Page 13 of Barkley

“It’s a small wonder that you survived for as long as you have.”He told her it wasn’t for lack of trying to end his life.“I’m sorry to hear that.I truly am.”

Mick wasn’t sure why, but he believed her.That she truly did feel bad for him.As he told her about the plan to end Maddie’s life, she asked a few questions about the death of his mom.Why had she been there to be killed by the police.

“She wasn’t supposed to die.Not that my father cared all that much when he found out.The plan that had been set was messed up when the Strong man, Barkley, I guess now, came up upon the two of them.Mattie was nearly dead by then, just the way it was supposed to have happened.Mom was supposed to leave the area, and then Dad would have paid off the police to have them leave things the way that they were.Mattie had been killed by some unknown person, and that would have been the end of it.The story was that Mattie was unstable and had provoked my mom into killing her was going to be the story.The police arrived before she was able to leave, thanks to Barkley calling the police too soon for Mom to escape.So I guess she figured that she was a Cartwright and that the police wouldn’t harm her.Dad, he told me that he was glad for the way that things ended up.With them both dead, myself and the girls could move in with him, and it would be just fine and dandy.”He thought about the things that had happened that day.“The reason that my dad told me not to allow an autopsy was because he’d been poisoning Mattie since the babies had been born.But it was taking too long for him, and he hatched this plan to have her killed.”

“Did it bother you that an—I was going to say an innocent person was killed, but she wasn’t, was she?Mattie was just as sick as the rest of them were.”Mick said that, at times, she was worse than his father.“I never knew Mattie.By the time that I was born and old enough to realize that she was my sister, she was gone.It had been decades since any of us had heard from her, and when our parents died, we didn’t know how to get in touch with her to let her know.”

“She more than likely wouldn’t have cared.Mattie was forever complaining that her parents and the rest of you were keeping her under a tight thumb.I don’t know what that meant, but as you can imagine, I did understand why they did it.Mattie might well have had something wrong with her when she was born.I believe that.”He thought about something.“I’m going to sign the paperwork to have her autopsy done.Also, anything else they want to do to her.As my mother’s son, if I can, I’m going to allow the police to do what they need to for my mother too.I know that she wasn’t nearly as bad as Mattie, but they were two peas in a pod about so many different things.”

“You’ll need an attorney.”He said that he wanted to use someone that wasn’t anyone that his father knew.“You think that he’d tell him what you’re doing?That he’d do something to make it so that it never happens?”

“I’m positive of that.”He laid there for several minutes without speaking.Thinking of the life he’d had.“I’d like for you to adopt the girls.Now, if you can.It would make me feel better knowing that when my dad is able to get out of this mess, he won’t be the one that has them.”

“You think that he’ll be able to make a case that has him free?I don’t see how that is going to happen, not with all the things that you’ve told me.”Mick told her that his father was good at getting out of anything he set his mind to.“Well, I’m going to enjoy him going down more than I thought I would have.He’s going to pay for the crimes that he’s committed, and I’m going to be there when he gets his comeuppance.”

“I hope that you’re right.”She made a couple of calls on his behalf and arranged for an attorney to come to him.While she was making the calls, Mick could hear his father down at the other end of the corridor yelling about him being next to him.And most importantly, to keep his mouth shut or else.For some reason, the or else didn’t scare him as much as it normally would have.

He was talking about things that made no sense now that he was away from him.That they were family and deserved to be together.Perhaps in the same cell.Mick had a sudden thought that if they were in the same cell, he’d never come out of there alive.His father would kill him just so he’d be able to get his daughters.It was something that he couldn’t nor would allow to happen.Not so long as he had breath in his body, he wouldn’t.

~*~

Barkley only had to sign the paperwork as a witness then things would be set in motion for Mattie and Jane Cartwright.The attorney for Mick had had everything drawn up for the other man in two days and then to have it signed.He looked at Mick when he said his name.

“I can get someone else to witness my signature if you’d like.”Barkley told him that it wasn’t that.But he was curious why he was doing this.Now of all times.“I don’t want to die with all this on my chest.Mostly it’s to get Bethany and Sunny into a good home.One that isn’t perverted by my family.I don’t know you all that well, nor your family, but everyone that is working here has said that your family is one of the best there is.You’d take the shirt off your back to give it to someone if they needed it.”

Barkley had read the contract over at home and knew that it was more in his and Carrie’s favor than Mick’s, so he signed his name where it was required, and Mick did the same.When the attorney left, he asked if he could talk to Mick for a little while.That he had questions of his own.

“Yes, of course.After talking to Carrie, I feel like I’m finally doing something right for a change.Getting my heart in the right place for the girls has been taken care of by the two of you.Thank you for that.”Barkley asked why he’d never gone to the police.“I was terrified of my father.Still am, to be honest.Also, he had the police department as well as all the attorneys there in his pocket.Things either went his way, or he’d be burying them in the land around his home.Did you find the map?”

“Yes.The FBI is working on that.Also, with the information you gave us on the town’s police officers, they’ve been fired and arrested too.I think Carrie told you that.”He said that she had.“Good.I wanted to ask you what you think to gain from all this?For giving Carrie the girls?For telling on your father?Do you expect to be some kind of hero after this comes out?I don’t mean to be rude here, but you have to have a reason for doing this.”

“I do.Not one that I completely understand myself.I want to unburden myself about my parents mostly.As for being a hero?No, I know I’ve slipped too far down the way to Hell to ever be anything but what I am now.A man that let his father abuse his daughters.Myself too, but it was my girls that got me thinking that I need to do something.”Barkley asked if he had allowed it.“No.I wouldn’t have ever done that.But now it’s too late.They’ve both been hurt, and it’s my fault too.As you said, I should have said something to someone to make it stop.But I didn’t.I’m working on making it better for them, much better than I had it when I was a child.But that’s not good enough because it did happen, and in some way, I allowed it to happen to them.”

The two of them talked about the other things that had been mentioned in the paperwork that the attorney had set up.There was insurance money that hadn’t been cashed in that was on Mattie, which was his.Also, there was money in his accounts as well as the houses that he’d purchased with the thought of running away to one of them.

“It would never be far enough.I think I always knew that.I told myself that with each new purchase of land that I’d get, I’d be able to hide there if I needed to.Mattie never knew about the money or the places.I’m sure that my father had an idea that I was putting together a place where I could be safe.Mother was oblivious to everything that didn’t have to do with spending money and hosting stupid parties.”Mick laughed.“Sell it all, as I did mention in the things that I have for the girls.Or not.Use it in any way that you wish.The only thing that I’m going to ask you is that you don’t paint a too horrific picture of me to them.No way will they ever be a part of my life again, but I don’t want them to think I didn’t try in the end.”

“My dad is going to see about getting you into a prison that isn’t one that your father is going to be in.He said that with your help and cooperation, it wouldn’t be too hard to convince a judge to do that for you.”Mick started crying.He told him that he would be ever so grateful if he were to get that for him.“I’ll make sure that when Dad knows anything, I’ll let you know.But as I said, it shouldn’t be a problem.”

It was nearly ten in the morning, nine forty-five, when he left to go to the courthouse on the Chase matter.Barkley had been working on this case since he’d first been approached by Chase to buy the land off of him.Once he started digging, he found out all sorts of things about the older man.Too many for him to think that the man was going to be spending the rest of his life in prison.

John Chase had been trying to sell his sister’s land that she inherited from their mother.Since finding out that he’d not just killed off his parents and siblings, but also had a hand in the death of his sister’s husband, Barkley was excited to see this all go down.Elizabeth Chase-Brown was about ten years older than her brother.But she was a great deal smarter.Today her daughter, Tessa Jane Chase-Brown, was coming to town to hear what the courts had to say about her uncle.Apparently there was bad blood between the two of them as well.

“Mr.Strong?”He nodded and took the hand of the younger woman.“I’m Tessa.My mom is on her way, but she’s running late.She doesn’t get around as well as she used to and has to wait on her meds to kick in before she can leave her room.”

“She is a wonderful person, your mom.”Tessa brightened up and said that she was the best.“You know all that is going to be said today, correct?About how your uncle murdered your father and your grandfather?”

“I told Mom that he’d done it.He figures, for whatever reason, that my dad would have left him in charge of his estate and my mom and me when he was gone.Instead, Dad not only left nothing to his brother-in-law, but he also mentioned that he thought that Uncle John was a fool and would hurt anyone who got in his way about money.As you can imagine, that didn’t go over all that well.”Tessa laughed.“My mom is a good deal smarter than he is, and every time he tried his shit, she’d knock him back a few steps.I would, too, when I was old enough to take care of myself.John is a bastard and a murderer, and I’m thrilled to see him going down for his activities.”

“Hopefully, we’ll be able to keep him in jail while the time for the trial is set up.It could be another month if there is nothing open soon.”She said that she worked from home, and it didn’t matter where she was.But she was going to stick it out until he was out of their hair.“Your mom told me that you’re a voice artist.I didn’t think to ask her what that meant.”

“I read books on tape for people.Also, when I can, I do voice-overs for cartoons and such.Twice I’ve been the voice of an actress that had a cold and couldn’t get her voice to work well enough.No one seemed to notice the difference.”Barkley told her that sounded like fun.“It can be.Sometimes it gets a little hairy when I don’t care for the book I’m reading, but I get it done.It pays the bills, and I like it.Which is a win-win for me.”

Her mom, Elizabeth, showed up just as they were getting settled into their seats.Elizabeth decided that she was going to sit up front with him, and she wanted Tessa there as well.He didn’t mind.All his paperwork was in order, and all he wanted to do was get this thing in the books so that he could send the man off to jail.Then they brought in John.

To say that he didn’t do well in jail was an understatement.His hair was stringy and needed a good scrub, it looked to Barkley.John didn’t have a suit on, which surprised him but the jailhouse greens that all inmates wore after a couple of days.His eye was blackened, and he looked as if his hands were bruised.While he had no idea how that had happened, he did think that whatever caused it had been John’s fault.

As soon as John sat in one of the chairs at the other table, Judge Marshall called things to order.Then he asked him what they were there for today.It was John that spoke up before he could.

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