Are you safe in your own home?

I have another thriller writing sample for you! This sample is based on the following prompt: someone receives a phone call and then something mysterious takes place. That's it. This feels to me like it would be in the middle of a novel. Can you identify each of the nursery rhymes used? Do find nursery rhymes as creepy as I do? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

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Curling up in the taupe armchair in the corner of the living room to read a book was Charlotte’s favorite way to spend the evening when her husband was out of town. The chair was flanked on one side by a packed bookcase and on the other by a window looking out onto the manicured backyard. Her husband was meeting with a client in Charleston, and she had just finished packing her bag to head there the next morning—they planned to spend the weekend seeing the sights.

Charlotte had the unfortunate habit of starting a book, and then accidentally reading for hours, stopping to sip some wine only to notice it was one in the morning. Since she needed to wake up on time, she set an alarm on her phone for 10 pm. She would read until the alarm went off, and then head to bed. Normally she would need to let the dogs out earlier than that, but she had already dropped them off at boarding that afternoon, so she had a solid, uninterrupted block of time to get into her new book.

After reading for a few hours and losing track of time, the alarm on Charlotte’s phone started to ping. She marked her spot on the page and grabbed the phone off the side table. Just as she turned off the alarm and moved the ottoman to get up, the phone began to ring.

“Hello?” The number wasn’t in her phone, and she wondered who would be calling so late.

“Wee Willie Winkie runs through the town,” a voice on the other end recited. The voice didn’t sound familiar, but it reminded her of when her grandfather had one too many cigarettes, which usually coincided with too much whiskey.

“I’m sorry, what?”

The scratchy male voice continued. “Wee Wille Winkie runs through the town. Upstairs and downstairs in his nightgown. Rapping the window, crying at the lock, ‘Are the children all in bed, for it’s now ten o’clock.’”

“Who is this? What do you want?” Charlotte said, feeling goosebumps raising on her arms.

“Goosey goosey gander, whither shall I wander? Upstairs and downstairs and in my lady’s chamber,” the raspy voice continued.

“Tell me who this is, or I’m hanging up the phone.” Charlotte glanced around the living room wearily, pushing deeper into the armchair.

“There I met an old man who wouldn’t say his prayers, so I took him by his left leg and threw him down the stairs.” The voice went up in cadence at the end as if the caller’s mouth was curling into a smile.

“Alright, that’s enough nursery rhymes from you, buddy.” As Charlotte went to hang up, she heard the beginning of another rhyme through the speaker. “Three blind mice. Three blind mice...”

Charlotte placed the phone back on the side table, taking a moment to collect her thoughts. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths in and out. Once she felt like she might be able to go to sleep and not just stay up thinking about the phone call, she slid her feet into her slippers and stood from the armchair. As she passed the front door to head up the stairs, she was startled by three loud, rapid strikes on the door, causing the whole front entry to vibrate. She inched toward the door and slowly peeked through the peephole.