She felt all alone. The two youngest kids were there tucked into bed, but they didn't keep that alone feeling away. What she really wanted was for her husband to be there. Or, at the very least for one of the three teenagers to be home.
The Oldest girls had gone to stay with friends back home. Back home. How she longed to be there. Back in the cute little house her husband had built for them. Back in that familiar town surrounded by friends. That was miles away and what was more it felt like a lifetime away. His job there had gone downhill, there just wasn't any room to advance with his old employer. He had to branch out on his own and start his own business.
That business had led them here to the middle of nowhere. A big farmhouse in northern Nebraska. A farm miles away from anything. Even the nearest road, which was nothing but a gravel country road, was down that mile long driveway that seemed to go on forever. Now he was gone working on another house miles away and gone for the weekend. He'd taken their oldest son with him to help. That left just her and the little kids home alone.
She had tucked the little ones into her bed a couple hours ago. They didn't want to go alone up to their rooms and she didn't blame them. If it were her she wouldn't go up there alone either. She didn't really want to be alone in her room either. So, with her husband out of town the two little ones would make good company and sleeping close would make them all feel safer.
It was getting late, nearly midnight. She sat in front of the TV thinking she should shut it off and go to bed. The idea of turning off the comforting sound and light of the TV was too disturbing though. She looked down at the dog thinking she should let him out. That wasn't happening though. There was no way she was opening the door to the darkness outside.
As she looked at him his head popped up. He cocked his head, listening. She stared at him, watching his every move. His head swiveled quickly to the right. He now stared directly at the big window in the front of the house. His hair raised, his lip curled. A low growl began deep within him. She was frozen, staring at the dog. Too afraid to turn and look at whatever he was seeing.
Then it started. Boom! Boom! Boom! Something was beating on the outside of the house. Boom! On the front of the house. Boom! On the side of the house! Boom! In the back of the house. Boom! Boom! Boom! It came from all sides. It was loud, like nothing she had ever heard before. Boom! It was not a knock, too hard, too loud, too powerful. Boom! It was everywhere all at once.
The walls shook, the noise got louder, it continued on and on. She sat frozen, unable to move. The dog growled and barked. He ran from one side of the house to the other. He looked for the source of the tormenting noise. Still she sat frozen, not knowing what to do. Why? Why tonight? Why was this happening on this night when everyone was gone? When it was just her and the two little ones?
The little ones? She unfroze. She dashed past the crazed dog and darted into her room. In the bed the little ones slept on. There they lay in a sleep that only young children are capable of. A sleep so deep they were totally unaware of the chaos happening around them. Thank God for that. She was terrified and had no idea how she could have calmed them when she was so upset herself. She stood there and watched her children sleep. Concentrating on the rise and fall of their chests as they breathed the deep breaths of slumber. She counted their breaths. All effort she could muster she put into counting.
Soon she could hear them breathing as well. Calm, peaceful, beautiful sounds of sleeping children. The dog came into the room. She looked down at him. He stared up at her with his big, goofy dog smile. It was gone that smile told her. Whatever it was... it was gone.
She climbed into bed and called for the dog. He jumped up and lay down at the foot of the bed. He gave her that smile again and then pointed his nose at the door. He was watching out for them. Eventually she drifted off to sleep.
This is my mom's story. Her tale of terror in our old farmhouse. Whether you choose to believe it or not... she does. She does.