her eyes shining.

"What do you mean by that?" - I enquired, my curiosity genuinely awakened.

"Pray, tell me, what was I wearing when we first met?"

I couldn't conjure the image, no matter how hard I tried.

"I am not sure." - I finally admitted defeat

"What was the color of the curtains in your mother's kitchen?"

"White, with machine embroidered strawberries or raspberries or
something of the sort."

"What was the first horror movie that you have seen?"

"I can't be expected to remember that!" - I exclaimed.

"Of course you can't, dear. No one can. You'd be lucky to get one
response out of three correct, you know." - She agreed - "This is the
point I am trying to make. Didn't you find my family's omniscience and
total recall a trifle overdone? Didn't you ask yourself for a minute how
come they are all blessed with such supreme, marvelous memories?"

She sounded distant and heartbroken as she said:

"I have changed my will, you know. They couldn't fool me with their
slick off-the-cuff ready-made know-it-all responses! It's all yours now.
Sleep well, my true friend and, henceforth, my only heir!."

She glided over and kissed me on the cheek, once, like a butterfly
alighting.

*****

I was woken up by a wet kiss planted on my lips by Isabel's husband.

"What do you think you are doing?" - I hissed and withdrew to the top of
the bed - "If you don't leave the room this instant, I will scream!"

He looked hurt and baffled as he slid off the mattress and stretched his
monolithic corpulence.

"What's wrong?" - He enquired - "Anything I did to offend you last
night? You shouldn't have asked all these questions if you didn't want
to hear my answers, you know!"

"Where's Isabel?" - I demanded.

He eyed me queerly and pleaded sadly:

"We are not going to go through all this again, are we, dear?"

"Go through what and I am asking you for the last time: where is Isabel,
your wife?"

He sighed and collapsed on the bed, depressing it considerably as he
held onto one of the bedposts:

"I will call Dr. Milton. Promise me you won't do anything stupid until
he has had the chance to see you."

"I am going to call the police on you. Isabel announces her intention to
disinherit you and the next morning she is mysteriously gone. Dead, for
all I know!"

"Isabel is alive and well, I give you my word." - Said her husband and,
for some reason, I believed him. He sounded sincere.

"Then why can't I see her?"