Look at these nice flowers Lavinia has brought you. Lavinia has brought you. Nice flowers Lavinia has…and how could one know which of the echoes was the first utterance and which were merely the repetitions, the bounced shadow-sounds? And if you repeated yourself, as they said that you did, did you repeat yourself? Then who was to say what was repetition and what was not? Did Cousin Randall come to them as he came to you, angry and shaking his cane, sputtering and choking as he tried to speak? Choking as you are choking now. Take it away, away. Who stands at my bed foot, whispering in a terrible voice, Let justice be done? Oh, wake Duncan with thy knocking! Wake! Wake! “Wake up, Nola. You’re having a nightmare, I do believe.” The fingers grasped her shoulders, shaking her, breaking her, waking her. Nola Barrett moaned and struck out with all her feeble strength. They flitted in and out, changing, always changing. One offered her juice, too sweet, too sweet, Kool-Aid, aidez moi, no, NO, not the pill, willy nilly, the pill will make me nil, will I, nil I, I will be nil.
