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enough for me and my family, and live in it forever, rooted there like a tree.
    She wandered up to her room, turning off lights along the way, making sure the porch light was on for her parents. They were at a party across town being given by a man from her dad’s new office. A welcoming party, her dad had described it.
    Wish someone would give
me
a welcoming party, Lea thought wistfully.
    Her desk clock said it was only eleven-thirty. I don’t care how early it is. I’m tired and I’m going to go to sleep, she decided.
    The next day, Sunday, she and Deena had made plans to go play tennis at an indoor tennis club Deena’s family belonged to in the North Hills section of town.
    Something to look forward to, Lea thought, yawningsleepily. She pushed Georgie to the foot of the bed, clicked off the lamp on her night table, and slid under the covers.
    Darkness covered her like a soft blanket. Outside the twin windows clouds blocked the moon. The sky was gray and still.
    Lea settled her head on the pillow, staring up at the smooth blackness of the ceiling. At least I was able to bring my old bed with me, she thought happily. Something familiar. Something cozy …
    She had almost drifted into a pleasant sleep when she heard the noise again.
    Clearer this time.
    Above her head.
    Footsteps. It
had
to be footsteps.
    But how could it be?
    She tried to ignore the sound, shutting her eyes tightly and pulling the soft feather pillow up over her ears.
    But she could still hear them.
    Footsteps. The ceiling groaned under them.
    One step. Then another. Then in the other direction. As if someone was pacing above her head.
    Someone upstairs in the attic.
    Or some
thing.
    But how could that be? The round attic window was too high and too small for anyone to climb in. And there was no other entryway.
    Lea sat up.
    The ceiling squeaked directly overhead.
    Shoes against the floor above.
Tap. Tap.
Then back
—tap tap.
Louder now.

    No!
    Lea kicked off the covers and stood up, her heart pounding.
    â€œHey!” she called out, staring up at the dark ceiling.
    She listened.
    The tapping stopped for a moment, then started again.
    Suddenly very frightened, she clicked on the lamp, then turned on the ceiling light. She pulled her silky blue robe on over her pajamas and slipped into the rubber thongs she used as slippers.
    Maybe I should call the police, she thought.
    After all, here I am all alone in the house, and someone is definitely walking around up there.
    But, of course, there
couldn’t
be anyone walking around up there.
    And if someone
had
somehow gotten in up there, why was he just pacing back and forth? Why hadn’t he made any move to come down?
    That’s because it’s all just my imagination or creepy, old house noises, Lea told herself. Maybe there’s a shingle loose on the roof.
    Yes. Of course. That has to be it. A loose shingle. And every time the wind blows it, it tilts up, then comes down with a tapping noise.
    Lea felt a little better.
    But she knew she had to find out for sure.
    She was surprised to find herself on the metal ladder outside her bedroom door. It was as if she had sleepwalked out to the hall. And now there she was, climbing the ladder despite the heavy feeling of dread in her chest, climbing the ladder and pushing thetrapdoor up and out of the way, and climbing higher, high enough to peer into the long, low attic.
    â€œAnybody up here?” she called, surprised by her own bravery.
    The darkness was thick and cold. And silent.
    Of
course
there isn’t anyone up here, she told herself.
    She pulled herself up onto the attic floor, then groped along the wall until she found the light switch. A single bulb suspended from the ceiling cast pale yellow light over the room.
    Lea stared at the window, then turned and let her eyes examine the boarded-up room.
    Nothing. No one. Silence.
    Breathing a soft sigh of relief, she moved to turn off the light.
    Then she heard the