but here we are. >> and we're very glad to see you safe. >> thank you. >> i'm glad we're back. >> wonderful, wonderful. >> that's all for now. i'm lester holt. thanks for joining us. this is dateline. >> i can't imagine to be held in captivity. >> dad, send the money. that's all they want. >> they have an american kid. a 14-year-old kid in the middle of the jungle. they think they hit the jackpot. >> they were vacationers turned prisoners. a mother and son, kidnapped by terrorists. >> we need 10 million u.s. dollars for the release of your family. >> $10 million from me.

are you losing your mind? >> a harrowing international hostage drama. >> this is a big operation. this is not just this rag-tag group of people. >> anything can happen. there are no guarantees. >> can the father-turned negotiator, held bring him home. >> i'm so worried. >> a lot of people were praying for them. a lot of people were. >> hello. welcome to "dateline." they were on a dream vacation, when suddenly, a mother, her teenage son and a cousin were kidnapped by a group of men with guns, wanting money and lots of it. here with "heart of darkness" is keith morrison.

>> they play in darkness. emerged in their defiant belief. haunting, stalking, deadly, in this particular heart of darkness. it was the summer of 2011, a jungle-clad island in the philippines where they prepared. the place. crashing down out of nowhere, on a modern family, in lynchburg, virginia. >> i got a call from my mother. they were kidnapped in the philippines. >> kidnapped? that was her aunt. kevin, her 14-year-old son. they were due home from a philippine vacation. instead, they were in the clutches of something horrific.

her husband stayed behind and was at work when he heard. you must have been terrified. >> it was impossible to think about it. but pictures don't lie. they didn't. incomprehensible images. their passports, their half-packed suitcases. the relatives they had been visiting. kidnapped by boat, in the dead of night. >> i was thinking, no, that doesn't happen to us! >> well, nobody thinks it's going to happen to us, right? >> yeah. but my wife's heart is in the philippines. that's her family. >> reporter: gerfa was born in

the philippines, had always felt safe there. her older sister married a u.s. navy sailor and moved to america in 1985. brought then 16-year-old gerfa with her, hoping to give her a chance at a better life. >> she was so excited about the opportunity. i remember she worked at little caesar's pizza and that was the greatest thing, to get a job. >> reporter: she had a son, josh, went back to community college to improve herself. and there she met a german immigrant named heiko. and from then on that was it. they were a family. she become a lab technician, heiko a maintenance man.

they bought a house in a leafy neighborhood of lynchburg, virginia and had kevin. and the immigrants' son became an all-american kid. he was 14 that summer of 2011. smart, studious, and looking forward to the start of high school in the fall. >> he's this normal american kid who likes pizza and hot dogs and burgers, hang out with his friends, play video games, ride on his skateboard. >> reporter: they lived frugally, saved their money. which is how eventually heiko could afford his used mercedes sports car and gerfa and kevin that vacation trip to the philippines. life was good. but now it was very bad indeed. >> when i first heard they were kidnapped, the first thing that came to my mind was oh, my gosh, it's abu sayyaf. >> reporter: abu sayyaf, a small but extremely violent militant group. over the years it claimed affiliation first with al qaeda, then isis, as it fought to establish an independent islamic state in the southern philippines. its bread and butter in its fight against the government? kidnap for ransom.

abu sayyaf had taken american hostages before. some were released eventually. but some were beheaded. heiko was frantic, had no idea what to do, where to turn. and then, that very day, the cavalry came riding in. >> my boss from work called. come on over to work. the fbi is here for you. >> what was it like to know the fbi is paying attention to this? >> it's really real now. this is the real thing. >> we never know how families are going to react, obviously. but almost in every case they're in a state of crisis. >> reporter: mark thundercloud was the leader of a special fbi hostage negotiating unit, formed precisely for an emergency like this. more than a dozen agents descended on the lunsmann house, covered the windows, set up a surveillance system in heiko's kitchen, and got ready for what they knew was coming, a demand for ransom. >> he's negotiating really with someone who's selling his family. >> the fbi told me that my wife and son are merchandise for them. >> that's kind of hard to hear. >> yes.

>> we try to be very transparent with the families in these cases. we try to prepare them as best as we can. >> did you prepare heiko for the possibility they would be executed? >> yeah, we prepared him for the worst. >> reporter: now there was nothing else to do, except wait. and then -- [ phone ringing ] -- the phone rang. >> hello. >> hello. >> yes? >> this is long distance from philippines. is this mr. heiko lunsmann? >> a terrorist on the line. when we come back, the life-and-death negotiations begin. coming up -- >> we need $10 million u.s. for the release of your family. >> $10 million, from me? are you losing your mind? >> dad, we need you to send the money. >> i'm getting worried. i'm getting so worried. >> when "dateline" continues. with this one little

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is this mr. heiko lunsmann? >> yes, that's me. >> oh, okay. we would like to inform you that your family here with us in our custody. >> reporter: two days after his wife and child were kidnapped by abu sayyaf in the philippines, heiko lunsmann got his first ransom call. on the phone, a man who called himself mr. so. >> he called me mr. lunsmann.

i wanted to know what i can call you. i don't want to call you kidnapper, terrorist. just give me a name. >> reporter: mr. so was calm, business-like, like he'd done it 100 times before. in fact, he was the voice for a violent separatist group known for executing prisoners, beheadings usually. >> we would like to tell you that we need 10 million u.s. dollars for the release of your family. can you hear me? >> and i just was thinking, are you losing your mind? who do you think you've got? just couldn't believe it. $10 million. from me. >> reporter: why would they think heiko had $10 million? perhaps they'd watched the internet. in lynchburg the kidnapping was big news. tv crews set up shop across the street and captured heiko driving his used mercedes coupe.

there you were in your fancy car. >> yes. >> you must be worth millions. >> that was a wrong, wrong impression. >> i'm not a rich person, but i will give whatever i can get together. okay? >> we need $10 million u.s. for the release of your family. okay? >> reporter: heiko was lucky in this. when mr. so made his demands, some of the most experienced fbi hostage negotiators in the country were right there, listening in. ready to point out the right way for heiko to respond. literally. >> these are for general visual prompts that we want heiko to think about. we have all the questions related to kevin and gerfa that we think are important for heiko to consider. and while we're doing them we're going to write notes down and pass them to heiko. he would read it and hopefully introduce it to the conversation. >> where's my wife? can i talk to her? if she's okay? where's my son?

>> yeah, no, uh, your son -- >> is she with you? can i talk to them? i want to know if they're okay. >> reporter: mr. so didn't say. meanwhile, fbi agents in the philippines were working sources on the ground. word was that gerfa and kevin had been taken to one of abu sayyaf's strongholds -- basilan, a large island about four hours by boat from where they'd been kidnapped. to a base camp deep in what was nearly impenetrable jungle. >> we travelled to basilan to talk with the politicians there, who may have had some influence over this group. >> reporter: heiko had the fbi to help. but government money? no. >> they don't pay ransom. >> the government doesn't pay ransoms. >> right. >> any decisions that are made regarding ransoms are really made by the family. >> but it was actually to me no choice. i know i want to pay something. just to make sure they're safe. >> reporter: the week after the

kidnapping heiko wired a ransom payment, close to $5,000, to a bank account in the philippines. >> i was thinking, pay them money and it's over. but they started wanting more and more and more. >> reporter: more weeks went by. mr. so reduced his demands from $10 million to $2 million. then $1 million. still impossible, of course. so the kidnappers turned up the heat. they put kevin on the line. >> dad! >> yeah. how are you doing over there? >> are you there? we need you to send the money. >> i know that, and i'm ready, but all i have over here i will send, and they know it. >> dad! dad, just send the money. that's all they want. >> reporter: heiko maxed out his credit cards, borrowed money from whomever he could. but it never seemed to be enough. >> as the incident grows from weeks into months, we end up with so many boards that we have to work our way down this hallway.

>> reporter: daniel girsch was one of the hostage negotiators assigned to guide heiko. >> and it gets to the point where we don't think that we're making progress. heiko feels like we're not making progress. >> i just think you just hope. that's all what you have, hope. >> reporter: but hope was hard to hang on to. the kidnappers kept threatening beheadings. even worse, they put gerfa on the phone and beat her while she talked to heiko. >> sweetheart, what are you doing over there? >> i know, honey. i'm just so -- >> just tell them i don't have a million. please do that. >> i want this to stop.

i know, i told them that you don't have anything but they just like asking. >> how are you doing, gerfa? >> stop that! [ crying ] >> i am getting worried, i'm getting so worried. [ crying ] >> reporter: a few seconds later the line went dead. >> oh my god! [ bleep ], i'm smoking, i got have a [ bleep ] cigarette, or i'm gonna [ bleep ] -- >> heiko, heiko -- you need to be ready. >> your frustration must be pretty -- >> frustration was immense. >> if he's not calm, then our hostage takers aren't going to be calm. so oftentimes i would have to tell heiko to, you know, be quiet, let the hostage taker speak and then we would have a chance to respond. >> reporter: and then what? how long before they tired of the game and killed the two great loves of his life? coming up -- she called me sad and crying. >> i felt her dark place, being a mother myself.

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it had been three months since an islamic paramilitary group had kidnapped heiko lunsmann's wife and son. he'd already sent the kidnappers more than $20,000. a fortune for him. and then the phone rang again. and it wasn't mr. so. instead -- well.

even veteran fbi agent dan girsch was astonished. >> we received the tremendous news that gerfa was released. obviously, heiko's very excited. i could see and hear just joy. joy. >> reporter: heiko could scarcely believe it. as the news flashed across the philippines and to lynchburg, virginia. his wife, gerfa, was alive. and free. and safe. so, inexpressible joy. and then gerfa called him. and heiko realized the nightmare was just beginning. >> she called me really, really sad and crying. so my first question to her was "where's kevin?" >> reporter: he could hear the terror in her voice. abu sayyaf still had kevin and her cousin. they could kill them at any time they wanted. >> and i felt her dark place, just being a mother myself. and it was awful.

>> reporter: and before long her terror deepened. when she learned her cousin got out, too. which meant that there in that awful place her 14-year-old son, no one left to protect him, was all alone. >> i remember seeing that picture of her that was in the news. and she just looked so sad. like she just looked so sad and helpless. >> reporter: this is gerfa. and here, even five years later, the memory is brutal. we brought her back here to the philippines and asked her to tell us her story. the story that began at 2:00 o'clock in the morning, at the end of a happy family reunion, on a beach just about like this one. >> it does take you back. you know, you can hear the water, the waves. you can feel the wind. you see the evening sky. the stars. >> it was a beautiful thing. >> it was a beautiful morning. >> yeah.

>> suddenly i saw from the left side two men running really fast, like, on the sand with some kind of rifle. my first impression, it was some kind of robbery. i screamed for help. i was terrified. i never screamed that loud in my life. >> reporter: gerfa rushed back to her hut and grabbed kevin. together they ran toward the beach. but they didn't get far. in an instant they were surrounded by several armed men in military fatigues. >> kevin was looking at me. he was in front of me. and when suddenly someone kick him from behind. that violence right there -- they were rough right away. it's like, why did they -- why did they kick my son? >> reporter: a motor boat suddenly appeared. the men pushed kevin and gerfa into it. shocked and frightened, gerfa looked up to see her cousin, not quite 22 years old and the father of a newborn, holding on to the boat, trying to prevent it from leaving.

>> he didn't care about his safety. he didn't care about his life. and he was begging him to let him in. he said, "this is my family, i want to be with them. my fate will be the same." >> reporter: so they took her cousin too. gerfa watched the shore disappear into the darkness. in a matter of a moment you went from a feeling of incredible peace to the worst nightmare you could ever imagine. >> chaos. complete chaos. and you try to control yourself, trying to stay calm. and how do you do that? >> reporter: it was early morning, right after sunrise, when they arrived at an island. they were made to sit hidden in the mangroves. "take me," gerfa pleaded with the kidnappers, "let the boys go." but in response, one of the men raised his machete. >> he looked at me and he said, "did you want me to cut your son's -- your infidel son's head?" >> behead him. >> behead him. i knew right then it was religious.

>> yeah, these guys are fanatics -- >> i knew it was more serious. this is more hostile. >> you could see the hatred in their eyes? >> i've never seen so much hate. >> reporter: gerfa had heard about abu sayyaf and their kidnappings. but she never thought for a moment that she could be a target. >> we sat there just shaking. and i couldn't stop it. the fear of death is so strong. we were surrounded by these armed men. there was no rescue, there was no sign of rescue. we were on our own. >> reporter: night came. they were prodded at gunpoint to their feet and into the jungle. and its own particular darkness. >> i constantly followed kevin. the minute he's like three feet away from me he's gone. it's like he's gone in the dark. >> reporter: and then a light, just a flash really, a car in the distance. the kidnappers seemed terrified by it and gerfa was gripped by a fear more terrible than any in her life. >> immediately someone stood really close to kevin.

and i saw that silver rifle, the tip of it just went close to his forehead. and at that point i just realized, i was like, "oh my gosh, i might lose my son that night." coming up -- >> were you ready to die? >> i was ready. i said, "lord, thank you for the beautiful family you gave me." i said, "if you want me to come home, i'm ready." >> when "dateline" continues. ♪ protect your pet with the #1 name in flea and tick protection. frontline plus. trusted by vets for nearly 20 years. rudy got older and suddenly stopped eating...t, then we found freshpet. now rudy's 13, and going on 3. ♪

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this weekend. nebraska and iowa seeing tough conditions. flooding expected in missouri sunday. now, back to "dateline." welcome back to "dateline." i'm craig melvin. kidnapped victim gerfa had been released. but what about the fate of her son. and her cousin? here's keith morrison. >> reporter: in the dark of a philippine jungle, surrounded by men with hate in their eyes, gerfa lunsmann looked, terrified, at her 14-year-old son. an approaching car had put the kidnappers on alert. and now one of them held an automatic rifle to kevin's head. >> i just said, "don't move, son" while my entire body was frozen. >> reporter: and then the car passed. and they kept walking. and several hours later they

arrived at abu sayyaf's base camp. and this is where they were brought -- to a cage in the jungle. not this cage, we actually built this one, but to the exact specifications given to us by gerfa. five feet by five feet, some old broken boards for a floor, jungle sticks lashed together with bark. no roof, no protection from the elements. but a cage as secure as any cage in any prison. there were guard tents on either side of the cage. a sniper on a hill above, watching them. and right beside the cage, a seemingly bottomless cliff, planted with land mines, said their captors. i know you had been walking for, like, 36 hours or something. how did you feel? >> well, exhausted. physically, spiritually, mentally -- >> and then they present you with this. >> exhausted. and you see this piece of crap. and this guy told us, "get in." and you want to resist.

you want to fight it. because you know you're not an animal. >> reporter: this is gerfa's cousin. the young man who forced the kidnappers to take him so he could protect her and kevin. >> he takes the shorter place here. i would sleep here, and kevin will take the longest area of the cage because he's taller. we cannot move. we take one spot, and that's it. >> reporter: they sat in silence, forbidden to speak. they were, bit by bit, starved. fed a little rice and dried fish -- a single plate per day to share. then one night, about a week after they'd been taken hostage, the group's leader told gerfa about the price abu sayyaf had put on her head.

that $10 million they demanded from heiko. >> i felt my whole body just collapsed. i knew if i cannot convince him that i don't have that money, i will never see my family again. so i looked up toward heaven. and there was this one star just blinking. i pointed at the star, this one star up in the sky. and i told them to -- if they can get that star, my husband can give them $10 million. >> reporter: gerfa knew heiko would have sent all the money they had, even as the kidnappers squeezed him by putting his terrified son on the phone. >> dad! just send the money. that's all they want. >> reporter: heiko didn't realize that the kidnappers were beating kevin as he spoke. gerfa was forced to watch. helpless, full of rage.

>> he get hurt from head to toes. even though he fell on the ground, they continued to -- >> they kept kicking him. >> -- abuse him. but all he was doing was just listening to his dad. because that was the safety zone. >> reporter: gerfa's cousin threw himself on kevin, tried to shield him. [ speaking foreign language ] >> what i want is to hug kevin, protect him, and i want to take the beating. but they tried to keep me away from kevin. i cannot fight back. >> reporter: when it was over, kevin and gerfa were forced back into the cage, battered and horrified. and there was her cousin, lying in the corner, crying. >> so we were just, like, rubbing his back, trying to console him. because it was just the three of us. no one care about our feelings. how hurt we are. the world was not there for us. no one was there.

>> reporter: and if no one was coming to rescue them, well, then they had no choice. they had to try to escape, come what may, down that cliff. and then, two months into their captivity, the moment came. gunfire pierced the silence. the kidnappers grabbed their weapons and ran toward the front of the camp. and the captives, impulse in unison, squeezed through the cage and slid off the edge of the cliff. >> there was no time to think what happened, "no, we got to go now." >> down a slope like that. >> yeah. we're trying to get -- >> head first. >> yes. head first, holding onto the roots and the bushes. >> reporter: but then they heard a shout. one of their kidnappers had seen them. >> he was screaming, "they're escaping. they're escaping. they're getting away." by the time i look again they all line up. it's like really i cannot believe they caught us. we march back into that cage.

>> that tiny little cage. which must have felt like a tomb to you. >> we know we're going to die in that cage. >> reporter: but their captors were on edge. for a reason. this is nbc news footage of military exercises on the coast of basilan that september of 2011, about two months into gerfa's ordeal. the philippine military, supported by american advisers, was launching an offensive against abu sayyaf. which, in turn, became so nervous they decided to move kevin, gerfa and her cousin out of that cage and into a windowless room in a farm house about a day's hike away. and then, one of them pulled gerfa from their cell. they were taking her away. >> and at that point i was like, "oh, my god, they're going to separate me from my son." >> reporter: they told her she would be back the next day. but she was convinced her time was up. that she was about to be executed. >> were you ready to die? >> i was ready. i said, "lord, thank you for the

beautiful family you gave me." and i said, "if you want me to come home, i'm ready. but i want you to let these two boys -- guide them out of that jungle. it's in your hand now." >> reporter: they put gerfa on a boat. put a bag over her body. but to her complete surprise, they didn't kill her. instead they dropped her off on a footbridge near a village and told her they'd be in touch soon. >> they started to disappear in the dark ocean. and i knew right then that my connection to kevin is gone. it was worse than being in prison. there was no freedom for me. >> reporter: she got in touch with the philippine military, was evacuated to manila, the philippines' capital. back in lynchburg, lead fbi

negotiator mark thundercloud thought he knew why the kidnappers released gerfa. >> their intent was to let her go to help raise more money. now she's out. and now she's got to talk to these people. >> right. >> someone needs to be there with her. >> reporter: heiko decided he should stay in lynchburg, try to find the money, and mark thundercloud moved his operations from the family's kitchen to a hotel room in manila. and there, as one month passed, then another, they tried to help gerfa deal with mr. so. >> december 6th was the last day. that we talked with mr. so. basically, he was saying, "look, what you're offering is not enough. this might be the last communication that we ever have. we still expected calls. but on the 7th, nothing. on the 8th, nothing. on the 9th, nothing. >> reporter: oh, they would hear what happened to kevin. soon enough. a shock in waiting. "dateline" returns after the break. the break. ance.

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welcome back. time moves at a different pace for those living under duress. each in their own prison of pain, the focus was on their 14-year-old son, kevin, who was being held captive for ransom deep in the philippine jungle. here, again is keith morrison.

>> reporter: on the 9th of december 2011 heiko lunsmann sat in his barren kitchen in a sink-hole of despair. his fbi friends with their notes and equipment were long gone. in a manila hotel room now, with his wife who had no news about kevin at all. >> it's just a terrible feeling. you're feeling helpless, totally helpless, useless. i'm just sitting here and hope the best. >> reporter: that very day, half-way around the world, gerfa got word that the fbi wanted to see her immediately. she rushed to the hotel room. >> when i opened the door, everybody was looking at me so quiet. just stare at me. i was like, "oh, something happened. something happened to kevin." >> reporter: an fbi agent was holding a phone. on the line, the mayor of a small town on basilan island. "it's for you," the agent told gerfa. >> the mayor said, "mrs. lunsmann?" i was like, "yeah?" "kevin is out." i said, "what? what?"

it was just like chaos after that. and then when i talked to him i was like, kevin. "hi, mom, this is kevin." you know, he just sound so good. it was just beautiful. it sounds like my son. that's my son. >> reporter: kevin was free. but how? >> it's the craziest turn of my life probably. i didn't think it was ever going to happen. >> reporter: here he is, kevin lunsmann. now 20-years old. and this is his amazing story. which began a moment before the kidnappers took his mom away, when she leaned forward and whispered in his ear. >> i remember her words exactly. she said, "you have to get home to your father. you have to go back home." and that made me realize that she might be thinking that she may not make it tonight. >> that she might be taken away to be killed? >> yes. i just wanted to cry.

and i didn't -- i didn't want to lose her. >> reporter: soon after that they took his cousin away too. >> after he left i was alone. there was nothing more. it was just me. >> reporter: 14 years old. all alone. in that dark room in the jungle. when he finally slept, he had a dream. >> we're in a two-story house. and i turn to my side and my mother's there and my cousin's there. and then all of a sudden a barrage of bullets goes through the walls. all these bullets are flying through, and yet we're not getting hit. all of a sudden i turn around and mom -- my mother's gone and my cousin's gone. and the barrage of bullets has stopped. everything has ceased. i just realized, i'm alone again. even in my dream i was alone. >> reporter: he woke up, remembered his mother's words, get home to your dad, and he made a choice. >> i was going to get home. one way or another.

>> how the heck would you do that? >> i was still unclear of that myself. i just had to wait. maybe -- maybe one day they'd get careless. >> you'd escape? >> yes. >> reporter: bit by bit he prepared. >> physically i tried to maintain. i tried to get as much as food as i could when they'd give it to me. sometimes do sit-ups, push-ups because if i ever did have to run i'd have to be somewhat in shape. >> reporter: and then he had an idea. the kidnappers allowed him to wash his clothes and hang them to dry on a line outside the house. maybe if they were distracted somehow he could make a run for it, get to the ocean, catch a boat to the mainland. wishful thinking of course. he was guarded around the clock. but then one morning, almost six months after he was taken hostage -- >> i woke up in the morning and i could hear no sounds whatsoever. i looked at the trails and i couldn't see anyone walking around. and it was sort of like a lightbulb moment. this might be it.

>> reporter: he washed his clothes. hung them up. eyes darting. two little voices working in his mind. >> one that was saying you should run. another one saying you should stay. one was terrified. the other one knew what was waiting for me out there was much better. my own freedom. i proceeded to walk to the edge of the house. and i looked at the creek and around the side, and i could see no one. nothing. no movement. and after that i just bolted. >> reporter: kevin knew, as many 14-year-olds do, that water obliterates footprints, might hide his route of escape. and so, with his heart pounding and his ears straining for the sounds of pursuers, he picked his way down the creek bed and into the jungle. and then he heard it. the bird call. >> it wasn't just a bird. this was more of like a -- an alert call that the terrorists used to communicate with another. so i knew that the signal had been put out that i had escaped. >> as soon as i heard it, i knew i had to get out as fast as i could.

i had to run. >> i guess it's one of those moments in life where you either grow up and deal with it or you decide to give up and stay a little boy. >> those were my two choices. are you going to panic or are you going to -- are you going to man up and are you going to try and get out of here? and i chose option two. >> reporter: and so he ran all day and into the thick black of a jungle night. his feet raw, his clothes ripped by unseen hazards, bloodied now by a thousand thorns that tore into his flesh. >> it was marsh, brush, thick thorns. anything. i would get through it. at any cost. even if it cost me my life, at least i tried. >> reporter: toward morning, exhausted, he searched for a hiding place so inhospitable his pursuers wouldn't think to look there. and he fell asleep in a mosquito-infested swamp. and when the sun rose and he opened his eyes -- >> i remember waking up and not smelling the aroma of the coffee that they had brewed or maybe

the types of food, like fried rice. i didn't smell any of that. i smelled fresh air. i smelled -- i smelled freedom. >> reporter: at least for the moment. but where was he? >> at a point i couldn't keep going through brush because i didn't know my exact location. i had to keep walking, possibly get on a road. maybe i can find a different way. >> but there was danger because people might see you out here. >> yes. people might see me, yes. >> well, on this island you don't know who's with them and who's not, right? >> right. >> reporter: but it was a risk he had to take. and soon regretted. walking down the road, he heard a voice behind him. a man was approaching. and he had a rifle. coming up -- >> i had escaped and walked through all of that terrain. and it was for nothing. >> he could take you away. take you back to those guys. >> i froze. and i just thought, "this is it." >> when "dateline" continues.

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>> all my clothes were almost covered in mud, black, blood. everything. my hair was ruffled. i smelled terrible. i probably had over 100 or more lacerations on my body. blood all over my arms as well. so i didn't look too good. >> reporter: and then he took that one necessary risk, emerged to a public road, and there it was, the end. clearly a local, on this abu sayyaf-infested island, and he had a very big gun. >> i thought that it was all over. i had escaped and walked through all of that terrain, and it was for nothing. they had found me, and they were going to bring me back. >> reporter: then the man spoke, and the words startled kevin. he was speaking english. >> and he was asking, "do you need help?" you know, "were you kidnapped?" and i froze at that question and i just thought, this is it. should i just tell him? >> he could go either way still.

he could take you away, take you back to those guys. >> right. and i knew those risks. but at this point i felt like i was going to put my trust in him. >> so how'd he react? >> he proceeded to say, "i'm going to get you out of here. i'm going to get you home. and my name's kenny. i'm here to help." >> "my name is kenny?" >> "my name's kenny, like kenny rogers." that's exactly what he said. it gave me a laugh. it was actually one of the first laughs i had in a long time. >> reporter: kenny got in touch with the mayor of a nearby village. the mayor called the philippine army, and the army arrived in humvees. >> it seemed like hundreds of them. and i was just like, this is all for me. i just couldn't believe it. i realized i'm really going to see my family again. i'm going to see my friends. i'm going to have my life back. >> reporter: but would he have his mom? for months kevin had been grieving, afraid she'd been executed by the militants. but then the mayor gave him the phone and kevin heard a familiar voice.

>> "hey, mom. is that really you? i had no clue for months what happened to you." once i heard her voice, i knew that was her. and i think at that point i felt alive again. there was color in my life again. >> reporter: after that 14-year-old's amazing escape, the u.s. military put him on a plane to manila, where his mother was waiting on the tarmac. >> the door was too slow to open. i was ready to climb that plane and open the door. and he stood there on the plane, right there, looking around. i was like, "i'm right here." you know, it's like, "i'm right here." but he just like looking. and i was like, you don't recognize me? okay, it must be the -- you've got to stop crying, right? >> and i see this woman. and i could see tears. and as i got closer and closer, i realized i knew who that was. we just ran up to each other, and we just hugged each other. and it was just incredible.

>> reporter: back in lynchburg kevin's dad, heiko, was delivering christmas turkeys to a hospital when somebody found him and gave him the news. >> i was so happy. your mind gets clear again. so you don't have to be worried. and i will have my family back. it just is a great feeling. it's a great feeling. >> reporter: on december 14th, 2011, six months after they were taken hostage, gerfa and kevin finally came home, returned to lynchburg to heiko and to gerfa's niece, sherry. >> it was awesome. the first thing we did was put up -- >> christmas decorations. >> -- christmas decorations. kevin and gerfa were so happy. i didn't know what to expect because of what they'd been through. but they were just so grateful to be back with their family. >> reporter: in 2012 the philippine army caught three of gerfa and kevin's kidnappers. gerfa returned to the philippines to testify at their

trial and help send her captors to prison. kevin was honored for his bravery by the virginia general assembly and met president obama. then kevin consent off to college and had an idea about joinings army one day. >> he was there, you know, as a boy. and now he came out as a man. >> you must be pretty proud of that boy. >> very proud. >> reporter: the five years that separate their ordeal from this evening on the beach with us have erased not a moment of the memory, the terror they shared, the pain, depravation, sorrow, and finally, joy. but we look on and see a bond only they can fully understand. >> did you ever think you'd actually be in this situation where you've got your arm around your mother and the two of you are talking about this in the past tense with smiles on your faces? >> never. >> not at that point, no. we didn't think it was going to

ever be possible. but here we are. >> and we're very glad to see you safe. >> thank you. >> i'm glad we're back. >> wonderful, wonderful. that's for for this edition of "dateline." i'm craig melvin. thank you for watching. good morning. i'm philip mena at nbc headquarters in new york. 6:00 in the east. 3:00 out west, and here's what's happening. >> i see a man with an army uniform, and i said, who the hell are you? >> a hero's story from the new zealand terror attack. today, two different versions emerge about the police response to the massacre. students suing schools amid the college admissions scandal. today's take on the latest legal arguments. the president turning to