Book excerpt: At an early age, Alex MacMillan was taught by his mother that the journey through life would be filled with crossroads. At each of them, he must carefully look in both directions before selecting the path to take. His decisions would not always be easy. What she didnt mention was that some of his choices could lead to danger. He had to learn that the hard way. World War Two was not a conducive environment in which to make obviously correct decisions, and Alex would find more than his fair share of difficulty. Technically, he was overqualified for the mission he was given. Technically - but not mentally he had great fear of the location, and with good reason: the jungles of Malaya were occupied by more than enemy Japanese, and some of the inhabitants were decidedly deadly. Throughout his mission, the words of the intelligence officer who sent him there continually resounded in his ears: Trust no one, and never, never turn your back on anyone!