THE NEXT day, Scarlett found herself sitting under John B's shed with the other Pogues. Scarlett was curled up in an old chair as she attempted to read more of her book. Recently, she'd gone through her mother's small collection of books and was slowly making her way through them. Her current read was 'Little Women' as she knew it had been her mother's favourite. Kiara was sat in another chair quite close to where Scarlett was, her fingers gently strumming the strings of her ukulele. Pope was going through some of the random junk piled up on the other side of the shed while JJ waxed his surfboard. Scarlett smiled softy as she glanced up from her book. The morning felt almost normal with the Pogues hanging out like they used to, just without John B.
"That's a lot of wax on your board." Pope commented towards JJ, not glancing up from whatever it was he was doing. "Put too much wax, it's gonna be slippery."
JJ paused his actions, standing up straighter as he processed Pope's words. "Are you telling me how to wax my board?" He asked, looking over his shoulder at the boy.
Pope shook his head. "Just saying that's a lot of wax."
"J, he's just trying to make sure you don't have an accident the next time you go surfing." Scarlett spoke, looking back down at the pages of her book.
JJ looked from Pope and over to his girlfriend, his eyebrows furrowed. "I know how to wax my board, Scar. Hell, I spent most of this morning waxing yours."
The blonde girl shook her head. "JJ, we're not telling you how to wax your board. We know you know how to do it. We just don't want you making it too slippery and causing yourself to have an accident."
"When have I ever had an accident while surfing?" JJ asked her, tilting his head to the side. "I'm the best surfer here!"
Scarlett sighed. "Just use a little less wax, J."
Pope nodded. "That's a colossal waste of wax. And you already used half of it this morning on Lottie's board." He shrugged his shoulders at the blonde boy.
Kiara stopped strumming her ukulele and looked round at them. "Guys, really?" She questioned, tired of the argument.
The sound of a car horn sounded, grabbing their attention. Scarlett placed her bookmark in the book, closing the cover. It was clear to her that she wasn't going to get much reading done that day. "Did you hear that?" JJ asked the group, referring to the car horn. They looked up as the sound continued- alongside the noise of an engine sputtering- to see the Twinkie rolling to a stop just across the grass from the shed.
"Holy shit!" Scarlett breathed out, standing up. She placed her book down on the chair, not taking her eyes off John B. "You guys are seeing him too, right? Or am I still high as fuck?" She asked the others.
"Are you serious?" Kiara exclaimed, also rising from her seat.
JJ looked back and forth between his friends, not believing his eyes. "Hold on. Am I dreaming?"
"No!" Pope yelled, the boy also in disbelief.
"Guess who's out of the clink, boy!" John B yelled excitedly, jumping out the van.
"No freaking way, man!" Pope cried, the Pogues making their way over to their friend.
Scarlett ran over to him, wrapping her arms around her friend. "Oh my God, oh my God. You're actually back!" She squealed.
John B wrapped his arms around her smaller frame, spinning her around in excitement. "Hell yeah, I am!" He put her down, but kept one arm around her as the rest of the Pogues crowded around them in a hug.
"My boy's out of the can!" JJ laughed, throwing his arms around his friends.
"We missed you." Kiara told the boy, her voice muffled from the group hug.
John B smiled. "I missed you guys too."
"How'd you do it?" JJ asked him as they all pulled away, though they stayed in a closely knit circle. "You bust out?"
"Uh, they dropped the charges." The brunette boy told them.
"They dropped the charges." Pope repeated in shock.
Kiara grinned. "That's phenomenal!" She cried.
Scarlett stared wide-eyed at John B. "You're shitting us, right? They actually let you go? For real?"
John B nodded at her, a smile gracing his face. "For real, Lottie. I'm telling the truth." Scarlett squealed as she jumped onto him, pulling the boy in for another hug. John B wrapped one of his arms around her, steadying the blonde so she didn't fall.
"You're telling me I did all that work for nothing?" JJ commented.
Pope's face scrunched up at the boy's words. "Oh, the most elaborate escape plan of all time?" He asked sarcastically.
"Foolproof." Kiara added, making quotation marks with her hands.
"Yeah, it was, actually." JJ defended.
Scarlett let go of John B, moving to stand next to the boy as she turned to her boyfriend. "Look, Blondie, it doesn't matter. John B's outta there, we're all back together now. That's the important thing. And hey, at least he's out legally." She put emphasis on the last word, knowing that they would be in a worse situation had JJ's plan gone right.
"Wait, where's Sarah?" John B asked suddenly, looking around at the group. A silence fell over the teens as there happy expressions faded. "No, no, no. Where... where... where's Sarah?"
"She went to go meet Wheezie last night." Kiara explained. "She didn't come back."
⭐⭐⭐
The Pogues had moved down to the dock where they all sat around the HMS. Scarlett had sat herself on the railing of the jetty, watching John B pace up and down as he worried about his girlfriend. "So, Sarah just dips and doesn't call?" He wondered aloud.
"Yeah, man." Pope said, looking over to the boy from where he was sat with JJ. "She just left her bag. Didn't tell anybody."
Scarlett sighed and shook her head slightly. "You gotta remember that she doesn't have a phone right now, JB." She reminded him. "I'm sure she's fine. And stop pacing, you're making me dizzy just watching you."
John B shook his head at her as he stepped down onto the boat. "Okay, dude, I... I... I really think Ward got to her. I mean, the dude tried to have me killed in jail."
"What?" Kiara breathed, her head shooting up to look at him. Both JJ and Pope spun around in their seats to face the boy, as Scarlett's head whipped around to stare at him in shock.
"He did what?!" She asked, voice raised in anger. "I'm gonna murder that son of a bitch, I swear."
"He sent somebody to the prison who yoked me up and almost killed me." John B explained. Scarlett shook her head in anger, jumping off the railing.
"You serious?" Kiara asked as Scarlett took a seat next to her.
"Yes." John B said firmly.
"Do we know who this dude was?" JJ asked.
John B shook his head. "No, I have no idea."
Scarlett sighed, her fingers playing with the rings on her hand. "Shame." She whispered. "If you knew, I would've loved to go give him a taste of his own medicine. Ward too." She shrugged.
The group turned to her, their faces filled with shock at her words. "Since when have you become all violent, Red?" JJ questioned. They all knew the blonde could be feisty, and was more than capable of standing up for herself, but they'd never seen her sound so angry or violent.
"Since my best friend's nearly died several times." Scarlett answered back sharply. "I'm sick of one of us always getting badly hurt or coming close to death. I'm sick of everything, JJ. Especially after last night. I'm done."
JJ's eyebrows furrowed as he looked at her. "What happened last night?" He asked, his voice soft.
Scarlett shrugged. "It doesn't matter. Not right now, anyway."
"I'm with Lottie on this." John B agreed, taking a seat opposite the girls. "Dude, I just swear to God, one day I'm gonna kill that son of a bitch."
Scarlett nodded, reaching up to high-five her friend. "Let me know when you do, I wanna help."
"It's okay." Kiara spoke, breaking the tension.
"No, Kie, it's not okay." John B disagreed, looking down at the ground. "We gotta find Sarah."
Kiara gently shook her head. "No, literally, it's okay. She's right there." She pointed just behind him to the boat that was approaching. The Pogues followed her gaze to see Topper slowing his boat to a stop.
Sarah stood up, her face filling with excitement as she spotted her boyfriend. "John B!" She cried.
"What the hell is she doing with Topper?" Kiara asked quietly. Scarlett watched as John B sighed, looking down at his feet. She knew he was probably feeling dejected at the sight of Sarah with her ex.
"Oh my God, he's out." Sarah breathed, running to the front of the boat. Once Topper's boat was tied to the HMS, Sarah climbed over and pulled John B in for a hug. "Hey!" She laughed, relieved to see him.
"Oh my God. I'm so glad you're okay. Hi." John B whispered as the two reunited. Scarlett smiled softly, moving over to JJ while the pair had their moment.
"I didn't know if I'd see you again." Sarah told him. "What happened?" She asked, pulling out of the hug so she could see his face.
"Uh, they dropped all the charges." John B told her.
"What?" Sarah breathed, a small smile on her face.
John B nodded. "Yeah, no, yeah. I'm a free man. Yeah."
Sarah rested her hands on the side of his face as she laughed in relief. "That's amazing." She cried, pulling him into another hug.
"I know. It's great, but..." He pulled backwards so he could see her face again. "But listen, Sarah, they're coming after Rafe."
"Good. He's completely unhinged." She paused for a moment. "He jumped me last night."
Scarlett gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. "Holy shit. Sarah, are you okay?"
"What?" Kiara whispered.
Sarah glanced over to Scarlett, nodding at the girl. "Yeah, a bit shaken up still." She turned back to John B. "That's why I didn't come back last night."
"Yeah, man." Topper said, speaking for the first time since he and Sarah had arrived. Scarlett had honestly forgotten he was there. "Rafe has lost his mind. Literally almost drowned his own sister." The group all turned to him as he spoke. "Thankfully, I got there... got there just in time."
Sarah nodded slightly, turning back towards John B. "Yeah, he did."
"Uh, well, I guess I owe you one, Topper, don't I?" John B said, leaning his arm on the bar just above the wheel.
Topper scoffed, his own arm hanging onto part of his boat. "It's all good. I mean, somebody had to rescue your girlfriend, right?"
Scarlett frowned at his condescending tone of voice. "Just because you rescued Sarah- which we're all grateful for- doesn't mean you can speak to John B like that." She stepped forward, wishing the boy would do something so she had an excuse to punch him.
John B placed his hand on her arm, pulling her back a few steps. "No, Lottie. It's okay." She nodded, but continued to glare daggers at the Kook. "Uh, that's funny because she's not actually my girlfriend, right?" John B told Topper, looking down at Sarah as he waited for her to tell the other boy their news.
"Uh..." Topper chuckled. "Well, what is she then?"
"Tell him." John B smiled at Sarah.
The girl looked back and forth between the two boys for a few moments. "I'm... I'm with him." She said eventually. Scarlett watched as John B's face fell.
Topper laughed. "Gotcha. You're with him. Okay, yeah. I just, like, needed a little clarity there. You guys clear on that?" He looked around to the other Pogues.
"I think it's clear you gotta go now." JJ told him, knowing that if he didn't either John B or Scarlett would pick a fight with the Kook.
Topper nodded. "Yeah. Think I'll head out. It's about that time."
Scarlett smiled sarcastically at him, her head tilting to the side. "Yeah, you do that Topper. Bye bye." She lifted her hand and waved at him.
"Topper. Thank you." Sarah said to the boy. She stepped up to give him a quick hug.
"Yeah, of course. I'm just glad you're okay." As Topper's boat sailed away, Scarlett's sarcastic wave changed and she threw her middle finger up at the boy.
⭐⭐⭐
Scarlett found herself sitting on a low hanging tree branch a little later, reading her book. A short distance away, were Sarah and John B in the hammock. The pair began arguing over the Topper situation and Scarlett blocked them out. She just wanted to be able to read a large chunk of her book without distractions at least once. After a few minutes, she gave up and put her book down to see John B stalking off towards the house.
"John B." JJ called, hopping down the porch steps. "You wanna shotgun one in the name of freedom?" He asked the boy, holding up a couple of beers. John B ignored him, simply walking past and into the Château. "Sarah, you wanna-" JJ started but was quickly cut off.
"No!" The girl called, walking away through the grass.
Scarlett grabbed her book, jumping down from the branch. "I'll have one if you're offering." She called to JJ, plastering a smile on her face.
"Of course, Doll." JJ grinned, handing her one of the beers. The couple walked over to the porch, taking a seat on the stairs. Scarlett placed her copy of 'Little Women' down on the step next her, leaning her head on JJ's shoulder. "What's up, Red? You've been acting weird since yesterday." JJ asked, opening his beer.
Scarlett sighed, doing the same and taking a sip of the alcohol. "Oh, you know, got kicked out. The usual." She shrugged.
JJ frowned, wishing he'd known about it sooner so he could have been there for her. "They kicked you out? Why?"
"Apparently I need to clean up my act. Stay sober, get better grades. All so I can be a better influence for Maisie." Scarlett explained. "And I'm not allowed back until I do." She sighed. "I thought that maybe, they actually wanted me. That I'd get to have a family again but..." She trailed off, not finding any need to finish her sentence, and took a long sip of the beer.
"Well, you've got us. And, I know we're not exactly the family you wanted but... we're always gonna be here." JJ told her, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. "I love you, Red."
Scarlett tilted her face towards him, a smile gracing her lips. "I love you too, Blondie." The two sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes until JJ's phone rang. He answered it after a few moments hesitation, and stood up, moving a little way away from Scarlett. She didn't mind though, knowing that JJ never answered his phone unless it was important.
When he finished with the phone call, he raced across the garden to the shed, yelling out for Pope. Scarlett immediately stood up. following the boy. As she reached the shed, she saw Pope and Kiara pulling out of a hug, and sent a quizzical look to the girl. "Pope! Pope!" JJ called out, panting slightly. "Just got a call from Guffy. Something happened to your pops." Scarlett gasped, her hand flying up to her mouth. Without saying anything, the group raced to the Twinkie, yelling out for Sarah and John B to join them. There was an awkward tension in the van as they drove across the island. No one said anything about it, but Scarlett could tell it was to do with John B and Sarah's argument- the pair were avoiding each other's gaze.
⭐⭐⭐
Scarlett sat on the top of one the tables by the dock at the back of Heyward's shop. Anxiously, she bit her nails as she watched Sarah patch up the cut on Heyward's head. "Let me know if I'm hurting you." Sarah told him, gently placing a plaster over his wound.
"You're doing fine." Heyward told her, groaning slightly in pain. "Thank you, darlin'." He said, wincing. Sarah stepped away, moving to sit in between Kiara and Scarlett.
"Pop, what happened?" Pope asked his father, standing next to him.
Scarlett's foot tapped quietly against the wooden seat she had propped her feet on. Pope's own father had been hurt, and she could tell it had something to do with the trouble the Pogues had been getting into. Her thoughts were confirmed when Heyward began explaining the situation to the teens. "Oh, I should've known better. He came in just as I was about to lock up. Caught me by surprise. Once he had me down, he put his knee in my chest, and he asked me about that... that... that key from that... that drawing you showed me."
Scarlett paled, sharing a worried look with JJ who had moved to stand next to her. "Renfield." She hissed. Cursing under her breath, she ran her fingers through the ends of her hair. This was their fault. They'd involved the older man in their adventure and now he was injured. JJ, sensing the girl's frustration, gently placed his hand on her shoulder. His fingers rubbed against the small bit of her exposed skin, trying to calm her down without interrupting Heyward from telling his story.
"And in case you're wondering," the man continued, "I ain't tell him nothing." He looked around at the teens, earning a small smile from each of them. Out of all their parents, Heyward was their favourite. You could always tell him something and there wouldn't be a fear of judgement from him. In the past he had even let Scarlett sleepover for a few days at a time when her mother was out of town. Though he could be tough on Pope, he was still one of the kindest souls on the island. "Now, did you track it down?" Heyward asked his son, referring to the key.
Pope dug his hand into his back pocket, pulling out the key and showing it to his dad. He handed him the key and they all watched as he took a closer look. "I found it in Mee-maw's old apartment above the pharmacy just like you said." Pope told his father, taking a seat on the other end of the bench.
"Shit, boy, you should've gave this to me." Heyward whispered. "I wouldn't have had to take a beating." There was a moment's silence as the Pogues sat back, wondering how much they should tell the older man. He'd already gotten hurt and been partially dragged into it all, but they didn't want anything else to happen to him. The group of Pogues had already lost too much family because of their adventures. They couldn't lose anymore. "What's the big deal? It ain't worth anything. Why they want it so bad?" Heyward asked his son and his friends.
Scarlett shrugged as Heyward looked around at the teens. "I don't know." Pope told him honestly. "First, I get this letter telling me that I need to go to Charleston. And then I meet a rich lady who wants me to give her a key that I didn't even know was in my family." Pope explained.
"None of it makes any sense." Kiara added, her voice quiet.
Scarlett nodded. "It's too confusing. We've been dragged every which way and chased and we don't even know why."
"Well, don't y'all just sit here whining about it." Heyward spoke. "Figure it out!" He pointed his finger at them.
Pope shook his head at his father. "No. I'm just gonna give the key to that lady. It's not worth-"
"No, no, no." Heyward cut his son off. "Did I raise you to back down from a fight, boy?"
"No, sir." Pope shook his head again.
Heyward nodded slightly at his son. "Well, all right. Now, I... I didn't think about it before. I admit that. But now..." He pointed up to the covered wound just above his eyebrow. "Now? I'm interested." He looked up at the Pogues. "Well, did they say why they wanted it?"
"Something about an old cross." Pope answered. "I think it might be some kind of lost treasure."
"It's always some damned lost treasure." Scarlett muttered, rolling her eyes.
"You know who you should talk to?" Heyward asked, looking across at his son and holding the key out to him. "Your great-grandmother, Mee-maw."
⭐⭐⭐
⁎⁎⁎
Edited: 10/11/2021