Chapter 46
Luca watched from the corner of his eye as little Nico bolted up the stairs, his small feet pounding each step in a desperate escape. Amber followed close behind, her voice trembling as she called his name, trying to calm him. Every fiber of Luca’s being wanted to follow them, to hold his son and assure Amber that none of this would take their family apart. But his steps faltered as a heavy hand clamped down on his shoulder, halting him in his tracks.
His uncle.
“You got that girl pregnant three years ago,” his uncle began, his tone patronizing, as if this were some casual truth that Luca had long since accepted. “It was a mistake—you admitted it yourself when the marriage fell apart. So why, Luca? Why let one mistake ruin the rest of your life? The boy will want for nothing. We’ll all take care of him.”
The words ignited a fury in Luca so sudden and hot it felt like it would consume him whole. He spun around, his eyes blazing with an intensity that made his uncle step back, startled.
“A \*mistake\*?” Luca hissed, his voice low and dangerous, trembling with barely contained rage. “Let me make something very clear. I might have said things—stupid things—when I was heartbroken, angry, and drowning in my own mess after Amber left. But never—\*never\*—have I so much as hinted, even in my darkest moment, that Nico was a mistake.”
He stepped closer to his uncle, his voice rising now, each word cutting through the room like a blade. “Neither his conception nor his birth was a mistake. Do you hear me? Nico is my \*son\*. My pride. My joy. And I will not—\*will not\*—stand here and listen to anyone, not you, not Mother, not anyone, insinuate otherwise!”
Luca’s chest heaved as he glared at the room, his anger spilling over like a dam had burst. His voice, now thunderous, echoed through the space. “I’ve had enough. Enough of the snide comments. Enough of the meddling. Enough of you all treating my son as though he’s some burden to shuffle around!” His finger jabbed toward the door, his command sharp and final. “Get out. All of you. \*Now.\*”
The silence that followed was deafening, broken only by the sound of Luca’s labored breathing.
Giulia’s mouth twitched, poised to spit out yet another cutting remark, but Luca cut her off before the venom could spill. His voice was sharp, his words clipped with cold precision.
“I don’t want to hear another word!” he thundered, his glare silencing even the faintest hint of protest. “Nico is my son, and he will stay with me and his mother. And don’t think for one second I’ve forgotten the disgraceful spectacle all of you made at his birth—questioning his parentage, planting doubts in my mind about whether he was even mine.” He pointed a trembling finger at his mother, his voice now trembling with both anger and regret. “I should have seen it for what it was then. The toxicity, the manipulation. I should’ve taken Amber and Nico far away from all of you the moment I realized it. Maybe then I wouldn’t have lost my marriage.”
Giulia gasped as though her son had struck her, her hand clutching her chest in dramatic disbelief. “\*Luca!\*” his sister admonished, her voice sharp but faltering as she glanced nervously between them.
But Giulia’s outrage couldn’t be contained. She surged forward, her face a mask of fury, her voice raised in a shrill cry. “\*This!\* This is what I’ve been afraid of all along!” she exclaimed, her tone dripping with self-righteous indignation. “It takes that witch no time—\*no time at all\*! She’s been here for what? Three weeks? \*Three weeks!\* And already, you’ve broken off your engagement with Carlotta, and now you’re standing here talking to me—\*to your family!\*—like we’re your enemies!”
Luca’s jaw tightened as his mother marched closer, her face a mirror of his anger. Her sharp eyes bored into his, undeterred by his rage, as she hissed, “I wonder why that is, hmm? Perhaps it’s because she is back into your bed!”
“Enough, Mother!” Luca’s voice cracked like a whip, but Giulia wasn’t finished. She stepped closer, her words venomous, her tone scathing.
“How long had you been sleeping with her?” she sneered, her lip curling in disgust. “That Cheap, conniving sluts who—”
“\*Stop!\*” Luca roared, his voice shaking the very walls. His face was crimson with fury, the veins on his forehead bulging as he glared at her, his entire body trembling with the effort to restrain himself. “Don’t you dare speak about Amber like that ever again!” He pointed toward the door, his voice low and deadly. “Get out, all of you. \*Now.\*”
Luca’s face was a mask of fury, his features twisted with an anger so raw it seemed to radiate off him like heat. The vein on his temple throbbed visibly, his jaw clenched so tightly it was a wonder his teeth didn’t shatter under the pressure. His skin flushed crimson, and his hands, balled into fists at his sides, trembled as he struggled to keep himself from exploding.
Giulia’s words hung in the air like a toxic cloud, her sneer digging into him like barbs.
“How long has she been warming your bed this time, huh, Luca?” she spat, her voice dripping with disdain, her sharp eyes daring him to deny it.
The room seemed to crackle with the intensity of his restrained rage. For a heartbeat, no one moved or spoke. Then Luca exploded.
“GET OUT, MOTHER!” he thundered, the words slamming into the room like a thunderclap. His voice was hoarse with suppressed fury, the sound guttural and raw as it tore from his throat. He stepped forward, his eyes blazing, his entire body vibrating with the effort to contain himself. “Now!”
The venom in his voice was unmistakable, a warning that even Giulia couldn’t ignore. But he wasn’t done. Turning sharply toward his sister, his tone dropped to something even more dangerous—a low, seething hiss that carried the weight of a barely contained storm.
“Get her out of here,” he ordered through gritted teeth, his voice laced with a chilling finality. His piercing gaze bore into his sister, making it abundantly clear he wasn’t asking. “Now. Or I swear, I’ll do something I’ll regret later.”
It was the way he said it—his words like a blade poised to strike, his entire being coiled tightly, ready to snap—that finally drove the point home. His sister’s eyes widened as realization dawned. Luca wasn’t bluffing. He was teetering on the very edge of his patience, one step away from losing control entirely.
She moved swiftly, placing a firm hand on Giulia’s arm, her voice faltering as she urged, “Come on, Mama. Let’s go.”
“\*Ma, please!\*” his sister pleaded desperately, rushing to Giulia’s side as the tension in the room reached a boiling point. Her voice wavered, but her grip on their mother’s arm was firm. “Ma, he’s not in his right mind right now. Please, we’ll talk to him later—when he’s calmer. \*Please!\*”
Giulia barely acknowledged her daughter, her eyes fixed on Luca with a venomous glare, her lips curled into a disdainful sneer. She was still spitting insults under her breath, each word a fresh dagger aimed at her son’s pride. But his sister tugged harder, physically pulling their mother back from Luca’s line of fire.
“\*Ma!\*” she begged again, more urgently now. “We need to leave—now.” Her wide, pleading eyes darted to their uncle, who stood nearby, arms crossed and face grim.
The older man sighed heavily. He stepped forward, his voice low and somber as he addressed his sister. “Giulia… enough. We should go.”
“You’ve said enough. We’ll talk to Luca when he’s in a better state of mind—when he’s thinking clearly and not letting his emotions cloud his judgment.”
Giulia’s eyes flashed with fury, but she allowed herself to be dragged toward the door.
Her uncle lingered a moment longer, turning back to Luca with a grim expression. He placed a heavy hand on Luca’s shoulder, his voice quieter but no less pointed. “You know, Luca,” he said slowly, “I was trying to help you. Trying to guide you toward what’s right. What happens after this… it won’t be something I can control. Just remember that.”
With that cryptic farewell and a final pat on the shoulder, Luca’s uncle exited the room, leaving behind an uneasy silence. Only one person remained now—Mr. Fiorentino.