Hum in the Hollow

A low... vibration. Shivering in the baseboard. I stepped forward. Straight. A fallen hardbound book lay in the dark. I pushed my shin against the thick spine... leaning weight... until it shoved aside with a blunt thud. Ahead... the iron ribs of the radiator. Cold at the bottom... faint heat humming inside the top valve. A loose brass nut hung threaded loose on a bleed valve. I reached out. Pressed my thumb against the edge. Ting... a faint, hollow chime hummed right into my palm, lingering in the quiet dark.