Gabriela

A Mother’s Choice

A Mother’s Choice

She leans against the cool metal of the balcony railing at a posh rooftop bar, the evening sky above downtown Miami slowly transitioning to dusk. Around her, the first lights of the city begin to flicker on, casting a soft glow as another silhouette blends into the multitude. ‘Hi, I’m…’ The name never matters; it’s just another part of the game.

She thinks of her daughter, getting ready for bed now, the reason she navigates this perilous path. Chloe’s laughter echoes in her ears, a stark contrast to the infernal house music of the bar.

She used to cringe at this life, at the weight of perceived silent judgments. Not anymore.

In her Coach clutch, the tools of her trade: roofies, burundanga (scopolamine), folded bandana to wrap her hair, dark sunglasses for the surveillance in lobbies, and the subtle weight of the butterfly knife – a silent promise of defense.

She had found the knife abandoned on a Metrorail seat one evening, a serendipitous discovery that now served as a cold reminder of the life she’d been forced into. She remembers the day she had to drop out of Miami-Dade College in the face of mounting bills and her daughter’s needs.

This is the better choice, she reassures herself, the one that doesn’t involve…