Chapter 1:
A hand touched Doyle’s shoulder, jolting him from his deep sleep. Belly full, he slept sounder than normal. The room with its straw mattress reminded him of his youth. The three blankets that covered him helped keep the chill of the night air at bay.
“Mister Longstreet.” The voice sounded familiar. For a moment, he hoped DeLaval had returned to take him back somewhere warm. Alas it wasn’t meant to be. It came from Pastor Robbins, the missionary who ran this isolated church deep in the mountain valleys of China.
He found himself partially tangled in the clothes he slept in. They constricted his limbs like a giant snake. If he dreamed, he was certain his nights would be filled with nightmares of giant snakes slithering through his subconscious.
He had said a silent prayer befo
