Chapter 99. Laying Down Her Life

AUTHOR'S POV

Valeria carried Shaquan delicately in her hands, but she noticed something was wrong. He was crying. She smiled at him sadly and caressed his head. He became cold suddenly. He stopped breathing.

“No, Shaquan, you can't do this. No!” she wailed, pulling him tightly onto her.

Valeria's tears soaked through Shaquan's furs as she held onto him tightly, unable to believe that her intelligent, vibrant son was gone. Her heart felt like it had shattered into a million pieces, and a wail of grief escaped her lips as she rocked back and forth on the floor with her beloved child cradled in her arms. Memories of his childhood flooded her mind, each one a fresh stab of pain that threatened to overwhelm her. She felt like a part of her had died alongside him, and the thought of never being able to hug him or hear his voice again was too much to bear. As the hours wore on, her sobs grew quieter but no less intense, and the other women could only o