TONIGHT ON 20/20 ` MY NAME IS KAYLA MUELLER. HERE'S KAYLA. FROM A VIBRANT LIFE FORCE LIKE THIS ` PAUSE IS THE RED BUTTON. TO THIS ` IT'S VERY TERRIFYING HERE. A YOUNG AMERICAN WOMAN DEVOTED TO HELPING OTHERS IS KIDNAPPED INTO A LIVING HELL BY ISIS. HER DESPERATE PARENTS ` EVERYDAY PEOPLE ` FORCED TO TAKE ON TERRORISTS FROM THEIR LIVING ROOM. WE NEED TO DO SOMETHING. THEY'RE NOT GONNA BRING KAYLA HOME. BECAUSE, THEY SAY, THE US GOVERNMENT AND HIGH-PROFILE HUMANITARIAN GROUPS FAILED THEM. SOMEWHERE IN A BOARDROOM, THEY DECIDED TO LEAVE OUR DAUGHTER THERE. THEY MUST HAVE BEEN CRUSHED. OUR GOVERNMENT SLAMMED THAT DOOR. TONIGHT, WE'RE TAKING YOU INSIDE THIS EXTRAORDINARY, NEVER-SEEN-BEFORE STORY. IF YOU FAIL TO MEET THIS DEADLINE, WE'LL SEND YOU A PICTURE OF KAYLA'S DEAD BODY. A FAMILY NEVER GIVING UP. AND NOW REVEALING A SECRET THE WORLD NEVER KNEW. THIS IS A PLEA FOR KAYLA'S LIFE. WE ARE DOING EVERYTHING WE CAN TO GET YOU HOME. THE GIRL LEFT BEHIND. CAPTIONS WERE MADE POSSIBLE WITH FUNDING FROM NZ ON AIR. COPYRIGHT ABLE 2016 KIA ORA. I'M CAROLYN ROBINSON, AND WELCOME TO 20/20. TONIGHT THE PARENTS WHO SAY THEY'VE STAYED SILENT FOR FAR TOO LONG AND ARE ONLY NOW REVEALING HOW THEY HAD TO TAKE ON NOT ONLY ISIS BUT THE US GOVERNMENT AS WELL IN A DESPERATE BID TO SAVE THEIR DAUGHTER, THE ONLY AMERICAN WOMAN BEING HELD IN SECRET BY ISIS. IT'S A STORY OF A INSPIRATION, BUT IT'S ALSO A STORY OF A MOTHER AND FATHER'S LOVE, OF DESPERATION AND ULTIMATELY OF HEARTBREAK. TONIGHT THEY'RE TELLING THEIR STORY TO 20/20'S BRIAN ROSS AS HE BRINGS US THE GIRL LEFT BEHIND. A SUMMER MORNING, THREE YEARS AGO THIS MONTH, IN PRESCOTT, ARIZONA. MONDAY MORNING AT ABOUT 4 OR 5AM. HER FRIENDS HAD CALLED TO SAY THEIR 24-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER, KAYLA, HAD GONE MISSING. THEY CALLED US AND SAID, 'YOU KNOW, THEY WEREN'T REALLY CONCERNED. DON'T WORRY.' MARSHA AND CARL MUELLER SOON LEARNED FROM KAYLA HERSELF THAT THERE WAS PLENTY TO WORRY ABOUT. MY NAME IS KAYLA MUELLER. I NEED YOUR HELP. IT'S VERY TERRIFYING HERE. AND THEN IT WENT BLANK. KAYLA HAD BEEN CAPTURED BY ONE OF THE MOST BRUTAL TERROR GROUPS THE WORLD HAS EVER KNOWN ` ISIS. YOU JUST GO, ALMOST, INTO A CATATONIC STATE, I THINK. YOU... YOU JUST CAN'T EVEN STAND UP. CARL OWNED AN AUTO-REPAIR SHOP. MARSHA A FORMER NURSE. NOTHING PREPARED THE MUELLERS FOR WHAT WAS ABOUT TO HAPPEN ` A SCARY, SECRET WORLD THEY WERE ABOUT TO ENTER. THIS KIND OF THING TEARS PEOPLE APART. AS THE WORLD WOULD LATER WATCH THE BRUTAL MURDERS BY ISIS OF THREE YOUNG AMERICAN MEN. THE PLIGHT OF A FOURTH AMERICAN HOSTAGE, KAYLA, WAS KEPT A CLOSELY HELD SECRET. OBVIOUSLY, THE WHITE HOUSE DOESN'T WANT THIS TO ALL COME OUT. TONIGHT ON 20/20, THE MUELLERS ARE COMING FORWARD TO TELL THE STORY OF HOW THEY FOUGHT FOR KAYLA'S FREEDOM. KAYLA IS NOT YOUR ENEMY. THE MESSAGES AND EMAILS WITH ISIS IN SYRIA AND THE MUELLERS IN ARIZONA NEVER SEEN OR HEARD BEFORE TONIGHT. SIR, I AM COMING TO YOU WITH A MOTHER'S HEART FOR THE LOVE OF HER DAUGHTER. WOULD YOUR STAFF NEGOTIATE FOR KAYLA? AND THE PEOPLE THE MUELLERS NOW SAY` 'NO.' ...FAILED THEIR DAUGHTER, INCLUDING PROMINENT HUMANITARIAN ORGANISATIONS AND THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION. THE PRESIDENT COULD'VE BEEN A HERO, AND HE CHOSE NOT TO BE. BABY CRIES, PEOPLE CHATTER LOOK AT HER. HERE'S YOUR GIRL. WHAT ARE YOU GONNA NAME HER? KAYLA. KAYLA, THAT'S A PRETTY NAME. HEY, KAYLA. WE WEREN'T SUPPOSE TO HAVE KAYLA. YOU KNOW, WE WERE TOLD 'NO CHILDREN', AND SUDDENLY, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GONNA HAVE THIS YOUNG, LITTLE GIRL. (EXCLAIMS) SHE WAS A REALLY HAPPY LITTLE KID AND LOVED LIVING, LOVED BEING IN THE WORLD. SHE TAUGHT HERSELF LANGUAGES. SHE TAUGHT HERSELF HOW TO PLAY THE GUITAR. SHE TAUGHT HERSELF HOW TO WRITE MUSIC. SHE WAS VERY INTELLIGENT, VERY INTELLIGENT. I HOPE THAT I NEVER FORGET THAT EVERYTHING HAPPENS FOR A REASON AND THAT NOTHING SHOULD BE A REGRET. SHE ALWAYS JUST HAD SUCH A COMPASSION FOR EVERYBODY AROUND HER. KAYLA FELT SUFFERING IN HER HEART, AND IT WAS AS IF` IT JUST SEEMED NATURAL. SHE WAS SUPPOSED TO HELP. CHILDREN CHANT AFTER COLLEGE, KAYLA WAS DRAWN TO THE MIDDLE EAST. MUCH LIKE THE YOUNG SYRIAN BOY WHO'S IMAGE CAUGHT THE WORLD'S ATTENTION THIS MONTH, THERE WERE THOUSANDS OF CHILDREN WHO KAYLA SOUGHT TO HELP. AND SHE MET THE SYRIAN MAN WHO WAS THERE. HIS NAME WAS OMAR. AND KAYLA JOINED HIM IN THE ANCIENT TOWN OF ANTAKYA, OR ANTIOCH, IN TURKEY, ABOUT HALF AN HOUR AWAY FROM WAR-TORN SYRIA. AMIDST A LOCAL CELEBRATION AT THE ANTAKYA AIRPORT, WE MET UP WITH TWO OF THE PEOPLE WHO WORKED WITH KAYLA AND BECAME HER CLOSE FRIENDS ` A MOTHER AND DAUGHTER, ARROBA AND HALLA BARAKAT. TO HEAR THAT THERE IS AN AMERICAN WHO HAS LEFT EVERYTHING AND SHE CAME JUST TO HELP OUT REFUGEES AND SYRIANS IN PARTICULAR, THAT WAS VERY INSPIRING, HONESTLY. MANY SYRIANS LIVED THERE. THE BARAKATS HELPED US TO RETRACE KAYLA'S STEPS IN THE NEIGHBOURHOODS SHE WORKED WITH WOMEN AND CHILDREN WHO'S HUSBANDS AND FATHERS HAD BEEN KILLED OR LEFT BEHIND. AND WAS SHE MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF PEOPLE HERE? YEAH. JUST SAYING KAYLA'S NAME IN FRONT OF THEM, THEY'D SMILE. AS LONG AS SHE STAYED HERE IN TURKEY, KAYLA'S PARENTS WERE CONFIDENT SHE WAS SAFE. SAFE UNTIL OMAR ASKED HER TO GO ALONG ON A QUICK TRIP ACROSS THE BORDER INTO SYRIA, TO THE CITY OF ALEPPO, TO HELP HIM INSTALL COMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT FOR A HOSPITAL RUN BY THE HUMANITARIAN GROUP DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS. I TOLD HER, 'NO, YOU SHOULDN'T GO.' YOU TRIED TO TALK HER OUT OF IT? YES. I TOLD HER THAT IT'S VERY DANGEROUS. SHE WAS LIKE, 'DON'T WORRY. WE HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE WITH US. 'WE'LL JUST GO, YOU KNOW, FIX EVERYTHING IN THE HOSPITAL AND THEN COME BACK.' IT WAS AT A TIME WHEN SAFETY CONCERNS IN THE REGION WERE MOSTLY ABOUT THE CRUELTY OF THE SYRIAN GOVERNMENT, NOT ISIS. AT THAT TIME, ISIS WASN'T EVEN HEARD OF. IT WAS JUST THE ASSAD REGIME. I SAID, 'KAYLA, THIS IS NOT YOUR WAR, AND THESE ARE NOT YOUR PEOPLE. YOU DON'T NEED TO DIE FOR THIS.' TENSE MUSIC KAYLA AND OMAR CROSSED INTO SYRIA AT THIS BORDER CHECKPOINT. AT THAT TIME, NO OTHER HUMANITARIAN AID WORKED HAD BEEN KIDNAPPED. IT WAS AUGUST 3RD 2013. AND LESS THAN 24 HOURS AFTER LEAVING HERE, KAYLA MUELLER WOULD BE PLUNGED INTO WHAT CAN ONLY BE DESCRIBED AS A HELL ON EARTH. CAPTURED, IMPRISONED, TORTURED, RAPED. TAKEN AS A SLAVE BY THE LEADER OF ISIS. HE'S RAPING AMERICA. NEXT ` HOW THIS COURAGEOUS YOUNG AMERICAN FROM ARIZONA REMAINED STRONG IN A PLACE WHERE OTHERS LOST HOPE. KNOW I AM ALSO FIGHTING FOR MY SIDE AND HAVE A LOT OF FIGHT LEFT INSIDE OF ME. AS HER PARENTS FACED THE LOOMING DEADLINE TO SAVE HER. KAYLA MUELLER WAS THE GIRL LEFT BEHIND. STILL TO COME AS WE CONTINUE WITH KAYLA'S STORY ` TWO WOMEN WHO WERE KIDNAPPED BY ISIS AND SHARED A CELL WITH HER COME FORWARD TO SPEAK FOR THE FIRST TIME. THEY DESCRIBE THE HORROR OF LIFE BEHIND BARS AND GIVE NEW INSIGHT INTO THEIR ORDEAL AND KAYLA'S COURAGE. . WELCOME BACK TO 20/20. WHEN KAYLA MUELLER WAS KIDNAPPED BY ISIS IN SYRIA, BEING AMERICAN AND A WOMAN MEANT SHE CAME IN FOR ESPECIALLY VIOLENT TREATMENT AT THE HANDS OF HER CAPTORS. IMPRISONED IN SQUALID CONDITIONS AND AT THE MERCY OF FOUR BRUTAL BRITISH GUARDS NICKNAMED THE BEATLES, KAYLA FOUND A FRIEND AND A SECRET GAME OF TRIVIAL PURSUIT TO HELP KEEP HER SPIRITS UP. MY DEAR, DEAR KAYLA. IT HAS BEEN TWO DAYS AND 5� HOURS SINCE WE RECEIVED THE CALL THAT YOU WERE MISSING. EVERY DAY THAT KAYLA WAS MISSING, HER MOTHER, MARSHA, WOULD GO INTO HER DAUGHTER'S EMPTY BEDROOM AND RECORD THE DAY'S EVENTS SO WHEN KAYLA CAME HOME SHE WOULD KNOW WHAT HAD HAPPENED. (READS) WE ARE STAYING STRONG AND POSITIVE FOR YOU, AND WE ARE ASKING GOD FOR A MIRACLE AND COUNTING ON IT. MY NAME IS KAYLA MUELLER... BUT HER PARENTS SAW THE FEAR IN HER FACE... I HAVE BEEN HERE TOO LONG, AND I'VE BEEN VERY SICK. ...WHEN ISIS SENT THIS 10-SECOND VIDEO AS PROOF THEY WERE HOLDING HER. IT'S VERY TERRIFYING HERE. NO ONE YET KNEW OR COULD EVEN IMAGINE JUST HOW BRUTAL ISIS COULD BE TO ITS HOSTAGES. FEAR. IT'S FEAR OF UNKNOWN. YOU... YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN. AS HER FELLOW FEMALE HOSTAGES NOW DESCRIBE IT TO 20/20, IT LOOKED SOMETHING LIKE THIS ` ISIS WAS HOLDING KAYLA IN A '12 FOOT BY 12 FOOT' ROOM WITH A SINGLE LIGHT BULB HANGING FROM THE CEILING. THERE WAS A LITTLE BIT OF LIGHT COMING BY THIS SMALL VENT, BUT THAT WAS` THAT WAS IT. IT WAS COLD, DIRTY. KAYLA HAD BEEN IN CAPTIVITY FOR SIX MONTHS WHEN ISIS BROUGHT IN THREE MORE FEMALE HOSTAGES. THEY GAVE US BLACK DRESSES AND NIQABS TO COVER OUR HEADS AND FACES. LOUD ARABIC MUSIC PLAYS AND ALWAYS IN THE BACKGROUND... THERE WAS THIS MUSIC, THE JIHADI SONGS, AND THEY PLAYED ON AND ON AND ON. FOR THE FIRST TIME TONIGHT, TWO OF KAYLA'S FORMER CELLMATES, FRIDA SAIDE AND PATRICIA CHAVEZ, ARE TALKING PUBLICALLY ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED TO KAYLA AND THEM AT THE HANDS OF ISIS. WE REALISED THAT THEY WERE ACTUALLY KILLERS, THAT THEY WOULD ENJOY KILLING US. WE BROUGHT THE TWO WOMEN TOGETHER IN STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN, WHERE FRIDA NOW WORKS. BOTH WOMEN WERE STAFF MEMBERS FOR DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS, KIDNAPPED AFTER KAYLA. THE PRISON THEY SHARED WITH KAYLA WAS LOCATED OUTSIDE THE ISIS HEADQUARTER CITY OF RAQQA, IN WHAT THEY THOUGHT WAS AN OIL REFINERY, IN THIS BUILDING IN THE COMPLEX. KAYLA WAS HAPPY TO HAVE COMPANY WHEN THEY ARRIVED. SHE'D BEEN KEPT MOSTLY IN ISOLATION. BUT STILL HOLDING OUT HOPE. SHE WAS AMAZING. SHE WAS A REALLY STRONG GIRL. SHE HAD A STRONG FAITH THAT GAVE HER A LOT OF STRENGTH. DO YOU THINK KAYLA WAS TREATED ANY MORE HARSHLY BECAUSE SHE WAS AN AMERICAN? I THINK IT WAS CLEAR THAT THEY, UM, HATED AMERICANS MORE THAN OTHER NATIONALITIES, YES. THEY WOULD SCREAM AT HER, AND THEY WOULD, YOU KNOW, BLAME HER FOR EVERYTHING THAT AMERICA HAS DONE IN THE WORLD. AND I'M BACK, BECAUSE OF YOUR ARROGANT FOREIGN POLICY TOWARDS ISLAMIC STATE. THEIR ISIS GUARDS WERE LED BY THE BRITISH RECRUIT WHO'D LATER BE DUBBED 'JIHADI JOHN', AS HE CARRIED OUT THE BEHEADINGS AND MURDERS OF AT LEAST 10 HOSTAGES. THE HOSTAGES CALLED HIM AND THE THREE OTHER BRITISH GUARDS THE BEATLES, BUT THERE WAS NOTHING FUN ABOUT THEM. THEY CAUSED SO MUCH PAIN TO ME AND TO OTHERS. SOMETIMES TAKING THE WOMEN TO ANOTHER ROOM ALONE, SHINING A BRIGHT LIGHT IN THEIR FACE AND DEMANDING SENSITIVE PERSONAL INFORMATION ` AN EMOTIONAL LOW POINT. IT WAS IMPORTANT NOT TO BREAK IN FRONT OF THEM. BUT THEN BEHIND CLOSED DOORS, YEAH, WE HAD OUR MOMENTS, HMM. AT OTHER TIMES, KAYLA WAS TAKEN TO THE ROOM NEXT DOOR, WHERE THE MALE HOSTAGES WERE BEING HELD, PARADED IN FRONT OF THEM BY JIHADI JOHN. HOSTAGE DANIEL RYE, A DANISH FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER, RECALLS HOW KAYLA STOOD UP TO THE BRUTAL ISIS GUARDS. ONE OF THE BEATLES STARTED TO SAY, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING, 'OH, THIS IS KAYLA, AND SHE'S BEING HELD ALL BY HERSELF, AND SHE'S MUCH STRONGER THAN YOU GUYS, 'AND SHE'S MUCH SMARTER. SHE CONVERTED INTO ISLAM,' AND THEN SHE WAS LIKE, 'NO, I DIDN'T.' WHAT? SHE SAID THAT? YEAH. 'I DID NOT CONVERT.' DARING TO CORRECT THE VIOLENT JIHADI JOHN. DOES THAT SURPRISE YOU? IT SURPRISED ME A LOT. I WOULD NOT HAVE HAD THE GUTS TO SAY THAT, I DON'T THINK SO. AND RYE SAYS KAYLA AND ANOTHER AMERICAN HOSTAGE JOURNALIST, STEVEN SOTLOFF, FIGURED OUT A WAY TO PASS LETTERS BACK AND FORTH, CREATING A MAKESHIFT GAME OF TRIVIAL PURSUIT. WAS IT DANGEROUS TO BE MOVING THESE LETTERS BACK AND FORTH? OF COURSE IT WAS. BUT SHE DID IT, STEVEN DID IT? MM-HM, YEAH. YOU KNOW, IF I'VE BEEN BY MYSELF AT HER PLACE, I'D PROBABLY BE SAYING, 'NO, NO LETTERS. IT'S TOO DANGEROUS.' BACK IN ARIZONA, KAYLA'S PARENTS HELD OUT HOPE THAT ISIS WOULD TREAT AN AID WORKER GENTLY, THAT ONE OF THE HUMANITARIAN GROUPS SHE WAS CONNECTED TO WOULD HELP NEGOTIATE HER FREEDOM. BUT THAT DID NOT HAPPEN. NO ONE WOULD CLAIM HER, SO THEY ASSUMED SHE WAS A SPY. AND WE FOUND OUT THAT HER FINGERNAILS HAD BEEN PULLED OUT. AND (CLEARS THROAT) HER HAIR HAD BEEN SHAVED AND THAT SHE HAD BEEN TORTURED. AND` BEATEN. AND... (SIGHS) YEAH, THAT WAS JUST ONE OF THE HARDEST DAYS FOR ME. AND THE PROSPECT OF A NEGOTIATED RELEASE GREW INCREASINGLY UNLIKELY AS THE MUELLERS SOON FOUND THEMSELVES UP AGAINST THE US POLICY AGAINST MAKING CONCESSIONS TO TERRORISTS. I FIRMLY BELIEVE THAT THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PAYING RANSOM TO TERRORISTS RISKS ENDANGERING MORE AMERICANS AND FUNDING THE VERY TERRORISM THAT WE'RE TRYING TO STOP. AND SO I FIRMLY BELIEVE THAT OUR POLICY ULTIMATELY PUTS FEWER AMERICANS AT RISK. ISIS WAS MAKING MILLIONS OF DOLLARS FROM ITS KIDNAPPING BUSINESS. AND AS HOSTAGES FROM OTHER COUNTRIES WHICH ALLOWED RANSOM PAYMENTS WERE RELEASED BY ISIS, THEY COULD ONLY SAY GOODBYE AS THEY LEFT KAYLA BEHIND. IT WAS A HORRIBLE FEELING TO BE, UM` TO BE RELEASED, LOOKING FORWARD TO BE RELEASED BUT AT THE SAME TIME LEAVING SOMEONE BEHIND. DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS NEGOTIATED RANSOM PAYMENTS FOR ITS STAFF MEMBERS, FRIDA, PATRICIA AND THREE OTHERS, BUT NOT FOR KAYLA. IT WAS VERY SAD. YEAH. IT WAS... I THINK IT WAS THE SADDEST MOMENT WE PASSED THROUGH TOGETHER. HOW DID YOU SAY GOODBYE? IN TEARS. WHAT DID YOU SAY TO HER? 'STAY STRONG. THIS WILL END ONE DAY.' WHAT DID SHE SAY TO YOU? NOTHING. BUT AS THEY LEFT, A POSSIBLE BREAK ` THE ISIS HOSTAGE TAKERS TOLD THE WOMEN THEY WERE NOW READY TO NEGOTIATE FOR KAYLA. AND A REMARKABLE EMAIL BACK AND FORTH WAS ABOUT TO BEGIN BETWEEN THE TERRORIST HOLDING KAYLA AND HER DESPERATE PARENTS IN ARIZONA. AFTER THE BREAK ` THE LETTER KAYLA WROTE TO HER PARENTS. WORDS THAT MANAGED TO GIVE THEM HOPE WHEN THEY THOUGHT THERE WAS NONE. BUT THE SITUATION IS GETTING MORE AND MORE DESPERATE AS THE MUELLERS TRY AND FIND SOMEONE TO NEGOTIATE KAYLA'S RANSOM WHILE ISIS LOSES PATIENCE. . WELCOME BACK. TONIGHT WE CONTINUE THE STORY OF KAYLA MUELLER ` THE YOUNG AMERICAN WOMAN KIDNAPPED AND HELD CAPTIVE BY ISIS. WHILE OTHER PRISONERS ARE RELEASED AFTER THEIR RANSOMS ARE PAID, KAYLA STAYS IN HER CELL. THE AMERICAN GOVERNMENT WON'T LET HER PARENTS PAY THE RANSOM, AND THEY CAN'T GET ANYONE TO NEGOTIATE HER RETURN. THE ANSWER ` A DARING RESCUE ATTEMPT BY THE US MILITARY. 'EVERYONE, IF YOU ARE RECEIVING THIS, IT MEANS I'M STILL DETAINED.' THE VOICE ISN'T KAYLA'S, BUT THE WORDS ARE, COMING FROM THE SECRET ISIS PRISON WHERE SHE WAS HELD IN THE SYRIAN DESERT. 'PLEASE KNOW THAT I AM IN A SAFE LOCATION, COMPLETELY UNHARMED AND HEALTHY (PUT ON WEIGHT, IN FACT)' AFTER EIGHT WEEKS OF SILENCE, KAYLA'S WORDS NOW APPEARED IN A LETTER IN HER HANDWRITING, SMUGGLED OUT BY THE WOMEN FROM DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS WHO HAD BEEN RELEASED. 'KNOW I AM ALSO FIGHTING FOR MY SIDE IN THE WAYS I AM ABLE AND HAVE A LOT OF FIGHT LEFT INSIDE OF ME.' NOT ONLY WAS SHE ALIVE, SHE WAS STRONG STILL. 'DO NOT FEAR FOR ME, AND CONTINUE TO PRAY. 'ALL MY EVERYTHING, KAYLA.' BUT WITH NO WAY TO CONTACT THE KIDNAPPERS, THE MUELLERS COULD ONLY WAIT FOR THE NEXT STEP, UNAWARE THAT OFFICIALS FROM DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS, AT THEIR HEADQUARTERS IN BRUSSELS, HAD PURPOSELY WITHHELD FOR ALMOST TWO MONTHS THAT VERY CONTACT INFORMATION BROUGHT OUT BY KAYLA'S FELLOW HOSTAGES. THE WOMEN WERE GIVEN THIS EMAIL TO NEGOTIATE FOR KAYLA AND DIDN'T EVEN GIVE IT TO US, MUCH LESS DO ANYTHING TO HELP HER OR HELP US. THE GROUP'S DIRECTOR FOR SYRIA SAID SHE HAD WAITED FOR ALL OF HER STAFF TO BE FREE IN A PHONE-CALL CONVERSATION RECORDED BY THE TEARFUL MUELLERS. THEY LEFT HER THERE. THEY DESERTED HER. THEY WERE INSTRUCTED BY THE HOSTAGE TAKERS ` NEGOTIATE FOR THIS WOMAN. AND THEY DID NOT? THEY DID NOTHING. AND WOULDN'T HELP US. FEW HUMANITARIAN GROUPS IN THE WORLD ARE MORE HIGHLY PRAISED THAN DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS, KNOWN OVERSEAS AS 'MSF'. THE LETTERS OF THEIR NAME IN FRENCH, MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES. MSF OPERATES IN AREAS WHERE THERE ARE WARS, NATURAL DISASTERS. THEY ARE A FABULOUS ORGANISATION, AND THEY DO WONDERFUL WORK. BUT SOMEWHERE IN A BOARDROOM, THEY DECIDED TO LEAVE OUR DAUGHTER THERE TO BE TORTURED AND RAPED. KAYLA WAS IN A DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS VEHICLE WHEN SHE WAS CAPTURED BY ISIS IN SYRIA. BUT THE ORGANISATION SAID, NON-STAFF MEMBERS ARE NOT ITS RESPONSIBILITY. WE COULD NOT TAKE STEPS TO NEGOTIATE FOR HER FREEDOM. WHY NOT? BECAUSE WE CAN'T BE IN THE BUSINESS OF NEGOTIATING FOR PEOPLE WHO DON'T WORK FOR US. AND TO DO SO WOULD ALSO HAVE INCREASED THE RISK THAT OUR TEAMS ALREADY FACE. THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS USA, JASON CONE, SAYS THE GROUP WOULD NEVER HAVE ALLOWED AN AMERICAN TO COME TO ITS HOSPITAL IN SYRIA IF IT HAD KNOWN OF KAYLA'S PLANS IN ADVANCE. BUT ONCE SHE WAS TAKEN, WASN'T SHE YOUR RESPONSIBILITY? NO, SHE WASN'T OUR RESPONSIBILITY ANY MORE. WAS THERE NO MORAL RESPONSIBILITY? I DON'T THINK THERE WAS A MORAL RESPONSIBILITY. I DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW A HUMANITARIAN ORGANISATION CAN JUSTIFY DOING THAT. FINALLY, IN LATE MAY 2014, IT WAS ISIS WHICH MADE CONTACT WITH THE MUELLERS IN THIS EMAIL, LIKELY WRITTEN BY ONE OF THE BRITISH ISIS GUARDS. THEY'RE TELLING YOU THEY'RE OPEN TO NEGOTIATION. CHRIS VOSS, WHO ONCE RAN THE FBI'S INTERNATIONAL HOSTAGE NEGOTIATION TEAM, SAYS THE EMAIL AND THE EARLIER VIDEO WERE CLEAR SIGNS THAT A DEAL COULD GET DONE WITH ISIS. THIS IS, 'WE HAVE SOMETHING THAT YOU WANT. WE WANT YOU TO BELIEVE YOU CAN GET HER OUT, 'BECAUSE WE WANT SOMETHING FOR HER.' EVEN THOUGH SHE'S AN AMERICAN AND AMERICA SAYS IT DOESN'T NEGOTIATE? RIGHT, BECAUSE THEY KNOW THAT IF GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY, FAMILIES WILL FIND A WAY. KAYLA'S A COMMODITY, UNFORTUNATELY. THEY MAKE AN OPENING OFFER. THEY WANT SOME SORT OF A COUNTER-OFFER TO CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION. ANOTHER GOOD SIGN ` ISIS WOULD ALLOW KAYLA TO ANSWER THERE PERSONAL QUESTIONS TO PROVE SHE WAS ALIVE. KARL WROTE BACK... ALL CORRECT. IT WAS KAYLA. EVEN BETTER THAN THE EMAILS ` A FOLLOW UP WITH KAYLA'S ACTUAL VOICE LAYING OUT THE KIDNAPPER'S LATEST DEMANDS, INCLUDING THE RELEASE OF A PAKISTANI WOMAN BEING HELD IN A US PRISON. THEY'RE SAYING SHE COULD STILL BE RELEASED. WORKING WITH KAYLA'S FORMER CAMPUS MINISTER, REVEREND KATHLEEN DAY, THE MUELLERS BEGAN WHAT WOULD BE A REMARKABLE EXCHANGE OF SOME 27 EMAILS BETWEEN THE ARIZONA COUPLE IN THEIR KITCHEN AND THE TERRORISTS HOLDING THEIR DAUGHTER IN SYRIA. THEY WERE FOCUSED EVERY DAY, EVERY WAKING MOMENT, EVERY SLEEPING MOMENT ON WHAT THEY COULD DO TO GET KAYLA BACK. THE MUELLERS' ANSWERS WERE ALL CRAFTED BY FBI AGENTS ASSIGNED TO THE CASE FROM THE VERY BEGINNING, AND REVEREND DAY BEGAN TO BE WORRIED BY WHAT OTHER AID GROUPS HAD TOLD HER ABOUT WORKING WITH THE US GOVERNMENT IN HOSTAGE SITUATIONS. WHAT WAS THE CONCERN? THAT IF YOU WORKED WITH THE STATE DEPARTMENT, THAT YOU'D NEVER GET YOUR PEOPLE OUT. AND SOON THE MUELLERS BEGAN TO HAVE THEIR OWN DOUBTS. YOU ASKED TO MEET WITH PRESIDENT OBAMA? HE REFUSED. WE DID MEET IN THE WHITE HOUSE... WITH MANY HIGH-RANKING OFFICIALS. BUT HE DID NOT SEE US. AND NO ONE IN THE WHITE HOUSE TOLD THEM WHAT WAS ABOUT TO HAPPEN. US SPECIAL FORCES, WHICH HAVE CARRIED OUT A NUMBER OF SUCCESSFUL HIGH-RISK RESCUE MISSIONS, LIKE THIS ONE, HAD BEEN AUTHORISED TO LAUNCH A SECRET JULY 4TH RESCUE OPERATION FOR KAYLA AND SOME 18 OTHER HOSTAGES. IT TURNED OUT THAT THE HOSTAGES WERE NO LONGER AT THAT LOCATION. IT WAS A DRY HOLE. THEY'D JUST MISSED THEM. I DEPLOYED AN ENTIRE, UH, OPERATION AT SIGNIFICANT RISK TO RESCUE NOT ONLY HER BUT THE OTHER INDIVIDUALS THAT HAD BEEN HELD AND PROBABLY MISSED THEM BY A DAY OR TWO. ONE WEEK LATER IN ARIZONA,... WE GOT A NASTY EMAIL FROM ISIS THAT SAID, 'BECAUSE OF WHAT YOUR ARROGANT GOVERNMENT ATTEMPTED TO DO, YOUR DAUGHTER HAS 30 DAYS TO LIVE.' IF YOU FAIL TO MEET THIS DEADLINE, WE WILL SEND YOU A PICTURE OF KAYLA'S DEAD BODY. IT WAS KAYLA'S BIRTHDAY THAT WAS THE DEADLINE FOR THEM TO KILL HER. NOW THE MUELLERS HAD JUST 30 DAYS TO RAISE THE MONEY AND GET IT TO ISIS. AND EVEN HARDER, OVERCOME THE US GOVERNMENT EFFORTS TO STOP THEM. IT'S A FAMILY'S DARKEST HOUR. KAYLA'S LIFE HUNG IN THE BALANCE. SO WITH THE RESCUE BID A FAILURE AND 30 DAYS TO RAISE THE RANSOM MONEY, THE MUELLERS TAKE A DESPERATE NEXT STEP. THEY GO TO THE TOP AND MAKE A PERSONAL PLEA NOT ONLY TO PRESIDENT OBAMA BUT TO THE LEADER OF ISIS HIMSELF. . NOW ON 20/20 AND 'THE GIRL LEFT BEHIND', TIME IS RUNNING OUT FOR ISIS KIDNAP VICTIM KAYLA MUELLER, AND WITH HER PARENTS RUNNING OUT OF OPTIONS TO SECURE HER RELEASE, PRESIDENT OBAMA FINALLY AGREES TO MEET WITH THEM, BUT THEY'LL NEED TO CONVINCE HIM TO OVERTURN THE US GOVERNMENT'S STAUNCH POLICY OF NOT PAYING RANSOMS TO TERROR GROUPS. IT WAS JUST TWO YEARS AGO THIS SUMMER THAT AMERICANS WERE HEARING ABOUT ISIS FOR THE FIRST TIME. AS IT'S LEADER ABU BAKR AL-BAGHDADI EMERGED FROM THE SHADOWS, PRESENTING A THREAT THAT WAS NOW GREATER THAN AL QAEDA. BUT THERE WAS NO MENTION IN THE NEWS OF THE AMERICAN HOSTAGES ` KAYLA MUELLER, JAMES FOLEY, STEVEN SOTLOFF AND PETER KASSIG. THEIR PLIGHT REMAINED A TIGHTLY GUARDED SECRET. MY NAME IS CARL MUELLER. THIS IS MY WIFE, MARSHA. AS THE 30-DAY DEADLINE FOR PAYING A RANDOM APPROACHED, THE MUELLERS RECORDED THIS DRAMATIC PERSONAL PLEA, SCRIPTED LARGELY BY THE FBI AND SENT TO THE NEW ISIS LEADER AL-BAGHDADI. THIS IS A PLEA FOR KAYLA'S LIFE. WE ARE ASKING FOR YOUR MERCY FOR KAYLA AS WE BELIEVE YOU ARE THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN GRANT US THIS. THESE ARE TWO PEOPLE WHO ARE IN THE MIDST OF A HORRIFIC EXPERIENCE. I BEG YOU NOT TO HARM OUR DAUGHTER. THEY CAN'T IMAGINE THAT THEY'D EVER BE TRYING TO TALK ON A CAMERA IN RESPECTFUL FASHION TO SOMEONE WHO'S LIKELY GOING TO MURDER THEIR DAUGHTER. OUR HANDS HAVE BEEN TIED IN TRYING TO RAISE MONEY, YET WE CONTINUE TO DO EVERYTHING WITHIN OUR POWER TO WORK TOWARDS SECURING KAYLA'S FREEDOM. SIR, I AM COMING TO YOU WITH A MOTHER'S HEART FOR THE LOVE OF HER DAUGHTER. HER MOTHER'S GOT HER HAIR COVERED. THAT'S CRITICAL. IT SHOWS RESPECT. PLEASE SHOW MERCY AND USE YOUR POWER TO FREE OUR DAUGHTER. THAT'S THE WAY YOU BUY TIME. THAT'S THE WAY YOU KEEP SOMEONE ALIVE ONE MORE DAY. IT SEEMED TO HAVE WORKED. THE DEADLINE FOR KAYLA'S EXECUTION, ON HER BIRTHDAY, AUGUST 14TH, PASSED WITH NO WORD OF HER FATE. A SIGH OF RELIEF AND A HOPE THAT SHE HAD SEEN THIS PART OF THE VIDEO TOO. KAYLA, WE LOVE YOU. WE LOVE WHO YOU ARE, AND WE ADMIRE YOUR COMPASSIONATE HEART AND DEVOTION TO HELPING THOSE THAT SUFFER. WE KNOW GOD IS COMFORTING YOU AND STRENGTHENING YOU. I WISH WE COULD SEE YOU. BUT IT WAS A VERY SHORT-LIVED MOMENT OF RELIEF. PRESIDENT OBAMA IS ABOUT TO SPEAK FROM MARTHA'S VINEYARD ON THE EXECUTION OF AMERICAN JOURNALIST JAMES FOLEY BY THE ISLAMIC MILITANTS FIGHTING IN IRAQ AND SYRIA. THE FIRST OF KAYLA'S FELLOW AMERICAN HOSTAGES TO BE MURDERED. TODAY THE ENTIRE WORLD IS APPALLED BY THE BRUTAL MURDER OF JIM FOLEY BY THE TERRORIST GROUP ISIL. AGAIN, THE MUELLERS ASKED TO MEET WITH PRESIDENT OBAMA. WE ASKED TO SEE HIM, AND WE WERE TOLD NO. A FEW WEEKS LATER, ANOTHER AMERICAN HOSTAGE KILLED ` JOURNALIST STEVEN SOTLOFF, THE HOSTAGE WITH WHOM KAYLA HAD GROWN CLOSE IN CAPTIVITY WITH THEIR MAKESHIFT TRIVIAL PURSUIT GAME. OVERNIGHT, OUR GOVERNMENT DETERMINED THAT TRAGICALLY STEVEN WAS TAKEN FROM US IN A HOR` HORRIFIC ACT OF VIOLENCE. AND NOW THE PRESIDENT AGREED TO MEET WITH THE MUELLERS AND THE FAMILY OF THE OTHER REMAINING AMERICAN HOSTAGE, PETER KASSIG. THE PRESIDENT WAS VERY, I FELT, COLD. HE SAID, 'IF, YOU KNOW, I HAVE` I'M A FATHER. I HAVE TWO DAUGHTERS. 'IF THAT WAS MY DAUGHTER BEING HELD, I'D DO EVERYTHING I COULD TO GET HER OUT.' AND I'M SURE HE WOULD HAVE, BUT WE WERE TOLD MANY, MANY TIMES, 'WE'RE DOING EVERYTHING WE CAN. EVERYTHING WE CAN.' AND THEY WEREN'T. THEY WERE NOT? WELL, NO, THEY WEREN'T. WHAT THE MUELLERS WANTED THE PRESIDENT TO DO WAS ALLOW THEM TO JUST MAKE AN OFFER OF RANSOM MONEY TO ISIS FOR KAYLA'S LIFE. CARL WOULD SAY, 'WE NEED TO MAKE AN OFFER.' AND THEN THE EMAIL WOULD NOT HAVE ANYTHING ABOUT AN OFFER IN IT. COS THEY WERE ALL SCRIPTED BY THE FBI? RIGHT. WE WERE LIKE SHEEP. WE WERE FOLLOWING WHAT THE GOVERNMENT TOLD US TO DO. WE HAD NO IDEA. IN ONE EMAIL, SEND UNDER CARL'S NAME, A SUGGESTION OF FINANCIAL HARDSHIP. KAYLA MAY NOT KNOW THAT I RETIRED THIS JANUARY. ISIS WAS UNMOVED. ISIS WAS RUNNING OUT OF PATIENCE. NO MORE SENTIMENTAL SOB STORIES. AND CARL WAS BECOMING INCREASINGLY UNHAPPY WITH WHAT THE FBI HAD WRITTEN FOR HIM TO SEND TO ISIS. AT ONE POINT, I EVEN SAID TO THE TEAM` I SAID, 'IF I GOT THIS EMAIL BACK, I WOULD BE REALLY MAD.' ISIS STOPPED RESPONDING. AFTER A WHILE THEY GOT THE MESSAGE THAT THIS WAS ONLY STALLING. FORMER FBI AGENT VOSS SAYS THE FBI SHOULD HAVE LET THE MUELLERS MAKE SOME KIND OF A COUNTER-OFFER. THE KIDNAPPERS ARE BEGGING FOR ANYTHING TO BE THROWN ON THE TABLE, ANYTHING. AT ONE POINT IN TIME, THEY JUST SAID, 'YOU JUST GIVE US A BENCHMARK.' SHOULD THERE HAVE BEEN A COUNTER-OFFER? YES, KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING. KEEP THE HOSTAGE ALIVE. BUY MORE TIME FOR TACTICAL RESOLUTION. BUT THAT DID NOT HAPPEN? AS FAR AS I KNOW, THEY WERE NEVER ALLOWED. THEY WERE TOLD IF THEY MADE ANY SORT OF AN OFFER, THEY'D BE PROSECUTED, WHICH IS UNCONSCIONABLE. A WHITE HOUSE OFFICIAL, PART OF ITS NATIONAL SECURITY STAFF, DELIVERED THAT THREAT OF PROSECUTION TO THE MUELLERS AND ALL THE OTHER AMERICAN HOSTAGE FAMILIES, INCLUDING THE PARENTS OF JAMES FOLEY, WHO WENT PUBLIC AFTER HE WAS KILLED. WE WERE TOLD VERY CLEARLY THREE TIMES THAT IT WAS ILLEGAL FOR US TO TRY AND RANSOM OUR SON OUT. AND THAT WE HAD THE POSSIBILITY OF BEING PROSECUTED. AND YET, MEANWHILE, OUR SON WAS BEING TORTURED AND BEATEN EVERY DAY. BUT KAYLA WAS STILL ALIVE, AND THE MUELLERS HAD ONE MORE OPTION ` A LAST-DITCH TRIP TO THE MIDDLE EAST, WHERE ONE GOVERNMENT SAID IT WAS PREPARED TO NEGOTIATE FOR KAYLA'S FREEDOM, AS SHE WAS ABOUT TO COME FACE TO FACE WITH THE LEADER OF ISIS. SO WITH TIME AND HOPE ALMOST UP, KAYLA'S PARENTS HAVE ONE LAST ROLL OF THE DICE. THEY TRAVEL TO THE MIDDLE EAST TO TRY AND BROKER HER RELEASE, BUT WILL THE US GOVERNMENT AGAIN INTERFERE? WE'LL FIND OUT AFTER THE BREAK. . WELCOME BACK. NOW ON 20/20. WITH KAYLA MUELLER, THE LAST AMERICAN STILL ALIVE IN ISIS HANDS, AND WITH THE US GOVERNMENT THREATENING TO PROSECUTE THEM IF THEY PAY HER RANSOM, KAYLA'S PARENTS HEAD TO THE MIDDLE EAST IN A LAST-DITCH BID TO NEGOTIATE HER RELEASE. GENTLE MUSIC IT WAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, AND ALL THROUGH THE HOUSE... HI, KAYLA. THERE'S KAYLA. WANT HER CHRISTMAS. AW, BABY. (LAUGHS) DINNER'S READY. THERE'S THE CHRISTMAS TREE, AND THERE'S MY MOM ON CHRISTMAS EVE. WITH KAYLA MISSING NOW FOR TWO CHRISTMASES IN A ROW, THE FAMILY'S ONLY JOY CAME IN THE LETTERS SHE HAD WRITTEN IN CAPTIVITY. I'VE HAD MANY HOURS TO THINK HOW ONLY IN YOUR ABSENCE HAVE I COME TO REALISE THE GIFT THAT IS EACH ONE OF YOU. BY THEN, ISIS HAD KILLED THE THIRD AMERICAN HOSTAGE, AID-WORKER PETER KASSIG. NOW THE ONLY AMERICAN HELD BY ISIS WAS KAYLA. I HAD COME TO A POINT WHERE OUR GOVERNMENT IS NOT GONNA BRING KAYLA HOME. AND SHE WAS STILL PUTTING ALL OF HER TRUST IN THE GOVERNMENT. THIS KIND OF THING TEARS PEOPLE APART. I WONDER HOW WE SURVIVED. BUT I REMEMBER THE ARGUMENT. 'MARSHA, WE NEED TO DO SOMETHING! 'THEY'RE NOT GONNA BRING KAYLA HOME.' THE MILITARY OPTION TO RESCUE KAYLA HAD FAILED. THE WHITE HOUSE HAD THREATENED PROSECUTION IF THEY PAID RANSOM. AND THE EMAILS FROM ISIS HAD STOPPED. NOTHING HAD WORKED. I KNOW THAT THERE IS SOME VERY TALENTED HOSTAGE NEGOTIATORS IN THE FBI THAT KNEW WHAT THEY WERE DOING. I SEE NO EVIDENCE OF THEIR VOICES IN THESE EMAILS. FOR EXAMPLE, SAYS FORMER FBI HOSTAGE NEGOTIATOR CHRIS VOSS, HIS FORMER COLLEAGUES SHOULD HAVE PICKED UP ON THE USE, IN THE VERY FIRST ISIS EMAIL, OF THE WORD 'GUEST', WHICH HAS SPECIAL MEANING IN THE ARAB WORLD. YOU HAVE TO PROTECT AND DEFEND YOUR GUEST WITH YOUR LIFE. THIS IS SOMETHING HUGE THAT THEY MISSED, BECAUSE THEY SHOULD HAVE RESPONDED WITH, 'OH, SHE'S NOT LIKE A GUEST; SHE IS A GUEST. 'AND SHE IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY AS A GUEST.' AND VOSS SAYS THE MUELLERS SHOULD'VE BEEN TOLD THERE WAS A LEGAL WAY TO PAY RANSOM IF THE RANSOM MONEY MIGHT HELP TRACK DOWN THE TERRORISTS. IT'S BEEN DONE A NUMBER OF TIMES WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE UNDERSTANDING. SO IN THIS CASE, THE US COULD HAVE ALLOWED THE PAYMENT OF RANSOM TO ISIS FOR KAYLA? UNDER THE EXCEPTION IT WOULD HELP TRACK THEM DOWN AND BE A LURE OR A BAIT? YES, ABSOLUTELY. SO THEY MISSED A HUGE OPPORTUNITY? I THINK THEY DID. BUT THE MUELLERS HAD ONE LAST HOPE. A GOVERNMENT IN THE MIDDLE EAST ` QATAR ` THAT HAD SERVED AS A GO-BETWEEN WITH TERROR GROUPS IN GETTING THE FREEDOM OF OTHER WESTERN HOSTAGES. WE WENT OVER THERE, TO THE MIDDLE EAST, AND SAW SEVERAL HIGH-RANKING OFFICIALS. AND THE LAST ONE THAT WE MET WITH... UH, CAME INTO THE ROOM, AND HE SAID, 'AND BY THE WAY, I JUST TALKED TO JOHN KERRY, 'AND WE DON'T PAY RANSOM.' AND THEN HE WENT ON TO SAY, (CLEARS THROAT) 'I DON'T UNDERSTAND YOU AMERICANS. 'WE BELIEVE THAT IF YOU CAN SAVE ONE SOUL, IT'S WORTH TRYING.' YET THE US GOVERNMENT HAD JUST USED QATAR TO BROKER A DEAL FOR THE RETURN OF AMERICAN SOLDIER BOWE BERGDAHL, TRADING FIVE TALIBAN PRISONERS FOR BERGDAHL'S FREEDOM. THE MUELLERS SAY THEY CAN'T UNDERSTAND WHY THE US WOULD NOT AGAIN USE QATAR TO MAKE A DEAL FOR KAYLA'S FREEDOM. YOU MUST HAVE BEEN CRUSHED? YEAH. ONE OF OUR LAST GASPS... TO TRY AND SAVE OUR DAUGHTER, AND... OUR GOVERNMENT SLAMMED THAT DOOR. WE WILL NEVER STOP WORKING TO SET OUR CITIZENS FREE AND BRING THEM HOME TO THEIR FAMILIES. A SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY SAID HE HAD WORKED HARD PERSONALLY TO TRY TO GAIN FREEDOM FOR KAYLA. BUT AS DARK AND AS HOPELESS AS IT SEEMED TO THE MUELLERS, THEY DID RECEIVE ONE PIECE OF WHAT WAS DESCRIBED BY THE FBI AS GOOD NEWS. THEY TOLD US SHE HAD BEEN ACTUALLY TAKEN OUT OF THE PRISON BY ABU BAKR AL-BAGHDADI, THE CALIPH OF ISIS. THEY BELIEVED SHE WAS WITH A FAMILY, UM, THAT SHE WAS SAFE. SO MY THOUGHT WAS, 'OH, GOOD, KAYLA'S ABLE TO MAYBE TAKE CARE OF THE CHILDREN. SHE'S A MAID.' NOTHING COULD HAVE BEEN FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH, AS THE MUELLERS LATER DISCOVERED. THE SO-CALLED FAMILY WHERE KAYLA WAS SAFE WAS IN FACT HOLDING HER FOR THE LEADER OF ISIS, AL-BAGHDADI. UM, ONE DAY, KAYLA WAS TAKEN AND SHE CAME BACK, AND SHE WENT UNDER HER COVER, UNDER HER BLANKET AND JUST CRIED, JUST LAID THERE AND CRIED. AND THAT'S WHEN THEY SAID HE MARRIED HER. THAT'S THE WAY THEY PUT IT. UM, THEIR WAY OF SAYING HE RAPED HER. SO... THAT BAGHDADI CHOSE HER? BUT LOOK AT THE SYMBOLISM IN THAT. HE'S RAPING AMERICA. (SCOFFS) HOSTAGES WITH KAYLA AT THE TIME SAY SHE REMAINED DEFIANT AND THAT EVEN WHEN SHE HAD THE CHANCE TO ESCAPE, KAYLA PUT OTHERS FIRST. (SPEAKS ARABIC) THIS THEN-13-YEAR-OLD GIRL, A MEMBER OF THE YAZIDI TRIBE, WHO WANTED TO BE CALLED JULIA, WAS ALSO BEING HELD WITH KAYLA AS AN ISIS SLAVE. TRANSLATOR: I TOLD KAYLA, 'WE WANT TO ESCAPE,' AND I ASKED HER TO COME WITH US. SHE TOLD ME, 'NO. BECAUSE I AM AMERICAN, IF I ESCAPE WITH YOU, 'THEY WILL DO EVERYTHING TO FIND US AGAIN. IT IS BETTER FOR YOU TO ESCAPE ALONE. I WILL STAY HERE.' SO SHE STAYED BEHIND? YES, YES. UNDER A FULL MOON, JULIA AND ANOTHER YAZIDI GIRL MADE THEIR WAY TO FREEDOM, TEARFULLY LEAVING KAYLA BEHIND. I WILL NEVER FORGET HER SACRIFICE. I WILL NEVER FORGET. FOUR MONTHS LATER, IN PRESCOTT, ARIZONA. MY DEAR BEAUTIFUL KAYLA, I MISS YOU AND LOVE YOU. YESTERDAY, FRIDAY, AT ABOUT 10AM, WE WERE CALLED BY BARAK BARFI. GOOD EVENING, AND WE BEGIN TONIGHT WITH THE BREAKING HEADLINE... HE TOLD US IT WAS OUT ON TWITTER. NEWSREADER: THE LAST AMERICAN HOSTAGE HELD BY ISIS... THAT YOU HAD BEEN KILLED, I BELIEVE, NORTH OF RAQQA. TONIGHT, ISIS SAYS THAT WOMAN, KAYLA MUELLER, 26-YEARS-OLD, IS DEAD. MY EYES ARE CLOUDING UP. SORRY. STILL NOT BELIEVING THE HORRIFIC PEOPLE HAD LIED SO MUCH AND WERE SO EVIL. PRECISELY HOW KAYLA WAS KILLED REMAINS A MYSTERY, AND THE MUELLERS REFUSE TO BELIEVE SHE WAS DEAD UNTIL ISIS A FEW DAYS LATER SENT THREE PHOTOS OF KAYLA'S BODY. (SOBS) I JUST KEPT... STILL WRITING TO KAYLA. 'HEY, SWEETHEART, UM,... 'HAVE SO MUCH TO SHARE. 'YOU, YOUNG LADY, HAVE TAUGHT ME SO VERY MUCH. 'I WILL SEE YOU SOON. LOVE, MOM.' CHILDREN CHANT MY IMMEDIATE REACTION IS HEARTBREAK. SHE WAS AN OUTSTANDING YOUNG WOMAN AND A GREAT SPIRIT. AND I THINK THAT SPIRIT WILL LIVE ON. YOU DID MEET WITH THE PRESIDENT? JUST THE THREE OF US. HE WAS SINCERE AND APOLOGETIC AND SO SORRY AND THIS, THAT, THE OTHER. HE ASKED WHAT HE COULD DO FOR YOU. AND I SAID, 'MR PRESIDENT, I'D BE REMISS IF I DIDN'T GIVE YOU 'THE OPPORTUNITY TO SUPPORT KAYLA'S FOUNDATION.' AND HE SAID, 'I WILL HELP THAT FOUNDATION. HE SAYS, 'YOU WON'T KNOW. IT WILL BE AN ANONYMOUS DONATION. 'BUT I WILL.' I'M STILL WAITING. THERE HASN'T BEEN SUCH A DONATION? NO. I'M STILL WAITING FOR THAT DONATION. MR PRESIDENT. AND YOU SEE THE FLAG AT... AT MY DRIVEWAY. (SNIFFS) IT'S NOT SOMETHING I TAKE LIGHTLY... TALKING ABOUT OUR PRESIDENT THAT WAY. BUT THAT'S WHAT HE SAID. THE WHITE HOUSE CONFIRMED TO 20/20 THAT THE PRESIDENT HAS INDEED NOT YET MADE THE DONATION HE PROMISED 18 MONTHS AGO. FOR THE MUELLERS, THE FOUNDATION THEY CREATED, KAYLA'S HANDS, IS SO IMPORTANT, AND THE PRESIDENT'S FAILURE TO SUPPORT IT SO DISAPPOINTING, BECAUSE IT KEEPS HER MEMORY AND LEGACY ALIVE. OH, SHE JUST HAD A HEART TO HELP CHILDREN, MAKE CHILDREN HAPPY, MAKE THEM LAUGH. KAYLA WAS ONE COURAGEOUS VOICE CALLING THE WORLD TO SPEAK WITH ONE VOICE AND WITH YOUR ACTIONS. TO HAVE THE SAME COURAGE AND COMMITMENT TO GIVE ALL OUR EVERYTHING FOR THE SAKE OF PEACE, JUSTICE AND RELIGIOUS FREEDOM. THANK YOU. APPLAUSE SO, WHAT I HAVE TO SAY TO ALL MY LOVED ONES IN PRESCOTT IS THAT I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU, AND IT'S NEVER GOODBYE AMONG FRIENDS, AND THAT... YOU'RE ALWAYS LEARNING ABOUT YOURSELF THROUGH OTHER PEOPLE, AND YOU'RE ALWAYS LEARNING ABOUT... LIFE, UM... AND THAT PROCESS NEVER STOPS. THANKS TO THEIR TENACITY, THE MUELLERS HAVE BEEN ABLE TO MAKE AN IMPACT ON AMERICAN POLITICS. SINCE KAYLA'S DEATH, THE WHITE HOUSE NOW SAYS IT WILL ALLOW AMERICAN FAMILIES TO PRIVATELY PAY RANSOMS WITHOUT FEAR OF PROSECUTION. WELL, THAT'S OUR SHOW FOR TONIGHT. THANKS FOR JOINING US. KIA ORA. NGA MIHI. CAPTIONS BY ANTONY VLUG. WWW.ABLE.CO.NZ CAPTIONS WERE MADE POSSIBLE WITH FUNDING FROM NZ ON AIR. COPYRIGHT ABLE 2016