Shadows Between Us (Stella and Sebastian) novel Chapter 72

Chapter 72

Chapter 72

With a swift tug, Stella ripped the wig off. Her long, silky hair tumbled down, breaking free from the disguise. Caught by the wind, the strands danced around her face, and honestly, she looked stunning.

Grace stood there, completely frozen. Her brain short-circuited at the sight of Stella’s icy glare. She lifted a trembling finger and pointed at the girl, stammering, “You… you…”

She just couldn’t process the fact that the driver was actually a girl. Stella flashed a smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes. It was dead cold.

A shiver raced down Grace’s spine, sending her panicked gaze toward Sebastian. But he sat there like a statue. Even in a wheelchair, the man felt like a king looking down on a peasant.

“M-Mr. Gray, p-please, let me explain…” she stammered, shaking like a leaf in a storm.

Sebastian thumbed the cold prayer beads on his wrist. “Go ahead,” he said, sounding totally bored. “Explain.”

Grace opened her mouth, but nothing came out. Her knees buckled, threatening to give way right there.

Stella narrowed her eyes, casually waving a stack of Lucas’s worksheets in the air. “You gave a five-year-old AP Calculus problems?” Stella asked, her voice flat. “And then you used the wrong answers to grade them just to mess with his head?”

“I didn’t,” Grace squeaked, her voice trembling.

Sebastian took the stack without a word. The only sound was the soft click-clack of his prayer beads as he flipped through the pages, but to Grace, it sounded like a ticking time bomb.

Finally, he looked up. “Grace, correct me if I’m wrong. You graduated from one of the best colleges in the world.”

His face remained a blank mask, yet the air in the room grew heavy enough to suffocate. Pure terror washed

over Grace.

The message was loud and clear. A top student didn’t make mistakes that dumb by accident. It wasn’t a slip- up. It was on purpose.

“Mr. Gray,” Stella said, her voice slow and deliberate. “Why don’t we listen to how Grace actually talks to Lucas during their lessons?”

Grace’s head snapped up. All the color drained from her face, leaving her looking like a ghost. She started shaking violently, panic taking over. “No… No, don’t…”

“Big Ben,” Stella called out coldly.

“I’m here,” Big Ben replied.

Stella reached down, covering Lucas’s ears with her hands. “Play the recording for Mr. Gray,” she ordered.

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Chapter 72

“On it,” Big Ben replied.

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The audio crackled to life, and Grace’s voice cut through the air, dripping with venom. “Lucas, guess what? Ryan already skipped ahead to the fifth grade. But you? You’re just rotting away at home.

“Mr. Sebastian Gray’s a saint for dealing with an orphan who brings nothing but bad luck. But what happens. when he gets married? You’ll be kicked out.

“Broken, cursed kids like you belong in special homes. Mrs. Annette Gray is stuck in the hospital because of you. Are you trying to destroy Mr. Sebastian Gray next?”

The air in the yard turned suffocating. Sebastian’s expression went dark. He was already pale, but now he looked terrifying. The veins on the back of his hands bulged as he gripped the armrest.

He wanted to explode, but he held back his rage for Lucas’s sake. “John,” he said. “Take Grace to the dungeon.”

“Yes, sir.” John didn’t hesitate. He grabbed Grace by the arm and yanked her up.

Stella raised an eyebrow. She thought, ‘A dungeon? Seriously? This guy actually has a dungeon on his island?’

“No!” Grace shrieked, eyes wide with horror. “Not there. Mr. Gray, please. I’m begging you! Don’t do this…”

The mere mention of the place pushed her over the edge. Panic swallowed Grace whole, and she wildly fought against John’s iron grip. She knew what that place was. It was a hellhole. People didn’t walk out of there alive.

“I’m family. I’m on Mrs. Annette Gray’s side,” she screamed, desperate for any lifeline. “Mr. Gray, please. Just

this once…”

She clawed at the stone floor, her nails tearing until they bled, leaving bloody streaks on the ground. It didn’t matter. John dragged her off like a bag of trash. Her screams echoed for a moment before fading into a heavy silence.

Sebastian shifted his cold gaze to Lucas. He slowly reached a hand out, but Lucas flinched like he’d been burned. The boy shrank back, burying his face in Stella’s stomach.

Sebastian’s hand froze in mid-air. Allan frowned at the brutal rejection and stepped forward. “Sebastian-”

He didn’t get to finish. Sebastian raised a hand to silence him. Without a word, he spun his wheelchair around and motored back toward the villa, leaving them alone.

*****

Night had fully set in when John walked heavily down the stairs. His face was grim, and the dinner tray in his hands hadn’t been touched.

“Still refusing to eat?” Allan asked.

All the fun was gone from his face. He had watched John carry the lunch tray away untouched, and when the same thing happened at dinner, the worry lines on his forehead deepened.

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Chapter 72

“Gimme that.” Allan stood up and took the tray. “I’ll give it a shot.”

He headed upstairs. Minutes later, he was back, slamming the tray onto the table in defeat. The attempt was a total failure.

Slumping into the chair opposite Stella, he propped his chin in his palm. “Stella,” he groaned. “Why don’t you go up there?”

“If you couldn’t get him to eat, I’m definitely not going to make a difference,” Stella replied without looking

She was focused on Lucas’s old worksheets. The kid was a genius since he had nailed every single AP Calculus problem.

But being smart hadn’t stopped him from being sad all afternoon. He had finally fallen asleep on the couch, and Big Ben had carried him to his room.

Allan almost said too much. He wanted to say it would be different, but he stopped himself just in time. He couldn’t exactly tell her that Sebastian secretly wanted to be her father. That would just make things weird.

“Man,” Allan sighed as he changed the subject. “When Mr. Annette Gray wakes up and hears about the whole mess, she’s going to be crushed. She would never hurt Lucas.”

He kept sighing, sneaking glances at Stella to see if she would crack. “Ever since that incident, she’s been in a weird spot at Gray Manor. And she’s too stubborn to move out here to Sandridge Island.”

Stella just kept quiet. When she finally looked up to meet Allan’s eyes, he let out a chuckle. “You know, Stella, this is the part where you ask, ‘What incident, Allan?’ You’re really bad at following a script.”

“If you wanted to spill the beans, you would’ve done it already,” Stella said calmly. “Asking is just a waste of breath.”

Allan opened his mouth, but then he closed it. ‘Damn,’ he thought. ‘She has a point. I can’t even argue with that logic.’

Just then, Jake walked in from the kitchen and set a steaming bowl on the table right in front of Stella. “Ms. Carter. Mr. Gray’s orders. He wants the kitchen to prepare this for you every day.”

Stella froze. She looked down at the rich, dark beef stew. The meat looked tender enough to melt in her mouth, and the beets gave the broth a deep red color. The delicious smell filled the air between them.

“Must be nice,” Allan sighed, loud enough to wake the dead. He side-eyed Stella. “Meanwhile, poor Sebastian is starving. He raised Lucas from a baby, you know? He’s probably heartbroken right now.”

Stella didn’t bite. Allan ramped it up, faking a sniffle. “Sebastian’s stomach is a mess. Sometimes he even coughs up blood. Imagine him all alone in the dark… Probably crying over baby photos of Lucas.”

Standing nearby, Jake rolled his eyes toward the ceiling. Allan was laying it on so thick that it was painful to

watch.

“What if Sebastian passes out from hunger and nobody finds him?” Allan added because he wanted to push

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Chapter 72

his luck.

Stella finally looked up, giving him a stare flat enough to level a building. “Shut up,” she said slowly.

“You got it,” Allan chirped.

Without another word, Stella stood up. Her face was serious as she turned and headed for the door. Allan followed her while scratching his head in confusion.

‘Wait a second,’ he thought. ‘Did she actually buy that?’

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18:53 Mon, Jan 19