Keith Schwanz

Shouts at Sunrise Keith Schwanz

Don Cox sat on a plank platform in the rain forest. The tarp tied to trees provided minimal protection from the elements. Omar, a leader of the gang that abducted Don, had just hiked down the mountain with a cassette tape recording of Don telling his family that the kidnappers wanted $500,000 for his release. Don broke down when he heard the demand. "You'll never get that kind of money," Don told Omar. "You might as well kill me now."

At the beginning of the second week, when Omar became frustrated with the slow pace of the negotiations, he asked the negotiator which of Don's hands he wanted, the right or the left. The police had recognized patterns in what Omar said and knew that previously this gang had cut off ears and fingers to punctuate their demands. These thugs would follow through on vicious threats.

When Don's friends who worked for his liberation confronted depravity head on, they reluctantly acknowledged that they had to intentionally wade into the escalating deception Omar had initiated. So they fabricated a story they desperately hoped would allow the police to trace the call, apprehend Omar, and liberate Don. But the strategy came bundled with an ethical crisis because of the deliberate lies. They violated deeply held convictions about always telling the truth in their effort to save a friend.

Shouts at Sunrise is the compelling story about a kidnapped missionary, threats of increasing brutality, friends entangled in deception, and a miraculous rescue.