I am Ricky Barton, a child of the Most High God. My God has allowed me to live an exceptional life, in which I was married for 36 years. Raised a few kids, two of my own, and enjoyed four grand and one great grand. I served in the US Army and owned a few businesses. I now live in the most amazing place and am learning to love my neighbors as I love myself. This is my first of many books And for me, it is only God's will that will be done.

Ricky Barton didn't grow up with safety nets. He grew up with choices the kind that can make or break a life.

From long days in a rough neighborhood to nights when trouble felt too close, Ricky learns early that survival comes down to instincts and grit. As he gets older, the stakes rise. Friends drift toward danger, family pressures build, and the quickest routes out are the ones most likely to pull him under.

But Ricky keeps pushing. He studies people, reads the room and figures out how to stay one step ahead of the traps set for kids like him. Every chapter shows another turn, another test, another moment where he has to decide who he wants to be.

This is the story of a young man fighting to build a future the world never planned to give him. Sharp, tense, and full of heart, it's a journey about beating the odds without losing yourself along the way.