“That doesn’t excuse him punching her.”
“I know. Stu knew that. Jack, he was so angry. He didn’t know how to control it. So he got high whenever it got too much. He was high that night he broke into the Bailey’s. But more than that, he had too much of Ian in him. He knew that too. He just let the anger turn him into his father. I …I think I was the only person he was ever truly himself with.”
Jack’s chest tightened with too much emotion. He struggled to draw breath. “Why didn’t you tell me? Why didn’t he tell me? I could have helped you both.”
“You couldn’t. We both knew that. If I told the truth, Ian would manipulate it so that you went down for it. And Stu knew you wouldn’t care about protecting him, but you would care about protecting me, so he suggested we lie about what happened. He knew Ian would figure out a way to take you down for it. Planting fingerprints on the weapon. Whatever it took.”
“But Stu was … we were constantly at each other’s throats. Why didn’t he talk to me?”
“He loved us in his own way. That’s all you need to know. Everything else will just make you crazy with what-ifs. He’d want us to both be free now, Jack. And even if I have to do time for aiding and abetting, it doesn’t matter. We’ve been in a version of prison for almost five years. I … I’ve been … there were some days I … I didn’t even want to be here anymore.”
Horror suffused him. “Becca—”
“This is the only way I know how to live with it. Caruthers was an evil bastard … but I can’t live with the secret anymore and what it’s taken from you. I feel lighter than I have in years.” She offered him a sad smile. “And you … you’re free of all this now. You can leave Ian behind. Finally.”
“You know Ian won’t take this lying down.”
“Yeah.” She smirked. “So, you’re telling me you haven’t been keeping tabs on every dirty thing he’s ever done?”
It surprised him he could laugh in that moment. His sister knew him too well.
“You have evidence, don’t you?”
Jack’s laughter faded into a smile. “And if I have?”
“Then I would suggest handing that evidence over to our friendly local detective. You can offer your cooperation in exchange for immunity.”
The idea of being free didn’t seem real. The possibility of seeing Ian brought down for all the shitty things he’d done to their family and this community over the years seemed like a dream. And there was only one thing standing in Jack’s way.
“We do that, and it’s not just Ian who goes down. Kerr goes down too. And what about Mom and Jamie?” Jamie, their youngest brother, was a freshman in college. Despite Ian’s attempts to beat him down, he was proving to be more like Jack and Rebecca. In other words, he’d gotten a lot of Rosalie’s genes.
“Kerr is just as bad as Ian. I couldn’t care less if he goes down with our father. As for Mom and Jamie, we can protect them.”
“And you?” He was heartsore from all that Rebecca had endured. “Who protects you?”
“I made a mistake,” she whispered. “Over four years ago, I made a terrible mistake and trusted the wrong person. It happened, Jack, and I’ve tried to get over it and move on, but I couldn’t live with the lie. Now, for the first time, I feel hope. I feel hope that I can finally let go of the past.”
Jack unclipped his seat belt and did the same to Rebecca’s so he could pull her into his arms. “I’m so sorry.” His voice was hoarse as he tucked her head against his shoulder. Her fingers curled tightly into his suit jacket, pulling on the material as she shook. “I’m so sorry I didn’t protect you.”
“You thought you were.” She pulled him closer. “Jack, you thought you were protecting me. But it’s over. He can’t hold this over us anymore. You can get your life back. You can tell Cooper everything.”
Jack squeezed his eyes closed at the thought of his best friend.
Even if he told Cooper the truth, Jack doubted he’d ever forgive him for what had happened with Dana.
“You might finally settle down,” Rebecca teased, pulling back to give him a sad smile. “Instead of breaking the hearts of all the eligible Hartwell females.”
Jack was about to roll his eyes when her words sunk in.
If they could do what Rebecca thought they could—if they could take Ian down for good, Jack could have the one thing he’d wanted since he was twenty-eight years old.
It wouldn’t be easy.
He’d burned that bridge a few times, and this morning was only proof of it.