Scene Eight

PROJECTED TEXT: PASSAGE TO SAIL.

A few hours before they sail. Restlessness, excitement. The men do some last minute preparations. Joe is still wrestling with the charts. He shows their route to Dembi. Cranston and Balthazar keep playfully snatching the charts away. Then Balthazar reveals some whiskey. They all cheer. Balthazar passes it on as each man makes a toast, though Balthazar drinks none for himself.

BALTHAZAR: Ready to sail, men?

JOE: Ready to sail?

ALL: Aye!

JOE: Ready to die?

ALL: Aye!

JOE: The currents are strong!

CRANSTON: Provisions packed tight!

BALTHAZAR: Then a toast to the Leak.

CRANSTON: May she hold her breath in the squall.

JOE: May her captain prove both fierce and true!

ALL: Aye!

JOE: Where’d you get the whiskey, Bal?

BALTHAZAR: A kindly gentleman at the tavern.

CRANSTON: What gentleman?

BALTHAZAR: I didn’t pay. He gave it for our voyage.

CRANSTON: Gentlemen don’t give sailors whiskey for naught.

JOE: Balthazar. Did you tell him our plans?

BALTHAZAR: Goddamn you, I’m no fool.

(Joe and Cranston are not convinced.)

But I swore to him that one day I’d sail a real ship, a vengeful ship, not some laughable leaky schooner. Sure he asked our route. But no. I told him it were secret. He said he was a Quaker.

JOE: Quakers don’t go to the taverns.

BALTHAZAR: The Wet Quakers do. Relax, mate. I took the whiskey for you, Joe; I don’t even drink the shite myself!

(Balthazar holds out the whiskey to Joe, who relents and drinks. They all laugh, drink, relax and make small talk. Adjua enters and joins in the gaiety. She makes marks in her book and shows them to Balthazar and he nods approval. Then Adjua makes a toast. The men cheer.)

ADJUA (To Dembi): It’s happening. (To all) Finally it’s happening.

            Smile, my love. Are you not happy?

(Adjua embraces Dembi, but he moves away from her. Now Dembi makes a toast.)

DEMBI: A toast. A toast to our voyage!

(They all cheer.)

And I take this liberty now to tell you all, friends, that I’ll not be sailing with you.

(Silence. Dembi drinks to his own toast. Adjua believes it’s a joke. She laughs.)

ADJUA: Dembi, he so excited he plays the clown. Lieverd, you are my clown.

(The others now laugh as well, but it’s forced.)

DEMBI: I’m staying on in Bristol.

ADJUA: You’re coming with us.

BALTHAZAR: We need you on deck, mate.

JOE: And you’ve paid me a fine sum to carry you, which I’ll not refund.

DEMBI (To Joe): You can keep the spank, Captain. These dock I sweat and grind on, are mine. This is my home.

ADJUA: Dembi.

DEMBI (To Adjua): Woman, we made a lively place here, with naught but planks and water—

BALTHAZAR: Oi. It’s his first time to sea. The lad’s got cold feet. (To Dembi) Not to worry. Balthazar will be at your side.

CRANSTON: And so will I. The vessel needs you.

DEMBI: Beach horner. Worm’s hole. You don’t need me for anything. And I won’t stoop so low as to sail with slaving muck like you. Never. (To Adjua) Monday. You gave me my name: Dembi. That is not my name. Take the name back with you to Africa. My name is Morgan. (To all) I wish you all safe passage. I stay here.

(Adjua just stares at Dembi. She knows he is serious but she doesn’t know what to do to change his mind. Dembi gathers up a few things to leave. Silence as the others watch him. Finally, Adjua speaks.)

ADJUA: I say it again, your true name, your Afric name: Dembi. Not Morgan. Because we plan this for years. Because we are finally ready to sail. (Beat) Because I am carrying our child.

(Dembi freezes. He can’t believe what he’s hearing.)

DEMBI: What you say?

ADJUA: I’m carrying our child. I nee want to tell you ’til we are safe on the boat. Adjua say to you: our child, Dembi.

(Dembi is stunned.)

Lieverd. This is what we dreamed for.

DEMBI: Our child?

(Adjua throws her arms around Dembi’s neck.)

ADJUA: Ja, our rising, our revolt. Our miracle that’ll clear the path we couldn’t—

DEMBI: Our miracle? Adjua, my girl. Adjua, my Monday . . .

CRANSTON: Carrying a child is poor luck for a vessel.

(Suddenly Dembi roars and attacks Cranston, as though to kill him. Joe and Balthazar pull him off. Dembi tries again, fiercely, to get near Cranston, but he’s blocked by the other men.)

BALTHAZAR: Ho! Settle down.

JOE: Come on, man. The child will be a talisman for our journey.

BALTHAZAR: That’s right. We’ll make do.

(Joe and Balthazar settle Dembi down.)

JOE: Let me be the first to congratulate you both.

(Joe raises the bottle to toast, but the others are silent, concerned with Adjua’s condition. Adjua notices this.)

ADJUA: Men. Listen to me: I’m strong. I promise you, no matter how heavy I get with child, I be useful on board. I be fit and able. This is our sign to sail, ja. For all of us to sail!

BALTHAZAR: Come on, men: a cheer for the new wee passenger coming aboard the Leak!

(All cheer again, this time with more conviction. The men shake Dembi’s hand and slap him on the back, though he is still in a daze. Cranston is still wary.)

Joe. Here’s your chance if there ever was one. But no horses, no violins and no fuckin’ Garrick.

JOE: You’re a wretch, mate. I’ll never sing for you again.

(Joe turns away from Balthazar as though hurt, but then suddenly jumps up onto a keg and sings, with a beautiful and well-trained voice:)

            I served a kind old duchess

            Placed my head on her ample chest

            She so pale, me so black

            And the duke’s heart going tickety-tack.

            Learned to read, to write, to sing,

            Even to play the violin,

            Warmed by fire, warmed by silk,

            And the duke’s head going tackety-tick.

            Shipped away on the sly,

            Fell down from the palace into a sty,

            Cargoes of men, white and black,

            Dance to the whip, tickety-tack.

(Cranston, Joe and Balthazar join in the song together, and chase one another around the docks in celebration. Then the sailors all dance together, and it’s an impressive jig.)

ALL:

            Shipped away on the sly,

            Fell down from the palace into a sty,

            Cargoes of men, white and black,

            Dance to the whip, tickety-tack.

(Amid the celebrations, Adjua takes Dembi in her arms. After some moments, he responds and returns the embrace. The celebrations continue, with harmony seemingly restored. But then Adjua silently sinks to her knees. At first it seems she is simply taking a rest, and the others do not notice, nor do we, but then blood spills between her fingers where she clutches herself. One by one the men stop cavorting, in shock. Only now do we see that Dembi is holding a knife.)

ADJUA (To Dembi): Oh my love. You have killed us.

(Before anyone can react, we hear the shrill scream of police whistles and running feet. All are startled.)

JOE: God curse your stupid tongue, Balthazar; we’re discovered! (To Balthazar and Cranston) Take the woman up. Quick. Run. Run! To the vessel and ready her sail!

(Cranston and Balthazar each take the now almost-unconscious Adjua by the arm and carry/drag her between them. They exit in a panic. Joe snatches up the scattered charts and whatever evidence has been left behind. He stands for a moment, looking at Dembi, who has not moved, still staring at the knife. Their eyes meet.)

(Evenly) Run, man. Run.

(The voices are closing in. Now Joe runs. Dembi stands alone on the docks. He won’t run. We now hear the voices of various constables.)

CONSTABLES’ VOICES (Offstage): There’s one of ’em. Fire if he moves. Find the rest of them!

(Dembi turns his head to look after the way his friends left. Dembi still does not move, waiting for whatever horror will overtake him. We hear one last, long, loud scream of a whistle as the lights go black.)