It’s been a year now since Sandy’s mother passed away. Sandy couldn’t hold back her tears when she found out that her mother had left this anklet to her daughter. It was the most beautiful thing she could ever get from her, and vowed never to get rid of it. But times are not so good for Sandy due to financial distress. Now she has to sell the anklet, or they won’t be able to eat this month. When Sandy goes to a jeweler with the ankle bracelet, he tells her this… Sandy immediately calls the police! As soon as the appraiser laid his eyes on Sandy’s anklet, his demeanor changed. He started asking a lot of questions about it, and he was curious to know where she got it from. He suddenly grabbed it and went into a back room, leaving Sandy surprised and alone in the store. It was past opening hours, so the store was closed, and she had nowhere to go. She overheard the appraiser talking on the phone, and when she heard what he thought the bracelet was made of, she gasped. She wanted to go into the room to take back her bracelet, but the door was locked… Sandy continued to listen to the conversation the appraiser was having in the other room, and what she heard next absolutely shocked her. She knew she needed to call the police immediately. But why did Sandy call the police? What was the anklet made of? And why was the appraiser acting so strangely? Just before Sandy’s due date, her mother passed away. It truly broke her heart, because her mother had been so excited about meeting her granddaughter and now she left before ever getting the chance to do so. Sandy spent weeks in bed, not eating or sleeping. She was grieving while preparing herself to bring a new life into the world — it all felt unreal. It was a feeling she wouldn’t wish on anyone. Whenever she felt a moment of happiness, guilt would overshadow it. She just hoped all of it would fall into place as soon as her daughter was born, so that’s what she focussed on. Luckily, it seemed to work: in the last week of her pregnancy, she finally began to feel better. Sandy was able to enjoy her final week of being pregnant with her husband Greg by her side. He had been very supportive of her this whole journey and even a little bit more after the passing of her mother. He was her rock, and she could’ve truly never wished for a better partner. Finally, it was time for her daughter to be born. Luckily, everything went smoothly, and Sandy was in and out of the hospital within a day. On their way home, she looked into the backview mirror and saw their little nugget asleep in her car seat. “Our little girl. Our Anna,” she whispered to her husband. They named their daughter after Sandy’s mother, Anastasia. It was Sandy’s way of honoring her mother, now that she wasn’t around anymore. When they arrived home, Sandy put her daughter to bed and sat down on the couch. She sighed as she was finally able to rest, but then, someone knocked on the door. Sandy frowned at her husband, as she wasn’t expecting any visitors or packages. He walked over to the door where a security screen hung, and saw a man in a suit standing outside. “Can I help you?” he asked through the intercom. “I have something for Miss. Hunderberg. It’s from her mother.” Sandy, who could hear the conversation from the couch, jumped up. A sharp pain shot through her abdomen, but she didn’t care. She walked toward her husband as fast as she could, who looked at her with worry in return. “You need to sit down,” he hushed at her. “It’s about my mother.” she snapped back. She pressed the button to open the gate and opened the front door. The man in the suit walked over to her and handed her a little black box and a letter. “I’m sorry for your loss,” he said as he nodded his head and walked away again. “Who was that?” Greg whispered. Sandy had no idea who that man was, but she knew her mother could be a bit extra at times. She slowly walked back to the living room and sat back on the couch again, her stomach now really hurting. “Can you bring me a hot water bottle?” she asked Greg as she placed the little box in front of her. Greg returned with the hot water bottle, and he placed it gently on her stomach. Sandy stared at the little black box and the letter that lay next to it. “Should I read it?” she asked Greg. “Of course!” Greg said, clearly surprised by her question. “Why shouldn’t you read it?” Sand shrugged her shoulders. Then, she grabbed the letter and began to read. “My dear daughter, I’m so sorry I’m not here to get to know your daughter. I can feel my battle with this awful disease is almost over, and I’m trying my best to hold on long enough. But if I fail, then this letter will reach you through my driver.” Sandy wiped a tear from her cheek as she continued reading. “I’ve waited for this moment from the moment you got pregnant. I immediately knew what to gift to you after your beautiful baby was born, and I only hope you love it as much as I do. I love you. Your mother.” Sandy put the letter down on the table and opened the box. Inside was a beautiful golden-like anklet. Sandy gasped as she took it out of the box, and she couldn’t hold in her emotions any longer. As soon as her daughter woke up, she put the little anklet on, and since then, she wore it every day. Since then, every time Sandy looked at the little anklet around her daughter’s ankle, she smiled. But things weren’t always happy. When Anna was around six months, Greg lost his job. Things began to change in their household, as they had to adjust to a life without a lot of money. Feeding Anna had been their number one priority, even if that meant not eating themselves. Greg spent every day trying to find a job, and Sandy could see it was taking a toll on his mood and mental health. She knew something had to change, or else their relationship would suffer. They had already sold their car and some of their furniture to be able to afford to eat. They owned their house, but selling that really was their last resort. And before they even considered selling their house, there was one other thing they could sell, even though it broke their hearts. Anna’s anklet looked like it was made out of solid gold, and it even had two bejeweled charms that could be worth a lot of money. Sandy looked at the anklet as her daughter was sleeping in her crib. Her eyes welled up with tears as she reached down and removed it from her daughter’s ankle. She had kept the little box it came in, so Sandy placed the anklet back in its box and put it in her purse. As soon as Greg would come home, she would go to the jeweler to get the anklet appraised. After two hours, her husband finally came home and took over the duty of caring for their daughter. Sandy quickly walked to the closest jewelry store. Luckily, it was very quiet, probably because she came in ten minutes before closing time. She directly walked over to the counter and asked if an appraiser was present at the store, and there was. A few moments later, the appraiser arrived.  The appraiser didn’t look happy at all, probably because he was almost done with work when Sandy suddenly showed up. “I have an anklet I would like to have appraised. I believe it’s worth a lot of money,” Sandy confidently said. “Well, I’ll see about that,” the appraiser said irritatedly. He opened the little black box with a stern look on his face. Sandy tried to look for any sign of excitement as he took the anklet out of the box and looked at it through a little magnifying glass, but there was nothing. Not even a little sparkle in his eye.  The appraiser looked at the anklet with great interest. Sandy stood in silence, waiting patiently for him to say something. But the only sounds the man was making were, “Hmm, mmm, ah.” After about ten minutes of intensely looking at the anklet, the appraiser suddenly looked up. “I have good news and bad news.” Usually, in situations like these, Sandy always chose to hear the good news first. But now that her life depended on it, she decided to hear the bad news first. That way, it could only get better. “Bad news first,” she said, her heart pounding in her chest. “Well, It’s –” the man began, but he got interrupted by a phone call. The man took the phone call, and Sandy tried to listen to the conversation. “Hmm. Are you sure?” the man said as he suddenly looked up at the ceiling. Sandy followed his gaze and saw a little security camera pointed in their direction. “Alright. Alright. Yeah. Thank you,” the man said, and he hung up the phone. “Well?” Sandy asked as soon as he was done calling. The man thought about something for a second, then looked up at Sandy and simply said, “I’ll be right back.” Before Sandy could say something or take back the anklet, the man disappeared into the back, taking the anklet with him.  Sandy stood alone in the store, confused by what had just happened. She looked up at the camera the man was looking at earlier and wondered if there was someone else looking at her at the same time. Maybe that person was the one who called the appraiser?  Many questions raced through Sandy’s head, but one thing was sure: she couldn’t leave without the anklet. She listened carefully, hoping to eavesdrop on his conversation in the back, but he closed the door behind him. She hesitated for a moment, but then decided she had to get her anklet back. Slowly, she began to move. First, she made it seem like she was just browning the store while passing the time. She did this because she was almost certain someone was watching her through the security camera. She hoped the person would shift his attention elsewhere as soon as he realized she was just looking around.  These were, of course, all assumptions, but they made sense in her head. So, Sandy did what she thought was best. After a few minutes of ‘browsing around,’ she quickly disappeared through a door into the back. Her heart was pounding in her chest as she paused inside a hallway. She looked around her, trying to be as quiet as possible. She knew she didn’t have much time; the person behind the security cameras could check any moment and see that she wasn’t there anymore. Then, she heard the man talking in the room all the way to the end of the hallway. She quietly walked over to the door and pressed her ear against it. She wanted to listen to what he was saying before barging in, as it was also possible he was just discussing the price with his boss or something. But when she could finally understand what he was talking about, she knew it was bad news She couldn’t hear everything he was saying, but the things she did hear all sounded very strange. “She has to stay…. Can’t give it back…” things like that. It made Sandy’s stomach turn to think she could be in trouble. Suddenly, someone cleared his throat behind her, and Sandy quickly turned around. “Can I help you?” a man asked her very loudly. Soon after, the door opened, and the appraiser appeared. “What are you doing back here?” he asked Sandy irritatedly. Sandy felt her face getting red. “I have to go,” she eventually lied. “So I wanted to ask for my anklet back.” The appraiser and the man exchanged looks. “I’m sorry, but that won’t be possible,” the appraiser said. Sandy’s eyes widened in shock. “What? Why?” she asked as she turned her head looking at both men. “I haven’t sold you that anklet yet. It’s still mine!” She said as she tried to barge through the door. The appraiser quickly stopped her, but not before Sandy could look into the room. She saw the anklet lying on a desk with a lamp above it and a magnifying glass next to it. The appraiser was clearly still examining it, but why? Couldn’t he tell what it was made of?  “Please wait inside the store. We will explain everything to you when we ourselves know more about it, too,” the man said as he pointed Sandy in the direction of the store. Sandy sighed. She couldn’t refuse, and she couldn’t grab her anklet and run away. She had no choice but to oblige. So, Sandy followed the man back into the store while the appraiser went back into the room with the anklet. This time, Sandy wasn’t left alone, as the other man stayed with her. “My name is James, I’m the owner of the store,” the man said with a slight smile.  “Isn’t the anklet made out of solid gold?” Sandy asked, not paying attention to what James just said. “I mean, even I can see it is made out of some sort of gold, so what is so important about it?” she said before James could answer.  “It’s a bit more complicated than you think. Yes, the anklet is made out of solid gold, but there is a bit more to it,” James said. Suddenly, Sandy turned her head toward James. “If you already know what it’s made of, why are you withholding the anklet from me?” Something didn’t feel right about this situation. Sandy knew she couldn’t leave the store, as she would never see her anklet again. So, she reached down into her purse and dialed 911. She left her phone inside her purse so James wouldn’t know what she was doing, but made sure to speak loudly so the operator on the phone could hear. “This is practically stealing, you know,” she said loudly. “I came to this jewelry store at the corner of the street, close to my home on 8th street, to get my anklet appraised and hopefully sell it. But you guys are now almost holding me hostage in this place!”  James was clearly confused by her sudden outburst, and how she said it, but he had no clue she only did it so the operator on the phone knew where to send the police to. The only thing was, she had no idea if her plan was working, as she couldn’t hear what the operator said to her in return. It was possible for the operator to think it was just a butt dial and ignore her call, but she hoped by exaggerating the situation into a hostage situation, they wouldn’t be able to ignore it. Her heart was racing as she paced around the store, waiting for the police to arrive. But, Sandy wasn’t as sneaky as she had imagined. James soon became suspicious of her strange statements. “What are you up to?” he said, his voice full of suspicion. He quickly walked over to her and grabbed her arm. “Let go of me!” Sandy yelled as he pulled her arm out of her purse, revealing her phone. “You called the police?” James exclaimed. And just as he said that, police sirens could be heard. “Yes, and judging by the sound, they are finally here,” Sandy replied. “I can’t believe it,” James said as he quickly ran through the door into the hallway. “Dan, you have to hurry!” he yelled at the appraiser.  Sandy waited by the door and tried to open it for the police to come in, but the door didn’t budge. She realized James must’ve locked it while she was in the back. She waved at the police, hoping they would see her, and luckily they did. Within seconds, they broke down the door. “They’re in the back!” Sandy yelled while pointing at the door. The police quickly ran past her, straight at James and Dan. Sandy held her breath as she listened to the police arresting the men. “Wait, this is all a big misunderstanding!” James yelled. “You should be arresting HER instead!” The police walked out of the hallway with Dan and James handcuffed beside them. “You should be the one in handcuffs!” James angrily hissed at Sandy as he walked past her. Sandy frowned. “And why is that?” she yelled after him. “Oh, you know!” James could be heard answering just before the car door slammed shut.  After James and Dan were put inside the police car, another officer walked over to Sandy. “Miss, I have to take this back to the station as evidence,” he said as he showed her the anklet. Sandy sighed. She had hoped she could take it home. “When will I get it back?” she asked. “We have to interrogate everyone, including you. After that, we will know more,” the officer said. Sandy nodded. She followed the officer back to his car and drove with him to the police station. She couldn’t believe her little trip to the jewelry store turned into this… Greg must be so worried. Once they arrived at the police station, they brought Sandy to an interrogation room, just as they did with Dan and James. Sandy thought it was just because of standard procedure, but once they began their interrogation, it became clear that they had something else in mind. They began to drill her like she was a suspect, and it didn’t feel good. What did James and Dan say to the police officers for them to suddenly shift their perspectives like that? They were all up in her face, asking her where she got the anklet from and if she could prove it.  Sandy repeatedly said it was a gift from her late mother, but the police didn’t seem to believe her. Then, they suddenly said something that confused her. “Did you know what it was when you brought it in?” they asked her. “Why would I get it appraised if I know its worth?” Sandy responded. The officers then left the room and told Sandy they would be back within a few minutes. Sandy found this all ridiculous. They treated her like she was the bad guy, while clearly, the other two had done her dirty! She really wanted to call her husband, but they took her phone. Not long after, the police returned, but they weren’t alone. Dan and James accompanied them, with the anklet in their hands. Sandy’s eyes widened at the sight of them. “Well, did you arrest them?!” she asked. “No, ma’am. There was nothing to arrest them for,” the officer answered. Sandy couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “What do you mean you have nothing to arrest them for? They kept me hostage in their jewelry store and wouldn’t give back my anklet!” The police officer let her vent for a second, and when she calmed down, he explained everything to her. “Dan acted so suspiciously because he recognized the material of the anklet. Not because of the solid gold and its value, but because he had seen it before.” Sandy was stunned. How could he have seen the anklet before? Could he have known her mother when she was still alive? Suddenly, Dan stepped forward. “I recognized the anklet, as I have one too. Well, my daughter has one.” Sandy frowned. “What are you saying?” she asked Dan. “Well, my mother gave me away when I was a baby, as she was only sixteen when she gave birth to me. The only thing I had left from her was that anklet and her name.” Sandy’s eyes widened in shock. “And what was your mother’s name?” she asked him, her heart racing in her chest. “Anastasia.” Sandy almost dropped to the floor. “What do you mean? Are you my brother?” she asked, shocked. “Half-brother, I think,” Dan replied with a smile. Sandy couldn’t believe it. Still stunned by what just happened, she began to laugh and gave Dan a hug. They exchanged addresses and phone numbers, to keep in touch, and they agreed to do a DNA test to be a hundred percent sure if they really were half-siblings. And as it turned out, they were! Dan couldn’t let Sandy sell the anklet, so he decided to lend her some money so they could get their life back on track. With that money, they were able to get through the hard times with enough food, until Greg was able to find a new job. After that, they paid off their debts and were back to their old lives, now with a family member richer. The end.