I froze. If I fought, I would go to jail, and they would be truly alone. I watched, paralyzed by a nightmare, as they ushered my children out the door. Maya was screaming, “Daddy! Daddy, no!” Devon wasn’t making a sound, but tears were streaming down his face, silent and devastating.

They put them in a white van. The investigator shoved a stack of paperwork into my shaking hands.

“Do not contact your children. We will investigate. If the allegations are substantiated, you could face twenty years in prison. Your hearing is in five days.”

The van drove away, taking my life with it. I stood on the sidewalk, the morning sun feeling cold on my skin, watching them disappear around the corner.