My arms full of fruits and vegetables, I pushed through the door of our meager home. “Alexandri! Come!” I called to my friend, who lived with me. Alexandri came into the room, wearing a worried expression.

“You are back.” She said.

I froze. “What is wrong?”

She pointed to the sink, and as we rolled up our sleeves, she began to talk.

“Andrea, the police investigators were here today. They wanted to know where our Koran was. The neighbors to the east told them we are conspiring against our government with dangerous beliefs and rituals.”

 I felt my stomach churn as I thought how we would be in grave danger if they decided to further investigate.

We were some of the last Christians in this village area, and though it was not in print; to be a Christian meant death.

I asked her, “Can’t we leave quickly?  We could move further north-”

Alexandri cut me off. “No, they are already watching everything we do. We have no choice but to stay and pray to Jehovah to save us however He wills; either through hiding or death.”

At that last statement we were both quiet, and did not talk until our meal was ready. As we sat down on the rug to eat, Alexandri bowed her head and prayed to our Lord.

 “Mighty Father, who graciously allowed Stephen to glimpse Paradise in his dying hour and delivered Daniel from the lion’s pit, we thank You for giving shelter and providing sustenance for your children. We now cry to You in the coming dark hour, give us strength to stand for You, in any event.  Only in Your name we pray, Amen.”

The rest of our dinner was silent, short of the occasional clank of spoons and forks against the bowls. At dark, we went to our bed, a thick pile of rugs, deciding to take turns keeping watch out the window.

We watched for three nights, when at two-thirty of the fourth, I was awakened to Alexandri’s urgent shaking and whispering.

  “Wake up, wake up, our time has come.”

She had seen a group of flashlights coming down the hill from the south. We both knew at this hour, it could be only the police, coming for us. We quickly put on our outer cloaks and quietly exited through the small back door. We hid in the thick bushes which surrounded our house, hoping we would not be spotted, but as the officials came down the hill, they divided; some searching the house; the rest exploring the brush.