Bump in the night

Ruth' s boyfriend was being haunted by his past¼

Harry told me about the ghost in his house soon after I met him. He sat me down and told me that an old man who had lived in the house before still walked along the landing every night, so I wasn' t surprised when I heard the footsteps after I moved in with him.

I was shocked by how loud they were though, and after two weeks of hearing them every night, I began to wish that I' d stayed in my flat.

I don' t know how you cope with it,' I said to Harry one morning at breakfast.

Harry shrugged. I don' t know. I suppose I' ve just got used to it.'

But it' s all so loud,' I replied. And there' s all these footsteps and then a great big thump, and I can never get to sleep afterwards because I keep thinking it might happen again.'

Well, it won' t,' Harry said. It only happens once a night.'

I know, but it' s scary,' I said as I watched him tucking into the fry-up I' d made him. And I keep thinking the old man' s going to appear in the bedroom doorway.'

Harry chuckled. Well, that' s never happened yet.'

No, but what if it did?' I shuddered and took a sip of the strong coffee I' d made.

I don' t know how you can be so laid-back about it, Harry. It' s really frightening and it' s getting to the stage where I dread going to bed because I know I' m not going to get much sleep. But I must have fallen asleep last night eventually though, because I had a vivid dream.' About what?'

Oh, nothing,' I said, pushing the memories of the dream to the back of my mind because something had occurred to me. Do you think the ghost needs our help?'

Help?' Harry stared at me. With what?'

I shrugged. I don' t know, but he' s obviously trapped here because he' s unhappy about something, so we might be able to help him.'

By doing what?' Harry slumped back in his chair.

I don' t know. It depends what his problem is.'

His problem is he' s dead,' Harry growled.

Yes, but he obviously wants something. When did you say he lived here?'

Before me. He died about 10 years ago.'

Right, so maybe one of the neighbours would know what his problem is,' I said as I looked towards the window.

Harry sighed. No, I shouldn' t think so, Ruth, and I don' t want you talking to the neighbours. They' re a weird lot round here.'

In what way?'

They' re just weird,' he said. I tried to get to know some of them when I first moved here, but it didn' t work out and I don' t want you getting involved with any of them.'

I pictured some of the

It s really frightening and it s getting to the stage where I dread going to bed

people I' d seen walking by and frowned. Well, they all look OK to me. And I could do with making some friends round here anyway. There' s a woman of about my age in the house opposite and she looks really nice.'

Yeah, well, looks can be deceiving,' Harry muttered, as he put his cutlery down so he could reach across the table and put his hand on mine. Don' t go and talk to her, Ruth. You don' t need friends round here. You' ve got me!'

Yes, I know I have,' I muttered, as I looked down at our hands and wondered if I' d made the biggest mistake of my life when

I' d moved in with Harry.

It had seemed like such a good idea when he' d suggested it.

I' d been in dire straits financially, so I' d told my landlord I' d be moving, packed up my belongings and moved into Harry' s house just weeks after I' d met him, even though my mother had been horrified when I' d called round to her house early one morning and told her what I planned to do.

But you hardly know him,' she' d pointed out.

So?' I shrugged. I might not have known him for long, but he' s amazing, Mum, and I' ve always dreamt of living with somebody special.'

My mother sighed. Well, I just hope you don' t live to regret it, Ruth, and if you' re struggling financially, you could always move back in with me. I' m always here for you, Ruth.'

But I' m 34!' I pointed out, thinking that she' d always been too obsessed with her work to have much time for me. And I' m used to doing my own thing, Mum.'

Well, on your own head be it,' she muttered as she made a big deal of checking the time on her watch. Is this Harry going to expect you to do all the cooking and cleaning?'

No, of course he isn't ,' I'd replied breezily, although I really hadn' t had a clue about anything like that because it hadn' t been discussed.

I' d imagined that we would share all the chores though, and when I first moved in and looked around Harry' s massive kitchen, I smiled to myself and thought how happy I was going to be. The kitchen in my flat had been grotty and I' d never felt inspired to do any cooking, but I made Harry a special meal that night and carried on cooking every night afterwards because he reckoned my cooking was so much better than his. He was so appreciative every time I put a meal down in front of him and I really thought I'd landed on my feet. But the ghostly footsteps had put a dampener on my happiness right from the start, and there was something about Harry' s attitude that had started to worry me as well. He' d been all sweetness and light when we' d first met, but he' d started trying to control me as soon as I' d moved in.

Banning me from talking to the neighbours wasn' t the first thing he' d done. During the very first week, he' d informed me that he didn' t want me to go out with my work colleagues any more, and when I' d told him that I was meeting up with an old girlfriend, he' d glared at me and told me that he' d rather that I didn' t.

But we' ll only have one drink,' I' d replied.

Yeah, but I want you here with me,' he said, replacing the glare with a smile. I want to be with you all the time, Ruth. Don' t you feel that way about me?'

Of course I do. I love being with you, Harry, but Vicky' s only going to be back here for a couple of days, and I haven' t seen her for months!' Harry stared at me. But I can' t understand why you' d want to see her, Ruth. Don' t you want to be with me?'

Of course I do,' I said again, but I want to keep in touch with my friends as well. It' s not healthy if you become totally obsessed with one person, is it?' Isn' t it?' No, it' s not. I love you very much, Harry, but¼'

So prove it,' he interrupted, anger flashing in his eyes. Stay here with me. I don' t want you going anywhere without me. If you go out with this Vicky, you might meet another man!'

Of course I won' t!' I stared at him in astonishment. I won' t be looking at other men. I just want to meet up with Vicky and talk about the old times.'

And me,' he spat out. I frowned. Well, yes, I want to tell her about you, but¼'

But it' s none of her business,' he growled before he moved closer to me and ran his fingers down the back of my neck.

Please don' t meet her, Ruth. I want you here with me.'

But I' m

T here was something about Harry s attitude that had started to worry me as well

with you all the rest of the time¼' I' d managed to get out before he' d shut me up by kissing me.

I' d really wanted to see Vicky, but I' d cancelled our meeting in the end because of Harry, and when he' d made love to me when I would have been with her,

I' d smiled up into his eyes and found myself thinking that I' d much rather be with him.

Our sex life had been amazing ever since we' d met, but later that night when I was lying awake, waiting for the footsteps, I got to thinking about how Harry had controlled me and I promised myself that I wouldn' t let him do it again.

But now he' d told me that I couldn' t talk to the neighbours and it was really ridiculous, I thought, as I looked at him across the kitchen table and wondered if he' d been the same with every woman he' d known.

Because there had been plenty of women in his life, apparently.

He' d told me when we' d first met that he' d been out with loads of women over the years, but he' d never stuck with any of them for long.

He' d always got bored and he' d never contemplated getting married or living with somebody before.

But I was different, he' d told me, just days after we' d met.

You' re so special,' he' d whispered, pushing my fringe out of my eyes as we' d sat on the sofa in my flat. I really think you' re the one, Ruth.'

I smiled. But you haven' t known me for long. I might have all sorts of secrets you don' t know about!'

I doubt that,' he said.

Well, no, I haven' t,' I admitted, as I stared at his handsome face and wondered what he saw in me. Actually, my life' s been very boring up until now.

I' ve only had a few boyfriends and none of them were like you.'

Harry kissed me gently on the tip of my nose. I hope you mean that in a good way.'

Oh, I do,' I assured him. There was something between us from the moment we set eyes on each other, wasn' t there?' There was,' he agreed.

And I' m so glad I met you,' I breathed, running my fingers through his thick, curly hair.

I nearly didn' t go to that party, you know. I got back from work late and I wasn' t sure that I could be bothered, but¼'

But it was meant to be,' he smiled.

Yes, I think it was.'

It was fate,' he added. I knew we were going to get together from the moment I saw you across that crowded room.'

Yes, and I knew it too,' whispered, looking at my future through a pair of rose-tinted glasses.

I' d been so happy when Harry had told me how

I' d special I was and even happier when he' d asked me to move in with him, but everything had gone downhill since then, and I needed to sort everything out, I decided, as I sat there at the breakfast table.

And I would start with the ghost. I would wait until Harry was out and then I would visit one of the neighbours and see if I could find out about the old man.

It would be pointless going to see the young woman across the road because she obviously hadn' t lived in the area for very long, but there was an older woman next door, and I would go and see her, I thought, deciding I would do it the next night after work.

The woman greeted me with a smile when she opened the door.

Oh, hello,' she said. Are you from next door?'

I am,' I said, thinking she didn' t seem the slightest bit weird. I' ve come round to ask you something.'

She smiled again. You don' t want to borrow a cup of sugar, do you?'

No, it' s nothing like that.' I took a deep breath and wondered how she was going to react when I mentioned the ghost.

It' s just that Harry' s house is haunted, and I wondered if you could tell me anything about the old man.'

The old man?'

Yes, the ghost. The man who lived in the house before.'

Mr Jenkins?' The woman frowned. What makes you think he' s haunting the place?'

Well, Harry says he is, and

I looked at him across the kitchen table and wondered if he'd been the same with every woman he'd known

there' s the sound of footsteps on the landing and a great big thud every night, and Harry said it' s been happening ever since he moved in. This Mr Jenkins must want something done, so if I can help him, he' ll be able to move on.'

The woman looked puzzled. Well, I can' t imagine what he wants.

Quite honestly, I think he was glad to go in the end.

He' d been ill for so long, and he just wanted to be with his wife.'

But he must have left something unfinished.'

Like what?'

I don' t know.' I thought for a moment. Did he have children? Maybe he didn' t get to say goodbye to them.'

Oh, he did,' she said. He died in the house and his children sat by his bedside for days before he passed. I don' t think he left anything unfinished, so if there' s a ghost, it must be somebody else.'

Like who?'

The woman glanced over my shoulder and then looked into my eyes.

Like Harry' s wife.'

What?' I gasped and my heart almost stopped. His wife? He hasn' t got a wife!'

He hasn' t now,' she said, looking over my shoulder again. Look, you' d better come in, love. I don' t want to talk about this on the doorstep.'

OK,' I said, my mind whirring as I followed her through to her living room.

Do you want a drink?' she asked.

I shook my head as I sank down on to a chair. No. Just tell me what you mean about Harry having a wife.'

Well, she was called Louise,' the woman told me, sitting down on another chair. And I' m Barbara, by the way.'

And I' m Ruth,' I managed to get out.

Barbara smiled.

And you' re very pretty, Ruth. Just like Louise was. She was a lovely girl. She had an awful life with Harry though.'

How do you mean?' I asked as I tried to work out if she was telling me the truth.

Well, he was so controlling. Wouldn' t let her do anything. But she used to sneak round here for a chat when he was out.'

About what?' I realised I' d done the same thing.

About him mainly. He made her life a misery, and she was about to leave him when she died.'

Died!' I cried. How did she die?'

Barbara swallowed hard. She fell down the stairs in the middle of the night and broke her neck. Harry told the police it was an accident, but I don' t think it was.'

A chill ran through me.

You mean he pushed her?'

Yes. I think so. They used to have the most terrible rows when she tried to stand up for herself and I heard them yelling that night.'

And did you hear what they were saying?'

No, but I heard her scream. I think she told him she was going to leave him, and¼ well, maybe she' s trying to tell you what happened next.'

Maybe,' I breathed as I tried to take it all in.

Perhaps you should go to the police,' Barbara said as she stood up and walked across the room to her sideboard. It would be brilliant if you could persuade them to look into it all again.

I' ve always thought Harry must have killed her, but I' ve never spoken to the police because I' ve been too scared that Harry might find out, and¼ well, he might be a murderer.'

Yes, but it might have been an accident,' I said, suddenly feeling guilty because I' d believed every word she' d said about the man I was supposed to love.

Maybe.' Barbara opened a drawer in her sideboard, found a photograph and walked back across the room so she could hand it to me. But I don' t think it was, and Louise deserves justice.'

Ilooked down at the photograph of Harry with a bride and gasped. Yes, she does, and I dreamt about her last night!'

Barbara frowned. But you didn' t even know she existed.'

I know, but I saw this woman being pushed down some stairs, and I think it was her, although she looks different in this photograph.'

Well, that was in the early days,' Barbara replied as she sat down again. She looks happy there because she was still in love. Harry hadn' t started controlling her then. Or hitting her.'

Hitting her?' My blood ran cold.

Yes, he used her as a punchbag, and I' d been telling her for months that she had to get away from him before she decided to leave.'

Oh, my goodness,' I breathed, still staring at the photograph.

She used to be covered in bruises,' Barbara went on. And I' ve got pictures on my phone of a lot of them. Has he ever lost it with you?'

No,' I said even as I remembered the anger I' d seen in Harry' s eyes.

Well, he will do eventually.' Yes, I' m sure he will,' I replied, realising that I' d been burying my head in the sand as far as Harry' s behaviour towards me was concerned.

You need to get away from him, Ruth. Is there anywhere you can go?'

Yes, I can go to my mum' s,' I said as I put the photograph down and searched through my bag for my mobile. I' ll get her to come and get me, and I' ll be gone before Harry gets home.'

Good.' Barbara smiled. And don' t let him twist you round his little finger and persuade you to come back. He' s bad news, Ruth, and he should be punished if he killed Louise.'

Yes, he should,' I agreed as I found my phone.

So, you' ll go to the police?' I nodded.

Yes, but I' ll only have to make one phone call.'

What?' She looked confused.

My mum' s a detective,' I explained.

Barbara' s eyes opened wide. And does she believe in ghosts?'

No, but she believes in justice, and she' s nailed an awful lot of murderers over the years,' I said, feeling so proud of my mother as I dialled her number.

Wow!' Barbara looked impressed. And has she ever met Harry?'

No,' I said as I looked into Barbara' s eyes and thought what a lovely person she was.

And for some reason, I' ve always stopped myself if I' ve considered telling Harry what she does for a living, but he' s soon going to find out now.'

She used to be covered in bruises. I've got pictures on my phone of a lot of them