In England in 1959, a ten-year-old boy is threatened into silence after he inadvertently overhears the code name of a highly classified World War II mission―Mission Octagon.
From the gang-infested streets of Miami to the killing fields of Vietnam to the corridors of an all-black college in Savannah, Georgia, the secret of Mission Octagon follows Kevin Smith for twenty years. Smitty discovers too late that forces exist which will go to any lengths to protect this secret, including killing the innocent and framing him for murder. Driven by hatred and a desire for revenge, he sets out to kill three men: “The person who did the dirty work, the person who told him to do it, and person who told them where to look.”
To destroy this sinister group, Smitty must learn their methods of operation, and use those same sadistic techniques against them. He follows almost-cold trails that yield disjointed clues―clues that others are trying just as desperately to conceal. He journeys on when others think him crazy, the price of admission great personal sacrifice, and the bill paid in the immeasurable cost of human lives. Slowly, he realizes that the answers he seeks are to be found at the highest levels of the United States Government.
Ultimately, Smitty must choose between carrying out his personal mission of vengeance or abandoning it for a higher righteous cause. And as a result, Smitty will discover the cost of living solely for revenge.
Mission Octagon is the first novel by an exciting new voice in fiction. In the tradition of Stephen Coonts and Harold Coyle, Ken Smith has created a riveting thriller that combines crackling dialogue, gripping military action, and an edge-of-your-seat finale.