════ ⋆★⋆ ════
(S1 E6)
════ ⋆★⋆ ════
Parker began to slowly wake up. She tried to open her eyes, and she was met with harsh, bright, blurry lights. She hissed and closed them again. When she finally eased them open, she noticed that she was in an unfamiliar room.
At the foot of the bed she was lying in, Sarah was watching her with a small relieved smile. "Hi." Parker tries to do a head nod towards her, but instead manages to put herself in a lot of pain. She winces out, "Hi."
Sarah quickly moves towards her, helping her get settled in and comfortable. When she's finally settled, Parker pulls Sarah down right next to her. "Where am I?"
Sarah glances around before answering. "St. Olive's. John B fell from the Hawk's Nest, and when you tried to catch him, you got yanked down as well. You have a concussion, and you broke your arm. John B has a concussion and a broken wrist." Parker looks down at her arm, which she finally notices is wrapped in a sky blue cast.
"Whoa." Sarah giggles at the almost childlike look on Parker's face. "Pretty cool." Parker nods. She sits back for a second before shooting up and groaning at the sudden movement.
"I can't- I can't be here. Fuck, my dad's still pissed about my restitution. I can't afford this! And Johnny - Johnny's gonna get found by DCS-"
"Hang on there, kid. Hang on." Parker looks towards the other side of the room, finally noticing Ward Cameron. "Sarah told me everything. About your little adventure, about John B running from the DCS. About the money you owe, about how you were protecting her in the tower."
Parker glances at Sarah, who gives her a shy grin that Parker easily returns. Ward continues, "Parker, I owe you an apology. I was too quick to fire you, over such a small matter. I am a little disappointed that you managed to get arrested again, but I think that you were also unfairly judged there. I'm going to be paying for your hospital stay, okay?" Parker lets out a relieved sigh, reaching out to shake Ward's hand.
"Thank you so much, Sir. It means the world to me." Ward gives her a nod, and Parker looks around the room one more time. "Where's Johnny?" Almost right after she asks this, John B bursts into the room.
"Here's Johnny!" After seeing the unamused looks on everyone else's faces, he puts his hands up defensively. "Sorry. P made me watch The Shining recently. I had to."
Parker rolls her eyes and Ward chuckles before continuing. "I'm taking John B home with me. Would you like to join us? I can take care of you." Parker glances up, looking into Sarah's hopeful eyes. She really wants to, but her brother needs her at home. She needs to be a barrier.
John B knows what she's thinking, and he quickly jumps in. "What about every other day? I mean, JJ crashes at the Château basically every other day, or he's out at your cousin's or some girl's house." Parker thinks about it for a second before nodding in agreement.
"I'd have to talk to Jayje about it first, but I'd love to, Mr. Cameron. Thank you so much." Sarah squeals before wrapping her arms around Parker's neck tightly, making the taller blonde smile.
════ ⋆★⋆ ════
Ward took John B off to show him his room while Sarah showed Parker hers. When Parker enters the massive bedroom, her jaw drops. Sarah giggles at her reaction.
"You like it?" Parker nods her head dumbly, not able to form any words. Sarah moves closer to her, turning her around and wrapping her arms around Parker's neck. "My room is just down the hall, in case you were wondering."
Parker hums, placing her hands on Sarah's waist. "That's good. Oh, but I have to warn you. I sleepwalk," Parker wiggles her eyebrows teasingly. Sarah laughs, pulling Parker's face towards her and muttering, "Well, lucky me," before connecting their lips.
It quickly becomes heated, with Sarah walking Parker back until her knees hit the bed. Parker sits down, letting Sarah stand in between her legs. Parker looks up at her with a teasing look in her eyes. "Too bad I'm only here part time." Sarah straddles the Maybank girl's lap, getting close to her ear and hotly whispering, "Well then let's make the most of it."
Parker doesn't hesitate to reconnect their lips, and Sarah tangles her hands into the taller blonde's hair. Parker squeezes Sarah's waist and pulls her in closer, making the Cameron girl let out a soft surprised moan.
Sarah pushes Parker back, beginning to unbutton her Hawaiian shirt when John B walks in. "P, have you seen th- Oh my god, I didn't need to see that!" He quickly covers up his eyes and Sarah flushes red with embarrassment.
Parker just laughs, re-buttoning her shirt. "It's nothing you haven't seen before, dude. We basically fucking live together." John B winces before replying, "Still doesn't mean I want to see you half naked making out with someone!"
Parker rolls her eyes before getting up. She turns to Sarah and laughs at the pink on her face. She grabs Sarah's hand and mutters, "Cockblocker," as she walks by John B.
He runs after her, getting right near Parker. "Actually, we have to go to the wreck. Pogues only." He turns to Sarah and apologetically says, "We gotta deal with Kie before you come meet up with us."
The shorter blonde nods in understanding, untangling her hand from Parker's. As the two Pogues walk off, Parker turns around and gives Sarah a little wave, which is promptly returned.
════ ⋆★⋆ ════
"I'm sorry. You're staying where?!"
Parker winces at the sharp tone Kiara takes as she comes around the counter. John B blows past it, sheepishly answering, "Tannyhill." Kiara nods sarcastically, looking to Parker. Parker avoids her gaze and instead urges JJ to try to throw a fry into her mouth.
"So you're living with Sarah Cameron." John B shrugs, stuffing some food into his mouth before limping over to where Parker is seated with JJ and Pope. "Okay, look, the only reason I'm living there is because her dad bailed me out, right?" He gives Kiara a pointed look before adding, "And it's way better than foster care, which, by the way, is where I was about to go if Ward didn't--"
John B is interrupted by Pope, who curiously questions, "Hey, so do you have a membership to the clubs now?" John B gives him an exasperated look, answering, "I don't know, Pope."
JJ joins in, asking, "What about those golf carts they drive around? You get one of them?" Parker perks up, suddenly interested. She wouldn't mind getting a golf cart.
Pope adds to the teasing with, "Does it come with a sweater-vest, or do you have to buy one on your own?" Parker and John B both rolls their eyes, ignoring their friends.
Kiara then turns to the taller blonde girl. "P, you promised. You're staying there too. You swore you would stop being with her." Parker insistently shakes her head, even though she knows she was just making out with Sarah an hour ago.
JJ shakes his head at his sister, clearly seeing through her denial. "Dude, just own it. She got you." Parker glares at her twin, making him hold his hands up in defense.
Kiara sighs, looking at the Maybank girl. "Look, if you wanna hang out with her, that's fine. But I'm letting you know now that I'm not doing anything with Sarah."
Parker glances around the restaurant suddenly, making the other Pogues confused. When they start to look around too, Parker leans back and says, "Is Sarah here? No. So let's focus on whats important. We have the map, right?"
John B nods, gesturing to the map lying on the table. JJ leans back, saying, "It's all out of whack 'cause the guy was ganja'd when he drew it." Parker shakes her head at her brother.
"It's cause the coast has changed," Kiara informs him. Parker smiles at her, and she gets a small smile in return that makes her fist pump to herself. It's a little victory, but it's still something.
"So we just have to look for landmarks that haven't changed," Pope says, thinking out loud.
Parker nods in agreement, trying to think of something. John B snaps, sitting up suddenly. "What about the old forts?"
"Battery Jasper," Kiara adds.
Parker jumps up, snagging the Twinkie keys. "Seems to me like we have a plan. I'm driving, let's go."
════ ⋆★⋆ ════
As soon as they arrived, the Pogues hopped out of the Twinkie. Pope pulled out the map, wandering around and muttering to himself. Parker glances around, mindlessly fidgeting with her fingers and her cast.
"We're in Battery, right here." Pope points to a spot on the map, making the rest of the Pogues gather around to see. "So if this is parcel nine, then it's somewhere northeast of here."
Kiara glances in the general direction, pointing. "Somewhere there." Pope nods, glancing towards where she's pointing.
JJ looks as well, but instead of agreeing, he scoffs. "Over there? Guys, that's not Tannyhill, that's a subdivision." John B pipes up, replying, "Tannyhill Plantation was the entire island. It got sold into smaller pieces over time."
Pope glances around again. "So we're just looking for an old stone wall." Parker groans, knowing this could take forever. She tosses the keys to John B, muttering, "You drive." He doesn't try to protest and everyone climbs into the Twinkie.
JJ and Parker begin to screw around as Pope gives John B directions. "Okay, so the road should split up here. All right. You're gonna take a left." John B turns left sharply, making JJ fall onto the ground and Parker collapse on top of him.
"Fuck! Fuck, I pinned my arm. Shit!" Parker quickly leaps up, holding her broken arm close to her chest. John B stops the Twinkie, and they all hop out, with Parker still cradling her stinging arm.
JJ glances out, muttering, "That looks like a stone wall to me." Pope looks up from the map, double checking. "This is it."
The Pogues glance up at the house before realizing what it is. John B mutters, "Not the Crain House." Kiara walks up to the wall, exclaiming, "Are you kidding me?"
JJ shakes his head. "Worst case scenario." Parker knows that her brother seriously believes all of the stories about the Crain House, and that he would probably begin to freak out when they get over the wall.
"Why'd it have to be here... of all places?" Pope voices what everyone was thinking. JJ pauses for a second before saying, "I heard that Mrs. Crain buried her husband's head on the property."
Parker stares at her brother, replying, "Wow, Jayje. Thanks for that positive outlook." She looks back at her group of friends, gesturing to the wall. "We gonna get climbing, or what?" The other Pogues nod, and they quickly hop over the wall.
Kiara goes first, and Parker follows quickly behind. She winces when she puts too much weight on her broken arm, but she makes it over safely.
Once everyone makes it over, Parker steels herself up for the journey deeper onto the rumored murder house property.
════ ⋆★⋆ ════
The Pogues traveled deeper onto the property, slowly making their way through overgrown weeds and brush. Kiara was walking ahead, with Parker and JJ right behind her.
As she walked, Kiara asked, "Look, you guys know whose house this is, right?" Parker groans quietly, knowing that JJ was about to get started on one of his rants.
"Oh, yeah. No, I do." John B thankfully interrupts him, contributing, "Honestly, I don't really believe the stories of this place." Pope shushed him, making John B give him an annoyed and confused look.
JJ speeds up his pace a little, coming up next to Kiara. "Which stories did you hear?" Kiara lowers her voice, creepily saying, "The one where she killed her husband with an axe and that she's been holed up ever since." Parker holds back a chuckle. Kiara continues, "On certain nights, when the moon is full... you can see her in the window!"
Parker can't hold back her laughs anymore, and she completely falls apart. JJ smacks his sister, insisting, "No, it's not funny, 'cause it's all true." Parker shakes her head before realizing something that he was about to bring up.
"I swear to God, guys, this is all real. P and I knew Hollis." He turns around, almost smacking into a statue. He jumps, letting out a surprised, "Jeez!"
Pope ignores his exclamation, focusing on what he had said before. "Wait, you knew Hollis Crain?" Parker nods, finally remembering. "Holy shit, yeah we did. I completely forgot about that." Both of the boys turn to her. "Dude, how do you guys know Hollis Crain?"
Parker keeps reminiscing, saying, "She was our babysitter. She talked about it some, telling JJ shit. I tuned it out at some point." JJ jumps in quickly, wanting to tell his side of the story. "She told me all about it. Told me the truth... about her mother and what happened in this house." Everyone glances up at the house before looking back at the Maybank boy.
"So as a kid, she heard all the stories that her mother killed her father, and... she was a murderer and all. Hollis didn't believe it. Until that night." Parker rolls her eyes at her brother's dramatics, but John B takes the bait.
"What night?" JJ speaks in a hushed tone. "It all came back to her. When Hollis was six years old, she heard her parents arguing downstairs. So she goes downstairs to see her mom washing her hands in a sink... full of blood. Her mother just says that she cut her finger. The next morning, she says her father and her split up. But then, Hollis noticed something. Her mother going into the parlor constantly, in and out and in and out with plastic bags. Weeks pass, and Hollis decides to use the outhouse. And as she's using it, she looks down, and there, in the outhouse, is her father's head, looking straight back at her." Parker scoffs, and her brother glares at her.
Before Parker can say anything, John B pipes up. "God, you are so full of shit. Like she suddenly recalled all this after that much time." Parker then pipes up, contributing, "Actually, that's plausible. There's this thing called dissociative amnesia, which causes you to block out traumatic memories. Other than that part, Jayje is as full of shit as that outhouse."
JJ shakes his head, insisting, "Dude, I swear to God, man." He then turns to his sister, saying, "Thanks for the mini-D there. Hyperactive retention strikes again." Parker gives him an acknowledging nod.
John B questions, "Did she call the police?" JJ shakes his head quickly, answering, "She didn't have time." John B rolls his eyes before walking past him, but he's quickly stopped by JJ grabbing him and exclaiming, "Wait! Dude!"
John B turns around exasperated. JJ just looks at him closely before cautiously asking, "You sure you wanna do this? She's an axe murderer. You got a cast on." John B fully turns around, clearly frustrated with his best friend.
"I don't give a shit if she's an axe murderer, okay? I got nothin' to lose, right? You comin' or what?" Parker shrugs her shoulders, following after him as he storms away. JJ quickly follows after, wanting to keep his sister safe and also not be left alone in a place that terrified him.
"Hey, come on. Come here," John B calls for everyone quietly. "So here's the plan. We need to look for the wheat near the water like it says in Denmark's letter."
"Okay, like, what kind of water? Like, pond water?" Pope questions.
JJ looks up, chuckling, "Bong water?" Parker slaps the back of his head, making him wince. John B rolls his eyes at the blond boy. "No. It-- it just said look for water, okay?"
Kiara groans, mumbling, "That's the shittiest secret message ever." She then turns to walk off, looking for the vague water. Parker laughs slightly, going in the opposite direction.
John B calls over to his friend, "You wanna complain a little more, Kie? Nobody said it was gonna be easy." JJ runs after Parker, wanting to stick together. John B follows both of them.
They wander around for a while, not finding any water. At some point, Parker gets distracted by the sounds of the birds, and she gets caught up in her own thoughts. She begins to think about Sarah, and how much she genuinely likes her. That doesn't happen often with Parker, especially with her trust issues.
She gets yanked out of her thoughts when John B drags her towards a place with a very low ceiling, making her have to duck. Kiara is in front of her, with the boys behind her.
"Down came Mrs. Crain and cut off all our heads," JJ began to sing. "Up came the sun and dried up all the blood." Parker rolls her eyes at her brother, who couldn't be making this situation any worse.
"Can you stop?" Pope demands, annoyed with the Maybank boy's antics.
They trek even further ahead, before Kiara finally stops in a place where everyone can stand up and asks, "See any water?" Parker just shakes her head, making Kiara groan in disappointment.
JJ looks around, glancing at the walls. "There's not even water on the pipes." Pope glances around, disappointed. "There's no water here." JJ nods, feeling the need to add, "Not a dropamino."
"Know why we didn't find it?" Kiara starts. Parker groans, knowing what she's about to say. "Bad karma." Parker rolls her eyes, preparing herself for this next verbal attack on Sarah.
"You know, we had a good thing going. And then you decide to rope in Barbie, and now the trail's gone dry. Coincidence? Probably not." Kiara glares at Parker while she rants, Parker holding her gaze for once.
Parker groans again, exclaiming, "This is exactly why I didn't wanna tell you about Sarah." Kiara snorts angrily, dangerously saying, "Yeah?"
Parker nods her head, angrily ranting, "I mean, what the hell's the deal with you two? What happened between you went down years ago! Why do you still have such a huge problem with her? Is it 'cause I'm not obsessing over getting your attention anymore? You wish it was you or something?" Kiara scoffs, and instead of answering, she raises her hand and slaps Parker across the face.
The boys each let out surprised exclamations, and Parker just holds her cheek. "Stop treating me like I'm some girl that's obsessed with you instead of your best friend who's actually trying to look out for you."
Parker nods before dumbly asking, "Did you, uh... hit me?" Kiara hums, mumbling, "Skeeter." She holds out her hand, showing the Maybank girl the crushed mosquito on her palm.
Parker nods for a moment before slapping Kiara right back, causing the boys to exclaim again. They get ready to have to break up a fight, knowing that nothing good would come out of it if that happened.
"Where's your proof?" Kiara asked. Parker holds up her hand, showing a similarly crushed mosquito. "Skeeter." Kiara doesn't say anything, and she just reaches over and slaps Parker's arm. Parker slaps her back, and they continue back and forth until they both dissolve into giggles.
Their slapfest gets interrupted by the sound of scrapping wood, which makes them look over at Pope who is trying to move some wooden boards. John B quickly moves towards him, shushing him.
"Hey. Help me move this." Pope asks, but all John B does is shush him again. Pope rolls his eyes, now whispering, "Help me move this." John B groans, relenting.
"Okay, just... quiet." John B bends down, grabbing a part of the boards. JJ quickly runs over to help them, and Parker is close behind. All together, they move the boards to the side revealing an old well.
Parker watches her brother's eyes widen comically, but she can't find it in herself to make fun of him. She honestly was having the same reaction. The Pogues peer into the well, seeing how it just gets darker and darker, as if there was no bottom. This was the water.
"Well, well, well." Pope states. Parker laughs, and John B mumbles, "That was a good dad joke," without looking away from the well. He seems to be in shock at the fact that they may have actually found it.
Kiara looks up and around, commenting, "They built this part of the house right over it." Parker nods in agreement before hearing JJ pipe up.
"This is where she hid the bodies." Parker groans, looking over at her brother. "Are you still going on about that?" JJ nods, replying, "I'm dead serious. It was never an outhouse."
The rest of the Pogues let out various complaints, until Kiara points out, "She probably doesn't even know it's here." Parker nods in agreement with her, making JJ roll his eyes but drop it.
They all look back at the well, and Pope mumbles, "So... we found the water."
He then glances over at John B, who finally says, "We're gonna need a really big rope." Parker and JJ glance over at each other, excitement shining in their eyes. They might have actually found the gold.
════ ⋆★⋆ ════
A/N: Hey, y'all! So, I will be going offline all next week, so nothing new will be written until I get back. This will hold you over I hope, and then a new chapter might be out within the next two or three weeks hopefully. For now, enjoy this!
Don't forget to vote and comment!