Right after our daughter’s funeral, my husband wanted to clear the children’s room. while doing it, I found a note from her: “mommy, if you’re reading this, look under the bed right now and you’ll know everything.”

The earth thudded dully against the coffin lid. Each strike hit Stella’s heart. Her daughter, Nancy, was gone at eighteen, her life cut short on a rain-slicked highway. Stella’s husband, Victor, stood apart, his face an unreadable mask of restraint