Page 23 of Secret Seduction

Another one presses a button on the elevator, probably shutting it down so nobody can use it, and another one goes to the side entrance to block it.

“You’re going to regret this!” Eric barks.

“I don’t think I will.” Matteo shrugs. “Now, if you want your stepdaughter, you’re going to have to tell us why … and I suggest you go with the truth because if I catch you lying, I’m going to put a bullet in your brain and end this conversation.”

Since the mayor is focused on Matteo, I slip my phone out and press record so we’ll have evidence of this conversation in case we need it later.

“Santiago,” Eric breathes, shaking like a leaf. “He donated to my campaign. But even with the millions he contributed, I wasn’t going to win. Paul was the town favorite, especially since his father had been the previous mayor. So, Santiago took him out in exchange for me agreeing to push you and your brother out of town.”

We always suspected that the car accident Paul Astor Jr. was in mere weeks before the election wasn’t an accident, but we could never prove it.

Matteo tsks. “That was a stupid thing to promise, and we already know all this.”

“When I couldn’t come through, he told me I’d need to pay back the money he gave me, but I don’t have it,” he cries.

“You should be one of the spokespeople for the don’t gamble ads,” Matteo smarts, making me chuckle and the mayor glare.

“I’m not playing games with you!” the mayor hisses.

“That’s probably for the best.” Matteo presses the gun harder into his forehead, and the mayor whimpers. “Seeing as you suck at playing them, hence the debt you’ve accumulated and the precarious position you’ve put yourself and your family in.”

“Please,” Eric pleads, changing his tone. “He’s coming after my family. You already know they tried to go after Nicole.”

“And Vanessa isn’t your family?” I ask, curious about the woman who’s currently passed out on my couch.

The mayor grimaces. “Sometimes, we have to make sacrifices. She’s a virgin—” He glares my way. “At least, she was. And Santiago said he’d accept her and wipe my debt clean.”

What a piece of shit. A man like him doesn’t deserve to be the mayor of this town. He claims to be a religious family man, sitting in the front pew of the church every Sunday, yet he’s willing to give his stepdaughter to a psycho bitch.

Speaking of which … he keeps referring to Santiago as a him, which means he either knows who she is and doesn’t want us to know, or he still thinks she’s a he. I note to mention that to Matteo once we’re alone.

But for now …

“Vanessa isn’t going anywhere with you,” I say, shocking the hell out of myself. I might be pissed at what she did, but I’m not letting her get trafficked.

“Don’t be stupid!” the mayor barks. “He’s going to kill us. The deal was made, and when he finds out you have her, he’s going to kill you too. You’ve seen what he’s capable of. He’s a psychopath who lives to fuck with people. He’s not going to stop until he gets her or kills us all.”

“Then you’d better figure out how to pay back your debt quickly.” I smirk. “Because she’s married to me, and I’m not giving her back. Besides, like you said”—I lean in and waggle my brows—“she’s no longer a virgin.”

Eric growls and opens his mouth to argue, but Matteo shoves the barrel of his gun into his mouth, shutting him up.

“Walk the fuck away, Mr. Mayor. Now.”

Matteo shoves the gun further into his mouth, and Eric coughs and splutters, drool dripping down the sides of his lips as Matteo chokes him with the gun.

When he removes it, Eric sucks in a harsh breath, and Matteo nods toward one of his men, silently telling him to take him away.

“Please!” the mayor cries as he’s dragged out of the lobby. “He’s going to come after all of us! Just give her to me, and I’ll lie, say she’s still a virgin. He’ll never know.”

Once he’s gone, Matteo puts his gun away, and I pull out my phone.

“I recorded the conversation.”

Matteo’s brow hits his forehead. “All of it?”

“Yep. Everything, including him admitting that he was aware of Paul being injured so he could be elected.”

“Good work, Russo.” Matteo raises his fist, and we bump knuckles. “Send it to me, and I’ll see how Dominick wants to handle the mayor. We’ve kept that asshole alive long enough. He doesn’t know anything we don’t know. Hell, he still thinks Santiago is a man.”