Chapter 198: Retrieving Stella 

“Son, Stella, she…” Christopher started to say. 

“Why is my nephew there?” Ray asked a they all looked at the satellite footage with a frown. Lenny walked into a car and drove off. 

Five minutes later, James’s drone dropped a bomb on the compound, sending it to flames. 

They all saw right. It was Lenny. 

But James had other problems. Stella was still being held. 

He ordered his men to storm the wing they were holding Stella. 

He had this bad feeling in his gut about the entire operation. 

Within minutes, his men covered the wing easily. They took out the perpetrators so easily that Christopher glanced at James with a frown. He needed no telling that James was already prepared. This entire situation was James’s trap. 

As the operation started, James walked out of the surveillance room and made his way towards. the wing. 

“You have the wing already covered, huh?” Christopher asked following him. 

James clenched his jaw, knowing his father already figured this was a trap. 

His comms told him Stella was in the room. James almost lost his mind. Stella? Didn’t they swap her? 

He could not concentrate on this now. His mind was focused on Stella. 

He could only hope they arrived in time before anything more traumatic happened to Stella. 

He watched as the strike team moved into position, high–tech weapons raised. 

They crept down the dimly lit hallway towards the doors. 

A woman’s deranged shouts and Stella’s anguished cries. 

With a concussive bang, the door was blown open and mayhem erupted. 

James saw flashes of his men attacking wildly, but his eyes were on a horribly familiar image of Stella, battered and crumpled on the floor with one of the assailant standing over her, 

repeatedly kicking and stomping in a crazed tantrum. 

“Die, Die!” the woman screeched like a madwoman. 

Without hesitation, James barreled through the open doorway, his vision going red. 

He pulled his gun and shot without thinking. The bullet passed through the crazy woman’s leg 

sending her to the floor. 

Rage filled his head as he let out two more shot, Bitting her shoulder and waist. 

It took three of his guards to fully restrain the other assallant before James scooped Stella’s trembling form into his arms, cradling her gently. 

“Baby?” he called but she did not respond. 

“It’s over…you’re safe now, I’ve got you,” he murmured as she whimpered in pain, clinging to 

him. 

Her consciousness seemed to be slipping in and out. 

James stroked her hair, wishing he could absorb all of her suffering and agony into himself. 

As he carried her out into the hallway, leaving his men to deal with the rest. He could hear Stella whimper slightly in his arms as he took her out. 

“I am sorry baby,” he apologized. When he had first made this plan, he knew she might get injured but seeing her actually injured broke his soul. 

When he saw that she was slipping away, he panicked. 

“Stay awake, baby. Keep your eyes open!” he called to her. 

“The doctors are prepared. We need to take her to the clinic,” Christopher reminded the hysterical James. 

Soon, the medical team arrived. A large hotel like theirs would have a small hospital. But the Grey family had gone overboard and gotten experts. 

Stella was soon left to them with James standing there livid. 

Seeing her lying there, for some reason, a thought crossed his mind; what if she doesn’t wake up? he wondered. 

After a while, the doctors returned to tell the family that she was fine but still unconscious. 

The guests had been let go and they had taken their private transport off the hotel. 

The hotel had to be redirected back to the city so that James could move Stella back home. 

The hotel docked and Stella was moved to the Green family home. 

The house was silent and solemn when Stella was settled in James‘ room. When James stepped 

down stairs, he found his mother father and grandfather waiting for him. 

He sighed and took a sit before pouring himself a drink. 

“Are you two really married?” Ray asked and James raised a brow. 

“Yes,” he answered. 

“Then why did you do it?” Marla asked. It was dear his immediate family found out that he had used Stella as balt. 

“I did not use her. The men did not swap her. Like you, they thought I was trying to use her as bait. What did you think was going to happen when people found out I was married?” James asked and they saw his point. 

It was the same for Christopher when he had married Maria. Their enemies saw it as a chance. to move. It took a lot of work out eliminate people around her. 

“I have never used your godmother as balt. You must never do this either,” Christopher said. To this, James agreed. But, in his defense, he did not know there would be a mistake. 

“Does she think you used her as bait?” Maria asked and James‘ face went dark. His reaction made his mother sigh and get up to leave. 

“You need to explain this to her, you just got her back,” Maria said and walked away. 

How was he to explain that he already regretted it? At the time, he had not figured that he would make such a mistake. Would she believe him? What was he to do now? 

He was sure that with this, she was going to leave him. He had many chances to stop the attack. But he had not know she was the one they were holding and not the decoy. 

Now what? 

Stella woke to a silent room. She was not sure where she was and panicked slightly, till she saw James seated beside her bed and calmed down. 

When James saw her move, he reacted and came over to her side. 

“Don’t be so quick to move,” he said and she could not help but feel anger. Now he had finished his trap, he was back to being a gentle man. 

“It is nothing,” she said and insisted on moving. It hurt her like hell to move around, but she still had to. She wanted to leave this place. She wanted to leave him quickly. 

“Are we done now? Can I leave?” she asked and he froze. He recalled he had promised he would protect her. She probably lost all that in him. 

“You are sick,” he kept a straight face. For some reason, he could not open his mouth to say what he truly wanted to say, that he regretted it, that he if he could go back, he would have protected her instead. 

But the words did not leave his mouth. 

He watched as she got up and slowly started looking for her cloths. 

“You did not bring my luggage?” she asked and he pointed to the walk in closet. She walked inside and started changing. 

When she entered the closet to started packing James felt dread. 

James was panicking. He was not sure how to react to her right now. She came out dressed and her luggage packed and he blocked her path. 

“Shouldn’t you rest first?” he said. 

“No! I can’t risk staying,” she said. 

The more natural she behaved, the more crazy James felt. 

“Stella, go back to bed, you are not healed yet. And you are not going anywhere. I will take you back at the Rose mansion soon. Lily is waiting for you to wake up,” 

She paused and looked at his blank face and raised a brow.” 

“I have already done my part here,” she said, “you will ley me know what you find about those people, right?” she asked. 

There was so much at the tip of his tongue that he wished to say, but he could not even utter the words. He had never had to explain himself before and could not bring himself to do so.