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CHAPTER EIGHT.
Terakhir Diperbarui:
2025-01-03 16:22:32
Bab terkait
BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER NINE.
Sophie heard the faint creak of the bathroom door and turned to see Drake emerging, his hair damp and pushed back, droplets of water clinging to his skin. He looked refreshed, like a man who had reclaimed control after losing it entirely. But the moment their eyes met, she knew something was different.Gone was the faint vulnerability she had glimpsed last night. His expression was unreadable, his eyes cold and distant.“Feeling better?” she asked hesitantly, her voice softer than she intended.“Fine,” he replied curtly, moving past her without a second glance.The distance in his tone caught her off guard. She had spent the entire night nursing him back to health, watching over him when he was at his weakest. Now, it was as though none of it had ever happened.Sophie forced herself to breathe, brushing off the unease creeping into her chest. It’s just the fever, she told herself. He’s probably still recovering.“I made breakfast,” she said, trying to bridge the gap forming between th
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-03BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER TEN.
The next morning, Sophie woke up to the soft knock of the maid on her door. Her body felt heavier than usual, her mind clouded with lingering exhaustion. She glanced at the clock on her bedside table—it was past ten. Strange. She hadn’t slept in this late in years.“Ma’am?” the maid called again, her voice was hesitant.Sophie sighed, dragging herself out of bed and opening the door. The maid stood there, holding a sleek black card in her gloved hand.“This is from Mr. Hazelwood,” she said, her eyes fixed on the floor, as though afraid to meet Sophie’s gaze.Sophie’s brows furrowed. “What is it?”“A black card, ma’am,” the maid said softly. “He asked me to deliver it to you this morning before he left yesterday .”Sophie stared at the card, her heart was a mixture of irritation and curiosity. So, this was his version of an apology? No explanation. No effort to actually address what had happened. Just a shiny piece of plastic with a limitless balance. Typical Drake Hazelwood.She took
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-14BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER ELEVEN.
When Sophia woke, her body screamed in protest. A sharp, radiating ache started at her wrists, tied so tightly that the rope burned into her skin. Her head throbbed, each pulse sending a wave of nausea through her. Blinking against the dim light, she tried to take in her surroundings. The room was bare with cold concrete walls, and a single dangling bulb casting long, shifting shadows, and silence so heavy it pressed down on her chest.Her breath hitched as the events leading to this moment began to claw their way back to her consciousness. The black card. The shopping spree. The silence in the house. And then the chloroform.She tried to shift, only to realize her ankles were bound to the legs of the chair. Panic surged in her chest, but she forced herself to stay still. Panic never helped anyone escape.The door creaked open, the sound slicing through the silence like a blade. A man stepped in, he was tall, broad-shouldered, and shrouded in shadow. The dim light barely touched his f
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-25BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER TWELVE.
The man stood, pacing the room with deliberate slowness. The sound of his footsteps echoed like a countdown to her inevitable breaking point. “You think this will end without you talking? You think silence buys you freedom?” He let out a low chuckle, one that sent shivers crawling up her spine. “No. Silence buys you more pain.”He pulled a small leather bag from the corner of the room and placed it on the table. He unzipped it slowly, the sound cutting through the air. One by one, he pulled out tools—pliers, a scalpel, and something that looked disturbingly like a branding iron.Sophia’s heart thundered in her chest. She fought to keep her face neutral, but her body betrayed her. Her hands, though bound, trembled. Her breath quickened.He noticed.“There it is,” he murmured, a smile tugging at his lips. “Fear.”Sophia clenched her jaw, anger flaring briefly beneath her terror. She wanted to spit at him, to lash out, but she was helpless. Bound. At his mercy.He picked up the scalpel,
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-26BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER THIRTEEN.
Sophie’s heart raced in her chest, her mind was spinning as she sat tied to the chair, her wrists burning from the coarse rope that cut into her skin. The room was dim. She didn’t need to look around, she had been in this place long enough to memorize every detail, every crack in the walls. But it was the door that she focused on now, the door through which they would come for her, just like they always did. How predictable.She wasn’t sure how long it had been since they’d captured her, weeks? Months? Time had become a blur in this hellhole, but she knew one thing for sure, she had to escape. It was the only thing that kept her from breaking. She had to leave the Godforsaken place at anycost.The sound of footsteps echoed down the hall outside the room. Her stomach dropped instantly. It was him. She could feel it, the tension that came with it, the malevolent presence. He had come to deliver the news, or maybe worse, to gloat, to mock and to act stupid.Sophie took a deep breath,
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-02-08BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER FOURTEEN.
Her eyes fluttered slowly as she began to wake up. A dull ache settled in her muscles, making her wince, and when the bright light from the window hit her face, she squeezed her eyes shut again. Everything felt hazy, her mind struggling to piece things together. She took a slow, measured breath before forcing her eyes open again. The ceiling above her was unfamiliar, soft cream with intricate moldings that looked expensive. Slowly, she turned her head, taking in her surroundings. The room was beautiful, almost unreal. The furniture was modern yet elegant, like something out of a luxury hotel. The air smelled of fresh linen, mixed with something warm, something unmistakably him. Her fingers curled around the sheets, her heart pounding harder. Where was she? Then, like a dam breaking, the memories from the night before crashed down on her all at once. The running. The fear. The exhaustion. And then… him. Drake. She had turned and seen him standing there. The shock had hit her so
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-02-12BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER FIFTEEN.
Sophie stirred, the warmth of the bed unfamiliar yet oddly comforting. A weight pressed against her, something firm and solid. Her breath hitched as her senses slowly returned, and reality settled in.She blinked, her vision adjusting to the dim lighting of the hotel room. Her body ached, the events of the past days crashing down on her like a tidal wave. She turned her head slightly—and froze.Drake.He was lying beside her, his arm draped over her waist as if shielding her even in sleep. His breathing was slow, steady, and far too close. She barely had time to process before she realized just how entangled they were.Her leg was hooked around his. Their bodies pressed together, his warmth seeping into her skin through the thin fabric of the clothes she didn’t even remember changing into. Her heart pounded against her ribs.Carefully, she shifted, trying to ease herself out of his hold without waking him. But as soon as she moved, his grip tightened slightly, fingers twitching agains
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-02-12BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER SIXTEEN.
Sophie didn’t say a word for the rest of the ride. Her fingers curled around the fabric of her dress, gripping it tightly as she stared straight ahead. His words kept ringing in her head. No, Sophie. She’s not. Her mind was running through every possible explanation, but none of them made sense. If Althea wasn’t Drake’s sister, then—She swallowed. The little girl had his eyes. His smile. His everything. She turned her head slightly, sneaking a glance at him. Drake’s expression was unreadable as he drove, his jaw tight, his hands gripping the steering wheel like it was the only thing grounding him. Why didn’t he tell her? Sophie knew she wasn’t entitled to anything. But still, it stung. She turned back toward the window, her mind spinning with questions. By the time they pulled up at the hotel, her thoughts were still a mess. Drake killed the engine, leaning back slightly. He finally turned to her, his voice softer than usual. “Sophie—” “Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked,
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-02-12
Bab terbaru
BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER FIFTY ONE.
The silence between them was stretching again, heavy like fog, thick enough to choke on if you weren’t careful, and Sophie didn’t know what scared her more, the fact that Drake looked like he was ready to talk, or the fact that it had taken this long for him to decide she deserved the truth.They sat by the fire that night, no food, no glasses of wine, no soft music humming in the background like the last time, just them and the low crackle of burning wood, and for once, no one was pretending things were fine.Drake looked tired, more than tired, he looked worn thin at the edges like a photograph that had been touched too many times, and his fingers were twitching slightly, as if there were words trapped under his skin trying to claw their way out.“I’ve been finding out more than I should,” he said finally, voice low, rough, not from anger but from the weight of everything he hadn’t said—and Sophie didn’t interrupt, just waited, because she knew the dam was about to break.“Everythin
BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER FIFTY.
Sophie was absolutely restless She lay in the massive bed that never quite felt like hers, she tangled in sheets that were too smooth, and too cold. The letters from Catherine Vale played on a loop in her mind, whispering warnings she couldn’t decipher. A name she didn’t recognize. A woman she supposedly didn’t know. But the familiarity in Miriam’s eyes haunted her, and the unease in Drake’s silence only made it worse.She turned to her side, her eyes drifting toward the window where the moon spilled silver across the carpet. The mansion was quiet—too quiet. Not even the wind dared stir. It was the kind of silence that pressed in from all sides, the kind that made secrets feel like they were breathing just beneath the surface.Her fingers brushed over the edge of her pillow, and she felt it, the softest crunch of paper. She blinked, sitting up slowly. There, tucked beneath the pillowcase, was a folded piece of paper.Her heart thumped as she opened it.“I noticed you didn’t eat much
BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER FORTY NINE.
Sophie couldn’t shake the unsettling feeling as she sat in the living room, staring at the photograph of Miriam that still rested on the coffee table. The woman in the picture was so beautiful, so elegant, yet there was something deeply familiar about her. Sophie couldn’t deny the growing realization that they looked alike, no, they almost looked like the same person. She rubbed her temples, trying to push the thought away, but it lingered, gnawing at her like a persistent itch.Her breath caught as her mind replayed Drake’s vague answer to her earlier question. “Did Miriam live here?” she had asked, unable to suppress the curiosity bubbling inside her.“Yes,” was all he had said.But then she had pressed him further, and he refused to elaborate. “Where did she stay?” Sophie had asked, her voice quiet yet insistent.Drake’s eyes had briefly avoided hers, and then he’d given an answer that didn’t make sense. “I’ll be in the office. We’ll talk later.”That was all he’d offered before re
BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER FORTY EIGHT.
Sophie was going through the black box again when she found the an old photograph, It was tucked beneath a bundle of letters, almost like it didn’t want to be seen. But when her fingers brushed it, it slipped free and landed face-up in her lap. She felt the breath left her lungs.The woman in the picture was smiling wide and so bright , like the world was kind. Her eyes held something soft and something so familiar but Sophie couldn’t grasp whatever it was. She wore a pale yellow dress, and the wind had caught the hem, making it lift slightly and behind her, the sunlight spilled across a garden Sophie didn’t recognize.She stared at it with mixed emotions because the woman looked exactly like her. Not a little and definitely not a maybe. The woman looked like a replica of her. With the same eyes, the same jawline and even the same way her lips tilted slightly to the left when she smiled, the curve of her neck looked identical as well.Her body went still and she kept looking at the p
BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER FORTY SEVEN.
The morning light crept in slowly, but Sophie was already awake, sitting by the window, legs pulled up to her chest, eyes far away. She hadn’t said much after watching the video the night before, just went quiet, her thoughts clearly louder than anything else. Drake had stayed, close enough to make sure she was okay, far enough not to smother her.She turned her head slightly when he walked in, fresh from a shower, towel around his neck, shirt damp near the collar.“We’re going somewhere,” he said.Her voice was hoarse. “Where?”He paused, met her eyes. “Where it all started.”And for a moment, she didn’t even need him to say it—she already knew.Edward’s mansion.Her heart sank a little. That place used to be her entire world. Not just brick and glass and luxury, but memories, laughter, screams behind closed doors, and love too—yes, love that somehow still lingered in the echoes of those walls. It had been home. It had been heartbreak. And Edward… Edward had once loved her so deeply,
BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER FORTY SIX.
The screen flickered to life, the shaky camera showing Edward’s study dimly lit, the light from the desk lamp casting long shadows on the walls, Edward looked like he hadn’t slept in days, his eyes were bloodshot, there was sweat on his forehead, and his hands trembled as he reached forward and adjusted the camera.“If you’re watching this,” his voice cracked, barely steady, “then I’m probably already dead… or missing.”Sophie froze, her breath caught in her throat, Drake moved closer behind her, staring over her shoulder, both their eyes glued to the screen, not a single sound passed between them except the buzz of electricity and Edward’s shaking voice.“I need you to know… I was never the real target,” Edward said, glancing behind him like someone might burst in any second, “they made me believe I had something they wanted, but this—this is bigger than me, Sophie, bigger than anything I thought I was involved in.”Her heart thumped against her chest like it wanted to escape, she tu
BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER FORTY FIVE.
Being in this world alone sucks, but being in this world around people who think you’re a fool is the worst.Sophie was on the verge of insanity, her mind was going in circles, and she trying to make sense of everything in her life. First, there was Lucas, then, definitely not Drake, but he was the only hope she had left, so she couldn’t quite count him out.She huffed out a resolute sigh and walked into his bedroom, finding him sitting and working on his laptop.She sat down next to him.“Drake?” she called softly.He replied with a distracted hum, his eyes still glued to the screen.“Could you keep the laptop aside, please?” she muttered, her tone mockingly sweet.He nodded, closed the laptop, and turned fully to her.Being in this world alone sucks, but being in this world surrounded by people who think you’re a fool? That’s worse.Sophie was on the verge of insanity. Her mind kept going in circles, trying to make sense of everything happening in her life. First, there was Lucas. A
BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER FORTY FOUR.
The mansion felt suffocating. Sophie had spent hours trying to find something—anything—that could tell her where Lucas had gone. But the security system was useless. The footage was gone, wiped clean like the night had never happened. Whoever had taken Lucas had planned this too well. She tried again, typing commands into the security system’s console, digging through the data logs. Nothing. The last recorded footage had been from the previous evening. After that? Blackness. Drake was leaning against the wall, watching her with his usual unreadable expression. “You’re wasting your time.” Sophie clenched her jaw. “So we just do nothing?” Drake exhaled through his nose. “There are other ways to find him.” She turned in her chair. “Like what?” Drake didn’t answer. Instead, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out, glanced at the screen, and swore under his breath. Without a word, he walked out of the room. Sophie let out a frustrated sigh. She knew one thing—Drake was kee
BOUND BY THE BILLIONAIRE LAWYER. CHAPTER FORTY THREE.
The mansion felt wrong. Sophie had spent enough time there to recognize the subtle shifts in the air, the way silence could stretch too thin, the way emptiness could settle in like a living thing. But this? This was different. She knew it the second she stepped into Lucas’s room. The bed was empty. The blankets had been tossed aside, the pillows slightly dented, as if someone had left in a hurry. The lamp beside the bed was still on, casting weak light across the dark wooden floors. Sophie’s pulse spiked. “Lucas?” Silence. She moved deeper into the room, scanning for anything—any sign of where he might have gone. The window was shut. The closet door was slightly ajar, clothes hanging haphazardly. His shoes were still there. But his jacket? Gone. A sick feeling twisted in her gut. Lucas had barely been able to sit up on his own earlier. There was no way in hell he could have just—walked out. Not without help. Or not without being forced. Sophie’s st
