This is an extremely dramatic scene and Shakespeare sets the stage for the bloody murder with the "owl that shriek'd, the fatal bellman," as even nature cries out against the murder of Duncan. Lady Macbeth fears that the murder is unaccomplished, yet when Macbeth enters, he says, "I have done the deed." Suspense is heightened here by the quick exchange of dialogue between husband and wife:
"Did you not speak?"
"When?"
"Now."
"As I descended?"
Through these brief interchanges, the urgency of the moment is apparent. Both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth fear someone has heard them and the fear the guards will reawaken. The audience also wonders whether they will be caught or get away with their heinous crime. Next, Lady Macbeth must revisit the death chamber to dispatch the guards. Both husband and wife have Duncan's blood on their hands, literally and metaphorically! Again, Shakespeare uses sound to engage the audience in the suspense, as a knocking is heard...and more knocking. At this point, they must quickly retire to their bedchambers to appear as if they have been asleep. The immediacy of the situation is created with Macduff knocking at the castle and entering in the ensuing scene.
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