My wife has never had a girl’s night out. When I asked her if she wanted one, she burst into tears and told me that every night was a girl’s night out for her.

Her twin sister disappeared when they were 9. I have no idea what happened to her, but my MIL always seemed to think that she was still out there. She’s not. My MIL told me that over a quiet dinner, she was killed in a terrible car accident. My wife has done contact with the dead many times. She and her sister were both very gifted. My MIL strongly suggested that she stop. She was too emotionally fragile after losing her sister and needed to be kept safe from the malevolent entities that lurked on the other side. I was never told what happened to her sister until we got married. My MIL told me that my wife said it was fine to tell me. I was not allowed to tell her. It was terribly important that my MIL keep her from knowing.<br>I told my wife anyway. She had to know. She burst into tears, but I couldn’t tell if they were happy or sad. She ran down the hall with tears streaming down her face. I followed her, calling her name. I had never seen her cry like that before. I didn’t even know she could do it. She ran into her office and locked the door. I heard a few clicks and then the wailing began with a terrible static. It was the most beautiful, sad sound I’d ever heard. I pounded on the door and begged her to stop. I told her it was too dangerous. I could feel the floor shifting beneath me. The lights were flickering. I heard a loud crack and the wailing stopped. I pounded on the door again. She didn’t answer. I called her name. She didn’t answer. I heard the buzzing of the Tesla coil, winding down. The work light flickered off and I heard the latches on the door click. The door creaked open and I heard footsteps echoing in the hallway. I turned to see my wife coming towards me, grinning like a lunatic. She was holding hands with a girl that looked just like her. She was dressed in the exact same sundress. They both looked like they were in their mid-20s. They looked nothing like the pictures I’d seen of the sisters. I had no idea how they’d aged at all. They’d looked like kids when they were in the pictures.<br>“Hello,” the other woman said. “I’m your MIL.”<br>She was confused and disoriented. It’s been a long time and I had no idea where to take her. I took my wife to our room, telling her to wait, and I took “my MIL” to the kitchen. She was very sweet. She was still confused and had no idea who I was. I told her I was her son-in-law. I told her my name. She shook her head. She did not know who I was. I told her she was my wife’s twin and she started screaming. The lights flickered. The house creaked. She was muttering in a language I couldn’t understand. I was scared. She looked at me with tears in her eyes. “Tell her I did it for you,” she said. “I did it for you.” She put her hand out and touched my cheek. The lights went out and the house creaked and groaned again. I fell into the dark.<br>When I woke, I was on the floor. The lights were on again. The house was quiet. I sat up and rubbed my eyes. A piece of paper on the floor caught my eye. “I’m sorry for everything,” it said. “I did it for you.”<br>I jumped up and ran up the stairs. My wife was gone. The Tesla coil was in pieces. There was no sign of a struggle. She was just gone. I called the police. They came. They were confused. They searched the house and found nothing. They called a rescue team. They looked for days. They found nothing. I was frantic. I was alone, lost, and scared. I had nowhere to go. I was a failure. I’d failed her. I’d failed them both. I went to the office and started cleaning up the mess. The copper wire was tangled and mangled. The crystal was shattered. I started untangling the wire and noticed something attached to it. I pulled them out of the mess. They were pictures. Pictures of my wedding. Pictures of me and my wife. Pictures of us when we were happy. A note was tucked in with them. “Remember,” it said. “I did it for you.”<br>I do remember. I remember everything. I remember my wedding. I remember meeting my MIL. I remember our visits. I remember her telling me what happened to my BIL. I remember her telling me to tell my wife she did it for her. I looked around the room. It was exactly as it had been. I smiled, feeling a weight lift off my shoulders. I was so relieved. My wife walked into the room, a look of confusion on her face. “Who are you?” she said. I smiled and told her my name. I told her I was her husband. She shook her head. “I’m not married,” she said. I smiled. “Yes,” I said. “You are. You’re my wife.” She frowned. I was confused. She shook her head again. “I’m not married,” she repeated. She turned and ran down the hallway, calling for her mother. I sighed and stood up. I had to tell her. I had to tell her what happened. I heard the front door open and close. I heard footsteps and the front door open again. I heard someone talking. A car started. My wife burst into the doorway, a look of joy on her face. Her sister was standing behind her. “She’s back,” she said. “My sister is back.” I smiled and nodded. “I know,” I said. “I saw her.” She frowned. “When?” she asked. I pointed to the pictures on the desk. “She was here,” I said. “She was right here.”<br>She walked towards me, the pictures in her hand. Her sister was holding her hand. They were both grinning. I smiled back. “Look,” I said. “We’re a family again.”<br>They got closer. I reached out. They didn’t stop. They kept coming. They kept grinning. The pictures fell to the ground. They reached out and touched me. I felt a chill. Everything went white.<br>The next morning I woke in a hospital. The police were out in the hall. I heard them arguing. “No,” one of them said. “She’s the twin sister. She’s the one who’s been missing.” “No,” the other one said. “No, she’s the wife. The wife is the one who’s missing.” I groaned and sat up. They rushed in. I looked at them. “What happened?” I asked. “She’s missing,” one of them said. “Do you know where she is?” “No,” I said. “She was kidnapped. We got a ransom demand. She said you did it.” I shook my head. “I didn’t.” “She said you did it. She’s missing. Do you know where she is?” I shook my head again. They left. They decided I was lying. They decided I had killed her. They took me to jail. She was never found. The MIL’s never been found either. My mother in law owned the house. It was hers. She left it to her daughters. I was in jail when it happened. I didn’t know. I was too drugged out. I didn’t know what was happening.<br>They told me the day I got out. They told me it had burned to the ground. The police had no idea what happened. Her sister had been at home. She’d been killed. They’d never found her sister. They’d never found her. They’d never found my MIL either.<br>My MIL had done it for her.