Filed to story: Mated and Hated by My Brother’s Best Friend Book PDF Free by Anna Campbell
We repeated it. Again. Again.
Eventually, the dizziness dulled. The shaking slowed.
But the tears didn’t stop.
He pulled me into the chest, wrapping his arms around me so tightly, so completely, I could feel his heartbeat against my ear
“You’re okay, he murmured. “You’re safe. I’ve g
Successfully unlocked!
I clung to him like he was the only thing keeping me tethered to this world. And maybe he was.
“What happened?” he finally asked, brushing my hair from my face. “What is it?”
I pulled back just enough to meet his gaze. My voice was hoarse. Raw
“The list,” I whispered.
His brow creased. “What list?”
I shook my head. “I can’t tell you.”
“What list, Jiselle?”
His voice wasn’t demanding. Just scared. But it made something in me twist with guilt.
And then he saw it.
His eyes flicked to under the chair where I had thrown the list. To the edge of parchment peeking from the folds. He reached for it.
“No-” I gasped, lunging to stop him.
But he already had it.
He unrolled it slowly, his jaw tightening with every second. His hands didn’t shake. His face didn’t change. But his eyes… His eyes told me everything.
“Where did you get this?” he asked quietly.
My panic returned in full force. “You’re not supposed to see it! You’re not supposed to know. Nate-oh god-you’re not-” “Jiselle-stop.” He grabbed my shoulders, holding me steady. “I’m fine. I’m fine.”
“No, you don’t understand,” I said, my voice rising. “You’re not supposed to be fine. The list-it’s magical. They said if the target finds out before their time, they die. I wasn’t supposed to tell you. That’s why I didn’t. That’s why I couldn’t!” “But I’m not dead.”
The words were so calm, they stopped me cold.
He stepped closer, the list still in his hand, and crouched in front of me again.
“You told me,” he said. “You showed me. And I’m not dead.”
I blinked rapidly, trying to make sense of it. “But… you’re on it.”
“And still breathing.”
My brain scrambled for answers. “They said it would kill you. I believed them-Nate, I believed them-“
He gently pulled me into his arms again, pressing a kiss to the top of my head. “I’m not happy you kept it from me,” he said against my hair. “But I understand why you did.”
I clutched his shirt. “I was scared.”
“I know.”
“I didn’t want to lie-“
“But you were protecting me. I get it.” He pulled back, brushing his thumb along my cheek again. “You thought telling me would cost me my life. And still… you almost did.”
I nodded, tears still slipping free.
He kissed me again-this time on the forehead. “That’s how I know it’s real. Us.”
My breath hitched. I could only nod.
He stood, pacing once as he studied the list again.
“Where are you going?” I asked, voice panicked.
“I need to find out something*
“You’re scaring me”
He turned and looked at me gently. “Don’t be scared. I’ll be back soon.”
He shrugged on some pants and grabbed his jacket, folded the list carefully, and kissed me one more time before slipping out the door
I waited
Ten minutes passed,
Then an hou
I sat curled on the couch, gnawing my lip and checking the window like a prisoner waiting for rescue. Every second stretched. Every sound made my skin prickle.
Three hours later, the door finally creaked open.
I jumped up, half-sure he’d come back bleeding or worse.
But he didn’t come back alone.
Three people followed him inside. All older. All deadly.
My breath caught in my throat. Without even asking, I knew they were on the list too-people I didn’t recognized but look sure as hell capable of being a threat to the council.
“You brought them?” I whispered.
He nodded, stepping aside as they entered.
“They’re all on the list,” he said. “And they already knew. I told them.”
“What?” I shrieked. “Why would you risk it? Why would you-“
He closed the door. “Because I know it’s not true. This school has been playing this game longer than you think.”
I looked at the others. One of them-the girl-was Kael’s cousin. I recognized her.
“You shouldn’t have risked it, I whispered. “If something had gone wrong-*
“It didn’t,” he said firmly. “Because I’ve been here longer than you, darling. I know these tricks. The list is real, but we won’t die from knowing. That was just part of the illusion.”
“Then why give it to me?” I whispered. “Why tell me I’d be the only one who could see it?”
He stepped closer, his voice low.
“Because whoever gave you this didn’t want us prepared. Didn’t want us fighting back. They only wanted you alive. And as much as I’m all for you living, they lied to you. They knew your heart and used it against you, which means they can’t be trusted
I met his eyes.
The weight of truth settled on my shoulders.
“Who gave you the list, Jiselle?”
I hesitated.
Then I spoke.
“The Headmistress.*
He didn’t look surprised.
“Expected” he muttered. “She’s always had her own agenda.”
But I didn’t stop there.
My voice was barely a whisper.
“And Instructor Carrow.”
He stilled
And the temperature in the room dropped.
*Jiselle*
The air in the room was thick with the kind of silence that presses down on your bones and makes everything feel like it’s about to snap. Nate hadn’t said a word since I told him about Carrow.
He just paced.
One step. Two. Turn. Back again. His fists were clenched so tight I could hear the creak of his knuckles.
I sat on the edge of the bed, hands locked together in my lap, trying not to crumble again. But watching him like this- seeing that tension under his skin, the fury simmering beneath the surface-it made my stomach twist.
It wasn’t that he didn’t believe me. He did. That was the problem.
He believed me.
And if I was right, then Instructor Carrow-one of the only instructors who had protected me, who had fought beside Bastain in trying to stall the Council-had betrayed us too.
The same Carrow who used to smuggle me extra potions after injury. Who warned me to stay away from certain staff. Who always nodded subtly during classes like she was trying to say, I’ve got your back.
A lie.
A dangerous, deliberate lie.
Nate finally stopped pacing, his back to me, his hands pressed against the wall like he was trying to hold it up.
“What about Bastain?” he asked, his voice low, clipped. Controlled.
I stood slowly. “He was there. In the Headmistress’s office. But…”
He turned halfway to look at me. “But what?”
– I met his eyes. “He looked just as thrown as I was. He kept looking between Carrow and Solara like-like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing either.”
Nate’s eyes narrowed. “Did he speak?”
“Not much. And not until after. But he kept twitching toward his dagger.” I swallowed. “Not threateningly. Instinctively. Like something in him didn’t sit right.”
He nodded once, like he needed to believe that. “Good. Then he’s either clueless or playing a long game.”
He looked at the door where the other three students had just exited, his jaw tightening. “Either way, we watch him too.” I didn’t argue.
Nate turned to the others. The three we’d brought in-the girl who was Kael’s cousin, and the two boys who now seemed more soldier than student.
“You need to disappear,” he said, firm but not unkind. “Lay low until Solstice. You’re not safe until then.”
The girl-Aneira-nodded once. “Where should we go?”
“Anywhere that isn’t predictable. Don’t trust the staff. Don’t sleep alone. Rotate. Move.”
One of the boys shifted, uneasy. “And after Solstice?”
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