“It's Our Anniversary?”

“It's Our Anniversary?”


"Mister Walton!"

I could only nod, my arms and legs were tied to the telephone pole used as a binding tool.

"Good, you're awake. Make sure he's awake, Jens!"

The overweight man in the uniform -- all red, with white piping, turned as he gave his command to
a smaller man, dressed in green and red, who tossed the coldest water I had ever felt onto my body. I shivered even though the sun was immediate above my balding head. I would surely get a sunburn up there.

"Your wife will ask you ten questions, Mister Walton. Your life depends upon you answering those ten questions truthfully. If she asks you a question to which I do not know the answer to, she will die. Do you understand me?"

Like most "pigs," I can never remember significant dates in our relationship. Barbara can.

She can tell me without thinking the day -- no the hour in that day �" we started to date.  She can relate how she waited for me to finish my book signing, what we had for dinner that evening at her place, and how she reached over for my hand and drew me close to her to perform that first kiss against my lips.

"Yes, but..." I started. Jens tossed another bucket of water onto my face and body.

"Silence!" The man wore glasses, and had a long thick white beard. He was definitely obese for his
size and when he turned toward the door, his belly shock like it was full of Jello.

 

"A PT and weight control failure, for sure!" I smiled.

"You won't be smiling for long, Walton! Bring in the wife!", the man in the red suit commanded!

Barbara was brought into to the open area, and when she saw me, she yelled, "Just remember, honey, I love you!" One of the two men pushed her toward the man in the red suit. She looked at the man, his arms at his sides as he returned the stare to her.

"What kind of a sick joke is this? You know that the man who REALLY wears that suit would NEVER
do this kind of thing!"

"Why, Miss Barbara, what do you think Saint Nick DOES those other 364 days of the year, anyways!
Shut up and sit down!" Barbara was slammed into a seat and her legs and arms were tied to that chair.

"Now, Mrs. Walton. You wrote me wanting me to somehow make your husband remember certain things."

"It was a joke...I didn't intend for...."

"When you write to ME, dearie," Nicholas removed his glasses to reveal his steel blue eyes as he smiled, "you expected it to happen. Why else would you put faith into writing to 'Santa Claus'?" When he smiled, his rosy cheeks brightened. He chuckled as Barbara looked at me, then back at this man in the costume normally associated with happiness and cheer.

"I don't want it. I don't want this wish to happen. I want you to let him and me go and leave us alone!"
Barbara looked over at her mate. "Despite his forgetfulness, I still love him and besides, you of all people should know that women sometime act upon impulse!"

"Like when you wrote to me the year before asking me to let you win the Virginia Lottery? I don't see you giving me back that money!" Nicholas walked behind Barbara, looking over at me. He placed his glasses back onto his ovalled face.

"We gave that money to charities!!" Bobbie wailed. "We only kept what we needed to pay off our bills and to make sure that Mike's next novel got published!"

"I know. That is why I gave you the extra present this year."

Barbara looked down at her belly. "Kailey Michelle came to us from a woman who could not keep her!"

"And how did you think, dear woman, she came to that conclusion?"

Barbara thought about his question. The woman just handed over the small child to Barbara, explaining that "she'll be in good, loving hands."

"Where is she??"

"No harm will come to her. She is a gift, and gifts are taken care of with love and special care. On the other hand, I will tell you what I told your husband. You will ask him ten questions.  His life depends upon his correct answers to those questions. If you slip in a question I do not know the answer to,
I will have Quinn here place an arrow into your chest."

Barbara sighed heavily, then asked "Any question. I can ask any question."

"Any question I know the answer to."

Barbara closed her eyes tightly for a few seconds and then opened them back up.

"Prayer won't help," Nicholas spoke. "You are well beyond prayer."

"It is time. Ask your first question, Barbara Faye." Nicholas waved his hand. Two men came forward and stood. The chair in which Bobbie sat in was turned and faced me. I saw her face, her glasses, and her smile as she saw me.

I returned the smile.

"What was my name before I was married to you?"

I looked up and then at Barbara and replied "Spitzer. You were Barbara Spitzer before Walton. Your husband's name was Scott."

"Good." At the words of Nicholas, one of the bindings holding me to the telephone pole was cut.

"What did I prepare for you that first evening we met?" Barbara smiled at me.

"Oh crap!" I said. "I can't remember what I had to eat today! We had....we had....ROAST! That's what we had. A roast with carrots and peas and real butter and biscuits. Wine. Coffee afterwards."

"Good." Another binding was cut.

"Did I have the television set on when you came over?"

"No. Your television was broken and you don't watch a lot of it anyway."

"So, you ask him questions you have talked about recently. Ask harder questions!" Nicholas commanded.

"Hey buddy! You said ANY QUESTION you knew the answers to. I ask the questions here!" Barbara was being uppity, her confidence increased with every question I correctly answered.

"What is my favorite color?" Barbara asked me.

I had to think about that question. I had to think about the colors she had in the closet at our home. Lots of reds, purples and grays. Blue. Or was it Green?

"Blue." I closed my eyes. If I was to be shot, I did not want to see the shooter.

"YES!" Barbara yelled.

Another binding was cut and I could move my hands around a bit. They tied me tightly to the telephone pole.

"My birthday. When is my birthday?"

"December. Close to Christmas," I responded. I forgot the day of the month.

"Close enough," Barbara responded.

"NO! Answer with the DAY, Micheal!" Nicholas commanded.

It took me a minute before I responded, "Her birthday is on the twenty-secondth day of December. I remember it because it was the day..."

"I don't need explanation. I need answers! Cut another binding!", the jolly man -- who did not sound happy -- responded.

Bobbie thought about other questions. "Yes! Ask that question!"

"What did I suffer from and when did it happen?"

"You're a cancer survivor," I explained, "In remission and it affected your ovaries. It spread and as a result, you had to have reconstructive surgery and all of your baby-making tools removed. It happened four years before I met you. I could have never got through all of that and every time I think of everything you went through, I know that I made the right choice in falling in love with you. I would have died if that happened to me, but you had strength to get past it. I love you, Buttercup!"

My words affected Nicholas. He started to weep, and as his emotions overcame him, I felt the air turn colder and small pellets of sleet started down toward the ground.

I continued. "Bobbie. I started calling you Barbie after the doll because I knew that you didn't consider yourself attractive. You wear that portacath in your chest -- the thing I kiss every day. It is your lifeline and mine too. To me, love, you are the prettiest woman I know of. It is inside you, love. The things I remember about you are those things inside you."

"Shut him up!" Nicholas was angry. He let his emotions get away from him and he was trying to get everything back in order. The sleet quickly turned to snow, and it started to get colder. Barbara attempted to cross her arms, but could not move.

"Micheal. You are my life. Without you, I don't have a life." Barbara yelled at me.

"You are more than just the man I chose to be with the rest of my life...you are the closest friend in my life. I have lots of  friends -- at work, online, and of course, my family. But you, my sweetheart, you are the nearest. When you are away doing your Army thing, I miss you but I know that I am still with you. You have my heart, Micheal. You have my soul. And now, we have a child to share our love with!"

"Stop - stop - saying - those - things!" Nicholas could not move. Neither could the others, as they were quickly being engulfed by the wet snow which continued to fall from the sky.

"I can't be too mad at you if you forget things, Micheal," Bobbie stated, still seated in the chair, "I just want you to sometime try to remember. We women are sentimental and we want you men to
just recall sometime why we were attracted and fell in love with you, that's all."

With his last ounce of strength, Nicholas took the bow from his archer and fired it at me! As I saw the arrow come toward me, I looked over at Barbara and said, "I will love you into all of time." I then closed my eyes and waited for the arrow to strike me.

"Are you going to stay in bed all day long, sleepyhead??"

I was awakened in our bed by Barbie, shaking me on my shoulder. She was already dressed for the day.

"Come on, get up!!" She kissed me on my lips and on my left cheek. "You forgot -- we were going to go to the riverwalk for our anniversary!"

I sat up and asked, "It's our anniversary??"