Breaking Down the Twist Ending of Harlan Coben's Mystery Series I Will Find You

Warning: This post contains spoilers for I Will Find You
The Netflix thriller series I Will Find You, based on Harlan Coben’s 2023 novel, opens with a case that appears to be closed: David Burroughs (Sam Worthington) is serving a life sentence for the murder of his son, Matthew Burroughs—who was found dead in his own bed.

Everything changes when David gets a visitor in prison one day. Journalist Rachel Mills (Britt Lower)—who happens to be the sister of David’s ex-wife Cheryl (Erin Richards)—shows up with a photo taken at Six Flags. In the background of the image is a boy who looks exactly like Matthew, even bearing the same birthmark he had on his cheek.  

“She's a character who just can't ignore an uneasy feeling. She has this spidey sense that this might be her nephew,” Lower says. “She goes from being a journalist writing about other people to being directly inside the story.”

The photo pushes David—who has maintained his innocence all along—to escape from prison with the help of Philip Mackenzie (Peter Outerbridge), the prison warden and a longtime friend of his father who believes him, and Mackenzie’s son Adam (Jonathan Tucker), a police sargeant.

“A father’s job is to protect his child… and so he failed at that. It’s all about trying to find that redemption,” says Coben, who also served as an executive producer on the show. “It was the chance to rescue his son and recover from the worst moment of his life.”
According to creator and showrunner Robert Hull, there were no essential changes in adapting the novel for the screen. “It was just finding new ways to tell the story,” he says. “Harlan, early on, gave us a roadmap so we know where we’re going and what the heart of the show is, so we never lose sight of that. If you’re a fan of the book, everything you love is there, plus a lot.”
Let’s break down the biggest twists in I Will Find You.

A search for truth

David and Rachel trace Matthew’s disappearance to Berg Reproductive, a Boston fertility clinic tied to the wealthy Payne family, headed by Gertrude Payne (Madeleine Stowe) and her son Hayden Payne (Milo Ventimiglia), and learn that Cheryl had been a patient there.  She used Rachel’s name during treatment to keep it secret. Cheryl later reveals she discovered she was pregnant the next day after the procedure, confirming Matthew is David’s biological son. 

The discovery leads David to believe Rachel, not Cheryl, was the intended target of the scheme that ultimately led to Matthew’s disappearance, and that Berg is tied to the conspiracy.
FBI agent Sarah Greer (Logan Browning) begins to question David’s sentencing. She works alongside her father, FBI agent Max Williams (Chi McBride), as part of Boston’s fugitive task force, and although they were not particularly close before, their partnership on the job has brought them closer.

Browning says that doubt comes from instinct. “She sees a father in his desperation. And she's familiar with her dad's desperation to be in her life again in whatever way that is.” Max, however, remains focused on bringing David back into custody. “For Max, this case doesn't change his life in any way,” McBride says. “In the end, he can now prioritize his relationship with his daughter.”
Meanwhile, Swiss investigator Müller arrives in Boston with a theory that the body found at Matthew’s bed may belong to a missing child from a Payne-run orphanage. Hayden—heir to the Payne family and Rachel’s former boyfriend—positions himself as an ally. But Rachel later uncovers Six Flags photos showing him holding Matthew’s hand, linking him directly to the disappearance. David, Rachel, and agent Greer move in on the Payne estate as the case unravels.

“They've been played for suckers all the way through,” Worthington says. “That character's trying to help our characters. It's a big betrayal in that respect. And then an even bigger emotional betrayal for Rachel.”

Who was the boy found dead?

The boy found in David’s home was Martin Bischoff, a Swiss child taken years earlier from a murder scene in Geneva after the deaths of his guardians.

He later lived in a Payne-run orphanage, where he disappeared shortly before Matthew’s alleged death. He matched Matthew in age and appearance but suffered from metachromatic leukodystrophy (MLD). A later blood test confirmed the body was Martin, not Matthew.

What happened that night?

For years, the official version stated that 3-year-old Matthew Burroughs was murdered in his bed, and David was convicted based on evidence including a bloodied baseball bat, a neighbor’s testimony claiming she saw him bury the bat in a forest, and his history of sleep terrors.
It is later revealed that the neighbor lied at the request of Nicky Fisher, a Boston mobster seeking revenge against Lenny, David’s retired police officer father, after the death of his own son in prison.
Hayden Payne killed Martin Bischoff, placed his body in Matthew’s place, and manipulated DNA evidence through the Payne family to confirm the victim as Matthew. He then took the real Matthew and raised him as Theo for five years.

Why Hayden kidnapped Matthew

Hayden believed he was Matthew’s biological father. When Cheryl used Rachel’s name at Berg Reproductive clinic, he assumed Rachel was the patient and provided his genetic material for the procedure.

Years later, after seeing Matthew at a barbecue with Rachel’s family, he realized the child was Cheryl’s, but still believed the boy was his son. At the Payne mansion, Rachel reveals that Cheryl was already pregnant at the time of the procedure. Gertrude confirms a paternity test was conducted, though she never told Hayden the truth about its results.

As David and Agent Greer leave with Matthew, Hayden shoots his mother and flees with Rachel.

How does I Will Find You end?

Hayden pushes Rachel and tries to escape with Matthew, but David catches him. In the struggle, Hayden shoots David. Agent Greer orders him to drop the weapon. Hayden breaks down, saying Matthew was the best thing in his life. Rachel tries to talk him down, but he turns the gun on her. Greer shoots and kills him. David, gravely injured, looks at Matthew and says: “I found you,” before losing consciousness.

For Hull, the emotional weight of that scene comes less from the act itself than from everything that leads into it. “I think for a successful ending, it’s not about the ending, it’s about everything that came before. It’s about everything that he had to go through to get to that moment,” he says. “That’s what makes a Harlan Coben show successful—because of the journey you’ve taken with David and Rachel over this time, you get to feel what he feels in the end.”

Eight months later, David’s conviction is overturned and the truth about Matthew’s case begins to spread in the media. Rachel publishes her account as a book. Cheryl has a daughter with her current husband, and the family gathers at the funeral for Lenny, David’s father, who died of colon cancer. Matthew still struggles to recover his memories but is trying. In the final moment, David says he will always find his son again while holding Rachel’s hand.
“I was glad it didn’t end in this big romantic gesture. There’s a gentleness and a simplicity. Sometimes a power comes through a gentle and simple gesture. It’s OK to be open ended. That’s hope. We leave that in the audience’s hands,” Worthington says.

Lower agrees. "They’re just observing their family finally together. They’ve earned that moment, to have each other’s back. Who knows what the future will bring, but it’s a good foundation. They’ve been through hell together."