Contents
68. Birdy
Overview
Birdy confesses the full conspiracy to Sergeant Carter: she, Harrison, and Mary plotted to ruin Eden, with Mary impersonating her and Birdy slated to push Eden from the cliffs. Harrison has sold Thanatos and is fleeing abroad with Mary, intending to take Gabriella.
Birdy offers Carter ownership of the Smuggler’s Inn for his silence, declares she is dying, and overdoses. As she fades, a masked, bridal skeleton figure appears, hinting Eden may still be alive.
Summary
In the tunnel, Birdy tells Sergeant Carter the truth: after Gabriella’s account, she and Mary confronted Harrison. Seeking revenge and protection for Gabriella, they devised a plan—Harrison would move Eden to Spyglass, Mary would impersonate Eden locally, and Birdy would confront Eden at Hope Falls and push her.
Birdy says Eden vanished before she could act, so she posed as Carter’s superior to misdirect him while also hunting the truth. She reveals Harrison sold Thanatos and, now avoiding scandal and divorce, plans to leave the country with Mary and to take Gabriella.
To secure Carter’s silence, Birdy explains Harrison has bought The Smuggler’s Inn in Carter’s name and will clear his mortgage if he forgets the case. Birdy, terminal and refusing to be ruled by Thanatos’s death prediction, swallows a hoard of pills to end her life on her terms.
Carter challenges her assumptions, suggesting Eden might still be alive and hiding in the tunnels. As the drugs take hold, Birdy drifts into darkness and sees a bridal, skeletal figure with wild eyes at the door who whispers, “I hate you,” implying Eden’s possible survival.
Who Appears
- BirdyConfesses the conspiracy, offers Carter a hush bribe, reveals terminal diagnosis, and overdoses in the tunnel.
- Sergeant CarterTrapped beyond the door; questions Birdy, suspects Eden may be alive, offered the Inn to ensure his silence.
- HarrisonCo-conspirator; sold Thanatos, plans to flee abroad with Mary, intends to take Gabriella, finances Carter’s hush deal.
- MaryCo-conspirator; impersonated Eden around the village; leaving the country with Harrison.
- GabriellaBirdy’s daughter; target of Harrison and Mary’s plan to take her abroad.
- EdenVictim of the conspiracy; presumed dead, yet possibly alive per Carter’s theory and a final ominous appearance.
- Masked bridal figureSkeleton-costumed woman who appears as Birdy overdoses, whispering hatred; may indicate Eden’s survival.