Shadows Between Us (Stella and Sebastian) novel Chapter 248

Chapter 248

Stella strolled out, leaning lazily against the wall.

She was totally chill, like nothing could faze her.

:

The Yates family members watched her with eager eyes, holding their breath.

Blackie poked his head out from behind Ivan’s shoulder.

Everyone gulped.

Stella just shot them an OK sign with her hand.

Crisis averted!

Suddenly, the tension melted away, and everything felt light and breezy, like spring had come.

Night fell.

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After dinner, the whole family was sprawled out on the couch, the giant TV blasting Annette’s favorite drama. Over on the other end, Sebastian sat there, still rocking his black mask and that stone-cold poker face.

Lucas was giving him the ultimate death stare.

Sebastian couldn’t care less about Lucas’s antics.

Lucas just kept staring, not backing down for a second.

Sebastian turned his head and gave the little guy a look so cold it could’ve turned the whole room into an icebox.

Lucas opened his mouth wide, showing off his row of tiny, pearly white teeth.

Then he snapped his jaws together a couple of times, just to show off.

Sebastian’s face got even grumpier.

He put his hand on Lucas’s forehead and pushed him away.

Lucas expertly rolled himself into the corner, gave the wall a little kick, and with a couple of bounces, he rolled right back to Sebastian’s feet!

He hugged Sebastian’s ankle.

Sebastian shot Lucas an annoyed look.

He nudged Lucas away, not-so-gently.

Lucas let go, but with a little plop, grabbed onto Sebastian’s other ankle, relentless as ever.

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Chapter 248

Sebastian thought, “This kid is driving me absolutely insane.’

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Then, as if struck by inspiration, Lucas’s eyes lit up, and he scampered off to the kitchen, digging through drawers like a whirlwind.

Hearing the commotion, Allan looked up from his tablet. He called out, “Lucas, what are you up to?”

Even Snowball, who was napping up in the tree, yawned and poked his head out.

Soon enough, Lucas wobbled out of the kitchen, arms overflowing with snacks that were piled so high they almost swallowed him up. His little hands trembled as he hyped himself up in silence.

Right in front of Sebastian, Lucas plopped the whole mountain of snacks onto the floor at his feet.

Right in front of Sebastian, Lucas ripped open a box of chocolate bear cookies, his tiny hands grabbing at the

treats.

He opened his mouth wide.

The next second, Lucas shot Sebastian, who was still giving him the death stare, an awesome, dramatic thumbs-up.

The dark aura around Sebastian thickened.

Allan jumped in, “Sebastian, chill! Seriously, he’s family. He’s your actual nephew!”

He reached out, but before he could even touch Sebastian, Sebastian unleashed a frosty glare that swept across the whole room; no one was spared.

Right at that moment, Stella came downstairs, rocking a pair of frameless glasses that one rarely wore and swinging a little toolbox in her hand.

Big Ben shuffled after her, totally spaced out. Gone was his usual smart vibe; he looked like someone had just hit the reset button on him.

Annette finally tore her eyes from the TV. She called out, “Stella, come watch with me!”

Stella lifted her toolbox and said, “You keep watching.”

Annette, who’d just gotten sucked into another wild soap opera, was wiping away tears with a tissue when she suddenly heard someone else sniffling nearby. She turned her head.

Jake, whose turn it was to be on duty today, was glued to the giant TV, secretly wiping away tears when he thought no one was looking.

Annette quietly slid the tissue box over, and Jake grabbed it, looking like a kicked puppy. He choked out, “It’s just so heartbreaking.”

Annette thought, ‘Come on, it’s really not that dramatic!

Sebastian, still wearing his black mask, locked his eyes on Stella as soon as she came downstairs. Instantly, all

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Chapter 248

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that ominous aura faded away, and he actually looked a bit fragile, like he’d caught a touch of the flu.

Sebastian coughed weakly, trying to get some attention.

Allan thought, ‘Seriously? You just had a tooth pulled.’

Stella walked over, long lashes lowered, set her toolbox on the table, and gently ruffled Lucas’s hair. She said. “Hey now, don’t bully your Uncle Sebastian.”

While talking, she just handed off the invitation to Sebastian like it was nothing.

Stella said, “Conrad invited us for tomorrow.”

Sebastian’s brows drew together as he took it. He already knew the basics from Allan. He watched Stella twist her hair up with a pen, not even thinking about it, then deftly opened up Big Ben’s back panel.

Allan grumbled, “He’s definitely plotting something shady!”

Stella asked, “Wanna go join the fun?” She said it with a straight face, pulling out the chip without missing a beat.

Snowball slid down from the tree and popped his big head up.

Staring at Big Ben, who was completely motionless, a spark of cleverness flashed in Snowball’s beady red eyes, as he’d just had a stroke of genius.

It thought, ‘A snake never forgets. Revenge can wait ten years if it has to.

With a flick, his snowy, whip-like tail lashed out a good foot and a half, ready to go right at the back of Big Ben’s head.

But just as it was about to land, Big Ben, who’d been in sleep mode, snapped his eyes open, red light blazing.

Big Ben said, “Danger! Danger!”

Before Snowball could react, Big Ben grabbed his tail mid-sentence and, in one swift motion, hoisted the big white snake upside down by the tail.

Stella gave a subtle look up. She said, “Once the chip’s out, Big Ben automatically switches to defense mode.”

Lucas, still munching on his chocolate cookie, tilted his head and waved at Snowball, all cute.

Snowball, half dangling upside down and half dragging along the floor, looked pitiful.

Big Ben opened the window and tossed Snowball right out.

Then Big Ben slammed the window shut.

Big Ben clapped his hands together, its voice cold and mechanical as it said, “Perfect!”

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