Chapter 5 Worst Twelve Months 

Sarah’s POV

The moment that bastard, Johnson, stepped aside, I knew he was a certified, grade-A piece of trash.

He just stood there, hands shoved casually into his pants pockets, watching me like I was some amusing rerun on TV instead of a human being about to get her fingers broken.

"What are you doing, Johnson?!" I shrieked, instinctively using his first name as I backed up until my spine hit the cold, peeling plaster wall of the motel room.

The leader of the loan sharks, the heavy-set enforcer who had bruised my ribs three days ago, let out a low, disgusting laugh.

"Well, look at this. Seems like your boyfriend doesn't give a damn about you," he sneered, stepping closer. 

The smell of stale cheap cigars and heavy, sweat-rolled pack aura rolled off him so heavily it made my stomach turn. 

I didn't know what made me feel more nauseous, his revolting presence or the sheer betrayal of watching the billionaire Alpha stand by and let this happen.

"Time's up, girl," the rogue leader barked, grabbing my wrist in a crushing grip. "Where's our money?"

"I... I need more time, please!" I stammered, my voice shaking so violently I could barely recognize it myself. "Reid took everything! I swear, I'm trying to find a way…"

"I don't give a damn about Reid!" he growled, bending my hand backward until a sharp pain shot up my arm. "Pay up, or I start breaking fingers!"

What was I expecting from an arrogant Alpha like Johnson? 

He actually glanced down, casually adjusting his silver watch, totally unfazed by the violence happening right in front of him.

He looked at the loan shark leader, completely ignoring my existence. 

"How much does she owe you exactly?" he asked, his voice so calm and level that it drove me absolutely insane.

"Fifty thousand dollars in immediate interest," the enforcer spat, squinting at Johnson and finally realizing that this man looked far too wealthy to be standing in a dump like this. "Who the hell are you anyway?"

"I'm the guy who can write you a check that won't bounce," Johnson replied smoothly. He pulled a sleek, monogrammed leather checkbook out of his inner coat pocket. "Fifty thousand. Take it, erase her name from your ledger, and consider her debt to your rogue network settled permanently."

The leader's mouth twitched into a greedy smile as he snatched the check, inspecting the signature with hungry eyes. 

"Pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Hayes."

"The rest of us in this room aren't done," Johnson said, his tone icy, sharp, and suddenly full of lethal Alpha authority. "If I ever catch you or your enforcement thugs near her again, I will personally hunt down your pack alpha and skin you alive. Am I clear?"

The room went dead silent. 

The heavy threat in his voice sent violent shivers down my spine. 

Even the rogue leader lost his arrogant smile, taking a cautious step back before nodding stiffly and backing out of the broken doorway.

The moment they vanished into the hall, I collapsed against the wall, clutching my bruised hand and gasping for air.

"You absolute monster!" I choked out, tears of humiliation and rage spilling down my face. "You set me up! You used those thugs to force me into a corner!"

"It's called leverage, Sarah," Johnson said coldly, stepping toward the table and smoothing out the crumpled marriage contract he had picked up off the floor. "You refused my offer when you thought you had choices. Now you know you don't."

"This is blackmail! You're forcing me into a trap!"

"I'm saving your life and securing your family's estate," he countered, handing me a pen. "Sign the paper, Sarah. Or I call that enforcer back in here and let him finish what he started."

My hands trembled violently as I stared at the dotted line. 

Every fiber of my being wanted to spit in his face, but the terrifying reality of being broken, hunted, and bankrupt slammed down on me. I had nowhere else to go.

"Fine!" I screamed, the word ripping from my throat like a sob. "Fine! I'll sign your damn contract!"

I snatched the pen from his hand and signed my name at the bottom in jagged, desperate strokes. 

The contract felt like poison in my hands, every loop of my signature carving away another piece of my freedom, binding me to the most ruthless Alpha in the city.

Johnson picked up the paper, checking the signature with a faint, chilling nod of satisfaction. He slipped it neatly into his leather folder.

"Good," he said softly, looking down at me with dark, unreadable eyes. "Now we can start fixing the mess your father left behind."

"This isn't over, Johnson," I whispered, my jaw clenching as I glared up at him through my tears. "I will never forgive you for this."

A flicker of something dangerous crossed his eyes, but his expression remained a mask of stone. 

"Think whatever you want, Sarah," he replied coldly. "But as of right now, you belong to the Hayes Pack for the next twelve months.”

"And that will be the worst twelve months of your life," I murmured to myself.