We stayed parked on one of the side streets for about half an hour when we saw the flashing lights of the police car drive past us towards the construction site. We made our way back to the site, hoping Ward was now gone so we could tell Shoupe what happened. Of course, he didn't believe us.
"Right, so you said this happened 45 minutes ago. Ward Cameron just popped one off and shot him. Execution style? Then cleaned it all up in 45 minutes?" We nodded at each of his statements, telling him that we were giving him the right information but he just didn't believe anything we were saying.
"We filmed it, but we can't show it to you because I stepped on JJ's hand, then he kicked Pope and Pope dropped the camera and it broke" I said flustered, trying to prove our story but Shoupe just shook his head.
"So the dog ate your homework, Savannah? Look I don't know what you kids expect me to do with this. You drag me out here in the middle of the night for a whole lot of nothing. Trying to tell me Ward Cameron is out on a random killing spree" Shoupe said in disbelief.
"It's not nothing, we are not making this up" I yelled at him, JJ put his hand on my shoulder but I brushed him off walking a few steps closer to Shoupe. "Gavin was Wards pilot, Ward was paying him hush money because he was on the tarmac that day. Gavin was blackmailing Ward because he had the gun that Rafe used to kill Peterkin".
"He called him here and tried to pay him off, but it wasn't enough and then he shot him" JJ said coming next to me, backing up my story.
"How do you know that?" Shoupe looked at us curiously.
"Pope did this thing with his phone. He put it in his car and heard the whole conversation" Kie said to Shoupe making him look at us in disbelief.
"You wiretapped him? I have had enough with you kids. You ever heard of the boy who cried wolf?" Shoupe yelled to the other officers to pack up and head home.
"Can you just do your job for like 20 minutes? Just listen to us, it makes sense" Kie yelled at Shoupe.
"I know that you think your friend, your brother was innocent"
"He is innocent" I yelled back.
"You weren't there though Savannah. The only actual witnesses who are above ground say the exact opposite, all right? And both of them have a hell of a lot more credibility than any of you right now. I saw your little art project on Ward's wall. Do not do that again" He was looking directly at me, but I was confused not knowing what he was talking about, but Kie looked guilty.
Kie, Pope and JJ all began arguing about who's fault it was as I sat on the curb with my head in my hands, watching the water run through the gutters. I stood and followed the flow of the water to the nearby storm drain and smiled to myself.
"Come on little Routledge, let's go home" JJ comes and put's his arm on my shoulders.
"It's not over J, we can still get the gun" I said not taking my eyes off the drain.
"It will be washed into the drain by now Sav, I don't think we will be able to find it"
"Not tonight, but tomorrow we will" I looked up to JJ and smiled and he nodded at me letting me know that he is onboard with my plan.
The next morning Kie and Pope came to pick up JJ and I from the Chateau and we drove straight back to the construction site. We followed JJ's directions to where the end of the storm drain was.
"This is the north drain, it should have gotten washed into the gully. So if it got flushed out from this drain, it would have been pushed out to here" JJ and Pope were standing in the dirty brown water.
"Oh my god. People who use plastic should be shot" Kie said disgusted by the amount of plastic and rubbish floating around the boy's ankles.
"Personally, I love plastic. Use it everyday. Love the stuff" JJ said as a joke making me laugh while Kie got irritated, but Pope jumped in and saved the moment with a roll of rubbish bags.
"Did you just proactively protect the environment?" Kie said to Pope
"You want us to leave you two alone?" I said interrupting the moment that those two were sharing, Pope threw the bags at JJ and I and we all got to picking up the rubbish.
"Well that was fun" JJ said wiping his hands on his shorts. The gun wasn't in the pile of trash which meant it must still be in the drain. JJ pulled his crow bar out of his pocket so we could open the gate to the drain and we all began to argue about who would be the one going in there. First we thought about playing scissor, paper, rock or maybe whoever was the oldest which out of us was JJ.
"In the sewer, there's this worm that you get when you're down there. It gets into your blood and then comes out of your pecker. So that would be a hard pass for me" JJ said standing back and holding his arm out for Kie and I to pass him. Pope agreed with JJ and the boys stood back.
"J, you are so full of shit" I said smacking his hand as I walked past.
"I get it. You guys are scared" Kie said laughing at the boys who were quick to defend themselves.
"I'm not scared, it's the pecker thing" JJ said to us.
"You should have just told us J, you don't have to be scared. We will do it" I kissed his cheek and Kie and I started walking into the drain as the boys called out to us to be careful.
"Just, holler if you need anything okay? And we will holler back" JJ yelled into the drain. Kie and I rolled our eyes and laughed at each other. We walked further into the drain and kept running our hands on the bottom of the drain to see if the gun was there.
"Do you think we will actually find it in here Sav?" Kie asked from behind me.
"I really hope so Kie, it feels like our only hope in getting John B home"
Kie and I went further as we heard Pope call out something about the catch basin. Kie went into the catch basin first and called out that she found something, I quickly made my way over to her as she pulled up something dead and flung it away from us as we screamed.
"JJ, Pope there is something dead in here" I yelled at the boys who were wondering why we were screaming.
"Don't touch it, that's how you get worms" JJ yelled back and they continued to yell asking us if we had found the gun yet but Kie and I were too busy freaking out to yell back at them.
"You guys owe us for life" Kie yelled back at the boys once we calmed down.
"Kie, let's get out of here" I said grabbing my best friend before we find anything or anyone else dead. As soon as I said that we heard running water, it was getting louder and starting to sound as if it were getting closer. Kie and I looked at each other scared, confirming we could both hear it.
"Guys? Guys, the water" Kie yelled to JJ and Pope "Sav we don't have time to get out"
"Kiara, Savannah! Get out of there now" Pope yelled into the drain but it was too late, we couldn't get out. We needed to find another way. We swam to try and find a manhole when Kie spotted a ladder. She climbed up first and I was right behind her but the water was filling up fast. I could hear the boys make it to the manhole and yelling at us but they were struggling to get it open. Kie had her fingers out of the drain and she grabbed my hand with her other hand to try and pull me up to her level so we were out of the water but the water was too fast and before I knew it I was underwater.
"Shit, JJ. Hurry up! The water is rising. Sav's gone under" Kie yelled which made JJ's adrenaline spike and give him some extra strength to pull the cover off the man hole just as Kie went under. Kie pulled herself out of the drain and I felt JJ's strong hand pull me out from the water. Kie and I were crouching over coughing up a lot of sewer water that we swallowed. JJ wrapped his arms around me holding me close and once I had my breath back and stopped coughing he kept kissing my head, cheeks and finally my lips.
"I thought I lost you for a second. Sav, I can't lose you" JJ said while he kept kissing me. Pope and Kie were arguing and you could tell she just wanted to be left alone.
"Kie, you good?" I asked her once I saw her get off the ground. She gave me a thumbs up in return.
"This wasn't what we were looking for, right?" She pulled the gun out of the back of her shorts and smirking at me.
"Holy shit, Kie, when did you find that" I ran over to her and grabbed the gun which JJ then took off me and wrapped up in his bandana.
"Right before the water came, I went to tell you but didn't have time" I hugged Kie so tightly and the boys came over and the four of us had a group hug and we were so happy that we actually did it.
We didn't even shower before we got back in Kie's car and drove straight to Shoupe so we could hand the gun over and clear John B's name finally. The receptionist tried to stop us but didn't want to touch Kie or I as we were still covered in sewage and smelt horrible. I stormed into Shoupes office and dropped the gun on his desk right in front of him.
"You wanted proof? Here is it" I said, he looked up at me and screwed up his nose as he took in the smell.
"What is this Savannah? And what on earth happened to you?"
"This is the gun that killed Peterkin and Gavin" I said as my friends all came into the office behind me. Shoupe rolled his eyes at me for what felt like the millionth time.
"Ya'll are telling me this is the firearm Rafe Cameron killed Peterkin with? And the same firearm that Ward used to kill Gavin? Where is that corpse again?" Shoupe stood up crossing his arms
"Didn't you look?" I asked him, he was the police officer not me. Even though it didn't feel like it.
"I checked the hospital, then went by his house but he was out"
"No shit. Cause he is dead" JJ said from behind me.
"Just because he's not in his damn home doesn't mean he was a victim of a homicide" Shoupe said looking at all of us.
"Are you at least going to send it in for ballistics and shit, or are you just going to sit on your ass?" I said pointing at the gun I have just given him.
"He'll sit there and wax that moustache. Is that even real?" JJ said as he came and stood next to me, making Shoupe angry and Pope yell at JJ to shut up.
"Get out, all of you. I got work to do and you are all smelling up my office" Shoupe moved past us and opened his door so we could leave. I shook my head in disbelief as my friends all left his office, but I turned around just as I was in the doorway.
"Did Ward bribe you? This doesn't make any sense. We bought you the murder weapon. There is no logical reason for you not to send it in" We looked at each other for a moment before he told me to leave and shut the door in my face.
Kie offered to drive us home but I wanted to walk, I needed the air after that day. Kie and Pope left and JJ and I began the short walk from the police station to the Chateau and even though I smelt horrible, he still kept his hand in mine and held me close the whole walk home.