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something far more appealing.
                  Too tired after all that to do much else, I made myself a bed on the sofa in the sitting room and sat down to relax for the evening.  I turned on my portable television and was pleased to find that I could actually get adequate reception here.  I knew before arriving that modern amenities would be limited, so along with the television I had brought my laptop computer and a cell phone in case of emergencies.
                  I lay back on the sofa feeling tired, vaguely aware of some news program in the
    background , and lost in my thoughts of the day's events and Ravens Deep, I must have drifted off to sleep from sheer exhaustion.
                  It seemed that only a few moments had passed, but I woke suddenly. Instinctively, I checked my watch still feeling dazed.  It was just after three in the morning and I had slept for at least four hours. My attention was drawn to the television that was still turned on, but now the picture was gone and it had been replaced by a quiet hissing.  I sat up wondering if, in fact, it was the television that had roused me from my peaceful sleep.  My eyes slowly adjusted to the light from the table lamp and as my initial confusion subsided, I became acutely aware of my heart racing as I realized something other than the television had disturbed me.
                  The prickles started on the back of my neck and ran all the way down my spine and I fought to control my growing fear. I sat still, straining my ears for the slightest sound. 
                  Was there an animal outside, an owl perhaps?
                  My mind searched for something that would give a reasonable name to my fear, as I tried to remain calm and analyze exactly what I had heard.
                  Was someone in the house?
                  I had locked all the windows and doors.
                  For goodness sake, it was probably the television!
                  I reached down to the television remote and pressed the off button.  The hissing ceased and the room became peaceful and quiet once more. The prickles started to dissipate and I began to relax even though anxious thoughts continued to meander through my head.  I sought to make sense of the fact that you could be alone somewhere during the day and not the slightest sound or movement disturbs your peace of mind, but in the middle of the night when dark shadows shift unnaturally and the smallest of disturbances can become construed as a menacing force, then perceived fear could overwhelm rational thought.  The voice in my head told me that my imagination was working overtime and the hissing from the TV had allowed strange noises to infiltrate my vulnerable dream state of being. Now, I was sure that’s what had happened and I began to feel much calmer. It was only a dream.
                  Another sound . . .
                  The prickles were back and all of my senses were horrifyingly alert. The creaking continued in clarifying detail and I was certain that it was not the usual expansion and contraction noise that sometimes occurs with temperature changes, this was different, it sounded more like a door being opened very slowly.
                  I strained my ears, listening as the noise continued and all my previous thoughts seemed irrelevant, the frightening reality was, this noise was not imagined -- it was real. 
                  Something is here!
                  I shivered inwardly as the spine tingling sensations of fear threatened to take over
    my entire being as the source of the noise was coming from the kitchen and I turned towards it in alarm, my eyes fixed on the passageway in an unblinking stare.  Slowly I rose from my sitting position. Glancing around the room, I noticed the heavy gold candlestick on the sideboard, I moved fast