Reply To: The Searcher: What happened to Brendan?
I was surprised by the “specifics” of what happened to Brendan but not by the fact that he had been killed. Given the clues (as outlined in detail by Nancy), I think it was unlikely that he had simply gone off to seek his fortune and would return when he had.
I believe Mart and his mates created a situation in which Brendan’s death was, if not predictable, entirely possible and acceptable to them. Mart was willing to be ruthless to make his point. I am not condoning running a meth lab and I recognize the historical antecedents that made the people of Ardnakelty mistrust the authorities; I still see Mart as wanting to take matters into his own hands.
As for plot twists, definitely learning that Trey was a girl.
The other “sort of” twist for me was Cal’s phone conversation with Alyssa the night before he goes up the mountain with Mart to find Brendan’s body. Alyssa responds enthusiastically to Cal’s request for advice about how to support Trey, responds with no hint of censure, no suggestion that Cal’s response when she was assaulted is an issue for her. “You’ll be fine. Better than fine. Remember when Puffle got hit by the car? You drove us all the way out to that forest because I wanted to bury her there. And you carved her a gravestone and everything.” It seems that Cal really is capable of being nurturing and Alyssa sees that. It also seems to be the point where Cal has truly made the determination to stay in Ardnakelty and make it his home.
