THE MERCHANDISERS Florence pulls herself together and begins to pack some papers into her briefcase. As she does so the scene changes to the streets of Bangkok. Walter is keen to make his presence felt in Bangkok and his next move is to entice the locals to support his man. He sends a troupe of merchandisers through the city giving away Freddie t-shirts, baseball caps, flags, posters etc. He hopes this will provide Freddie with a psychological advantage – having the support of the locals should give Freddie the buzz he needs to really thrash the Russian. At first only a few American tourists are interested, but eventually the locals are won over too and soon everyone is waving Freddie banners and flags in the air.  TERRACE DUET

The scene changes to the Riverside Restaurant where Anatoly and Molokov are waiting for Florence and Freddie. When she arrives she tells them that Freddie has refused to meet with Molokov, but that he will meet with Anatoly on his own. This move is of course an attempt to remove Anatoly’s support system and to give Freddie the chance to talk to his challenger direct. Molokov doesn’t like it, but Anatoly does, so it is agreed. Anatoly of course likes it not only because he too welcomes the chance to talk with Freddie without Molokov’s interference, but because it also gives him the chance to have some time alone with Florence. Still not sure what exactly he feels for this woman, he knows there is something about her that intrigues him and he wants to know more. Molokov leaves and Anatoly and Florence smile at each other and then feel totally at a loss as to what they should do next. They mention the sunset, but after that the ‘conversation’ dries and an awkward silence falls upon them. They are both uncertain how to act around each other. There is a strange tension between them, but neither of them really understands it. Florence is slightly on the defensive, but Freddie has weakened her and before long she falls all too easily for the charm of the gentle Russian. They talk and laugh and soon find they are strangely attracted to each other.

WHO’D EVER GUESS IT It is obvious from their body language and the laughter that they feel very comfortable together and this is what Freddie perceives when he arrives. He is furious and becomes abusive. His attempt at removing Molokov has backfired on him; he is now the one deprived of his support system and he fights back in the only way he knows how. He accuses Florence of betraying him and helping the Russian. He’s not even sure that he believes this at this point, but it’s all he can think of to retaliate with. He tells Anatoly that no matter what she’s told him he’ll never get to keep his title. He’s here to win this championship and that’s exactly what he’s going to do. She might think he needs her, but he doesn’t and he’ll be happy to prove it to her. Of course he needs her more now than he ever did, but he feels hurt and he wants to hurt her in return. He brushes off her appeals to be reasonable and storms off. PITY THE CHILD

As the scene changes we see Freddie leaving the hotel. He feels betrayed and falls into a state of depression and needs to get away from Florence and everyone involved with the tournament, so he begins to wander through the streets and markets of Bangkok. As he does so, he reflects on the last woman who he trusted (his mother) and how she betrayed him too!

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