I Hear Knocking

I hear knocking at the door Maybe a visitor? I run, look out the front window- And then they see my face: now they know I am here: They begin to pound on the wood furiously Then leave and come back with a sledgehammer I back away, sorry now to have shown my face; Now they will never leave, or give up Thinking quickly, I barricade myself down in the basement As the impatient pounding grows fiercer and yet louder I can hears machine guns pumping away Through the thin walls, at the series of dead bolt locks A chainsaw starts up a racket I slide into the air intake unit And quietly close the door behind me It's too cramped in here but it can buy me A few seconds more just to do What I now know I will have to do- Though I had prayed it would never come to this Never go this far- Now there's the sound of a car engine Tires squealing and then a huge - thud- Tells me the front wall is no more Well, I know they're inside now- No doubt about that Feet pound the floor above Frantically, for several minutes, back and forth Hunting, searching all the rooms nooks and crannies Then it grows quiet- too quiet I slide my feet in as close as I can, not daring to breathe at all: I can see only through slits in the door, Wishing in retrospect I had left just one window or door open So they might give up, think I had deserted the place Then I hear it up above the steps: The door begins to open, eerily, Creaking with that quality of a haunted house's door In a low budget horror film Stealthy steps descend now, unevenly As if they are not- quite- sure, not yet. Then I hear it, the last shovelful of dirt hitting my grave: And I know it's 'game over': 'Are you ready yet? It's starting now, we told you to prepare yourself They're all waiting there for you now..' I fumble in my pocket for my escape hatch, Then I do it, trying not to think about it too much: Quickly I swallow the little blue pill of cyanide That will take me away from this growing horror- I told them last year that I was never going to the Family Reunion again.