The Secrets Within Him

By A.F. Mitchell

Amelia awakens naked and alone in the woods, her only inheritance a harrowing mystery. She has lived a lonely life until Kai – a striking yet secretive werewolf dedicated to protecting her – introduces Amelia to a wondrous new world and an astounding bequest more powerful than she could have imagined.

Amelia dreams of being loved, but is she willing to sacrifice parts of herself for it? And will her growing feelings for her rugged guardian, Kai, change everything?

When darkness descends, Amelia and Kai need to band together. But Amelia faces an agonizing choice: risk her life for one who betrayed her trust?

With each revealed secret, there is no going back. Can this once isolated girl summon the courage to make the ultimate decision about her future and heart?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Austin Macauley Publishers
• Release date: Apr 26, 2024
• ISBN: 9781035849567

A.F. Mitchell

A.F. Mitchell has spent many years immersing herself in the fantasy world; she has a big imagination and loves creating characters and how, through hard work and dedication, everything evolves. She wanted to prove to herself and others that even though she didn’t feel educated enough, she could still achieve her dream of becoming an author. She wanted to write a novel that was easy to read and that her readers would fall in love with the narrative and characters, more so than her grammar and punctuation. She lives in Radstock, Somerset, with her husband and their daughter.

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About the Author

A.F. Mitchell has spent many years immersing herself in the fantasy world; she has a big imagination and loves creating characters and how, through hard work and dedication, everything evolves.

She wanted to prove to herself and others that even though she didn’t feel educated enough, she could still achieve her dream of becoming an author. She wanted to write a novel that was easy to read and that her readers would fall in love with the narrative and characters, more so than her grammar and punctuation.

She lives in Radstock, Somerset, with her husband and

their daughter.

Dedication

Dedicated to my loving mother, who sadly lost her short battle with cancer, her strength and braveness will never be forgotten. xxxxxxx. People might not remember what you said but they will always remember how you made them feel. Be kind! – Laurraine Burney

Dedicated to my incredible husband and daughter, who made it possible for me to write this book. I love you both with all my heart.

Copyright Information ©

A.F. Mitchell 2024

The right of A.F. Mitchell to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by the author in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers.

Any person who commits any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.

ISBN 9781035849550 (Paperback)

ISBN 9781035849567 (ePub e-book)

www.austinmacauley.com

First Published 2024

Austin Macauley Publishers Ltd®

1 Canada Square

Canary Wharf

London

E14 5AA

Acknowledgement

Lauren Nightingale – You are one of the best humans that I know, and I’m lucky enough to call you my best friend. Thank you for always being there for me, your loyal friendship and support means everything.

Abi Curtis – My absolute angel. Thank you for everything you have done for me over the past couple of years, your emotional support throughout the toughest time of my life will never be forgotten, your kindness and compassion will always shine so brightly.

Matty Britt – Thank you for challenging me, you inspire me to be better. Your knowledge and advice will always be appreciated as well as your friendship, and the cheese on toast!

Steve and Brenda Curtis – Thank you so much for the endless advice, the confidence to grow professionally and personally, and for always making me laugh. You both have a special place in my heart.

Anne-Marie Eady and Amanda Smith – Thank you for the love and kindness you have shown me and not forgetting the cuddles. I was incredibly lucky to have such a great support system when I needed it most.

Thank you to the team at Austing Macauley for making my dreams come true. A special thank you to Karen Walker for making my ideas and visions come to life.

Chapter 1

Secret Weapon

I wake to the sound of birds singing, their high pitched chirps hurt my ears. My head foggy from last night, I knew I shouldn’t have drank that last cocktail. I wriggle my body into a stretch.

Gross, what is that? Why is my back wet?

I open my eyes, squinting as the morning sun beams down on my face through the tall moss-covered trees. The panic starts to build up inside my stomach, my mouth filling with saliva like you get before being sick.

I immediately sit upright, twigs and dead leaves make a crunching sound from underneath my panicked body, how on earth did I end up in the woods? I close my eyes hard, willing myself to remember, the last thing I can recall was going to the bathroom at Bobby’s bar.

I was out with Sophia and a few of her friends to celebrate my 21st birthday, when Sophia found out that I was planning on celebrating my birthday alone like I usually do, she was adamant she was going to take me out for the night drinking, and that staying home wasn’t an option.

It was nice of her wanting to take me out, I don’t make it common knowledge that she is the only friend I have. This was the first time I had been drunk, I have had the odd beer here and there but nothing like last night.

Sophia attracts a lot of male attention at the bar, to which she says, equals a lot of free drinks. My bottom is starting to get irritated and itchy by the damp floor that I have found myself sitting on.

I don’t think the heavy blanket draped over me is helping. I run my hands through my hair, my fingers getting caught up in my curls. I pull out the leaves that made their way into the matted mess.

There is a pair of black joggers and a grey jumper hung over a tree stump beside me. I look down at myself, the thick grey blanket is made up of four different shades of grey, and it smells like wet dog.

I reach for the corner of the blanket and pull it back. I’M NAKED! I quickly flip the blanket back over my breasts, hooking it under my armpit, whilst frantically looking around the woods to see if anyone is around; thankfully, there isn’t.

I put my head in my hands, why can’t I remember last night? It’s very unsettling, even more unsettling I don’t recognise this blanket or clothes, which means that someone must have found me and covered me with this blanket, and left me some clothes.

I wrap the blanket around my back, and stumble to my feet, my legs shaking, all my muscles are screaming out in pain. It is as though I have run a marathon! I slip into the joggers and pull the jumper over my head, something catches my eye; the jumper has a little grey wolf logo on the breast pocket.

The jumper is far too big for me but I’m not complaining, at least I don’t have to walk home wrapped in a blanket, which would take some explaining, wouldn’t it?

Then it suddenly dawns on me, what if this is a man’s jumper, what if it was a man that found me naked, my cheeks start to heat up, no one has seen me naked, well not since I learnt how to bath and dress myself.

Oh goodness, I shake my head in embarrassment, if getting drunk means waking up naked in the woods with no memory of it, then I will never be drunk again. I catch hold of each corner of the blanket, folding it in half and placing it over the tree trunk. Hopefully, this will make its way back to its owner.

Walking barefoot through the woods has its challenges, not only trying to dodge the dog poo but also dodging the little sticks, they are particularly painful when they’re facing upright and getting plunged into the soles of my feet.

I need to phone Sophia when I get home, I’m hoping she can shed some light on what happened last night. I walk through the little opening in the bushes and onto the path. I instantly recognise where I am.

I’m only a few minutes away from my apartment, easing my anxiety. I just need to get home now and wash this crazy morning away, I’m also grateful that the land lady hides a spare key in the belly of the hedgehog ornament.

I switch the shower on, running my hand under the water, making sure it’s at the right temperature. Stepping into the bath whilst pulling the shower curtain around me. The hot water against my skin feels amazing.

I scrub my skin clean, making it turn pink, whilst looking down at the brown tinted water from my once muddy feet. After washing the soap suds out of my hair, I just stand there, soaking up the water until my skin starts to wrinkle.

This is my cue to get out, I grab the white towel that is hung over the radiator and wrap it around my body. Clasping my toothbrush, I squeeze a drop of toothpaste onto it and brush my teeth, unable to see my reflection in the steam covered mirror.

I spit out the foamy paste and rinse my mouth out with cold water. Patting my hair dry with a towel, I walk back into my bedroom and rummage through the clean washing I dumped on the chair yesterday, scrambling to find underwear and pjs to throw on.

My head is now thumping, I know all I need is some sleep to cure it. I make my way over to my bed and crawl under the covers and close my eyes.

I’m running, so fast that my eyes can’t focus on anything. I’m surrounded by darkness. My breathing is heavy and I’m chasing a scent that I have caught, it smells familiar to me, like a musky wet dog.

My eyes focus on something in the distance, I can’t make out what it is in this darkness, but I just know something is there. I run faster, the smell getting stronger.

I stop suddenly, paralysed in place, the darkness lifts and it’s now light enough for me to see. I’m in the woods, only the sound of the trees blowing fills the air, the scent that I was chasing has now vanished.

I hear a rustling noise behind me. I turn around and there is a shadow moving closer to me, the leaves on the ground blowing around my bare feet. The shadow surrounds my frozen body, I feel a rush of heat come over me.

I get hit hard, my feet leaving the floor as I get thrown into a tree, blood starts to trickle down my cheek. I rush to get to my feet, trying to escape the shadow but I get pushed back down to the ground.

It has me pinned to the floor, hot breath panting against my hair, it’s heavy on my body, leaving me gasping for air. I look up and staring back at me are two piercing red eyes, they almost look as though they are on fire, they are too large to be human, these are the eyes of a monster.

I fixate on a speck of orange in the right eye, I feel all the anger from them pour into my body, the anger is none that I have ever felt, it runs deep into their roots; as they stare into my eyes, the anger starts to build up inside of me as if they’re controlling my feelings.

I shut my eyes and try to escape their grasp. I move frantically from side to side, hoping this will shift them just enough for me to run away, my chest starts to feel lighter, I open my eyes and they have disappeared.

I stumble to my feet and start to make a run for it but my body won’t move as quick as I want it to, it’s like I’m running in slow motion. I can hear something creeping up behind me again.

Leave me alone, just leave me alone, I scream.

I jump up out of bed, my body filled with panic, sweat dripping off my forehead and onto the floor, my hands shaking with terror.

It was just a nightmare; it was just a nightmare, I mutter to myself.

It seemed so real, so intense, those evil eyes burning into my soul. I sit down on my bed and try to steady my breathing. I place my hand on my forehead, wow, my skin is on fire. I go to the bathroom and throw some cold water onto my face, making me feel better.

Walking into the living room, I look up at the clock on the wall, its 2pm. I only slept for three hours, thanks to the nightmare! I go into the living room, the answerphone machine is flashing red, I press the play button.

I have three new messages, all from Sophia telling me to ring her, she sounds worried. I press redial and sit down on the sofa beside it, it only rings once before she answers.

Amelia, thank god, what happened to you last night? Her voice is panicked.

Hi Sophia, I have no idea, I was hoping you could help me remember?

You can’t remember? Her voice is filled with even more worry now. Well, we both went up to the bathroom to go to toilet, you started complaining about a headache and how your skin felt like it was on fire, and you were itchy everywhere. I’m desperately rattling my brain to remember. So, I left you in there for like, only a few minutes whilst I went to get Julia, so she could have a look at you, and when we came back, you were gone.

I can remember walking down the stairs to go outside and that’s it, from there onwards, I can’t remember anything.

Julia thinks it may have been an allergic reaction to something, all common symptoms of an allergy. Her words reassure me a little. I feel fine now, still a bit shook up from that nightmare, but she doesn’t need to know that! She starts to laugh, interrupting my thoughts.

Obviously had far too much to drink last night.

Ha, yes and whose fault was that? I’m never drinking again, I scoff.

Ah, they all say that, trust me you will. You also left the bar without your handbag. I gave it to Mum to look after, she has it at the cafe, just pop in when you want, ok?

Thanks, Sophia, I appreciate it.

No worries. I can hear her smile through the phone!

Hey, you have two weeks off work now, don’t you?

Yes I do. I haven’t had a holiday in almost three years, so thought being my 21st birthday, I would treat myself.

Have you got anything planned? She asks.

Nope, just chilling and catching up on my programs. Sad life I know but what else is there to do? I enjoy the simple things in life.

I don’t blame you, it’s nice to have some downtime, we are all meeting at the bar again on Wednesday night for Julia’s birthday, would be awesome if you came! her voice sounded hopeful. I don’t think I should be trusted going out again, but I shouldn’t say no, it’s nice to be included and Julia did come to my birthday drinks, so would be rude not to go to hers.

Ok, I will be there, I’m not drinking though. I laugh.

Ok, will see about that. We say our goodbyes and hang up. I have known Sophia for around three years now, she started working at Bobby’s bar with me, we both started on the same day.

We are very different people, we have nothing in common, but for some reason, she took me under her wing. Maybe she could tell that I was socially awkward and felt sorry for me.

I have never had friends, I grew up being my mum’s full-time caregiver, so I didn’t get out of the house much. The kids on my street just thought I was the strange kid, so none of them wanted to play with me.

They would say some nasty things to me and throw sticks at my head, so one day when I was about seven years old, I just stopped going out altogether. Then when my mother died, I was left all alone with no family, so I was very much used to my own company by this point. It was nice to finally have a friend in Sophia, she was kind to me.

I shake my head, trying to stop the dark thoughts from entering. I go to the kitchen to make myself pasta, and spend the rest of my afternoon flicking through the endless TV channels, after what felt like an entire day of searching, I turn it off. I throw on my joggers and hoodie and head out the door.

It’s a nice quiet walk down to the cafe, only the