"I can't," Linda whimpered. "I made a promise before God. I swore to stay with him through sickness and health, through good times and bad. I can't break that vow. If anything, it's my fault this happens. If I was a better wife, he would never—"

"Do you hear yourself right now?" Catherine said, clenching her hands into fists. "How can you blame yourself for what he does? It's not your fault. It's his fault! He's the one who chooses to drink and gamble and beat his wife and daughter."

​​

"But—" Linda whispered.

Catherine bent over the bed, putting her face close to Linda's, "It's not your fault. It's his fault."

A hand closed on her shoulder and pulled her away from the bed. She turned and found Maria giving her a warning look.

"I think you need to calm down," Maria said quietly.

"I won't," she snapped back. "Linda is talking absolute nonsense, and I'm not going to sit around and let her do it. She's in her late forties—she's too old to say this sort of rubbish."

"I know that," Maria hissed. "But yelling at her isn't going to change anything."

"Fine," Catherine snapped. "I'll leave and let you all talk some sense into her. But before I go, I want to say one more thing. Do you know that Sophia got into King's College? Do you know that Tom forbid her to go because he wants her to get work so he can start stealing her paychecks and gambling them away? Do you know that he's going to force her into some loveless marriage so that he can spend her husband's money?"

"That's not true," Linda said. "What marriage?"

Catherine froze—she'd accidentally talked about events from her past life. Though she knew the future, there was no way to explain her knowledge to anyone else. She'd sound absolutely crazy.

"It's the path she's on," she finally said. "What kind of future can she have if she can't go to university?"

Linda threw her hands over her eyes and shook her head back and forth.

"Catherine, stop," Maria hissed. "You're upsetting her."

"Good," Catherine snapped. "Think about this, Linda—you have to make a decision right now. Do you want Sophia in your life or Tom? You can't have both."

Without another word, she slung her purse over her arm and exited the room. Furious, she raced down the hallway but stopped when she heard footsteps behind her.

"Wait," Samuel shouted.

She forced a smile and turned to look at him, "What is it, Samuel?"

"I'll talk to Aunt Linda," Samuel said. "I'll help her."

"You don't have to do that," she said.

"But I want to," he replied. "A man should never act like Tom or Lawson. He should be like Dad or like your husband. I want to be that kind of man."

Catherine felt her eyes go hot, and she tried to swallow the tears away. "I know you will be," she finally said.

"I won't let you or Auntie Linda down," he said.

***

Catherine fumed in the car on the way home, thinking about Linda's decision. She wanted to ask Geoffrey to turn the car around and drive back to the hospital just so she could yell at Linda all over again.

"What's wrong?" Geoffrey asked.

Catherine sighed and explained the situation. Geoffrey listened quietly, occasionally nodding or shaking her head in the driver's seat.

"Can I say something?" she finally asked.

"Sure," Catherine answered.

"You need to be patient with her," Geoffrey finally said.

"How can I be patient with her?" Catherine asked. "She's in her late forties, and she can't even understand the situation. She's trying to protect the man who has hurt her and her daughter for years."

"I know," Geoffrey sighed. "But that kind of violence and abuse can change a person. It makes them do irrational things. I saw it at the orphanage all the time. Some children would be brought in even though their parents were still alive—some awful cases of abuse, too cigarette burns, and starvation—anyway, those kids often fought so hard to go back to their parents. The violence twists people."

Catherine sighed, "Do you think that's true?"

"I've seen it too many times," Geoffrey sighed. "Don't turn your back on her. She needs your help now more than ever."

Catherine's phone buzzed, and she glanced down to see a text from Samuel. She opened it and read: She agreed!!!

She smiled, and her phone buzzed again with a message from Sophia. She read: Mum agreed to the surgery, but she's still unsure about the charges. She asked if we can wait until after the surgery. Please? I don't want to push her too hard.

Catherine sighed and typed back: Fine.

She saw the three dots appear as Sophia typed a reply. They disappeared a moment later and then reappeared again. Finally, a message buzzed in. She lifted her phone and read slowly: I know you're angry with her, and I am too, but please help me. She needs our support and help. Please don't turn your back on her.

Catherine typed a response: I'll never turn my back on you guys. Just talk to her. You have to convince her.

She muted her phone and put it back into her purse. She couldn't think about Sophia and Linda anymore. She couldn't think about the years of abuse or the horrible scene she'd walked in on in their apartment. Memories of her last life with Marco had started to haunt her again, waking her up at night and distracting her at work. She closed her eyes and tried to think of anything but Marco and Tom and Linda and Sophia, but her mind constantly returned to the horrible scenes and memories.

"Mrs. Blair," Geoffrey said.

"What?" she asked.

"I just got a message from Mr. Blair," Geoffrey said. "He said you need to check your phone."

With a sigh, Catherine reached into her purse and pulled the phone out. She saw several messages from Sophia, promising to pay her back, and she swiped them away—she could answer them later. She also saw a new message from Sean. She read the message: Honey, I hope you like the gown. Get ready, and I'll meet you at the museum at 8."