All Chapters of Before Her Heart Was Taken: Chapter 21 - Chapter 28

28 Chapters

Chapter 21

Hector never thought that after chasing Tiffany all the way to Kenura, this was how he'd find her.The girl he'd been searching for nearly a month—the one he claimed to love so much it hurt, the one who used to flinch from everyone but him—was curled up in another guy's arms. In the middle of the night.Something inside him snapped.He lunged, yanked Tiffany away, and punched Javier straight in the face."Who the hell said you could touch her?!" he shouted. "Tiffany's mine—she belongs to me!"Hector grabbed a stool and swung it up, ready to smash it over Javier.But Javier wasn't about to just stand there. That first punch caught him off guard—but he wasn't backing down.He caught the stool mid-swing, wincing as pain shot through his arm, then kicked Hector hard in the gut, sending him flying.Tiffany jumped, heart in her throat."Javier, are you okay?" She rushed over, throwing her arms around him, voice shaking. "Your arm—your mouth's bleeding—I'm taking you to a doctor righ

Chapter 22

Even after leaving the hospital, Tiffany's fingers still wouldn't stop shaking.Just seeing Hector had her frozen—pure fear, bone-deep."As long as I'm here, he's not taking you anywhere," Javier whispered, pulling her in. "You're safe. Just breathe."His chest was warm, solid.That steady heartbeat in her ear? It made everything feel a little less terrifying."Thanks, Javier," she whispered.Once she'd finally calmed down, the exhaustion slammed into her. She eased out of his arms. "It's late. Let's head back to the dorm."Her leg throbbed—she'd slammed it into a table during the chaos earlier. After everything, she was barely hanging on. If she didn't crash soon, tomorrow was gonna suck.Still, she kept quiet. Javier was hurt too. No way was she adding to that.Then he stepped in front of her and crouched.She froze.He glanced back with a grin. "If you're too wiped to walk, just say so. It's kinda far to the taxi stand. I got you.""But your arm..."Hector had slammed t

Chapter 23

Worried Hector might pull something reckless, Javier canceled all his appointments and stuck by Tiffany's side the whole day."You really don't have to do this. Work matters more. I'm not the only one around—nothing's gonna happen. Hector doesn't care that much about me," she said, trying to brush it off.She brought it up more than once. He didn't budge.As a guy, Javier saw Hector for what he was.Even in that split-second meeting, the obsession in Hector's eyes was loud and clear. It rattled him.He didn't know everything Hector had done, but one thing was obvious—whatever he felt for Tiffany, it was way more intense than she realized.And Javier? He'd just gotten her back after all these years.There was no way he was letting go.Hector didn't show for two days. Tiffany and Javier finally started to relax. So when the principal asked Javier to lead a supply run to a school in Kibana—the biggest slum in Nyrobi—he only paused for a second before saying yes."Probably won't b

Chapter 24

The second his breath hit her nose, Tiffany's stomach twisted.She used to fear him. Hate him. Now? He straight-up made her want to puke."Get off me! Get the hell off!"She kicked and clawed, her tears mixing with blood as it dripped to the floor.Hector didn't care.It had been almost a month.He was like an addict crashing back into withdrawal—the second his lips hit hers, he lost it.This wasn't love. It was desperation.His eyes went wild, burning red. And for one messed-up second, he actually thought about taking her right there.But then—Tiffany gasped. Loud. Ragged. Hurting.And he stopped."Tiffany? What's wrong? Don't scare me! I won't do it again! I swear I won't! Calm down! Somebody call a doctor! An ambulance!"Hector went ghost-white.He clutched her limp body, yelling for help, trying to shake her awake.Tiffany couldn't hear him.Her face went blue, eyes rolled back, limbs totally numb."Breathe, Tiffany! Please—breathe!" He fumbled a paper bag over he

Chapter 25

Hector's madness was too much.Tiffany sank deeper under the covers, shaking. "Get them out. I don't want to see them. I don't want revenge—I just want you gone!"She was done. So done.From Dalvona to Kenura, it had been nothing but pain. All she ever wanted was a quiet life. Why couldn't he just let her have that?"I'm begging you, Hector. Please. Just disappear."He smiled, soft and terrifying. "I won't. Once I've broken their legs and fed them to the vultures—once everyone who's hurt you is dead and bleeding—then you'll come back with me."He lifted a hand.The guards drew iron rods in sync."No!"Tiffany's eyes went huge. She lunged forward—but Hector locked her down in his arms.Thud! Thud! Thud!The sound of metal smashing into flesh pounded through the room."Mmm! Mmm!"The six on the floor writhed, gagged cries muffled and panicked—until more tape shut them up again.The white floor turned red fast.Cracks—sharp, sickening—rang in Tiffany's ears."Stop! Hector,

Chapter 26

"Tiffany, what... what are you saying?"Hector looked like he'd just been smacked with a brick. His voice shook. He wanted to step closer, but the knife at her neck stopped him cold."I love you. I love you so much—how could I ever hurt you? Everything that happened... it was because Charlotte lied. She tricked me!""Stop making excuses!" Tiffany screamed. "How dare you talk about love? The only person you've ever loved is yourself! You say you wanna make it up to me? Don't kid yourself. You just wanna feed that twisted need to control me."You've never treated me like a person. To you, I've always been some dog you branded—someone to mess with when you're in a good mood, and crush when you're not."You don't love me. You just can't handle being wrong. You can't stand that I walked away. In your world, it's fine for you to throw people out, but no one's allowed to leave you!"Hector, you make me sick!"For the first time since joining the Coxon family, Tiffany stood tall—no fear

Chapter 27

Tiffany took the day off.She felt kinda guilty about it. Since landing in Kenura, all she'd done was dump problems on Javier without giving much back.But he didn't care.From the start, he'd brought her here to help her breathe again. Her heart was heavy, her nerves wrecked—she needed a whole new world just to start feeling normal."Get some rest. I'll be back after work."He kissed her forehead, soft and warm.Tiffany nodded.The door clicked shut, blocking out the world.But sleep wouldn't come.Once she was sure Javier was gone, Tiffany grabbed her phone and stared at the email, frozen.It was a property transfer.Hector had handed over all his liquid assets and six houses in Westvale and Velmont City.[This is what I owe you, Tiffany. For the last life, and this one. I know I can't undo the harm I've caused. Don't worry, I won't ever appear before you again. I hope you find the happiness you truly want.]Hector wouldn't bother her again.He'd tried to play the big b

Chapter 28

Tiffany thought she was done with Hector for good.Life in Nyrobi had been calm for a while. Her legs were almost healed, and with how short-staffed things were, she'd started volunteering to teach in nearby towns.The day Dave showed up, she was showing kids how to fold paper cranes."Ms. Talwyn... Mr. Coxon—he doesn't have much time left."The crane slipped from her hands, fluttering to the floor.She looked up. "What are you talking about?"Dave let out a slow breath and handed her a medical report."The day you turned down the property, Mr. Coxon was set to fly back to Dalvona. But he changed course. Went to Kibana alone.""Kibana?" Tiffany's brows pulled together. "Why would he go to the slums?""Maybe he wanted to see that other world you mentioned."She didn't answer.She didn't care where Hector went or why. The question had just slipped out—muscle memory, nothing more.Dave could tell where she stood. He hadn't wanted to drag her into it—but time was running out.

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