This is Me Trying ⭑ Rafe Cameron

thirty nine

"What're we doing?" He asks, cautiously.

Cassie looks around, instinctively searching for the biggest boat in the marina.

"Is that..." Kiara sat up to look through the front windshield. "Isn't that the Cameron's boat?"

Cassie followed her gaze, finding the My Druthers Too tucked in between the line of docks. She tried to beat JJ to the punch, "Please, just—"

"Tell me you're joking." JJ cuts her off, his eyes closed like he was desperately trying to hold on to his last ounce of patience. "Cassie, what did you do?"

Cassie was expecting this, but was offended anyways. "I got us way to the Orinoco." She says.

"With Rafe?" Kiara turns to her, wide-eyed.

Cassie flails her arms out frustratedly. "Do either of you have any better ideas?!"

JJ had his head buried in his hands. "He's gonna mess it up. He's gonna mess everything up." He lifts his head up, and raises his voice slightly. "It's gonna be the Coastal Venture all over again."

Cassie clenched her jaw, and turned for the door. "If you guys don't want to go. Fine. I'll help John B by myself." She says, climbing out from the front seat.

"You're sure the plane left?" Kiara asks.

"Yes, I'm sure." Cassie says. "We were supposed to leave eight hours ago."

Kiara knew she wasn't really in the position to pick and choose, given the fact that the reason they were left was because of her day-trip to Kitty Hawk. She looks to JJ.

"I don't trust him." He says, staring ahead at the marina.

Cassie takes a breath, standing outside the van with the door open. "You can trust me."

There was no part of JJ that wanted to do this. No part of him that believed this would go smoothly, or believed this wasn't gonna get them into even more trouble. But if he wasn't gonna be there for his friends, it wasn't gonna be for a lack of trying. This was their only option.

Cassie was anticipating more of a fight, more arguments spat her way. But JJ just got out of the car, and then Kiara. She waited a second to ensure they were actually going forward with it, before she grabbed her backpack.

JJ wasn't pleased as he waited for Cassie, his arms were crossed, and a permanent scowl had appeared on his face. "This is ridiculously stupid, by the way." He says, as Cassie shuts the van door and walks over to them.

She matched his expression. "Yeah? You're welcome."

Cassie walked on herself, leaving the option to follow up to them. She pulled her phone out to call Rafe, walking onto the wooden dock, in between the several expensive yachts that sat on either side of them.

"So what, he's just all of the sudden apart of the team? Ready to help?" JJ speaks up, following his sister with Kiara beside him.

"Shh." She says, right before Rafe answered, and they stopped in front of the My Druthers Too.

Cassie had been on this boat before. Right after they'd escaped from Singh, and she returned to Kildare. And here they were, taking it right back into his trap.