Noises In The Night

This is the last part of this story.

Part 5

Looking towards the hall doorway, waiting for the person to appear Megan was taking bets with herself as to who it was. Tossing up between her other two children she considered it more likely to be her other son, the middle child, who was up, rather than his older sister. Normally she slept so soundly an army could march through her bedroom and she wouldn’t even stir. 

All of a sudden the footsteps stopped. Megan smiled. “You might as well come in Jared. I know you’re there” she joked.

But there was no response and no one entered the room. “Jared?” Megan called out.
Still there was nothing and she noticed that not even the noise seemed to be occurring anymore. Frowning, she stepped forward so she could see who was approaching. But as she stepped in line with the passage and turned her head to look in the direction of the footsteps, her eyes widened and her blood ran cold. She opened her mouth to scream but this time, no noise came out.

Noises In The Night

Part 4

Startled the figure screamed back causing Megan to scream all the more. But after a second as her heart settled back in her chest she recognised with immense relief that it was just her youngest child standing there, her ten year old son Max. 

“Oh Max, you scared the life out of me” she said

“What’s that noise Mum?” Max asked with a yawn as the noise came again.

“I don’t know. I was just checking to see if it was the dryer.”

“Doesn’t sound like the dryer” Max said rubbing his eyes. 

“No, it’s not” Megan said looking back into the laundry with a worried expression. Then turning back to her son she said “go back to bed sweetie, don’t worry about it” and sighed as she heard footsteps in the passage heading their way. She wondered which of her other two children were out of bed now.

Noises In The Night

Part 3

To Megan’s dismay as soon as she turned on the light in the laundry she knew it hadn’t been the dryer making the noise. The back door was closed and checking the handle she discovered it was locked. But she still wanting the appliance to be the source of the noise, because the alternative was something unknown and therefore more disturbing. So her eyes moved to the power point that the dryer was plugged into. Deep down she knew it was a futile action but she couldn’t help it. However as expected, she saw the appliance was turned off at the wall making it impossible for it to have caused the noise that had woken her. Then removing all doubt, as she stood there, the noise came again. Megan noticed it was much louder on the ground floor and it completely unnerved her. Spinning around to head back upstairs and wake her husband after all, Megan had her hand on the light switch when she discovered she wasn’t alone. Terrified, her heart jumped into her throat as she saw a figure standing only a meter away and a scream escaped her lips.

Noises In The Night

Part 2

Megan’s eyes darted around the landing, checking every shadow as she reached the bottom of the stairs. She was still having to talk herself into taking each step as fear threatened to paralise her. The noise had started again when she was part way down, startling her, but while she paused to listen now, all was quiet again. Without haste, she began moving forward again, turning in the direction of the laundry, switching on more lights as she moved towards the back of the house. Her chest was beginning to hurt, her heart was beating so fast and she could feel a cold sweat forming on her skin, making her shiver. 

Sooner than she would have liked she was standing before the laundry door. She had noticed nothing out of place along the way but it afforded her little relief.  She still had to find an explanation for the noise. Putting her hand out, praying it was just that the dryer had been left on, Megan turned the handle and pushing open the door, she turned on the light.

Noises In The Night

Megan woke with a start. Disorientated, she lay still trying to work out what had woken her. She looked at the clock, it was one am and as it should be at that time of night, he house was peaceful. Her husband’s heavy breathing next to her was the only sound to be heard. Assuming the cause was a dream she’d been having, Megan relaxed and settled back down to sleep. But within seconds her eyes snapped open as she heard a strange sound coming from somewhere on the floor below her. She knew now this is what had pulled her out of her sleep. 

It wasn’t loud but it was something that definitely shouldn’t have been there.  A whirring noise like a motor running, it stopped as suddenly as it started. Megan was puzzled. There was no reason for anything to be running at that time of night. Everyone in the house was in bed. She frowned, trying to think of possible causes. Maybe it was coming from the house next door. But as the noise started up again she could tell it was closer than that. Maybe she had left the dryer running. She had done that before and she knew if that was the case, the backdoor would be open too. She always opened it if she was running the dryer so condensation didn’t build up in the laundry. The trouble is, she didn’t remember having the dryer on. Her frown deepened. 

She turned on the light and waited hoping whatever it was had stopped. But within a few minutes it came again. Looking over at her slumbering husband she contemplated waking him, but then decided against it. He would only get mad and she would be left feeling stupid when he no doubt would find it was her fault for forgetting to turn off the dryer. It wasn’t as if the noise sounded menacing or anything, it was just annoying because she didn’t know what it was. 

So pushing aside the covers Megan sat up. She wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep, thinking the back door was open, so she would have a look downstairs herself. Never a particularly courageous person, she took a deep breath as she opened the bedroom door. The house was in darkness. Turning on the lights as she went, she made her way to the staircase, telling herself with every step that she had nothing to worry about. But with all the scenes out of every horror movie she’d ever seen playing through her head, when everyone screams “don’t go out there” her heart was hammering as she started down the stairs.