PARADISE | JOHN B ROUTLEDGE |

03 you took the gun, you stupid idiot

"Bro, you know the rule. No Pogue-on-Pogue macking." John B reminded him. That stupid, stupid rule. Was that rule the reason he hadn't made a move on either Talia or Kiara, because of a rule he made up when he was 13?

"Besides, you're the one who's always hitting on her." John B told him, slightly stumbling, the floor uneven from the storm.

"Of course I'm hitting on her. She's a super hot, rich, hippie chick slumming with us. Why? I can't figure it out either, but who cares, bro? I know that door's locked because I've tried it, have you?" JJ told him as they approached the door, 229.

"Are we here to investigate or to chat, boys? Let's get on with it." Talia said, her toned laced with annoyance.

"Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed today." JJ joked, wrapping his arm around her shoulder, which she shoved off.

"Let's just get this over with." She huffed as John B knocked on the door, with no answer. JJ knocked, making a high pitched 'housekeeping' voice as he looked into the window.

"Should we try it?" John B asked Talia and JJ, who both nodded.

"No power, no security cameras, no one will know." JJ muttered as John B opened the door, revealing a dark room with two seemingly untouched beds. The three walked into the room, where a bag lay on the bed and a map on the bedside table.

"Check the bag, see if there's a name on there somewhere." John B told JJ, walking into the room farther. Talia ventured into the bathroom, hoping she wouldn't find a dead body or anything gross in there. She had been watching too much Criminal Minds. She reluctantly pulled open the shower curtain, relieved that there was nothing in there. She found a small black bag sitting on a shelf above the toilet, going through it slightly before JJ came up behind her and took it from her, letting out an 'Oh'.

"Did you find anything?" She could hear John B ask as JJ rooted through the bag.

"Found a pretty awesome dopp kit that you won't let me steal." JJ told him, finding some deodorant, and slipping it into his pocket, causing Talia to hit his arm.

"Yeah, cause we're not stealing shit." John B answered. Talia gestured for him to put it back.

"Why?"

"You heard what he said. And plus, we're not getting caught for breaking and entering into someone's room because you took their Old Spice. Come on." She dragged JJ out of the bathroom as he put the deodorant back to find John B crouching down in front of a safe, punching in random numbers.

"Punching shit at random, that'll work." JJ told him while him and Talia walked over to the map again, trying to make sense of it and the post it note that was placed on it.

"I don't know about the second one. These coordinates... wait! My cousin said you could catch swordfish over there."

"And why is that relevant, JJ?" Talia asked, him earning a shrug as he continued to look over the map.

"Wait, Tal, could you read me the number on the piece of paper?" John B asked from across the room, still in front of the safe.

"Six, one, six, six, six." Talia said dismissively, listening to JJ ramble about what the coordinates could mean.

"Have you heard of shoals, Tal?" JJ asked the girl, and before she could respond, John B interrupted her.

"JJ, Tal? You're gonna wanna see this." They bent down to his level to find the safe full of stacks and stacks of money, along with a gun.

"Dude." JJ said, grabbing the gun before Talia or John B could stop him. He moved around the room while Talia and John B tried to get him to stop and put the gun back.