As Guest of the King

The year is 1967. The Vietnam War is raging when Jon Cole, an American teenager, arrives in Thailand with his military family. Jon enters the International School Bangkok, but deeper life lessons come as he explores the city's night life, guided by Pee Lek, a worldly-wise opium dealer. Jon embraces every sensuous opportunity; grows skilled in martial arts; develops an excellent if illicit business sense. Over time this leads to drug smuggling between Southeast Asia and America. By the time he is in his late 20s he lands a life sentence in the infamous "Bangkok Hilton". To survive, he must use every ounce of his skills, be they physical or psychological, to earn respect from his fellow inmates, prison guards, wardens and higher officials. He creates a somewhat comfortable existence inside the prison. Yet by degrees Jon recognizes that finding comfort "as guest of The King" is becoming a deeper trap. There is a spiritual transformation he must make if he is to be truly free. But how? Jon befriends a transgender, Goldie, who is the angelic force of this prison, and the voice of Buddhism. She/he challenges Jon to face his "shadow". That catharsis, learning to own his karma, begins with letters he writes to the Thai monarch. He hears nothing in reply. As he waits, he becomes unwittingly involved in a prison yard bloodbath -- and this reversal forces him to accept the possibility that his life just might very well end in this place. Jon will never be free again unless he finds that freedom inside himself. Will he? This is the suspenseful tension which drives our story.