"Good news for the residents of Outer Banks," a far too chipper radio show host announced, "Dominion Power says their underwater transmission line, which will restore power to 90% of the area should be functional in 24 hours."
A whooping siren caused Rylee's eyes to pop open where she was curled up in the passenger seat, sitting up just a little to watch a police cruiser fly by. The sun had risen, but it was still early. Her body ached from the uncomfortable position she had assumed almost all night, and her head was pounding from the lack of food or sleep.
After leaving the police station, the Pogues had scoured the island for a safe place to hide. All of their homes were obviously out of the question, as was any location they might frequent, like jobs or the school or friends' houses. Finally, they had stumbled upon an abandoned shed with a car port near the Crain property, and had decided it was as inconspicuous as they were going to get. There hadn't been any ferries leaving the island that night, so they had no choice but to hide and bide their time. Though they'd all taken turns being on watch and trying to sleep when it wasn't their turn, it didn't feel like any of them had managed to get any sleep at all.
A second cruiser sped by, their position again going completely unnoticed.
"And still, no arrest in the shooting death of Sheriff Susan Peterkin," the host continued, "The state police have issued a statement regarding a local person of interest, a juvenile from --"
Kiara reached forward and slammed her hand on the radio's off button, and silence filled the car instead.
"Let's game this out," JJ suggested once it was obvious that everyone was awake, "Maybe you guys can help, being the smart ones and all," He continued, gesturing between Pope and Rylee, "So, who are the cops going to believe?" He posed the question as if it were serious, though they all knew the answer, "Ward Cameron, or us?"
"JJ ..."
"No listen, the accuser is a big shot developer, kinda lord of the island, got the governor on speed dial kind of person, and the accused ... Is John B, who is ... Pretty much a homeless 16 year old boy at the moment."
"Thanks," John B mumbled sarcastically.
"Thanks for summing it up, JJ," Rylee countered.
"Shit," Pope hissed from where he was sandwiched between John B and JJ in the backseat.
"Okay, man," JJ continued, "Yucatan, all right? I'm saying, that's the only option. What other option do you have?"
"JJ, enough with the Mexico bullshit," John B groaned, "Okay? Sarah's gonna bail me out."
Kiara piped in, "She did witness the whole thing."
"Thank you!"
"And we're under the impression she's going to turn on her father and her brother?" Rylee chimed in, "Her entire family ... Over someone she's known for a couple of weeks. No offense, John B."
JJ shook his head, "Not happening, bro. Okay? We've gotta get you off of the island."
"The ferry," Pope agreed, "It's the only way."
"Yeah, exit stage left while you still can, man, okay? Before the entire island is on lock down."
"Guys, get down," Kiara mumbled to her friends as yet another police siren approached and another cruiser sped by. The boys did as they were told, shrinking further in their seats.
With finality, Pope added, "Sarah's not a Pogue, John B."
With John B's reluctant agreement, Pope convinced Kiara to let him drive to the ferry terminal. Kiara took the passenger seat so Rylee wedged herself between John B and JJ. They joined a long line of cars waiting to buy a ticket onto the ferry, though from the moment they pulled up, the line hadn't moved an inch. Pope volunteered to go and find someone to ask about the line, getting out before anyone could voice their opposition seeing as he was in the driver's seat. They had only been waiting for about a minute when Pope marched back up to the car, gripping a sheet of paper in his hands.
"Okay," Pope's breathed out, "Okay, all right. No."
"Pope, can you act normal?" Kiara called out, scanning the area to see if Pope's rambling was drawing any attention to them.
"So, um ... Okay, so bad news," Pope continued without listening, "The ferry's closed ... And there's this," He handed the paper to Kiara before climbing back into the car.
Kiara's eyes scanned over the words printed on the page, before fear took over her features, and she handed it off to Rylee.
"What is that? What is this?" John B mumbled from where he was laying down, trying to avoid being spotted.
"Shit," Kiara mumbled.
Rylee's eyes scanned the poster, and felt dread settle into the pit of her stomach. It was a flyer offering up a reward for any information that led to the capture of John B. At the top in big bold letters were the words "Wanted" followed by a description of him and what his crimes were. Running away from police and first degree murder. The reward was $25,000. Rylee let out a low whistle at the amount.
JJ's voice was casual, though his racing heart which Rylee could feel against her back was anything but, "Well, John B, uh ... This is a good framer of you," He said as Rylee spun the flyer around for John B to see.
The stakes felt like they had been raised a million percent. Before, they had known the cops were after them, and if people were listening to the radio or watching local TV, they might recognize John B as well. Now, with a giant cash reward that could change anyone's life, there wasn't a single person on the island who would hesitate to give John B up.
"Okay, so the whole island's looking for John B right now," Pope stated the obvious.
"That's a lot of money."
"Congratulations, John B. You're famous."
Kiara launched into a new plan, "Guys, we got to get to the HMS. We need small, no running lights -"
"It's at the Château, Kie," John B said, defeat heavy in his voice.
"And I wonder if the cops got the entire place staked out," JJ said sarcastically, "Let me think ... Oh yeah, no, they definitely have that place locked down."
Rylee turned the wanted poster back in her direction and began to scan over the words again.
"Yeah, copy that."
"Let me think. Just give me a second, give me a second," Pope whispered. A moment passed before he perked up, "JJ," He said thoughtfully, turning around in his seat to face the blonde boy.
"What?"
"Does your dad still have that boat? The cigarette boat, The Phantom. The one he used to race."
JJ's eyebrows furrowed, "Maybe," He said, his voice full of hesitancy. Rylee wasn't completely convinced that he was unsure about whether or not Luke was in possession of the boat, or more likely he was hesitant about having to go home to get the keys for it.
"You could get right up the coast, no problem," Pope said with finality, turning back to the steering wheel and fumbling with the keys.
"It won't be easy, Pope," JJ called out, but no one was listening to him, "I don't know where the keys are!"
Kiara and Pope were too busy forming the plan, and Rylee was focused in on the poster. She read and reread the same line over again, feeling her heart rate pick up.
"Why is nobody moving forward?" Pope exclaimed as if it were brand new information and not that they had been stuck in the same line now for almost ten minutes.
"Can you relax?" Kiara demanded, her annoyance at an all time high with the stress and Pope's sudden affinity for being high.
Rylee finally found her voice, choking out a weak, "Guys."
"JJ, how much weed did you give him?" Kiara continued.
"Guys!" Rylee repeated louder, "The car's on here. Kie, your car's on the flyer."
Pope, still aggravated that the line wasn't moving, began to honk the horn over and over, "Can we move it?"
"Pope, that's not gonna help anything!"
"Pope, if you don't stop honking the horn right now I'm gonna kick your ass," Rylee hissed, looking around. Sure enough, Pope's honking had attracted the attention of everyone in the area. She watched a man do a double take as he realized exactly which car he was looking at.
A young kid's voice called out, "Hey look! It's that guy, right there!"
"We got a snitch. Pope, turn the car on," JJ demanded, his eyes locked on the kid who had spotted John B through the window.
"Hey, that's the car!" another voice called out.
"We get $25,000 if we find him!" the kid added.
Rylee placed her hand across her face and wished more than anything that they could just disappear. Suddenly, a man Rylee had never seen before was peering in through the back window of the car, slapping his hand repeatedly on the glass while wearing a huge grin, "Hey!" He exclaimed, "He's right there! I found him!"
John B turned over onto his side, pulling his jacket up over his head as if that would help, but the damage was done. Every eye was on them.
"We gotta go!" Kiara exclaimed.
"I found him first!"
"Like hell you did, you little bastard!"
"Pope, turn the frickin' car on!" Kiara shouted, but Pope was still struggling to get the key to turn in the ignition.
Rylee pushed herself to her feet and leaned forward, grabbing the keys from Pope hands and shoving the key into the ignition, revving the engine.
"Pope, go!"
Pope's foot slammed down hard onto the accelerator, and Rylee had to grab onto the headrest of Pope's seat so she didn't fly forward over the console. She was already regretting not strapping her seat belt on. The front of Kiara's car collided harshly with the parked car in front of them.
"Pope, dude, back up!"
But Pope was beyond listening. He eased on the gas for the briefest of moments before slamming his foot back down. The front of Kiara's car shoved the car in front several feet forward, leaving him enough room to crank the wheel sharply to the side and maneuver them out of the line. He drove up over the barrier and onto the open field where people were gathered, waiting for news about the ferry. The car drove directly through the field and back over to the main road.
Once they were on the main road, however, Pope's driving didn't improve. He was traveling at a diagonal, heading straight towards a mailbox.
"Watch out, Pope! Whoa, whoa, whoa, watch out!" Kiara shouted.
It was no use. Pope slammed directly into the mailbox, shattering it and sending the remnants flying in the car's wake.
"Oh my God!"
"Pope!"
Pope let out a joyous laugh, "I'm livin' my best life right now!"
"My mom's gonna kill me," Kiara cried.
"Oh my god, we're dead," Rylee exclaimed, "We're all gonna die!"
JJ's arm was around Rylee's waist, firm and grounding, "I should be the last one to say this, but you are not okay to drive, dude, stop!"
This time, Pope listened. He slammed on the breaks, and Rylee once again had to brace herself against the headrest to stay in her seat. The tires squealed loudly underneath them.
Pope spun around to look at John B, "John B, get out."
"What?" Rylee asked in disbelief.
JJ nodded, "He's right. We'll draw the cops, you run."
John B squeezed his eyes shut tight, "Shit," He whispered, before giving a nod. He shoved the back door open and climbed out.
"I'll get the rig, and I'll meet you in the dump tomorrow, okay?" JJ instructed, "Three o'clock, okay?"
"Yeah," John B mumbled as he climbed out of the car.
"Three tomorrow at the dump!" JJ repeated.
"John B, stay safe!" Rylee called out as John B sprinted as fast as he could into the trees.
"Come on, go, go go," JJ encouraged.
Pope once again stepped on the gas, and the car sped away, leaving John B behind.
The Pogues spent the rest of the afternoon driving in circles, waiting for any sign of the police and the need to draw their attention elsewhere, away from the direction John B had headed in. Pope was still behind the wheel of the car, though his driving had become less erratic as they got some distance from the onslaught of police cars swarming around. As the sun began to set, Pope turned the radio on to a local hip hop station, rolled the windows down, and despite Rylee and Kiara's objections, JJ had rolled another blunt that he and Pope were sharing.
"You guys, this is pointless," Rylee said as they crossed the border from the Cut into Figure Eight, "We have no idea where John B even is now. Even if we catch the attention of some cops, we might be leading them straight to him!" She exclaimed, "We need a new plan."
"Yes, a new plan," Kiara echoed, spinning around in the passenger seat to look at Rylee, who had moved over and buckled into her seatbelt, scarred from Pope's earlier reckless driving.
As if the girls hadn't even spoken, JJ burst into unprompted laughter, taking a long drag of the joint between his fingers, "Pope, you clocked that car, man!" He exclaimed, leaning forward to offer the joint to Pope, "Like, that was so bad!"
Pope turned back to face Rylee and JJ in the back seat, and Rylee could tell that the weed was having its effect on him. His eyes were glassy and he wore a goofy smile on his lips, "I'm just glad I'm not driving now!"
JJ's laughter only increased.
Kiara turned to give Rylee an incredulous look, and Rylee responded with an eye roll of her own.
"Alright, that's it," Rylee sighed, "You're done, Pope."
"Pull over!" Kiara demanded.
Pope didn't listen, instead taking a sharp left hand turn down a deserted lane. Rylee death gripped onto the car door beside her as the car's tires skidded beneath them.
"Pope, stop!" Rylee exclaimed.
Finally, Pope's foot slammed down on the breaks and the car rumbled to a reluctant stop. Rylee breathed out a sigh of relief, letting her head fall backwards onto the seat behind her. Her stomach flipped uncomfortably, and she was pretty sure she was getting motion sickness for the first time in her life.
In sync, Kiara and Rylee both released their seatbelts and pushed their doors open.
"JJ, it's not funny," Kiara snapped, "He shouldn't be driving."
"Moms are mad," JJ mumbled.
Rylee took the passenger seat and Kiara got in the driver's, leaving Pope to stumble into the backseat with JJ, not even bothering to climb out of the car, just climbing over the console to get in the back.
"So uh ... Where are we goin'?" JJ asked once Kiara shifted the car back into drive.
Kiara looked over at Rylee for help, before a small grimace reached her face, "The last place they're going to look," She said finally.
The car flipped a quick u-turn, and Kiara's much more controlled driving immediately settled Rylee's stomach. Figure Eight had a few more police cruisers scanning the area, so Kiara stuck to the neighborhoods and back roads, trying to get them to their location without recognition. The closer they got, the more confident Rylee became in where they were going. The ten minute drive ended with Kiara parking just underneath the protective stone walls of the Cameron mansion.
"Tannyhill?" JJ asked incredulously from the back seat when he recognized where they were as well, "This is your grand plan, Kie? What are you gonna do, wander up the lawn to the front door and ask if Sarah can come out and play?"
"Shut up, JJ," Kiara rolled her eyes as she released her seat belt, "I don't hear either of you coming up with any better ideas. She's the only one who can clear John B's, name, okay? Maybe she doesn't even know what's been going on. I've texted her a hundred times and she hasn't answered."
Rylee let out a small sigh of agreement, "It's our best shot right now," She agreed, releasing her own seat belt, "I'm coming too."
"Me three!" Pope exclaimed, shoving open the back door and quite literally falling out of the car.
"JJ, you stay here and keep watch," Kiara instructed.
"What the hell, why does everyone get to go but me?"
"Pope, you should stay with J," Rylee suggested, exchanging a hesitant look with Kiara. Pope wasn't very stealthy even when he was completely sober, and this non-stop chattering, stumbling boy was sure to attract some attention, "This is a stealth operation, you know? We need focus."
"I'm focused," Pope responded, sounding offended as his eyebrows furrowed, "Perfectly focused."
Rylee rolled her eyes before climbing out of the car and slamming the door behind them.
"Fine," Kiara said in annoyance, "But you're on diversion duty. Got it? Buy us some time."
Rylee grabbed a flashlight out of the glove box, shining it up on the concrete wall as Kiara climbed up and over with ease, and then as Pope followed. She heard him land on the other side with a groan, and she knew without even seeing that he did not land on his feet.
"Ry, wait," JJ suddenly exclaimed as he got out of the car, reaching out to grab onto Rylee's hand.
Rylee looked at JJ hesitantly for a moment before looking back at the concrete wall. From just behind it, she heard Kiara's quiet voice call out, "Ry, coming?"
"Go on without me, I'll catch up in just a second," Rylee whispered.
Kiara and Pope's footsteps died away after a moment, and Rylee turned to look at JJ with hesitancy in her eyes, "Is everything okay?" She asked, taking a step forward and taking one of JJ's hands in her own, lacing their fingers together.
JJ nodded nervously, looking away from Rylee for a moment. He removed the hat from his head and pushed his hair back with his free hand, "Yeah, I just ... I don't want you to be mad at me, I'm sorry for egging Pope on or whatever. We just haven't really had a chance to talk and I wanted to say I'm sorry and I love you, and --"
"I love you too," Rylee said quickly, interrupting JJ's long string of words. She didn't feel that JJ owed her an apology, even though they boys were being a little annoying and childish. Instead, she decided to get the words that had been living on the tip of her tongue for days now.
JJ froze, shock filling his expression as he took in Rylee's words, "Wait, what?"
"I love you too," Rylee repeated simply, taking a step further into JJ's body, raising her hands up to cup his cheeks, "I'm sorry it took me so long to say it back."
Suddenly, every trace of surprise or doubt left JJ's expression and was instead replaced with pure, unbridled happiness. He flung his arms around her waist and pulled her flush against him, connecting their lips in a passionate kiss. Rylee couldn't help the way she smiled into it, sliding her hands from his cheeks to around his neck and squeezing him tight.
"Say it again," JJ mumbled against her lips.
Rylee giggled, "I love you, JJ," She said as she pulled away from his kiss.
JJ smiled, "I love you, too."
Before Rylee could let them get carried away further, she left JJ with one more kiss and assured him she would be right back. She pushed herself up and over the concrete wall, shining her flashlight around her to make sure there was nothing and no one around before breaking into a jog, trying to catch up with Pope and Kiara. She spotted them far up on the length of the open lawn, facing each other and seemingly deep in discussion. She kept her footsteps quiet as she hurried up the lawn towards him. When she got closer, she could overhear their conversation.
"--It's not gonna happen!" Kiara exclaimed, "Do you understand what I'm saying? Like ... Look, I know that's really hard to hear right now, but we don't have time for this. And this is a really bad place to do it."
"Time for what?" Rylee asked as she stopped beside them, making both Kiara and Pope jump. They clearly hadn't seen or heard her approaching.
Kiara shook her head, "Nothing," She replied sharply, "Are you guys ready?"
Pope had a look of devastation on his face, his eyes downcast to the floor, "Uh ... Yeah," He mumbled, sniffling deeply.
"Yeah ... Pope, are you okay?" Rylee asked, reaching out to place a hand on Pope's elbow, but he jumped away from her touch.
"Come on," was all he said, stomping away from them.
"What was that about?" Rylee asked Kiara, whose expression was filled with a mix of annoyance and guilt. She felt like she had just stumbled upon a conversation she had no business being a part of, but she couldn't figure out exactly what it was.
Kiara shrugged, "Nothing," She repeated, spinning on her heel and hurrying up the lawn towards the looming house.
Pope located the Cameron's barbecue in their backyard and decided his diversion would be to light the grill on fire, ensuring that Ward had to leave the house at least to put the fire out and give the girls a chance to speak to Sarah if he was listening in on her. They could only hope that she was in her bedroom. He reminded them the fire could really only hold Ward's attention for about five minutes, so to be quick. He wouldn't even look at them as he spoke.
Rylee and Kiara circled the house, and once they were under Sarah's window, Kiara pointed it out, "That's her room, there," She whispered.
"Of course it's on the second floor," Rylee mumbled.
Rylee pointed to the trellis that traveled up the side of the Cameron house, filled with bright green ivy, and Kiara led the way, climbing up the latticework to get up to the balcony that was attached to Sarah's room. Rylee was about to follow when she looked into the room directly below Sarah's room, and her heart rate picked up as she realized what she was looking at.
It was Ward's office, and one of the windows was ever so slightly propped open.
"Kie," Rylee hissed, keeping her voice a low whisper, "Go without me, okay?"
Kiara looked down from where she was scaling the wall, her eyebrows narrowed, "What?" She hissed, "Why?"
"It's Ward's office!" She hissed, "Maybe there's something in there. Trust me, I'll meet you out here in five minutes. Okay?"
Kiara reluctantly left Rylee behind to climb up to Sarah's room. Rylee quickly looked around her to ensure there were no eyes on her, before she hurried over to the propped open window. She eased her fingers through the gap and pushed it open, breathing out a sigh of relief when the hinges didn't even squeak. She slipped one leg between the gap, and then swung the other around, making sure there was nothing beneath her before dropping to her feet.
The office was spotless. The walls were lined with deep shelves that were overflowing with books, and propped right on top of a barren fireplace was a portrait of a man, the Cameron estate behind him. Rylee knew now that it was Denmark Tanny. She resisted the urge to tear the portrait down and moved to the door, quickly locking it to try and prevent any surprise walk ins, or at least to give her some warning first.
She looked around for a moment before hurrying forward to the grand, u-shaped desk. Her eyes scanned the contents on top, not sure exactly what she was looking for but knowing she'd know it when she found it. She rifled through a few papers, her eyes drawn to the flyer announcing the sale of the Crain property. Anger pulsed through her veins as she thought about Ward buying the property and having a team excavate the gold. He didn't even have to get his hands dirty to get the gold.
A sheet of paper suddenly caught Rylee's attention. It was just a normal sheet of paper, but it looked like it had been copied from another notebook. On the top it said "Flight Log". Rylee sat down on Ward's large, plush leather chair and shone her flashlight down on the sheet of paper. She wasn't sure exactly what she was looking at, but there were a few things that caught her attention. The pilot's name was listed as Gavin Vernier, and the location of the flight was from Kildare to Nassau in The Bahamas. The date was from that very day, several hours earlier.
Rylee knew that it had to be information on the flight the gold was on. Gavin was the pilot, and he had taken the gold to Nassau. They hadn't been sure yet where exactly the gold was going.
Suddenly, the door handle to the door of the office began to jiggle. Rylee powered down her flashlight and held her breath. Behind the door, she heard a sigh of annoyance, "Rose, did you lock the door to my office?" Ward's voice hollered.
Rylee couldn't hear a reply, but she could hear the sound of keys jangling behind the door. She swore under her breath, crumpling the flight log in her hand and diving beneath the desk. Thankfully, it was enclosed so Ward wouldn't be able to see her from the front side of the desk. If he walked around towards the window or to sit in his chair, however, it would be over.
Rylee sat with her legs pulled into her chest, one hand gripped tightly around the sheet of paper while the other clutched her flashlight, both of her hands trembling. She squeezed her eyes shut as she heard the office door swing open, and Ward's heavy footsteps entered the room. She didn't move, didn't think, wouldn't even allow herself to breathe.
Ward was mumbling to someone on the phone, the words not even registering in Rylee's head as she hid at first. He paced back and forth in front of the desk.
"Yes. Yes, I understand. Gavin, I understand," Ward said, and Rylee perked up just a little as she recognized the name. It was the pilot, "Yes, I have the log here. You want me to destroy it, I'll destroy it. Just say the word ..." He carried off for a moment, "Okay. Okay, one second."
The footsteps picked up quickly and Rylee bit back a squeak of terror. He was heading right towards her. She was about to be caught, and who knew what Ward would do to her? Turn her in for breaking and entering? Or worse?"
"What the hell ..." Ward suddenly breathed, and Rylee peeked open her eyes, knowing it was over. She was busted, "Oh my god. Fire!" He exclaimed, "Rose, fire! Gavin, I gotta call you back."
Ward turned on his heel and sprinted out of the office, slamming the door behind him. Rylee let out her first breath in several minutes, hurrying out from underneath the desk. She stashed the flight log into her pocket and lifted herself up and out of the window. She wanted to plant a kiss right on Pope's mouth for saving her when she saw him later.
Kiara dropped down beside her a moment later, and the girls quickly clasped hands and began to sprint across the lawn and back to the concrete wall. They met Pope halfway, and the three of them launched themselves over the wall and barreled into Kiara's car. She didn't even bother waiting until they were all fully in and buckled before she slammed on the gas, leaving Tannyhill in their dust.
"So?" JJ asked expectantly, his eyes looking between each of his breathless friends.
Kiara took a deep breath, her eyes flickering to the rearview mirror as she drove, "Sarah said she would do something. Her parents have her locked up, took her phone. She didn't know they were going to frame John B. She's still with us, guys," She said, her voice full of confidence for her friend.
Rylee wasn't quite sure what to make of it, but she did feel a bit of guilt for doubting Sarah so much.
"Ry went rogue," Kiara continued, "Snuck into Ward's office-"
"I'm sorry, what?" JJ interrupted, leaning forward to stick his head between Rylee and Kiara, "What the fuck, what were you thinking?"
"I was thinking I'd find something," Rylee retorted, "Something that we could prove he's guilty! But I didn't find anything ... Just where the gold's going and the pilot," She sighed, pulling the flight log from her pocket, "The gold's in Nassau, guys."
JJ was still on edge, but leaned back in his seat anyways.
"Shit," Rylee mumbled as Kiara's car drifted slowly past a neighborhood street. Every single police cruiser, it seemed, was lining the street. Their lights flickered, bathing the entire area in a blue and red light. It was all concentrated around one house.
No one spoke as the car rolled forward, hoping with all their might that John B wasn't currently in that house.