Claimed By My Stepbrother novel Chapter 36

Chapter 36

Camila POV

I shoved her back down, harder this time, the water splashing out mine, desperate, but I didn’t relent.

of

the toilet and onto the floor. Her hands clawed at

“You think you can lay a hand on Tess and get away with it? I snapped, pulling her up just enough to breathe.

1-”

Splash.

She didn’t even get a word out before I shoved her back under, holding her there for a few seconds longer this time.

“Camila, stop!” Mia begged, but her voice was faint compared to the pounding of my heart and Vanessa’s frantic gasps every time I let her surface.

Finally, I pulled her up for the last time, letting her collapse onto the floor of the stall, coughing and shaking. She looked up at me with wide, terrified eyes, her perfectly styled hair now plastered to her face, her makeup an absolute disaster.

“Touch Tess again,” I said, my voice low and steady, “and I won’t stop next time.”

Vanessa didn’t respond. She just sat there, trembling, her once smug expression completely shattered.

Satisfied, I turned on my heel and walked out, leaving her minions to deal with the mess. My heart was still pounding, my hands shaking slightly from the intensity of what just happened.

I had no idea that one little action of mine would completely flip my life upside down.

The fluorescent lights of the nurse’s office buzzed faintly, the sharp antiseptic smell making my nose wrinkle as I stepped inside. Tess was perched on one of the beds, her face pale and bruised but lit with her usual fiery stubbornness as she argued with the nurse over something I couldn’t catch.

“Can you please sit still?” the nurse snapped, holding a small packet of gauze and clearly fighting the urge to strangle her patient.

Tess groaned dramatically. “I am sitting still, but you’re poking at me like I’m some science experiment!”

“Because you won’t let me clean the damn wound!”

“God, fine. But stop stabbing me with whatever that is,” Tess shot back, throwing her head back with a groan

before finally spotting me. Her eyes widened in surprise, and she gave a weak wave. “Cami, there you are! Took you long enough!”

I ignored her usual theatrics and hurried over, my stomach twisting when I saw the full extent of her injuries up close. The bruises on her arms were already turning an ugly shade of purple, and there was a small bandage on her temple. My jaw clenched as flashes of Vanessa’s smug face popped into my mind. I shoved them aside. Tess didn’t need to know.

‘I see you’re still giving people hell,” I said, keeping my tone light as I pulled up a chair beside her.

She grinned through the

páin, her dimples peeking out like she hadn’t just been ambushed and beaten up. “You would

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Chapter 36

be disappointed If I didn’t.

True, I admitted, leaning back in the chair. “But maybe try to save your sass for people who don’t have gång öf idiots at their beck and call.”

“Where’s the fun in that?” she quipped, though her wince as the nurse dabbed at her arm betrayed her bravado.

I snorted but didn’t press her further. That was Tess- flerce and reckless, even when she was barely holding it together.

The nurse gave a final, exasperated sigh as she taped the last piece of gauze to Tess’s arm. “You’re lucky nothing’s broken, young lady. Next time, try to avoid getting int

Into situations like this, hmm?”

Tess gave her an exaggerated salute. “Yes, ma’am.”

The nurse rolled her eyes, muttering something under her breath about “kids these days” before leaving us alone.

The moment the door clicked shut, Tess turned to me, her smile fading slightly. “Okay, spill. What’s with the look? You’re doing that thing where you’re all quiet and broody.”

I blinked. “What look?”

“That one,” she said, pointing at my face like I was an open book. “You’ve got ‘I did something‘ written all over you.”

Damn it. I forced a casual shrug, hoping to throw her off. “I was just worried about you.”

Tess narrowed her eyes. “Uh–huh. And?”

“And nothing,” I said, a little too quickly.

She leaned closer, her bruised face twisted in suspicion. “Camila. What did you do?”

“Nothing!” I insisted, standing up and grabbing her bag from the nearby chair. “Come on, let’s get you out of here before the nurse decides to lecture us both.”

“Camila,” she said slowly, her voice dripping with doubt.

“Tess,” I countered, mimicking her tone.

She sighed, clearly frustrated but too tired to push further. “Fine, keep your secrets. But I will find out.”

“Good luck with that,” I muttered under my breath, slinging her bag over my shoulder and helping her off the bed.

As we walked out, I kept glancing at her from the corner of my eye, making sure she wasn’t about to collapse or, worse, go on some revenge mission of her own.

“What?” she finally asked, catching me mid–glance.

“Nothing,” I said again, earning an eye roll.

We made our way through the empty hallway in silence, the distant hum of chatter from the cafeteria t.nly sound around us. My mind raced, replaying what had just happened in the bathroom. The satisfaction of shoving Vanessa’s face

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Chapter 36

into that toilet lingered, but so did the worry. If Vanessa decided to retaliate… No, she wouldn’t. Not after what I’d done.

Right?

Tess stumbled slightly, pulling me out of my thoughts.

“Hey, careful,” I said, steadying her.

“I’m fine,” she muttered, but her grip on my arm tightened.

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