I could not even come close to dozing off during the night. Thoughts swirl in my head at such intensity that I can almost see them. The bright lamp irritates my eyes, I feel cold, uncomfortable, and hungry. I always get hungry when nervous, and currently I am in a state of near-nervous breakdown.

07:30 - I jump off the bed and start walking around the cell, like a wild animal. Walking and thinking.

08:30 - When are they going to remember about us? When does the working day start, damn it!

I feel a stinging pain in my thumb - my childhood habit of biting nails has shown itself.

08:09 - Akela woke up. Lies still, staring at me silently. Then turns and faces the wall.

08:18 - An elderly Asian man walks into our cell with a vacuum cleaner. In response to my pleas to call a policeman he only shakes his head, puts the vacuum against a wall, and leaves.

08:21 - Another finger is bleeding. My hands smell like the iron bars.

08:22 - The old man comes back, this time with a mop and a bucket of water. Behind a slightly open door there is a table, by which sits a woman in a police uniform, typing something on a computer.

"Help!" Akela shouts, grabbing onto the bars and squeezing his head through them as much as he can. "Please... Miss... Missus... I'm dying!"

The Asian man drops his mop, and the woman shakes and quickly rushes to our cell.

"What's wrong? Please wait a little bit more, they will let you go after ten."

"...After ten?!" I feel as if someone hit me in my solar plexus, my heart is beating so fast that I'm on the verge of a blackout.

"Lady, please!" In Akela's tone there is despair and plea. "I can't go at ten. I have an important surgery, I have documents for it... I may die if I don't go to the hospital!"

"What surgery?" The woman's voice has uncertainty in it. "Nobody told me anything about a surgery."

"How could they not?! I told them to make sure they released me early! I have a brain tumor and I waited half a year in queue for this surgery! This is my only chance, pleeeeaseeeee..."

Akela is kneeling and weeping, raising his tear-filled eyes to meet those of the woman. The woman looks at him, unsure what to do, and then takes out her phone.

"Tina, please prepare the release documents. Yes, those... I know... the guy seems to have an emergency, let's not take any risks just in case. Okay... I understand... Yes, under my supervision."

08:45 - We are free at last!

Near the entrance, at the visiting zone sits Ian, face buried in his hands. We run up to him, he looks at us with wild eyes and drags us out at the speed of light.

"In the car!" We run down the street, where at the corner sits our green FIAT. He rips the door open and jumps behind the wheel.

"Were you here the whole night?" I ask.

"Who do you think brought your documents here? You think everything is as easy as pie? Well it's not - what the hell!"

Ian turns the ignition keys over and over, but it's dead once again.

"Let me." Akela shoves him away and carefully turns the key. Then he tries a more forceful approach. Unfortunately, the car is as silent as ever. Akela looks at Ian with hopelessness.

"Maybe a taxi?"

"Ok, out!" Ian bites his lip until it draws blood, looking around the deserted street. No taxi here. "Well, no other choice but to run!"

"We're not going to make it!"

"It's no more than fifteen minutes!"

And then we ran.