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Then, she saw him. Collecting money for tickets behind the counter up on the right, a brownish blond-haired boy chatted with mismatched tourists, who loudly gushed about their love of caves and all the ones they had visited. The boy didn’t seem to mind. He patiently answered questions about the history of the cave’s owners and the world records the cave held. Probably of interest to some, she supposed.
Curious, Fee crept closer. While awaiting her turn, she sneaked another peek at the good-looking boy in the light blue shirt. He had such pale skin, as if he spent too much time down below. Such odd eyes, though, she mused. Beautiful, gray, and forceful. A strange recognition haunted her, though they had never met. This intrigued her.
As he put a $20 bill into the drawer, he hesitated as if startled. His chin lifted and his attention froze on her, as if she had been more unendurable than the tourists. What did she do wrong? She sucked in a concerned breath, anxiously awaiting his assessment…outsider? He seemed to curiously tilt his head as their eyes locked. A wave of energy passed through them as if they were connected somehow—an unsettling intimacy among strangers. Her heart fluttered when his attention settled on her chest, where her charm rested. Fee immediately focused on her ugly brown boots.
That appeared to snap him out of it. She heard him resume conversation with the couple. She thought he had a pleasant voice, one that some girl might like to hear while lying under the stars. Friendly and confident, he seemed tough enough to handle the rugged terrain, yet with a tenderness for life.
She stole another peek. His deep-set eyes held a sparkle. Outdoorsy and casual, he completed the transaction, as if at home in his natural element, born and bred in these mountains. He was about her age, though taller and lean, but muscular. He obviously kept fit caving. There was something else about him. Sure, his handsome, symmetrical face could melt any girl’s heart, and those lips weren’t too thin—perfect to sink your lips into. Darn those teenage hormones! Before she could gawk any further, the middle-aged couple in their Hawaiian shirts moved aside to snap more pictures to document their day.
Her turn came. Taking a deep breath, in and out, she stepped up. The wooden counter served as a blockade.
“One ticket, please.”
“For what?”
As if the floor gave way, she felt herself spinning. Her brain wrestled to comprehend what he had asked.
“For the next tour.”
“What tour?”
Her heart skipped a beat. She turned to each side. Was she on one of those prank TV shows? He smirked, probably guessing her paranoia. She grew angry. Why had she found him so appealing?
“To tour the cave.” She enunciated each syllable in case he had trouble with her different accent.
“We don’t have a cave.”
Was she caught in a nightmare? He was calmly inferring she was crazy or something. Confusion set in. Her throat constricted and her palms sweated. She would have run away, but she couldn’t move. Then, he laughed in a soft, musical way, knocking her back from her panic attack.
“I’m teasing. That will be $10.”
Fee felt the blood rise, turning her cheeks and the tips of her ears beet red.
“Oh.”
“Are you with a group?”
Flustered, Fee met his gaze, begging him not to torture her anymore.
“No, do I need to be?” She was cautious now, in case he was enjoying the abuse of her ignorance.
“No,” he shrugged. “I was just wondering if you were…alone. If you wait by the entrance, I’m starting a tour in five minutes.”
His annoyed expression declared that she had no sense of humor as he took her money and handed her back a ticket. Her trembling fingers snatched it away. He had the nerve to grin roguishly.

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Anyone 21 and older, buy my YA novel, Dividing Dark, for yourself, your teen, relative, or reluctant reader (or donate a copy to a library when print is available), then email me(melissa.swaim@gmail.com) and tell me the symbol on page 151and I will send you a free ebook of Release Me (a spooky, adult novel about aliens for 21+) for you. Get everyone in the family reading.

Dividing Dark, ages 14+ (no smoking, no drugs and no sex, minimal violence).
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http://www.amazon.com/Dividing-Dark-ebook/dp/B003YUCQOQ

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Dividing Dark will be in print in a week....but is out as ebook now.

Caving

Me and caves, not the best of friends. Ask my husband. I'm scared of heights, scared of mountains, etc.

But I felt this inner calling to see these dark, mysterious places. Being in a cave is like being on another planet. It is breathtaking, yet alien and dangerous.

When I read in a local paper that the maps to the local caves were being made classified and removed from puplic record, I wondered why. I like a good conspiracy. What are they hiding? I decided to imagine they were hiding Reptile monsters for my book. Who knows? Maybe they are. Now Tennessee is closing all access to their caves. They say it is a virus. Could be. Could be not. People are afraid of viruses, seems like a good excuse or maybe it is true.

All I know is that if people realize how beautiful these places are, they would work to preserve and care for them. It is my hope that people come to love these places like I do. Yes, I'm still scared of going in them, but I respect nature and tread gently upon it.

Share the adventure in my book if you like and then go to these real places and see if you don't feel what I do, and just maybe they will bring magick to your life.

Summary

There is nothing safe in this world, nothing sure to believe in, so how is a 16-year-old girl with an eating disorder supposed to reconcile the ancient wounds between the Annunaki, the Reptilian Watchers, and the human race, who were abandoned after the fall?

After Flannery “Fee” Birch loses her father in Afghanistan, she ends up in the alien land of Alabama, where she learns the art of spelunking (caving) in order to make friends. To make matters worse, Fee is afraid of caves, heights, and just about everything else…until she meets Faron Rothschild, an outcast from either world, though an emissary for both. Faron’s mixed blood kind took up the role of protecting humans, whom the Anunnaki abandoned and later warred with, while also keeping the Anunnaki secret from the world who forgot them. Not an easy task, but a great burden for a shape shifter who can switch between both sets of his DNA, human and Reptilian. This is a secret that must be maintained at all cost, and Fee, who once tried to disappear from life, pound by pound, must overcome personal demons and issues, to not only rectify her own life, but demand truce between light and darkness.

This is the gist of my book. I would love to share why I wrote it, so hang out with me if you have some time. I've written other books, but this one comes from my soul. I had given up writing after a friend of mine (and her mother) was murdered several years ago. I just didn't have it in me to write anymore. Then bits and pieces of this story started coming to me, and I knew I had to listen, so I wrote it and am dedicating it to my friend who never got her happy ending. She was planning her wedding when she was taken away. Maybe that's why the ending of my book took the unexpected direction it did. You see, I never use an outline so I am just as surprised as the reader as to what happens. So Angelique, this book is for you. And to my future readers, please share in it to. I wrote it to warm the hearts of anyone who needs a little darkness taken away. It is for all ages, young adult to adult.