Chapter 24
She had forced Kate to choose to leave this
home with her own hands. By the time she realized what she had done, it was too late.
The house now stood empty, filled with silence and regret.
She thought back to the year when Kate was first brought home.
The little girl, terrified of being sent away again, would wake up early every single. day.
While other children her age were still clinging to their beds in comfort, Kate had already learned to take care of herself.
In her studies, she never gave them any
cause for concern.
Whenever she brought home the first–place award in her grade, it never earned her even a single word of praise.
But Leona was different–every time she
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moved up a single rank, their mother would buy her something new as a reward.
Kate was too sensible, too mature for her age. She did so much to win their favor. But they always turned a blind eye.
Kate had stopped trying to please them, though she couldn’t pinpoint exactly when it began. Because she knew that with those who were indifferent, no amount of effort would make a difference.
Melanie often stared out the window, lost in thought. It felt as if, ever since that day, all joy had been drained from her life.
There wasn’t a mother in the world who
didn’t wish for her child to live a happy life.
She was constantly thinking about Kate. How was she doing? Was she eating well and staying warm? Did she have enough. money to get by?
But she would never know, nor would she realize that Kate was still the remarkable person she had always been. She could
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now easily support herself and no longer relied on the Shawn Family for anything.
That worry was entirely unnecessary.
This kind of life went on for a long time. Until one day, Dave’s phone rang. The call was from their mutual friend, Alex.
“Have you been in touch with Kate recently? Have you seen her?”
Lately, quite a few people had called him. asking about her, so he assumed this would be no different.
“No, why? What’s going on?”
There was a long pause before Alex finally spoke, hid voice slow and hesitant. “I’m traveling in Polarisia right now. I saw someone on a cruise ship who looks a lot
like Kate.”
Dave felt his nerves tighten, gripping his phone tightly. “What did you say? Where? Are you sure you didn’t mistake her for someone else?”
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Sensing his disbelief, Alex quickly took a picture and sent it over.
“It’s not a mistake. It’s definitely Kate.”
He stared at the photo of Kate, poised and elegant, her face lit up with a radiant smile.
It seemed like her, yet at the same time, it didn‘ t.
Dave sat in a daze for a long time, suddenly realizing how long it had been since he last saw her smile like that.
His gaze shifted to the man standing beside her in the photo.
His expression darkened, a storm of uncontrollable emotions surging within
him.
Kate must have been truly happy during this time and her happiness clearly came from the man in the photo.
A surge of anger welled up inside him, but he was utterly powerless to do anything
about it.
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He got the exact location of the cruise ship from Alex.
Even though he knew Kate was doing well now, he still couldn’t stop himself from wanting to see her.
He wanted to bring her back.
After getting the information, Dave wasted no time making arrangements.
Just then, Melanie suddenly called to check in.
Dave, anxious and in a rush, blurted out his plan to go abroad to find Kate.
The moment Melanie heard that her daughter was in Polarisia, tears of
excitement welled up in her eyes.
“Wait for me for ten minutes. I’m coming too!”
She grabbed nothing but her ID and bank card, quickly booking a flight to Polarisia.
With a heart full of nervous anticipation,
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Chapter 24
she couldn’t help but look forward to seeing her daughter again.
She remained silent during the entire journey, sitting next to Dave.
Their occasional small movements-
fidgeting fingers, restless gazes–betrayed their nervousness.
After all, they were going to meet someone they had once hurt. How could they not be
tense?