Praefectus Praetorio
R.I.P. Brother of the Quill
Seratus Lima – Four Days 23 hours
Holding Cell CNB Headquarters, Sunday, 1:10 PM
Slowly, Amanda gained some self-control. She was able to stop sobbing and sit up on her cot and try to come to grips with her situation. As she tried to wrap her mind around everything that had happened, there was still so much she didn’t know or understand.
Where was Jeffrey? Shouldn’t he have been at her trial? She knew he would have been there if at all humanly possible. That thought, in turn, made her worry for his safety. Had he been hurt? Only some life-threatening danger or illness could prevent the man she adored from being there for her! This worry ate away at her heart. Was Jeffrey OK?
Even Amanda’s selfless concern for Hodges could not indefinitely keep her thoughts from her own dire straits. She was sentenced to death! This Friday! Was there an appeal? Could anything be done? Would her US citizenship help in any way? Would her President intervene on her behalf? Was any of this real?
Try as she might to think of others, the current situation kept dragging Amanda’s thought back to her own predicament. She was under a death sentence in less than five days! This cheerful, ambitious 19-year-old was facing the end of her life! The dreams she’d worked for from Madison to Georgetown to Singapore, all her hopes of a career that would make her parents proud seemed to be lost, flushed down the drain like crap.
Alone in her cell, with no one to talk to, no communication with friends or family, few would blame Amanda from lapsing into despair. Indeed, the girl spent a good while still crying and feeling that everything was over. I challenge a reader who might demand a more Stoic reaction from her to try to put themselves in her place.
Amanda again began weeping, feeling in the depths of despair. All hope was gone, she thought. Her young life was a total failure!
But then, the word ‘failure’ began to trigger something in her mind. What was it? Something she vaguely remembered. What was it? Then it came. A warm and comforting vision flashed in her mind. Years ago, not yet a teenager, sitting in her home in Madison on a snowy winter’s evening, wrapped in a blanket and sipping her Mom’s rich hot chocolate. It was Christmas, and the family was together watching seasonal shows on the TV. It was the first time she had seen that movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life” with Jimmy Stewart (an actor who’d been her number one crush before she met Jeffrey). As the uplifting, sentimental movie ended unfolded, Amanda was crying (she always did at such movies). Then they showed the parting note from the Clarence, the Angel. The words had drilled into her impressional young soul:
“Remember, no man is a failure who has friends!”
Yes, Amanda thought! I’m not a failure! I have friends who care for me. Jeffrey and Barbara, for instance – and my Parents! I’ll not accept failure! I’ll not give up! Then something else came to her mind, words she’d tried to live by ever since becoming a cheerleader: “The only way I fail is to give up.”
Marina Bay Sands Singapore, Sunday 1:25 PM
Jeffrey Hodges woke up from his nap, well-rested and refreshed. The beds at the Sands were remarkably comfortable, pillowy soft with ultra-high thread-count sheets and silk comforters. Looking at the planner on his phone, Jeffrey saw that dinner with Minister Josephine was still almost six hours away. He contemplated calling the office to see if he’d got any messages. But it was such a relaxed Sunday that the attorney chose to defer any business until Monday. He also postponed calling home. He didn’t feel comfortable talking to his wife just now. Jeffrey told himself that he had earned some rest with all he’d accomplished for his clients. Recounting his many accomplishments to Trixie the night before had helped convince him that he had everything under control.
Instead of work, he thought back to that sensuous night he’d spent with his redheaded secretary. Trixie was a charming girl, he thought. He was glad that he’d gone out of his way to make her feel welcome in her new job. The girl was common and rough around the edges. Her speech and manner were very lower-class. Her mangling of English Grammar and proper pronunciation grated on his educated ear, but he could try to ignore that. However, Trixie just wasn’t the kind of girl he’d take home to meet his mother. No, he thought, that would be TOO embarrassing! But he could put up with her verbal faux pas while she rocked her hips expertly on his shaft. He would simply prioritize time with her in bed over any serious discussions.
For intellectual stimulation, he could look forward to dinner with the Home Minister. A woman not only of outstanding beauty and sensuality, but also very educated and articulate in conversation.
With time to kill, Jeffrey turned on the TV and ordered room service. He hoped the Embassy would not review the hotel bill too closely.
Deputy Director’s Office CNB, Singapore, Sunday, 1:40 PM
Keefer excused himself from his guest and rang up Hoa.
“Yes, Sir?”
“I have some things to go over with my guest before I can join you, so we’ll be a few minutes late to the interrogation. Can you get everything set up until I get there?”
“Certainly, Sir. How would you like it?”
“Stretch the bitch out, naked, on the low X-table. Have the electrician wire her up. Tell him I want the Full Monty, external and internal.”
“Will do, Sir.”
“If you have extra time while waiting for me, you are all welcome to humiliate her. But no sex. The only thing she will know this afternoon is pain! Is that clear?”
“Yes, Sir! We’ll make her feel bad, alright!”
“Thank you, Sergeant.” Williams hung up and turned to his guest.
“That was Sergeant Hoa. He’s proved to be a good helper in interrogation. You will get to see his work this afternoon. And, of course, the electrician. I am sure you will find his work stimulating!”
Holding Cell CNB Headquarters, Sunday, 1:10 PM
Slowly, Amanda gained some self-control. She was able to stop sobbing and sit up on her cot and try to come to grips with her situation. As she tried to wrap her mind around everything that had happened, there was still so much she didn’t know or understand.
Where was Jeffrey? Shouldn’t he have been at her trial? She knew he would have been there if at all humanly possible. That thought, in turn, made her worry for his safety. Had he been hurt? Only some life-threatening danger or illness could prevent the man she adored from being there for her! This worry ate away at her heart. Was Jeffrey OK?
Even Amanda’s selfless concern for Hodges could not indefinitely keep her thoughts from her own dire straits. She was sentenced to death! This Friday! Was there an appeal? Could anything be done? Would her US citizenship help in any way? Would her President intervene on her behalf? Was any of this real?
Try as she might to think of others, the current situation kept dragging Amanda’s thought back to her own predicament. She was under a death sentence in less than five days! This cheerful, ambitious 19-year-old was facing the end of her life! The dreams she’d worked for from Madison to Georgetown to Singapore, all her hopes of a career that would make her parents proud seemed to be lost, flushed down the drain like crap.
Alone in her cell, with no one to talk to, no communication with friends or family, few would blame Amanda from lapsing into despair. Indeed, the girl spent a good while still crying and feeling that everything was over. I challenge a reader who might demand a more Stoic reaction from her to try to put themselves in her place.
Amanda again began weeping, feeling in the depths of despair. All hope was gone, she thought. Her young life was a total failure!
But then, the word ‘failure’ began to trigger something in her mind. What was it? Something she vaguely remembered. What was it? Then it came. A warm and comforting vision flashed in her mind. Years ago, not yet a teenager, sitting in her home in Madison on a snowy winter’s evening, wrapped in a blanket and sipping her Mom’s rich hot chocolate. It was Christmas, and the family was together watching seasonal shows on the TV. It was the first time she had seen that movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life” with Jimmy Stewart (an actor who’d been her number one crush before she met Jeffrey). As the uplifting, sentimental movie ended unfolded, Amanda was crying (she always did at such movies). Then they showed the parting note from the Clarence, the Angel. The words had drilled into her impressional young soul:
“Remember, no man is a failure who has friends!”
Yes, Amanda thought! I’m not a failure! I have friends who care for me. Jeffrey and Barbara, for instance – and my Parents! I’ll not accept failure! I’ll not give up! Then something else came to her mind, words she’d tried to live by ever since becoming a cheerleader: “The only way I fail is to give up.”
Marina Bay Sands Singapore, Sunday 1:25 PM
Jeffrey Hodges woke up from his nap, well-rested and refreshed. The beds at the Sands were remarkably comfortable, pillowy soft with ultra-high thread-count sheets and silk comforters. Looking at the planner on his phone, Jeffrey saw that dinner with Minister Josephine was still almost six hours away. He contemplated calling the office to see if he’d got any messages. But it was such a relaxed Sunday that the attorney chose to defer any business until Monday. He also postponed calling home. He didn’t feel comfortable talking to his wife just now. Jeffrey told himself that he had earned some rest with all he’d accomplished for his clients. Recounting his many accomplishments to Trixie the night before had helped convince him that he had everything under control.
Instead of work, he thought back to that sensuous night he’d spent with his redheaded secretary. Trixie was a charming girl, he thought. He was glad that he’d gone out of his way to make her feel welcome in her new job. The girl was common and rough around the edges. Her speech and manner were very lower-class. Her mangling of English Grammar and proper pronunciation grated on his educated ear, but he could try to ignore that. However, Trixie just wasn’t the kind of girl he’d take home to meet his mother. No, he thought, that would be TOO embarrassing! But he could put up with her verbal faux pas while she rocked her hips expertly on his shaft. He would simply prioritize time with her in bed over any serious discussions.
For intellectual stimulation, he could look forward to dinner with the Home Minister. A woman not only of outstanding beauty and sensuality, but also very educated and articulate in conversation.
With time to kill, Jeffrey turned on the TV and ordered room service. He hoped the Embassy would not review the hotel bill too closely.
Deputy Director’s Office CNB, Singapore, Sunday, 1:40 PM
Keefer excused himself from his guest and rang up Hoa.
“Yes, Sir?”
“I have some things to go over with my guest before I can join you, so we’ll be a few minutes late to the interrogation. Can you get everything set up until I get there?”
“Certainly, Sir. How would you like it?”
“Stretch the bitch out, naked, on the low X-table. Have the electrician wire her up. Tell him I want the Full Monty, external and internal.”
“Will do, Sir.”
“If you have extra time while waiting for me, you are all welcome to humiliate her. But no sex. The only thing she will know this afternoon is pain! Is that clear?”
“Yes, Sir! We’ll make her feel bad, alright!”
“Thank you, Sergeant.” Williams hung up and turned to his guest.
“That was Sergeant Hoa. He’s proved to be a good helper in interrogation. You will get to see his work this afternoon. And, of course, the electrician. I am sure you will find his work stimulating!”