The Violinist

by Barry Slater

  Kim laughed hysterically and her body trembled with excitement. Tears welled up in her starry eyes.

  “Will you marry me?”

  “Oh Dwayne,” Kim said softly. She shook her head and looked lovingly into Dwayne's eyes. “You are so sweet. Of course I will.” Tears rolled over her blushed cheeks. “Of course I will marry you.”

  Captain Jack, Doc Martin and Father Bryan stood and applauded Dwayne and Kim's engagement.

  “Well done my boy,” Doc Martin remarked. “I didn't see this coming.”

  “All part of the plan Doc,” Dwayne said.

  “I reckon so,” Doc Martin laughed.

  “You two make a great couple,” Captain Jack said as he shook Dwayne's hand. “When's the big day?”

  “Christmas Eve?” Dwayne gazed at Kim.

  Kim's eyes sparkled in approval.

  Dwayne turned to Father Bryan. Father Bryan stared out into the distance through the barred windows.

  “I've considered that everyone has lost someone in this,” Father Bryan said. “And then I realize I have lost no one. I had no one to lose. How do you know about loss if you’ve never lost anything? How do you know what suffering is?”

  Dwayne gazed out the window with Father Bryan.

  “Does that make me stronger?” Father Bryan asked. “Or weaker?”

  “You are exactly what your image projects,” Dwayne replied. “You are a rock. It means you are here for a reason. That’s the thing about life; we are thrust into it without any choices. We come to and we open our eyes. We put it on and wear it, no matter what’s in the glass.”

  “I cannot know the extent or pain of your loss,” Father Bryan said as he slowly turned to Dwayne. “But I am wholly overjoyed to share in your new found happiness.”

  #

  The next morning, everyone was up and outside. Dwayne and Kim were walking with Father Bryan along the fence line.

  “We're using the fence and the front gate as a first line of defense,” Dwayne explained to Father Bryan. “Captain Jack has rigged a series of plastic bags filled with gasoline along the fence line. Captain Jack and I have built a hydraulic press at the gate.”

  Father Bryan looked at the press with awe. “The wine press of God's wrath,” He said. “Blood shall flow as high as a horse's bridle.”

  “It's a real crowd pleaser,” Dwayne said jokingly. “It can kill a lot of them at one time. The house can be used offensively.”

  “It's a static position,” Father Bryan remarked. “It's a dangerous position.”

  “It can be easily defended,” Dwayne reinforced.

  “Sieges cannot be easily broken,” Father Bryan pushed back. “Especially if you cannot be resupplied. If you live by the sword you shall die by the sword.”

  “Captain Jack and I have already had this discussion,” Dwayne said. “This should at least get us through the winter.”

  “Their only enemy was death—and they have conquered it,” Father Bryan said. “We have not.”

  “We've held back two sieges from the zombinees already,” Dwayne said. “A third time by rogue militants with weapons and who outnumbered us three to one.”

  “They shall come like locusts,” Father Bryan quoted from scripture. “A host too mighty to count.”

  #

  “Why did you ask me to marry you?” Kim asked with a cocky little smile as she sat on the bed in the master bedroom.

  Dwayne had popped open a bottle of Duckhorn Cabernet Sauvignon from the basement wine room in celebration of their engagement.

  “Well there are not a lot of pretty young women around lately,” Dwayne laughed.

  “Because I'm the only girl around?” Kim asked, shaking her head.

  “Actually,” Dwayne said defending himself. “I did it because I'm a bit of a romantic.”

  “A Romeo,” Kim laughed. “That's fitting to your profession.”

  “I thought it would be more romantic to ask you to marry me than to um, let's see, not marry me,” Dwayne responded taking Kim's question completely out of context.

  Kim laughed. “Now that would be very romantic,” she said with her head spinning from the wine.

  “What,” Dwayne continued. “Should I have asked 'Kim, will you not marry me?'”

  Kim laughed hysterically.

  “Miss Kim,” Dwayne said comically. “Will you not marry me?”

  “You are a nut,” Kim said giggling. “But I think that's why I love you so much.”

  “It may just be a lunatic you're looking for,” Dwayne smiled as he quoted from an old Billy Joel song.

  “Kiss me, you fool,” Kim crooned.

  “Gladly my dear,” Dwayne said in his best Clark Gable.

  Giddy, Dwayne kissed Kim and the two lovers fell back on the bed laughing.

  “We've got just two days to plan our wedding,” Dwayne said catching his breath.

  “Oh no,” Kim said. “What are we going to do?”

  “We'll go shopping!” Dwayne exclaimed.

  “Oh my,” Kim said with wide open eyes. “Very good answer.”

  “Then we'll go to the finest restaurant.”

  “This is getting better by the minute.”

  “Then we'll go dancing.”

  “Wait,” Kim played along. “I'm making a list.”

  “And then we'll take a Caribbean cruise.”

  “My stars,” Kim said fanning her face.

  “And to top it all off,” Dwayne said with grandeur. “Lots of love making.”

  Kim pretended to faint. She looked back at Dwayne. “But that's just our honeymoon, what about the wedding itself?”

  “Father Bryan will marry us while Doc Martin plays the piano. Captain Jack will be my best man.”

  “No bride's maid?”

  “I don't think Captain Jack would be up to that.”

  Kim laughed then said, “I can just imagine Captain Jack in a pink taffeta dress.”

  “Nooo,” Dwayne groaned then rolled over on his back and pretended to be unconscious.

  Kim giggled then was silent.

  Dwayne faked a loud snore.

  “Well, that was very romantic,” Kim said sarcastically. “You know you could have just asked Captain Jack to marry you.”

  Dwayne cleared his throat. “Captain Jack, will you marry me?”

  “Can you imagine Captain Jack in a bridal gown?”

  “Oh no,” Dwayne groaned. “That image will forever be singed into my mind.”

  Kim laughed.

  “Why don't we just shack-up until we are married?”

  “Great idea,” Kim said. “But aren't we already doing that?”

  “Hey,” Dwayne responded. “Great idea!”

  “Silly.”

  “Silly,” Dwayne repeated.

  “Are you drunk?”

  “I'm well lit.”

  “Sounds like you have a bright future.”

  “I'm sleepy.” Dwayne rolled onto his side facing away from Kim.

  “That's romantic,” Kim said then pinched Dwayne's butt.

  “Say goodnight Gracie.”

  “Goodnight Gracie.”

  #

  “I call it the Zombiemaster,” Captain Jack said. He had shortened the barrel of Kim's 12 gauge autoloader and spray painted the entire shotgun black. “I've added a large 'V' shaped front sight. That makes it easier to aim, especially at close quarters.”

  “Good job Captain Jack,” Dwayne commented as he examined the modified weapon.

  “Just point and shoot,” Captain Jack explained. “You'll hit something. I made it especially for Kim.”

  “Have you ever fired a shotgun?” Dwayne asked.

  “I've never had the pleasure,” Kim answered.

  “Well it's about time you did,” Captain Jack said. “I trust Dwayne to show you how to use this.”

  Captain Jack handed the Zombiemaster to Dwayne. Dwayne slowly took it in his hand.

  “Thanks Captain Jack,” Dwayne said.

  “Here's a box of
shells,” Captain Jack said. “Have fun, love birds.”

  Dwayne and Kim took the Zombiemaster and the box of shells out past the tall fescue field where Donnie and Dolly had grazed.

  “I never knew why my husband liked to hunt so much,” Kim said. “It's like a blood sport to me. I mean, we didn't need it for food. We had plenty of money to buy food at the grocery store.”

  “It's a guy thing I guess,” Dwayne said.

  Dwayne sat a pine cone head high in the forks of a birch sapling at the edge of the field.

  “I remember my dad teaching me to shoot a gun,” Dwayne said. “I was ten years old and it was a shotgun just like this.”

  “I was scared,” Dwayne continued. “I couldn't pull the trigger. Dad got mad and took the gun inside.”

  “Poor baby,” Kim teased.

  “OK smarty pants,” Dwayne retorted.

  “I'm not scared,” Kim continued to humorously antagonize Dwayne.

  “Alright let's see how you do,” Dwayne said. “Now hold the butt of the gun against your shoulder. Hold the gun firmly with your arms.”

  Dwayne helped Kim hold the shotgun by wrapping his arms around her.

  “I like this,” Kim smiled.

  “See that pine cone?”

  “Yes.”

  “I want you to blast it out of that tree,” Dwayne said. “Now, pull the trigger slowly and let your arms absorb the recoil.”

  BOOM!

  The stock of the shotgun slapped Kim's right cheek. The shot completely missed the pine cone.

  “Ouch!” Kim complained. “Did you know that was going to happen?”

  “Of course I did,” Dwayne laughed. “Remember? That's why I told you to steady the shotgun with your arms.”

  Kim pulled the shotgun into her shoulder and fired. The pine cone exploded along with the limbs and the main branch of the tree.

  “Ow!” Kim exclaimed as she lowered the shotgun. “Crap. That hurt.”

  “Hey,” Dwayne said. “You got it. You nailed it clean!”

  “My shoulder is broken.”

  “Let me see.”

  Dwayne massaged the red spot in the cup of Kim's shoulder. “It's going to bruise,” he said.

  “Ready to go back?” Dwayne asked trying to hold back the urge to laugh.

  “Yeah,” Kim said. “Let's call it a day.”

  “A couple of days later I asked my dad if I could try shooting the gun again,” Dwayne continued the story. “It did the same thing to me. It slapped me in the face and bruised my shoulder. I didn't let my arms absorb the recoil. I ran to mom crying.”

  “Ah,” Kim said with a grimace.

  “I think after that he thought I was a wuss,” Dwayne said. “I was a small child for my age and I was scared of everything. I was scared of the dark. Anything bigger than me I was afraid of. My dad was a large man so naturally I was afraid of him. He was a survivalist. I wasn't interested in those kinds of things and he wasn't interested in music. We didn't have much in common. I think I was a disappointment to him.”

  “After all you achieved?” Kim said incredulously.

  “And none of it relates to our current situation but everything he tried to teach me does. That's the irony of it. Dad was a nuts and bolts kind of guy. He was a man’s man. He never learned to appreciate the music my mom played. To him it was what she did to earn money. I never felt I lived up to his definition of a man, to be what he believed a man should be.”

  “Pardon me mister,” Kim said clearing her throat. “But your music saved my life and for that I will be eternally grateful. I don't care what our current situation is.”

  Dwayne took Kim's hand and stroked it with his fingertips. “How is your shoulder?” he asked.

  “It hurts.”

  “Poor baby,” he said then smiled.

  #

  Christmas Eve dinner consisted of the last of the good stuff. Dressed in their finest evening wear, Dwayne opened the pineapple ham and placed it on a serving dish. Kim opened a can of collard greens and a can of pinto beans. Father Bryan worked on his specialty: a pan of fluffy homemade biscuits.

  They had not been to town for some time. The shotgun blasts earlier in the week had brought in a good sized crowd of stragglers. The group laid low and silent until the crowd had moved on.

  “Everyone seems to be in a good mood lately,” Dwayne noticed.

  “Looking forward to tonight has been a shot in the arm,” Kim said. She was proud of everyone for overcoming their losses. Dwayne had overcome the loss of Jean. Kim herself had adjusted to her new life and in her humble way thanked God.

  “And so my dear,” Dwayne said. “We will all have a lovely meal together. When we finish, if you would allow me to change then you are welcome to adorn your wedding attire while us guys enjoy a brief bachelor party downstairs. I have arranged for several attractive zombie girls to serve drinks to Doc Martin and Captain Jack.”

  Kim shook her head and laughed. “You would do something like that, wouldn't you.”

  “As you come downstairs,” Dwayne continued. “Doc Martin will play the wedding march on the piano and then Father Bryan will perform the ceremony.”

  Captain Jack came in from watch then went to change clothes. Doc Martin, dressed in corduroy pants and a jacket, was already playing notes on the piano.

  “It's going to a blast,” Kim said. “You boys just behave during that brief bachelor party. I don't want to see any lap dancing from any of you.”

  “Father Bryan will be our chaperon,” Dwayne laughed. “With that in mind, I'm sure we'll be on our best behavior. Well, maybe not Doc Martin, he's working on his last bottle of Scotch. He's probably going to be pretty stoned tonight.”

  “He's earned a good buzz,” Kim smiled.

  “Good evening everyone,” Captain Jack said then came into the kitchen in a fresh pair of blue jeans and a flannel shirt. “All is quiet on the western front.”

  “Dinner is ready guys,” Kim announced.

  “Doc,” Dwayne said. “Captain Jack, Father Bryan, dinner is served. C'mon, let's eat.”

  Everyone gathered around the kitchen's island counter top where the food was sitting on serving trays.

  “It’s help yourself guys,” Kim said then handed out plates and silverware. “It's wedding dinner buffet style.”

  “What would you like to drink Doc?” Dwayne lined the counter top with a glass for everyone.

  “Scotch on the rocks,” Doc Martin answered.

  “We just happen to have a couple rocks in the fridge,” Dwayne said. “How about you Captain Jack?”

  “Do you have any carbonated drinks?”

  “But of course. For you non-alcoholic types with the pre-performance jitters, we have the old reliable ginger ale. Nothing but the best for the best man. Father,” Dwayne said as he handed a glass to Captain Jack and Father Bryan.

  “I'd like to propose a toast,” Doc Martin said. “To the future newlyweds, may your days be many and to Dwayne, thank you for your hospitality. I am forever indebted you.”

  “Here, here.” Everyone touched their glasses together.

  When dinner was finished, everyone gathered in the living room. Doc Martin took his place at the piano next to the fireplace and played the several classical songs he knew by memory as Dwayne went to change in the downstairs bathroom and Kim made her way upstairs to the master bedroom.

  Father Bryan and Captain Jack watched entranced as the flames of the fire danced.

  Dwayne reemerged dressed in his tuxedo and brought along a dress jacket for Captain Jack. Everyone was silent when Kim came down the stairs. Her red hair was pulled back into a fuzzy bun. Her brilliant green eyes shined like emeralds.

  Kim was enchanting. The men were hypnotized by her radiant, almost angelic beauty. Doc Martin began playing her bridal march as she made the transition from the stairway to the center of the living room.

  Captain Jack nudged Dwayne gently with his elbow. “You lucky dog.”

  Dressed mostly
in white, Kim wore an ensemble of blue jeans, leather, satin and lace in a mix from the clothing she had brought from home and from the pieces of Jean's bridal gown that Kim managed to fit into.

  Kim glided effortlessly across the living room floor to Dwayne. As they gazed lovingly into each other’s eyes, Father Bryan approached the couple and began the ceremony.

  “Dwayne Ellis, do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?”

  “I do,” Dwayne said with a smile.

  “Do you,” Father Bryan said. “Kim Young, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?”

  “Of course I do,” Kim said as she looked lovingly into Dwayne's eyes. “I will love you even when you're snoring, right in my ear.”

  Dwayne was silent. He cut his eyes to Father Bryan. Doc Martin chuckled.

  “OK, I will love the boogers in your nose,” Dwayne shot back.

  Captain Jack laughed. Even the usually stoic Father Bryan cracked what appeared to be a smile.

  “Until death do we part,” Dwayne said.

  “Until death do we part,” Kim said.

  Captain Jack, standing next to Dwayne, produced a napkin ring from his jacket pocket and handed it to Dwayne.

  The napkin ring was a replica of a large diamond ring. It was part of a set of napkin holders that Doc Martin and Linda had given Dwayne and Jean for their wedding anniversary.

  Dwayne took the ring from Captain Jack and placed it over Kim's finger. Kim smiled. Everyone else laughed.

  The gag almost became toxic. With the memory of Jean, Dwayne regressed momentarily into his depression but then quickly recovered.

  “I now pronounce you man and wife,” Father Bryan said. “You may now kiss the bride.”

  Kim placed the palms of her hands on Dwayne's cheeks then looked into his eyes. “You may kiss the bride now,” she said with her face glowing.

  The two kissed.

  “Merry Christmas, Mrs. Ellis.”

  “May I have this dance?” Captain Jack asked.

  “Why of course Captain Jack,” Kim replied in her best southern belle accent. She held the edges of her bridal gown and dipped slightly then took Captain Jack's hand.

  “Very well done,” Doc Martin said to Dwayne over the classical music on the CD.