“She said ... what?” Harris looked legitimately bewildered. “I don’t understand any of this.”
“That makes all of us,” Jared said. “She confessed, though.”
“To this one?” Harris jabbed his finger at Harper. “Well, no offense, but I don’t know that I believe she’s all that trustworthy.”
“There was more than one person there,” Jared shot back. “We have three witnesses to the confession. You’re going to have to do better than that.”
“I’m not going to have to do anything,” Harris fired back. “I’m not a part of this.”
“Oh, but you are,” Jared shot back, his tone no-nonsense. “You caused all of this.”
“How do you figure that? I made a joke. It was an off-color joke — I’ll admit that — but a joke all the same. I never thought she would set out to try and help me in this manner.”
“Well, she did.” Jared folded his arms across his chest and internally debated how he wanted to reveal the next bit. “That’s not all. Another body was discovered by the trail fork. It hasn’t been removed yet, and the identification will likely take a few days, but we believe the deceased is Holly Horton.”
Harris openly gaped. “You can’t be serious.”
“You know her,” Jared prodded. “You’ve known her for years.”
“Yes, she was married to Will. He and I were good friends.”
“She was also Becky’s mother,” Harper said.
“And Becky led you to Holly?” Harris appeared to be having trouble absorbing the news. “I don’t understand how this happened.”
“Then let me explain it to you,” Jared offered. He laid everything out in a cool and concise manner. It didn’t take long. When he was finished, he waited for Harris to respond.
“You haven’t told me how Holly died,” Harris said finally.
“That’s because we’re not certain how it happened yet,” Jared replied. “That will be up to the medical examiner to decide. Becky is no longer talking.”
“No longer talking.” Harris appeared lost in his own head as his eyes traveled to the young woman, who stared straight ahead and didn’t respond to his presence. “I don’t understand how this happened. I just ... don’t understand.”
“What is it you need clarification on?” Jared queried. “Becky admitted to both deaths, although she called Leslie’s murder an accident. She was aiming for Harper.” His voice took on an edge. “Harper was only a target because of you.”
The statement was enough to snap Harris out of his reverie. “Wait. You can’t possibly think that this is my fault.”
“Your fault? Singular? No.” Jared shook his head. “You had a hand in all of this, though. What you’re guilty of is almost worse than what Becky is guilty of ... and she killed two women, so that’s pretty impressive.”
“I’m not guilty of anything,” Harris fired back. “All I did was open a business.”
“And now that business will be infamous,” Harper pointed out. “Two deaths, a worker who lost her mind. It all lined up nicely for you.”
“If you think I take joy in that poor girl losing her mind ... you’re crazy,” Harris hissed. “I helped raise her after her father died. I’ve known her since she was a small child. I love her.”
“You love her.” Jared’s stomach twisted. “And that, right there, is the problem at the heart of this. She did this because she thinks she loves you.”
“She’s troubled,” Harris insisted. “She’s out of her mind. Any psychologist will see that.”
“I think you might be right.”
Harris was taken aback. “You do?”
“I do. I think that a therapist is going to have to weed through an unholy mess in that girl’s brain to get to the truth. She knows what she did. She simply doesn’t see it as wrong. That’s a textbook case right there.”
“See.” Harris brightened considerably. “It wasn’t her fault.”
“She still killed two people, including her mother,” Jared insisted. “You haven’t even asked why her mother was here. Aren’t you curious about that?”
“I ... well ... I know why Holly was here.”
“You do?” Jared arched an eyebrow. “How is it that you know?”
Harper deduced the answer before Harris could respond. “Because he saw her. She went after him before she even saw Becky. She wanted him to call off the relationship, thought she might be able to force his hand. She was obviously wrong.”
A muscle worked in Jared’s jaw as he debated how to push forward. “Did you know that Becky killed her mother?” he asked finally.
“Of course not!” Harris was scandalized. “I had no idea that anything happened. Holly was out of her mind when she arrived, accusing me of ... all manner of things.” His lips curled into a sneer. “She was delusional. She kept saying we had a connection, but it wasn’t true.”
“In her mind you likely did have a connection,” Jared agreed. “She obviously didn’t realize you’d been having sex with her daughter when she was a minor, though.”
Color shot through Harris’ face, but it wasn’t shock Harper registered there. It was fear.
“That is the most disgusting thing I’ve ever heard,” Harris shot back. “How can you even accuse me of something that sick? That girl is like a daughter to me.”
“And that’s why it’s sick,” Harper said softly. “You groomed her, took advantage of a sad child who lost her father and was stuck with a mother who didn’t particularly like her. Holly had dreams of getting away. She got pregnant instead. She blamed Becky for stealing her dreams. You saw that, read the trouble between them, and took advantage. Becky was easy pickings for you.”
Harris turned on Harper. “I didn’t take advantage of anything.”
“Are you denying you had a relationship with Becky?” Jared queried.
“Of course I am.” Harris straightened his shoulders. “I’m a father figure to her, nothing more.”
“I guess that will be up to
