The Lottery.
Tina had been in the woman's prison here in San Salvador for almost a year. Surviving even this long had taken every ounce of courage, strength, and razor sharp wit that she could muster. Survival of the fittest was the way of life here in prison.
How she had managed to end up here was still a mystery to her.
The Peace Corps had always been her mission in life. Working here in the middle east with the underprivileged and homeless had brought meaning to her life. At least... it did until one fateful night last fall.
She and her team had been working against the clock on a job and had even had several run-ins with the local authorities. It seemed that they didn't take kindly to the Peace Corps building a clinic for the wounded soldiers, especially since they would minister to any wounded soldier, no matter which side of the battle they fought on.
Right in the middle of the grand opening ceremony, she had been arrested for treason and hauled away to jail. Within two days, she had been tried and convicted to life in prison. No one from her team had been able to help her or contact the American embassy in time to save her.
She brought herself back to the present with great effort. It was not a pleasant memory to dwell on, but something to divert her attention nonetheless.
She had heard whispers of the lottery. Once a year, the prison warden and guards held a mock lottery and the so-called 'winner' was never seen or heard from again.
Ever.
Tina paced her small cell and looked over to her cellmate, Rue. Rue had been here since she was twelve; caught stealing food for her family. She was now in her late thirties but looked much older. Her hair was already grey and she was beaten and weathered from the constant strain of fighting to stay alive. She had often told Tina about the lottery. Rue had always wondered why her 'number' had never been drawn. She was thankful though; not to be in prison still, but to be alive.
Tina looked out the small slit that passed for a window, and noticed the darkening skies. Running a hand through her tangled hair, she paused at the lump on her head. Touching it gingerly to check its progress, she smiled wryly to herself in remembrance of the close encounter that almost ended her life.
There was one particularly aggressive and overbearing guard that felt it was his god-given right to have his way with any prisoner of his choosing. Tina had been on kitchen duty that night and he slithered into the kitchen and up behind her before she even heard him. He slid his arms around her waist and began to grope at her breasts. She gritted her teeth and kept her hands in the wash water.
His hot breath started to become erratic and he began to lower his hand down her belly when she felt the knife in the bottom of the sink. Gripping it firmly, she slashed it up out of the water and across his arm as he fell back screaming. Tina dropped the knife and had only managed to get a few paces from him when he clubbed her with his billy stick and grabbed her by the hair to drag her into the corner.
Luckily, the ruckus had drawn the attention of the other inmates and they had gathered around. The guard, not wanting to further humiliate himself, barked at them to get back to work and left Tina in the corner unconscious.
She traced the curve of her smile with her fingertip as she remembered the look on his face when his blood was flowing from the wound she had inflicted. The look of complete surprise was so comical that it still made her laugh.
The scary part of that same expression was the intense rage that filled his eyes once he knew his attempts to rape her had been thwarted.
And now... the lottery was tonight.
************
Rue finally awakened and they joined the other inmates for the evening meal. It was always the same. One wondered how they managed to survive on such poor nourishment.
Tina managed to choke down the mystery 'meat' and slimy rice as she did most evenings. She had an odd feeling that tonight she would need all the sustenance she could get.
Rue was looking worried and kept smiling her shaky smile at Tina. Reaching across to squeeze her friend's hand, Tina smiled. "Rue honey. Please don't worry. I am sure we will both be fine. Honest."
As one tear slipped down Rue's cheek, Tina felt an odd clenching in her stomach. Did Rue know something that she didn't? Was she keeping some dreadful secret? Tina looked at her but could not read her eyes. Rue kept them turned away, and she ate hermeal in silence.
They were dismissed and ordered back to their cells after the dishes had been cleared away. Tina noticed the guards leaning against the wall and the way they leered at her and snickered behind their hands. Straightening up and lifting her chin in defiance, Tina marched past them and shot them a bird behind her back as she continued to her cell. The sliding and locking of the cell doors always set her teeth on edge. She would never get used to the sound. Tina watched as Rue took to her cot immediately and rolled over towards the wall. Tina broke out in a cold, clammy sweat. She knew that something was definitely not right.
Looking around the sparse cell, she tried in vain to find some sort of weapon. Something with which she could defend herself. For she knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that her number would be the 'winning' number in tonight's... lottery.
Finding nothing to protect herself with, she resigned herself to her cot and waited.
It didn't take long. She heard them as they shuffled down the hall. Trying to remain perfectly still, her hair prickled on the back of her neck as the door to their cell was unlocked and swung silently open. The excited whispers of the guards set her blood racing as she prepared herself to be hauled away.
The first touch on her shoulder turned her into a living dynamo. She lept from the bed in a whirlwind of arms and legs as she struck out at the nearest person. He was taken quite by surprise and moved quickly to defend himself.
Tina was overcome in a matter of moments and a bag was slipped over her head and tied at her neck. Her hands were then roughly pulled behind her and tied as well. She could feel the hot tears of rage and defeat as they coursed down her cheeks still flushed from the battle. She would not humiliate herself by screaming as she knew that it would only bring her captors pleasure.
Refusing to walk with them as bidden, she fell to the floor only to be gathered up by the guards and carried away like so muchgarbage. Time stood still. She felt as though she were being transported in some way. She had not been able to hear anything that was being whispered between her captors. She allowed her mind to drift back over her short life and found pleasure in the memories that she could before her life came to its most certain end.
Suddenly, she was brought to an abrupt halt. Lifted with ease by two men and placed on some sort of gurney, she knew that the end was close at hand. How it would come about, she knew not. Finally, she was lifted from the gurney and placed into a chair. Her hands were untied but quickly strapped and clamped into some sort of restraint. The hood was snatched from her head and the blinding white light made her eyes water with its intensity.
"Where am I?!?! Who are you people?!?!?!?" Her screams only echoed back to her from the well padded walls of this unusual room. She looked at her hands and tried to free them from the restraints to no avail. Suddenly, a large door opened to her left and her eyes widened in fear. A man dressed completely in black moved into the room with catlike grace. He closed the door behind him without ever taking his eyes from hers.
She was spellbound. The intense green of his eyes had her pinned like a butterfly caught in a spider's web. He moved to stand in front of her and leaned down to place his hands on the ends of the arms of the chair. She could feel the warmth of his skin through her fingertips.
"Are you alright?" He had a softly accented voice and the sound of it made her skin feel like it was on fire. Having no idea what she was doing here or who he was, she spat in his face.
He stepped back and wiped the moisture from his face with a small cloth. "You should never openly antagonize your opponent. Always look for a weakness first."
She was completely confused. "Well pardon me then." The sarcasm dripped from her words like icewater. " I'll try harder next time." He moved back towards the door and placed his hand on the handle.
"Yes, you will. You are now in a place called Section One. I am Michael and I will be your trainer. We will begin at 0500 tomorrow."
As her hands were instantly freed, Tina rubbed at the tenderness on her wrists. Muttering to herself, "Well. I guess THIS is the lottery."
End
This story copyright© 1999, Aly
Used with permission