True West (1980) by Sam Shepard Part 6

True West 51 AUSTIN: That's what you said about the toasters. You said I couldn't steal a toaster either. LEE: A toaster's got nothin' to do with the desert. AUSTIN: I could make it, Lee. I'm not that helpless. I can cook. LEE: Cook? AUSTIN: I can. LEE: So what! You can cook. Toast. AUSTIN: I can make fires. I know how to get fresh water from condensation. (AUSTIN stacks buttered toast up in a tall stack on plate) (LEE slams table) LEE: It's not somethin' you learn out of a Boy Scout handbook! AUSTIN: Well how do you learn it then! How're you supposed to learn it! (pause) LEE: Ya' just learn it, that's all. Ya' learn it 'cause ya' have to learn it. You don't have to learn it. AUSTIN: You could teach me. LEE: (stands) What're you, crazy or somethin'? You went to college. Here, you are down here, rollin' in bucks. Floatin' up and down in elevators. And you wanna' learn how to live on the desert! AUSTIN: I do, Lee. I really do. There's nothin' down here for me. There never was. When we were kids here it was different. There was a life here then. But now--I keep comin' down here thinkin' it's the fifties or somethin'. I keep finding myself getting off the freeway at familiar landmarks that turn out to be unfamiliar. On the way to appointments. Wandering down streets I thought I recognized that turn out to be replicas of streets I remember. Streets I misremember. Streets I can't tell if I lived on or saw in a postcard. Fields that don't even exist anymore. LEE: There's no point cryin' about that now. AUSTIN: There's nothin' real down here, Lee! Least of all me! LEE: Well I can't save you from that! AUSTIN: You can let me come with you. True West 52 LEE: No dice, pal. AUSTIN: You could let me come with you, Lee! LEE: Hey, do you actually think I chose to live out in the middle a' nowhere? Do ya'? Ya' think it's some kinda' philosophical decision I took or somethin? I'm livin' out there 'cause I can't make it here! And yer bitchin' to me about all yer success! AUSTIN: I'd cash it all in in a second. That's the truth. LEE: (pause, shakes his head) I can't believe this. AUSTIN: Let me go with you. LEE: Stop sayin' that will ya'! Yer worse than a dog. (AUSTIN offers out the plate of neatly stacked toast to LEE) AUSTIN: You want some toast? (LEE suddenly explodes and knocks the plate out of AUSTIN's hand, toast goes flying, long frozen moment where it appears LEE might go all the way this time when AUSTIN breaks it by slowly lowering himself to his knees and begins gathering the scattered toast from the floor and stacking it back on the plate, LEE begins to circle AUSTIN in a slow, predatory way, crushing pieces of toast in his wake, no words for a while, AUSTIN keeps gathering toast, even the crushed pieces) LEE: Tell ya' what I'll do, little brother. I might just consider makin' you a deal. Little trade. (AUSTIN continues gathering toast as LEE circles him through this) You write me up this screenplay thing just like I tell ya'. I mean you can use all yer usual tricks and stuff. Yer fancy language. Yer artistic hocus pocus. But ya' gotta' write everything like I say. Every move. Every time they run outa' gas, they run outa' gas. Every time they wanna' jump on a horse, they do just that. If they wanna' stay in Texas, by God they'll stay in Texas! (Keeps circling) And you finish the whole thing up for me. Top to bottom. And you put my name on it. And I own all the rights. And every dime goes in my pocket. You do that and I'll sure enough take ya' with me to the desert. (LEE stops, pause, looks down at AUSTIN) How's that sound? (pause as AUSTIN stands slowly holding plate of demolished toast, their faces are very close, pause) AUSTIN: It's a deal. (LEE stares straight into AUSTIN's eyes, then he slowly takes a piece of toast off the plate, raises it to his mouth and takes a huge crushing bite never taking his eyes off AUSTIN's, as LEE crunches into the toast the lights black out) True West 53 Scene 9 Mid-day. No sound, blazing heat, the stage is ravaged; bottles, toasters, smashed typewriter, ripped out telephone, etc. All the debris from previous scene is now starkly visible in intense yellow light, the effect should be like a desert junkyard at high noon, the coolness of the preceding scenes is totally obliterated. AUSTIN is seated at table in alcove, shirt open, pouring with sweat, hunched over a writing notebook, scribbling notes desperately with a ballpoint pen. LEE with no shirt, beer in hand, sweat pouring down his chest, is walking a slow circle around the table, picking his way through the objects, sometimes kicking them aside. LEE: (as he walks) All right, read it back to me. Read it back to me! AUSTIN: (scribbling at top speed) Just a second. LEE: Come on, come on! Just read what ya' got. AUSTIN: I can't keep up! It's not the same as if I had a typewriter. LEE: Just read what we got so far. Forget about the rest. AUSTIN: All right. Let's see--okay--(wipes sweat from his face, reads as LEE circles) Luke says uh-LEE: Luke? AUSTIN: Yeah. LEE: His name's Luke? All right, all right--we can change the names later. What's he say? Come on, come on. AUSTIN: He says uh--(reading) "I told ya' you were a fool to follow me in here. I know this prairie like the back a' my hand." LEE: No, no, no! That's not what I said. I never said that. AUSTIN: That's what I wrote. LEE: It's not what I said. I never said "like the back a' my hand." That's stupid. That's one a' those--whadya' call it? Whadya' call that? AUSTIN: What? LEE: Whadya' call it when somethin's been said a thousand times before. Whadya' call that? AUSTIN: Um--a cliché. True West 54 LEE: Yeah. That's right. Cliché. That's what that is. A cliché. "The back a' my hand." That's stupid. AUSTIN: That's what you said. LEE: I never said that! And even if I did, that's where yer supposed to come in. That's where yer supposed to change it to somethin' better. AUSTIN: Well how am I supposed to do that and write down what you say at the same time? LEE: Ya' just do, that's all! You hear a stupid line you change it. That's yer job. AUSTIN: All right. (makes more notes) LEE: What're you changin' it to? AUSTIN: I'm not changing it. I'm just trying to catch up. LEE: Well change it! We gotta' change that, we can't leave that in there like that. ". . . the back a' my hand." That's dumb. AUSTIN: (stops writing, sits back) All right. LEE: (pacing) So what'll we change it to? AUSTIN: Um--How 'bout--"I'm on intimate terms with this prairie." LEE: (to himself considering line as he walks) "I'm on intimate terms with this prairie." Intimate terms, intimate terms. Intimate--that means like uh--sexual right? AUSTIN: Well--yeah--or-LEE: He's on sexual terms with the prairie? How dya' figure that? AUSTIN: Well it doesn't necessarily have to mean sexual. LEE: What's it mean then? AUSTIN: It means uh--close--personal-LEE: All right. How's it sound? Put it into the uh--the line there. Read it back. Let's see how it sounds. (to himself) "Intimate terms." AUSTIN: (scribbles in notebook) Okay. It'd go something like this: (reads) "I told ya' you were a fool to follow me in here. I'm on intimate terms with this prairie." True West 55 LEE: That's good. I like that. That's real good. AUSTIN: You do? LEE: Yeah. Don't you? AUSTIN: Sure. LEE: Sounds original now. "Intimate terms." That's good. Okay. Now we're cookin! That has a real ring to it. (AUSTIN makes more notes, LEE walks around, pours beer on his arms and rubs it over his chest feeling good about the new progress, as he does this MOM enters unobtrusively down left with her luggage, she stops and stares at the scene still holding luggage as the two men continue, unaware of her presence, AUSTIN absorbed in his writing, LEE cooling himself off with beer) LEE: (continues) "He's on intimate terms with this prairie." Sounds real mysterious and kinda' threatening at the same time. AUSTIN: (writing rapidly) Good. LEE: Now--(LEE turns and suddenly sees MOM, he stares at her for a while, she stares back, AUSTIN keeps writing feverishly, not noticing, LEE walks slowly over to MOM and takes a closer look, long pause) LEE: Mom? (AUSTIN looks up suddenly from his writing, sees MOM, stands quickly, long pause, MOM surveys the damage) AUSTIN: Mom. What're you doing back? MOM: I'm back. LEE: Here, lemme take those for ya. (LEE sets beer on counter then takes both her bags but doesn't know where to set them down in the sea of junk so he just keeps holding them) AUSTIN: I wasn't expecting you back so soon. I thought uh--How was Alaska? MOM: Fine. LEE: See any igloos? MOM: No. Just glaciers. True West 56 AUSTIN: Cold huh? MOM: What? AUSTIN: It must've been cold up there? MOM: Not really. LEE: Musta' been colder than this here. I mean we're havin' a real scorcher here. MOM: Oh? (she looks at damage) LEE: Yeah. Must be in the hundreds. AUSTIN: You wanna' take your coat off, Mom? MOM: No. (pause, she surveys space) What happened in here? AUSTIN: Oh um--Me and Lee were just sort of celebrating and uh-MOM: Celebrating? AUSTIN: Yeah. Uh--Lee sold a screenplay. A story, I mean. MOM: Lee did? AUSTIN: Yeah. MOM: Not you? AUSTIN: No. Him. MOM: (to LEE) You sold a screenplay? LEE: Yeah. That's right. We're just sorta' finishing it up right now. That's what we're doing here. AUSTIN: Me and Lee are going out to the desert to live. MOM: You and Lee? AUSTIN: Yeah. I'm taking off with Lee. MOM: (she looks back and forth at each of them, pause) You gonna go live with your father? AUSTIN: No. We're going to a different desert Mom. True West 57 MOM: I see. Well, you'll probably wind up on the same desert sooner or later. What're all these toasters doing here? AUSTIN: Well--we had kind of a contest. MOM: Contest? LEE: Yeah. AUSTN: Lee won. MOM: Did you win a lot of money, Lee? LEE: Well not yet. It's comin' in any day now. MOM: (to LEE) What happened to your shirt? LEE: Oh. I was sweatin' like a pig and I took it off. (AUSTIN grabs LEE's shirt off the table and tosses it to him, LEE sets down suitcases and puts his shirt on) MOM: Well it's one hell of a mess in here isn't it? AUSTIN: Yeah, I'll clean it up for you. Mom. I just didn't know you were coming back so soon. MOM: I didn't either. AUSTIN: What happened? MOM: Nothing. I just started missing all my plants. (she notices dead plants) AUSTIN: Oh. MOM: Oh, they're all dead aren't they. (she crosses toward them, examines them closely) You didn't get a chance to water I guess. AUSTIN: I was doing it and then Lee came and-LEE: Yeah I just distracted him a whole lot here, Mom. It's not his fault. (pause, as MOM stares at plants) MOM: Oh well, one less thing to take care of I guess. (turns toward brothers) Oh, that reminds me--You boys will probably never guess who's in town. Try and guess. True West 58 (long pause, brothers stare at her) AUSTIN: Whadya' mean, Mom? MOM: Take a guess. Somebody very important has come to town. I read it, coming down on the Greyhound. LEE: Somebody very important? MOM: See if you can guess. You'll never guess. AUSTIN: Mom--we're trying to uh-(points to writing pad) MOM: Picasso. (pause) Picasso's in town. Isn't that incredible? Right now. (pause) AUSTIN: Picasso's dead, Mom. MOM: No, he's not dead. He's visiting the museum. I read it on the bus. We have to go down there and see him. AUSTIN: Mom-MOM: This is the chance of a lifetime. Can you imagine? We could all go down and meet him. All three of us. LEE: Uh--I don't think I'm really up fer meetin' anybody right now. I'm uh--What's his name? MOM: Picasso! Picasso! You've never heard of Picasso? Austin, you've heard of Picasso. AUSTIN: Mom, we're not going to have time. MOM: It won't take long. We'll just hop in the car and go down there. An opportunity like this doesn't come along every day. AUSTIN: We're gonna' be leavin' here, Mom! (pause) MOM: Oh. LEE: Yeah. (pause) True West 59 MOM: You're both leaving? LEE: (looks at AUSTIN) Well we were thinkin' about that before but now I-AUSTIN: No, we are! We're both leaving. We've got it all planned. MOM: (to AUSTIN) Well you can't leave. You have a family. AUSTIN: I'm leaving. I'm getting out of here. LEE: (to MOM) I don't really think Austin's cut out for the desert do you? MOM: No. He's not. AUSTIN: I'm going with you, Lee! MOM: He's too thin. LEE: Yeah, he'd just burn up out there. AUSTIN: (to LEE) We just gotta' finish this screenplay and then we're gonna take off. That's the plan. That's what you said. Come on, let's get back to work, Lee. LEE: I can't work under these conditions here. It's too hot. AUSTIN: Then we'll do it on the desert. LEE: Don't be tellin' me what we're gonna do! MOM: Don't shout in the house. LEE: We're just gonna' have to postpone the whole deal. AUSTIN: I can't postpone it! It's gone past postponing! I'm doing everything you said. I'm writing down exactly what you tell me. LEE: Yeah, but you were right all along see. It is a dumb story. "Two lamebrains chasin' each other across Texas." That's what you said, right? AUSTIN: I never said that. (LEE sneers in AUSTIN's face then turns to MOM) LEE: I'm gonna' just borrow some a' your antiques, Mom. You don't mind do ya'? Just a few plates and things. Silverware. True West 60 (LEE starts going through all the cupboards in kitchen pulling out plates and stacking them on counter as MOM and AUSTIN watch) MOM: You don't have any utensils on the desert? LEE: Nah, I'm fresh out. AUSTIN: (to LEE) What're you doing? MOM: Well some of those are very old. Bone China. LEE: I'm tired of eatin' outa' my bare hands, ya' know. It's not civilized. AUSTIN: (to LEE) What're you doing? We made a deal! MOM: Couldn't you borrow the plastic ones instead? I have plenty of plastic ones. LEE: (as he stacks plates) It's not the same. Plastic's not the same at all. What I need is somethin' authentic. Somethin' to keep me in touch. It's easy to get outa' touch out there. Don't worry I'll get em' back to ya'. (AUSTIN rushes up to LEE, grabs him by shoulders) AUSTIN: You can't just drop the whole thing, Lee! (LEE turns, pushes AUSTIN in the chest knocking him backwards into the alcove, MOM watches numbly, LEE returns to collecting the plates, silverware, etc.) MOM: You boys shouldn't fight in the house. Go outside and fight. LEE: I'm not fightin'. I'm leavin'. MOM: There's been enough damage done already. LEE: (his back to AUSTIN and MOM, stacking dishes on counter) I'm clearin' outa' here once and for all. All this town does is drive a man insane. Look what it's done to Austin there. I'm not lettin' that happen to me. Sell myself down the river. No sir. I'd rather be a hundred miles from nowhere than let that happen to me. (during this AUSTIN has picked up the ripped-out phone from the floor and wrapped the cord tightly around both his hands, he lunges at LEE whose back is still to him, wraps the cord around LEE's neck, plants a foot in LEE's back and pulls back on the cord, tightening it, LEE chokes desperately, can't speak and can't reach AUSTIN with his arms, AUSTIN keeps applying pressure on LEE's back with his foot, bending him into the sink, MOM watches) True West 61 AUSTIN: (tightening cord) You're not goin' anywhere! You're not takin' anything with you. You're not takin' my car! You're not takin' the dishes! You're not takin' anything! You're stayin' right here! MOM: You'll have to stop fighting in the house. There's plenty of room outside to fight. You've got the whole outdoors to fight in. (LEE tries to tear himself away, he crashes across the stage like an enraged bull dragging AUSTIN with him, he snorts and bellows but AUSTIN hangs on and manages to keep clear of LEE's attempts to grab him, they crash into the table, to the floor, LEE is face down thrashing wildly and choking, AUSTIN pulls cord tighter, stands with one foot planted on LEE's back and the cord stretched taut) AUSTIN: (holding cord) Gimme back my keys, Lee! Take the keys out! Take 'em out! (LEE desperately tries to dig in his pockets, searching for the car keys, MOM moves closer) MOM: (calmly to AUSTIN) You're not killing him are you? AUSTIN: I don't know. I don't know if I'm killing him. I'm stopping him. That's all. I'm just stopping him. (LEE thrashes but AUSTIN is relentless) MOM: You oughta' let him breathe a little bit. AUSTIN: Throw the keys out, Lee! (LEE finally gets keys out and throws them on floor but out of AUSTIN's reach, AUSTIN keeps pressure on cord, pulling LEE's neck back, LEE gets one hand to the cord but can't relieve the pressure) Reach me those keys would ya', Mom. MOM: (not moving) Why are you doing this to him? AUSTIN: Reach me the keys! MOM: Not until you stop choking him. AUSTIN: I can't stop choking him! He'll kill me if I stop choking him! MOM: He won't kill you. He's your brother. AUSTIN: Just get me the keys would ya'! True West 62 (pause. MOM picks keys up off floor, hands them to AUSTIN) AUSTIN: (to MOM) Thanks. MOM: Will you let him go now? AUSTIN: I don't know. He's not gonna' let me get outa' here. MOM: Well you can't kill him. AUSTIN: I can kill him! I can easily kill him. Right now. Right here. All I gotta' do is just tighten up. See? (he tightens cord, LEE thrashes wildly, AUSTIN releases pressure a little, maintaining control) Ya' see that? MOM: That's a savage thing to do. AUSTIN: Yeah well don't tell me I can't kill him because I can. I can just twist. I can just keep twisting. (AUSTIN twists the cord tighter, LEE wakens, his breathing changes to a short rasp) MOM: Austin! (AUSTIN relieves pressure, LEE breathes easier but AUSTIN keeps him under control) AUSTIN: (eyes on LEE, holding cord) I'm goin' to the desert. There's nothing stopping me. I'm going by myself to the desert. (MOM moving toward her luggage) MOM: Well, I'm going to go check into a motel. I can't stand this anymore. AUSTIN: Don't go yet! (MOM pauses) MOM: I can't stay here. This is worse than being homeless. AUSTIN: I'll get everything fixed up for you, Mom. I promise. Just stay for a while. MOM: (picking up luggage) You're going to the desert. AUSTIN: Just wait! (LEE thrashes, AUSTIN subdues him, MOM watches holding luggage, pause) MOM: It was the worst feeling being up there. In Alaska. Staring out a window. I never felt so desperate before. That's why when I saw that article on Picasso I thought-- True West 63 AUSTIN: Stay here, Mom. This is where you live. (she looks around the stage) MOM: I don't recognize it at all. (she exits with luggage, AUSTIN makes a move toward her but LEE starts to struggle and AUSTIN subdues him again with cord, pause) AUSTIN: (holding cord) Lee? I'll make ya' a deal. You let me get outa' here. Just let me get to my car. All right, Lee? Gimme a little headstart and I'll turn you loose. Just gimme a little headstart. All right? (LEE makes no response, AUSTIN slowly releases tension cord, still nothing from LEE) AUSTIN: Lee? (LEE is motionless, AUSTIN very slowly begins to stand, still keeping a tenuous hold on the cord and his eyes riveted to LEE for any sign of movement, AUSTIN slowly drops the cord and stands, he stares down at LEE who appears to be dead) AUSTIN: (whispers) Lee? (pause, AUSTIN considers, looks toward exit, back to LEE, then makes a small movement as if to leave. Instantly LEE is on his feet and moves toward exit, blocking AUSTIN's escape. They square off to each other, keeping a distance between them. Pause, a single coyote heard in distance, lights fade softly into moonlight, the figures of the brothers now appear to be caught in a vast desert-like landscape, they are very still but watchful for the next move, lights go slowly to black as the after-image of the brothers pulses in the dark, coyote fades)