Inkvite - My Collaborations

The Loft

Note; Originally written on Inkvite by 'Belvaar' & 'undormant'. It started off as 'chapter one: initial concern' but it seems we didn't follow it up.

Samantha Norton had lived at the country house that she was buying only three weeks when she first heard it. A slight rustling and creaking from her loft. Her head told her not to worry, not to jump to conclusions. Yet she couldn't help but wonder. After all it was probably just rats right?
As the weeks passed she tried hard to ignore the noises. The rat traps had only caught one rat in that time and she found it hard to believe there were more or they'd have been caught by now surely.
One night she awoke, she looked out of her bedroom door and thought she was seeing things but as she focused she had the terror and realisation that her loft hatch was hanging down. Just there hanging open. She could hear a slight whistling noise from the breeze coming through. She had to close it.
She hated to admit it but she almost wished her bastard of an ex-husband was here to go take a look for her. She was sure that wasn't the very feminist thing to think but then men had to be useful for something, again not very politically correct. Besides, the split had been amicable, as in he wanted to go and she wanted him gone. He was nearby. Maybe he'd pop by? No it was simply ridiculous to even think it. She had to do it. First some light would be good. Samantha reached for her light and pulled the cord. It didn't come on. Then she heard a bang.
She simply didn't believe in spooks, so it had to be someone playing tricks, but who & for what reason? Samantha didn't believe it was her ex-husband but she did think it was a person, rationale told her that. Village teens had given her strange looks, locals weren't friendly , it was almost like she had done something wrong just by moving there, though she hadn't done anything, she hadn't even met anyone properly yet aside from the local shopkeeper. Who had gone a bit weird after she told her she had bought this house. Maybe they knew something?
Samantha Norton was alone in the loft, standing either bravely or foolishly as her eyes adjusted to the dark. She saw a heavy box of power tools had fallen from a high shelf. A full inspection of the loft presented no intruder, no ghost or phantom. Would it remain a mystery?