Page 50 of Queen of Vice

Melody exchanged a glance with Peyton before asking, “Did something happen last night between you two?”

“Besides the obvious,” Peyton added, his tone dry but concerned.

I took a shaky breath, trying to find the right words. “He...was upset about me wanting birth control,” I confessed, my voice barely above a whisper. As I said it aloud, the realization hit me like a freight train. I still hadn’t gotten any kind of morning-after contraception, and he had come inside me again, repeatedly, the night before.

“What the actual fuck?” Melody’s voice cut through my thoughts, sharp and filled with outrage. “That isn’t his decision.”

“It’s screwed up, but for men like Mateo, yes it is,” Peyton interjected, running a hand through his hair, his frustration evident.

I noticed then that both of them were dressed in new clothes as well, but instead of the full glam I had seen them in last night, they were in refined, comfortable outfits—casual, but still expensive-looking.

“We were woken up by someone pounding on our room door,” Peyton continued, his voice strained. “They handed me this fob and instructed me to have you at Mr. Escuro's by eleven. I was told if I didn’t, he would have you brought to him by his own methods.”

He paused, then reached across the console and grabbed a manila folder off the dash. “Look at this.” He handed it to me.

With trembling hands, I flipped it open. My brow furrowed and my neck stiffened as I registered what I was looking at. It was a deed to my parents’ estate—with Mateo’s name on it.

Before I could even process that, another document joined it—a promissory note with a sum that made my head spin. My uncle's name was scrawled beneath it, clear as day.

“I don’t...what the fuck is going on?” My voice cracked as I flipped the folder shut, feeling the world tilting off its axis.

“This isn’t just about you,” Peyton said quietly. “It’s about everything—your family, your past, and whatever else Mateo’s planning. We’re in way deeper than we thought.”

I knew he would have an ulterior motive. There was no way Mateo would help me out of kindness, and there was even less reason for him to make me his wife. I voiced as much to Peyton and Melody as Peyton pulled out of the parking spot, the luxury car gliding effortlessly onto the road.

“But why didn’t he just take me with him on his own? Why involve you two?” I asked, my frustration bubbling to the surface. The more I thought about it, the less sense itmade—unless there was something even more twisted going on.

Peyton glanced at me in the rearview mirror, his expression somber. “We’re already involved because we’re close to you. Yeah, he could’ve taken you with him whenever he left, but that isn’t how the Escuros work.”

Melody nodded, her gaze fixed out the window as if trying to process everything herself. “They don’t just control the person they’re targeting—they control everyone around them. It’s a power play, showing you that no matter what, he’s in charge. By involving us, he’s making sure you know how deep his influence goes.”

I slumped back in my seat, my mind racing. Peyton was right; Mateo could’ve just taken me, but he didn’t. He wanted to show me that I wasn’t just dealing with him—I was dealing with a family, a network, a world of power that extended far beyond anything I’d ever known.

And now, because of me, Peyton and Melody were caught in the middle of it too. The weight of the situation pressed down on me, the reality of what I’d gotten myself—and them—into sinking in deeper with every passing second.

“I’m sorry,” I blurted out, the guilt twisting in my gut. The weight of everything that had happened, and everything that was to come, felt like it was pressing down on my chest. I knew I had dragged Peyton and Melody into something dangerous, and the thought of them getting hurt because of me was unbearable.

Peyton didn’t miss a beat. He slammed his hand against the steering wheel, cursing under his breath. “Don’t you dare apologize, El. Not again. You think I didn’t know what I was signing up for when I agreed to help you? I’m not some naive kid. I knew the risks.”

His tone was sharp, but there was something else there too—a fierce protectiveness that made my heart ache.

He glanced at me in the rearview mirror, his gaze softening just a fraction. “You’re my friend. That means something to me. So cut the crap and stop apologizing.”

Melody, sitting beside me, reached over and grabbed my hand, her touch a grounding force amidst the chaos swirling in my mind. “Peyton’s right,” she said, her voice steady but laced with concern. “We’re in this together. We chose to be here with you, and we’re not going anywhere. So don’t even think about trying to shoulder all of this alone.”

Peyton grunted in agreement, his focus back on the road, but his knuckles were still white against the steering wheel. “We’ve got your back, El. Just don’t shut us out, okay?”

I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat. The words I wanted to say—how much their support meant to me—got stuck somewhere between my heart and my mouth.

I flipped the folder open again and stared at the promissory note, the words blurringslightly as I tried to make sense of it all. My uncle’s name was right there, bold and undeniable, alongside a sum of money that made my head spin. And then there was the date—two months before my aunt was killed and Eva went missing.

My stomach twisted into knots. “Why would Mateo have this? And what does it mean for the house? My parents’ estate?” I asked, my voice laced with confusion and rising anxiety.

Peyton’s grip on the steering wheel tightened, his knuckles whitening. “El, this note means your uncle owes Mateo a lot of money. And if the deed to the estate is in Mateo’s name now, it means your uncle used it as collateral. Mateo owns your family home.”

I blinked, trying to process the information. “But...why? Why would he do that? And why was this all set into motion two months before Aunt Molly was killed? Before Eva disappeared?”

Melody’s eyes widened as she caught on to what I was implying. “Wait...you don’t think...”

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