Maria was from South America and had recently migrated with her children to the United States to escape her abusive husband. Sadly, Maria’s own family said they would desert her if she left him.

When Maria entered the United States, the bus she was aboard was stopped by a group of cartels. They captured Maria, her children and eight other women. She had no clue she was about to be held against her will for four months.

A member of the cartel gave her a drug that caused her to sleep for hours. When she awoke, she found herself lying on a dirty mattress on the floor.  Maria was chained to a pole with her children sitting next to her crying.

For 120 days, Maria was continually raped on a daily basis by many different men. They drugged her to keep her from screaming. They also warned her that they would take away her children, if she did not do what they asked. She could not bear the thought of losing her children, so Maria complied with everything they asked.

One day, when their captors were gone, one of the other imprisoned women broke free and managed to release the other captives. They escaped into the streets, naked and alone.

The terrified women found safety when a group of nuns took them in. They were close to the border and the immigration office helped them get to Houston, Texas.  They were immediately taken to local hospitals for examinations and pregnancy tests.

Maria was relieved when her pregnancy test came back negative. A nearby friend picked her up from the hospital and gave Maria and her children a safe place to stay.

Maria settled in Houston and quickly tried to move on from her human trafficking experience. She found a job and began a new life.

When a few months passed by and Maria hadn’t gotten her period, she began to worry. She went to a local pregnancy clinic close to her work and her test came back negative again.  She attributed her lack of a period to the stress she endured while in captivity.

Two months later, Maria began to feel a lot of movement in her abdomen and she decided to visit a hospital. To her surprise, she was eight months pregnant. But Maria didn’t want to carry her baby. She begged the hospital to do an abortion. She wanted nothing to do with her baby and wanted to erase all the painful memories of when she was trafficked.

A hospital care worker gave her the number to a Pre-Born! Pregnancy Clinic so she could discuss the possibilities of putting her baby up for adoption. Thankfully, Maria decided adoption was her best choice. She delivered a sweet, healthy baby who was placed into a loving family. We praise God for Maria’s bold courage to choose life for her baby!