════ ⋆★⋆ ════
(S1 E2)
════ ⋆★⋆ ════
After slightly calming down from the scare at the Château, Parker realized that she had told Ward that she would come help out again. She made her way through Tannyhill and got to work moving branches and clearing out the backyard.
She quickly noticed the blonde Cameron girl chatting with a much smaller girl who seemed distraught. She then watched Sarah climb up onto a fallen tree trunk and make her way carefully towards a boat that was under it.
Getting concerned, Parker drops her rake, finally noticing the seemingly live wire that Sarah was working hard to avoid. She hears someone concerningly say, "Hey, there's 14,000 volts in those wires."
Someone shrieks, and a group of Kooks containing Topper, Rafe, and Kelce start calling out for her to be careful. Parker notices Sarah's step-mother quickly making her way towards her step-daughter. "Oh, you gotta be kidding me. Sarah, get down now!"
Sarah rolls her eyes while still trying to balance. "Rose, calm down. I'm an athlete. I got this." Getting more frustrated with the girl, Rose storms closer. "You're gonna get electrocuted! Get down!" Parker flinches at the serious tone in the woman's voice.
People continue to mutter and whisper to each other, saying things like Sarah just wants attention and that she was going to get electrocuted. Suddenly, Sarah falls and screams in pain. Parker quickly runs towards the seemingly injured girl, concerned for her safety.
Sarah then jumps up, surprising Parker and making her fall backwards. The blonde Cameron girl then holds up the wire and says, "It's disconnected." While she giggles, Parker tries to catch her breath.
She looks off to her left and sees Topper in the same state as her. His friends make fun of him while he snaps something about caring about his girlfriend.
Parker shakes her head, realizing that she has no right to be concerned about Sarah's safety, as she isn't her girlfriend. Going back to work, she misses a conversation that is being held between Topper and Wheezie.
"... She does scary stuff like that all the time. If you say something, it'll be like you're trying to tell her what to do, and you'll end up like Denny." Topper swings his head around to face his girlfriend's little sister.
"Wait, Denny? What are you talking about? What happened with Denny?" Wheezie shrugs, acting like she was warning him for his own good. "She cheated on him. And the guy before that. You know what that means? You're next. You're the next sucker up. You should have seen her flirting with Parker this morning."
Topper looks slightly confused for a second, before getting a serious and dangerous look on his face. "Parker? Like, as in Parker Maybank? The dyke?"
Wheezie nods, crossing her arms over her chest. "Mhm. And she's right over there. Sarah caught her stealing stuff off the boat." Beginning to get concerned, Topper starts pacing. "Did she tell anybody?"
Wheezie shakes her head before putting on a falsetto voice. "Nope. She was all, 'Parker, what are you doing here?'" Sarah then jogs over to join her boyfriend and sister, clueless to the conversation they were holding before.
Topper glares over at the blonde Maybank girl, realizing that he might have some competition for the heart of the Kook Princess.
════ ⋆★⋆ ════
"I mean, it's obvious, right?" The group looks over at John B, who is pacing on the porch of the Château. "A family heirloom. What better place to hide a message? He had to know it was gonna get back to me, right?"
Parker shrugs, a joint hanging off of her lips. "I guess, Johnny. Who knows." Pope looks over at the girl, seemingly frustrated at her for encouraging his insanity. "It could also be possible that you're concocting wild theories to help, you know, deal with your sad feelings."
JJ then sits up from where he is sitting and snatches the blunt from his sister's mouth. "Bro, you know how I process my sad feels. Dank nugs and the stickiest of ickies, that's how I do it." He gestures with the joint right before Parker snatches it right back from out of his hands.
John B shakes his head insistently, which makes Parker drop her head back against the porch couch. "I'm not concocting, okay? My dad's trying to give me a message." Kiara nods, clearly unbelieving but still trying to support the brunette boy. "If it helps you believe, John B."
John B starts to get frustrated with his friends not believing him. "Look, I-I Don't need a therapy session, okay? Look, I'm not trippin' out." Parker and JJ look at each other, worried about the state of their best friend. "It's okay to trip, bro, but--"
John B slams his hand into the frame of the porch. "Look, my-- my dad is missing, okay? Missing. You don't know what it's like to have the person closest to you vanish and then have no idea what happened. Just wake up every morning wondering."
Pope exasperatedly states, "It's been almost a year." Kiara looks over at Pope with a pointed look before saying, "Hey, he could have been kidnapped. That's definitely a possibility." JJ nods adding, "Yeah, could be in a Soviet sub getting interrogated by the KGB somewhere."
Parker nods enthusiastically. "Ooo, like Stranger Things! Minus the sub, I guess." The all look over at Pope, waiting for him to continue it. He rolls his eyes before saying, "Absolutely. Uh... or Atlantis."
John B smiles slightly, feeling a little more supported by his friends. "JJ. Look, what do you think the message is? Redfield." He thinks for a second before snapping his fingers. "Redfield Lighthouse. That's my dad's favorite place." John B looks over at JJ and points at him. "Right. You're gonna post up and look out for bogeys, okay?"
JJ looks at him confused. "Wait... why me?" Parker pats her brother on the back, about to break the news to him. "Cause you're not coming, Jayje." He looks at her, offended. "Okay, hey. How do you know his plan? And also, why not?" John B puts both of his hands out, lifting one into the air, and then switching like a scale.
"There are independent and dependent variables. You're independent. We don't know what you'll do." Clearly annoyed, JJ pushes his best friend away. "Shut up!" John B rolls his eyes and tries to get everyone to listen to him. "Listen to me for a second. Pope, Parker, you stand look out with JJ. Okay? If we get split up we meet back at JJ's house."
Pope nods in agreement, saying, "Great. I'm gonna work on my merit scholarship essay, and I'm trying to keep felonies to a minimum." At the same time, the twins whip around and snap, "All right, would you just shut up already?"
John B shakes his head exasperatedly and confers with Kiara about what they are looking for.
════ ⋆★⋆ ════
They pull up to the lighthouse and John B and Kiara hop out. Parker and JJ turn away as the duo walks towards the lighthouse, and they start to play chopsticks, but with more slapping.
They keep playing until they're just slapping each other. Suddenly, they hear sirens approaching. Pope quickly takes his legs off of the dashboard and mutters, "Oh shit." Parker leaps into the passenger's seat, and yells at Pope to go.
"Dude, I can't deal with another run in with the cops. Punch it, come on!" Pope finally snaps out of his stupor and press down on the gas, causing the Twinkie to peel away from the lighthouse.
Pope looks at the twins who are filled with nervous energy, concerned. "Do you think they'll understand? I mean, we just left them." JJ nods, worried about the same thing but trying to disguise it. "Yeah, yeah. It'll be fine. They told us to, anyway. It's all good."
════ ⋆★⋆ ════
John B and Parker make their way down the dock, quietly chatting about what had happened after she had taken off with her brother and Pope.
"-and then Kie had to call her dad, who paid bail but threatened to skin me alive if I skipped out on it." Parker shakes her head tiredly. "It has been a long couple of days, hasn't it, Johnny." John B goes to reply, but he is interrupted by a man working on a boat.
"Hey, employees of the month, where the hell you been? You takin' some me time? Ward C's lookin' all over for you. You know he don't like to wait." The man points towards the Cameron's boat, which is tethered at the end of the dock. Parker and John B share a glance before starting to jog towards the Druthers.
As they climb onto the boat, they try to guess what this meeting is about. Once they get to the top, Ward waves towards some chairs with a solemn look on his face. "Have a seat, John. Parker." They both nod and mutter, "Yes, sir." while sitting down.
"Who roughed you two up?" Ward asks, gesturing to their faces. "Um, surfing accident sir. Surfboard right to the face." Parker lies. Ward nods, seemingly accepting the fib. "You've had a hard year, John. A very hard year. Would you agree with that?" John B quickly nods, fumbling over his words to agree.
Ward nods before continuing. "I told you both that you could always come to me if you ever need anything. Is that true?" Parker nods and says, "I mean, yeah. You helped me keep that thing under wraps when I was arrested for that thing." John B adds on, stating, "And you helped me with my DCS case."
Ward puts his hand on his head, seemingly tired. He sighs. "I need you two to answer a question, and I need you to be straight with me. Did you take gear off the Druthers yesterday?" John B and Parker freeze before looking down at their laps.
John B goes to speak up, but Parker beats him to the catch. "Yes, sir, I did. Johnny had nothing to do with it. Look, Mr. C, I know I stole, but it was two dollars' worth of air. Stale. You don't want your daughters to breathe that air." Ward gives her a disappointed look while John B is still shellshocked from her second lie.
"It's the principle of the thing. I cannot have employees that I cannot trust. John, I'm sorry that I thought that you were involved. You may go. But Parker, I have to let you go." Parker nods numbly. She gets up with John B and starts walking away from the boat and down the dock. On the way, they pass Sarah.
"Hey, Parker. John B." They continue walking without replying, but Sarah stops in place. "I'm-- I'm sorry, that's it? Not a, 'Hey, how you doin'?' Or 'Kiss my ass'?" John B freezes, and Parker can tell that he's getting angry.
"'Your secret's safe with me'?" Sarah gains a confused look on her face. "What secret are-- Oh, that secret." John B whips around to face the girl and tries to get right up in her face. Parker holds him back, not wanting him to yell at the girl that she likes. "Parker just got fired because of you. And I know you can't imagine that, but some people need jobs so that they can eat. Especially Parker."
Parker lets go of him for a second, slightly offended at his statement. She grabs him again as he tries to move forward, muttering, "Okay, wow. That was unnecessary. Also, she didn't tell her dad. She wouldn't do that."
John B ignores her, continuing to try to get near Sarah. Clearly angry, Sarah snaps, "What the fuck?" She feels happy that Parker was defending her, because it means that they were on better terms than she thought they were. John B finally escapes his friends grip and sticks his finger right up in Sarah's face.
"You are exactly who I thought you were, Sarah Cameron." He then turns and storms away, causing Parker to look at the shorter girl apologetically before running after him.
════ ⋆★⋆ ════
The Routledge boy and the Maybank girl continue to wander the streets, still reeling from the fact that Parker had gotten fired. Suddenly, they hear someone cock a gun behind them before they hear Ratter menacingly say, "Time's up, boy." Parker immediately starts to run, John B not far behind. They hear Ratter yell, "Don't run, boy!"
Whoever is driving the car that Ratter is in revs the engine, causing John B and Parker to push themselves to run faster. "John B!" Ratter continues to yell behind them. They continue to try to dodge the car chasing after them, quickly running around corners and through random yards.
They finally turn a corner and glance behind them, not seeing Ratter or his associate. When they turn their heads around, they realize that they are heading straight for a fence. They run into it full speed and are quickly launched backwards because it is a live wire.
They try to gather the strength to get up, but they can't before Ratter looms over them. "You gotta watch those live wires after a storm." He then slightly kicks John B, trying to threaten him into giving up the compass. "You're gonna give me what I want."
Suddenly, they all hear police sirens sounding from behind them. Ratter quickly runs towards his truck and hops in. They peel away quickly, and Sheriff Peterkin hops out of her cop car. Parker finally gathers the strength to sit up, and Peterkin quickly jogs to help her to her feet.
"Alrighty, Maybank, go home. John B, I need a word with you in the car." Parker looks over at her friend, silently asking if it was okay if she left. He nods subtly, and she turns to leave. As she starts to walk away, she hears Peterkin call out, "Stay out of trouble, Parker! I don't want to have to pay bail again!" Parker gives the Sheriff a thumbs up before leaving.
════ ⋆★⋆ ════
Outside the Château, Parker and JJ hear the Twinkie's horn honking. JJ sits up quickly, grabbing his sister and yanking her along behind him. They jump into the van that holds John B and Pope before heading towards the Carrera residence.
They see Kiara turn away from them when they arrive, making Parker look at her concerned. JJ turns to John B, accusatorily asking, "What'd you do to her, John B?" John B mutters, "Shit." underneath his breath, before hopping out of the van, saying that he would deal with it.
Parker and JJ crowd around a window, trying to figure out what was going on. They see the two talking, and John B seemingly begging Kiara to do something. Then Kiara interrupts him and places a kiss on his cheek. Parker mutters, "Oh, shit. Didn't think you could get friend-zoned through a cheek kiss."
JJ looks at her, confused. "He just got friend-zoned?" Parker looks at him like he is stupid. "Yes, dumbass. That was a brutal friend-zone. Blind motherfucker." JJ hits his sister, and they separate when they see Kiara and John B making their way towards the boat. Neither of them spot the hopeful look on Pope's face at the news that John B got turned down.
JJ leans back and lights a joint up, saying, "You mind if I just relax on this one? It's been a long day, and a lot of weird stuff's gone down. I'm just gonna lay low. Oh, did you want a hit of this?" He offers the blunt to Pope, who shakes his head. "I keep the signal clear."
Parker snatches the joint, muttering, "I'll take it." JJ ignores her and lets her have it. "Dude, okay. Do you understand that your problem is that you don't get creative? If you got creative, then-"
John B raises his hands, about to defend himself. "Look, I-- I know I was wrong about the lighthouse, all right? And wrong about everything else going on. But I-- I was right about one thing. Okay? My dad is trying to tell me something." Everyone glances at him with disbelieving looks on their faces.
They pull up to a graveyard and John B jumps out of the van. Kiara quickly follows behind, closely followed by Parker, JJ and Pope. John B urges them to hurry up, and Kiara replies, "I'm coming. This place is scary. John B, what are we doing?"
As he speed walks, John B rants, "Shut up. You know how you're trying to remember a song and can't remember who sings it?" Kiara nods, confused. "So, Redfield. This whole time, I thought it was a place, right? But it's not a place. It's a person." John B holds up a lantern to a crypt, and on it there is the word 'Redfield'.
"Voi-effing-là." JJ exclaims. John B nods, explaining, "See, my great-great-grandmother Olivia Redfield. That was her maiden name. Help me with the door. Come on. Alright." He starts pushing on the crypt door, and Parker quickly joins in. She, John B, and Pope all count to three before Kiara says go. They all struggle to shove it together. Pope finally steps back, saying, "This door is like 700 pounds. It's not gonna budge."
JJ steps forward and states, "We didn't come this far to get this far, all right? We got this." Suddenly, they all hear a hissing noise come out from under the crypt. All of them jump back when the spot the snake slither out. Each of them lets out a surprised exclamation, until JJ says, "That's a moccasin, all right. Ye olde Dr. Cottonmouth. Death in the tall grass."
He then starts barking loudly at the snake, the noise startling it away, but also startling Parker. Kiara quickly snaps at JJ to shut up as Pope exclaims, You're gonna wake the dead, dude." JJ looks at his friends and sister like their stupid before saying, "They're afraid of dogs. Everyone knows that, man. Wait, hold on."
He pauses for a second and John B and Kiara quickly inquire. "What?" They ask at the same time. JJ sticks his hand out and pretends to walk carefully on the grass. "If there's one, there's probably dozens." Parker quickly glances down to make sure that there aren't any others in her area. The rest of the group starts to panic, and JJ starts to bark again.
Parker slaps her brother, trying to get him to stop. John B asks him to, and in response, JJ says, "Just making sure it's clear." Pope shakes his head at the blond boy before saying, "We're not gonna get in there, all right? It's not budging. We should probably just go."
The group turns to leave before Kiara states, "I can get through." Her friends look at her confused, before looking up in the same direction she was looking. They see a small hole that leads into the crypt, just maybe big enough for Kiara to fit through. "No, no, no, no. You think you're gonna fit through the hole? That hole?"
Kiara gives John B a stern look, saying, "Look, this is about your dad. And honestly, I really don't believe in it, but you deserve to know the truth. I'll do it. Come on." JJ bends down on one knee so that he can boost Kiara up to the hole. John B tells him to give her a boost, and JJ exclaims, "I'm gonna boost you, all right. I've seen it in the movies several times. Ready?"
Kiara glances back at John B, inquiring, "Remind me what we're looking for." John B gives her a playful look before saying, "You'll know it when you see it." He makes it sound like an inside joke, which makes Parker look at him knowingly. He was still crushing on the Carrera girl. Speaking of, Kiara hands her flashlight to Pope before placing her hands on JJ's shoulders.
"All right, so put your hands right there. Your foot. All right, on three." Kiara nods, before completely ignoring him and hoisting herself up right away. "Okay, never mind. Just forget about three."
Kiara struggles slightly to get through the hole, muttering something about almost being there. She finally gets through and drops down before saying, "Okay, flashlight?" Pope nods, fumbling the flashlight slightly before he tosses it over to her.
There's a pause and John B asks, "You alive? You got, like, a-- a heartbeat and everything?" Parker lets out a snort before Kiara replies, "So far." John B nervously mutters 'that's good.' Kiara lets out a groan before saying, "Uh... I need some more light." John B struggles to get up to the hole and sticks his lantern through it, trying to get it to the brunette girl. "Yeah, yeah, here. yeah, I gotcha."
Some shuffling sounds come from inside the crypt. JJ asks, "Did you find something? Is there gold?" There is no response for a second, and then Kiara says, "Oh, my god."
════ ⋆★⋆ ════
A/N: Finally finished episode 2! So sorry this took so long. I think I might be making the chapters shorter in the future, because it takes me forever to write them at this length. I promise you we will be getting more Sarker content in the near future!
Also, I am writing a Maddison Bailey social media book, so if you want to see that come out, please lmk in the comments. Love you guys!
Remember to vote and comment what you think!