Shadows Between Us (Stella and Sebastian) novel Chapter 311

Chapter 311

Someone slapped a “No Entry” sign on the door outside.

Lillian kicked open one stall door after another until she reached the last one.

“Are you looking for me?” A cold, emotionless female voice came from behind her.

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Lillian’s eyes widened in shock as she spun around, only to see Sella lounging against the doorframe, looking bored.

Stella reached out and locked the bathroom door from the insid

Then Stella walked calmly over to the sink, letting the water run over her fingers.

Blackie, who had been curled up like a knot, slowly unfurled and arched up on Stella’s shoulder. Its eyes were fixed on Lillian, giving her a chilling, dangerous glare.

Lillian held her breath, not daring to move a muscle.

Their gazes met in the mirror, tension crackling in the air.

Stella carelessly flicked the water from her hands and turned around. “You’ve already got what you wanted, so why do you look so rattled?”

Lillian asked, “Did you start setting things up back when Lauren had her breakdown at the hospital?”

“Kind of,” Stella replied, raising her hand.

Blackie coiled around her wrist, and with that delicate, striking face of hers, there was a kind of haunting beauty about her.

Lillian’s voice shot up. “Kind of?”

Her voice nearly cracked.

Stella coiled Blackie around her wrist, a fleeting chill passing through her eyes. “Maybe a little earlier.”

It was the first time she’d ever let anything slip.

“Sophia, Lauren, Linda, or maybe even more,” Stella’s voice cut off abruptly, her smile cold and distant, yet it sent a chill through Lillian, making her sense real danger.

Her mentor once said that there were people in this world who, while the enemy was taking a step, had already played out a hundred moves in their mind.

No matter how clever the enemy was, they still couldn’t escape the trap he set.

Just as that thought crossed Lillian’s mind, she saw Stella step toward her.

She instinctively backed away until her spine pressed against the icy wall.

Stella raised her hand, her fingers with Blackie coiled around them, tracing lightly across Lillian’s cheek.

It was suffocating and terrifying.

Lillian couldn’t help but shiver.

She looked at Stella, and for the first time, there was none of the restraint Stella showed around Lucas.

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Only now did Lillian realize that this was Stella’s true color, way more intense than what she’d seen in Lauren’s ward.

Stella smiled. “I’m curious. You and Conrad are friends, so why did you pretend not to know him at the club?”

Lillian froze. Her eyes widened in shock, and her heart clenched

She could feel the icy chill of Blackie wrapped around Stella’s fingers, but it was nothing compared to how deadly Stella’s words were.

Lillian’s voice trembled. “I don’t know what you’re talking about

Stella raised an eyebrow, her whole vibe cold and wicked, and she was clearly not giving a damn about Lillian’s recovery. “You don’t?”

She let out a laugh, but it was chilling.

She withdrew her hand, not bothering to ask again, as if the answer was beneath her notice.

Stella pulled her hand back, feeling a wave of disgust at the makeup clinging to her fingertips. Her face blank, she washed her hands again and headed for the door.

Lillian called out from behind, her voice shaky, “You-”

Stella glanced back. Seeing Lillian struggle to get the words out, she lost interest and ended the conversation herself.

Stella opened the door and said, “Enjoy the show.”

Then she tossed a lazy wave over her shoulder and walked out of the restroom, never even glancing back.

Lillian stood there, pale and shaken, clutching her fingers in a death grip.

***本*

When Stella returned, Lucas’s table was already piled high with shacks. Even though Lucas was resting his chin in his hands, looking totally done with the whole thing, Blake just kept piling on the treats.

“These are not good for your health,” Landen huffed, his mustache bristling as he fished out a handful of pills from his pocket. “Check this out.”

He cupped them in both hands and offered them to Lucas with cheesy grin. “Lucas, try my secret recipe.”

Lucas frowned.

Victor gave him a glare. “Get lost.”

Then he poured some weird water from his bottle. “Drink this. Its amazing.”

Lucas didn’t believe him.

Levi hurried over, tripping over himself to get close to Lucas. “Lucas, food is nothing, but knowledge stays with you. How about coming to Jaflina with me?”

He figured if he could win over the kid, then Stella would surely ag along.

Levi felt very pleased with himself.

Lucas edged closer to Stella, trying to play it cool but totally freaking out inside.

The guests who’d already arrived couldn’t help but gawk at the scene.

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They thought, Just moments ago, these big shots, folks you’d only ever catch on the news, were so intense and untouchable. and nobody even dared to strike up a conversation.

However, as soon as Lucas showed up, they were grinning from ear to ear. All that cold attitude was totally out the window

Ryan, who’d been called a genius since he was little and always gt all the attention, sat up front with a serious face.

He thought these old men must be blind. He thought, I’m way cter and smarter than Lucas, so why are they all fawning over him instead of me? They have no taste at all.

With his nose in the air, Ryan picked up a copy of Principles ofconomics and made a big show of reading it, as if he were the smartest kid in the room.

He thought, ‘Look at me. I’m a smart kid. Just come over and say something nice.

A few minutes went by, and still, nobody cared.

Ryan was pissed.

“Ms. Carter, the event is about to kick off,” Caleb said, checking his watch as he leaned in and spoke in a low voice.

Up on stage, the host, specially invited from Clusia Channel, was going over the script again, which just showed how seriously the country was taking today.

Stella replied, “Got it.”

A countdown timer on her phone was ticking away. As soon as Cleb finished talking, the numbers hit zero.

Meanwhile, at the Ion Wing Drones warehouse, Chad, whom Blake had deliberately left behind, heard some weird noises coming from inside.

Curious, he poked his head in, and when he saw what was going on, his jaw just hung open in disbelief.

Inside, with the heavy privacy curtains drawn tight, all 3,000 drones that had been shut down suddenly powered up one after another, their standby lights coming to life in a massive wave.

This was the kind of sight Chad had only ever seen in his dream.

“Holy shit,” he said, completely floored.

At that exact moment, all over Haliville, anyone who owned an on Wing Drones home drone was hit with the same shock.

The drones suddenly sprang to life with a loud buzz, and people scrambled to grab their phones, frantically recording the unbelievable scene.

They watched as the lon Wing Drones took off by themselves, ccling around inside their living rooms like they had a mind

of their own.

Their wings kept smacking against the windows, making a sharp relentless knocking.

Thousands of lon Wing Drones owners caught it all on video and flooded every major short–video app and drone forum with the wild footage.

The comments section was full of jokes. [These lon Wing Drone are smart. Why not ask if it wants you to open the window?]

Someone even sent the streamer a virtual gift to support him.

That really blew up the chat, with everyone urging the streamer o ask the drone.

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After getting the gift from the audience, the streamer acted all serious and actually asked the drone, “Want to go outside? Should I open the window for you?”

His tone was snarky as hell, and the drama was maxed out.

However, the next second, he was shocked.

The chat went totally silent, not a single comment for a whole thirty seconds.

Right after the streamer asked, the drone actually bobbed up and down, as if it were nodding yes.

The streamer fell silent. With shaky hands, he opened the window for his drone, staring in shock as it blasted off like a rocket, vanishing into the sky in an instant.

Right on cue, his Bluetooth speaker kicked in, blasting a song about freedom.

Everyone was speechless.

They thought, ‘Holy crap, these drones just acted on their own!

All that commotion outside hadn’t made its way into the press conference, at least, not yet.

Backstage, Conrad had never felt this jittery in his life. For years he’d kept his passport on him at all times, just in case he ever had to bolt if things went south.

“Dr. Kramer, it’s time to go on stage,” a staff member said, stepping up to remind him.

Conrad instantly slipped on his gentlemanly facade. “Alright.”

The smart robot equipped with Big Ben’s chip was right by his sile, which helped calm his nerves a bit.

Celia looked downright grim next to him. As they waited backstage, all she could think about was Stella hogging all the attention earlier.

Celia straightened her back and let out a cold snort.

She would be on stage alongside Conrad, presenting as his assistant. All eyes from the global media would be on her, and after this, she would officially join the Kinetic University Tech Research Institute in Jaffina.

Everyone took their seats.

The press conference officially kicked off in the open–air plaza.

After the host’s intro, Conrad walked up on stage, rocking a pair of glasses that made him look extra sharp for the cameras. With real–time translation and a global livestream rolling at the same time, all eyes were locked on him.

Standing before the crowd, Conrad finally steadied his nerves.

He said, “Hello, I’m Conrad. It’s a true honor to stand here with my team and officially introduce the CoreOne Chip 1.0, independently researched, developed, and manufactured by Clusians.”

The applause exploded across the plaza.

The energy was infectious, and even the most jaded businessme couldn’t help but feel the rush, swept up in the excitement.

However, in stark contrast to the hype, Stella’s team sat stone–faced, not even lifting a hand to clap.

They watched coldly as Conrad used his rousing words to steer the mood of the event, while the guests around them were

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already throwing their hands up in excitement.

Blake couldn’t help but lean over to Stella. “Stella, doesn’t this fe like a scam?”

It was seriously creeping him out.

Stella shot Blake a look. She thought, He might be clueless, but is instincts are spot on.

She nodded and said casually, “Aha.”

Blake froze for a moment. He thought, ‘What does that mean?‘

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