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GABRIELA'S EYES fluttered open as the golden sunlight filtered in through the window. She heard a low growl as something familiar—and wet—pressed against her cheek. Gabbie frowned as she realized what it was. It was Brownie, waking her up as usual. She sat up as the second alarm on her phone went off.
"Ugh, Brownie quit it." She groaned as she gently nudged him away. Gabbie yawned as she put a stop to her alarm ringing, checking the time as she did so. Her phone read No Service in the corner. With an annoyed sigh she got up and walked over to her window. She pushed away the light curtains to see the aftermath of Hurricane Agatha, which reminded her of last nights events. After going out with Pope and John B she'd returned home and snuck back through her window, leaving her board outside in its rack.
A knock sounded on her bedroom door along with her mother's voice, "Come help me clean up Agatha's mess outside!"
"Okay, Mom. Just let me get dressed." Gabbie answered as she went to rummage through her tan drawers. Her classic black swimsuit was still wet and hanging up from last night, so she grabbed a blue bandeau one instead. Along with that she threw on some ripped jean shorts and a t-shirt. Gabbie left her room and walked outside through the front door. Her mom was there, struggling to move some branches in their lawn.
"Hey sweetheart, the surfboard rack got knocked over. Come help me with it." Her mom said as Gabbie followed her over to the fallen over rack.
"Are the boards okay?" She asked as she examined the three surfboards they owned.
"They're fine, I'd be more worried about the boat." Her mom stated before grabbing onto one side of the rack, Gabbie then helping her lift it back upright.
Gabriela sighed, placing her hands on her hips she asked, "And the dog houses?"
Her mother shook her head, "Some of the planks flew off during the storm, shouldn't be that hard of a repair though."
"Okay, I'll go clean up by the docks."
"I'll clear up these branches over here." She agreed with a nod.
Gabbie walked over to the dock, her dogs running after her. She checked their boat, something they'd had as a family before her parent's divorce. Her father had left it. Well, he would just buy a newer one anyway. A branch had landed in it, leaving some damage to its hull. Gabriella sighed in annoyance, but was happy that it at least didn't sink. She gathered up some wooden planks from the dog houses and set them in a neat pile. Gabbie then grabbed ahold of the tree brunch, grunting as she tried to pull it out by herself. Several tries only ended with her almost falling into the water.
"Hm, someone's having a little trouble." A familiar voice yelled. Gabbie hadn't even noticed the sound of the boat pulling up to the docs.
"Hey JJ, you wanna be a gentleman for once and help me get this branch?" Gabbie asked after turning around. She waved at John B, who drove the boat, and Pope who sat at the edge.
"Good morning to you too, Gabs." JJ teased with a smirk but stepped off the boat to help. After helping her move the branch away JJ paused to greet Biscuit, who he was very fond of, then returned to the boat.
"Bye, mom! I'll be back to help later." She yelled before sitting down on the boat floor with her back to the edge, taking off her top as she did so. She felt a little guilty, but she'd already helped clean most stuff up. She told the dogs to go back to the house as John B steered the boat over to Kiara's.
"Oh, top o' the mornin' to ya." JJ greeted as Kiara walked up to the boat, a cooler in hand.
"Good morning, boys."
"Morning, Kie." Gabbie said back.
"Whatcha got? You got some juice boxes?" John B asked from the console.
"You know, just some yogurts and carrot sticks." Kie answered as JJ assisted her onto the boat.
"How about my kind of juice box?"
"Ooh yes, I could use some of that right now." Gabbie added.
Kiara set the cooler down. Her, JJ, and Gabbie immediately taking beers from it. Later Pope drove the boat as John B leaned against the bar, clinking his bottle with the others. The friends laughed and cracked jokes as the North Carolina sunshine shown down on them.
JJ moved to the front of the boat, "Hey Pope, can you go a little faster?"
"JJ, we've tried this like six thousand times."
"No, Gabs, it's gonna work!" JJ leaned his beer bottle back, the wind blowing the liquid into his mouth.
"Oh my god, you're getting beer in my hair!" Kie exclaimed as she shrunk away from the falling beer. Gabbie leaned farther away as well, not wanting to deal with the stickiness and the smell of the strong liquid on her clothes.
"Alright, stop!" Pope yelled before the motor suddenly rattled and the boat came to an abrupt stop. JJ was flung into the water as the rest of the group was thrown around the boat. Gabbie rubbed her forehead as she felt a splitting pain in her head after hitting it on the boat, but it was gone just as fast as it had came.
"Goddamn, JJ. You okay?" Gabbie asked as she scrambled to stand up.
"I think my heels touched the back of my head." He groaned in pain, "Pope what did you do?"
"Sandbar. The channel changed." Pope answered.
"No shit. Hey I saved the beer though!"
"Congrats, JJ." Gabbie teased as she moved to stand at the edge of the boat, reaching her hand out to help JJ up. Looking into the water, she was now more focused on something else than the blonde boy.
"Hey... guys? I think there's a boat down there." Gabriela said as she peered into the marsh.
"Shut up." JB grumbled.
"No I'm being serious." Gabbie said as the three on the HMS Pogue came and looked, "It's a boat!"
"Holy shit, Gabbie is right. Let's go." Kiara said as she took of her shorts. Gabriela kicked her sandals off. Already in her swimsuit she was the first to dive into the water. She held her breath as she swam down, JJ leading the way. Quickly kicking her legs and moving her arms she reached the boat, grabbing onto the top of it to get a good look at it. Gabbie recognized it as a Grady White, to her surprise it was the one she'd seen when surfing with John B. Her lungs began to burn a little as she used the top of the boat to launch herself upwards and back to the surface. She met the others at the top as everyone gasped for air.
"You guys saw that right?" JJ asked in astonishment.
"Hell yeah! It's a Grady-White."
"I know, a new one of those is like 500 Gs, easy." JJ said as the teens climbed onto the boat, shaking off water droplets, "That's a primo rig."
"Yeah, that's the boat Gabbie and I saw when we surfed the surge. Maybe it hit the jetty or something." JB added.
"You guys surfed the surge?" Kie asked with concern.
"Damn Gabs, didn't know you had it in you." JJ laughed and nudged Gabbie as she giggled.
"Wait, wait. Do we know whose boat that is?" Pope asked, always being the one to ask the important questions.
"No, but we're about to find out." John B said as he grabbed the anchor from where it was stored.
"JB, it's too deep." Gabbie insisted
"Yeah, for the weak and feeble."
"Well, I'm not resuscitating you. I'm just making that clear up front." JJ joked.
"That's fine." John B responded.
"You can do it." JJ teased as he not so subtly bumped Gabbie.
She hoped she wasn't blushing but covered it up with an eye-roll, "I never agreed to that. But, be careful. Don't drown or I'll have to come and save you."
"Pfft, I'll be fine."
"John B." Kiara cut in.
"What?"
"Diver down, fool." Pope interrupted, ignoring the girls' protests.
"Diver down."
"Yeah he is." JJ exclaimed as he suddenly pushed John B into the water. The four waited at the edge of the boat, looking into the water in anticipation.
"Should we go get him?" Pope spoke up. John B then emerged from the marsh right after.
"Oh my god, that took forever!" Kie exclaimed.
"Finally." Gabbie agreed.
"Any dead bodies?"
"Looting potential?"
"No, no." John B said to Pope and JJ's questions, "I found this motel key."
"A key." Pope said in disappointment.
"Yes, a key, Pope."
"Wow, we salvaged a motel key." Gabbie groaned as John B climbed onto the boat. Pope took the wheel and began to head back towards land.
"Guys, we should report the wreck to the coast guard. Maybe we'll get a finder's fee." Kiara suggested.
Gabriela nodded, "I agree with Kiara on this one."
JJ playfully threw an arm around her shoulders, "Yeah, and not work all summer. Thanks Agatha, ya batch."
• • •
HURRICANE AGATHA had left the people of Kildare Island in distress. It was chaos. Coast guard had set up in sheds and under tents to tend to people's needs. Gabriella waited on the doc with Pope and Kiara while JJ and John B went inside to talk to someone about the boat. They watched as the two boys attempted to get a man's attention.
"Well that went well." Pope said as they walked out with nothing new.
"So, what's the plan?" JJ asked John as his arm rested on his shoulder.
"I think I know where we're gonna find the guy who owns that boat."
"No, no we don't know whose room that is. It could belong to anyone." Pope opposed.
"I'm in." JJ declared and threw the keys to Kiara.
"So am I." Gabbie agreed and walked off along with JJ.
"Come on," Kiara reassured, "I'll be lookout."
Pope groaned as he followed the rest of the teens who were eager to get going. They jumped in the boat and made their way to the motel that was on the keys. Gabbie's face recoiled in disgust at the sight of it. The hurricane had done some damage, but it really just looked creepy in general.
JJ whistled, "I thought the Château looked bad."
"This place is a shitshow." John B agreed from the wheel.
"Motel or meth lab?" Kiara joked.
"You be the judge."
Gabbie chuckled, "Definitely meth lab."
"Doesn't look like the type of place somebody with a Grady-White would stay."
"No, it looks like a place someone with a Grady-White would get killed." Pope continued as they pulled up to the grass and JJ docked the boat. The plan was for John B and JJ to go up to the motel room and see what they could figure out.
"Don't let him do anything stupid." Pope gestured toward JJ.
"I'm not making any promises."
"Be careful," Gabbie spoke up as Kiara handed JB the keys, "I mean it."
"Alright, wipeout."
The three that stayed back as lookouts sat down around the boat and conversed. Gabbie was busy watching JJ and John B walking up to the room. She couldn't help but feel worried, this place gave her the creeps. Little did she know that the two teenage boys were actually talking about her on their way up. Specifically, JJ was trying to convince John to make a move after several years of being friends. He even brought up how eleven-year-old John B had used to have a crush on her. Gabbie zoned back into the conversation after seeing the guys walk into the room.
"We only have one Earth, Pope." Kiara voiced, "We should be giving it one hundred percent, bare minimum."
"I mean, she's right."
"Right, that's not fiscally sound." Pope argued.
"Neither is destroying the only planet we have to live on."
Gabbie turned around at the sound of a car. She quickly shot up as she noticed the blue and white of a sheriff car. "Shit. Hey guys, cops!"
"Call them!"
Kiara shook her head, "I can't. Towers are down."
"If I lose my merit scholarship, I'm gonna kill someone." Pope complained as they left the boat and ducked down behind a fallen motel sign, "Maybe they're not going up there, maybe they're just looking for a room."
"Pope, he's literally pointing. They're going up there." Gabbie quickly walked through the grass while trying to avoid being seen. Kiara followed after her, and Pope reluctantly did too.
"Do something!" Kiara whispered. Pope grabbed a pebble from the ground and aimed for the window, only for it to miss by a lot.
"What was that Pope? Didn't you ever play baseball?"
"Dude." Kiara whisper-screamed.
"I was on the math team!"
Kiara and Gabbie picked up pebbles and launched them at the window until one finally hit. John B appeared at the window, and the three desperately whispered 'Cops' as he watched and then disappeared again. The three then ran back to the boat. They looked up as John B and JJ suddenly appeared outside the motel window.
"What the fuck." Gabbie whispered in shock. Pope tried to get their attention. John B put his finger over his lips while JJ frantically moved his hand around and mouthed something she couldn't understand. She watched as the two pressed themselves against a wall. JJ suddenly reached for something black in his pocket, and it fell to ground with a loud bang. Pope quickly turned around as the sheriff appeared at the window.
"So, Pope, you like anyone?" Gabbie shot out the first question that came to mind in an effort to calm her racing heart.
"What? N-no," He stuttered nervously, "do you?"
"What? No!" She shot back, even though her answer felt like a lie. Not wanting the attention on her anymore she turned to Kiara, "what about you, Kie?"
"Um-"
Before she could answer Gabbie looked up at the window, "Look! The sheriffs gone. We're safe." She let out a relieved laugh as she laid back onto the boat, and her beating heart finally calmed down. Everything was going to be fine.
• • •
GABBIE stared ahead at the docs, watching as the Paramedic team pulled a stretcher along with them, someone was laid out on it. She wasn't really thinking about the scene before her though, she was still wrapping her mind around the fact that JJ now owned a gun. The gang had come over here after leaving the motel. Gabbie hugged her knees to her chest as a woman ran up to the Paramedics. Gabbie squinted, trying to see what was happening. She recognized it as Lana Grubbs, an old friend of her mother's.
"Who's that?" John B asked as he saw the body on the stretcher.
"It's Scooter Grubbs. He was out during the storm." A blonde girl sitting by them answered, "Check out this pic I got. Dead body."
Gabbie frowned as the girl showed her the phone and recoiled at the sight. That stuff wasn't too gross to her, but she didn't like the thought of it. She wasn't all to fond of Scooter Grubbs, but she could only feel sorry for Lana. She didn't ever know her that well, but she felt horrible. Her thoughts were interrupted as she suddenly remembered the boat from the storm, "Hey, uh, what kind of boat did he have?"
"Somehow that dirtbag copped a brand new Grady-White. Everyone's out looking for it." The girl explained. Gabbie nervously bit her lip as the crew looked around at each other, now knowing who the boat and the motel room they had found belonged to.
"We should head back to the Château." Gabbie suggested as she hopped off the table she sat on, "We've got some stuff to talk about."
And so the teens headed to John B's place. After hanging out on the porch and watching JJ fish on the doc they huddled around a small room. Gabbie sat next to Pope on the bed as he objected against the other's plan. She closed her eyes as the sweet tunes of John B's guitar filled her ears. Her head continued to tap the wall behind her as she sat with her legs crossed. Throughout the day they had been discussing what to do with the money, and how to deal with the boat.
"For the record, if that is a smuggling ship with the illegal contraband on the inside of it, it probably belongs to someone else-"
"Minor details." Kiara interrupted.
"-They could come looking for it. Taking it would be catastrophically stupid." Pope argued.
"Well, stupid things have good outcomes all the time," JJ took the money from Pope and fanned it out, "All we need to do right now is just figure out a way to get into the cargo hold of that wreck."
"Yeah, we just have to lay low and act normal." Gabbie put in.
Pope sighed, "Right, and how exactly do we do that?"
"Keger?"
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this is the first time a book of mine has gotten
this amount of views in this amount of time,
it's probably because OBX is trending (since
my writing is shit) but I'm so thankful!
also do u guys like this 3rd person pov or gabbie's pov like in chapter one? comment and vote xo