CHAPTER 262: CHANGE OF HEART (2)

Kate wasn’t as positive as Mark was. She was certain she wouldn’t be able to walk again, but she was able to roam the town again thanks to Noah.

Noah was eager to come up with many kinds of contraptions to help Kate get around the home in her chair.

Kate was ready to start anew, but it was unfortunate that Warren was not around to see it.

Was Warren’s disappearance a punishment for Kate?

Was there a time she needed to change, but she waited too late?

Kate hated to think what had happened to her son. She was finally in a good place again, and terrible news about her son might put her back in the same position she was in days ago.

"Sorry," Noah apologised.

Noah stopped pushing Kate to fix the unsteady wheel.

"It’s his first time making something like this. My husband is good with his hands, and so is my son, though Warren doesn’t like it. My son is more like me," Kate confessed.

Kate noticed Mark’s smile, but she didn’t mean it as a compliment.

Looking back now, Kate should have stopped Warren from becoming like her. Saving him from harbouring hatred for someone who didn’t deserve it.

"Got it," Noah said, pushing Kate again.

Noah wanted to get Kate inside a room before the attention got to her.

"One of me is enough. I hope there aren’t any ladies making the same decisions I did during my season. I was so desperate to compete with Alessandra that I jumped right into Simon’s arms and missed the signs," Kate admitted.

Kate continued to say, "There must have been signs that I missed. I thought I was in love and missed them. I knew nothing about Simon other than his title and wealth. If you could, save the girls who are like me."

No matter how cruel some young ladies could be, they didn’t deserve to go through what Kate did. They could be punished in other ways.

Mark wished to do this, but it was harder than it sounded for a town like Lockwood. Everyone wanted to marry up to be included in what they deemed as important inner circles.

Mark had been around all kinds of people all over the town and failed to see why status was so important. There was more to life than having a fancy title.

"Perhaps the young ladies would listen if they hear it from you," Mark suggested.

Kate laughed. "No, they would not. I would have laughed at some lady trying to warn me about a man with status. There are other things I would have done which I am not proud of speaking of now."

Kate knew she could try her hardest, but not many of the young ladies would listen to her warnings about noticing the signs men in town displayed about their personalities. There was too much pressure on the ladies for them to listen to anyone.

"Now that I think of it, a man from the court wouldn’t have much more of a chance to convince the ladies. Perhaps you should work with the king to create better laws to protect ladies from their fathers," Kate suggested.

Kate loved her late father dearly, but he had made it a point for his daughters to compete, and when he pushed Alessandra into the spotlight, Kate made it her goal to do better than her sister.

That ambition turned into hatred, which led Kate to want to kill her sister. Later on, Kate faced the pressure of marrying a good man because her father had found himself in debt.

"Mothers can pressure us quite a lot and only care about marrying their daughters off to a good man, but in the end, our father’s wishes matter most," said Kate.

"I see. I think you have found what you have meant to do, Kate. Your voice would matter here in the court," Mark said, certain of it.

Kate would be living proof of what became of ladies who faced the pressures of the season, and their mental struggles were ignored.

Kate laughed. "The king would not want me anywhere near his court. He is still friends with the duke, and what I have to tell you will make you think differently of me."

Mark opened the door and held it for Kate and Noah to enter. Mark closed the door behind him and locked it so they wouldn’t be disturbed.

Kate took a deep breath before she spoke. "Victor revealed more about the deal my son made with him. Warren wanted to take Penelope Collins and give her to Victor. I know it is bad."

Kate could tell from Mark’s expression that he was judging her son.

"It is very bad," Mark agreed with Kate.

Mark didn’t like the kind of men who would take a woman from her home and throw her into a brothel.

If this were to reach Edgar’s ears, then Warren was as good as dead.

Mark rubbed his temple. "You not only have to worry about Edgar learning of this, but the prince as well. If Victor doesn’t have your son, then you might be right to suspect Edgar. I will look into whether he was seen near any of the Collinses."

At the moment, Mark didn’t have a good impression of Warren, but he might be worth saving to keep Kate on track.

"I must know if there is any conflict your son has with the Collinses to explain why he would want to offer Penelope. Don’t leave anything out, as it might help me find him," said Mark.

"Our son has this idea that the Collinses should have raised him. All he saw was the wealth the duke has, and he is angry that Kate wasn’t taken care of by the duchess. Warren wants what doesn’t belong to him," Noah explained.

"It was decided long ago that your uncle would care for you. There wasn’t anything the duchess had to do for you since you were of age to care for yourself and you had gotten married. Picking a fight with Edgar isn’t wise," Mark said, knowing it was unlikely Warren was alive.

Warren’s best chance to live would be if he were captured by Victor.

Mark picked fights with Edgar mainly to tease Edgar, but Mark knew when to stop.

"Kate, regardless of what happens, your son is of age. You have done your best, and now is the time for him to make his own decisions. I will hope for the best for him, but if I cannot save him, then you mustn’t blame yourself," Mark advised Kate.

Kate could only smile since she couldn’t promise that she wouldn’t blame herself.

Wasn’t it her fault that Warren turned out as he did?

Kate remembered encouraging him to hate the Collinses and placing what happened to her on Alessandra.

It shouldn’t be surprising now that Warren hated Alessandra and her family.

Kate wanted to move on since she started to hate herself even more. "I promised to speak about Simon, so we should start," she said, keeping her end of the deal.