Shadows Between Us (Stella and Sebastian) novel Chapter 6

Chapter 6 Annette Was Awake

“You’re insane,” Emily hissed. The sight of Stella actually inserting the needle sent a jolt of rage through her.

Without a second thought, she grabbed for Stella’s wrist, careless of Annette lying on the bed.

Before Emily could make contact, Stella’s free hand came up, a second silver needle held steady just before Emily’s eye.

“Move again, and I’ll blind you,” Stella warned coldly without looking back. Everyone could see she wasn’t joking.

Without turning her head, Stella seemed to sense every move Emily made. The silver needle in her hand tracked Emily’s slightest shift, never wavering.

Emily froze, a bead of cold sweat tracing a line down her temple.

Every eye in the room was fixed on Stella’s hands as she worked. Only Sebastian was looking elsewhere.

His eyes, sharp and unreadable, moved from the shark charm on her hair tie to the quiet certainty on her face.

His thumb brushed a bead on his wrist, but then the soft click of the beads made his hand go still.

He kept his thoughts to himself, his expression giving nothing away.

“You’ll regret this, Mr. Gray,” Emily said, her hands shoved into her coat pockets. Her face was a mask of haughty defiance, an attempt to cover the sting of public dismissal.

She was used to respect, not to being ignored.

Sebastian didn’t even give her a glance, leaving her words to hang in the air.

Stella cleared her throat softly. “Lucas, come here,” she said, her eyes finding him curled beside the wheelchair.

Lucas’s small face was drawn with worry.

His eyes lit up the moment Stella called his name. He ran over and hugged her leg, looking up at her.

“I’m curious who told Mrs. Gray you were kidnapped,” Stella said, her eyes cold as she looked around the room. “Let’s see who really brings the bad luck.”

Her gaze finally met Sebastian’s across the silent room.

“I’ll let Mrs. Gray speak for herself,” Stella said quietly. Then a ragged gasp came from the bed.

Color slowly returned to Annette’s gray face, as if life were flowing back into her. Her eyelids fluttered and opened slightly.

Jake stared, stunned that she was actually awake. He glanced at his brother, and even the usually impassive John looked shocked.

“This can’t be,” Emily whispered, her confidence shattered. She had given the diagnosis herself. The chance of Annette waking up had been virtually zero.

But now, against all odds, Annette was awake.

The hospital director arrived with several senior staff, and the room soon filled with onlookers.

“It’s not possible,” Emily insisted, her voice sharp with denial.

But the steady beep of the monitors told a different story.

“Annette!” Lauren’s face drained of color at the sight of Annette awake. Panic flickered in her eyes as she took a sudden step toward the bed.

“John,” Sebastian said, the single word quietly cutting through the air.

John shook off his own surprise. His expression hardened as he stepped forward to block the doorway, barring Lauren, Richard, and Carlos from coming any closer.

“Lucas,” Annette whispered, her voice frail. Tears gathered in her eyes at the sight of him.

Seeing him there, safe and close, filled her with a quiet, profound relief.

Stella leaned against the window, her delicate face blank. The focus that had held her rigid was gone, leaving behind a deep, lazy exhaustion.

“Use your own medicine if you wish,” Stella said. “But the needles stay where they are for seven days.”

She stifled a yawn. What had looked simple had actually taken almost everything she had.

“And if we remove the needles?” the director asked, curious.

A quick check left him stunned. Annette’s vital signs were improving so fast that it seemed miraculous.

The team of specialists had already written her off. It was only out of deference to the Grays that Emily had phrased things more gently.

Everyone looked at Stella, waiting for her answer.

Stella’s expression went perfectly blank. A chill ran through the room as she returned the director’s stare with a coldness that felt dangerous.

“Try it,” she said. Her voice was soft, but the warning in it was clear.

Sebastian glanced at Jake, who took the hint right away. Within moments, security was arranged to guard the room day and night. No one would disturb Annette’s recovery.

Stella pulled out the hair tie, and her silky hair fell loose around her.

A few strands brushed against Sebastian’s hand, a light, fleeting touch.

His fingers shifted slightly, but he said nothing.

“Mr. Gray,” she said, her voice breaking the quiet. “Thanks for believing me. I owe you a drink.”

She leaned back against the wall, eyes down, hands tucked in her pockets. A faint, careless smile touched her lips, a mix of laziness and something quietly defiant.