Synopsis
Afghan combat interpreter Abdul Atah Wahedi’s life chronicles battlefield service, perilous escape from the Taliban, and resettlement in America for his family.
Wounded twice in service to America, Afghan combat interpreter Abdul Atah Wahedi is one of America’s unknown heroes, but to the Taliban, he is considered the “Voice of the Infidel.” As America began to exit Afghanistan, Abdul, hunted by the Taliban, must flee with his wife and family, but his escape is blunted by the closure of the American Embassy in Kabul during COVID. With less than a handful of days before his Special Immigration Visa (SIV) and the visas of his family are about to expire, the mother of Abdul’s former commanding officer intervenes. Working with an American senator and an American SIV coordinator from Keeping Our Promise, she orchestrates Abdul’s escape to America with his wife and children, getting them out with only hours to spare.
Born as his family returned to their ancestral village following years living as nomads in the caves of the Hindu Kush mountains during the Russian invasion, the story begins in the centuries-old village of Mata in the Panjshir Valley, and chronicles Abdul’s life from his earliest memories, the drowning of his older brother in the Panjshir River, his education, life on the battlefield, his marriage, the births of his children, and finally his escape to America.
Table of Contents
Foreword by Brian Chapman
Notes from the Author
Glossary of Terms
Introduction
A Message of Gratitude
Prelude
PART I
1 Up on the Roof
2 The Caves
3 The River
4 Coming of Age
5 The Americans Are Coming
PART II
6 The Perfect Plan
7 Becoming a Bad Ass
8 Becoming the Voice and Ears of the Infidel
9 Wounded in Action
10 Three Dreams
PART III
11 Rogue Attack
12 Recuperation
13 Safoora
14 The Return
15 A Family of His Own
16 Taking a Break from the Battlefield
17 Going Back
PART IV
18 Rumors and Fear
19 The Hunt for the Voice of the Infidel
20 Fried Chicken
21 Escape to America
22 The Long Journey
23 A New Country, a New Life
Epilogue
Afterword
About the Author
Ron Farina is the author of At the Altar of the Past, Out of the Shadows: Voices of American Women Soldiers, Who Will Have My Back, and Sacrifice, The Final Chapter. In 2021, Ron was awarded the AWP Intro Award for fiction and the American Society of Professional Journalists, Connecticut Chapter first-place award for general column magazine feature, for the essay “War Torn.” In January 2025, cited for using his passion for writing to advocate for and bring attention to the needs of veterans and their families, Ron was inducted into the Connecticut Veterans Hall of Fame and selected as an INDIE Publisher’s 2025 book award finalist for military nonfiction, for the book Sacrifice, the Final Chapter.
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