The One Went Up in Flames

Amara’s POV

“If Marco loved me, this test would change everything. But if I had misjudged him… then one pink line might ruin both our lives.”

“Tell me, Amara, tell me, tell me!” Emma’s excitement spilled over her words, her voice higher than usual.

My hands trembled as I placed the pregnancy test kit on the table. “I don’t know what it says. You check. I’ve never used one before.”

Emma didn't need more encouragement. She slid into my spot, taking the kit with eager fingers. I stepped aside, heart hammering. Emma’s mother was a nurse, and Emma had practically grown up in the hospital halls. If anyone could read it right, it was her.

But then…. Silent. Emma’s eyes lingered on the test, unreadable.

“Don’t go quite on me,” I urged, voice sharp with nerves. “What does it say?”

She looked at me, then grinned so wide it nearly split her face. “We’re having little Marco.… and I’m going to be an aunt!” she shrieked.

“Shhh!” I slapped a hand over her mouth before she woke my Nonna. My grandmother would never understand our English chatter, but still, her frail body needed rest, not chaos.

Excitement and fear watered inside me. I managed a shaky whisper. “So…. What do we do now?”

“What do you mean?” Emma tilted her head, her eyes sparkling. “You tell Marco, of course. Then we can start planning the wedding.”

Her words should have filled me with warmth, but instead, I whispered, almost to myself, “A wedding. Yes…. That’s how it’s supposed to be.”

Emma squeezed my shoulder. “Don’t overthink. Just tell him.”

I didn't even wait to say goodbye. My legs carried me straight to Marco’s apartment, excitement overriding reason.

We hadn't spoken much about marriage yet, but Marco loved me. He would want this too.

Or so I thought.

When I reached his door, I hesitated, hand on the handle. That's when I heard it…. The unmistakable sound of a woman’s voice.

“So when do you plan on ending it with that dirty girl?”

My breath stilled.

Marco’s voice came next. “Which girl? I don't know what you're talking about.”

“Don’t play dumb. You know I mean Amara. I kept fucking you while you play house with her.”

I froze.

“You don't have to worry,” Marco said smoothly. “Amara and I…. It’s nothing serious. Just a fling.”

The words slammed into me—just a fling.

The stranger pressed further. “And what if this fling leads to pregnancy?”

Marco laughed. Laughed. “Pregnancy? That would never happen. And even if it did….. I’d never marry someone like Amara. She doesn't fit my status. I need someone like you.” His voice dipped lower, followed by the wet sound of a kiss.

The weight of my hand on the door handle suddenly became unbearable. My chest burned. My legs refused to move.

He wasn't my boyfriend. He wasn't my future. I was just a joke to him.

I ran before my sobs betrayed me, the night air cutting into my skin as hard as his words.

But where could I go? Nonna was waiting in our tiny apartment. I couldn't raise a child there. I couldn't even afford her medicine.

I pressed my palm to my mouth, mugging a sob. Emma’s words from earlier echoed cruelly: “If Marco truly loves you, he’ll stay. If he doesn't….you’ll finally know the truth,”

Truth. A blade sharper than any knife.

I thought of Nonna—my grandmother—her mind slipping further each day, forgetting my name, mistaking me for a stranger. Or the job I’d lost two weeks ago, the bills were piling higher than hope. Of Marco, who had sworn to build a future with me. Every memory was a thread fraying at the edges.

I walked blindly until neon lights and the stale stench of alcohol pulled me into a bar. Men turned their heads as I entered, their gazes sharp, unwelcoming. No other women. The bartender was a man, too.

I sat anyway. I needed to drown Marco’s betrayal, if only for a moment.

“Beer,” I muttered, my voice breaking.

When my phone rang, every eye snapped towards me. I turned my face away, clutching the phone like a lifeline.

It was Emma.

“ Amara….. Please get here now. Your Nonna tried to get up. She fell. They've admitted her, but won’t treat her until your debt is paid. I’m begging them, but they won't listen. Please, come quickly.”

My stomach dropped. My breath caught. Nonna….my only family, my reason for surviving.

I shoved back from the counter, ready to run….when gunfire cracked the air.

One shot. Then another.

Chaos erupted. The men who’d been watching me scattered instantly. Chairs overturned. The bartender vanished. My heart stopped as police sirens wailed outside.

Before I could move, rough hands yanked me back. Cold metal cuffs snapped around my wrists.

“Anything you say can and will be used against you.”

“No….. You don't understand!” I tried to protest, but the officers shoved me forward.

At the station, they herded me with the others. My mind was spinning….pregnancy, betrayal, Nonna, prison bars. My world was collapsing.

And then….

A voice boomed, commanding, the impossible to ignore. “ Get me my lawyer. Now. Do you know who I am?”

The guards tried to quiet him. He refused.

I turned towards the sound.

“And then our eyes met. Cold. Commanding. Dangerous. The man whose name was whispered with fear across Italy. The infamous Alessandro Vitale….the last man I should ever cross paths with…was staring directly at me.”