The pogues got a fire going and are all gathered around it. JJ changed back into his clothes, not wanting to stay in the tux he wore at Midsummers. Cordelia still has her gown on, not having any other clothes in the Twinkie having left her bag at Kie's, but she did find one of JJ's zip up jackets which she put on to help with the night breeze.
Cordelia gently tears and plucks at the petals on her flower crown that managed to stay partly on the whole night due to the bobby pins. She stays focused on that while she replays the night in her head over and over.
JJ is sitting next to her and Pope is sitting on a rock to her right. John B is across from the siblings with Kie across from Pope.
"Hey, guys. So, like, my dad's already gonna kill me. So what's this mandatory meeting about?" Pope asks, breaking Cordelia from her thoughts.
John B gives JJ finger guns.
"Might as well tell him, man, before we're gaffed." JJ says.
"You ready for this?" John B asks.
"Yeah." Kie nods.
"So, the gold never went down with the Royal Merchant." John B says.
"Here we go again with this." Pope groans.
"No. All right, wait. Hear him out, all right?" JJ says.
"What, so we can do something where we almost die again?" Cordelia asks.
"It's been here the whole time. It's on the island." John B informs.
"Are you serious?" Kie asks and the brunette nods. "Oh, my God!"
"I'd like to voice my skepticism." Pope comments.
"I'd like to let him." Cordelia agrees.
"I'm sure you would, Pope, but can I please present you with my evidence, sir? And madam, who is leaning towards his side." John B says.
"Proceed." Pope sighs, knowing he will anyway.
"Whatever." Cordelia mumbles.
"All right. So, in my backpack, I have a letter from Denmark Tanny." John B states, pulling the letter out.
"Who the hell's that?" Kie asks.
"Denmark Tanny was a slave that survived the Royal Merchant wreck. Check this out." John B hands a piece of paper to Kie. "Okay, slaves weren't mentioned as crew members on the ship, but my dad, he found the complete manifest. That was his big discovery. So Tanny used the gold from the Merchant to buy his freedom."
"After that, he bought his farm." John B says while Cordelia and Pope read the letter. "Drumroll, please, because that farm is..." He stops as Kie and JJ give him a drumroll. "Tannyhill Plantation."
"Tannyhill?" Kie asks.
"Yeah. So, after that, he used his money to free even more slaves, and then he sold a shit ton of rice, which pisses off all the white planters, and then they decide to lynch him." John B informs. "So on the day they were coming to get him, he writes a letter to his son as a farewell, and in the last line of that letter, he leaves a coded message about where to find the gold."
"Where?" Kie excitedly whispers.
"Harvest the wheat in parcel nine, near the water. Except... there's no wheat." John B says. "You see, wheat is code for gold. Check this out." He shows Pope another paper. "The gold is in parcel nine, near the water."
"Holy shit." Pope mumbles as Kie laughs.
"All we need is an original survey map of the property, and we've found the gold." John B grins.
"Okay, so this might have a small chance of being actually true." Pope says as JJ goes over to John B and hugs him.
"Dude, it's like King Tut." Kie says.
"I am a genius. Hey, whoa!" John B exclaims as JJ picks him up. "Hello! Fire! You're near the fire. You're gonna burn. You're near the fire." He says and JJ finally puts him down.
"I'm so proud of you right now." JJ tells him.
"Thank you." John B nods. "That's really sweet of you."
"Okay, so, guys." Pope gets their attention. "What's the plan?"
"Good question. So, Sarah Cameron's coming tonight. She's gonna bring an original survey map--"
"Wait, wait, hold on." Kie cuts John B off. "Sarah? Wh-Why Sarah?"
"Um..." John B awkwardly trails off.
"This is gonna be good." JJ says.
Cordelia nervously glances between them, probably not liking where this is going to go.
"Sarah, um, she-she got me into the archives in Chapel Hill yesterday, and that's where I got the letter." John B informs.
"You were in Chapel Hill with Sarah Cameron?" Kie incredulously asks.
"Yeah, um--"
"He was mackin' on her." JJ says.
"I wasn't macking." John B objects.
"You were totally macking Sarah Cameron." JJ argues.
"I wasn't macking on her, okay? I was using her for access."
"There was access, all right."
"Did you tell her about the treasure?" Kie asks.
"I was just trying to get into the archives." John B says.
"Is that a yes?" Kie asks.
"I left out key details."
"Yo, what? You let a kook in on our secret? What about Pogue Lyfe? What about the T-shirt company, bro?"
"She is probably the most sane kook... kind of, maybe." Cordelia mumbles.
"Shut up." Kie snaps at her. Cordelia bites her lip to refrain from talking anymore, diverting her eyes back to the fire.
"I was just using her for information." John B says.
"Why don't I believe you?" Kie asks.
"I'm trying to make us filthy rich here." John B states. "OKay, so that we can pay off a boat, or-or, uh... send you to autopsy school to study bodies." He says to Pope. "Do I look like the type of person to fall for Sarah Cameron?"
"Uh..." JJ mumbles.
"Do you want us to answer that, or--"
"Yes." Cordelia nods, cutting Pope off.
"Just--Just stop." John B says.
"You're the one who fucking asked." Cordelia retorts.
"Look, you don't know her yet. I do! You can't trust her." Kie says.
"Her brother did hit me in the back with a golf club." Pope reasons.
"And has injured me on several occasions in the last, like, week." Cordelia comments.
"Rafe and Sarah are different human beings." John B says.
"But they were raised in the same household by the same shithead father." Cordelia says.
"Okay, well, you and JJ were also raised by the same shithead father. You two are different in multiple ways." John B says and Cordelia lets out a small chuckle.
"No. No, Luke did not raise me. An alcoholic druggie can not raise you. JJ raised me. He's the one who took care of me and keeps doing so. Not my father." Cordelia argues. "So your statement is invalid. And Jayje and I share a lot more traits then you think, just shown in different ways. So, it's really invalid."
"You just said Sarah is the most sane kook." John B argues.
"I said maybe." Cordelia retorts. "Fletcher can be a close second."
"The dude who publicly humiliated you in third grade? Really?" John B asks.
"Yes, but after tonight, maybe he's not the most psycho. But Rafe definitely is." Cordelia states.
"What exactly did she do to you?" JJ asks Kie, cutting off his best friend and sister's bickering.
"She's like a-- like a spitting cobra. First, she-she blinds you, and then--"
"I don't know if I like her, but that makes no sense." Cordelia says.
"This is a bad analogy." Pope agrees.
"Listen to me! Whatever we get, she's gonna try to take." Kie states.
+++
They drive to where Sarah is meeting them and John B parks while Pope opens the back door.
"Hit it, boys! We're goin'. Recon mission." JJ says.
"Yo, uh... so, uh, I think I'm gonna do this one by myself... tonight." John B says, earning an eye roll from Kie.
"Really?" JJ asks.
"Oh, you are so macking her." Cordelia says.
"No, I'm not." John B objects. "Look, I just don't want to spook Sarah with the peanut gallery."
"Scooby Gang. And also, she's gonna have to be Scrappy when she joins. Everybody else is taken." Cordelia states. "Although if you two do actually start dating, she may become Daphne and we'll need to boot Kie to Scrappy."
"She's not joining." Kie protests. "And I'm not being booted to Scrappy."
"I feel like those traits might work a little more." Cordelia says earning a glare from the older girl.
"I just don't understand why we're involving her at all." Kie says.
"She has the map. We've been over this." Cordelia says.
"Would you shut up for, like, two seconds?" Kie snaps at her. "We don't need JJ 2.0 right now."
"Okay, you know, she's had, like, an extremely rough day. Okay, Kie? Let her be snappy unless you want her to shut down." JJ says, lighting his joint.
"Look, I'm not involving Sarah, okay? It's-- it's just, uh, like a-a business meeting... thing." John B says. "Look, once we get what we need, we cut her loose, all right? Plus, we need the map."
"Promise me nothing's happening between you two." Kie orders.
"nothing is happening, Kie." John B says.
"Yet." Cordelia mumbles, earning a snicker from JJ and Pope.
"I'm being serious." Kie says.
"Okay!" John B says.
"This isn't about you, and this isn't about us. This is about her. Dude, she's gonna get inside your head. Just promise me nothing's happening between you guys."
"I promise." John B says.
Cordelia hears thunder rumble making her wince, nervously biting the inside of her cheek.
"That was really believable." JJ says sarcastically.
"One hundred percent believable." Pope jokingly agrees.
"I've never trusted you more." Cordelia sarcastically smiles at her friend.
"Anyways, um... I'm gonna take care of business." John B says, ignoring them.
"You're gonna take care of business so well." JJ says.
"We'll just sit here... in the hot ass car. While it's lightening." Pope says as John B gets out.
"Great." Cordelia mumbles, messing with her rings.
"Kiara, holding onto your grudge is like drinking poison and thinking Sarah will die." Pope tells her.
"Exactly." JJ agrees.
"That's a much better analogy than your cobra spit thing." Cordelia says, Kie rolling her eyes at all three of them.
"Rafe and Kelce followed me--"
"Wait, do you guys hear that?" Kie asks, cutting JJ's storytelling off.
"What?" The boys question.
"Please, somebody help!" They hear a voice call out.
"Was that Sarah?" Cordelia asks.
"Oh, wait, no, I hear that." JJ says.
"Shit." Pope whispers as the four clamber out of the van and run in the direction of Sarah's yelling.
"Sarah, what happened?" Pope asks, the group running over to Sarah who is kneeling over John B's unconscious body.
"I don't know what to do. he needs help. Topper shoved him." Sarah says, crying.
"Where the hell is he?" JJ asks angrily.
"Oh, please, please, please get help. I don't care who. Just call someone." Sarah says. "I don't care who, just call someone."
"Go. Go call 911. Go!" JJ tells Pope who runs off back to the twinkie.
"Pope, hurry!" Kie yells after him.
"John B, stay with me." Sarah pleads. She kisses him on the lips. "Don't leave me." She cries.
+++
The ambulance took John B to the hospital and the other four followed in the Twinkie. After getting updated that John B would be all right, the four pogues all left, Sarah saying her dad would come pick her up.
JJ dropped Kie and Pope off at their houses before driving the twinkie back to the chateau, neither sibling wanting to go home.
JJ walks into the living room where Cordelia is curled up on the couch in her pajamas, staring off into space. JJ sits next to her, but that doesn't gain her attention so he taps her on the head which makes her look at him.
"You okay?" JJ asks.
"Take a guess." Cordelia mumbles, giving JJ his answer.
"You wanna talk about it?" JJ asks.
"Since when do you wanna listen to anybody talking about feelings? Or talk about feelings yourself?" Cordelia asks and JJ shrugs. "You hate feelings. You're like Dean Winchester or something."
"Well, if it benefits you, then I can, um... you know, force myself to not run away." JJ says. "You can cry."
"We've both been through enough today, I think I'm good." Cordelia humorlessly chuckles. "Jayje, I'm fine."
"Oh, please. When was the last time either one of us were actually fine?" JJ retorts.
"Look, I don't wanna talk about it, okay? I know you're trying to help, but honestly, I'm too mentally and physically tired to deal with anything else today. So if you want a big brother of the year award, can you just let me go to sleep?"
"I can let you fall asleep to a movie that we both watch on the iPod." JJ says after a few moments.
"You're not giving up." Cordelia realizes.
"Nope." JJ shakes his head, popping the P. "Stubborn big brother award is definitely going to me."
"Fine." Cordelia rolls her eyes. "Just, please, if we watch a movie with a hot girl in it, keep your hormonal thoughts to yourself."
"Deal." JJ agrees.
JJ gets the iPod and hands Cordelia an earbud, putting the other earbud in his ear. They decide on the first Harry Potter movie. Barely five minutes in, Cordelia is already fast asleep with her head on JJ's shoulder.