1241 - Kendrick, alone in the drawing room, picks up the X-marked slip he chose earlier. Bramwell enters the house, wearing a black armband. He greets Kendrick, who somberly greets him back. After what I heard about you and Melanie, says Bramwell, I would have expected you'd be more cheerful. I've learned that there is never anything to be cheerful about in this house, says Kendrick--tonight is no exception. What's happened? asks Bramwell. The lottery was held again, one hour ago, says Kendrick. And who's going into the room this time? asks Bramwell, making a sour face. I am, says Kendrick. Bramwell is astonished.
You mean to tell me that they actually allowed you to participate in the lottery? asks Bramwell. Why shouldn't they? asks Kendrick, I'm a member of the family now. He pours a drink. But you're not a Collins, says Bramwell. Actually, I wanted to participate, says Kendrick--I was anxious to be picked to go into the room. Bramwell caustically remarks, of course they were more than happy to accommodate you--your magnanimity spared them all! It wasn't that, says Kendrick, I knew what I was doing. Why on earth are you going into that room? demands Bramwell. Kendrick paces away from him, puts down his drink, grabs the slip marked with an X and crumples it in his hand--to end the curse, he says determinedly--he throws the slip into the fireplace. You and I don't know each other very well, says Bramwell, but may I give you a word of friendly advice? What is it? asks Kendrick. Don't become a part of this Collins madness, advises Bramwell--take Melanie as far away from here as you can. I think it's too late for that, says Kendrick. It's never too late--if you love her, says Bramwell. Obviously, says Kendrick, you haven't heard the news--Melanie had another attack--she's locked in the tower room--shortly after it happened, Julia and I saw the ghost of Brutus Collins right here in this room. Bramwell looks skeptical--the ghost of Brutus Collins, he says--surely you imagined that! It wasn't my imagination, insists Kendrick--he spoke to us, and said Melanie would not be sane again until another person went into that room. Of all the people in this house, Melanie seems to have suffered the most, says Bramwell--I don't understand it. I almost took her away from here last night, says Kendrick--I blame myself for what happened--that's why I'm going into that locked room. And you really think you can end it? asks Bramwell. Yes, says Kendrick. I'm afraid I can't agree with you, says Bramwell--the only way for this to end is for the Collins family to destroy itself. Kendrick looks at him grimly. Catherine enters. Agitated, she asks, Bramwell, what are you doing here? Kendrick excuses himself--I'm going to see Melanie. Catherine closes the doors after Kendrick leaves and again asks Bramwell, what are you doing here? You seem upset, he notes. Of course I'm upset, she says--don't you think I have a reason to be? I hope you don't think I had anything to do with it, he says--I'm here for a legitimate reason--I spent the whole day making arrangements for Daphne's funeral and I came here to announce them to the family. Tell me the arrangements, she says--I'll relay them to the family. Why are you so upset? he asks.
Your presence here upsets me, she says--don't you know if you're found here, there will be trouble?--there have been such ill feelings since Daphne died. You're speaking of Morgan now, he says evenly. If we are seen together now, it will be very difficult for me, she says, sitting down. Very well, he says--I'll leave on one condition. What's that? she asks. Agree to see me tonight at nine o'clock at the gazebo, he says. Don't be absurd, she says, that's impossible. It's essential that you see me, he insists. I can't afford to be seen with you, she says. Is Morgan really watching you that closely? he asks. Can't you understand? she asks. I understand only one thing, he says, sitting beside her, and that is that you must see me--and I will not leave here until you promise you will. Very well, she says--yes I'll come. Nine o'clock at the gazebo, he repeats. Yes, now please get out of here! she cries. Bramwell starts to leave, but nearly runs smack into Morgan when he opens the doors.
Leave the room, Morgan orders his wife. Catherine nervously says, Bramwell has a good reason for being here. Then I'll hear it from him, won't I? says Morgan. Morgan, remember what you promised me, she reminds him. I said kindly leave the room, Catherine! repeats Morgan. She does. Her husband closes the double doors. "Your mind is swirling with lurid thoughts, isn't it?" asks Bramwell (I do love that line)! As far as I'm concerned, you can thank Catherine that you're still alive, says Morgan. Why, may I ask, do I owe her my life? asks Bramwell. You couldn't have been more responsible for your wife's death than if you had taken a pistol and shot her down dead! accuses Morgan. So now murder has been added to my list of crimes? asks Bramwell. Yes, says Morgan--I was on my way to the Old House to shoot you down like a common criminal, but Catherine persuaded me not to. I must express my gratitude to her, says Bramwell sarcastically. How contemptuous you are, says Morgan, you have absolutely no feeling for Daphne's death at all, do you?
I will express my feelings in my own way, says Bramwell, but what strikes me curious is your behavior, not mine. What is that supposed to mean? asks Morgan. Your seemingly intense grief for Daphne's death, says Bramwell--you never felt that way for her when she was alive and well, did you? What are you getting at? demands Morgan. This grief that you have for her, this anger, has nothing to do with Daphne's death, says Bramwell--it's because I'm free again--free to be your rival! That's a lie! shouts Morgan--I was very fond of Daphne--you're the one responsible for her death! If that's what you want to believe, says Bramwell, I will not try to stop you, but I know you so well--I know how easily jealous you get. That's not true, says Morgan--Catherine loves me very much and she's very happy with me. If you keep thinking that, says Bramwell, sooner or later you'll be convinced. I think it's time you left this house, commands Morgan. You heard what Catherine said, says Bramwell, I'm here for a legitimate reason. I DON'T CARE WHAT THE REASON IS! yells Morgan--I want you out of this house this minute! I will leave on orders from the head of the house--and that isn't you! says Bramwell. No, it isn't, agrees Morgan, but that does not stop me from bodily throwing you out--he grabs hold of Bramwell, about to make good on his threat. Julia enters, interrupting, calling, "Morgan!" This is a fight between him and me, says Morgan. You will leave this room right now, orders Julia. Do not interfere! insists Morgan. Do you understand what I'm saying, says Julia--leave this room right now--do you hear me? I think you had better listen to your aunt, advises Bramwell, if you want to live to fight another day. Morgan gives Bramwell a look of unmitigated hatred and exits the room. I warned you, Julia reminds Bramwell, but you wouldn't listen--are you satisfied now? Satisfied? he asks. I told you that there would be trouble unless you left Collinwood, she says. I did not instigate what you just saw, he says. That is beside the point! she says. No it is not, he insists, I came here in peace--to tell the family of Daphne's funeral arrangements. You should have left it to Josette to tell us, says Julia--I told you if you came here, Morgan would be angry. That is Morgan's business, not mine, says Bramwell--I promise you that nothing will happen--now I want to go see Flora--is she here? Yes, in her room, resting, she doesn't want to be disturbed, explains Julia--why do you want to see her?--to tell her the funeral arrangements, I expect--well, you can tell them to me. She sits down to listen.
Tower room - Kendrick waits outside in the corridor. He unlocks the door and enters. What do you want? asks Melanie. You still don't recognize me, do you? he asks dispiritedly. I recognize you, all right, she says nastily, you're the one who put me here. Melanie, I have something very important... Don't come near me! she warns, eyes gleaming with madness--if you do, I'll kill you!
Melanie, he says. She covers her ears--stop calling me that name! she demands. Will you just listen to me and try to understand what I'm going to say? he says--it is very important to both of us. You and I have nothing to say to each other, she insists. You have nothing to lose by listening to me, he says--do you understand that much? I understand I have no choice, because I'm your prisoner here, she says. We've done it for your own good, he says, but you might not have to be here that much longer. You're lying to me! she shrieks, you never intend to let me out of this room! Do you know what the lottery is? he asks. Yes I know, she says. It was held tonight, he says--I was chosen to go into the room! You seem almost anxious to go in, she says. I am, he says, because I believe I can spend the night in that room and end the curse. The curse will never end, she says, Brutus will see to that. I don't believe that, says Kendrick, I believe I can end it, and if I do, you will be cured. There's nothing wrong with me, she says--it's you, all of you Collinses who are mad--all of you. She has wandered toward the door, thinking of escape as she's speaking, but he slams the door closed when she draws near. Melanie! he says. If you go into that room, you will die! she cries. No, he says. Brutus shows no mercy to anyone, she says, he is too powerful--he cannot be defied!--I tried it--I failed--I've had no rest since then--and now I'm his servant--and I must help him in any way I can--to get revenge--I promise you, when you go into that room you will die--and when you do, I shall rejoice. (The cold, quiet way she whispers this is absolutely chilling!)
She begins to laugh, insane laughter that makes Kendrick close his eyes in misery. He leaves the tower room and meets Julia, carrying a tray, out in the hall. Why did you come and see her? she asks. I had to see her, he says. You knew how useless it would be, she says. I felt there might be some hope, he says. There isn't and there won't be until you go into that room, she says. Julia, he says, she's my WIFE, I couldn't stay away. Did it do any good to see her? she asks. No, it didn't, he admits. Then don't torture yourself by coming here again, she says, we both heard the prophecy--we both know that she's got to stay this way. There is something about me that none of you seem to have a grip on, he says--I'm not like any of you--you're all defeatists, I've watched and studied you--you're all willing to sit back and accept your fate!--not me--I will fight this thing!--and I win!--I will do my own destiny, and nothing will stop me! You sound very much like Catherine when she came here, says Julia--to her the whole curse was just superstitious nonsense, is what she thought--it was barely two months ago--now she feels as we do--that there may be nothing that can appease the curse. And you're all willing to stay here, says Kendrick, and die, one by one? If running away were the answer, we'd have done that before, says Julia. How do you know it isn't the answer? he asks. Because there are those who have tried it, she says. And what happened to them? he asks. The curse followed, caught up with them, she explains, every one of them--none of them ever lived to tell of it. I will, he vows.
I hope so, for your sake--and for Melanie's, says Julia--I've lived here all my life, and there's something I know--you're just as human as any of us--and the same thing can happen to you in that room as any one in the family. She turns to unlock the door and bring Melanie her food. Kendrick looks chastened---and thoughtful.
Morgan swirls brandy in a glass. Kendrick, looking frustrated, joins him in the drawing room. Would you like a drink? offers Morgan. If I thought it would help, I'd say yes, answers Kendrick. I know how you feel, says Morgan--remember, I spent the night in that room also--maybe you should have taken Mother's advice and gotten an annulment to the marriage. I've got to do it, for Melanie's sake, says Kendrick. Well, I'd try to tell you to stop thinking about it, says Morgan, but I know how impossible that is. No, it's not going into the ROOM that's bothering me, says Kendrick raggedly, it's the waiting!--why can't I just go up there now and spend the night?--I'm ready for whatever happens! One of the rules is you must spend the entire evening in the room, says Morgan, not just part of it. Kendrick, a sick grin on his face, says, "One of the rules--the ritual of it all is so unbelievable--there's something uncivilized about it--I think I will have that drink." He helps himself to a brandy. 8:55. Morgan, who has just asked Kendrick to fix him another drink, spots Catherine about to leave the house. She looks at him guiltily as he asks, are you going out? Yes, says Catherine--I assume Julia told you about the funeral arrangements. Yes, she did, says Morgan--you aren't going to the village, are you? No, she says, I was going to the Old house. Why? he asks. The funeral is tomorrow, says Catherine, I'll be there, of course, but so will so many other people--I thought I'd like to pay my last respects to my sister alone--you can understand that, can't you, Morgan? Yes, of course I can, he says. I won't be long, she promises. He stops her--are you feeling all right? he asks. Yes, she says, wiping away a tear, of course--see you soon. Something in her demeanor puzzles him. Kendrick holds out Morgan's drink. I've changed my mind, says Morgan--I don't want it.
Bramwell paces the gazebo, waiting for Catherine. When she appears, he thanks her for coming. This is insane, she protests, I'm risking everything to be here. Even in mourning, you're the picture of loveliness, he says tenderly. Ignoring his compliment, she says, tell me what it is that's so important that it couldn't wait until after tomorrow. There's only one thing that's important in our lives--us, he says. I don't see how you can talk that way, she says, moving away from his intense gaze, my sister isn't even buried yet. Daphne wanted us to be together, remember? he asks. Did you ask me here just to remind me of that? she asks. No, he says, I asked you here because I heard something that deeply disturbed me--you almost had one of your fainting spells this morning, didn't you? Facing him, she asks, how could you possibly know that? Word spreads quickly at Collinwood, he chuckles--oh, the family didn't tell me, but over the years, I've cultivated friends among the servants--it's true, isn't it? She turns away--yes, she says, it's true. And you know why you almost fainted, he says--because you're pregnant, and that's what I wanted to talk to you about. What more is there to say? she asks. Catherine, you can't keep putting it off forever, he reminds her, time's running out--before long, you won't have to tell anyone--everyone will know. I've thought and thought about it, she says tremulously, but I don't know what to do. "We must make up our minds soon," he insists--"it's our child that you're carrying--and we have to come to some decision about its future!"
Unknown to both of them, Morgan, hiding in the bushes, has overheard everything.
NOTES: I always wondered just how much Morgan loved Catherine. Now that he knows she's pregnant by his hated enemy, would he go into the room for her all over again? Somehow, I doubt it, and I fear for both Bramwell, Catherine and their baby now. Morgan was quite ready to kill Bramwell, and now he'll probably be equally prepared to do away with what he will see as his unfaithful wife. Morgan hasn't been the same since his possession by Forsythe. I suspect this revelation will send him over the deep end into total madness.
Nancy's Barrett's possessed Melanie gives me the chills in this episode. She's so nasty to Kendrick, especially when she tells him she will rejoice if he dies in the room. That's mighty cold, even for the ghost of Amanda Collins.
I said that Kendrick seemed to share Catherine's attitude about the lottery, but how matter of factly Julia spoke to him about others who have tried to escape the curse. Will his hopes be dashed the way Catherine's were?
Love, Robin
