Left Them Loved Myself (Stella Spencer) novel Chapter 120

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The Jansen family’s place wasn’t far from the hospital. It was tucked away in the city center’s upscale neighborhood, only about a thirty–minute drive.

Stella sat in the passenger seat, watching the scenery blur past outside the window, completely lost in her own thoughts.

Erica, driving, glanced over with concern. “Stella, if you don’t really want to go to the Jansens‘ place, I can go on my own.”

Stella snapped out of her daze, a wry smile on her lips. “And what would your excuse be?” she teased.

‘I barely have a good reason to show up at the Jansen family’s place myself, Stella thought, ‘let alone Erica, who has nothing at all to do with them.

“Excuses are a dime a dozen,” Erica joked, just bluffing it. “I could say my dad told me to come schmooze with the Jansen family, easy as that.”

After all, they were just going to poke around for clues. Once they found what they needed, they’d leave anyway, so whatever reason they gave to stay didn’t really matter.

“Trust me, you don’t know him,” Stella said, shaking her head. “Theodore is insanely paranoid. Even if he lets you stay, he’ll have his eyes glued to you–forget about snooping around for clues.”

“Ugh,” Erica groaned, rubbing her temples. “Captain Lance sure knows how to land you right in the middle of

a mess.”

Now that the suspect was dead, the whole game had changed. Stella didn’t have to keep pretending anymore -now her job was to head over to the Jansen family’s place and hunt for clues.

No matter what anyone did, there was always a trail left behind.

Besides, Stella knew Theodore all too well–whenever something big happened, he was the type to keep backups in his study. ‘If I’m lucky,‘ she thought, ‘I just might find proof he had someone taken out.’

“It’s fine,” Stella said, shaking her head with a faint smile. “Honestly, even if it’s not about him, I have to do this for myself.”

The Jansen family had always been a ticking time bomb. That blood tie to Theodore–a bond she could never cut–was bound to trap her someday.

If she managed to settle this, she’d save herself a whole lot of trouble.

“Yeah, makes sense.” Erica nodded. She totally got what Stella meant.

As they chatted, they pulled up in front of the Jansen family’s villa.

Stella turned to look. The lawn that used to bloom with vibrant flowers was now just bare earth, and the villa’s entire decor had been changed–nothing looked like she remembered. ‘It’s almost like a stranger’s home now,‘ Stella thought, a wave of unfamiliarity washing over her.

17:35 Sat, Oct 18

Chapter 120

“Stella, let’s go.” Erica called out.

Erica hopped out first, circled around to Stella’s door, and offered her a hand.

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“Alright. Stella nodded and took Erica’s hand as she stepped out, letting her friend lead the way. She didn’t protest–just followed along, feeling oddly detached.

The doorbell rang, but after a long wait, nobody came to answer.

“See? We’re standing here, and no one even bothers to show up,” Erica said with a smirk, rolling her eyes. “Guess they really want to give you a hard time right from the start.”

Stella gave a faint smile. “That’s not Theodore’s style.”

If he knew she was there, there’s no way he’d hide. He’d probably be itching to show up and ‘fatherly authority‘ act.

“So it’s that old snake, Louisa?” Erica raised an eyebrow.

Good thing Louisa wasn’t there in person, or Erica would’ve lost it on her for sure.

“Yeah, it’s her.” Stella nodded. “Only she’d stoop to these kinds of shady tricks.”

put on his whole

As a kid, Stella had suffered a lot at Louisa’s hands–always getting quietly bullied and manipulated behind closed doors.

Any time Stella reached her limit and needed help, Louisa would put on her best “woe–is–me stepmom” act, making Stella look like the out–of–control problem child, until everyone was convinced Stella was the one at fault.

After enough hits, Stella learned to keep everything bottled up, swallowing the pain alone and patching herself up without anyone ever knowing.

“It’s no big deal. I’m curious who’s going to be the one embarrassed in the end,” Erica said, smirking.

Erica wasn’t the type to hold back. She snatched a stick from the side and started hammering on the door.

The pounding was relentless, like a drumbeat that just wouldn’t quit.

“Deal my ass! What happened at home? Mr. Gordon heard that someone was causing trouble at our place and called off the whole meeting–told me to handle my family drama first. Do you have any idea how much work I put into making this deal happen?” Theodore snapped, his voice razor–sharp with anger.

The Cordon family had been one of the most powerful families in Seabrook. If it weren’t for Ernest vouching for him, Theodore wouldn’t even get a foot in the door.

If he missed out, who knew when–or if–he’d ever get another shot?

Everyone knew that ‘sort out your family, then we’ll talk‘ was just polite nonsense–empty words one was supposed to smile and nod at.

“Someone’s causing trouble?” Louisa shot upright, her voice pitched higher than usual in panic. “Did Mr. Gordon get the wrong idea? Everything’s perfectly fine here–there’s absolutely no one stirring up trouble…”

‘Hold on!‘ Louisa’s mind raced back to the faces she’d spotted on the security cameras earlier. ‘Don’t tell me those two outside are the ones stirring the pot?‘ she thought, nerves tightening in her chest.

17:35 Sat, Oct 18

Chapter 120

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Gripped by anxiety, she called out to Gary Norman, the butler, “Go check whether those two lingering outside have left yet.”

“Right away, Mrs. Jansen,” Gary said, nodding as he hurried off.

It didn’t take long before he came back to report. “Mrs. Jansen, they’re outside banging on the door and making a scene.”

“Those shameless brats! How dare they!” Louisa spat through clenched teeth, already imagining the Jansen family becoming the laughing stock of the entire elite circle.

“It’s your precious daughter’s doing,” Louisa snapped into the phone, then hung up without another word.

She stormed out, Gary trailing behind her.

Outside, Erica was bashing away at the door like a kid who’d found her new favorite toy. She didn’t quit, not for a second, and it showed–the door was covered in dents and bruised all over from her wild assault.

When she was up to mischief, it was like she’d got endless energy.

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