Pop on your tin hats, because I have a totally wild Outer Banks theory for you. Despite her complete lack of interest in Sarah, Rafe, and Wheezie, I'm convinced Carla Limbrey is their mysteriously absent mother. Or at the very least, she's Sarah and Rafe's mom, because the show has been so vague about who their mother is, I'm not even 100% sure Wheezie isn't actually Rose's biological daughter.
Look, everyone on Outer Banks has daddy issues, but has anyone else noticed there's a serious shortage of moms? Both JJ and John B have mothers who are missing in action, and the Cameron kids' birth mother has never been mentioned. As a result, I was certain Carla would be revealed to be someone's mom in Season 2, and yet, she was still just as much of a mystery at the end of the season as she was at the start.
But just because she there wasn't a big Season 2 reveal doesn't mean I've given up on a Carla twist to come. And my money is on her being Sarah and Rafe's mother thanks in large part to her weird interaction with Rafe after she shot her half-brother Renfield. After Renfield's betrayal, Carla straight up guns down her brother, and then tries to convince Rafe to help her by saying, "Rafe, he's not one of us."
Now, her comment could simply be more of the elitist nonsense she spouts throughout the series, but that doesn't make sense either since Rafe isn't from a family of old money, and Carla knows it. Ward was a Pogue, and he's still very much new money, which is the sort of thing Carla would scoff at. Of course, she's not exactly in a position to tick Rafe off since she does need his help, but she could have said any number of things other than "he's not one of us."
Her comment becomes even more suspicious in light of her earlier assertion to Renfield that the shroud is meant for a Limbrey. Clearly, nothing is more important to her than her family name, which she doesn't believe her half-brother deserves to carry. But she might feel differently about her own kids.
Carla's defining traits are that she's self-serving and bigoted. Her sole focus in life is curing herself from her mysterious terminal illness. As a result, it doesn't feel too far-fetched to imagine a scenario where she abandoned her children and Ward, especially if Ward double-crossed her during their search for the gold.
One thing is certain: she definitely has a "long and tortured history" with Ward Cameron (she says so herself). She suggests that it all has to do with him cutting her out of the treasure hunt, but what if their connection went deeper? Carla and Ward are cut from the same cloth, and it's easy to imagine them as romantic partners.
But it's just as easy to imagine Ward cutting her out of Sarah and Rafe's life due to her elitism and general lack of concern for their wellbeing. Sure, he's gone completely around the bend now, but before his altercation with Big John, Ward was a family man, first and foremost.
It's curious that while Rafe and Sarah loathe Rose, they've never mentioned anything about their birth mother. The implication is that she was beloved, but what if they never knew her at all? Since Rafe is 19 and Sarah is 16, it's entirely possible that their mother left when Rafe was just 3-years-old. If that's the case, he wouldn't have any memory of her, which would explain why he didn't recognize Carla.
Meanwhile, Carla may have put the children completely out of her mind in favor of focusing on her larger quest to save herself. After all, she loathes Ward, and she may have written off the kids due to who their father is. I mean, she's basically an extra from Get Out, so anything is possible where she's concerned.
Ultimately, the most compelling reason why Carla is the perfect candidate to be Rafe and Sarah's mom is because it would twist the knife even more in terms of storytelling. Poor Sarah's image of her father has already been shattered, so it would be crushing to have the myth of her perfect mother obliterated too. Given her disdain for Rose, it feels like Ward told his kids their mother is dead.
But if she's not only alive, but also just as messed up as their father... well, that's the kind of drama Outer Banks thrives on. While the Carla is Rafe and Sarah's mom theory isn't perfect, you have to admit it is compelling, and it would make for a truly jaw-dropping twist in Season 3.
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Images: Jackson Lee Davis/Netflix; Netflix