When she opened the door, she saw a room with an old wooden cradle. Inside was a girl who was no more than a year old.

She was crying quietly, tired. Laura slowly approached her to calm her down. As she adjusted the small pillow, she felt something underneath it…

It was a folded piece of paper. The feminine handwriting was trembling but legible:

“If you’re reading this, it means Markus is still lying. I’m his first wife. I left our daughter because I had no other choice. He held me like a thing. If you have a good heart, don’t let this girl grow up in fear. Please…”

Everything turned upside down for Laura. That same night she made a decision. Two days later, taking her documents and a few things, she left the house with her child in her arms.

She went to her Aunt Elena, in a small town on the Spanish coast. There her new life began.

Many years later, when Laura was 56, she ran a cozy bakery. Next to her lived a grown-up, cheerful, and kind girl named Naia—the same one she had found in the cradle. Naia called her “Mommy,” and they were truly happy.

Laura never married again. She didn’t need it. She found something money can’t buy: freedom, peace of mind, and true love.

She told her story to women who thought it was too late to change. And then, with a smile, she added:

— It’s never too late to save yourself.