Love Ablaze
5.0
Comment(s)
2
View
25
Chapters

Joana Cameron's life crumbles in an instant when she loses her daughter, Paige, just after finding out about her husband's affair with her sister. Devastated and betrayed by the people she trusted most, Joana discovers that the fire was no accident and that her husband's affair may be just the beginning of a deeper, darker conspiracy. With the help of a mysterious lawyer, Arthur Reid, Joana embarks on a dangerous quest for truth and justice. As secrets unravel and the stakes rise, Joana must navigate a web of lies, betrayal, and unexpected alliances, all while confronting a shocking revelation that could destroy everything she holds dear.

Chapter 1 Cheater!

"Momma, where are you?" Paige's weak voice crackled through the phone's speakers, trembling with fear.

Joana gripped the steering wheel tighter, her heart pounding. "I'm on my way, baby. Just take deep breaths," she replied, trying to keep her voice calm, though her mind was filled with worry.

She drove as fast as she could without drawing the attention of the police. Every second felt like an eternity, and just when she thought she was making good time, she came across a red light. It felt like a cruel joke, as if the universe was conspiring against her.

The traffic light seemed to mock her, taking a really long time to turn green. Joana drummed her fingers on the steering wheel anxiously, her eyes darting between the traffic light and the road ahead. Finally, when the light turned green, she stepped on the gas pedal.

Joana's hands shook as she parked the car and sprinted into the house. "Paige, I'm hom..." Her voice caught in her throat when she saw a pair of panties on the sofa.

She approached slowly, her heart sinking with each step. The panties were pink, a color Joana never wore, and it was far too large to belong to Paige.

Heavy footsteps thudded on the stairs behind her, and Joana turned to see a naked woman bolting down the steps. Joana's eyes widened in shock as she recognized the woman, Martha, her sister.

James, her husband, appeared on the stairs, chasing after Martha. The color drained from his face when he saw Joana standing there, frozen in disbelief.

"Jo-joana, it's n-not what it looks like," James stuttered, but Joana barely heard him. The cliche excuse only fueled her anger, but she couldn't deal with it now.

"PAIGE!" Joana shouted, pushing past the two of them as she raced upstairs. Her daughter needed her, and that was all that mattered.

She burst into Paige's room, only to find it empty. Panic was all she felt as she screamed, "PAIGE! WHERE ARE YOU?"

A weak grunt from the far side of the room caught her attention. She rushed over and found Paige wedged between the bed and the wall, her tiny body limp and unmoving.

"M...Mom..." Paige mumbled weakly before her eyes fluttered shut, succumbing to the pain.

.

.

.

The call had come out of nowhere, leaving Joana wondering where James was and why he couldn't help their daughter. She had assumed he had gone out to get an inhaler, but after Paige's second frantic call, Joana grew suspicious.

James was always attentive to Paige's needs, never leaving her without checking that she had her inhaler. But now, as Joana watched her daughter being wheeled into the hospital, she wished she had driven faster, ignored that damn red light, and not wasted precious moments confronting the traitors in her living room.

"You can't come in," a nurse said, blocking Joana from entering the ICU. Helpless, she sank into a chair in the lobby, her mind racing with worry.

"Joana?" A familiar voice called out. It was Regina, her friend and a doctor at the hospital. "What are you doing here?"

Joana tried to speak, but her voice was lost in a torrent of tears. "Is it Paige?" Regina asked softly. Joana nodded, and Regina pulled her into a comforting hug.

"She's going to be fine," Regina assured her. "The doctors are doing their best."

"But what if their best isn't enough?" Joana whispered, her voice breaking.

Regina had no answer, so she just held her friend tighter.

Hours passed, but James never showed up. Regina called Joana's parents to come to the hospital, knowing Joana needed their support. When Mrs. Cameron arrived, she immediately sensed something was wrong. This wasn't the first time Paige had been in the hospital, but something felt different.

"Where's James?" Mrs. Cameron asked. Mr. Cameron, too, noticed his son-in-law's absence.

"Shouldn't he be here?" he added.

"Where's Martha?" Joana asked instead, her voice edged with bitterness.

"She left this morning and hasn't been home since," Mrs. Cameron replied, puzzled by Joana's question.

"Of course, she hasn't," Joana muttered, her tone cold.

Before her parents could question her further, the hospital doors swung open, and in walked James and Martha, both looking disheveled and guilty.

"Look who finally decided to show up," Mr. Cameron said, directing his question to James. "Where have you been?"

"Sleeping with your whore of a daughter," Joana snapped, her voice laced with venom.

The room fell silent as the shocking revelation sank in. Mrs. Cameron's face paled. "What?" she whispered in disbelief.

"You heard me. Your daughter has been sleeping with my husband," Joana said, her voice shaking with anger.

Mr. Cameron collapsed into a chair, his hands trembling. "Tell me she's lying, Martha. Tell me it's not true!"

But instead of denying it, Martha broke down in tears. "I'm sorry, but we love each other," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

Joana stared at her sister, disgusted. "In love? With your sister's husband?" she spat.

James stepped forward, his voice pleading. "I'm really sorry, Joana. Everything just happened so fast."

Joana's hands itched to slap him, but before she could act, the head doctor emerged from the ICU, his expression grave.

"How's Paige? Is she going to be okay?" Joana asked, her voice trembling with hope.

The doctor hesitated, then looked at her with pity. "I'm very sorry. We did everything we could, but..."

Joana's breath caught in her throat. "What do you mean?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

The doctor sighed deeply, his voice filled with regret. "We lost her."

Continue Reading

You'll also like

The Sterling Scandal: Married To The Uncle

The Sterling Scandal: Married To The Uncle

C.D
5.0

I was at my own engagement party at the Sterling estate when the world started tilting. Victoria Sterling, my future mother-in-law, smiled coldly as she watched me struggle with a cup of tea that had been drugged to ruin me. Before I could find my fiancé, Ryan, a waiter dragged me into the forbidden West Wing and locked me in a room with Julian Sterling, the family’s "fallen titan" who had been confined to a wheelchair for years. The door burst open to a frenzy of camera flashes and theatrical screams. Victoria framed me as a seductress caught in the act, and Ryan didn't even try to listen to my pleas, calling me "cheap leftovers" before walking away with his pregnant mistress. When I turned to my own family for help, my father signed a document severing our relationship for a five-million-dollar payout from Julian. They traded me like a commodity without a second thought. I didn't understand why my own parents were so eager to sell me, or how Ryan could look at me with such disgust after promising me forever. I was a sacrifice, a pawn used to protect the family's offshore accounts, and I couldn't fathom how every person I loved had a price tag for my destruction. With nowhere left to go, I married Julian in a bleak ceremony at City Hall. He slid a heavy diamond onto my finger and whispered, "We have a war to start." That night, inside his secret penthouse, I watched the paralyzed man stand up from his wheelchair and activate a screen filled with the Sterling family's darkest secrets. The execution had officially begun.

Too Late: The Spare Daughter Escapes Him

Too Late: The Spare Daughter Escapes Him

SHANA GRAY
4.3

I died on a Tuesday. It wasn't a quick death. It was slow, cold, and meticulously planned by the man who called himself my father. I was twenty years old. He needed my kidney to save my sister. The spare part for the golden child. I remember the blinding lights of the operating theater, the sterile smell of betrayal, and the phantom pain of a surgeon's scalpel carving into my flesh while my screams echoed unheard. I remember looking through the observation glass and seeing him-my father, Giovanni Vitiello, the Don of the Chicago Outfit-watching me die with the same detached expression he used when signing a death warrant. He chose her. He always chose her. And then, I woke up. Not in heaven. Not in hell. But in my own bed, a year before my scheduled execution. My body was whole, unscarred. The timeline had reset, a glitch in the cruel matrix of my existence, giving me a second chance I never asked for. This time, when my father handed me a one-way ticket to London-an exile disguised as a severance package-I didn't cry. I didn't beg. My heart, once a bleeding wound, was now a block of ice. He didn't know he was talking to a ghost. He didn't know I had already lived through his ultimate betrayal. He also didn't know that six months ago, during the city's brutal territory wars, I was the one who saved his most valuable asset. In a secret safe house, I stitched up the wounds of a blinded soldier, a man whose life hung by a thread. He never saw my face. He only knew my voice, the scent of vanilla, and the steady touch of my hands. He called me Sette. Seven. For the seven stitches I put in his shoulder. That man was Dante Moretti. The Ruthless Capo. The man my sister, Isabella, is now set to marry. She stole my story. She claimed my actions, my voice, my scent. And Dante, the man who could spot a lie from a mile away, believed the beautiful deception because he wanted it to be true. He wanted the golden girl to be his savior, not the invisible sister who was only ever good for her spare parts. So I took the ticket. In my past life, I fought them, and they silenced me on an operating table. This time, I will let them have their perfect, gilded lie. I will go to London. I will disappear. I will let Seraphina Vitiello die on that plane. But I will not be a victim. This time, I will not be the lamb led to slaughter. This time, from the shadows of my exile, I will be the one holding the match. And I will wait, with the patience of the dead, to watch their entire world burn. Because a ghost has nothing to lose, and a queen of ashes has an empire to gain.

Chapters
Read Now
Download Book