𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐁𝐈𝐃𝐃𝐄𝐍 ᯓ outer banks

chapter one hundred and three

"Stay back, stay back!" Ward shouts back, pointing his gun at them.

"You're outnumbered, Ward," Brooklyn breathes out. "You can't shoot us all."

"If you gotta shoot somebody, Ward, shoot me," her father says from behind him.

He points the gun towards their father but John B has stepped forward. "Or me," he's saying and Brooklyn feels she can't breathe.

She drops her machete, hearing JJ hiss, "What the hell are you doing? Brooke."

She's walking towards Ward to step in front of her brother despite her friends trying to call her back. "Shoot me, Ward," she tempts and he's pointing the gun at both siblings.

Sarah then steps in front of Brooklyn and John B, comes closer to her father until the gun is pressed against her chest. "You're not gonna kill all of us," Sarah speaks. "I know you won't. I know you. You forget that I know you."

Sarah grabs the gun by the barrel and watches as her father breaks down before her. Brooklyn knows Sarah is crying as she takes the gun from him as Ward cries, "I couldn't. I couldn't do it."

He reaches a hand up to Sarah's face and all seems somewhat better until, "Well, I can," a man says from behind them and John B is quick to turn around and hold up the gun.

The man points the gun towards their father and demands John B to toss the gun. "Take it easy, son. Your boss is dead. You got no reason to do this," their father explains in attempts to make this random guard leave them alone.

"I can think of a few reasons. Toss it!" he demands again and John B surrenders, dropping the gun to his feet. "Thought you'd end up with the gold, eh?" He steps forward to pick up the gun. "All right, nobody move. My mate back there is dead. Because of you."

He's pointing the gun towards Sarah and Brooklyn reaches her hand down to grab hers. The gun cocks and Sarah is squeezing Brooklyn's hand.

Sarah looks to her father who smiles at her but all Sarah can do is sob as he runs forward towards the guard. The guard shoots Ward a couple times but Ward pushes through, yelling in the process, as he grabs the guard by his waist and brings both himself and the guard off the end of the cliff. The thump that hits the ground echoes through Brooklyn's ears and she gasps, her hand so tight around Sarah's as they walk to the edge to see the two bodies at the bottom of the cliff.

Sarah is crying. Brooklyn is securing an arm around her shoulders and bringing her into her, trying to comfort her the best she can. She sobs against Brooklyn's shoulder and Brooklyn soothes her, whispering gentle sorrows. John B comes up behind the two girls and rests his arms around the two of them.

"Big John? Big John?" Pope is saying and Brooklyn is looking back to see her father leaning back and bleeding out. "Guys!"

Brooklyn and John B step away from Sarah and rush to their father who seems to be too close to death for their liking. Pope is already lifting him under with one arm while John B takes the other arm and Brooklyn tries to offer support where she can. "It's okay, Dad, we're gonna get you out of here," she says but she isn't sure that's true.

They try to get him back down the hill, each taking it in turns to offer support where they can. When they reach the boat, he's still breathing luckily but Brooklyn is afraid he'll stop at any point and she isn't ready to say goodbye to her Dad all over again.

John B and Brooklyn sit close to each other, their father's head in his lap while she holds onto his hand. "You're okay, Dad," she assures him as they're sailing across the water.

"We did it, kids," he's saying and the twins smile. "Just like we drew it up." He's looking between John B and Brooklyn as they look at their dad with tears in their eyes.

"Yeah, we did," John B sniffles.

"Bird, Bird, Bird," he mumbles incoherently. He looks to Brooklyn and mumbles her nickname, "Cookie, Cookie, Cookie," until it's ringing in her ears. He's holding both their hands in his bloody ones and Brooklyn let's a tear fall.

Their father is looking to Sarah and saying, "Bird, you gotta hang on to this one." Sarah smiles through her tears and places her own hand over his, right next to Brooklyn's.

He continues to talk, "You know that I wasn't any great shakes as a father."

"Stop, Dad," Brooklyn cries.

"But you kids... you were the best kids any man could hope for," he says and the tears fall harder.
"I want you to know that..."

"You can tell us when we get home, Dad," John B says as he reaches into his bag to grab the gold he and Sarah collected. "Look, Dad," he sobs and Brooklyn places her other hand on his shoulder. "We did it. You did it."

John B places the gold against his chest and they watch as he moves his hand gently over it. "I'll see you... I'll see you kids at home," he finally says.

"Dad?" John B asks. "Dad?" he asks again as he leans forward to press his face to his hair. Brooklyn leans forward, her face against her Dad's chest as she sobs quietly.

A hand comes to rest on her back but she cries harder because he's gone. He's finally gone.

The bell tolls.