Mr Loverman

Barry and Morris are peacefully reading at the kitchen table when they are surprised by Carmel and Donna barging through the front door. Barry notices Carmel’s extensive makeover, which makes her look younger and more confident. Morris sneaks away, and Carmel asks Donna to leave so that she can handle the confrontation herself.

Barry tries to begin his own speech, but Carmel interrupts. She reveals that her father left her everything in his will and that her lawyer is fighting off anyone who lays claims to her inheritance. She declares that she is closing this chapter in her life and plans to return to Antigua and start anew. She announces that she wants to start divorce proceedings. She takes off her ring and flicks it at Barry. Carmel further reveals that she has been gossiping with Odette. She berates Barry for having a “sickness” and tells him she spent “[f]ifty years with a man who used [her] as his cover story to protect his disgusting business, making a mockery of [her]” (280). Carmel tells Barry she is convinced that he has wasted her life.

Barry does not get a single opportunity to speak.