Horror Bites Challenge #4 - A Late Dinner

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Just a reminder: It's okay to leave comments!

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From the Horror Bites website:

So did you like the stories from the last challenge? Thanks so much to all that took part, I’m happy that my little pictures are providing inspiration. This time round I’m using a photo that my son wanted me to take. It’s supposed to be of a moth that was on the outside of the window but my camera is fairly rubbish and you can only just make it out. (Top corner of the middle pain on the right, if you need help.)

When I looked at the picture again I discovered that there was an interesting shot of my ‘Fly’ on the window sill. This is made from recycled materials, in fact its an old light bulb. So with the picture and what little information I have given you, have at it. I look forward to reading your tales.

1. Post your link or full tale into the comments below.
2. A word count to 350 words.
3. As an added bonus if your story could contain an animal of some kind that would be awesome.
4. I’ll post a new one 23rd December, just in time for Christmas.

And so, here is my entry for this round of Horror Bites...

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A Late Dinner

    The late summer air, now cool as the last glimmer of evening faded into night, swirled through the open window. I put down my book and went to close it, my tired eyes yearning for an early night's sleep. Only a few stars and distant houses were visible. I shut the window, but there was no need to set the lock. That was one more unnecessary task in my mind, and unlocking merely another job to do when the next day's warmth returned.
    I flicked the switch for the porch light then ambled into the kitchen to clean the mug that had held a soothing cup of tea. From the corner of my eye, a movement drew my attention back to the window. A few moths traced drunken circles in the incandescent glow next to my door. A small bird landed on the sill, its head tilting as it tracked the doomed insects.
    "Looks like someone else is having a late dinner," I said while rinsing the remaining soap from the cup.
    A flash and thump startled me. The light outside was no longer shining, the front window now dark. The soft glimmer of the kitchen lamp showed only the inside of the frame and a few feathers pressed against a pane in the lower corner, stuck to it by thick droplets of fluid running down the glass.
    Thinking a bird had flown into the window, I walked toward it to assess any damage. I stopped when two fiery red dots appeared just beyond moving slightly from side to side in unison. They were eyes and, knowing their approximate distance, a rough calculation confirmed that the head in which they were set was larger than my own.
    I closed my own eyes briefly, trying not to make any other movements. When I opened them, the number of burning orbs had doubled. I had two thoughts at that moment: I had not set the lock on that window—and the uncomfortable knowledge that this would be entirely irrelevant.

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 337 words without the title... 

Previous Horror Bites: 
    The Empty Seat
    Reading at the Library
    Unfashionably Late

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© 2016 K. R. Smith All rights reserved