Bound By Fate

Chapter Eight

Sophia pushed open the heavy glass doors of the police station, her chest tight with anxiety. She hadn’t even grabbed her bag in the rush—just her phone. The cold air conditioning hit her skin like a slap, but it didn’t stop her pulse from pounding in her ears.

She scanned the room, and there she was—Kate.

Her younger sister sat hunched on a bench near the front desk, face buried in her palms, shoulders trembling. She looked nothing like the feisty, spoiled girl Sophia knew. She looked scared. Defeated. Small.

“What’s going on?” Sophia asked as she rushed toward her, her voice sharp with concern. “Kate, what happened?”

But Kate didn’t look up. She didn’t say a word. Her hands trembled as she wiped at her tear-streaked face, but still, no answer came.

A nearby officer, sensing the tension, stepped forward. “She took out a loan about a year ago,” he said calmly. “From a private bank. She hasn’t made any payments, and now it’s defaulted.”

Sophia blinked. “I—I’m sorry. What?”

“She borrowed a large sum of money,” he repeated. “And now the bank is pressing charges.”

Sophia turned back to Kate, her voice rising in disbelief. “You borrowed money? Why? For what?”

Kate finally looked up, eyes glassy and red. “Nathan,” she whispered.

Sophia’s face hardened. “What about him?”

“He said he needed help,” Kate cried, her voice barely holding together. “He said his parents would release his assets after he got married, and that he just needed something small to hold him over. So I gave it to him.”

“You gave it to him?” Sophia snapped. “Wait, wait, wait. The same Nathan you said was loaded? That Nathan?”

Kate nodded silently.

Sophia took a sharp breath and stepped back, struggling to keep calm. “Kate, do you hear yourself? You borrowed money from a bank—for a guy? Are you serious? How could you be so… so careless?”

“I’m sorry,” Kate sobbed, shaking her head. “I thought I was helping him. I didn’t think—”

“No, you didn’t think!” Sophia yelled. “You didn’t think about how this would affect you, or mom, or me. This is insane!”

Kate only kept crying, repeating “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” like it was all she had left.

Sophia turned to the officer again, trying to ground herself. “How much are we talking about?”

The officer sighed and looked down at the file. “Over eighty thousand dollars. The bank is demanding at least fifty percent before they can consider bail or release.”

Sophia’s stomach dropped. “Fifty percent?” she echoed, stunned. “We don’t have that kind of money.”

“I understand,” the officer said gently. “But until a partial repayment is made, I’m afraid she can’t be released.”

Sophia covered her face with her hands for a moment, trying not to lose it completely. She felt the weight of the world pressing on her chest.

She looked at Kate again—her sister who had always been reckless, but never like this.

“I don’t know what to do right now,” Sophia whispered.

“You have to do something. I don't want to stay here,” Kate said, her voice cracking as she clutched Sophia’s arm.

Sophia nodded quickly, her voice soft but steady. “I’ll try everything I can, okay? I’ll talk to them. I’ll do my best to get you out fast.”

She stayed with her for a while, rubbing Kate’s back, whispering quiet reassurances even though her own heart felt like it was slowly caving in. After a few more words with the officer and a promise to come back early in the morning, Sophia finally left the station.

She considered heading straight to the hospital. Her chest was still tight, and the exhaustion was making her limbs feel heavy—but then she remembered. She hadn’t taken her coat… or her bag.

Her phone was still clutched in her hand, but everything else—her wallet, her keys was still at the office.

By the time she reached her office, it was a little past 7 p.m. The sky was already dark, the building quiet. She spoke to the security guard at the entrance.

“I forgot my bag,” she explained with a tired smile.

He gave a small nod, recognizing her, and buzzed her in.

The office was deserted, the soft hum of the lights the only sound as she walked down the hallway. Her heels clicked softly against the floor. She reached her desk and paused, then slowly sat down in her chair.

The moment she did, her body seemed to release everything it had been holding in all day.

She dropped her head onto the desk, tears silently slipping down her cheeks. No loud sobs. Just the quiet ache of someone who had held it together for too long.

After a few moments, she wiped her face with the sleeve of her shirt, sitting up slowly.

She reached for her things—coat, bag, everything she had forgotten in her rush. As she began clearing her desk, her eyes landed on a file she had almost forgotten about.

The contract.

Her fingers hovered over it for a second before she picked it up and opened it. She scanned the pages again, her eyes tracing the bolded title:

Marriage Agreement – One Year Term

Alexander Voss.

She exhaled shakily. Her fingers trembled slightly as she turned the page. Her mind was spinning.

Was this really her life now? A sister in trouble, lots of bills piling up, her heart threatening her every day—and now a contract marriage with her boss?

She leaned back in her chair, staring at the ceiling.

Maybe this was crazy.

But maybe crazy was all she had left.