While I was on vacation with my cousins, my phone lit up with one message: “Get on a plane home. Don’t tell your parents you’re coming.” When I landed, an attorney and two investigators
“My name is Claire Ellison,” I said, then stopped.
The courtroom waited.
I looked at Martin and Elaine.
“My name is Natalie Rose Pierce,” I continued. “For twenty-one years, I was raised as Claire Ellison. I am not here to explain which name feels real. They both do. That is part of what was taken from me.”
