𝑨𝑫𝑹𝑰𝑭𝑻, jj maybank

SIXTEEN - the hawk's nest

SIXTEEN —— the hawk's nest

"My dad's already gonna kill me, so what's this mandatory meeting about?" Pope asked.

A warm glow illuminated the Pogues' faces as they sat around the fire built by JJ and Pope. The light danced across everyone's features and the rich, familiar smell of burning wood filled the air. Still wearing her Kook getup, Bee was sitting sandwiched between Kiara and John B, and Pope and JJ sat on separate tree stumps on the other side of the fire. Bee's eyes travelled from friend to friend until they landed on JJ. She watched him, her eyes sparkling and hints of her dimples showing, as he picked up a stick from the ground.

"Might as well tell them, man," JJ said as he poked at the fire with his stick, oblivious to Bee's gaze. "Before we're gaffed."

"Gaffed?" Bee asked. Her eyes darted back and forth between JJ and John B. "Why would we be gaffed? What's there to gaff about?"

"Hilarious," Pope deadpanned.

JJ simply shuddered and shook his head in response, so Bee figured she should drop it.

"You ready for this?" John B asked. Bee, Pope, and Kiara nodded her heads, eager to know what was going on. "So... the gold never went down with the Royal Merchant."

Bee's head jerked back in surprise.

Pope sighed, shaking his head. "Oh, my God. Here we go again with this."

JJ pulled the stick out of the fire and turned his head to Pope. "Hear him out, alright?"

John B paused, dragging out the moment for dramatic effect. A sly grin turned his lips upwards and he glanced between each of his friends. "The gold's been here the whole time. It's on the island."

"What?" Bee questioned, hesitant.

At first, she'd simply tagged along with the hunt because she enjoyed spending time with her friends. But now, if what John B said was true, then she was about to become a whole lot more invested. She just didn't want to get her hopes up again.

"Are you serious?" Kie asked. She leaned forward so she could look at John B. "Oh my God."

"I'd like to voice my skepticism," Pope said, raising his hand slightly.

John B stood from the log. "I'm sure you would Pope. But can I please present you with my evidence, sir?"

"Proceed," Pope said, exasperated.

"Alright. So, in my backpack, I have a letter from Denmark Tanny," said John B as he pulled out a folded piece of paper, yellowed and tattered with age.

"Who the hell is that?" Kie asked.

"Denmark Tanny was a slave that survived the Royal Merchant wreck. Check this out." John B unfolded the paper and handed it to Bee. Kiara peered over Bee's arm so she could read the note, too. "Okay, slaves weren't mentioned as crew members on the ship," explained John B, moving his arms excitedly as he spoke. "But my dad, he found the complete manifest. That was his big discovery."

The letter felt delicate in Bee's hands, like it could crumble away at any moment. She studied the unfamiliar characters and frowned, realizing the note was written in code and she had no hope of reading what it said.

She shrugged at Kiara, who had the same confused expression on her face. Bee handed the letter to Kiara, who passed it to JJ, who gave it to Pope. He stared at it while John B continued to explain what happened to the gold. "So Tanny used the gold from the Merchant to buy his freedom. After that, he bought his farm."