Chapter 806

Chapter 806:
“Only what?” Stella snapped, her lips curling into a cutting smile. “Only decided to show up at just the right time? Or only used your power as another excuse to control me? William, if you’d simply stayed away, none of your family’s poison would have ever touched me.”
Every syllable struck William like a lash, slicing through the last fragile threads between them.
Her eyes burned with loathing, and William felt the weight of her rejection squeeze his chest until breathing itself became a punishment.
Paul’s warning had sent him running the moment he heard Amon was with her. Even knowing she wanted nothing to do with him, he had come anyway, hoping to shield her from danger. Amon had spent years abroad, living without restraint, and William couldn’t shake the fear that his recklessness might spill over onto Stella.
William’s voice cracked as though strangled by his own grief, the rest collapsing into a stifled sigh.
His gaze lingered on Stella, heavy with words he could no longer bring himself to say.
When silence finally won, he turned away. His broad shoulders carried the loneliness of a man walking out of her life, yet still unwilling to let go of his need to protect her.
“I’ve uncovered a few threads from the past. Give me a little more time, and I’ll bring you the truth,” William promised.
The tension in Stella’s shoulders loosened at his vow, though her face remained hard and unyielding.
Without adding another word, William pivoted and strode away, each step clipped and resolute.
After his departure, Stella leaned back against the icy surface of the lab bench and slowly slid down until she was sitting on the floor.
She drew her knees close, pressing her face into her arms. Around her, the silent machines seemed to echo her sorrow, like unfeeling witnesses to her collapse.
No matter how often Stella told herself not to falter, her resolve was slipping through her grasp.
Time crawled, and eventually Stella pushed herself up and wandered onto the institute’s terrace, desperate for air before Sandra and the others returned. There was no way Sandra could allow them to find her shattered like this.
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To her colleagues, Stella had always been the model of brilliance, the tireless figure who never wavered.
If they caught even a glimpse of this broken version of her, their respect would crumble.
The thought of seeing that disappointment in their eyes was more than Stella could bear.
After a week that left her completely drained, Stella finally collapsed onto her bed. She slept straight through the weekend, her body refusing to move, her mind drifting in a haze.
When Monday came, she didn’t see William. She didn’t see Amon either. For a moment, it almost felt like Amon’s so-called “partnership” had been nothing more than a bad dream.
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