Chapter 6 - The Man on the Roof
My blood ran cold at the sound of the tapping.
The figure on the roof was completely motionless, just a dark silhouette against the night sky.
I scooped my niece into my arms and backed away from the bathtub.
I squeezed into the narrow space between the vanity and the shower stall.
The tapping stopped.
Instead, a slow, methodical scraping sound began against the window frame.
Someone was trying to pry the window open from the outside.
Back in the hallway, the loud crash of breaking furniture shook the walls.
My brother was fighting a losing battle against two desperate women.
I had to make a choice.
I could stay hidden and wait for the person outside to break in, or I could face the hallway.
I gently set my niece down in the dry bathtub and pulled the shower curtain closed.
I whispered a promise that I would be right back.
I grabbed the heavy ceramic lid off the back of the toilet tank.
It was the only improvised weapon I could find.
Just as I raised the lid over my shoulder, the bathroom door handle rattled violently.
My brother's voice shouted through the wood, begging me to open the door.
I reached for the deadbolt, feeling a wave of relief wash over me.
May you like
But as I turned the lock, I realized the voice was slightly distorted.
It wasn't my brother speaking at all.
