The Ghost — John Gess

The Ghost is the next chapter in the story of Jacob Cahill, the boy prodigy who miraculously escaped Communist Chinese agents when he was only fifteen years old. He has now chosen to fight the Communists in Vietnam rather than continue his education at a prestigious university in America, which he is more than well suited to do. His family and friends are aghast at his decision, many thinking he will be no more than cannon fodder in a useless and unwinnable war. Although revenge is a factor in his decision since the Communists in China killed his parents, he also believes it is his duty to fight for his country in a time of war. He enlists, is sent to boot camp and then to Vietnam where his prodigious physical and intellectual skills are tested in horrific combat, which not only confront him with what he has become but result in significant wounds from which he may never recover. In the end, as the enemy converges on him, he wonders if the endgame is some shallow grave in the jungles of Laos from which he will never be found.