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(glances at JOSÉ and then away)

Why not? She can tell us how wonderful we’re going to be living soon.

The three girls shepherd TERESA to a table.

TERESA

(in a wonderfully husky voice)

I’m thirsty.

FRASQUITA

What do you want?

TERESA

Cappuccino.

MERCEDES signals to a man behind the bar, who starts making the cappuccino.

TERESA opens her purse and takes out a pack of cards, which she shuffles and lays out facedown.

MERCEDES

(lightly)

The cards don’t lie.

FRASQUITA

They’ll tell us what the future holds.

CARMEN

They’ll speak our destinies.

TERESA places her hands over the cards, closes her eyes, nods, and then turns the first one over.

TERESA

You will meet a young man. He has a job in an office.

MERCEDES

Young. But old enough to drive?

TERESA

Old enough to drive, and he leads many men.

MERCEDES

He’s in the army. How much does a general make?

TERESA

Everybody looks up to him!

MERCEDES

Oh, my God, it’s that cute quarterback that won the Super Bowl!

TERESA

He loves you very much. He adores you!

MERCEDES

Do you have a name? Does he have a tattoo?

TERESA

You are lucky. The cards have spoken well of your future.

FRASQUITA

Do me!

TERESA gathers the cards and once again shuffles them and lays them out facedown. She then begins to turn them over.

TERESA

Hah! You will marry an old man. He has been married before, but still he wants you.

FRASQUITA

Mine’s old! Pooh. How old? But look, diamonds! He’s going to be rich. Old and rich. Not good, but I’ll take it.

MERCEDES

Look how much mine loves me! I’d better start taking vitamins.

FRASQUITA

Will we have a big house?

TERESA

In the Bronx.

FRASQUITA

An old man in a big house in the Bronx? That’s no fun.

TERESA

More bad news: he dies.

FRASQUITA

Oh, look-he’s going to die. Poor thing. But wait-he leaves me all his money. I’ll be a rich widow! Yes! Yes! I’ll wear my black toreador pants to the funeral, the ones with the sequins.

TERESA

He dies, but such things happen. We cannot put our hands up against the winds of fate.

CARMEN

Teresa, do my fortune.

TERESA looks up at CARMEN. She brings her hand to her forehead and closes her eyes for a moment. She exhales heavily.

TERESA

I am too tired.

CARMEN

No, Teresa. I need you to do mine.

TERESA hands the cards to CARMEN, who kisses them up to heaven and then hands them back. TERESA shuffles them, lays them out, and begins to turn them over.

CARMEN

Oh, no! Diamonds, then spades-death! I see it clearly. First him and then me. Here, give me the cards.

CARMEN gathers up the cards and takes the rest of the deck from TERESA as MERCEDES and FRASQUITA go off to one side, still talking about their good luck. CARMEN frantically shuffles the cards herself, then lays them out and begins to turn them over.

CARMEN

Again! Two deaths! Two destinies intertwined. The cards come up one by one to speak of my doom. Let me shuffle them again.

(She does so.)

Again and again I shuffle them, turn them up, but it’s always the same…

CARMEN throws the cards down and staggers to a table.

CARMEN

Teresa, what’s wrong with these cards?

TERESA

They’re only cards, Carmen. They don’t know how to lie.

FRASQUITA and MERCEDES go to CARMEN.

FRASQUITA

Teresa, Carmen, come with us. We’ll go case out the company. It’ll be fun.

CARMEN

One minute.

CARMEN shuffles the cards again. Again she lays them out and turns them over one by one.

CARMEN

Muerte, siempre muerte.

FRASQUITA

(at the door)

Carmen?

CARMEN looks away for a moment, then forces a smile and follows her friends out.

JOSÉ has been sitting in the corner, facing away from the stage. TERESA walks over to him and touches his shoulder. JOSÉ brushes her hand roughly away and turns again toward the wall, lost in his own thoughts.

MICAELA enters from a side door. She looks around nervously and is clearly upset by the sinister look of the room. She spots JOSÉ in a corner, takes a tentative step toward him, then stops. She crosses herself and begins to pray aloud.

MICAELA

I pray that one day he will see me. I pray, O Lord, I have so much to give but nothing that pleases him. I have this heart he doesn’t want, these arms so ready for him. I’m so in need, and all he wants is her! O God, please give me this moment. Let him see me at last, O Lord.

MICAELA hears a commotion from the front of the club and steps into a darkened corner.

JOSÉ stands quickly and points his gun at the door as ESCAMILLO enters.

ESCAMILLO

Relax, cowboy! It’s only me. Drinks for everybody!

JOSÉ

They don’t serve drinks here. This is a social club. Only coffee and sodas. They don’t want the police raiding them on some phony liquor charge.

ESCAMILLO

Good thinking. You have to be focused. Give me an iced tea.

(gesturing to the gun)

You need to be careful with that thing.

JOSÉ

I don’t expect a big name like Escamillo to come rushing in here every day.

ESCAMILLO

You’re right. Usually, I’m in my corporate offices, taking care of serious business. If I pull off this concert this weekend-and I will-it’ll be the start of the greatest tour you’ve seen. Bigger than Lil Wayne, Shakira, and Beyoncé combined.

JOSÉ

So what are you doing here?

ESCAMILLO

I’m looking for a certain girl. I’ve only met her once, but somehow she stays in my head.

JOSÉ

With all the girls following you around the world, you actually remember one of them? She must be beautiful.

ESCAMILLO

Beautiful, but not available. That’s what I’ve been told. They say she leaves men lying in her wake the way a ship leaves dead fish in the water, gasping and confused.

JOSÉ

So why would you be interested in her?

ESCAMILLO

I don’t know. Maybe because I’ve always wanted what other men have said is not available. When I lived in the projects, I wanted to be rich. I used to look up into the sky and envy people flying high above me. Now when I look down from my private jet, I wonder if there’s some small boy looking up in envy of me as I soar overhead.