Let’s break down the finer points of the Outer Banks season 2 ending.
John B’s Dad is Alive!
Carla Limbrey is an heiress whose search for an ornate gold cross and the holy cloak it houses puts her in the path of the Pogues. In exchange for material evidence that could prove John B‘s innocence in the killing of Peterkin, Carla asks Pope for a key belonging to his family, thus revealing his connection to Denmark Tanney—the Freedman who used his amassed wealth to free other enslaved folks and who hid the gold in the first place.
Pope finds the key but relinquishes it under threat of death. He eventually finds the gold cross as well, but loses that to Limbrey and Rafe when he goes into anaphylactic shock after being stung by wasps. Rafe ends up with the cross and Carla ends up with nothing… except she’s summoned to the Carribean, where she meets with none other than John B Senior. Alive. And offering to help her get what she wants if she helps his son. John B, and everyone in the OBX believes his father is dead, and that has been his biggest motivator in his struggle against Ward Cameron. Unlike Ward rising from the presumed dead, Big John’s reveal is actually a twist, and it could change the game in season three.
The Boat
After discovering his family’s legacy, and their connection to the gold, Pope has a personal stake in the treasure. He wants to go after Rafe to get the cross back, and follows him to a cargo ship. When Sarah’s stepmom drugs and abducts her, John B and the rest of the Pogues sneak onto the ship after them, to rescue Sarah, and steal back the cross.
Sarah wakes up on the ship, and discovers her dad—who she thought was dead—is still alive. After Rafe was finally arrested for killing Sheriff Peterkin, Ward filmed a confession to his and Rafe’s crimes, then faked his death by blowing up his boat. He then secretly arranged for the entire family to move to a private island with their ill-gotten gold on a clandestine trip, to escape their financial and legal woes.
John B, Pope, Kiara, and J.J. hide in a container on the ship, until they find a way to get out. They coincidentally link up with Cleo—who helped them escape Nassau—and attempt a coup. They manage to subdue most of the crew for a while and almost get the cross off the boat, but the crew get free and they’re outnumbered 3-to-1 and unarmed, so they’re forced to bail . Pope would rather no one have the cross than the Camerons, and he uses the crane to throw it overboard. But Rafe manages to catch the rope it’s attached to and save it.