It was Friday evening August 24th when a woman was following her typical evening routine getting ready for bed. The husband was reading a book in the study when he heard the water being turned on in the shower upstairs. Nothing out of the ordinary, his wife would usually take showers in the evenings. It was around 9pm.
He was so deep in his readings that he did not realize how much time has passed. He glanced at the clock, saw that it was 11pm and then noticed shower was still on. First thought that crossed his mind was questioning why then a fear that something might have happened. He rushed upstairs banging and calling his wife through the locked door. No answer.
He banged harder and called lauder but still nothing, just the sound of rushing water. He grabbed a coat hanger from the closet, stuck it into the safety hole of the door handle and after some time of tinkering he was able to open the door. Shower curtain was closed with steam coming up from above it; he dashed and swung the curtain open. To his surprise the tub was empty. He stood there with disbelief for a few minutes unable to comprehend. Eventually he got up and proceeded to look for his wife elsewhere in the house, all in vein.
Husband eventually went back to the bedroom, turned off the shower and sat on the bed for a few minutes. Thinking his wife may have gone out and forgetting that door was locked he came-up with a bright idea of calling her cell-phone. Dial tone followed by a faint buzzing behind him on the nightstand; of-course her phone was still there, and so was her purse and night robe. He sat there for a few more minutes trying to think of any other scenarios, looked at the phone in his hand and dialed 911.
Police came, filed a report and looked around yard and the house. No signs of forced entry or struggle. Following day they brought a police dog to try to get a scent outside, no luck.
Days went by; husband made missing posters and contacted local newspapers and radio stations to run missing ads. Weeks went by; investigation was at a dead end file was put on the shelf. Investigators told the husband that wife likely ran away.
Months went by and one point a known magazine ran a story titled “Woman went missing after going to a shower” it became a hit. The town and the house got into a brief spotlight with reporters and even a few tourists coming to town and knocking on the house door. Husband wanted none of it and after a few visitors decided to not answer door at all.
After about a year the spotlight faded and husband decided to move on with his life. He sold the house and moved to another city.
Years later a different family moved into the house. One evening their dinner was interrupted with a sudden sound of shower coming on upstairs. Wife looked up and put hands over her mouth while questioning kids look at their dad. He got up from the table and briskly walked to the house entry where he grabbed his son’s baseball bat and proceeded to cautiously walk upstairs followed by his wife and kids. The bedroom door was opened but bathroom door was closed and light was peeking through the door gap underneath. The sound of running water was consistent with somebody showering and as husband stepped into the bedroom muffled singing came from the shower. He signaled his wife to call 911 and proceeded to try the door knob which was locked.
He then banged on the door and shouted “Whoever you are! Police is on the way!” The singling and showering continued. The husband decided to guard the door until police came not taking any chances.
Two policemen arrived on the scene and husband explained that there is nobody else in the house and this must be an intruder. The policemen proceeded to knock on bathroom door and demanding to ‘open up’ without any success. They then borrowed a coat hanger to unlock the bathroom door and busted in with guns drawn swinging the curtain open pointing their guns at an empty shower.
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© M.A.Travis
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