As If I Had Seen the Fear In His Eyes

We were just moving in And our neighbors down the hall Decided to act neighborly And invite us over for a visit We were due for a break Their apartment was cluttered In an interesting museum-like way Obviously the result of downsizing They introduced us To little winged patients They were nursing back to health It was therapeutic for them they said As we were handed a drink There was a curious serenity About them that I quickly Attributed to age But there was something Almost unearthly In their listless eyes Their exotic flair was palpable We shook our heads When we were mentioned They had left California To settle up here Turns out Paradise Had lost its appeal When they found Their son in their garage Lifeless With blatant evidence Of merciless torture The rest of the visit Was a blur We left shaken to the core I had the taste of his fear Primal in my mouth And felt trapped In a lingering fog of terror Not knowing what To make of their inconceivable ordeal And the price they must have paid To attain this zen-like state While their heart had to Still be a fresh open wound I suspect they were just really counting The days till they met again It so happened that I never saw these neighbors again But the memory Will forever haunt me Horrifying and disturbing As if I had seen for myself The deep-rooted primal fear in Their poor child’s eyes AP: 1st place 2020 Submitted on December 31, 2018 for contest SCREWED XIX sponsored by ROB CARMACK and on September 14, 2017 for contest FEAR II sponsored by DEBBIE GUZZI