PAULA
[Sharply] Silence!
[The babble is cut short instantly. A momentary silence. HELIOGABALUS stands with his arms folded. The wives look uneasy and a bit foolish]
PAULA
[To HELIOGABALUS, quaveringly] You are not going to—?
HELIOGABALUS
Carpenters are at work building a plain double-bed. I have ordered that farm taken out and burned. The double-bed will suffice until—
PAULA
But I thought we were to come back.