He Stole Me From My Deadbeat Husband-Chapter 454

Michael guarded the door alongside the police officer. He looked steadfast, like an impenetrable fortress. He didn’t want to make the same mistake twice.

Dahlia sat on the bed near Kate’s leg and gently held her daughter-in-law’s hand, "What do you want to talk about, Kate?"

"I—"

"—If you want to blame yourself again, then I’m not going to listen to any of it," Dahlia interrupted. She arrived about an hour ago and was as shocked as Michael when she found out what just happened.

It took a while until Kate told her everything, and she could only stay by Kate’s side while hoping that her son could pass through his critical state.

After all, though they were not blood-related, Dahlia truly saw Henry as her own son. She couldn’t imagine the devastation knowing that she lost both of her sons caused by the same woman:

Sarah.

Kate shook her head, "I know blaming myself won’t do anything to ease the situation, and I know that it’s all Sarah’s fault."

"Good, then you don’t need to worry about anything else. Just rest for now. You can’t be in distress when you just gave birth, Kate," Dahlia said. She looked at Theo, who was sleeping peacefully in Kate’s arms. "Why don’t you give him to me for a while? You’ve been carrying him for hours."

Dahlia wanted to take Theo from Kate, but Kate retreated subconsciously, "I—I’m sorry, Dahlia. I just don’t feel safe giving my baby to anyone, not even you."

Dahlia sighed. She knew that Kate must’ve been traumatized because of this, on top of that vile audio recording of Henry and Marlon’s plan.

So Dahlia didn’t push her further, "That’s alright. I’m just worried about you. You went through a lot, Kate."

"Not as much as Henry," Kate downplayed her pain. "He risked his life to protect me while I can only sit and watch. I feel so useless, Dahlia..."

Again, Dahlia felt that Kate kept trapping herself in this cycle of self-blame. It was actually quite similar to Henry. They both often dwell in their cycle of self-blame, which makes them depressed.

Not wanting to let Kate drown in her sadness, Dahlia shifted the topic, "So, what do you want to talk about?"

...

Kate lowered her head. She finally smiled when she saw Theo, who was sleeping peacefully. Theodore truly had his father’s facial features, from his hair, eyes, nose, and even lips. He was basically Henry 2.0.

And it also made her extremely protective of Theo, thinking how much Henry had sacrificed for their safety.

"Dahlia, I don’t want Henry, Vernon, and everyone else to keep risking their lives to protect me," Kate said. "I can’t imagine having to see this horror over and over. It’s a nightmare I don’t want to repeat."

Dahlia had a bad feeling about this, so she tried to soothe her, "They are risking their lives because they love you, Kate. You should know that you are well-loved by everyone. That’s why they don’t mind all of this."

"But I mind," Kate said. "Even if they are willing to go through hell just to protect me, it doesn’t mean that I will just stand and watch. I love them, I love you as well, Dahlia. I don’t want to see you getting hurt because of me."

"Katherine—"

"That’s why I’m thinking about running away," Kate said firmly as if she had made this decision before talking with Dahlia.

"Running away?!" Dahlia shook her head vehemently. "No, why would you run away when everyone tries to protect you?!"

"I don’t want to be protected," Kate said. "Everything that is currently happening feels like a nightmare," Kate muttered. "Do you think I feel happy knowing that Henry and Vernon are hurt because of me? Let alone Mackenzie, a little girl who has no fault. I was devastated knowing Mackie’s life was in danger."

"Katherine..." Dahlia felt that none of her words could get into Kate’s thick skull. The more she tried to reason, the more Kate denied it.

"I know it’s not my fault, but I also know it’s wiser for me to remove myself from this family," Kate insisted. "With me out of the picture, Sarah will have no reason to hurt anyone. I am her main target, after all."

"This is too extreme, Kate," Dahlia continued reasoning. "Of course, we want to get rid of that vile woman, but there is always another way—"

"She is beyond cunning, Dahlia," Kate said. "This is a premeditated attack. She attacked Vernon first to disperse his guards, then she sent Erin to attack me, and once she failed, she had two men remove Erin’s body from the crime scene so the police wouldn’t be able to find a clue about her."

"How many victims do we need until you realize that catching Sarah right now is almost impossible?" Kate said coldly. "And don’t say that I gave up fighting against her. I will stay if it’s just between me and her. But I have Theodore now."

...

Dahlia shifted her gaze at her grandson again, "If you run away, you’ll separate him from his father. You know how damaging that could be, right?"

"I know..." Kate nodded. "But I’m running away because of Theodore. I know Sarah will target Theo, and I don’t want him to be in constant distress growing up. I also want him to grow up like a normal kid, with no bodyguards lurking around him and strict security just to make sure he is alright. It feels like I’m trapping my son in a cage, Dahlia."

"Then how about you live in my mansion in Michigan? Theo should be safer that way, right? Henry will be able to visit as well."

"That would ruin the point of disappearing," Kate said. "If Henry could visit me and Theo, Sarah would detect our location sooner or later. I want to disappear with my son. I don’t want anyone, not even you or Henry, to know where I will be going."