User blog comment:X-Machinist-X/Dishonored random stuff/@comment-26438896-20151012223546/@comment-1500935-20151014223926

I also like Havelock as a character, and while I wasn't much expecting his betrayal (at least not until the celebration of Burrows's demise), I can understand why.

The problem with the whole Loyalist conspiracy was that the only way to dethrone the Lord Regent was to kill/make his influent allies disappear, who were the head of the Abbey and a few heirs to the most powerful and influent families in Dunwall. The Empire is mostly controlled by the nobility and they would have never let Havelock and his accomplices get away with those crimes once publicly revealed, even if the victims were crooked. Suffice to say, it is the same nobility that elected Burrows as Lord Regent in the first place.

With that in mind, it was better for them to find scapegoats while they themselves restore the Empire. A small harm for a greater good. Problem is, give power to people and it can get quite over their head, but add to this guilt and it's a powder keg. Imagine each other threatening to reveal the whole truth before drawing pistols. And since Havelock is definitely a military man like Havelock who dislikes politics, it is no stretch to think he would cede to pressure and eventually kill his own accomplice.