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When I finally pull up to the chateau something immediately feels off about it. The pogues are nowhere to be seen and the Twinkie is still parked in the driveway. that's weird. I glance toward the dock to see if the HMS Pogue is gone but it's still tied to the end. Something is definitely wrong.
I swing my leg over the side of my bike and start to head toward the house but the second my foot touches the ground a shot rings out from inside the house. I immediately duck, my eyes searching for the source of the sound and my eye lock on the window in the side of the house start to slide open.
Kiara jumps out first, quickly followed by the three boys and she is the first to see me. She starts waving at me to follow and I quickly jump to my feet and run into the chicken pen.
"Someone better tell me what the hell is going on or I swear-" I whisper-y'all but I don't get to finish because JJ's hand is over my mouth. "We'll tell you later now shut up!" I nod and he slowly let's go as John b puts a finger to his mouth, shushing us before looking back out towards the house.
The chickens won't stop crowing and soon enough J is fed up with it. "Do something, Pope. Shut him up." He hisses lowly, pointing to the chickens as Pope panics. "What do you want me to do?!" He hisses back
Next to him tears are staining Ki's cheeks as she cries, "Pet it or talk to it- I don't know?!" The rooster then hits the side of the pen and John B jolts back into the wall, signaling that someone heard that.
"Do something." Pope whispers and JJ lunges forward, grabbing the rooster around his neck. He hits it on the ground a few times until the crowing stops and a sickening crack replaces it. I cringe, covering my eyes as he let's go of it and falls back to sit next to me.
The sound of Kiara letting out a small sob is all I can hear before I raise my head to see John B put his hand in hers and I feel JJ's fingers graze my leg. I glance to look at him but he just looks straight forward, trying not to draw attention to it.
"Ratter! What the hell are you doin'? Let's go!" a voice yells quickly followed by footsteps and a door slamming. JJ picks up the limp chicken, holding it in his hands as Kiara whimpers, squeezing her eyes shut. John B crouches up to see what's going on as a car engine starts and pulls away.
"Now can someone please tell me what just happened and who the hell were they?" I ask, my voice shaking still and JJ nods as the others get out of the pen. He then holds out his hand, pulling me out too. Pope and Kiara go back inside the Chateau, John B following shortly behind. Before he walks in though, he turns toward us and points two fingers to his eyes and back to us.
JJ scoffs, flipping him off before grabbing my hand and leading me toward to dock. "You remember those two men who tried to shoot at us yesterday right?" He asks, sitting down at the end of the dock and I nod slowly, doing the same.
"John B and I went to Lana's house this morning to talk to her about the compass but when we got there those two men were there as well. They beat her up pretty bad and not long after we got back here they were beating down the door." He recalls, letting his hand run down his face. "Shit." I whisper, looking our onto the lake.
"Why do you think they wanted it?" I ask, leaning back so my elbows were touching the wood of the dock and JJ shakes his head, looking down at me. "Not sure." We sit in silence for a little bit before he glances at me again.
"Why did you come here anyways? Bored of your kook friends already. Has topper planned any revenge plots for me pulling a gun on him yet?" He jokes and I glare at him, sitting up. "No but I'm sure he will." I smile, giving him the side eye before pausing as my smile fades.
"I'm running from my dad." I sigh, picking at my nails and I can feel JJ's stare. "Do you want to talk about it?" He asks and I raise my eyebrows at him.
"Did you really just ask me if I wanna talk about it?" I let a small laugh escape from me and a smile spreads across his face. "Nope I did no such thing." He shakes his head, clearing his throat in an attempt not to laugh along with me. "No, I'm pretty sure you did."
JJ purses his lips together, avoiding my gaze, "No I do not recall saying anything of the sort." He says as he shakes his head, denying it all over again but I'm not gonna let this one go that easy. "No, I heard you say that load and clear."
I shove him slightly, smirking and he looks at me, a mischievous glint in his eyes. He then proceeds to shove me back, almost knocking me off the dock, into the lake and my mouth falls agape in shock.
"Oh you're asking for it now Maybank!" I laugh before tackling him onto the dock, feeling his laugh vibrate through my finger tips as I straddle him.
"This isn't how it goes, you're usually the bottom," he remarks, glance down my shirt and I pull away from him, scoffing. I open my mouth to say something but before I can I hear someone clear their throat. I immediately scramble off of JJ and him and I both look up to see John B staring down at us.
"I think I figured out what the compass is referring to, now let's go." JJ and I don't move from our spot on the dock and he rolls his eyes before clapping enthusiastically. "Now! We're losing daylight here!"
I groan before pushing up from my sitting position and we walk down the dock and meet everyone at the Twinkie and climb inside. John B going in the drivers seat and Kiara slides into the passengers, leaving JJ, Pope and I to sit in the back.
John b starts the engine and we're off. Pope takes the compass out of his pocket and starts dangling it in front of his eyes, trying to get a better look at it.
"Wait what did you even find in the compass anyways?" I ask and Pope hands it to me, popping open the top to reveal the word Redfield carved into the inside. "I mean it's obvious right?" John B says, glancing back at me.
"A family hire loom. What better place to hide a message? He had to know it was going to get back to me, right?" I shrug, handing the compass back to Pope and he continues to examine it.
"Yeah, it's possible." Ki says but by her facial expression I can tell she's not fully convinced. "It could also be possible that you're concocting wild theories, to help.." he pause for a second, trying to find the right word. "You know, deal with your sad feels." John b's eyes flash at pope before returning back to the road.
"You know how I deal with feels? Dank nugs and the sickest ickies, that's how I do it." JJ half jokes and I let out a small laugh, making eye contact with him as I shake my head.
"I'm not concocting, okay?" My dad's trying to give me a message." John b glances back at us, clearly annoyed that we don't believe him.
"If it helps you believe, John B." Ki nods, trying to be supportive but John B isn't having it. "Look, I-I don't need a therapy session, okay? Look I'm not trippin' out."
"It's okay to trip, bro, but-" JJ starts to say bur John B cuts him off. "Look, my- my dad is missing,
okay?" He glances back angrily before look back into the road. "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." He sighs, hurt coating his voice and I feel his pain, I've been him before. I've been the girl who waited for the person I loved to show up for me again, but she never did.
"It's been almost a year." Ki whispers and hurt shows in John B's eyes. "Hey he could have been kidnapped. That's definitely a possibility." JJ tries breaking the tension and Pope catches on. "Yeah, could be in a Soviet sub getting interrogated by the KGB somewhere."
"Absolutely, or..... Atlantis." He says and I shoot him a glare, telling him to stop. "Look, what do you think the message is?" I ask and John b points to the sign up ahead. "Redfield. Redfield lighthouse. That's my dad's favorite place."
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You are welcome for some
JJ and Del fluff in this chapter.
Also it hurt me a little to write
the chicken scene because
it was really hard to watch
it in the first place.
On another note I hope you
guys enjoyed this
chapter and stay
tuned for more soon!