“Annabelle… Annabelle…” The voice echoed in her mind, so vivid it felt real. Annabelle’s eyes snapped open, her heart pounding as if she’d been running. She sat up abruptly, her breath shallow, the remnants of the dream clinging to her like a shadow. The room was dark, save for the faint glow of moonlight filtering through the curtains. Beside her, Derek lay still, his chest rising and falling in the steady rhythm of deep sleep. She envied him. Sleep had become a battleground for her, a place where whispers and visions haunted her every night.
She swung her legs over the side of the bed, her bare feet touching the cool wooden floor. The silence of the room was heavy, but her mind was anything but quiet. “Whose voice is this that I keep hearing in my sleep?” she muttered under her breath,
