Annabelle’s Nightmare: A Suspenseful Excerpt from Shadows of Deception

Discussion Question 2: After reading Shadows of Deception, how did you feel about the use of nightmares throughout the novel?

Annabelle heard the alarming sound of heavy footsteps racing up behind her. When she spun around, she held her fists in a tight, defensive ball. The footsteps stopped, as if they had fallen into the pit of silence that now surrounded her entire estate. She couldn’t see anyone, but she could feel a threatening presence. Every hair on her body stood in alarm when she noticed a faint, shadowy figure lurking before her. It slowly blackened, taking the form of a tall and sinister looking man. She scrambled backwards up the stairs, regained her footing, and raced along the porch that wrapped around her home. Finally, she found a way in. As she ran for her life, she tried to scream for help, but nothing came out. She felt like she was suffocating as she fled through a strange house, which now, no longer appeared to be her own. She was frightened and confused, and she wondered how she could have ended up in this unfamiliar place.

As she made her way up a dark, winding stairway, the mysterious sound of footsteps returned. They grew louder and continued to close in on her with each passing second, until they were directly behind her, and she could feel a hot, heavy breath against the back of her neck. The shadowy figure was gaining on her too quickly, and she knew that she could not escape. Her chest grew tight and heavy. She could no longer take a breath. Everything around her began spinning faster and faster. Panic and terror paralyzed her, and she collapsed on the landing at the top of the stairs, desperately gasping for air. The footsteps stopped abruptly, and she turned to peer over her shoulder, looking directly into the icy, blue eyes of the shadowy figure, which now stood over her. She knew that there was no way to escape. He wanted her dead. Her worst nightmare had become a reality. He had finally found her.