Can God ask too much of a believer? That was the question Rev. Rufus Riley was struggling with. After years of faithful service, God took his wonderful wife from him. Rufus walked away from God. He walked away from his church. He walked away from his faith. He walked away from his life.

But try as he could, he could not escape terror in the middle of the night. Each evening, he found himself running in his dream. He ran in complete darkness unable to see what was ahead. He ran in fear until his foot stepped out and there was nothing there. He fell in his dreams, only to wake up the entire household with his blood-curdling screams.

Although Rufus gave up on God, God refused to give up on him. God still had plans for Rufus. But there were secrets buried within his past, and despite all his efforts to fight, God had a mystery woman waiting in his future who held the key to everything.

What was the truth about Rufus that only this mystery woman of Masada could unlock? He would only know when he discovered the truth about himself and the truth about the hidden stairway in the house on Lyden Avenue.

(About the Author)

Moody Dwight Knotts, Jr. never completed this novel. Before his death, he asked his son, author Dennis Knotts, to rework it and get it published. Born in West Virginia, Moody served in the Marines in World War II. He moved to California, and worked for Rocketdyne's space program. He later became a minister. Moody died from radiation poisoning contracted at Rocketdyne, which had covered up an atomic reactor accident in the late 1950s.