Interview in the Dungeon
cont'd
After Michelle told Gloria the story of the drug sale, her arrest and that of her travelling partner, Janice, Gloria knew it was time for the part she had been trying to avoid. “Tell me about Janice.”
It was as of Gloria had struck her. Michelle began to cry. After a while, she said, “Janice was my best friend. She … she tried to talk me out of selling the stuff, but I…” A few more moments of crying and then, “After we were caught, we were told the penalty for selling drugs was death.”
“You didn’t know?”
“We were stupid. We were just passing through. We had planned to just drive through this country. You can do that in less than an hour, but then our car broke, and we needed more money.”
Michelle took a deep breath. “Then, they said it was to be death by crucifixion! I had read it was the most horrible, painful way to die, that it could take hours, sometimes days. I pissed my pants. But I was only twenty at the time, and it turned out they couldn’t execute me without giving me a choice of life in prison instead. Janice was just over twenty-one, so she had no options–she was going to be crucified.”
“So, you picked life in prison?”
“Wouldn’t you? I thought maybe there would be a chance for parole or something later. At least I’d still be alive. I didn’t know I’d be spending the rest of my life chained to a wall in a cold dungeon. That I’d be tortured for hours every day. Plus, they forced me to watch Janice’s crucifixion before I made the choice. It was even more horrible than I had imagined.”
Michelle looked her in the eye. “Have you ever been so scared you thought you might actually die of fright?”
Gloria shook her head.
“I have. They didn’t tell me I was going to have a choice when they made me watch Janice die. I thought I was going to be next. They pinned her to the cross.”
Gloria raised her hand. “You don’t have to—”
“The instant they hit the first nail, one going into her hand, she started screaming. The screaming didn’t stop until she had been hanging for a very long time.”
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“But, I had read the worst agony was nailing the feet. I believe it. The sounds she made when they did that could only have come from Hell. But the other sounds were even worse.”
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“What sound?”
“The bones in her feet shattering. They had me tied up so close, I got sprayed by some of the blood when they hammered. The CRAAACK as the nails, it …”
“Michelle, we don’t have to do this.”
“I broke a toe once, just a hairline fracture. I couldn’t put weight on it without what I thought at the time was intolerable pain.” A sardonic laugh. “How little I knew about pain then. And now she, and soon me I thought, were going to have to use completely shattered feet to …” Michelle took in a large breath. “Once she
finally stopped screaming, she began to beg, first to be let down, then to be killed. She cried so much. And I cried with her. She must have begged them to kill her a hundred times. My heart was beating very fast. I hoped maybe I would have a heart attack.”
It seemed like she was on that cross
forever. And I thought I was next! I couldn't breathe, I couldn't think.
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“Finally, during the second day she made one last huge effort to raise herself. That was the last one.”
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“After she died, they took me over to another cross. Mine, I thought. I pissed myself again. I started to beg, offer … anything.” She looked Gloria in the eye. "I would have
done anything."
Gloria took a deep breath.
"Then, they laughed and finally told me I could choose life in prison instead. I actually fainted with relief.”
They sat together in silence for a while, Gloria stroking Michelle’s hair and humming the tune. Michelle was still trembling. Finally, Michelle said, “Do you think they’d let me change my mind?”
“What do you mean?”
“Do you think they’d let me re-choose my sentence?”
“You want to be crucified?”
“No! of course not; but I can’t take this anymore. Please! When you get out of here, see if they’ll let me change.”
“I can’t do that.”
“It’s a couple of days of intense hell, vs. a
lifetime of this hell. I was an idiot—there isn’t even a word for “parole” in their legal system. I just didn’t realize what it was going to be like. Look at me!” She pulled on the chains hard. Gloria feared the loud clanking might draw someone in. “For God’s sake, look at me! Help me get out of this,
please!” She lowered her head and sobbed uncontrollably. Then, “I CAN’T TAKE THIS ANYMORE. I CAN’T!”
Gloria stroked her head and whispered, “Are you absolutely sure?”
“Wouldn’t you be?”
Gloria hesitated just a second. “Yes. I would.”
She looked deeply into Michelle’s eyes. “I promise. I will do everything I can.”
“Thank you.”
The door flew open, and the warden rushed in. “Well ladies, hope you’ve had a nice visit.” He turned to Gloria. “Time to get your camera crew in here.” To Michelle he said, “Okay, it’s exercise time!”
She just looked at him dully and lowered her head.
Of course, this time, exercise was going to be the full four hours. After the chains forced her to her feet, Michelle just quietly went through the up down routine of transferring pressure from her arms / shoulder to her legs. Eventually, the pain became evident on her face. Then, some moans. She looked at Gloria and mouthed, “Please.”
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Gloria nodded.
Even before the chains were moved up for the final hour, Michelle had started to beg for mercy. By the time Michelle had spent a half hour in the fully stretched position, Gloria was crying and begging too. Finally, the warden said, “In honor of our guest, I’m going to say that forty-five minutes in position three are sufficient.”
Michelle said weakly, “Thank you, sir.”
The warden grabbed Gloria’s arm. “And now, it’s time for you to go.”
She shrugged him off and went to Michelle who, now not being stretched, was struggling to stand. Gloria wrapped her arms around Michelle to support her and whispered in Michelle’s ear, “I’ll try. I promise I’ll try.”
“Thank you.”
Gloria kissed Michelle’s hair as she was whisked away by the warden. At the cell door, she stopped for one last look.
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... To Be Continued ...