It's been a year of pain, loss for parents of Loretta Saunders

The pain and loss that Miriam and Clayton Saunders of Labrador have been enduring intensified this week as they mark the one-year anniversary of the disappearance of their daughter, Loretta Saunders.

And their grief is magnified by the ongoing effort to bring their daughter's alleged murderers to justice.

The outpouring of support for the family and the national dialogue that Loretta's death sparked has helped, but Miriam said it can't completely erase the pain and suffering.

"They don't know what I'm like behind closed doors," a tearful Miriam Saunders told CBC News on Thursday.

"They don't know what I'm like every morning and every night. When they took my daughter they took a big piece of my heart."

First-degree murder charges

Loretta Saunders, 26, was a student at Saint Mary's University in Halifax, and was writing a thesis about missing and murdered indigenous women.

She was reported missing on Feb. 13, 2014.

Her body was found Feb. 27 in the median of Route 2 of the Trans-Canada Highway, west of Salisbury, N.B. 

Saunders' former roommates, Victoria Henneberry and Blake Leggette, face charges of first-degree murder.

A pre-trial hearing into the admissibility of evidence and whether the two accused should be tried separately was adjourned Thursday until later this month.

A trial is scheduled for April.

Calls continue for inquiry

Saunders' murder sparked a national movement about the need to hold an inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women.

This effort will continue on Feb. 27 during a roundtable on the issue in Ottawa. 

Miriam Saunders will be at the table because, "We want to continue her work."

Miriam said she is heartened that so many people are continuing to bring the issue of violence against aboriginal women to the forefront.

"I'm proud, and yet part of me wants it to stop. But I want to make sure that what she was working on gets out to the people. Even if it helps one," she said.

Parents want just one trial

Loretta's parents have strong feelings about how the justice system should treat their daughter's alleged killers.

They want both to be tried during the same trial, and they want the stiffest possible punishments to be meted out.

"They should get prison for the rest of their lives," said Clayton.

Miriam said the justice system is too lenient, and the victims are often made to feel like criminals.

"It's not bad enough we're grieving through her anniversary. Now we have to sit down and wonder if we're going to have a second trial," she said.

"They murdered her together, so they should have the trial together," Clayton added.

Both plan to attend the proceedings, but know it's going to be a very difficult process.

"I don't want to give them the privilege and not seeing what they done to me and what they done to my daughter and how much they hurt my family," said Miriam.