Page 5 of Queen of Vice

They both made valid points, even though they were slightly flawed. As we ate earlier, I had already thought about it and knew that he couldn't possibly be involved in what happened with my aunt and missing sister.

He had no reason to care or be concerned with who any of us were. However, there wasno doubt in my mind that he knew something. I wasn’t desperate enough to ask him yet. I didn’t know how to go about even doing so and I hoped for all our sakes I’d never have to figure that out. No one would willingly consort with the devil unless touched by madness. I looked back at the house and spotted my grandmother not so discreetly watching us from the front bay window.

“And what are we going to do about that?” Melody asked.“ Your nonna is not going to let you become Nancy Drew. You’re all she has left besides Luis, and we all know what a massivecazzohe is.”

I laughed. “I can placate her for now. At least until I’m confident enough to lie to her face.”

Peyton turned and grinned at me slyly.

“What?”

“Your mama would be proud.”

“Would she? My father wouldn’t,” I mused, feeling the familiar pang in my heart when I thought of them.

It had been years, and the ache still hadn’t dulled. Losing Aunt Molly and not having my sister had brought it all back. Grief was like a relentless storm that I couldn't escape. Some days, it raged with such ferocity that it threatened to engulf me. On others, it became a familiar drizzle, a constant presence that oddly anchored me in its persistence. If there ever came a day that the storm ceased; I’d be dead.

“I think they’d both be proud of you for coming back here when you have every reason to run,” Peyton said softly.

I wasn’t so sure about that. My parents had known exactly how brutal and unforgiving their world was. I couldn’t be sure they’d ever intended on having kids, but nonetheless, here I was. “I want to say one more time, whoever is behind this won’t like anyone digging into it. You two don’t have to help me.”

“If you’re doing anything remotely insane and chaotic, you won’t be doing it alone,” Melody countered.

Peyton nodded in agreement. “She’s right. No matter what happens, we do this together. Besides, you’re going to need us.”

I relented with a sigh. “As long as it doesn’t endanger either of you. I would never be able to live with myself if something happened to you guys because of me.”

“It wouldn’t be because of you,” Mel reasoned.

I looked at them and could practically feel their love for me. Distance—being worlds apart—hadn’t severed our bond in the slightest. It felt like we were picking up right where we left off. I was blessed to have them. Which is why I felt terrible about not divulging the truth about Eva. It’s not like I didn’t want to. I would’ve loved to bare my soul and confess my sister wasn’t in that casket.

But I couldn’t.

Not yet.

Revealing that kernel of truth felt so much more dangerous than telling them I wanted to know who was behind what happened to her and Aunt Molly.

“Let me get inside. She’ll stand there all night if I don’t.” I opened the door and was immediately engulfed in heat. “I’ll text you guys.”

I made my way into the house, feeling as if I’d been cast in a horror movie. Any second now, Aunt Molly would appear and point in the direction I came from, warning me to turn back and stay the hell away from here. I smiled to myself, hearing her Southern voice in my head.If only I could do that Molls.

My grandmother and uncle were in the foyer before I was all the way inside, one concerned and the other visibly annoyed. She had to of moved pretty damn fast to get here before I did.

“Are you alright?”

“You’ve gotta be missing some brain cells, girl. You wanna run off, take someone with you,” my uncle’s raspy voice drowned out her question.

“Like who? You?”

He opened and closed his mouth, no words coming out. He’d clearly forgotten how far our house had fallen, too caught up in his feelings.

“You can’t just go off on your own, Elena,” he practically growled.

“I wasn’t alone, and Grandma was fine with it. Besides, I rode with Peyton and Melody. You remember them, right?”

His mouth opened and closed, the tick in his jaw a tell. There wasn’t anything he could say about that. Both of them came from families of much higher standing than ours these days. Families that probably would’ve destroyed what remained of us Castello’s long ago if not for my friendship with their children. Not only had I lucked out with the greatest of friends, but their families weren’t like the restof the power-hungry savages around here. They were content with what they had while remaining prominent by their own consistent methods.

Uncle Luis blinked, his round dark eyes blazing into mine before roaming over my body from head to toe. It made me highly uncomfortable. He’d always been an unusual guy, but at least back then he didn’t look at me the way he does now. My father would’ve killed him—brother or not. Doing my best to ignore his sick probing, I diverted my eyes to Grandma.

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