“No. God. Please!” she pleaded helplessly.
All she could do was watch in horror as it reached toward the back of her head. It’s long, dangling fingers wrapped around the back of her skull and pressed in, almost in a massaging manner. She fought the touch with aggressive head motions, trying to break from its clasp, but it wasn’t enough to deter the captor. The creature squeezed harder. She screamed out in agonizing pain.
Gail’s scream echoed through the space like the transition of a train leaving a tunnel, taking her far away from the horror of the previous environment. The sudden warm feeling of a human touch pulled her from the fog of torment. The location morphed back into a familiar setting. She was back in the first room. The others desperately rushed to her side. It was the ending of a nightmare, but it had felt real.
Russell and Hanna quickly wrestled Gail up from the floor. The goal was to keep her from hurting herself. Her arms flailed around wildly. Her head bucked back and forth toward the floor. She was frantic and uncontrollable. Hanna slid her arms under Gail’s neck, cradling her head from the hardness of the floor.
Dimitri stood nearby and took in the spectacle with helplessness. He didn’t know what to do.
Russell looked down at the frantic woman with confusion. “LT?” he shouted out to her.
The woman’s frantic body continued to seize. Her eyes moved around her sockets like the steel ball in a pinball machine. Her skin was pale and sweaty. She looked like hell. She certainly did not resemble the quiet lieutenant they had come to know the last few hours. Hanna took the mothering role. “Sit her up!” she cried out, fighting the weight of Gail’s head.
Gail continued her epileptic fit. Russell had little patience for this type of thing. He didn’t respond well to others’ suffering and certainly didn’t know how to comfort. He leaned down into her, placing his mouth inches from the side of her face. “All right. You’re all right. Calm down. Calm down!” he shouted into her ear, losing patience.
His demands only made things worse. Gail’s seizures distended. Her legs flailed around, kicking out uncontrollably. Hanna flashed a look up to Dimitri, who had been standing there and waiting for something to do.
“Get her other leg!” she shouted to him.
Dimitri stirred from his daze and lassoed her legs with his muscular arms. She was little trouble for him. The group pinned Gail to the floor, locking her into a human straitjacket. At last they seemed to have her under control.
Gail continued to kick and scream, but her efforts were slowly fading with fatigue. Her rage quickly melted into despair. Tears wreaked havoc on her tortured face.
The outburst was all Hanna could bear. Her mind was racing. What the hell happened to this woman?
The distraction of Gail’s fit seemed to provide an unexpected opportunity. The door was unguarded. Russell was completely consumed. Hanna glanced up to Dimitri. Her look seemed to indicate something. Now’s your chance, buddy!
He was thinking the same thing. He angled back toward the door and slowly released Gail’s legs. His motion immediately attracted Russell’s attention away from Gail. He was onto Dimitri and knew where he was headed.
Dimitri jumped from the floor and made a quick attempt for the door. Russell painfully climbed up to his feet and rushed the young man from the side, shoving him sideways. “Where you going?” Russell demanded.
Dimitri tried to move around the man like a basketball player, spinning toward the door. It was pointless. Russell’s large body blocked the goal like a brick wall.
“Get out of my way!” shouted Dimitri.
Hanna looked up toward the men. She couldn’t help but rooting for Dimitri’s success. “We need to get her help!” Hanna pleaded to Russell desperately.
Russell sat on the comment for a second. He knew she was probably right, but opening the door would present more uncertainty — not to mention it would be on him. After all, he was the security captain.
Dimitri made a second attempt for the door. “Move!”
He reached toward the door lever. Russell smacked his hand away. Dimitri recoiled his hand and looked at his fist. “Fuck this!” Dimitri replied with anger before rushing Russell for the tackle.
Dimitri was smaller than Russell, which made him more agile. Despite his size, Russell was ill prepared for Dimitri’s move, which caused him to stumble backward toward the door. The men crashed into the door and struggled back and forth. Dimitri worked his body into a spin, slowly pivoting Russell away from the door and toward the other wall.
Russell started sliding around the floor, losing balance. He was wearing dress shoes. The bottoms were slick and hard. It seemed Dimitri had control. But the sixty-year-old man hadn’t given up. He quickly shifted his weight forward, putting more downward pressure on Dimitri’s legs. The strategy started to work. Dimitri slowly felt the weight and started to buckle downward. Russell managed to maneuver his body toward the door and dragged the wrestling match backward. He slowly wedged his back up against the door’s surface and barricaded it shut with his body. There was nothing Dimitri could do now. The weight of Russell’s body was resting against the door seal. The door was also supporting him, which gave him unbreakable balance. Despite the obvious, Dimitri reached back toward the door handle. Russell pulled back and landed a right hook over the top of Dimitri’s head, sending the Russian to the floor instantly. “It ain’t happening,” Russell spit out, struggling to catch his breath.
Hanna turned her focus toward Gail, who began to settle. The movement distracted the men. They looked over. Russell seemed to find a moment of peace in Gail’s departure from chaos. It was enough to bring the temperature of the situation down a few notches.
Hanna softly rested Gail’s head on the concrete, and she hustled toward the men. Russell could tell by the look on her face he had lost his key ally.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” she shouted toward Russell. “I’ll take the risk. This woman needs help!”
Russell had given thought to her case, but the red card he held in his pocket made it clear. No one was to leave the room until they were cleared. The card was sufficient to keep Russell on task. He scoffed at Hanna, defending his position. “There’s a reason why they haven’t come to get us. It’s not safe out there!” Russell reaffirmed. “We ain’t opening this door,” he concluded, sounding off the last breath of his comment to Dimitri.
Hanna knew she had no chance at moving him. Dimitri had failed. Russell was simply too big and overpowering. Perhaps that was the reason he was given the task to keep them there in the first place. He had a great sense of duty and honored his own authority. Breaking him down would require more of a coordinated effort. She needed Gail. Gail was the only one in a military uniform. Perhaps her opinion could persuade Russell. However, she was still a mess and was in no state to be giving her thoughts. Everything seemed to be at a stalemate again.
Unlike Hanna, Dimitri was not willing to surrender so easily. He understood Russell’s physical weaknesses. They were his knees and balance. He had to be taken quickly and unexpectedly. Perhaps the opportunity wasn’t right at that moment, but he was determined to try.
Russell fixated on Hanna, redefining his position to her. It was the one last chance Dimitri had. He quickly lurched forward, shoving Russell away from the door. However, Russell was ready this time. He quickly grabbed Dimitri’s coveralls and shoved him backward. Dimitri threw up his fists. Boxing it out could be a better solution.