Haley Bertolet
Appearances
20/20
Mountain of Lies
I remember my mom. She was amazing. She was so intelligent and so wise and eloquent.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
I definitely knew that something was wrong. Everyone was acting so weird to me, and I didn't know what was happening.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
That moment was horrible. And right after, he didn't want me to cry about it. He told me not to cry. He told me that people would be watching.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
I thought there must have been some mistake because he would never do that, right?
20/20
Mountain of Lies
My name is Haley Bertolet. I'm ready now to tell the story that happened behind the scenes.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
We love you. We love you. We love you. I remember my mom. She was amazing. She was so intelligent and so wise and eloquent.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
We always watched movies together and we played together and I remember her taking me on trips sometimes. I remember her always being a warm and loving presence in my life. I just really, really loved her.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
Yes. All of the memories that I have of me and my mom together with Harold were I was always with him and she was separate. He was always holding me and she was standing there. The only times that I really got to experience my mom in her full capacity was when he was away. All she ever wanted was a baby. And when she finally got me, she just was ecstatic.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
And I think he wanted to squeeze her into a box. Not really let her be the mother that she wanted to be for me.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
I was at a soccer game and I remember I was picked up by his friends and we went to their house and I definitely knew that something was wrong. Everyone was acting so weird to me and I didn't know what was happening. After a while they took me to a park where I met up with Harold. He sat me down and he told me that she had lost consciousness forever, is how he put it to me.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
I just remember that moment was horrible. Right after, he didn't want me to cry about it. He told me not to cry. He told me that people would be watching.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
He told me not to cry about it, yes. As we walked out of the park, he wanted me to be fine. I remember feeling shameful that I wasn't supposed to cry. Like, something must be wrong with me if I do cry. Because Harold told me not to.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
Yes, but for some reason I thought she was coming back because of the way he phrased it, unconscious. You know, in my mind I thought that she might just be out there somewhere and maybe they hadn't found her yet. And I'd pray at night that she would come back.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
We had one funeral in Colorado and one in Mississippi, and that time was the time that I really felt like, you know, oh man, she's really gone.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
I mean, when I usually was alone, when he wasn't there, it was just a lot, and I didn't understand. that it was okay to be emotional and it was okay to show that you're not okay. I mean, I don't think anybody normal is okay after the passing of their mom. And I certainly wasn't. Did he ever talk about your mom after all of this happened?
20/20
Mountain of Lies
He never talked to me about her passing after that one conversation in the park. We never spoke about her.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
He definitely wanted to keep me acting normal. Like, everything that we were up to was just as life was before, except now my mom wasn't there.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
I don't remember taking this, but it looks like this was right after the funeral.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
Yeah, I mean, that definitely could be some of the subconscious tension, you know.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
Oh, absolutely. Absolutely, yes. How often did he actually hold you like this? Not ever when we were alone. I can't remember a time that he ever hugged me if it was not in public.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
Not in the moment. I mean, I thought that was normal. I thought that's what all parents did for their kids. I couldn't get food or snacks or water for myself without asking for permission. I couldn't play with my toys without asking for permission. He had to be there when I was playing with my toys.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
And he had a baby monitor in my room watching me. And so he would know if I came downstairs to get anything before he said it was allowable. When he did allow me to socialize with other girls my age, it was always in a very strict setting where he could watch. I never spent probably an hour without him during my daytime, if it was a Saturday or a Sunday. Were you scared of Harold? Absolutely.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
The day that he got arrested, I was at school and I remember that I got called down to the principal's office. At that point, my principal and the lady that worked in the office told me that my father had been arrested. I just remember feeling just so cold and detached because I didn't know what was going on and I didn't know what was happening to me.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
And at this point, I thought there must have been some mistake because he would never do that, right?
20/20
Mountain of Lies
I stayed with a lovely family called The Headaches and they helped me to see that he was not the person that I thought he was.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
Little did I know that in the background, people were fighting for me from all over. From Mississippi, my family, the Bertolais, were fighting for me. Beth Schott, special agent, was fighting for me.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
Oh, we love you. That day was a really good day because I knew that I'd be going to live with my aunt and uncle.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
At that point, I felt like they were my family and that I belonged with them in Mississippi.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
Maybe, but ultimately no. Because I know that I'm saved by Jesus Christ and that my personality comes from my mom. I'm just like her. And I know that no part of him is in me.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
I do dye my hair blonde, but I think that me and her in pictures that I see of me now, you know, I feel like I look so much like her. And I think that
20/20
Mountain of Lies
All the time, but I think that she is here with me. Being who I am is not something that came from easiness. I had to go through something terrible to become as powerful as I am today. I want to use my story to good because I know that my story is similar to what happens to a lot of people.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
And I want them to know that regardless of what they've been through, there's always a way out of the darkness. And everything that I am, everything that I do, I want to do for the glory of God and for the legacy of my mom.
20/20
Mountain of Lies
I love you. I don't think anybody normal is OK after the passing of their mom. And I certainly wasn't.