“Solana pressed her hand to her stomach and the fluttering increased. The baby’s response to the mother’s touch.

“I'll never let you down,” she said. But she wasn’t sure if she could keep that promise. She felt so heartbroken for Mylez, so heartbroken for his innocent son, Jabari, who would have to grow up without a mother.

Motherlessness—Solana knew what it felt like firsthand because her mother abandoned her. And it still hurt, although she was a grown adult who could hold her own when it happened.”