All Chapters of HIS TO DESTROY: Chapter 51 - Chapter 60

CATALINA'S POVTime seemed to slow down.Catalina stood frozen in the doorway, Gabriel heavy in her arms, staring at the man walking toward them.Lucien, but not Lucien.This man moved differently. His shoulders were too rigid, his steps were too measured. His face was blank and empty, like someone had carved out everything that made him human and left only the shape behind."Lucien," she whispered.He didn't respond, he just kept walking. The weapon in his hand never wavered. It stayed pointed directly at her chest.Behind her, Mateo raised his own weapon. "Don't," he said. Warning and pleading Lucien. "Don't make me do this."Lucien didn't stop."Get back," Mateo said to the others. "Get behind me."But there was nowhere to go. The doorway was the only exit and Lucien was between them and any other route. The room was empty.They were trapped.Catalina's mind raced. She wanted to run to him. She wanted to grab his face and make him look at her, to really look at her. She wanted to s

CATALINA'S POVThe van drove for what felt like hours.Catalina sat in the back, Gabriel was still pressed against her chest. The boy hadn't spoken nor moved. He just breathed in small, shallow gasps that worried her more than she wanted to admit.Across from her, a medic worked on Isa. Cleaning cuts and bandaging wounds. Isa winced but didn't complain. She just stared at the floor of the van like she was seeing something else entirely.Through the small window between the back and the driver's compartment, Catalina could see Miguel. He was on a stretcher in the other van. She caught glimpses when the vehicles turned or the headlights shifted. Each time, he looked more in pain.She pressed her hand against the window, wishing she could reach him, wishing she could do something other than just sit here and pray."He's strong," the medic said quietly. She was young, maybe thirty. She had dark hair that was pulled back in a tight bun. "Your father. He's made it this far, that takes serio

LUCIENLucien's eyes opened slowly. Everything was blurry. White ceiling, bright lights and the smell of antiseptic and blood.He tried to move, but he couldn't. His wrists were strapped down, his ankles too. Panic flared hot and immediately. He was trapped.His breath came faster, his heart pounding too. He pulled against the restraints, but they held. His wrists burned but he kept pulling anyway."Easy." A female voice said coldly. "You're safe. You're not there anymore."Lucien's head turned, and he saw a woman sitting in a chair beside the bed. She had dark hair streaked with gray, and a face he almost recognized but couldn't place. She looked tired and worried."Who are you?" His voice came out rough and broken, like he'd been screaming.Had he been screaming?"My name is Elena." She leaned forward slightly. "Do you know where you are?"Lucien looked around the room again. It was small and clean, with medical equipment nearby. This was not the white room. Not that terrible endles

CATALINA'S POVThe nurse was saying something, but Catalina couldn't hear her properly. The words bounced off her ears, never quite sinking in.Miguel's whisper still echoed in her mind. Two words. Just two words that changed everything, that made her chest feel too tight and her hands shake.She stared at her father's face. His eyes were closed again, his breathing was shallow but steady. The monitors beeped their reassuring rhythm, but nothing felt reassuring."Miss Cruz?" The nurse touched her shoulder gently. "Are you alright?"Catalina nodded automatically, though she wasn't sure it was true. "Yes. I'm fine.""You should rest. You've been through a lot.""I know." But she didn't move. She couldn't make her legs work yet.The nurse studied her face for a moment, then squeezed her shoulder. "I'll be just outside if you need anything. Take your time."When the door closed, Catalina let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. She looked at her father's hand in hers, it w

ISA'S POVThe clock on the wall read 2:47 AM, but Isa's eyes felt wide awake. She'd been staring at the screen for three hours straight, watching lines of code scroll past, monitoring encrypted channels, looking for anything that might tell her what the Church was doing next.She should sleep. Her body ached from the escape, and her wrists were still bandaged from where the zip ties had cut into her skin during those long days working under Dr. Chen's supervision.But every time she closed her eyes, she saw that woman's face. The cold calculation in her eyes. The way she'd moved, fast and efficient, when she realized Isa was escaping.Dr. Chen was probably dead. Mateo had hit her hard, and she'd gone down without moving. But Isa couldn't shake the feeling that someone that competent wouldn't die easily.The tech room Elena had set up was impressive. Three monitors, two laptops, and enough processing power to break into most systems if you knew what you were doing. And Isa knew what sh