TO GO BEYOND

April 30, Thursday Outside St. Petersburg, Russia Samantha Marissen regained consciousness in a small room with a single mattress bed and one worn pillow. A boarded over window allowed no clue as to whether it was day or night. Utterly disgusting conditions compared to her hotel room. Her head throbbed with such intensity she collapsed back onto the mattress while attempting to rise. Next to the bed, a lamp atop a well-worn nightstand emitted barely enough light to see across the room. Dim light was good; a brighter light would intensify the nausea. As Samantha lay on the bed, head pounding, she tried to recall what happened…and why? Slowly, the memory of the event returned. Who were the two men in her hotel room? Who as-sured her they were legitimate? Without warning, she felt an uncontrollable urge to throw up and frantically searched for a place to do so. Despite her pain, she stumbled toward a door in the room corner and found a small bathroom. She dropped to her knees and threw up into the filthy toilet. Her body would not stop convulsing with gut-wrenching heaves until nothing remained to expel. She broke down and cried uncontrollably. “Miss Marissen!” bellowed a large balding man with a thick Russian accent. Samantha, still on her knees hunched over the bowl, turned quickly toward the frightening voice. She looked miserable, hair tangled, vomit on her mouth and chin, beads of sweat covering her face, and tears of terror streaking her cheeks. “Miss Marissen, get up, wipe your face! You are disgusting!” Sobbing, she stood slowly, turned on the sink faucet, and splashed water on her face. With no towel to dry her face and no mirror to see, she turned to the large, glaring, balding man at the door who pointed to the only chair in the room. Samantha staggered to the chair and carefully lowered her aching body. “Why am I…?” “Stop! You say nothing until you are told!” Shaking from fear, sickness, and the cold, she numbly nodded. “You are being held for passing Russian Federation classified information to foreign agents. We will hold you until evidence is complete. Do not resist. Do as you are told and you will be…you will survive. Do you understand?” Samantha nodded again. The large balding man left, slamming the door behind him. “Oh, my God! What’s happening? What is he talking about? I’ve done nothing. Help me, Lord, help me please.” She looked across the room through tear-blurred eyes, then buried her face in her hands and wept.