the treaty, I mean.
IAN At a pinch - and for a time it looked a serious possibility - they might simply have told the UN to get lost - putting it in more diplomatic terms, of course. That would have meant a real crisis in other areas as well. To avoid it, we needed something a lot closer to even-handedness - what's sometimes called "equality of misery." And the Americans insisted that they weren't going to burden their industry with a load of fruitless expenditure just to assure the UN - which they're not too keen on these days for other reasons - that they weren't doing something that would be impossible anyway.
SALLY Why couldn't the Japanese simply adopt the other process?
IAN They weren't going to pay for a licence when they had a perfectly good process of their own. And we weren't ready to sacrifice intellectual property rights.
SALLY So it could have been a stalemate?
IAN It looked very much like it for a time.
SALLY How did you get round it?
IAN Well, to cut a long story short, I devised a way of making sure that the B variation of the Japanese process couldn't be run on their plant as it was eventually to be set up, and moreover demonstrating the fact without too much trouble.
SALLY Would it work for anything with dual use?
IAN Not directly, in general, but the same principles might apply in some instances.
SALLY And in this one it solved the problem?
IAN Not entirely, because in practice it was still going to be more costly and intrusive for the Japanese than for the Americans or us. That was where Sue Collins came in. The chief Japanese representative at the decisive meeting hadn't been involved until the technical discussions were practically over - he probably wouldn't have understood them anyway - and raised objections. She explained to him that although the scheme bore more heavily on them than on anyone else, without it the UN would insist on very much more elaborate verification procedures all round, and everyone would be worse off, the Japanese especially. That swung the day. Afterwards it was just a matter of tidying up the administrative detail.
SALLY Phew!
IAN Yes, it was certainly a relief. It had taken a couple of years' work, but it was worth it.
SALLY Did it mean your going out to Japan?
IAN A couple of times, yes, just for a few days.
SALLY What did you think of it?
IAN I liked the country, and found the people delightful, but couldn't stand the food.
SALLY Why not?
IAN I'm not much of a fish-eater in any case, but raw … ugh!
SALLY How did you manage, then?
IAN By avoiding it as far as possible.
SALLY How far was that?
IAN A lot less than most of us would have liked! It was notorious that people who spent any length of time out there came back noticeably thinner than they went.
SALLY So you weren't sorry your visits were short?
IAN In that respect, at any rate. On the last occasion we had to spend a night in Tokyo before catching the flight home, and went out to look for a meal - anything but Japanese. We searched for what seemed an age and thought we might be reduced to eating in a hamburger joint or going back to the hotel - not that there was anything wrong with it, quite the opposite, it was just too blandly international - but then found a curious little Mexican restaurant that we thought worth trying. It actually turned out to be rather good.
SALLY We? You took your - er - partner?
IAN A professional colleague. It was a working visit, with no provision for social companions.
SALLY A pity. I'd have jumped at a chance like that.
IAN (humorously) And I never knew it!
SALLY Oh, I didn't mean …
IAN It's all right, only joking. In any case it would have had to be a wife or nothing, and I've never married.
SALLY Oh? May I ask …?
IAN I'd have liked to, but it didn't happen.
SALLY (sensing a "personal interest" story) What went wrong?
IAN I don't think we need go into that. (He notices with amusement that Sally's skirt has ridden up as though accidentally to an enticing extent.) I wonder …
SALLY What?
IAN Miss Henderson, you're an attractive young woman -
SALLY (taken aback) Thank you, but ...
IAN - it wasn't a compliment - and I think you're well aware of your assets. You've made quite sure that I should be aware of them, too. So what are you after?
SALLY I beg your pardon!
IAN Why this attempt at visual seduction? I'm not complaining, mind you - far from it. But neither am I fool enough to imagine your having any personal interest in a man three times your age. And it isn't just showing off; I don't think you're the type. That seems to mean you want something else - something that you wouldn't simply ask for in the normal course of an interview. What is it?
SALLY Wow! You don't beat about the bush, do you?
IAN I prefer to be straightforward. How about you?
SALLY Well, fair enough; I'll try. You've rather taken the wind out of my sails. But you've probably realised that I'm keen on Green issues.
IAN Yes, that was fairly clear.
SALLY There's a group of us worried about the whole business of genetic modification.
IAN Another one? I'd have thought there were quite enough already.
SALLY We don't like the approach that some of them take. It's too aggressive – too simplistic. Oh, they get good news coverage, and it goes down well with a lot of the public, but even if they're right in the conclusions we've a feeling that their arguments may not be really sound - that they rely more on prejudice than reality in getting there.
IAN Hmm.
SALLY What we want is to have a serious discussion on a scientifically respectable basis, but suited to our level, without making a lot of noise over it.
IAN Having already made up your minds on the outcome?
SALLY We have a point of view that we want to put. We think it holds on general principles, but our position will be a lot stronger if it can stand up to genuine objections. But we don't know how to answer them on their own terms. So we hoped I might persuade you to come and talk to us about them.
IAN When?
SALLY You will? Just like that?
IAN Certainly, if I can fit it in.
SALLY Although you support GM?
IAN I'm always open to reasonable arguments. After all, there may be some I haven't considered. And your point on standing up to sensible criticism is quite valid, but it cuts both ways.
SALLY I suppose it does.
IAN Is that all you want?
SALLY In the first instance, yes. I don't expect a "road to Damascus" conversion.
IAN Then you had only to ask. It's precisely the sort of thing I've been trying to do for years. Why all the foreplay – if you'll pardon my putting it like that?
SALLY The piece for the paper is genuine enough.
IAN (lightly) That isn't quite what I meant – as I think you know perfectly well!
SALLY (amused) All right. My father was a professional soldier. He said it was always a mistake to skimp an attack and then have to strengthen it, except as a ploy to trick the enemy. Better to throw in the main force at the outset.
IAN So I'm the enemy, am I?
SALLY We thought so. At least, a part of it.
IAN An opponent, anyway.
SALLY A friendly opponent, if that isn't too much to ask?
IAN If you and your pals will have it so. It suits me. What specifically do you have in mind …?
Fade out.
Scene 2
Julian's flat. He is trying to make notes against the distraction of Kevin mooching around the room and occasionally picking up a magazine or newspaper but unable to concentrate on it, repeatedly looking anxiously at the clock or the telephone.
JULIAN For goodness' sake settle down, Kevin. You're making me dizzy, let alone wearing out the carpet.
KEVIN I can't help wondering how Sally's getting on.
JULIAN Neither can I, but fretting about it won't make any difference one way or the other.
KEVIN I wish you'd never thought of the scheme.
JULIAN I don't see why. It may work. If it doesn't, we're no worse off.
KEVIN But suppose it works all too well?
JULIAN What on earth do you mean?
KEVIN That he thinks she's an easy lay and goes for it.
JULIAN Are you afraid he'll be totally smitten and sweep her off her feet?
KEVIN Or worse.
JULIAN Look, I know we don't like his views or his work, but that doesn't make him any kind of sex maniac. His private life seems to be perfectly respectable. He's getting a bit long in the tooth for any shenanigans, anyway.
KEVIN I wouldn't count on it. Look at my uncle Fred.
JULIAN I didn't know you had one. What about him?
KEVIN Actually my great-uncle. Never put a foot wrong, for all that anyone could tell, until he was over sixty and then went right off the deep end. Seemed to get even randier as time went on.
JULIAN He sounds like something out of Tom Sharpe. Tell me more!
KEVIN That's about all I know. I never met him and Mum was cagey about the details. Except that he was eventually found dead in bed with a floosie in Torremolinos.
JULIAN Heart attack?
KEVIN No, the woman's husband found out what was going on and shot them both.
JULIAN Very melodramatic! It's a pity you didn't get more of the story. But anyway, whatever Kendrick may or may not be doing, wearing yourself into a frazzle won't help.
KEVIN All very well for you. It isn't your girl friend being used as bait.
JULIAN She isn't a tethered goat waiting for a tiger. She's a sensible woman, quite capable of looking after herself.
KEVIN I noticed you didn't suggest Sheila for the job.
JULIAN Of course not. Sheila's a wonderful girl and I love her dearly, but let's face it, she doesn't have the same qualifications.
KEVIN You didn't tell her that, surely.
JULIAN She's no illusions about her appearance. If anything too modest. I've suggested time and time again she should take a bit more care … But if anyone was to do it, Sally was the obvious choice.
KEVIN I never did like the idea.
JULIAN I don't remember your objecting.
KEVIN When you get going there isn't much chance.
JULIAN (bridling, then correcting himself) Oh, indeed? Well, perhaps you have a point.
KEVIN And why hasn't she phoned?
JULIAN Maybe she's still having to work on him.
KEVIN How far do you think she'd have to go?
JULIAN Not the whole hog, if that's what you're worried about. The essence of this sort of thing is to tantalise - to hold out a suggestion of something still to come.
KEVIN How come you know so much about it? Have you …?
He is interrupted by Sally's entrance.
KEVIN Ah, there you are!
JULIAN At last! He means.
KEVIN What kept you? And why didn't you phone?
SALLY A, a traffic jam, and B, I forgot to charge it and the battery's flat.
KEVIN Was he horrible? I've been so worried …
JULIAN That's true. Talk about pacing the cage! If I'd kept my eyes on him you'd have to untwist my neck like a fathom of rope.
SALLY It's sweet of you, Kevin, but really, there was no need. It was all perfectly civilised.
KEVIN (darkly) So was Casanova.
JULIAN But did it work? That's the important thing.
SALLY Well, at one point I thought he was going to make a pass -
KEVIN There!
SALLY - but I was completely mistaken.
JULIAN (Teasing) How humiliating! What did happen?
SALLY He saw through the ruse straight away.
JULIAN Damn!
KEVIN (to Julian) I told you it was a daft idea! (To Sally) Did he turn nasty?
SALLY Not at all. Quite the opposite, in fact.
KEVIN So he did try something on?
JULIAN Kevin, stop playing the jealous lover. It won't get you anywhere.
SALLY There's no need to fret, anyway. My assets, as he called them, didn't seem to whet his appetite all that much. A pity, really. I rather fancied myself doing a Mata Hari.
KEVIN Is he a ... one of those, do you think?
SALLY No sign of it. I think he appreciates a woman just as much as you do, only he doesn't go about it like a rampant bull.
KEVIN (aggressively) Are you saying …?
JULIAN Calm down, Kevin. No one's saying anything. The point is, where do we go now? Can you think of anyone else we might try?
SALLY There's no need.
JULIAN What do you mean?
SALLY He's perfectly willing to talk to us without any inducement. Quite eager, in fact. All he needed was to be asked.
KEVIN (exasperated) Then why the hell didn't you say so?
SALLY You didn't give me much of a chance.
KEVIN You could have given us a thumbs up or something.
SALLY And in your state of mind I can guess what conclusion you'd jump to - particularly as I was late getting here.
KEVIN My state of mind …!
JULIAN Come on, Kevin, you know quite well she's right. As it was you'd more than half convinced yourself that at the very least she'd been ravished.
KEVIN There's no need to exaggerate …
JULIAN Who was exaggerating?
SALLY For goodness' sake calm down! There's no need to fight. We've got what we wanted a lot easier than expected, that's all. Why make a drama of it?
JULIAN Thank you. That's what I call good sense. What exactly have we got?
SALLY He'll come and meet us on Thursday evening. For as long as we like, within reason. He suggests you have a list of prepared questions, though there's no need to stick to them if a different line looks promising.
JULIAN Does he want to see them beforehand?
SALLY If there's any call for detailed information, yes, so that he has time to check his facts. Otherwise he's quite ready to take them cold. And discuss them as far as seems useful.
JULIAN Right. We'd better get down to composing them. I've got some ideas but what do you think for a starter, Kevin?
SALLY Oh, and Kevin …
KEVIN Yes?
SALLY If you don't mind, I think you'd better let Julian or me ask them.
KEVIN Why?
SALLY We agreed we're opponents, but that we'd try to keep the discussion friendly.
KEVIN Friendly? With people like him?
SALLY He probably believes quite sincerely that he's acting for the best. In fact I'm sure he does. We disagree, but I've tried to show him that we want to put rational arguments - that we're not just a bunch of mindless fanatics.
KEVIN Why should he think we are?
JULIAN If we behave like reasonable human beings, h
e shouldn't. That's the whole point.
KEVIN Are you saying I'm unreasonable?
JULIAN Cool it, Kevin. Don't keep looking for insults where none's intended.
KEVIN If that wasn't …
SALLY No one's saying you're unreasonable, Kevin, but plenty of people are. Unreasonable, I mean. And your indignation does tend to run away with you. You're inclined to get too heated in argument.
KEVIN (vigorously) And why not? With people like him set to ruin the world. Surely that's enough to be heated about?
JULIAN Yes, but we're asking him to help. We'll get nowhere if you start yelling at him.
KEVIN (yelling) I never yell!
Blackout.
Scene 3
Julian's flat. A period of discussion has evidently come to an end, and Ian is packing papers into his briefcase.
JULIAN Well, thank you very much, Dr. Kendrick. It's very good of you to give up your time like this.
IAN You're very welcome. I've often tried to get just this sort of session, but with no takers. People are always complaining about a lack of information, and it's amazing how suddenly they lose interest as soon as it's offered.
SALLY Why's that?
IAN I can't read their minds, of course, and I'm no psychologist. I can only suppose they prefer to cherish their prejudices. It's very refreshing to find people ready to listen. But you've been very quiet, Kevin. Hadn't you anything to say?
KEVIN (with a sour glance at Julian) Questions enough. But the others can put things better than I do. I need time to sort my ideas out.
IAN They may be all the better for that. If you'd like another session when you're ready, I'd be very happy to …
JULIAN That would be a good …
KEVIN There's no need …
IAN (after a brief pause) Hmm. Do you have a casting vote, Sally?
SALLY I think we'd better talk it over and let you know - if that's all right?
IAN Certainly. I'm pretty well booked up next week, but after that I've a fairly clear ten days - so far. In case it starts to fill up, you'd better let me know as soon as you've decided.
JULIAN Of course. If I come back to you in a couple of days, will that be soon enough?
IAN Should be. Right, until then …
SALLY Thanks again. Good night.
IAN Good night.
Sally shows him out while Julian tidies a few pages of notes.
JULIAN Well, Kevin, what was all that about?
KEVIN All what?
JULIAN Suddenly turning awkward.
KEVIN What do you mean?
JULIAN Turning down an offer to answer questions that you yourself said you had. Come to think of it, exactly like the bigoted characters that Kendrick mentioned.
KEVIN I simply decided I didn't particularly want the answers - at least any that that stuffed shirt would give.
SALLY (returning) Kevin! Those were exactly the kind of answers we wanted.
KEVIN And you believed he'd give them to us straight?
JULIAN I don't see why not.
KEVIN More fool you, then.
SALLY What's got into you? Why go to all the trouble of getting a recognised expert to answer our questions, and then refuse to believe him?
KEVIN He said he wasn't an expert on the most important questions.
SALLY Well, that suggests honesty, doesn't it?
KEVIN No, only ducking responsibility.
SALLY As he said, with people like you he can't win either way.
KEVIN He doesn't deserve to.
JULIAN "I've made up my mind, don't confuse me with facts."
KEVIN Don't give me that. Whose side are you on?
JULIAN On the side of the environment. That's the whole idea, remember?
KEVIN And you think I'm not?
JULIAN Not at all. But you're too wedded to your own ideas of what's good for it. They're probably right, basically, but there may be more to it than you've really considered.
SALLY And getting back to the point, if Kendrick isn't actually an expert in his own right on some aspects, he's worked with people who are. He's bound to know far more than any of us do about these things.
KEVIN Maybe. But I just think that if we take the truth to be more or less the opposite of what he says, we shan't be far wrong.
JULIAN Kevin, that's simply prejudice. Exactly what we're supposed to be avoiding.
KEVIN And where has sweet reason got us? Nowhere.
JULIAN We've only just started.
KEVIN Not us. The whole Green movement.
SALLY Now that simply isn't true. Look at all the controls that have been set up.
KEVIN But people like him can still talk their way round them. Or buy their way …
JULIAN Better be careful where you say that sort of thing, Kevin. It's probably actionable.
KEVIN Let 'em sue if they feel like it. What good would it do them?
JULIAN Very little, but none at all for you. For goodness' sake stop sulking.
KEVIN I am not sulking!
SALLY Look, I think we do need to ask him some more questions, if only who else to approach about those where he can't give a first-hand opinion.
JULIAN There's no need for you to be involved, Kevin, if you don't want to.
KEVIN You're not leaving me out of it.
JULIAN (exasperated) For goodness' sake! What do you want? One way or the other, make up your mind!
Blackout
Scene 4
Ian's sitting room. He is sorting a wad of papers. The door bell rings and he answers it.
IAN (off) Sally! This is a pleasant surprise.
SALLY I'm sorry to interrupt whatever you're doing.
IAN Don't worry - it's only my tax return. I'm glad of the excuse.
SALLY I'd have phoned, only …
IAN (as they enter) Come on through, anyway. Make yourself at home. Coffee?
SALLY No, thanks. I haven't much time.
IAN Not a social call, then.
SALLY No.
IAN (tidying papers) How some people can spend their whole lives working on this boring stuff beats me.
SALLY Plenty would be glad to afford being bored by them.
IAN I suppose that's true. I've been lucky. But what ...?
SALLY I've brought a draft of my piece on the GM treaty, in case you'd like to look over it.
IAN That's very thoughtful of you - thanks, I should.
SALLY After your comments about the press never getting a story right it seemed best. I'd have had it done earlier only other jobs kept cropping up and I had to cover them first.
IAN You've been pretty quick anyway. When do you need it back?
SALLY The sooner the better. Not more than a week, if you can manage it.
IAN I thought you were going to say tomorrow morning! I shouldn't take more than a day or so. Shall I drop it into your office?
SALLY That'll be fine. And ...
IAN Yes?
SALLY There's one other thing …
IAN What's that?
SALLY I'm afraid it's rather difficult … Look, you've given up a good bit of your time and I'm really grateful for your help …
IAN But?
SALLY You see, we discussed what you told us the other day, and there were some things we wanted to follow up - Kevin particularly …(Pause)
IAN Yes?
SALLY ... but he suddenly went very strange. You probably remember the confusion over whether we wanted another meeting or not.
IAN Yes. It did strike me as a bit odd.
SALLY Afterwards he said in effect that he wouldn't believe a word you said, and turned generally rather nasty.
IAN Ah.
SALLY I don't understand what's got into him. He's usually dead keen for discussion - almost embarrassingly argumentative at times.
IAN Hmm. So it seems out of character.
SALLY Exactly.
I
AN I couldn't help noticing - forgive me if I'm rushing in where angels fear to tread - he's very fond of you, isn't he?
SALLY I think so, but I don't see what that has to do with it.
IAN Don't you?
SALLY You surely don't think he's … jealous?
IAN I scarcely know him, of course, but it looks a distinct possibility.
SALLY But that's ridiculous! It isn't as if …
She stops in confusion.
IAN As if I were any sort of competition in that respect. Go on; you might as well say it - it's true enough. However much I might regret it.
SALLY You don't ...?
IAN I was speaking generally and hypothetically. Don't worry!
SALLY Anyway, he doesn't own me. And even if he did, I haven't given him any cause to fret.
IAN You wouldn't need to. Jealousy isn't rational, Sally. Or rather it has a twisted logic of its own. Once the seed is sown - and a mere nothing can do it - everything seems to confirm and nurture it. Even the most innocent trifles can take on a dire significance. It's a horrible state to be in.
SALLY That sounds like personal experience. Sorry, that's me rushing in now.
IAN Yes, I've been through it. So I pity any poor devil in its grip. It's like a knife twisting in the guts.
SALLY Come to think of it, he has been a bit edgy at times when we're in company. He gets so intense! I often wish he could be a bit more detached. Like Julian, say.
IAN Don't.
SALLY Don't what?
IAN Don't wish that. Rightly or wrongly, I think I'm a fair judge of character, and I'd say Kevin's the worthier. Even if the term is out of fashion!
SALLY I rather think Kevin might agree with you there, on the quiet.
IAN No bad thing, within limits. Humility's a virtue, right enough, but it doesn't mean denying real qualities. It's best based on a true assessment. From the little he did say, Kevin struck me as basically very sound. I'm not so sure about Julian. This is strictly between ourselves, of course.
SALLY Understood.
IAN Er … This may seem an impertinence, but do you mind if I ask a personal question?
SALLY It depends how personal.
IAN How serious is your attachment to him?
SALLY How do you measure it? But enough to want it made permanent.
IAN That's good enough. And does he want the same?
SALLY Obviously.
IAN I think you're probably right but, it isn't necessarily so, I'm afraid. Some men can get absurdly possessive for very dubious reasons, sometimes over little more than a passing fancy. Often it's just a form of injured vanity ...
SALLY Kevin isn't like that.
IAN … or essentially a lack of self-confidence. Do be careful. I dare say he'd make a devoted husband, but there's a risk - not a certainty, as he may snap out of it, but certainly a risk - that he'd always be suspicious of any other association. That could make things very difficult for both of you. However happy you are as a couple, you can't go through life isolated from the rest of the world.
SALLY Hmm. Now you mention it, there have been moments …
IAN Can you talk to him about it?
SALLY It never got to the point where I felt I had to.
IAN I think perhaps it has without your noticing.
SALLY Maybe. But I'd have to choose the moment.
IAN Yes, you will, very carefully indeed. Pick the wrong one and he'd take it as confirming his suspicions. And you'd better get advice from someone more experienced than me. What about your parents?
SALLY Afraid not. Dad died a few years ago, and Mum …(sighs)
IAN Yes?
SALLY Don't get me wrong. She's a dear soul and I think the world of her, but - well - she always gets the wrong end of the stick if I try to discuss anything serious, and there's no shifting her from whatever conclusion she's jumped to.
IAN I know the type. More heart than head. It's difficult. Still, there are probably other people you could try …
They are interrupted by a hammering at the door. Ian excuses himself and goes to answer it.
KEVIN (off) You've got Sally in there, haven't you?
IAN She is here, yes, but …
Kevin barges through and grabs Sally.
KEVIN What the hell do you think you're doing here?
SALLY Having a civilised conversation - until you arrived. Let go of me!
IAN Kevin! I don't know what you think you're playing at, but while you're in my house you'll either be civil or …
KEVIN You keep out of this. It's between …
He pushes Ian away; Ian stumbles, trips and falls, banging his head on a table edge. His stillness is not immediately noticed.
SALLY Kevin! Whatever's got into you?
KEVIN I'm not having that old whatsit messing you about.
SALLY You're the only one messing about. For goodness' sake behave yourself.
KEVIN I'll behave as I damn well like.
SALLY You just can't go around barging into people's houses and shoving them about like that. You haven't even the feeble excuse of being drunk.
KEVIN Oh, stop lecturing.
SALLY Kevin! Do you really want to become one of those pathetic little assault cases filling up gaps in the news? I'm terribly sorry about this, Dr. Kendrick … Dr. Kendrick? Are you all right?
KEVIN Never mind him. Let's get out of here.
SALLY Shut up for a moment - I don't like the look of him.
KEVIN I never did.
Sally kneels beside Ian and tries to rouse him.
SALLY He doesn't seem to be breathing.
KEVIN Just pretending. Playing for sympathy.
SALLY Kevin, you pig-headed idiot, this is serious. He's really hurt.
KEVIN But surely …
SALLY For heaven's sake, if you won't do anything useful yourself, get someone who will - call an ambulance!
Blackout.
Scene 5
Julian's flat. He is carefully reading a newspaper, Sally sitting moodily staring into space.
JULIAN (laying the paper aside) Well, your piece looks good. It goes well with Kendrick's obit.
SALLY (dully) Thanks.
JULIAN Putting them together gives it quite a boost. Gives you a boost too. Your own by-line - quite an achievement for a junior.
SALLY I'd have preferred to do without that kind of boost. In fact I wouldn't have handed the piece in at all, only the editor insisted on having it.
JULIAN I should think so. "Famous GM expert's final words" - what editor could resist it?
SALLY His heading, not mine. It horrified me. Not even really true.
JULIAN Could have been worse. Think what one of the tabloids would have made of it.
SALLY Don't!
JULIAN And of course it would have wanted a shot of you in your Mata Hari kit. Or better still without it.
SALLY No chance. Kevin would have had a fit. Give it a rest, Julian.
JULIAN That's a point. Where is he? Haven't seen him for days, and when I rang he was distinctly short with me.
SALLY He's very upset about the whole business.
JULIAN Surprising when he'd taken such a dislike to the fellow.
SALLY Well, it was a nasty shock, realising he was dead.
JULIAN I suppose it must have been.
SALLY What are you getting at?
JULIAN I'm not getting at anything. Why so prickly all of a sudden? There's no need to jump down my throat.
SALLY Sorry, my nerves are a bit on edge.
JULIAN I thought news reporters were hardened to unpleasant events.
SALLY They may be, in time. I haven't been at it very long, remember. And I'm not sure I'd want to be hardened all that much.
JULIAN Don't tell me you're going in for the bleeding heart stuff.
SALLY Huh! Not likely. People who write that sort of guff must be really hardened. It's utterly cynical. I d
on't want to lose the ability to feel for people's pain.
JULIAN (gently) Be careful, then. You're likely to get badly hurt yourself.
SALLY (surprised) Are you all right?
JULIAN Yes, of course. Why?
SALLY You actually sounded sincere then.
JULIAN As if I were ever anything else! (In mock sorrow) You grieve me, Sally.
SALLY That's more like the usual Julian.
JULIAN So all we need is to get back the usual Sally and the usual Kevin. Perhaps you'd better go and see what's up with him.
SALLY Maybe.
JULIAN That doesn't sound very enthusiastic. What's going on?
SALLY I don't know. I hear he's been off work for three days. He's been pretty distant with me, too.
JULIAN Have you had a row?
SALLY Not really. Though I was pretty sharp with him when he burst in on my talk with Dr. Kendrick.
JULIAN With reason, I imagine. Tact isn't exactly his strong point.
SALLY I know. But I've called him names over his bluntness often enough before, and it's always been like water off a duck's back.
JULIAN Effect of shock, then?
SALLY If it was as simple as that I'd have thought he'd be over it by now. Or at least the worst of it.
JULIAN This gets worrying. I really think you ought to try and see him. I'll come with you, if you think it'll do any good, although …
SALLY No, I think it's best if I go alone. But thanks all the same.
JULIAN Right. Will you come back here and report, or …?
SALLY No, but I'll ring when I've got some news.
Blackout.
Scene 6
Kevin's bed-sitter. He is snoozing in a chair, with a half-packed travel bag and some loose clothing beside him. There is a knock at the door.
KEVIN (waking with a start) Uh? What … Who is it?
SALLY (off) It's me, Sally. May I come in?
KEVIN Yes - it's not locked.
SALLY (entering) You sound as though you've just woken up.
KEVIN I have. Suddenly felt knackered and had to have forty winks.
SALLY Are you all right?
KEVIN Yes. Except that I haven't been sleeping at nights. Then I'm fagged out during the day.
SALLY (noticing the bag) Are you going away?
KEVIN What does it look like?
SALLY There's no need to be like that.
KEVIN Sorry.
SALLY You weren't meaning to slope off without even saying goodbye, were you?
KEVIN Of course not.
SALLY The way you've been lately, I'm not sure there's any "of course" about it.
KEVIN Sorry, you're right. I did rather hope to get away without your noticing - for a while, at least.
SALLY Then how long are you going for?
KEVIN I'm not sure.
SALLY You must have some idea.
KEVIN Well, actually …
SALLY Yes?
KEVIN I probably shan't be coming back.
SALLY What, not at all?
KEVIN That's right.
SALLY But why?
KEVIN Oh, for goodness' sake!
SALLY Kevin!
KEVIN I'm sorry.
SALLY You don't seem the same person lately. What's the matter?
KEVIN It's that business with Kendrick. It just goes round and round in my head and nothing will drive it away - not for more than a minute or two. It's utterly maddening. At night there's no getting away from it at all. If only I could go back a week and play the whole thing differently!
SALLY But you can't. And it would probably turn out just the same anyway. Your temper ...
KEVIN I suppose you're right. But it doesn't help very much.
SALLY Can you think of anything that would?
KEVIN Not so far.
SALLY One thing's certain - running away from it won't help.
KEVIN I'm not running away.
SALLY That's true, I suppose. You'll be taking it with you, just as surely as that bag. More surely, because it's inside you.
KEVIN If only there was some kind of left-luggage office for unwanted memories. Or a "Delete" button in the brain.
SALLY Pity there isn't. But they say confession's good for the soul. For the mind, too.
KEVIN To a parson? You know what I think of them. I couldn't.
SALLY Well, a counsellor, then. It seems to be a thriving business these days.
KEVIN I dare say. But I don't see that it would help me.
SALLY It must do some good. Otherwise …
KEVIN I'm sure it does - for the counsellors.
SALLY What do you mean?
KEVIN It must give them a mighty good opinion of themselves.
SALLY That's a thoroughly cynical remark - more like Julian.
KEVIN Maybe he's right.
SALLY All right, let's look at what happened. You pushed him and he fell. You could do that a hundred times and no harm would come of it.
KEVIN But this time there was plenty. There could hardly be more.
SALLY Yes, but he could easily have tripped over that rug with no one else there at all.
KEVIN Maybe so. But it happened this time because I pushed him.
SALLY It was an accident, Kevin. It isn't as if you meant him any harm.
KEVIN Isn't it?
SALLY What do you mean?
KEVIN When I went to that house, Sally, I had murder in my heart. I didn't recognise it at the time, but it's as plain as a pikestaff now.
SALLY You're imagining it.
KEVIN No, I'm not. I wanted to kill him, and because of what I did he died. I'm as guilty as if I'd clobbered him with an axe.
SALLY Come off it. You didn't clobber him deliberately, and you obviously didn't have an axe or anything like it. The very worst an inquest might decide is manslaughter, and it's a thousand times more likely to be accidental death.
KEVIN Sally, you're missing the whole point. To hell with the inquest! I'm talking morally.
SALLY Look, Kevin, we've all done things we're desperately ashamed of. However much we'd like to, we can't do anything about them now, not directly. The past is - well, past and unalterable. Punishing yourself won't change it.
KEVIN It may even the balance a bit.
SALLY No it won't. The harm you've done - and I won't make it out to be less than it is - that will still be there. It's the same for all of us, one way or another. The only way we can hope to even the balance is by doing a bit more good than we're strictly obliged to.
KEVIN I suppose that may be a possibility.
SALLY So there'll be no more talk of going away?
KEVIN I'm sorry, but I have to.
SALLY Why?
KEVIN Because there's too much here to remind me.
SALLY You'll have to stay for the inquest, anyway. We'll both be needed as witnesses.
KEVIN Oh, that. I hadn't thought ...
SALLY You can't just skip off. That would certainly give people nasty ideas.
KEVIN I suppose so. But then …
SALLY What about your job?
KEVIN I've chucked it in.
SALLY Kevin! That's stupid.
KEVIN Maybe, but I've done it.
SALLY (slowly making up her mind) Would it help if …
KEVIN If what?
SALLY … if I came with you?
KEVIN You couldn't!
SALLY Why not?
KEVIN Your own career's just taking off. You can't abandon it now.
SALLY I could - if you wanted me to.
KEVIN Sally, you're marvellous, but you can't.
SALLY Why not? If it's worth giving up yours …
KEVIN It's not that. Don't you see? I'm trying to get away from reminders. You'd remind me of what's happened more than anything else could.
SALLY I hadn't thought of that.
KEVIN I'm sorry.
SALLY Where will you go?
KEVIN I've relatives up in the Highlands. I've arranged to stay with them for a while.
SALLY Is that really wise?
KEVIN Why not?
SALLY You won't have the city bustle to take your mind off your worries.
KEVIN I've usually found that the hills calm my mind.
SALLY Let's hope they do. And after that?
KEVIN I'll see what turns up.
SALLY I'll miss you, Kevin. More than I can say.
KEVIN I'm sorry. I'll miss you, too. Maybe, if I can sort myself out …
SALLY Yes?
KEVIN Oh, it's no use. You'd do better to forget me.
SALLY Now don't start the noble renunciation stuff. You aren't in a romantic novel. It doesn't suit you.
KEVIN You're probably right. You usually are.
SALLY So let's just wait and see how things turn out.
Fade out.
Scene 7
Julian's flat, some weeks later. Julian is preparing for an evening out. The doorbell rings and he answers it.
JULIAN Sally! You just caught me.
SALLY Thank goodness I did. I tried to phone, but couldn't get through.
JULIAN There's a fault on the line. What's up?
SALLY It's about Kevin -
JULIAN You've heard from him?
SALLY Not directly. But about him.
JULIAN Go on.
SALLY You look as though you're going out - do you have time?
JULIAN For this, yes.
SALLY Well, there was a call at the office from the police in Aviemore.
JULIAN The police? What's he been up to?
SALLY There was an avalanche in the Cairngorms yesterday. Did you hear about it?
JULIAN Yes, on the news last night.
SALLY It seems he was one of those caught in it.
JULIAN Is he ...?
SALLY Not dangerously hurt, thank goodness, but a broken ankle and a bit of concussion that left him confused. He didn't have any identification on him, but before he came round they found my business card in his pocket. The editor thinks there's a story in it - apparently he pulled out a couple of tourists who'd have been suffocated otherwise.
JULIAN With a broken ankle?
SALLY I think that must have been in a secondary fall. Anyway, I'm travelling up tomorrow.
JULIAN Will you be all right by yourself? I could ...
SALLY Thanks for the thought. Another time I'd have been glad of company, but as it is …
JULIAN Yes, I understand. Well, thanks for letting me know. Give him my good wishes, and keep me posted. But now …
SALLY Yes, of course. I'll be off - have a good evening!
Blackout
Scene 8
A room in a Scottish B&B. Elsie is fussing around Kevin who is on a settee with one lower leg encased in plaster. He looks very tired and drawn. A few books are on a table beside him. He yawns and picks one of them up, examining it critically.
ELSIE Will you be all right now, Mr. Andrews?
KEVIN Yes, thanks, Mrs. McDonald.
ELSIE Comfortable?
KEVIN As near as I can be.
ELSIE I'm afraid that leg'll hurt for a while.
KEVIN Could be worse.
ELSIE Aye, there'll be some who might well wish they could feel a hurt or two.
KEVIN I'm afraid so.
ELSIE And would have been more but for you, they tell me.
KEVIN I don't really remember much about it. (He yawns again.)
ELSIE You'll be needing a rest, I think. Those newspapermen ...
KEVIN Yes. And I hardly slept at all last night.
ELSIE No surprise in that. Well, maybe you will now. Just call out if you need anything - I shan't be far off.
KEVIN Thanks.
He leafs through the book without much interest. He yawns again, his eyes close and after a few seconds the book slips from his hands. He begins to snore gently. Lights dim to suggest a passage of time. After a little while the snores close with a snort, light returns, and Kevin blinks awake. He starts up, looks around in puzzlement, then realises where he is and relaxes with a relieved smile. Elsie taps gently on the door and enters on tiptoe.
ELSIE Oh, you're awake. I didn't want to disturb you …
KEVIN You didn't, thank you.
ELSIE … only there's a young lady to see you. Shall I ask her to wait?
KEVIN No, let her come in.
ELSIE You're sure you don't mind?
KEVIN Not at all. If it's who I think -
ELSIE She just said she was a friend.
KEVIN Then it probably is. I do want to see her.
Elsie withdraws and ushers Sally in.
SALLY Kevin! Thank goodness you're all right.
KEVIN It's good to see you, Sally. Thanks for coming all this way.
SALLY Actually it's on expenses. The paper wants your story.
KEVIN To hell with the story! It can wait.
SALLY They told me you had a broken ankle, and a good deal of bruising. How do you feel?
KEVIN Marvellous!
SALLY What?
KEVIN Not just marvellous - bloody marvellous!
SALLY That's a bit different from the last time I saw you.
KEVIN I told you a spell in the hills would do me good.
SALLY Yes, but this is ridiculous. What's got into you?
KEVIN I don't know, but it's a lot better than the last time you asked me that question.
SALLY When was that?
KEVIN When I crashed in on you and Dr. Kendrick.
SALLY Ah, so you're giving him his title now. That's an improvement, at least.
KEVIN Never mind that. I was asleep just before you came …
SALLY Yes, I'm sorry to have disturbed you.
KEVIN It's all right, I'd woken up. But I had a really peculiar dream.
SALLY A nightmare? Hardly surprising.
KEVIN No, not like that at all. Well, a bit, at first. It started off with that scene in his place, but then it shifted. I don't know how it was supposed to be, but we were walking along a forest path, talking together. I tried to apologise for what I'd done, but he wasn't having it …
SALLY I'm not surprised. Apologising is hardly enough.
KEVIN No, you've got me wrong. He said I didn't need to. I'd paid my debt with this business in the avalanche.
SALLY That's a thought. So it's forgive and forget, eh?
KEVIN Not forget. He was very hot on that. "Remember never to let jealousy get the better of you again."
SALLY Sounds pretty good advice.
KEVIN (mischievously) So you'd better not give me cause for it, had you?
SALLY Oh, so we're back together, are we?
KEVIN If you'll have me.
SALLY (teasing) I'll have to think about that. Oh, by the way -
KEVIN Yes?
SALLY I don't know what prompted me, but I asked about your job. It's still vacant.
KEVIN That's interesting.
SALLY Oh, Kevin …
KEVIN Yes?
SALLY It's wonderful to have you back again!
She hurls herself at him.
KEVIN Mind my bloody foot!
BLACKOUT
**********
Return to Contents