Page 116 of Ever After

“A knave,” he says fiercely. “A varlet. A murderer.” He shakes his head and visibly calms himself. “I never knew he wasn’t my friend. I told him things I have never told another soul, and that includes Xander. Many were the times we deplored the wrecking group, and all along he was their leader.”

It’s not a surprise. I think I already knew it. It’s the only thing that makes sense. I look over at Levi who appears equally unstartled.

“He must have laughed at my naivety,” Branok says in a low voice.

I don’t try to dispute that because it’s probably true. The vicar’s cold amusement underpinned every interaction. Like he considered us to be dolls to be posed and thrown away at his will.

“Tell us,” Levi says.

The flickering flames illuminate Branok’s stormy face. “A wrecking group had moved into the county that year. They had taken numerous ships along the coast and were becoming famous. Their leader was known as a cold, ruthless man, but no one guessed his identity. The week of my death they took a ship—the Mary Jane as you know—and I found out who he was.”

“How?”

He searches for the memory. “Some things still remain vague to me, but I think I had become suspicious. Maybe it was Xander’s feelings about him. I trusted Xander’s judgement where I did few other men. He never said anything, but I knew he didn’t like Richard. He could not hide his feelings from me. I had been to the rectory a few times at night to drop off goods, and Richard wasn’t there. At first, they were just little absences, and I thought he might have a woman stashed away somewhere, but I lay in wait and followed him one night.” He swallows. “I followed him all the way down to the cove, and I watched him and men I knew—men I had drunk with in the pub—bring a ship in and kill every man, woman, and child on it.”

His face tightens. “’Twas a dreadful night. Like something from a scene in hell. And I could do naught. If I had shown myself, they would have turned on me and killed me on the spot, denying me the chance to exact vengeance on them. Instead, I made myself watch and then turn away. It was that movement that betrayed me.”

“He saw you?” Levi asks.

“Aye. We stared at each other for a long moment, and everything I felt—the revulsion, the hatred, the disgust—it was all clear to him. Then he inclined his head like we were out taking the night air and turned away.” He grimaces. “I did not sleep well that night.”

“Did you tell Xander?” I ask. I would have done. I tell Levi everything.

“Nay. I would have done at some point, but I needed to get my thoughts in order first and work out what I should do.”

“What did you decide?” I ask.

He sighs. “I was going to turn him in, of course. It went against my very nature to turn to the law and aid the crown, but what he and his men did was murder. He wasn’t smuggling in a few barrels of brandy. He was luring innocent people to their death. How could I have looked Xander in the eye if I kept that secret?”

“What stopped you? There’s no record in the history books of Boynton being a wrecker.”

“My own nature worked against me.” He grimaces. “He sent a letter asking me to meet him to talk. I agreed to it because I wanted to look him in the eye and tell him what I thought. As it turned out, I should have kept my counsel. The last thing I remember is turning on the lane and everything going dark. He must have killed me then.” He shrugs. “So, there you have it. Our suspicions are confirmed. He was a wrecker and he killed me.”

“So why can’t you get into the hall and be reunited with Xander?”

He stares at me, his eyes gleaming in the firelight, and he looks suddenly dangerous. “I think Boynton is still keeping us apart. I have been seeing the past in a new light lately. I knew that Richard was fascinated with Xander. He never made any secret of his regard, but I thought it platonic.”

“And it wasn’t?” I ask.

A startingly gentle smile touches Branok’s mouth. “Ah, how could it be? Xander was something different. He was beautiful, but it wasn’t just that. He fair glowed with life and goodness. It was what drew me to him, and I would guess it did the same with Richard. But where I fell in love with those qualities, they must have repulsed and attracted Richard in the same measure. Xander was the foil to him—the flip side to his coin. Good to bad. Light to dark. Gold to base metal.” He leans back with a sigh. “I now believe Richard was deeply jealous. He was the one who deliberately separated me and Xander by killing me. And, because of his talents with dark arts, he was able to keep us separated, cruelly and deliberately, in death. He had a thirst for knowledge and a hunger for power. The two are never comfortable bedfellows. He used some kind of spell to set up barriers here and at the house. I thought discovering my body and finding answers about my death might break that spell, but…”

“You have your memories back, and yet you still don’t have Xander,” I say.

Levi shifts position. His eyes are tired, but his face is thoughtful. “I think we need his book. He probably wrote down his schemes and methods in it, and so it might tell us how to break the barriers for good.”

Branok tilts his head, waiting to hear more. I raise my eyebrows.

“The book was obviously important to him,” Levi continues. “He was secretive about it. Xander said it was the one time Boynton lost his temper with him when he thought Xander had looked inside.”

Branok grips his pipe and says, “Aye, he would write everything down. It was his way. So, mayhap that book is the key.”

Branok’s summary feels right, and the scenario settles into place in my mind, as if we’ve landed on the truth amidst all the lies.

I say, “So, we find the book, figure out how to break the barriers and unite the lovers—” Branok grimaces, but I continue, “And Bob’s your uncle. Everyone goes home happy, and Levi and I can finish our honeymoon in peace.”

“But where would we find the book?” Levi asks reasonably.

Branok’s eyes narrow. “It would be somewhere dark. And somewhere personal to him. He would have been excessively happy if nothing lived near it. He had a flair for the dramatic.” He knocks out his pipe. “You are both tired,” he says. “Go and sleep now. We can discuss more of this when you are rested.”