At 27, overwhelmed and exhausted, Laura left her three young children alone one Saturday night to attend a party. She told herself it was just one break. But she stayed too long, ignoring their calls. By sunrise, she heard a child crying under a bridge—and found her kids huddled there, cold and frightened.
Her oldest, Tomás, said they thought she had died and went looking for her. The moment shattered Laura. The community condemned her, and social services placed the children with a distant aunt.