Under the Volcano

The group arrives at Jacques’s house, and the Consul reluctantly follows everyone in despite having sworn to never enter the home again. Jacques disappears to prepare drinks for everyone while Hugh takes a pair of binoculars up onto the roof to enjoy the view, leaving Yvonne and the Consul alone. Yvonne begs the Consul to leave immediately, worried not only by his drinking but also by the fact that she and Jacques had a romantic entanglement while she and the Consul were married. Nervous that their relationship will not be to handle the strain of a confrontation with Jacques, Yvonne tries and fails to escape. The Consul wanders into Jacques’s bedroom and, failing to find the book of Elizabethan plays that he lent to Jacques, becomes enthralled by a piece of art on his wall. The painting, Los Borrachones, depicts alcohol users being dragged down to hell. The Consul, recognizing his own fate in the painting, wonders how he can maneuver his way out of trouble and repair his relationship with Yvonne. Before leaving the room, the Consul slips the postcard from Yvonne under Jacques’s pillow.

Jacques returns with drinks, and he, Yvonne, and the Consul join Hugh on the roof.