I had been using the same memory palace for longer than I could imagine. I had my 3 toed monkeys in a tree. The 1 crystal clear lake with 4 koi swimming around.

All that was great, but my house, my house was special.

Walking inside I could find my one-of-a-kind 5-legged dinner table. Most importantly were the 6 windows looking out to my garden where my kids played.

Wait...was that a broken window? I didn't remember putting that there. I went to inspect and as I neared I saw 2 sets of bloody footprints. A sharp chill went through my body as I froze in place.

This wasn't right at all. This wasn't my doing! How though? How could this happen?

I thought about breaking out of my memory palace, pulling myself back...but curiosity drove me to follow the blood.

I followed the footprints to my 16-step staircase.

Step by step I followed the prints upward. Too in shock to make myself stop.

I reached the top of the steps and heard laughter coming from one of my kid's rooms.

Instinct took over and I ran to the door grabbing frantically at the handle and shoving the door open!

I wasn't ready for what I saw.

It was my ex-wife, barefooted, in the white sundress she loved so much...playing with my son.

"Oh, hi Charles." She said looking up at me. Her eyes were pitch black. "You know, I was always so jealous of you caring more about your work and this stupid memory palace than me and the kids. Now that I'm here I can see why you liked it so much. Why don't you come and play with us, Charles?"

"Yes daddy, come play with us." It was 8-year-old son Simon speaking. He looked up at me, with the same all-black eyes his mom had. No whites, just all inky, midnight black.

The car crash came bursting back into my mind. My ex had taken my son Charles without permission. There was a high-speed chase...they didn't make it.

"I'm so sorry, please, it was my fault...please forgive me!" I sobbed

"It's okay daddy, we can stay here forever now. Come play!"

I fell to my knees, grabbed my head, and started rocking. "I'm so sorry...I'm so sorry...I'm so sorry..."