In the second half of the 1990s, when kidnapping became a mass phenomenon in the North Caucasus, and the number of hostages numbered in the hundreds, Ilyas Bogatyrev, a special correspondent for the legendary Vzglyad program, was collecting materials for a film about human trafficking in Chechnya. However, he truly understood what a hostage was when he himself became a victim. “Welcome to hell” - this inscription on a dilapidated stand at the entrance to Grozny still stands before his eyes. The experience and the desire to get rid of terrible memories prompted him to write a book. It contains reflections on time and politics, and an analysis of one of the ugliest and still not eliminated phenomena in the world - human trafficking, and advice from experienced military journalists on how to act in such situations. The restrained and courageous documentary-fiction text reads like a psychological thriller, captivating with the authenticity of details and characters, painful suspense, empathy and anticipation of the outcome.