Shadows Between Us (Stella and Sebastian) novel Chapter 270

Chapter 270

The villa door swung open.

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Everyone on the couch jumped to their feet as their phones started blowing up. Blake stared in disbelief at the photos flooding the group chat. “Conrad and Carlos made a total fool of themselves at the airport!”

A video of them getting publicly embarrassed while waiting at the airport had gone viral.

Emily suddenly realized. “No wonder there were so many people at the dock!”

They were all just fair-weather friends, switching sides the moment the wind changed.

Suddenly, the elevator doors slid open, and Sebastian stepped out alone. He’d changed into a fresh black shirt, and except for his pale face, he looked like a cold statue.

“Where’s Stella?” Allan raised an eyebrow.

Sebastian glanced up, the black prayer beads somehow back on his wrist, his aura cold and distant. “She will come later.”

The spacious living room was dead silent. No one dared to speak up.

Back when Sebastian was in his wheelchair, he was just cold. But today, there was an icy, devouring aura about him, and it felt like a suffocating storm had swept through the place.

He headed for the front door.

Allan followed, keeping half a step behind, his voice low. “Everyone left in Jaffina is on standby.”

Sebastian just nodded.

In the study, Jake heard footsteps in the hallway and turned to see Stella, in a black dress, coming his vibe cold as ice. He actually got goosebumps.

“Ms. Carter!” He instinctively straightened his back.

Nobody would’ve thought that now, in this house, Stella commanded the same respect as Sebastian.

Stella nodded, her eyes sliding past Jake and settling on Bastienne.

way,

her

She walked back into the study and dropped herself onto the armchair facing Bastienne. The corners of her eyes were tinged red. That crazy, dark queen vibe was back, and she sat with the confidence of a boss.

Stella asked, “Want to know why Sebastian chose today to bring you here?” She calmly fiddled with her right hand, tracing the lines on her palm.

Bastienne looked up, eyes rimmed red, her whole aura defeated and crumbling. “To make me feel guilty?”

Stella’s voice dripped with sarcasm. “Guilty?”

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Bastienne clutched the letter in her hand. “Isn’t that why?”

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“I’m sure he gave you a choice,” Stella said with a faint smile, but her eyes stayed icy cold. She looked down at Bastienne. “But you did exactly what he expected.”

Bastienne stared at her, enunciating every word, “Let me out.”

She thought, ‘I have to get out of this hellhole and get back to Jaffina, right now!

“Relax, Mrs. Everhart,” Stella said softly, her voice strangely gentle, making Bastienne’s head spin a little. “I’ll get you out of here soon.”

After a moment, Stella got up.

Bastienne, still sitting on the floor, her face blank as she grabbed the letter opener again. “I’m Mrs. Everhart, not Mrs. Gray! I’m not, I’m not!”

The moment Stella turned her back on Bastienne, her expression shut down instantly.

Sebastian had said that the elder coming tonight was the kind of man who always stuck to the rules and did things strictly by the book.

‘That’s so great,’ Stella thought to herself.

With Bernard here, all the bodyguards were on high alert. Colten and Caleb had already checked with their bosses and called in the local military, locking down the whole Sandridge Island with maximum protection.

The car door swung open. Bernard brushed off the bodyguard’s hand and stepped out. His wrinkled face looked tough and didn’t need to say a word to show he was in charge. His deep brown eyes locked onto Sebastian at the head of the group.

“Bernard,” Sebastian greeted him.

Nobody else dared to make a sound.

Victor and the others were as quiet as mice. Even though they were big shots who’d done a lot for the country, in front of Bernard, a legend with epic achievements, they all had to bow their heads.

And as for the younger crowd, they didn’t even dare to breathe.

After Bernard stepped out, the drivers of the dozen cars behind him all opened their doors at once. Every big shot from Jaffina’s top three tiers of elite families was there, except for the Everhart family.

That was when Stella came downstairs. She stood quietly at the back of the crowd, her posture loose and casual, completely unfazed by the presence of so many VIP’S.

But Sebastian seemed to sense her presence. He turned around, his eyes locking onto her instantly. “Stella,” he called out, his voice low and steady.

At that, everyone’s attention snapped to Stella. Emily and the rest even stepped aside, clearing a path for her to come forward.

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With all eyes on her, Stella walked toward Sebastian with total calm. Even as Bernard’s stern gaze landed on her, she didn’t flinch. Hudson leaned in and whispered something to Bernard, and for once, Bernard’s face showed a rare hint of surprise.

Celia saw everything unfold right before her eyes.

Her chest felt like it was burning up inside.

‘So, all these big shots are only here for Eric because of Sebastian?’ Celia thought. ‘If that’s really true, then Sebastian knew I was interning at Kinetic University Tech Research Institute.

‘He must know how much I wanted to join the research team, too, and he could’ve fixed it with just one word. But instead, he just let me end up with Conrad. He’s ruthless!’

Stella walked right up to Sebastian, letting him hold her hand for all to see. Sebastian didn’t hesitate. He gripped her hand and declared, “It’s Stella, my future wife.”

Sebastian’s icy gaze swept past Bernard, and the Jaffina big shots looked stunned and dumbfounded. Meanwhile, the Red Shadow crew, Vincent, Dennis, Eliel, and Fabian, lowered their heads in respect to Stella.

Bernard frowned. Bernard’s brows furrowed. ‘Wife? Is this girl even legal?’ he couldn’t help but wonder. ‘Does Sebastian even know about her ties to Lab 709?’

For a moment, nobody said a word.

Emily and Blake were sweating bullets for Stella. They didn’t even dare to meet Bernard’s eyes. But Stella was as cool as ever, totally unfazed.

“Sebastian, you…” Bernard reached out and placed his hand firmly on Sebastian’s shoulder, his grip extra

strong.

Allan shouted, “Mr. Harper, he-”

Sebastian didn’t even blink, but Bernard instantly realized something was wrong. His palm was suddenly wet, and the smell of blood filled the air.

“Who did this?” Bernard practically roared, and even Victor and the others’ faces went shocked.

The barely patched-up wound split open again under Bernard’s grip, blood soaking through Sebastian’s sleeve and dripping down, drop by drop, onto the ground.

Bernard exploded with anger. “I’m asking you. Who did this?”

Sebastian’s expression didn’t change. He stayed silent, simply reaching out with his hand without blood to hold Stella’s tightly, as if shielding her from everything.

Their fingers intertwined, hands locked together.

Stella’s gaze grew reserved, her eyes dropping.

Inside, she was quietly keeping track of the time,

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“Sebastian!” A soft yet mournful voice suddenly rang out from the back of the crowd. Everyone, Bernard included, turned to look, and when Bernard saw Bastienne’s face, his own darkened with rage.

Allan frowned. This wasn’t in the plan at all. Bastienne’s reappearance was a total surprise.

“Sebastian! I’m your mom!” Bastienne called out, tears glistening in her eyes. Her red dress was a striking contrast to the sea of black around her. As soon as she said it, Meredith was the first to gasp.

She thought, ‘Is she Mrs. Gray, the one who’d been dead for five years?’

Maybe it was just too shocking, but no one tried to stop Bastienne as she made her way forward. Soon, she was standing right in front of Sebastian, her face streaked with ruined makeup, looking utterly worn out.

Suddenly, Bastienne’s face contorted with fury. “Go to hell, Sebastian!”

The letter opener she’d hidden up her sleeve slipped out, and she lunged, stabbing straight for his chest.

Everyone gasped in shock.

But the letter opener, meant for Sebastian’s chest, was stopped mid-air by a delicate, fair hand.

The blade bit into skin. Blood started as drops on the ground, and then quickly pooled into a thin line.

Sebastian snapped his head toward her, but Stella didn’t even blink. She kept her grip firm on the letter opener, standing face-to-face with Bastienne. “Mrs. Everhart, so just because Mr. Gray uncovered evidence against the Everhart family, you want him dead?”

‘Wait, does Stella know?’ Allan thought, a jolt of realization hitting him.

A vein pulsed at Sebastian’s temple. ‘So that’s why she wouldn’t let me aggravate my injury. She’d already chosen her own way to stand by me,’ he realized.

Worried shouts toward Stella echoed all around, but she ignored them completely.

With a swift motion, she seized the letter opener, and without so much as a blink, plunged the bloodstained blade deep into Bastienne’s left shoulder blade, right in the same spot where Sebastian had been wounded.

Bastienne screamed, shocked back to reality by the stabbing pain.

Blood burst from the wound, splattering across Stella’s face.

In the shadows, the Yates family members felt their blood boiling with excitement.

Sebastian grabbed her wrist, his voice raw with panic. “Are you trying to get yourself killed?” His whole face was tense, his usual composure shattered as he stared at her mangled, bloody palm.

Thankfully, John had already taken Lucas away, but Annette was heartbroken.

“Emily!” Sebastian’s face was colder and darker than ever, his expression downright chilling.

Emily rushed forward, but Stella’s frosty “Stop” made her freeze instantly, Stella lifted her gaze to Sebastian,

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stepping right up to him as Bastienne’s cries echoed around them.

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In a voice so low only he could catch it, she said, “Sebastian, listen up. If you go off the rails, I’ll go even further. So next time, don’t you dare risk your life.”

Then she flashed him a stunning smile.

Not a single sound dared to break the silence.

The image of Stella’s one-handed knife move was burned into everyone’s minds, flipping their impression of her from a fragile lady to something else entirely.

Everyone thought she was a real savage.

The Clinton family rep was staring at her, eyes dark and thoughtful.

Sebastian said coldly, “Let Emily take care of your wound first.”

Emily clutched the disinfectant and bandages, so anxious that her eyes were about to tear up as she looked at the blood dripping from Stella’s hand.

Even Annette tried to comfort her, “Stella…”

Stella finally reached out and grabbed the open bottle of disinfectant from Emily and dumped it right onto her hand. The crowd was so tense, and nobody even dared to breathe.

But Stella didn’t even flinch. She was so calm about it that it actually made everyone’s skin crawl.

Only then did Bernard finally look straight at Stella.

Stella didn’t mind his stare, and once the blood was washed off her hand, she took the bandage from Emily and slowly wrapped it around her wound, round and round, steady as ever.

And suddenly, Bernard demanded, “What do you mean, evidence against the Everhart family?”

Bastienne clutched her shoulder, gasping from the pain. But at the mention of evidence, she shot a terrified look at Sebastian.

But Stella’s words echoed in her head. “Want to know why Sebastian picked today to bring you here?”

Sebastian didn’t say a word. His eyes were still fixed on Stella’s injured hand. Instead, Stella looked up and met his

gaze.

Sebastian said, “For the past few years, the Everhart family, led by Steven, has been collecting the basic genetic data of the country’s citizens under the guise of early cancer screening.”

Everyone stood there, dumbstruck.

The heads of Jaffina’s major families all frowned the moment they heard that.