The Stonemason (9 page)

B
IG
B
EN
You ain't goin to help me.

B
EN
I'm not going to mortgage that property. I couldn't if I wanted to. Can't you borrow against the house?

B
IG
B
EN
No.

B
EN
Why not?

B
IG
B
EN
I done borrowed against it.

There is a silence in the room.

B
EN
Are you going to lose the house?

B
IG
B
EN
No.

B
EN
You are, aren't you?

B
IG
B
EN
(
Angrily
) I don't get some money I'm goin to lose everthing I got.

Silence.

B
EN
(
Quietly
) I'll go to the bank tomorrow. I'll see what they'll let me have on an unsecured note. They'll want Maven to co—sign though. And I don't think they're going to let me have any six thousand dollars. How much does Mama know about this?

B
IG
B
EN
She don't need to know nothin.

B
EN
Well, when they put her in the street she'll know. Her and her shoes. I always wondered why she had about forty pair of shoes. She's a provident woman.

B
IG
B
EN
Well pile it all on my head. You and Pap both just walked off and left the company. Just walked off and left it.

B
EN
I give you forty hours a week. Every week. Papaw worked on the job every day till he was ninety two years old. What do you want?

Big Ben drains his cup and puts it in the sink and crosses to the chair and gets his hat and coat.

B
IG
B
EN
Don't make no difference what I want. I ain't goin to get it. Not even in my own house. Under my own roof. Never could and never will.

He exits the kitchen. His steps on the stairs.

SCENE V

The kitchen, morning. Ben and Maven are sitting at the table. Maven is dressed for school. Mama is putting away cups and dishes out of the drain board. She finishes and comes to the table and picks up the morning paper.

M
AMA
You done with this Benny?

B
EN
Yes mam.

She takes the paper and shuffles on toward the door.

M
AMA
Take my bath.

B
EN
Mama, do you read the paper in the bathtub?

M
AMA
You don't need to be speculatin bout what I does in the bathtub.

She goes out the door and up the stairs. Ben smiles. He looks at Maven. She smiles.

B
EN
Aren't you going to be late?

M
AVEN
No. Yes. Probably.

She looks at her cup and she looks up at Ben. Ben raises his chin in a gesture that means Let's hear it.

M
AVEN
I don't know. The basement's not far enough away any more.

B
EN
I know.

M
AVEN
I don't know what to say to Carlotta any more. I really don't.

Ben purses his lips and nods.

M
AVEN
Ben, how much money does your father owe you?

He looks up at Maven.

B
EN
I don't know. I'd have to look it up.

M
AVEN
But you know more or less.

B
EN
Yes. I just don't want you to worry about it.

M
AVEN
I worry anyway.

B
EN
Do you want me to tell you?

M
AVEN
Yes.

B
EN
It's around eleven thousand dollars.

Maven sits looking at her cup.

B
EN
Well?

She shakes her head. She looks up at Ben.

M
AVEN
Has business been that bad?

B
EN
No.

M
AVEN
Does he underbid the jobs?

B
EN
All black contractors underbid the jobs. If they didn't they wouldn't get the work. But that's not it.

M
AVEN
Well what does he do with the money?

B
EN
I don't know.

M
AVEN
If you got paid for the work you do you could hire somebody out at the farm. You mix your own mud out there.

B
EN
I have no argument against you.

M
AVEN
Well I don't think you should let him take advantage of you just because he's your father.

B
EN
I know. Every Friday is a shoot—out. You don't know. If you think you hear a lot of poor mouthing around here you ought to hear him on the job.

Maven gets up and takes her cup and saucer to the sink. She comes back to the table and kisses Ben on the forehead and takes her coat off the chair.

B
EN
Is that it?

M
AVEN
(
Taking up her briefcase from the chair
) That's it, Babe.

Ben shakes his head, smiling. She starts for the door and then turns.

M
AVEN
Ben.

He juts his chin at her to say yes.

M
AVEN
What do you think has happened to Soldier?

B
EN
I don't know.

M
AVEN
If it was something terrible and you didn't want me to know and I wanted to know would you tell me?

B
EN
Yes.

M
AVEN
I want to know.

B
EN
I don't know what's happened to him. I just don't know. He may come back. He may be dead. I just don't know.

M
AVEN
Would you tell Carlotta? If it was something terrible and there was nothing anyone could do about it?

B
EN
I don't know. I don't think so. Maybe I'd be wrong. I don't think I could.

She bends and kisses him.

M
AVEN
Bye.

B
EN
Bye, Lady.

— CURTAIN —

ACT IV

SCENE I

Night, the kitchen. Ben at the table drinking tea. The light comes on at the podium and Ben takes his place there.

B
EN
He didn't come back. Mama walked around the house like a Roman stoic for weeks just as if she'd not a worry in the world and then one night she woke from a dream or from I don't know what and she cried straight through till breakfast and she would not be consoled and we brought her down to the kitchen and Maven wanted to call the doctor and my father tried to give her whiskey and all she would say was that poor child, that poor child. And Maven was right. It's worse than a death. More vengeful than a suicide. His absence is like a pall of guilt and humiliation. People would say He'll come back. Or He'll turn up. Then they stopped saying anything. Then they stopped coming around. Carlotta for a long time would not come to the dinner table and we ate in silence and then she did come and we ate in more silence. His birthday is in two more weeks. He would be sixteen. Will be sixteen? In what tense do you speak of those who have vanished? You don't speak of them. You are simply enslaved to them. And Carlotta was right. I think I can fix everything. The simplest word of consolation sounds like a lie. She was right about Landry too. He did get married.

— INTERMISSION —

SCENE II

The light is on in the front room and in the kitchen. It is evening and Ben comes in the kitchen door and puts the kettle on and goes through and into the front room to get the paper. A young man is sitting rather formally in the front room waiting for Carlotta. He is dressed in a suit and tie. Ben goes through and gets the paper and shuts the outer door offstage and returns with the paper. The visitor stands up. His name is
MASON FERGUGSON
.

M
ASON
Hello. I'm Mason Ferguson.

He holds out his hand and he and Ben shake hands.

M
ASON
I met you once before.

B
EN
Mason, what are you doing silting in here all by yourself?

M
ASON
I'm waiting for Carlotta.

B
EN
Well you better come on in the kitchen.

Mason follows him into the kitchen. Ben throws the paper on the table and goes to the stove.

B
EN
Sit down. What can I get you?

M
ASON
Not a thing, thank you.

B
EN
I can give you coffee or tea or a beer. Or a Coke.

M
ASON
No thanks. Really.

B
EN
(
Getting down teabags
) Well I'm just getting ready to have a cup of tea. Do you drink tea?

M
ASON
Well, yes.

B
EN
Good.

He gets down cups.

B
EN
What sort of work do you do, Mason?

M
ASON
I'm an insurance claims adjuster.

B
EN
(
Pouring water in the cups
) Claims adjuster. You want lemon?

M
ASON
No thank you.

Ben brings the cups to the table and takes a chair opposite Mason. He sips his tea.

B
EN
There's sugar there.

M
ASON
This is fine.

B
EN
Well, you look sober and industrious. Have you ever been married?

M
ASON
No.

B
EN
(
Smiling
) You can stop me any time you want.

M
ASON
(
Smiling
) That's okay.

B
EN
Does she like you?

M
ASON
I beg your pardon?

B
EN
Does she like you? Carly. Does she like you?

M
ASON
(
Laughing a little nervously
) Well. I don't know. Maybe you should ask her.

B
EN
But you hope she likes you.

M
ASON
Yes.

Ben smiles and sips his tea. Mason smiles.

M
ASON
You didn't ask me if I like her.

B
EN
I know you like her. I knew you liked her when I saw you in there sitting on the sofa.

Mason smiles. Footsteps on the stairs overhead.

B
EN
Here she comes. I'll ask her.