When Things Go Bump through the Night

When Sophie was 10 years old, her parents decided that she was old enough to stay by herself. Her parents decided that Friday was a good evening to go out and see a movie, leaving Sophie by herself for no more than an hour or two.

As Friday rolled around, Sophie's parents cooked dinner and ate with their daughter. They then told her they were going to the movies and left her their cell phone number, so should anything happen, she could call them immediately.

"I promise I will pick up, sweetheart", stated her dad, as he hugged little Sophie goodbye.

Sophie waved her parents goodbye and closed the front door behind them, making sure to lock it, as they instructed. She settled on the living room couch and began watching tv, munching on chips.

Suddenly, she heard a creaking noise from the second floor.

"Must be the wind or something," she thought to herself. The house wasn't particularly new, so it wasn't unusual to hear creaks and squeaks every now and then.

She kept watching tv until she heard another creak. Except this one wasn't the wind. It sounded like a footstep.

Panic immediately took over Sophie so she grabbed the cordless phone and ran to the bathroom, locking herself in. She quickly dialed her parents.

One ring, two rings, three rings, four... Voicemail. Her parents must not have been paying attention. They were probably absorbed in whatever movie they were seeing. With no other option, Sophie called the police.

"911, what's your emergency?"

"I think there's someone or something in my house," whispered Sophie into the receiver.

The dispatcher began to collect all her info like her name and address.

"Are you in a safe spot, Sophie", asked the dispatcher.

"Yes."

"Would you like me to stay on the phone with you while you wait for the officer to come check on your house?"

"It's okay. I think I'll be fine if he'll be here in 10 minutes."

"Okay Sophie..." The dispatcher paused mid-sentence, then said, "Actually, I think it'd be best for me to stay on the line with you. Just in case."

"Okay."

Sophie chatted with the dispatcher for about 30 minutes before a knock on the bathroom door startled her.

The dispatcher calmly said, "That's the police officer, Sophie."

"Police, you can open the door," came a voice from the other side. Sophie peeked her head out the door and saw that it was indeed, a police officer. She immediately ran past him and out the front door to her parents open arms.

When she let go, she realized her house was surrounded by police cars, and two burly-looking police officers were taking out a bald man in a dirty t-shirt and jeans. He had a mean look about his face, but didn't bother looking at Sophie or her parents.

"What happened," she asked the officer.

"Well, your parents were coming home as my partner and I arrived," stated the police officer. "We told them how you called about a possible intruder and that you were hiding in the bathroom, so they let us in to search the house before getting you out of there. That man over there was found under your bed. He's a convicted felon, and he also has a bench warrant out for his arrest for skipping town after posting bail in a rape and murder case. He's a dangerous man, Sophie, and I'm glad you called us."

Sophie could not believe what she was hearing. She suddenly realized that she was still on the phone with the dispatcher. She put the phone to her ear and told the woman, "There was someone in my house!"

"I know Sophie," affirmed the dispatcher. "That is why I told you to stay on the line."

"But how did you know someone was in my house," asked Sophie incredulously.

"When I was on the phone with you, I heard the second line hang up."