Jeremy tells Mary that telling her the truth is not easy. The man took off his hat roughly so this must be serious. I wonder if the hat being described as 'ill fitting' has any relevance to the plot at all. Like possibly the hat represents Jeremy's skin which would signal that he's really William in disguise. Or maybe I'm just reading way too much into this book.

Jeremy tells Mary that his father killed her relatives. But that doesn't make sense as William doesn't have a son named Jeremy. Maybe he sowed some oats after his wife died? But that doesn't seem like something a father hellbent on revenge would do. He didn't seem like someone that would use sex as a means to escape.

Mary starts to get up but Jeremy begs for her to listen to him so she stays. She is angry as he had told her previously that his father was sick. He admits that his father is an evil man but it's justified as evil had been done to him. She screams that she doesn't understand. Jeremy says that he will explain everything to her.

Okay, he says that he was born after the events in Wickham. Which still...doesn't really add up. But, hey, sex can actually be a tool in magic. So if William needed a little extra juice, that could be how Jeremy was conceived. Though, again, doesn't really add up at the moment.

Jeremy admits that his last name is Goode and that he used the name Thorne to gain employment. Mary is insulted that he lied to her and he replies that it's the only lie he ever told. I'm...um...finding that a little hard to believe.

He says that he regretted lying to her. He says his real name is Jeremy Goode and that he was born after his father left Wickham. Mary interjects that her family was originally from Wickham. Um...okay? He says that George eventually returned to Wickham as he couldn't stand William's obsessive need for revenge. Mary asks what Jeremy means by obsession, but he tells her that he'll explain.

Jeremy starts to tell her about the events we already read about. You know, the whole sham witch trials that the Fier brothers held. Mary doesn't want to believe him and asks how any of that can be true. He just continues on with his story. Mary interjects again as she recognizes the name of Susannah Goode. She says that Edward cried out Susannah's name at the woman who had been burning in the woods.

Jeremy confirms that Benjamin had Susannah burned at the stake so that Edward wouldn't marry her. Mary can't accept that and yells at Jeremy. Jeremy replies that he can't stop until his story is finished. Mary argues that Edward is too pure of a man to allow an innocent woman to be killed. Jeremy counters that it did happen as Edward didn't know how cruel of a man his father truly was. Sort of makes me think that a man obsessed with revenge wouldn't say something like that.

Hey, what if William created the personality of Jeremy as a means to be able to end his curse?

THE CHAPTER