Having survived combat in Iraq, former Sergeant Joseph Mackey came home to war within himself, one that kept him in the desert even in his sleep. Like the enemy in Iraq, a victim of PTSD never knew when an attack might come and Mac's symptoms had driven him to homelessness and self-medication. Traveling west from shelters to the streets, his health in a steady decline, Mac sought a warmer winter to continue his struggle with thoughts of ending it all. Now, his back to a wall and a knife at his throat, he was sure the choice was about to be made for him-until a savage growl came out of the...