Chapter 56
Elysiaâs gaze remained calm , almost lifeless , as if she had long anticipated Stellanâs response .
She had encountered far too many cruel people in her life , and this boy , with a face so eerily similar to that man , couldnât possibly be one of the good ones
Elysia thought , â But why is he trying to approach me ! Rowena is the darling of this household , the one who commands everyoneâs attention .
Why wasnât his focus on me instead ?
Before Elysia could piece together an answer , Stellaryâs question interrupted her train of thought .
â Whatâs your name ? â
She didnât respond , lowering her head in silence
Seeing her disregard , Stellan decided to introduce himself .
â My name is Stellan Rookwood .
â
The mention of his name drained the color from Elysiaâs face .
She thought , Rookwood .
The same surname .
The same face .
Is he that manâs brother ? His son ? It has to be one or the other .
And if so , why is he here ! Heâs here to catch me .
Yes , that has to be it â
The thought sent a shockwave of fear through her , stealing her breath .
A wave of terror surged , and her body acted instinctively .
In one swift movement , she ducked under Stellanâs arm to escape ,
But Stellan wasnât just any boy ; he was two years older and far stronger .
He easily extended his long arm and caught her wrist , as if capturing a frail
rabbit
Elysia winced , her brows knitting in pain
To Rowens watching from the shadows , this scene was unmistakable â it looked like an intimate moment between the two
[ Hat Did you see Rowenaâs face ! Sheâs about to blow a gasket â itâs hilarious .
]
Whatâs Stellan playing at ? Is he attracted to Elysia ? But sheâs not even at her peak yet .
Whatâs the appeal â ]
[ Stop stirring drama .
Stellan wouldnât pick you either , so stop dragging others into your insecurity ]
[ What are you all talking about ! Theyâre kids .
Calm down and use â attracted for something more appropriate .
Stellan hadnât expected Elysia to react so dramatically .
He was merely curious and wanted to talk to her .
â Valerieâs daughter is this timid ? No wonder Rowena can so easily steal your father , Torin , and even the servants in this house .
Everyone obeys her commands .
You really are useless , arenât
you
His words dripped with mockery and disdain , but even after finishing his tirade , he didnât release her wrist
Elysia knew she couldnât break free , so she stopped struggling .
His scornful words , however , oddly grounded her , calming her nerves .
Fixing her gaze on him , she retorted coldly , â None of this concerns you .
If youâre only here to humiliate me , congratulations â youâve succeeded .
Now leave me alone .
â
â No.
â Stellan replied , his tone suddenly serious â Not until you tell me why youâre afraid of me â
His expression grew sterner , resembling the man Elysia had tried so hard to forget
Despite being just seventeen , Stellanâs upbringing in a powerful family clearly shaped him into someone sharp and cunning â not easily fooled ,
Elysia bit her lip hard , as if the pain could steady her nerves .
Her voice , shaking but deflant , answered , Tm not afraid of you .
Why would I be afraid of your
But the blood trickling from her bitten lip and the faint tremor in her voice betrayed her lie .
Stellan stared at her for a long , silent moment before finally turning and walking away .
en viewers watching
As he rounded the comer , Rowena emerged , storming toward Elysia .
Her fingers dug into Elysiaâs arm with such force that even the livestream winced .
[ Jesus , that must hurt .
Even through the screen , I feel it .
Rowenaâs unhinged ]
Rowena said , â Elysia , you little bitcht Not only did you defy me all day , but now youâre trying to seduce my Stellan ? â
Chapter 56
Elysia said , â Let go ! I didnât seduce Stellan â I donât even know him ! â
Elysiaâs shout echoed through the hall .
The last thing she wanted was to be anywhere near Stellan , let alone seek him out .
.
Rowena raised her hand , but Elysia caught her wrist mid â swing .
The sharp sound of their collision echoed in the empty hallway as Elysia met Rowenaâs gaze with newfound determination
â I wonât let you manipulate me anymore , Rowena .
[ Elysiaâs finally standing up for herself .
So proud of her right now !
Stellan , youâre an idiot .
Your dumb curiosity just fueled Rowenaâs jealousy and made things worse for Elysia .
]
[ Donât be ridiculous .
Stellan taking an interest in Elysia is a blessing .
If she werenât so scared , maybe he wouldnât have left , and Rowena wouldnât have had the chance to art up I
tapproached her at all , none of this wouldâve happened .
Why would you defend a stranger interrogating someone about their
I Bruh , if Stellan hadnât ; fear ! ]
Rowena was fuming .
She didnât know how to answer the test questions and had just barely managed to lure Stellan home .
But now , because of Elyst , his attention had been stolen away .
Why would Stellan approach her ? Two years ago .
I was the one who saved him , she thought .
This is betrayal ! Rowena thought .
â Why did you come back , Elysia ? Just to ruin my life ! l â Rowena said .
She swung her free hand , and Elysia , distracted by her words , failed to dodge , Rowenaâs nails scraped across her cheek , leaving a shallow cut .
â Ruin ? â Elysia echoed , stunned .
â I should be asking you that .
Why did your mother bring you here to ruin my life
All the frustration and pain Elysia had buried for years erupted in a fiery outburst
â For ten years ,â she screamed , âI dreamed of coming home .
I thought Iâd finally feel the warmth of family again .
But what did I find ! My father and brothers had become yours .
My mother is gone .
No one remembers me .
No one loves me ? â
Her voice cracked as a single drop of red trickled from her eye .
A blood â tear rolled down her face , landing on the fresh scratch Rowena had left .
The cut healed instantly , leaving no trace of the injury .
Just then , a towering figure emerged from the shadows of the dim corridor
â Elysia ! What are you saying to your sister ! â
A rough male voice boomed like thunder behind Elyssa , startling her so much that her body froze , her mind going completely blank .
It felt as though an electric current had jolted through her from head to toe , leaving her paralyzed on the spot , unable to move .
The next moment , an incredibly strong force yanked her collar from behind .
Before she could react , Elysia was thrown backward and hit the ground hard .
Across from her , for the first time in such a situation , Rowenaâs face betrayed genuine confusion .
She only seemed to process what was happening when Rupert patted her head in comfort .
Quickly , she started crying , her tears spilling down as she stammered , â Dad , Elysia didnât mean to say those things .
Itâs my fault .
I ruined her life .
Iâm not your real daughter .
I shouldnât be part of this family ⦠â
Rupertâs heart broke at her words , and he rushed to console her .
â Rowena , my dear , donât cry .
You are my daughter â youâre the one who belongs in this family the most â
The warmth in his voice vanished the instant he turned to look at Elysia .
His kind expression morphed into one of pure hatred .
It wasnât the look of a father toward his child .
It was the look of a man staring at an enemy .
At that moment , Elysia understood her place in her fatherâs heart .
It wasnât disgust he felt for her .
It was
was prejudice .
to Rowena
Rowena had been right .
She had ruined Rowenaâs life .
She had destroyed this home that had always belonged to
23
Chapter 56
â Rowena .
Elysia â what have you done this timer Fenwick burst onto the scene , stepping over Elysia without a glance and heading straight for Rowena , fussing over her with concern .
A few moments later , he turned his focus back to Elysia and sneered , â Why canât you just leave Rowena alone ? What has she ever done to you ? Or is This just who you are ? Naturally vicious ? â
Elysia remained silent .
[ Em crying .
Watch carefully .
y moments like th
[ Post
these are rare .
]
your own crying pics if you want , stop sharing others : ]
This is one massive , gut â wrenching misunderstanding .
Rowena started it , but of course Rupert only caught Elysiaâs words .
]
[ Misunderstanding , my foot Elysia spoke the truth .
Rowena and her mom are trash , but the Drayton family just loves trash , apparently I
[ Wait ⦠something feels off this time .
Did you notice Rowenaâs reaction when Rupert appeared ? She looked completely shocked â almost like she didnât know he was coming
But the viewers seemed less interested in how Rupert had shown up and more focused on spamming the same comments over and over .
Rupert , apologize ! Torin , apologize ! Fenwick , apologize !!