One day during the summer of 1997, a woman walked into Fremont's LG Travel to buy a pair of airline tickets to the Philippines. Her name, at least for this article, is Soledad, or "solitude." She chose that name for herself because the events that unfolded are still a terrible secret she hides from her husband and parents. Her secret digs at her, embarrasses her, cuts her off from the ones she loves most. She doesn't know how to tell them she lost her life savings to a total stranger.