In our family I, Ben, was the good child while my sister was the naughty one. Throughout elementary and high school, my report card showed a B only twice, and each time I was devastated. Anything less than an A was a failure. It wasn't because I was a genius or something. I loved school and didn't want to disappoint our parents.
Unlike me, Nora, who was 5 years younger, was the black sheep. She proved to be smart on multiple occasions. However, she was opinionated, extreme in everything, and rebellious. I had no doubts if she invested half the time in her studies, her scores would be mostly A's, but she could care less about her classes, and by the end of high school, her report card showed mostly C's.
After finishing high school, I went to UCLA and acquired a BS in computer science and engineering. After finishing, I was hired by Microsoft and moved to New York. Nora was pushed by my parents to register for college, hoping her temper would calm and she would regain her senses. Due to her lower scores in high school, she was accepted by a mediocre-level college, which was OK for her but a big disappointment for Mom and Dad.
Since moving to New York, much of the time I have been busy trying to impress my bosses and getting to know socially some of my colleagues. My connection with my parents became a biweekly telephone call or via social media. I haven't visited home in 3 years. Nora tried to call me several times when I was away and left messages. However, her free time did not correspond with mine, and until recently, our main connection has been via e-mails.
...
On a Saturday, I got a phone call from Mom, "Ben honey, we need a favor."
"What's going on?"
"Nora befriended a weirdo who convinced her to join him in looking into Indian culture in Chicago. It started about 3 months ago. I thought she was only curious, but she just called me from New Delhi. She went there with her boyfriend and decided to live there for at least a year. I am worried about her and have no idea what to do."
"We didn't correspond for a long time, and it was purely my fault. I was too busy with my life to keep in touch. I'll e-mail her and see what I can do."
When we disconnected, I e-mailed Nora, 'Hi sis, I heard from Mom you went to India and plan to stay there for a year. Any idea where you are going to be, who will help you there, what about money and other necessities? Love, Ben.'
I didn't hear from Nora for 3 days, and then I got a short response, 'I am OK. Don't worry.'
I expected more details, and her laconic writing was insufficient. I wrote her again, 'Nora, please, you are 21 and an adult, but your parents and I are worried about your sudden departure without notifying us about your plans or location, in case you need help. After all, you moved to a completely different culture. Many Indians speak English, but even if the language isn't a problem, transportation, food, habitation, health, and many other things may pose a risk. Please be more specific and let us know more details. And, of course, contact us ASAP if you get into trouble.'
I got 5 days later her next e-mail, 'I am still in Delhi with Viraj. Until now we slept in a hostel-like place. Tomorrow we fly to Madhya Pradesh and will probably stay with the Sati Pati group for a while. Nora.'
I had no idea what was Sati Pati. According to Google, it was a cult, and Madhya Pradesh was a huge state in the center of India.
I emailed Nora, 'Sis, it is a cult. You are a Westerner and do not belong there. You may encounter dangers you couldn't dream about. Please, reconsider.'
Nora's next e-mail came 2 weeks later, 'Sorry I didn't write earlier, but there was no computer there and we live a simple life here. We went to a city an hour away for shopping, and I wrote this e-mail using the store's computer. Tell Mom and Dad that everything is fine. Bye, Nora.'
WTF! My little sister joined a cult thousands of miles away. We had no idea where exactly she was, what were the sanitary conditions, whether the food was adequate and healthy...
'Nora dear. Please write to me your exact address and, if possible, a phone number, just in case.'
I didn't hear from Nora for almost a month. Mom, Dad, and I were worried sick but could do nothing without knowing her exact location. Then, one day I got another e-mail. It read, 'I haven't been well for a week now. I am in an urgent care facility in a tiny village, trying to recover.' She mentioned the name of the village. I searched in Google-maps and found it. The best way to reach her was to fly to Delhi, take an 8 hours train and then a 3.5 hours local bus. Once I was in the area, a rickshaw would be the preferred mode of transportation to her place.
I called Mom, told her I'd take a week off from work and go to India to talk to Nora. She cried on the phone, and begged me to convince my sister to come back home.
I flew to India 2 days later. The whole ordeal to reach her took about 36 hours. Fortunately, I slept on the plane for 4 hours because I couldn't sleep afterwards until I reached the 'urgent care' facility. People in the civilized world may know what urgent care should look like. However, over there it was a 3 bed, dirty, neglected room with hardly any light. Even the water was not clean. Before going to India, I read about the healthcare system, but the good facilities were mostly in the big cities. This village was far from any city, and it could have belonged to the sect.
I entered the room tired, dirty, and needing to sleep, but the adrenalin kept me awake. Initially, I didn't recognize Nora. She wore torn old white rags, and looked like a skeleton.
I hugged her. She looked at me funny, "Ben, what are you doing here?"
"We love you and were worried. I had to see for myself what was going on. What do you suffer from?"
"According to the person who sees me once a day, it's a combination of malaria, diarrhea, and malnutrition."
"Are you improving or not?"
"I lost weight since the first week I was here, but it deteriorated over time. There is no improvement yet."
"Where is your boyfriend, Viraj?"
"He is with the rest of the group."
"So you are here all alone?"
"Don't worry, I'll manage."
"Nora, you are nuts. I love you too much to leave you here in these conditions. I take you back to America with me."
She forced a smile, "Even if I agreed, nobody would let me on a plane in my condition."
"I'll see what I can do."
My cellphone did not work in that location, so I took a 'taxi' to the nearest town and called the American consulate in Delhi. I had to wait for 2 hours for an answer, but eventually, somebody answered. I said my American sister was gravely sick and needed to be flown to the USA as soon as possible. The guy mentioned 2 options: An air ambulance, or flying on a commercial plane with medical escort. Considering the logistical issues, timing, and price, I chose to fly Nora business class with a medical escort, hoping there wouldn't be too much trouble in the airport. I came back to Nora and told her about my plans.
She said, "I have to talk to Ragiv and my mentor about it before agreeing to go with you."
"Do you have your passport with you?"
"Yes, I do."
"In that case, I don't want you to be in touch with them. They may talk you out of it, or decide it would be bad publicity and prevent us from leaving. I'll call a taxi right now, take your belongings, and we start our long way to Delhi."
"But Rajiv was nice to me, and they'll get stuck with the bills."
"I don't care. Your physical and mental health are MUCH more important to me. Go to the bathroom, dress up, and take you medications. I'll find a mode of transportation and we leave in 15 minutes."
We were lucky nobody paid attention to us leaving. It was a rapid escape from unacceptable conditions. The travel was tough; Nora vomited twice, had diarrhea several times, and after a torture that lasted 24 hours, we arrived to Delhi. We stayed in a tiny 'hotel' not far from the airport. I bought 3 business class tickets for the next day and notified the consulate about my plans. The person who answered, said she'd call medical escort for us and tell the security personnel at the airport it was approved by the American consulate.
Nora's ordeal continued during the night: Her GI tract reacted to anything I tried to have her drink or eat, including white rice, banana, tea and even water. It became obvious she needed intravenous fluids ASAP. I did not want to risk a prolonged hospitalization in India, and hoped that despite her failing health, Nora would make it to New York before catastrophe happened.
On the following day, to our delight, the boarding at the airport was easier than I imagined, and the flight left on time. It was a nonstop, 16 hours flight to Newark, NJ. In the past, when I flew long distances, I'd use Ambien to sleep during the flight. However, I was concerned Nora would collapse on our flight and instead, watched movies the whole time. The medical escort, an Indian nurse of about 45 years old, helped my sister now and then drink teaspoons of hot tea and go to the bathroom whenever needed, but most of the time Nora dozed off.
When we arrived, I gave the escort a generous tip, passed security, and took an Uber to New York Weil Cornell Medical Center. Nora was admitted immediately and intravenous infusion started. I called Mom to tell her I brought Nora back with me. She cried on the phone and bought tickets for her and Dad for the next day to New York.
...
The next morning, I visited Nora early. She looked better after being supplanted with gallons of needed fluids. She was even able to smile, "They were trying to kill me here. They infused glucose and saline in one arm and drew the same amount of blood from the other for million tests."
I joked, "It's better they keep you weak. Otherwise, who knows, you might decide to return to India."
"I won't do it, but once I feel better, I'll call Rajiv and apologize for leaving without saying goodbye."
Mom and Dad arrived later. The meeting of the 4 of us was very emotional. Mom hugged her, "Oh, honey, I am so happy to see you back. You are so skinny. I brought you your favorite cake."
I stopped Mom, "Please, no cakes or other foods, unless you have a permission from her doctor. We do not want her vulnerable gut to begin reacting again. Sorry sis, but your favorite cake is mine. If you behave, and the medical team approves, I might consider letting you taste it."
She grinned, "Ben, I always knew you were a jerk."
Dad was quiet. He just looked at Nora lovingly with tears in his eyes.
The doctor entered the room with her entourage, introduced herself, and turned to me, "Are you the brother who kidnaped her?"
"May I plead the fifth?"
She laughed, "If you ask me, it was a crazy thing you did, but you might have saved her life. When Nora arrived, she was severely dehydrated and the lactic acid in her blood was way high. We were lucky she is young. But without our initial treatment, I doubt she would have survived another 24-48 hours."
I turned to Nora, "Well, girl, you owe me your life, so from now on, you do my laundry for as long as I live." Everybody giggled.
The doctor added, "Some of the results of blood, urine, and stool tests that were sent yesterday we won't get for a few more days, but I can tell you she suffers from malnutrition that may be related to multiple factors. Both Amoebae and Salmonella bacteria were found in her feces. Her urine is likely infectious, too. Currently, Nora receives broad-spectrum antibiotics through her vein. Once we have all the results, we'll narrow down the antibiotics. However, she'll have to stay here for at least a week."