No Signature on Your Debt

In a previous life, Colby watched his parents, Eleanor and Frank Prewitt, sign away his newborn sister Kaitlyn's future on a mountain of loans. He begged them to stop, and they walked away. Years later, with Kaitlyn left with nothing, the family blamed Colby for robbing her of prosperity, and he died alone and despised.

Now the universe has rewound the tape. Colby sits once more in the loan officer's cubicle as his parents prepare to sign roughly four hundred thousand dollars in mortgage, auto, and equity debt in baby Kaitlyn's name. This time he stays silent, letting them believe he has finally grown sensible.

The pen touches the signature line, and Kaitlyn's tiny hand curls in the air. The house, the car, the standing, and every cent of the bill will be hers.