BOOK SYNOPSIS
Montana, 1973.
Faye has found sanctuary in a simple cabin in the wilds of the Crazy Mountains in Montana with a dog called Bear. She’s a long way from her old life in England . But she knows that one day her peaceful life could be invaded by her enemies, and she keeps her guard up at all times.
Jeff returns home from Vietnam, a wounded, damaged hero, just weeks after his father’s sudden death. He finds hostile, secretive Faye living in his cabin and refusing to leave. The reading of his father’s will adds another layer of mystery to this woman’s presence.
The tension between them grows as Jeff tries to overcome his nightmares and expose Faye’s scars and secrets. The more he learns about her, the more enigmatic she seems.
When her enemies come calling, she needs Jeff to protect her. Can they learn to trust each other? And will Faye ever be safe?
Background: Montana 1973. Jeff has returned from fighting in Vietnam to find an Englishwoman called Faye living in his cabin. She refuses to leave, claiming that she leased it from Jeff’s recently deceased father. Faye is a mystery, guarding her secrets well. Jeff is wounded and traumatised by his experience in Vietnam and furious that his father apparently let this woman take over his house, his dog (who is called Bear) and even his old truck without telling him. He reclaims the main bedroom in the cabin and Faye retreats to a makeshift bedroom in the attic. In this extract, Jeff has fallen asleep on the couch. Faye, asleep in the attic above, is woken by a noise.
Faye awoke, unsure what had disturbed her. She sat up, her senses immediately on full alert. She heard a deep murmur coming from the room below. Was it Jeff? Or Bear? Or had they found her? She’d known that leaving the cabin unlocked was a damned stupid risk. What if they’d been inside when she locked up? It would serve that stupid sod right if they were hiding in the main bedroom when he went to bed.
But if that was the case she thought,they'd have slit his throat and immediately come for me.These people didn’t hang about.
She heard the voice again, but this time it was louder and more urgent. Was he fighting them off? She got up and crept towards the hatch. Leaving the light off, she quietly opened it, peering into the moonlit room below.
“No, Greg!”
She gasped as she saw that Jeff was alone down there, his tall frame stretched out on the sofa. He seemed to be having a nightmare. This was confirmed when he screamed, the sound making her blood run cold. Within seconds, she’d climbed down the ladder and was at his side.
“Jeff!” she said. “Jeff, wake up.”
Bear appeared at her side, whining. She put a hand on his head. “It’s all right,” she said, not sure whether she was trying to reassure the dog, the man or herself. “It’s just a dream.”
Jeff writhed, swiping at whatever was covering his face, his body, his arms. He was covered in sweat, and his teeth gritted as he fought to escape from whatever terror had made him scream.
She reached out and touched his arm. “Jeff, wake up,” she said, trying to keep her voice calm and clear.
He lashed out, catching her in the stomach. She fell backwards with a gasp. A moment later he was on top of her, straddling her body, his hands finding her throat. She didn’t have time to scream before his fingers tightened, closing her airway. She scratched at his hands, trying to loosen his grip, but he was still in the throes of his nightmare and her vision began to swim as she was starved of oxygen. With one last effort, she brought her knee up and caught him in the balls just as Bear leapt on him. The pain in his groin and the weight of the dog made him loosen his hold on her and he slumped to the side. She lay there, dragging in deep breaths as he rolled away, groaning. Bear licked her face and she put up a hand to stop him. “It’s all right, Bear. He’s just having a dream,” she whispered, her voice sounding raspy. She coughed, trying to ease the pain in her throat.
“What the fuck?” Jeff sat up, pain etched on his face.
“What just happened?” He winced as he registered where she’d kneed him. Faye coughed again and slowly sat up. “I think you were having a nightmare,” she said.
He looked dazed, as though he couldn’t work out what was real and what was a dream. She knew that feeling.
He frowned when he saw that she was lying on the floor, watching him with caution.
“Did I hurt you?” She turned away and got to her feet. “Nothing serious,” she said.
“What are you doing down here?” he asked.
“I need a drink.” She headed into the kitchen, Bear at her heels.
She heard him groan in pain as he got up. He came into the kitchen limping badly. She didn’t turn to look at him, but pulled a couple of glasses out of a cupboard and stood at the sink, filling them with cold water. She put one on the table and turned back to the window and drank hers down, trying not to gasp as her throat protested.
She heard him move, and watched his reflection in the dark window as he got up and limped over to the light switch. Brightness flooded the room and she flinched, closing her eyes against the glare. When she opened them again, he was standing next to her.
“I hurt you,” he said, his fingers lifting her chin. “Damn! I’m sorry.”
She stepped away from him touch. “It’s all right. You were having a nightmare.”
He ran a hand down his face. “Yeah. I guess. I thought I was back in ‘Nam.” She filled her glass again then sat at the table. He sank into the chair opposite her and stared at her, frowning. In a reflexive action, she lowered her head and combed her fingers through her hair, pulling it over her left shoulder.
“Why’d you do that?” She looked up.
“What?”
“That with your hair. You always cover your left cheek.”
She shrugged. “Habit, I suppose.”
He reached towards her but she sat back out of his reach.
“So you’re not covering anything?” he asked, his gaze narrowed.
She glared at him. This wasn’t about her. “What was your nightmare about?” He sat back and closed his eyes. “When I got shot.”
“Have you had it before?” He was silent for a while , as though considering what to say.
“It’s quite common,” she said softly.
“What is?”
“Having nightmares after a trauma. I expect you saw more than your fair share of horrible things in Vietnam.”
“What are you, a psychologist?”
“No.” She took another sip of her water then put the glass down and stood up. “I could do with a real drink. Scotch?”
“You drink whisky?”
“I certainly do,” she said, disappearing into the pantry. Seconds later she was back, a bottle of twenty-year-old malt in her hands.
He whistled. “That’s good stuff.”
“I know. What’s the point of drinking paint-stripper when you can savour a wee dram of the amber nectar?” She got two more glasses from the cupboard and poured them both a generous measure. “Just don’t suggest putting ice or water or any other abomination in this.”
AUTHOR BIO
Alison Knight has been a legal executive, a registered childminder, a professional fund-raiser and a teacher. She has travelled the world – from spending a year as an exchange student in the US in the 1970s and trekking the Great Wall of China to celebrate her fortieth year and lots of other interesting places in between.
In her mid-forties, Alison went to university part-time and gained a first-class degree in Creative Writing at Bath Spa University and an MA in the same subject from Oxford Brookes University, both while still working full -time. Her first book was published a year after she completed her master’s degree.
Alison currently has a trio of novels published by Darkstroke. The first, Mine, is a domestic drama set in 1960s London based on real events in her family. She is the only person who can tell this particular story. Exploring themes of class, ambition and sexual politics, Mine shows how ordinary people can make choices that lead them into extraordinary situations.
The Legacy, a drama set a scene in Mine, and explores how an unexpected legacy can be both a blessing and a curse. The Legacy looks at themes of greed and expectations, and the lengths people will go to when they are desperate.
The Hidden, available from September 2021, is a romantic suspense that picks up the story of one of the characters in The Legacy. Set in Montana in 1973, two wounded, damaged people are forced together, each guarding their secrets. Can they learn to trust each other? And will their nightmares ever end?
Alison teaches creative and life-writing, runs workshops and retreats with Imagine Creative Writing Workshops( www.imaginecreativewriting.co.uk ) as well as working as a freelance editor. She is a member of the Society of Authors and the Romantic Novelists’ Association.
She lives in Somerset, within sight of Glastonbury Tor.
SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS – ALISON KNIGHT
www.facebook.com/ alison.knight. 942
@Alison_Knight59 on Twitter
www.imaginecreativewriting.co.uk
www.darkstroke.com/ dark-stroke/ alison-knight/
PUBLICATION DATE: 23rd September 2021
PURCHASE LINK....
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09BRDWQFB?geniuslink=true
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