ACT III
cowardly of me to say I wouldn’t. We can’t leave him like a child always. A man’s got to live in the world. He'll get old, and then it’ll be horrible . . . a childish old man . . . people pretending not to notice . . . being kind about it. He’s got to be a man . . . a real man . . . whatever it means. He’d be like a child grown up in body and not in mind. It was selfish of me. Give me the jersey and the ball. The truth’s the truth, and he must know it.
Jenny : Mrs. Grey . . .
Margaret : It’s got to be, my dear. The truth’s the truth.
[She puts her arms round Jenny and kisses her. Then she takes the jersey and the ball and goes to the door R. She stops at the door and leans against the wall—her eyes closed, her face a mask of suffering. The door opens and Chris comes in. He does not see her.
Chris : Margaret! Jenny, where’s Margaret? She hasn’t gone? You didn’t let her go?
[Jenny moves instinctively to hide the trunk and the toys. Margaret comes forward, her face composed now.
Margaret : I’m here, Chris.
Chris (turning) : Oh, there. Kitty said the doctor was talking to you. He’s wasted so much of our time. Let’s go out in the garden.
105
