THE REDHEAD ☾ jj maybank

19 | the royal merchant

"The tide's turning." Kie states.

"Ten seconds easy. Southeast." Delilah instructs.

JJ nods. "Copy that."

"Twenty seconds mid-speed. South." Delilah instructs again.

"Copy that. Aye, aye." JJ replies, doing as told once again. "Keep the tether out of the prop!"

"I'm trying!" Kie exclaims.

"JJ, keep the boat going!" John B demands.

"Ly." JJ calls, glancing at the girl holding the GPS beside him. "Is that good?"

"Yeah." Delilah replies with a small nod, double checking on the map. "Yeah, that's good."

"700 feet!" Kie informs.

The sound of thunder continuing to crackle fills their ears loudly in, seeming to travel closer to them with each noise the storm makes. The wind is starting to increase too as it harshly whips against their skin and creates knots in their hair — Delilah is grateful that she shoved her ginger hair into a messy bun before going on the journey. The tides they sail on grows more and more violent by the minute, which gives them an unsteady footing on the boat.

"Oh, for fuck sake." Delilah curses.

"JJ, hold it steady!" John B orders.

"900!" Kie calls out.

"JJ, we'll turtle in this storm, man." Pope informs with worry, wanting them to survive this.

"920!" Kie continues.

"Crank it north by northwest. Ten seconds." Delilah instructs.

"Pope, how are we doing?" John B asks.

"Almost there." Pope confidently replies.

"John B, there's too much current. We're gonna lose it!" Kie exclaims, desperately yanking at the tether.

"South, southwest, JJ. Hard." Delilah instructs again.

The boy instantly does as he's told, wanting him and his friends to get through this. A large wave hits the side of the boat that they're all aboard of and causes it to shake slightly at the impact. The five stumble at the unexpectedness, but they still manage to keep themselves upright.

"Half speed. Steady at this bearing." Delilah continues.

A beeping sound now emits from the GBPS as the red circle now shifts to be directly underneath the figure of the boat. This is what Delilah has been keeping track of this entire time, and this digital image is exactly what they need.

"It should be here, John B!" Delilah states, shouting over the storm that's brewing.

"What do you see, Pope?" John B asks.

"Nothing." Pope replies in frustration. "It's just a whole lot of nothing."

"980!" Kie exclaims.

"I'm at the bottom! I'm at the bottom!" Pope announces, repeating it to make sure he's heard.

"Steady here, JJ. Quarter speed, alright?" John B orders.

For the hundredth time today, JJ listens to the instructions before he and Delilah turn in their seats to look back at their friends. The three are staring at the live screen for the camera with disbelief crossed over their faces, eyes wide as smiles spread across their faces. The pair then peel their eyes away and exchange similar looks, wearing the exact same grins as they high-five each other.

"It's the Royal Merchant."

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