text: Little 9-year-old Lucy Henderson laid awake in her bed for the fourth night in a row. She knew two things: She needed a better nightlight and there was a monster under her bed. Her arm clenched around her stuffed teddy bear, Charles. The tree outside clawed against the glass of her window with every gust of wind. Ghoulish faces formed from the streetlight casting shadows on her ceiling. Lucy’s eyes shut tight. Every time she did, she felt the bed stir - sure that the monster beneath it was reaching up to grab her. “Janice down the street had a break-in last night. They’re happening on our block now. What are we going to do?” She heard her mother say through the crack in her door one evening. “Keep your voice down, we don’t want Lucy to panic.” Her father responded. “You know how she gets. It’ll be alright.” She spent the following two weeks waking her mother up in the middle of the night. A flashlight next to her bed became the agreed-upon solution. Her eyes opened at the sound of a loud thump and she looked around. The dim nightlight made it difficult to make out anything in her little room. She grabbed the flashlight and scanned the darkness. The beam of light brought clarity. She saw that the tree outside was only a tree. Toys she forgot to put away cast the other shadows underneath her crummy nightlight. Lucy knew there was no such thing as monsters. The tension in her muscles eased as the light crossed the foot of the bed. At the edge of the light, she watched a white, boney hand recoil out of sight. Immediately she turned the light to get a better look. It was gone. Lucy protested the flashlight as a reasonable solution. Her father reminded her that she would be 10 years old soon and she needed to be a brave girl. She clasped Charles tight around the neck and crawled to the foot of her bed. She followed the beam and peeked over the edge. To her relief, nothing. She let out a big sigh and laid back in bed. She turned her head to look at the clock on her nightstand. Instead, a white face cloaked in a dark robe stared back at her with large, hollow black eyes. It neared closer to her and she let out a bellowing scream. Moments later her Mom burst through the door. The light from the hallway filled the room and the creature vanished with the darkness. “Oh Lucy, not again.” “It’s under the bed Mom, I promise!” Her mother, frustrated, sank to her knees and checked under the bed. “There’s noth- wait,” she said as Lucy leaned in. “I can’t quite get a grip on it. Here it is.” She pulled a candy wrapper up into view. “What have I told you about candy before bed? It’s driving your imagination wild. There are no monsters under your bed.” “Yes, Mama but what about the break-ins? I heard you and Dad talking and-” Her mother pulled the girl close and held her. “You’re too young to be worrying about that. Me and your dad will protect you. Promise.” Defeated, the little girl put her head down. Her mother laid a soft kiss upon her forehead. “I love you.” She picked up Charles who had fallen on the floor and placed him back into Lucy’s arms. “You’ll get out of this phase. Remember it’s only your imagination.” She got up and clicked the lock of the window shut before exiting the room. A wave of darkness crossed the room as her mother pulled the door shut. As it closed the white face crept from behind it. She gripped the blanket tight and covered her head. Her eyes shut and she covered her ears with her hands. She repeated “It’s only your imagination,” in her head over and over again. A few minutes of silence passed. The pounding in her chest quieted. Charles was in a headlock under her arm, the stitching around his neck close to ripping. Her eyes opened. The flashlight was gone, she felt around but couldn’t find it. She could see through her blanket and scanned the room. It made the shadows from the nightlight even more confusing. She dared not look toward the darkness so she kept her eyes toward the window. The wind calmed down and the branches outside were still. The closet door creaked as it opened. The silhouette of a body appeared in the light of the window. It lunged toward her. Her eyes shut tight. She abandoned Charles and grabbed her pillow, wrapping it around her head. She didn’t want to see, she didn’t want to hear. She kept repeating “It’s only your imagination.” Tears welled in her eyes waiting for the nightmare to be over. The blanket ripped off and she drowned in the cold of the room. The pillow tore from her face. She turned to look. There was no monster. Only a man in a ski mask. Before she could scream his large hands covered her mouth. He held her to the bed with one hand. His other hand brought a finger to his lips signaling for her to stay quiet. The nine-year-old struggled as the man peered around the room. He stared at the door for an instant making sure there would be no interruptions. She could hear the faint noise of her parents watching TV in the living room. Hand still on her mouth, he swung his backpack around and pulled some duct tape from the open pocket. He leaned down close to her and whispered in her ear. “You make a sound, I’ll kill you.” Tears rained down Lucy’s cheeks. He ripped a strip from the roll and spread it across the little girls quivering lips. As he pulled another strip of tape, Lucy noticed a shadow rising from behind him. Her eyes fixated as it grew. Broad shoulders sat beneath a deep hooded cloak hovered above the man. The creature’s boney arms reached from under its cloak and crept closer. Lucy’s heart stopped. The man pulled Lucy’s arms up in front of her but stopped when he noticed she was no longer resisting. Her eyes were wide and fixed behind him. He turned around, still on top of the girl. Inches in front of his face now stood the white, lanky monster. The man froze as a chill washed over his body. Before he could scream the monster wrapped its bony fingers around the man’s face. In an instant, the monster dragged him under the bed. The legs of the bed slammed and scratched against the hardwood floor. Muffled screams got quieter and more distant. Lucy jumped in fear and landed on Charles. She pulled the teddy bear to her chest and scattered away against the wall. The man lunged out from underneath the bed. His grasp reached inches away from the little girl. Blood covered his hands and face, now exposed between rips in the mask. Startled, she threw Charles toward the man. “Help me, please help me,” he groaned as blood spurted out of his mouth. Lucy looked up and saw the monster hovering over the man. It was waiting. The little girl stood up and looked into the man’s terror-filled eyes. Then shook her head as her monster dragged the man back under the bed. The bed shook until the echo of screams died and the room fell silent. “Lucy! What’s going on in there?” her mother called from the living room. The hollow-eyed face slid out from under the bed. It put one long, boned finger to its mouth. Lucy pulled the tape from her mouth and yelled, “Nothing Mom! I was going to check the lock on my window and I tripped on some toys!” “How many times have I told you to clean up your toys before you go to bed?” Her mother yelled back. “Put them away and get your butt back in bed. I don’t want to hear another peep out of you tonight.” “Yes, Mama.” The traumatized nine-year-old said. The face sunk back into the darkness under the bed and appeared on the other side in one smooth movement. It lifted her blankets and signaled with its demonic finger for her to come closer. Lucy stood and wiped the tears from her eyes. The monster then raised Charles from the floor. Its white hand shook the bear, enticing the child. She made her way onto the bed as the monster pulled the blanket over her.