Family Bonds- Gabriela & Luca (Amore Island #26)

Prologue

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Luca asked as he slipped on his jacket before his night shift.

He rarely worked nights, but the pediatric ER attending was on vacation and the department was short-staffed. Instead of being on call, he was covering the weekend overnight shifts.

“I’m fine,” Zoe said. She gave him a small smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “It’s just a headache. You know I get them all the time. I’ll take something, do my breathing, and enjoy the quiet. I’ll be out like a light.”

He hesitated, studying her a moment longer than necessary.

“Text me before you go to bed,” he said.

“I will.”

He wrapped an arm around her narrow waist, pulled her close, brushed a strand of hair off her cheek, and kissed her once, then again, before murmuring, “I love you,” against her mouth.

“I love you too.” Her hand reached for his and gave it a little squeeze like she always did.

Two hours into his shift, his phone vibrated in his pocket. He checked it between patients and smiled despite himself.

It was a picture from Zoe.

Candles were lit across the kitchen table. Power’s out, but it’s kind of cozy. Going to bed in about an hour.

She was feeling better at least. He slid the phone away and went back to work.

An hour later, a nurse hurried toward him. “Car accident incoming, Dr. Brewer. Two pediatric patients. Multiple fractures. One unconscious.”

Luca exhaled once, then a second time harder. This was why he hated the ER now and was glad that he’d given himself options in his career. “Got it.”

He jogged alongside the gurney as it burst through the ambulance bay doors. There was blood, screaming, and somewhat controlled chaos by the EMTs.

“Compound fracture to the left leg,” one called out. “Get the OR prepped now.”

His phone vibrated again. It kept going, but he ignored it. If it was important, someone would track him down. They always did.

Three hours later, after both children were finally stabilized, his name echoed over the intercom.

“Dr. Brewer to the nurse’s station.”

He stepped out of another exam room and approached the desk. “I was paged?”

“There’s a call on line three,” the nurse said. “They said it’s an emergency. The caller was… hysterical.”

Cold slid down his spine for no reason at all. People were always hysterical in the ER.

Yet this just felt different.

“They didn’t give a name?”

She shook her head.

His hand went to his pocket to pull out his phone.

Missed calls. Too many to count.

All from the same number.

His neighbor.

“Fuck,” he breathed. He grabbed the phone and hit line three. “Carly?”

“Luca.” Carly’s voice broke. “It’s your house. It’s on fire.”

The room tilted, his stomach pitched. “What?”

“It’s—God—it’s completely engulfed. They’ve been fighting it for hours. You need to come home.”

“Is Zoe okay?” Luca demanded. “Is she out? Is she safe?”

“I—I don’t know.” Carly sobbed. “They won’t let anyone near it. I called the fire department when I saw the flames. The power was out. That’s what caught my eye.”

Luca hung up and immediately dialed Zoe.

It was ringing. Once. Twice. Voicemail.

“She’s not answering,” he said numbly, the words barely audible to anyone other than himself.

His hands were slick with sweat. His heart slammed against his ribs. He was pretty sure all the color escaped from his face.

“What’s wrong?” the nurse asked.

“My house is on fire,” he said, his eyes not focused on anything. “My wife isn’t answering her phone.”

Another attending was already stepping in. “Go. We’ve got this covered.”

He didn’t wait for anything else.

He ran.

The drive home was a blur, then red lights and sirens he barely registered a block away. When he got closer to his street, his stomach dropped.

Flames roared where his home once stood.

He slammed the car into park and bolted, leaving the engine running and the door hanging open.

“You can’t go past here,” a firefighter shouted, stepping into his path.

“It’s my house,” he said hoarsely. “My wife was inside. Where is she?”

The firefighter waved someone over. The assistant chief.

“No one has been able to enter,” the assistant chief said carefully. “It’s too unstable. When we arrived, the second floor was fully involved.”

“Our bedroom is upstairs,” he whispered.

The world went silent. Then there was a horrible echoing in his ears. A roaring. A sign that nothing was going to be right ever again.

“Luca.” He turned at the sound of his name. Carly stood nearby, her eyes red, her face gray. “Come sit with us,” she said gently.

He didn’t remember moving, only that suddenly he was waiting in their living room. Hours passed. The fire finally died.

Then they brought her out. On a gurney. In a black bag.

He surged forward, breaking away, his hand going for the zipper.

“Don’t,” the assistant chief said quietly, placing a hand on his shoulder. “There’s nothing you can see that will make this easier.”

Luca collapsed to his knees and the sound that tore from his chest wasn’t human at all.