Shadows Between Us (Stella and Sebastian) novel Chapter 75

Chapter 75

Chapter 75

A

The room felt heavy, like a storm was about to break. Sebastian sat there in silence for a long time. The only sound was the clicking of the black prayer beads in his hand.

He smelled like calming sandalwood and cedar, but there was nothing calm about him. His eyes looked dark and violent. Even Snowball looked terrified, curling up in the corner like he wanted to disappear.

“Get rid of her,” Sebastian said. His voice was low and cold.

Ivan knew exactly who he was talking about. He hesitated and said, “But what about Mrs. Annette Gray? If we

Sebastian didn’t let him finish. He looked up, his eyes cutting Ivan off instantly. “I said, get rid of her.”

The vibe in the room got scary fast. Ivan realized he was pushing his luck and shut his mouth instantly. Stella spun the wheelchair around and pushed Sebastian out, leaving the bloody room behind them.

*****

As soon as they were out of the dungeon, Sebastian had his phone out. He called Colten right there in front of Stella. It was the middle of the night, but Colten answered on the first ring.

Stella raised an eyebrow as she listened to their conversation, but she didn’t say anything.

Far away, Richard was sleeping peacefully in his warm bed. He had no clue a storm was coming to wipe out his business the moment the sun came up.

Suddenly, Stella stopped. John and Jake were sprinting out of the villa, looking panicked. “Mr. Gray! Ms. Carter,” John shouted, out of breath. “It’s Lucas. He’s sick.”

They rushed to Lucas’s bedroom. Allan was sitting on the floor, holding Lucas tight. The poor kid was gagging and throwing up all over himself.

Allan looked up when they burst in. “He can’t stop vomiting,” he said, his voice shaking. “He threw up everything he ate.”

Lucas had his eyes squeezed shut in pain, but the familiar smell of Stella made him peek through his lashes. He let out a weak noise and reached his arms out to her.

Stella didn’t think twice. She grabbed Lucas from Allan, not caring about the mess on his clothes. The boy felt like a rag doll in her arms-weak, pale, and making painful noises in his throat.

Big Ben said, “This isn’t food poisoning. Lucas is sick because he’s stressed out and unhappy. His stomach just can’t handle the emotions. You guys need to keep him away from whatever is upsetting him.”

Sebastian gripped the armrest of his wheelchair so hard his knuckles turned white. The veins on his hand popped out.

He started to reach out to comfort Lucas, but his hand froze in mid-air. The memory of Lucas shrinking away from him earlier that day flashed through his mind. Painfully he let his hand drop back to his lan

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Chapter 75

Sebastian kept his face like stone as he spun his wheelchair around. He needed to get out of there. In his mind, leaving was the only solution. As long as he was in the room, Lucas would be terrified.

But the moment the wheelchair turned, Lucas broke down. Big, heavy tears rolled down his cheeks, and he looked so sad it hurt to watch.

“Sebastian, wait,” Stella called out.

Sebastian hit the brakes. Before he could even ask why, he felt a sudden weight in his arms. Stella had dropped Lucas right into his lap. His eyes went wide, and his whole body locked up tight.

“No,” Sebastian stammered. “Lucas is-”

He tried to explain that the kid was scared to death of him. But the words never came out. A strange thing happened. Lucas stopped throwing up, and he wasn’t even pushing Sebastian away.

Instead, the boy grabbed onto Sebastian’s shirt like it was a lifeline and buried his face in his uncle’s chest, crying without making a sound.

The room went dead quiet. Everyone just stared. “Sebastian,” Stella said softly. “Rub his back. Nice and easy.”

She leaned down, took Sebastian’s wrist, and guided his hand to the boy’s back. Sebastian’s hand was usually rock-steady, even when holding a gun, but right now it was trembling.

He tried to move his hand, but he was too stiff. Lucas frowned in discomfort. Sebastian panicked. He looked up at Stella, and his eyes screamed for help.

“Slow down,” she whispered. “Gentle.”

Sebastian nodded. He tried again. He forced his hand to relax and found a slow, steady rhythm. It worked. The tension left Lucas’s shoulders. The boy finally looked like he was not in pain anymore.

Allan stood there looking down at his shirt, which was covered in puke. He thought, ‘Why do they look like a perfect family while I’m just standing here covered in vomit?’

“Lucas,” Stella said, gently wiping the cold sweat off the boy’s forehead. “You want to tell Sebastian something?”

Lucas nodded. Tears were still dripping off his chin. He tapped the screen of his watch. Big Ben’s voice spoke for him. “Uncle Sebastian…”

He tapped it again. He needed to be heard. Big Ben said, “Uncle Sebastian.”

It was heartbreaking to watch. Stella could not believe this was the only way they knew how to talk to each other. “Sebastian,” she said. “Answer him.”

“I’m here,” Sebastian rumbled, his voice thick with emotion.

Lucas sniffled loudly, his nose red and raw. His wet eyelashes trembled. He pressed the watch face one more time. Big Ben said, “I’ll be a good boy, I promise. Uncle Sebastian, please don’t send me away.”

Lucas started crying all over again. Big tears rolled down his cheeks and dripped off his chin. Allan couldn’t

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Chapter 75

take it anymore. “Damn it,” he whispered.

He quickly tried to fix it. “Lucas, look at me,” Allan said softly. “Nobody’s sending you away. You are the favorite around here. Literally everyone loves you.”

“Lucas,” Sebastian said, his voice firm. “Even if you burned this house down, I wouldn’t send you away

He thought about how he raised Lucas from a baby. There was no way he could ever let him go.

But the promise didn’t help. Lucas cried harder. Grace’s nasty words were stuck in his head. She called him bad luck and said Sebastian would dump him once he got a wife. He was terrified that a wedding meant goodbye to his uncle and Stella.

Allan paced around the room like a nervous cat. The men felt useless, so naturally, they all turned and looked at Stella. Without anyone voting on it, she had somehow become the boss of Sandridge Island.

Stella noticed the stares. ‘Great, she thought. ‘Why’s everyone staring at me? Lucas is crying, not me.’

Even Sebastian looked up at her. “Why is he still crying?”

This was a man who could close a deal worth tens of billions without a flicker of emotion. But right now, he looked totally lost. The scary CEO mask was gone. He was just a panicked guy who didn’t know how to fix a crying kid.

Stella fought the urge to roll her eyes. She thought, ‘Ask him, you idiots. I can’t read minds. They’re useless.’

She kept her face calm and poked Lucas on his soft cheek. It was soft and squishy. She liked it. “Okay, Lucas,” she said. “Why the tears?”

Lucas let out a wet hiccup. He tapped his watch, and Big Ben’s voice filled the room. “If Uncle Sebastian gets married, he will have his own babies. And then Stella and I will get kicked out.”

Stella blinked. ‘Wow,’ she thought. ‘You are five years old. You worry too much.’

“I’m not getting married,” Sebastian said.

His eyes darkened slightly, and for a split second, his gaze flickered toward Stella before snapping back. It happened so fast that nobody caught it.

Everyone expected the tears to stop, but Lucas just wailed louder. Big Ben chimed in again. “No. That makes me a selfish, bad kid.”

The adults froze, confused by the kid’s logic. “So,” Big Ben continued. “Uncle Sebastian, you have to marry Stella.”

Stella looked like she had been slapped. Allan burst out laughing. “Okay, Lucas, nice dream,” he said. “Your uncle’s never gonna do that.”

Allan smiled to himself. He thought, ‘Sebastian wants to be Stella’s father, not her husband.’

“Okay,” Sebastian said.

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Chapter 75

:

The smile died on Allan’s face. He froze. Wait. What he thought. Run that back. Did I hear that right?’

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18:54 Mon, Jan 19