The Hum

“Mummy…?” No answer. “Mum?” again, no answer.

Tyler Osei called and called again for his mother. He’d waited as long as he could, but not now he wanted his mummy. Tyler had spent the last forty-eight hours in a cupboard, wedged right at the back behind the hanging clothes, nestled between two piles of shoeboxes. A small kid, well hidden, he might have even managed to avoid being seen if the person who opened the cupboard door didn’t empty it entirely. As it so happens, someone did.

Two days ago, although Tyler wasn’t entirely aware just how long it had been, his mother had shoved him in that cupboard and told him, ordered him not to come out.

“Listen to me baby boy, no matter what you hear, no matter what you think you here, you stay, understand? Stay!” Tyler was too nervous to talk but the look on his mother’s face was serious, cold, so he nodded to show he was following. Something about this felt different to Tyler, there had been other times, many other times, but not like this. There was nothing unique about this time that he could think of, and yet that feeling of finality pervaded his mind.

“You won’t come out. Y-you won’t come out t-till I come get you. I love you Ty, everything will be fine, I promi-” The sound of glass shattering, followed by a violent bang from downstairs. And before she closed those cupboard doors for the last time, one final imperative: “stay”.

During the time Tyler had spent in the cupboard, he heard a lot, and he thought he heard even more. The noises came immediately after his mother’s departure; at first there was shouting, screaming, the odd throwing of an object That went on for maybe an hour, although for Tyler it may as well have been an eternity. The noises that came next came again, and again and again in Tyler’s nightmares, haunting him night after night in helpless paralysis. First came the raging evil cry of the man his mother called his father. Then, a horrible, terrified shriek and that last terrible bang. Silence.

In his heart her knew, he was certain that this time, his mother was gone. But he would not let go, he couldn’t allow himself to succumb to the inevitable: she wasn’t coming for him. Afterall, all he had to hold on to was her final word. Stay he would for as long as he could.

Holding on to that, he drifted aimlessly toward sleep.

Tyler awoke after two hours (feeling he’d only been out for minutes) to a sound he found strange because it wasn’t really a sound. It was a hum, low and deep and everywhere. It was something felt more than something heard. The sound was in his head, really there. Despite its ominousness, Tyler was unafraid. He a felt a peculiar familiarity with it, as if it came from a misplaced memory finally triggered after years of absence. Then the light, brighter than the sun, filling every space. It remained that way for hours, the hum, the light, Tyler hypnotised by the combination, still and concentrated the whole time. And then nothing, complete and utter silence, the world outside frozen in stasis. When the hum and the light left, so did Tyler’s consciousness. He slept a long and dreamless sleep, completely uninterrupted.

When he woke up on the eve of the second day, all the events of the last two days had vanished from his mind. The only strand of memory still hanging in there somewhere…stay. He called and called and called over and over again for the mummy that would never come. Then came the footfall. He wasn’t sure he’d heard anyone come in. It’s mummy he thought, making the conclusion that it was someone already in the house… him? Closer now, the steps that were coming up the stairs were now outside Tyler’s room. His door clicked open; he froze. As the cupboard doors opened fully, he thought for about ten silent seconds that he was going to remain hidden, when the high screech of coat hangers being ripped away from the metal made him jump and let out a scared grunt, putting his hands up to cover his grimacing face.

It was over, her was sure of it. The man who was his father but was not his father, would grab him by the neck, pull him out and put an end to what he never wanted in the first place.

But the man who gently took Tyler’s hands from his face was not the man he feared it would be. Nor was it his mother.

“It’s okay, I’m not gonna hurt you. What’s your name, kid?” For a few moments Tyler said nothing. This man knew better than to push too hard, he waited patiently.

“Tyler. I want my mummy.”

“I’m sorry Tyler, but you’re mummy’s not here anymore. We have to go, I am really sorry, kid.” But Tyler didn’t cry, he was sad, of course, but there were no tears, he already knew.

They were in the man’s car now. His name was Tony and Tyler felt safe with him even though they’d just met. His hair was dark and curly, tied up in a tight bun at the back of his head. He had a stubble, which Tyler thought looked itchy, a large, strong nose and dark brown eyes. The khaki parka he wore had a badge pinned on the left shoulder that read ‘#1 DAD’. On the rear-view mirror hung a silver locket from a thin chain, swinging gently back and forth from the momentum of the car. The locket was open, just slightly and Tyler thought he’d seen a picture of a girl, but he wasn’t sure.

For the first time since they’d left his house almost an hour, Tyler realised the obvious: there was no one. He hadn’t seen a single person other than Tony.

“What happened?” Tyler asked his driver.

“I don’t know, there was this weird sound, and then these really bright lights, and then…” He trailed off, realising he was just as oblivious to it all as the kid who’d spent the last two days in a cupboard.

“Where is everyone?” Tyler asked, breaking that horrible, silence that seemed to be everywhere. The silence persisted for a few painful moments. And then Tony spoke, yet again telling Tyler something he already knew, somehow.

“As far as I know, everyone is in this car.”