The thunder of horse's hooves stopped them. Ahyoka spun around. Wohali's horse was flying up the hill with Wohali clinging to the animal's neck.

   "They're coming!" Wohali shouted as he drew close. "They're coming!"

   Edoda's face turned pale. His shoulders slumped.

   Wohali reined in his horse. "They're just down the road a ways. They'll be here soon." His dark eyes were wide. "They're not giving the Aniyvwiya time to pack -just dragging them away. Try to gather what you can." He wheeled his horse around. "I must warn others."

   Pride swelled in Ahyoka's heart as she watched him gallop away on his horse to warn the people. Just like Paul Revere riding to warn the colonists "The British are coming!" The thought made her smile.

   Then the reality of his message began to sink in. The smile fell from her face. "They're coming!"  She looked up at her father. "Edoda?"

   Edoda reached out and pulled her close to his side. "The soldiers are coming, my daughter." His eyes scanned over the surrounding fields and hills. "Now we must say good-bye," he whispered.

   In one single afternoon, Ahyoka's life is forever changed as her family is forced from their home. Everything they own, everything they have ever known, is taken from them. They are imprisoned by cruel, unfriendly soldiers as they wait to be sent to a strange land, a land not their own. They have done nothing wrong; their only "crime" is that they are Cherokee - the Aniyvwiya. In a bold leap of faith, her family escapes their captors and seeks refuge in the mountains. The dangers never end. Life is hard. They must lay low or risk being rounded up again and sent west to Indian Territory. Ahyoka's grandfather is bitter towards the man who have forced them from their home. Her father says they must forgive the white men. Ahyoka is confused. How can she forgive men who have taken everything she loves? And who can she look to for help, when all is lost?

​

   One of several novels I hope to finish in the next few years, Unto the Hills tells the story of a Cherokee family and the Indian removal acts of the 1830s which resulted in the Cherokee and other tribes being forced to the Trail of Tears. There have been several good stories written over the years set during this time. Nellie the Brave, one of the now out of print Sisters in Time series, is a wonderful book that tells the story of the Trail of Tears from the perspective of a young Christian girl. But that book and others only tell one perspective: the Cherokee who went on the Trail of Tears. I had no inclination to write a story about the Trail of Tears, as there were already good books telling the story. Then my grandfather told me the story of our ancestors. Our ancestors, of the Chickamauga band of Cherokee, escaped the roundup and took refuge in the hills. They were helped by a kind white family and took on that family's surname (which makes my hobby of family genealogy impossible for that branch of the tree because if I try to go back before the 1830s, they cease to exist under that name, LOL) With my ancestors' story in my mind, a completely new story began to form. One that has not been told before -the story of the ones who stayed.

   When it comes to writing, and just learning American history in general, I thrive on the hidden chapters of American history -the dirty, embarrassing secrets that no one wants to talk about. So many of those dark chapters have to do with the treatment of the American Indians. Many of my planned novels will deal with these topics. Unto the Hills is special, because I'm not just trying to bring a dark chapter of history to light, I'm also telling my family's story. I hope to finish it soon so that I can share it with you all.

​