Chapter Seventy - Where Was Harriet?

Aura pushed open the front door and stepped inside, the familiar scent of the Baldwin household wrapping around her like a heavy, suffocating blanket. The house was too quiet. The kind of quiet that made every creak and sigh louder than it should be. She dropped her bag near the door, shoulders trembling as the weight of the day pressed down on her chest.

From the living room, she heard the low murmur of the muted television. Cody sat sprawled on the couch, a half-empty bowl of cereal forgotten in his lap. When he spotted her, he straightened up, eyes immediately flickering to the red rim of hers.

"Aura?" His voice was soft but urgent, like he was afraid to break her open.

Without a word, Aura stumbled toward him and sank down beside him, the tears breaking free in a violent, ragged sob. The flood of everything—fear, frustration, exhaustion—overflowed all at once. Cody wrapped an arm around her trembling shoulders, pulling her close and rubbing slow, steady circles on her back.

"I didn't know what to say, Cody!" she gasped between sobs. "They kept pushing... like they already thought I was lying."

"They grilled you?" Cody asked gently.

Aura nodded, biting her lip to hold back another wave. "They asked where I was the night Grandma died. I told them I was home like we agreed... with all of you. Jackson, Harriet, Cody... Harper too."

Her voice cracked on the last name, and she looked down, ashamed.

Harriet appeared in the hallway, her expression immediately tightening when she saw Aura's state. "What did they ask you? What did you say?"

Aura wiped her face roughly with her sleeve, but the damage was done—red eyes, flushed cheeks. "They said they already spoke to Harper at Warren and Harper wasn't home. That she left... went out by herself. Trying to hurt herself."

Harriet's breath hitched, and the room seemed to close in around them.

"No.." Jackson said, rising from his spot near the kitchen doorway. "She wouldn't. She didn't."

"They said she didn't want any of us to stop her." Aura whispered, her voice barely audible.

Harriet sank down hard into the armchair, hands twisting in her lap. "I told them she was here with me too. I said she was home."

Aura stared at her, confusion and hurt mingling. "Why would you say that if you knew she wasn't?"

Harriet's face crumpled as she swallowed hard. "I thought she was home. I wanted to believe she was. I didn't want to think she..." She broke off, shaking her head. "Now they're going to think I'm covering for her. Or worse... for myself."

Cody's voice was steady, trying to anchor the panic. "You weren't covering. You were scared. We all are."

Aura's breath hitched again, and she swallowed down the lump in her throat. She needed to tell them. Needed to say it out loud.

"There's more.." she whispered, eyes darting between them. "I went into Harper's room to get my sketchbook. I'd left it under her bed."

Her siblings leaned in, tension tightening the air.

"And I found something else."

Cody's voice dropped. "What?"

Aura's hands trembled as she spoke. "A gun. Hidden under her bed, wrapped in one of her old camp hoodies."

Harriet gasped, covering her mouth. Jackson's jaw clenched.

"A gun?!" Cody repeated, disbelief threading his tone.

Aura nodded, swallowing hard. "I think she was hiding it. I don't think she wanted me to find it."

Harriet's voice was barely audible. "Do you think... do you think she used it? On Grandma?"

Aura looked down at her hands as if they belonged to someone else. "I don't know. But I didn't tell the detectives. I panicked."

"They know Harper wasn't home." Aura's voice cracked. "If I say I found a gun in her room... it could ruin everything. They could arrest her."

Cody paced slowly, trying to make sense of it all. "But if she was out, like they said... how could she have done it?"

"She could've come back." Aura said quickly, desperation seeping in. "We don't know how long she was gone, or when Grandma died exactly. Harper could have come back, done it, and left again. Or lied about when she left."

Jackson shook his head. "That's insane. Harper wouldn't do that. We know she hated grandma with a burning passion but murder? Harper isn't capable of that.."

"She's not okay, Jax.." Aura whispered fiercely. "She's been struggling for so long. She's the person I wouldn't be surprised about if it was her!"

Cody's arms folded across his chest, voice low. "That's beyond struggling."

"And now there are lies everywhere.." Harriet murmured. "I lied. Aura lied. We're just digging ourselves deeper."

Jackson's sharp gaze landed on Harriet. "Where were you, really, that night?"

Harriet blinked, panic flashing in her eyes. "I told you. I was home."

"No." Jackson said, voice harder now. "You told the cops you were home. But you're panicking now, if you were wrong about Harper... were you really there?"

All eyes fixed on Harriet, waiting.

"Hattie?"

She swallowed, unable to meet their gazes. The weight of the secret pressed down on her, suffocating.

Because the truth was a knife twisting in all their hearts.

The living room felt smaller than usual, suffocating in the thick tension that hung between them. Aura sat curled into the corner of the couch, tears still staining her cheeks. Cody sat beside her, one arm draped gently over her shoulders, his presence steadying in a way words couldn't.

Jackson paced slowly near the window, jaw clenched, eyes flicking between his sisters. Harriet sat stiffly on the edge of an armchair, her hands twisting nervously in her lap.

"So." Jackson finally broke the silence, voice low but firm, "Let's all go over this again. I was with Ashley that night. We were at her place, and she can vouch for me."

Aura nodded, wiping her eyes. "I went past Grandma's house a few times, but I never went inside. I wasn't there when it happened. I'm certain."

Cody leaned forward, voice calm. "I spent the night with Millie. She was there the whole time."

All eyes then shifted to Harriet, who swallowed hard, suddenly looking smaller.

"I was with Finola, we were just doing- teenager things. " Harriet said quickly, but her voice wavered.

Jackson's brow furrowed. "Teenager things?"

Jackson stepped closer, eyes sharp. "Harriet, where were you? You have to tell us. Someone is close to getting arrested if you keep lying and it could be Harper!"

Harriet's hands clenched into fists on her knees. Her pulse pounded in her ears as the pressure mounted. She felt trapped, cornered by questions she couldn't answer without exposing more than she wanted.

"I told you—I was with Finola!" Her voice cracked, rising sharply, breaking the fragile calm. "Just shut up, Jackson! Let me think!"

The room went quiet, shock settling like dust.

Jackson took a step back, expression stunned. Cody reached out to her, but Harriet pulled away, tears spilling freely now.

Aura's voice was gentle, trying to ease the tension. "Harriet... we're not trying to accuse you. We just need the truth."

Harriet wiped her face roughly. "I'm scared, okay?" she whispered, voice raw. "Scared that if I say too much, everything will come apart."

Jackson's anger softened into something heavier—concern, confusion, desperation. "We have to trust each other. That means being honest."

Harriet looked up, eyes shining with tears and fear. "I don't know what happened that night. I don't know what to tell you. I really thought Harper was home—she said she was going to be. But now, I don't know what's real anymore."

Aura's voice trembled as she spoke. "I think Harper did it. I found a fucking gun under her bed."

The siblings exchanged shocked looks.

Jackson's voice was quiet but steady. "Would Harper really do that? Hurt Grandma? Think about it before we all start pointing fingers at her.."

Cody shook his head. "Harper's struggling, yeah. But this... this isn't a surprise anymore. After everything she's been through."

Harriet's panic returned full force, and she pressed her hands against her temples. "Now they're going to look more into me, because I said Harper was home. But she wasn't. They're going to pull me back in because stories aren't consistent."

Her eyes flinched, eyes darting away. The walls seemed to close in, and she felt the weight of all their doubts pressing down on her.