Reflections in a Golden Eye Page #2

Blackjack.

I must be getting along.

But you stay, Morris.

Don't break up the party.

Good night, everybody.

Alison, I'll see you to your doorstep.

Good night, Alison.

She is crazy.

No, she's not.

You know, I had the best doctors for her.

They all say she's fine.

Well, now, look here.

You know we're scared for her...

...just to go from our front door

to yours alone.

Oh, well...

Cutting off her nipples

with a pair of garden shears.

You call that normal?

My God. Garden shears.

No, but she's not, you know.

Doctor says she's neurotic.

- It will take time, that's all.

- Time?

It's been three years

since she had that baby.

So it died...

...but that was three years ago.

She's not getting any better.

She's just getting worse.

Do you think she has any idea about us?

No.

Well, I hope not.

I like Alison.

Look...

...now that Alison's gone home...

...you two don't mind

if I do a little work, do you?

Play a couple of hands with us.

Well, I got my lecture to prepare.

You work too hard, Weldon.

Why don't you come

riding with us tomorrow?

Well, we'll see.

It will do you good. Shake up your liver.

Well, I might. I might.

Blackjack.

Good night, Weldon.

But I don't need a suit, Anacleto.

But you do.

You haven't bought a garment

in more than a year...

...and the green frock

is bien use at the elbow...

...and ready for the Salvation Army.

My God, you're a rare bird, you are.

How much is it?

What I wouldn't give to get you

in my battalion for just a day.

It is trs cher.

But one could not expect

to get such quality for anything else.

- And think of the years of service.

- We'll see about it.

Oh, go on and buy the dress,

for God's sake.

And while we are about it,

we might order an extra yard or so.

Then I can have a jacket.

All right, if I decide to get it.

What is that?

You and Captain Weincheck were playing it

last Thursday afternoon.

The opening bar of the Franck

A-major sonata.

Look.

Just this minute

made me compose a ballet.

Black velvet curtains.

And a glow like winter twilight.

Very slowly with the whole cast.

Then a spotlight follows solo like a flame.

Very dashing.

And with the waltz...

...Mr. Sergei Rachmaninoff play.

Bravo, bravo, Anacleto.

Did he hurt himself?

I'm all right, Madame Alison.

I wish you had broken your damn neck.

Williams, bring out Firebird.

The lady is here.

I believe if a horse really

wants to throw you, well, he will.

But I think most of the time

they're just feeling good.

They're just having fun.

Well, now, you take Firebird.

The minute he starts to feel me slip...

...he stops messing around.

Of course, he's a gentleman.

There's my sweet old baby.

Quit that.

If the major could see himself from behind,

he would never get on a horse.

You see, this uncle of mine

had this cabin up in the mountains...

...and my brothers and I

used to go up all the time to hunt.

About six of us would go out

in the afternoon with our dogs.

Oh, really more the evening.

My God, it would be cold.

A little colored boy

would be running behind...

...with a big jug of liquor

on his back.

Sometimes we'd be in the mountains

all night hunting coon.

I just can't tell you what it was like.

- What do you want?

- May I take out the black mare?

- Did you do all your stalls?

- Yeah.

Okay.

- You all right, Weldon?

- Incompetent brute.

It's not the horse's fault. It's yours.

I mean, you can't expect a horse

to take a jump if you don't ride him at it.

- Weldon, that's Private Williams, isn't it?

- It certainly is.

Bare back to bare ass.

It's outrageous.

You go on ahead. I'll attend to him.

Oh, what, spoil his fun?

I thought all that old mare could do

is stumble and shamble...

...but look at her move now.

Would you look at that?

Now that boy can horseback.

He's got a great pair of hands.

A disgrace.

Oh, come off it, Weldon.

Leonora.

Leonora, come on. Get up.

Get up.

Come on. Get up.

Go on to bed.

Come on.

Go on up to bed now.

Sure you're not sleepy?

Oh, no, Madame Alison.

I had a nap this afternoon.

And I dreamt about Catherine.

What was it you dreamed?

Rather like...

...holding a butterfly in my hands.

And I was nursing her in my lap.

Then the dream changed.

Instead of Catherine...

...I had on my knees

one of the colonel's riding boots.

The boot...

...was full of squirming

newly born mice...

...and I was trying to keep them in.

Keep them from crawling up

all over me.

Anacleto, please.

Dreams.

They are strange things to think about.

In the afternoons in the Philippines...

...when the pillow is damp...

...and the sun shines in the room...

...the dream is of another sort...

...than in the north.

At night...

...when it is snowing, then it is...

Look.

A peacock.

A sort of ghastly green...

...with one immense golden eye.

And in it...

...these reflections of something

tiny and...

Tiny and...

Grotesque.

Exactly.

Oh, charming.

Aren't they pretty?

I haven't seen any since I was a girl.

I remember these

and a crystal paperweight...

...that made a snowstorm

when you shook it.

Anacleto, are you happy?

Why, certainly, when you are well.

Madame Alison,

do yourself really believe...

...that Mr. Sergei Rachmaninoff knows

that a chair is something to be sat on...

...and that the clock

shows one the time?

And if I should

take off my shoe...

...and hold it up to his face and say:

"What is this,

Mr. Sergei Rachmaninoff?"

Then he would answer like anyone else:

"Why, Anacleto, that is a shoe.

I myself find it hard to realize."

I could have knocked

on that door downstairs until doomsday...

...before either one of you would have

heard me over all that music.

Oh, thank you.

Alison, how are you?

I didn't sleep at all last night.

Oh, I am sorry.

Well, you just take

a good nap this afternoon...

...because you just gotta make it

for tonight.

- Make what?

- For God's sakes, Alison, my party.

I've been working like a fool for three days

getting everything ready.

Why, I don't give a party

like this but twice a year.

Of course. It just slipped my mind

for the moment.

Listen. Here's the way it's gonna go.

I'm gonna put

all the leaves in the table...

...so everybody can just kind of mill around

and help themselves.

I have two baked Virginia hams...

...one huge turkey, fried chicken,

cold sliced pork...

...and plenty of barbecued spareribs,

and all kinds of little knickknacks...

...like, oh, pickled onions

and olives and radishes.

Oh, and we're going to start off

by serving hot rolls...

...and hot little cheese biscuits

and stuff like that.

Oh, and I'm gonna have

the punch bowl in the corner.

And for those that like their liquor straight

I'll have on the sideboard...

...eight bottles of Kentucky bourbon...

...five of rye...

...five of scotch...

Oh, and listen, I'm bringing in

an entertainer from out of town...

...who will play the accordion,

and later on...

But who on earth

is going to eat all that food?

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