Tosia sat in a creaky armchair in the living room of Aunt Hania's old house and glanced anxiously at the big cuckoo clock. Today the hands were moving exceptionally slowly, and there was a strange silence throughout the house. A fly buzzed somewhere near the ceiling, and outside the window the wind rustled the branches of the old lime trees. - Couldn't we sleep again? - Cuba, her brother, approached quietly, holding a torch in his hand. His eyes shone with excitement and fear at the same time. - 'Something's making noise in the attic,' Tosia whispered, leaning towards him. - 'Did you hear that? - I heard it. I tried to go to sleep, but I couldn't stop thinking about what might be up there.... Every night for the past few days, ever since they had come to visit their aunt on holiday, there had been thumping, quiet scrabbling and noises coming from upstairs that could not be rationally explained. Tosia tried to tell herself it was just rats or the wind blowing under the roof tiles. But one night she was sure she saw a shadow moving under the attic door. - 'Why don't we see what it is today? - suggested Cuba, squeezing the torch tighter. Tosia took a deep breath and nodded. Together they slipped quietly out of the living room, creeping up the stairs. The whole house seemed to be listening, their every step seeming to rumble in the darkness. Once they were at the attic door, Tosia stopped and whispered: - Can you hear? Behind the door something had just rattled, this time louder than usual. Kuba reached out his hand for the handle, but then there was a prolonged creaking sound in the darkness, as if someone or something was slowly moving a heavy trunk across the boards. They looked at each other with wide-open eyes. Suddenly the attic door itself....