Chapter Thirty-two
The weight of thirty years of buried secrets hung thick in the air as Jill stared at the shallow grave in the Barker backyard. The old bones—long hidden beneath dirt and tangled roots—were finally exposed, along with the truth.
Jill exhaled sharply, then turned to Bert and Rhonda Barker, their ashen faces lined with fear.
“Inside. Now.”
Bert hesitated. “Jill—”
“I said inside.”
His shoulders slumped. Rhonda let out a weak whimper, clutching her stomach, and Bert wrapped an arm around her protectively. They trudged toward the house, their heads bowed under the crushing weight of old sins.
Mason followed closely behind them, keeping a sharp eye on Evan, who stood, fists clenched at his sides, just inside the door. He appeared ready to swing at the next person who looked at him the wrong way.
Audrey and Phoebe trailed behind, the latter shaking so hard Jill thought she might collapse right there on the porch.
Inside, the kitchen was eerily silent.
Jill walked in last and shut the door. “Sit,” she ordered.
Bert and Rhonda sank into the chairs at the scarred oak kitchen table, their expressions a mix of guilt, exhaustion, and something else—relief, maybe? The kind that comes when a terrible secret can no longer be contained.
Jill crossed her arms. “Start talking.”
Rhonda let out a shaky breath. “It was self-defense,” she whispered.
Jill waited, giving them space to unravel the story they had clearly kept bottled up for decades.
Rhonda’s hands gripped the table so hard her knuckles turned white. “I was young, scared … pregnant. Billy Sawyer—” Her voice caught, and she turned to Bert for strength.
Bert cleared his throat, his voice gruff but steady. “Billy was a violent son of a bitch. Beat the hell out of her. Everyone in town knew it.” His eyes met Jill’s. “He wasn’t the father of Phoebe. I was.”
Phoebe let out a soft sob, covering her mouth.
Rhonda continued, her voice trembling. “I didn’t tell Billy I was pregnant, not at first. But when he found out … he just went into a blind rage. He said if the baby wasn’t his, I had no right to have it.”
Jill’s stomach clenched.
Bert’s hands curled into fists on the table. “He came at her. Would’ve killed her if I hadn’t stepped in.”
A long, heavy silence.
Jill caught a quick worried glance between husband and wife.
Audrey noticed it too.
Jill finally asked, “And that’s when you killed him?”
Bert nodded once. “Didn’t mean to. We fought, and I—I shoved him. Hard. He hit his head. That was it. He was gone.”
Rhonda wiped at her eyes. “We wanted to go to the police. We really did. It was self-defense, but …”
Bert swallowed hard. “But Arthur—he wouldn’t let us.”
Jill’s brow furrowed. “Arthur? Your father, Rhonda?”
Rhonda nodded mutely, eyes wide with tears.
Bert rubbed a hand over his face. “Arthur … took control. He made us bury Billy in the yard.”
Jill’s stomach turned. “He covered it up?”
Bert nodded grimly. “Forged a letter from Billy. Made it seem like he ran off with his motorcycle gang, said he’d never come back.”
Jill could hardly wrap her head around it.
Arthur passed around 2010.
He wasn’t here anymore to corroborate their story.
Rhonda’s voice cracked. “We thought we could move on. Billy had no one … or so we thought. Billy had told me once that his parents had disowned him after he got arrested too many times. They had been out of the picture for years. But it turned out his parents did care what happened to him. They filed a missing persons report. And when a detective came sniffing around Halibut Cove …”
Bert let out a harsh laugh. “Arthur sent us on a honeymoon to Bermuda until it all blew over. When we got back, the detective was gone.”
“We figured Daddy showed him the forged letter and the detective bought it,” Rhonda confirmed.
Jill exhaled slowly, the pieces snapping into place.
A forged letter. A hushed investigation. A body buried under their feet for decades.
And now? Everything was finally out in the open.
Jill pushed back from the counter. “Bert Barker, you’re under arrest for the murder of Billy Sawyer.”
Phoebe let out a wail. “No, you can’t!”
Evan shot out of his chair, rage flashing in his eyes. “Sawyer was a violent thug! He deserved what he got!”
Jill stood firm. “That’s not for you to decide.”
“Son, sit down and keep quiet, please, for your mother’s sake!” Bert shouted.
Evan did what he was told but didn’t look happy about it.
Mason moved toward Bert, pulling out his cuffs.
Bert held up his hands in surrender. “I knew this day would come.” He turned to Rhonda. “It’s okay, honey.”
Jill looked at Rhonda. “You knew about this. You helped cover it up.”
Rhonda stiffened, her expression filled with resignation.
Jill sighed. “I’m arresting you as an accessory to the crime.”
“No, please, you can’t! I was the one who killed Billy! Don’t punish Rhonda for what I did!”
“I’m sorry, Bert, I’m just following the law. You can make your case in court,” Jill said softly.
Mason moved to cuff Rhonda as well, but before he could, Evan lunged forward, his face twisted in fury.
“This is all your fault!” he roared, his glare burning into Audrey. “You dug this up! You ruined everything!”
Audrey barely had time to flinch before Jill stepped between them, a protective wall.
“You want to go after someone?” Jill’s voice was low and dangerous. “You go through me first.”
Evan hesitated, his whole body shaking with rage, before he let out a frustrated snarl and stormed out of the kitchen and out of the house, slamming the front door behind him.
Phoebe collapsed into a chair, sobbing into her hands as Mason led Bert and Rhonda out the door.
Audrey stood there, stunned, arms wrapped around herself.
Finally, she whispered, “Something’s not right about this.”
Jill turned to her. “Audrey—”
“No.” Audrey shook her head. “They’re not telling us everything.”
They had both seen the look between Bert and Rhonda.
There was definitely more to this story.
Jill sighed. “And let me guess. You’re planning on digging further?”
Audrey lifted her chin. “You know I am.”
Jill let out a heavy breath, knowing there was nothing she could do to stop her.
“Just … be careful.”