Brian’s life seemed to be moving forward as planned. After starting college as a computer technology major, he switched to broadcasting, chasing a career that better fit his passions. He met a girl, married, and then divorced after three years.

Then came Liz—a white woman four years younger than him—who would change his life. The two moved in together in Indianapolis and shared six years of quiet, hopeful living. What Brian didn’t know was that Liz’s parents were quietly paying for their apartment.

Everything changed on March 5, 2013. Liz began experiencing excruciating stomach pains. Concerned, Brian called an ambulance. At the hospital, they were stunned to discover she was in labor. Hours later, they welcomed their daughter, Donna, into the world. Brian, at 40, and Liz, at 36, were over the moon. This little girl felt like the start of a beautiful future together.

But that bubble burst quickly. Liz’s parents stopped funding the apartment and demanded that Liz—and baby Donna—move back home with them. With nowhere else to go, Brian returned to Chicago, moving back in with his mother, older sister, and nephew. Instead of support, he faced criticism, with his mother and sister pressuring him to get a DNA test.

Meanwhile, Liz’s family worked to erase Brian from their daughter and granddaughter’s lives. Their efforts intensified until they made the devastating decision: Donna would be placed for adoption.

Brian was allowed to attend Donna’s first birthday party. He couldn’t, and wouldn’t, miss it. There, he and Liz quietly discussed trying to rebuild their family. But when a picture of the three of them surfaced on social media, Liz’s parents saw it—and any access Brian had to Liz or Donna was severed.

He knows who adopted Donna but has never been allowed any contact with her or her adoptive family.

Lost and broken, Brian spiraled into depression and an abusive relationship. Then, in March 2015, just three days after Donna’s second birthday, he learned the unthinkable: Donna had died. He has never been told how she passed away, and the silence surrounding her death still haunts him.

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