SOLD FOR FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS

THE PRIEST'S SECRET

Chapter 3

The church doors slammed shut behind me. Silence hit me like a punch.Outside, Jessica was screaming my price like I was cattle. Five thousand dollars. Inside, the air was thick with incense and secrets. My chest was heaving. Rain dripped from my hair onto the marble floor. Each drop sounded like a gunshot.Child.The voice came from the shadows. Old. Tired. But kind in a way that made my throat close up.I spun around. My fists were up. Ready to fight. Ready to die before I let chief Richard touch me again.A priest stood by the altar. White hair. Black robes. Eyes that had seen too many confessions. Too many sins. Father Michael? My voice cracked Daniel said he was the only one I could trust.The priest stepped into the candlelight and froze. His eyes locked on my neck. Not my face. Not my torn dress. My neck.Specifically, the birthmark just below my left ear. A small crescent moon. My mother said I was born with it. Said it meant I was touched by God.Father Michael's face went white. like he'd seen a ghost.He crossed himself. His lips moved, but no sound came out. Then I heard it. One word. A whisper. A prayer.Anastasia. My blood turned to ice.Nobody called me that. Not since I was five years old. Not since the night my parents died in the fire. Chief Richard said my real name was Grace. Said Anastasia died with my parents. How do you know that name? I backed away. My back hit the wooden door. Trapped. Father Michael sank to his knees. Right there on the cold church floor. His hands were shaking.Because I baptized you, he said. His voice broke. Twenty years ago. In this church. You were born here, child. On the altar steps. During a thunderstorm just like tonight.The world tilted againBorn here? In New York? Not in Nigeria? My parents... I choked. Chief Richard said they died in Lagos. In a fire.Lies. father Michael's eyes were wet. All lies. Your father was Alexander Hale. Your mother was Isabella Carter.Carter.The same name as Daniel.My knees gave out. I slid down the door to the floor. Daniel Carter, I whispered. Is he...Your cousin, father Michael finished. His father and your mother were siblings. You are the last living heir to the Carter fortune, Anastasia. Worth 2.3 billion dollars.Billion.The world hit me harder than Chief Richard's hand ever did. Then why... My voice was gone. Just air. Why did chief Richard sell for five thousand dollars if I'm worth billions?Father Michael crawled toward me on his knees. like he was approaching something holy. Or something cursed.Because your birth certificate burned in the fire that killed your parents, he said. The only proof you existed was this. He reached out. His old finger's trembled as they touched my birthmark.This crescent moon. The mark of the Carter woman. Daniel's mother had it. His grandmother had it. You have it. Suddenly, the church doors exploded open. Jessica stood there. Rain made her red dress cling to her body like blood. Two cops behind her. Guns drawn. There she is, Jessica smiled. But it wasn't smile. It was a knife. Arrest the thief. ThiefAnastasia Carter Hale is wanted for stealing ten million dollars from my father, Jessica said to the cops. And for fraud. She pretend to be poor. She tricked Daniel Carter into marriage to steal his money.Lies All lies. But the cops didn't care. They stepped toward me. Handcuffs ready.Father Michael stood up. His old body suddenly looked ten feet tall. You will not touch her, he roared. His voice filled the whole cathedral. Not in god's house. Not while I breathe. He stepped between me and the guns just like Daniel did.just like I did for Daniel.Officer, father Michael said calmly. Before you arrest the girl, check your database. Look for a missing person report filed twenty years ago. Name Anastasia Isabella Carter. Age: five. Last seen: St. Patrick's cathedral.One cop pulled out his phone. Frowned Typed.His face went pale. Holy... he whispered to his partner. Captain, it real. The report is still open. Unsolved. Reward: Ten million dollars.Jessica's impossible she hissed. Chief Richard said she died! He said he burned the body! Chief Richard.

The man who raised me.who beat me who sold me. He didn't save me from the fire.He started it.The truth hit me so hard I couldn't breathe. My parents didn't die in an accident. They were murdered. For money. By the man who called himself my uncle.And now his daughter was here to finish the job. Grace, Father Michael said gently. using the name I knew. Anastasia. You have a choice now. You can run. Or you can fight.I looked at the cops. At Jessica. At the cross above the altar.I thought of Daniel in handcuffs. Protecting me. Believing in me when I was nothing. I was done running. I stood up. My legs were shaking, But I stood. I choose fight, I said. My voice was quite. But it didn't shake. Where is Daniel Carter. Father Michael smiled. Sad and proud. Jail, he said. Said. But not for long. Because you my child... You own the jail. You own the courthouse. You own the whole damn city. He took my hand. His was warm. Safe like Daniel's. Come, he said. It's time to take back your name. Your money. And your man. Outside, thunder cracked. Inside, I was born again.Not Grace. Not the girl sold for five thousand dollars. Anastasia Isabella Carter.Billionaire. heiress.And Jessica Hale's worst nightmare.