The Contract Wife Tries to Leave - Chapter 8
Johanna gazed at her brother’s sky-blue eyes, which were still stormy with emotion, and patted his small, trembling shoulders a couple of times. Only then did she turn to look at her aunt and her family.
The eldest cousin had clearly taken a good hit from Daniel, with red bruises blooming on his left cheekbone and right jaw. As his mother fussed over him, stroking his face with concern, he angrily pushed her hand away. It was clear he was spoiled.
Johanna’s aunt sighed deeply in frustration and then turned her gaze towards them. Johanna blinked slowly and met her stare unflinchingly.
The aunt scowled irritably and soon approached, speaking in a tone that suggested she didn’t want to say it but had no choice.
“When your father borrowed money, he made you the guarantor.”
“…What?”
Stunned by the unexpected revelation, Johanna thought she might have misheard. But the aunt confidently pulled a neatly folded document from her coat and handed it to Johanna.
“The contract your father signed has your seal on it. Take a good look.”
“….”
With trembling hands, Johanna examined the contract, and sure enough, there was her signature and seal in the last box. She let out a hollow laugh in disbelief. It was absurd and pathetic that her father had used his skill at forging signatures for something like this.
When did he take my seal? Not remembering anything, she guessed he must have sneaked into her room while she was asleep to take it.
Johanna turned her hand over and stared blankly at the inside of her thumb. It was hard to believe that this finger had been used without her knowledge.
She felt stifled, unable to understand why her father would go to such lengths to borrow money from her aunt’s family.
“Ha…”
As Johanna let her hand holding the contract drop, her aunt quickly snatched it back. The way she grabbed it immediately suggested it was the original, not a copy.
Worried that I might tear it up, no doubt… Her aunt was else, she came to her sister’s funeral just to collect money from her struggling niece. It seemed she had to be that ruthless to rake in money.
“I’ll give you a generous one-year period. In that time, if you find your father, you can have him repay it. I won’t charge interest, so just pay back the principal within a year. Understand?”
“…”
What would her aunt say if she refused? Is that contract really valid? Even though the seal was used without her consent?
However, she had no one to turn to for advice. She certainly didn’t have the money to consult a lawyer.
In the end, she had no choice but to rely on the ‘mercy’ her aunt was so generously offering.
Her throat felt scratchy and her mouth bitter, as if she had swallowed sandpaper. Johanna carefully chose her words before speaking.
“I can’t repay it all within a year. I work as an illustrator, and my freelance income…”
Suddenly feeling an unfamiliar presence, Johanna stopped talking and froze.
She heard multiple footsteps approaching the funeral hall. Startled by the increasingly loud sound, Johanna lifted her head and looked towards the entrance.
There shouldn’t be anyone coming to the funeral…
Who could it be? It seemed like more than just one or two people.
‘Could it be father…?’
For a moment, Johanna held onto hope. But that hope was quickly shattered like an ice fragment.
“W-What is this? Loan sharks…?”
‘…Loan sharks?’
Overhearing her uncle’s startled muttering, Johanna froze. Feeling the warmth of Daniel’s hand holding hers, she looked at the ‘loan sharks’ with a sense of her blood running cold.
There were six of them. The man walking at the back seemed to be the leader, though she wasn’t sure. She thought so because of the unusual aura he exuded.
He was clearly a dominant alpha, with a strong build and striking features. He had the intimidating presence typical of a dominant alpha, one that even betas who couldn’t perceive pheromones found daunting.
Johanna’s gaze met his in midair for a moment.
He removed the cigarette from his mouth with his index and middle fingers and exhaled a puff of smoke. The lips from which the acrid smoke flowed formed a crooked line.
Unconsciously, Johanna stiffened and averted her eyes. The man’s air of boredom and danger made her feel small.
