"your face looks really bad. starting to look like your dad a lot more." Rafe told JJ bending over taking a look at him, JJ spit on him causing Rafe to back up and laugh.
"oh, shit." he wiped the spit off, "i can see where Caroline gets it from" he laughed as the lights started to flicker.
"gentlemen!" security yelled walking in, Kelce let go of JJ roughly, "is there a problem?"
"pardon me, officer. no, there's not an issue. i just- actually, yes. no, there is an issue. uh, we got a criminal trespass in progress here. beep! call it in, right? blatant disrespect for private property. i'm in violation of all kinds of shit, sir, but these young gentlemen, uh, caught me, sir, and they're about to take me away. and that's what you should do, escort me out of here." JJ explained lifting his wrists up like he was going to be put in handcuffs, the guard grabbed his arm starting to lead him out of the locker room.
"all right. fix that tie, son. you're lookin' spiffy, too. you Powerpuff girls have fun." JJ pointed.
"tell Caroline she looks pretty hot for a Pogue!" Rafe called out, JJ clenched his jaw running back over to Rafe but the guard and Kelce grabbed him before dragging him out.
Ace and Kie talked quietly hearing some fussing going on making the two girls look over seeing JJ and the security guard.
"look- look, man, i can walk myself. i got legs. can you see that, brother?" JJ told the man.
"come on."
"JJ?" Ace asked quietly turning around watching the scene.
"i really appreciate what you did back there. let me just walk out by myself. oh! Mr. Dunleavy, i see you got your drink. good, that's really nice of you. i'm actually gonna down that." JJ argued then grabbed the drink downing it.
"aah! whoo! i really appreciate the discretion, Daryl, you know? it's okay, everybody! do not panic. leave it to the men and women in uniform" JJ clapped causing more people to look, "let's hear it for them. Rose! you look like lady liberty. it's good to see you again. hey, buddy, can i have one of those?" JJ pointed at some snacks, Ace snorted covering her mouth holding in her laugh hearing what JJ said to Rose.
"let go of him!" both Ace and Kie call out causing their parents to hush them quickly as Rafe walked up next to them laughing quietly.
"you can't just boot him!" Kie yelled.
"we invited him here." Ace adds as the two girls' parents tried quieting them down. "we're members of this club."
JJ pushed the security guard away causing him to crash into a waiter and drop things, "sorry about that. hey, mandatory power hour at Rixon's, Baby and Kie. Pope, you as well, all right? Rixon's Cove. let's roll. all right, Ace, Baby. Kie, come on. workers if the world unite. throw off your chains." the two girls looked at each other ignoring their parents running over to the boys laughing moving around people, Ace flipped Rafe off causing him to glare at her.
Pope and Kie ran over to John B hugging him tightly as JJ opened his arms for Ace smiling, she jumped into his arms hugging him as he spun her around, the five friends proceeded to run going over to the cove.
—
"time to take this off" Ace let down her hair that was now straight instead of it's usual wavy state due to the event she and Kie left.
"i don't think i've ever seen you with your hair like that" JJ smiled playing with her hair.
"hey, guys. so, like, my dad's already gonna kill me. so what's this mandatory meeting about?" Pope asked sitting next to John B.
"might as well tell him, man, before we're gaffed." JJ says.
"you ready for this?" John B asked his friends. "yeah"
"so, the gold never went down with the Royal Merchant." John B announced.
"oh, my God. here we go again with this." Pope said already annoyed.
"no. all right, wait. hear him out, all right?"
"it's been here the whole time. it's on the island." John B replied.
"are you serious? oh, my God." Kie laughed.
"i'd like to voice my skepticism." Pope added, "and here we go" Ace said listening to Pope.
"i'm sure you would, Pope, but can i please present you with my evidence, sir?" John B asked, "proceed"
Ace watched JJ poke the fire laying her head on his shoulder listening to her friends talk about what he had found the last couple days.
"all right. so in my backpack, i have a letter from Denmark Tanny." John B grabbed a piece of paper.
"who the hell is that?" Ace asked holding her hand out for the paper which he gave to her.
"Denmark Tanny was a slave that survived the Royal Merchant wreck. check this out." John B pointed at it once Ace opened the letter, "okay, slaves weren't mentioned as crew members on the ship, but my dad, he found the complete manifest. that was his big discovery. so Tanny used the gold from the Merchant to buy his freedom." Ace whistled handing the letter to Kiara so she can look at it.
"after that, he bought his farm. drumroll, please, because that farm is.." everyone started tapping their legs smiling, "Tannyhill Plantation." the boy says.
"Tannyhill?" Kiara asked.
"yeah. so, after that, he used his money to free even more slaves, and then he sold a shit ton of rice, which pisses of all the white planters, and then they decide to lynch him. so on the day they were coming to get him, he writes a letter to his son as a farewell, and in the last line of that letter, he leaves a coded message about where to find the gold." John B smiles pointing at Kiara who was also smiling.
"where?" she whispered.
"harvest the wheat in parcel nine, near the water. except.. there's no wheat. you see, wheat is code for gold. check this out. the gold is in parcel nine, near the water." John B showed Pope on the paper. "all we need is an original survey map of the property, and we've found the gold." JJ threw the stick down and stood up walking over to John B who opened his arms.
"okay, so this might have a small chance of being actually true." Pope said.
Ace and Kiara faced each other whispering about the gold in excitement looking at the letter over and over.
"i am a genius. hey, woah!" John B held onto JJ who picked him up hugging him tightly, "hello! fire! you're near the fire. you're gonna burn."
"i'm so proud of you right now." JJ tells him.
"thank you. that's really sweet of you." John replied.
"okay, so, guys. what's the plan?" Pope asked.
"good question. so Sarah Cameron's coming tonight. she'll bring an original survey map-"
"hold on." Kie cut in, "Sarah, wh-why Sarah?" she asked.
"um.."
"this is gonna be good." JJ said, Ace looked at the blonde confused.
"Sarah, um, she- she got me into the archives in Chapel Hill yesterday, and that's where i got the letter." John B told his friend.
"you were in Chapel Hill with Sarah Cameron?"
"yeah, um-"
"he was mackin' in her." JJ said.
"oh!" Ace looked at John B, "this is interesting, tell me more" she smiled, JJ laughed holding his hand out for her, she stood up walking over to him laying her arm on his shoulder.
"i wasn't macking."
"you were totally macking Sarah Cameron."
"i wasn't macking on her, okay? i was using her for access." John B explained to his friend.
"there was access, all right." JJ mumbled, Ace covered his mouth so she can hear her friends argument some more.
"did you tell her about the treasure?" Kiara asked.
"i was just trying to get into the archives." John B replied.
"is that a yes?" Kie asked.
"he's denying so yes" Ace responds as JJ covered her mouth, the two looked at each other and laughed.
"i- i left out key details" John told her.
"yo, what? you let a Kook in on our secret? what about Pogue lyfe? what about the T-shirt company, bro?" Kie argued, "i was just using her for information."
"why don't i believe you?" Kiara presses her fingers together tilting her head with each word she said.
"i'm trying to make us filthy rich here. okay, so that we can pay off a boat, or- or, uh.. send you to autopsy school to study dead bodies. look, you guys know me. do i look like the type of person to fall for Sarah Cameron?" John B states.
"do you want us to answer that, or-" Pope starts to say, "just— just stop."
"look, you don't know her yet. i do! you can't trust her." Kiara said.
"her brother did hit me in the back with a golf club and Ace as well." Pope said.
"Rafe and Sarah are two different human beings" John B responds.
"what did she do to you, exactly?" JJ asked.
"she's like a— like a spitting cobra. first, she- blinds you, and then—"
"that is bad analogy" Pope cut her off.
"listen to me!" Kie yelled. "whatever we get, she's gonna try to take."
—
once the teens pulled up to the Hawk's nest, John B turned around before anyone could get out.
"yo, uh.. so, uh, i think i'm gonna do this one by myself.. tonight" John B told the crew.
"better for me" Ace laid back down across the seat behind JJ resting her head onto his backpack.
"really?" JJ asked. "what?" John B looked at him, "nothin'."
"i just don't wanna spook Sarah with the peanut gallery." John B told his friends.
"i just don't understand why we're involving her at all" Kie asked yet again.
"Kie, we're not involving her, okay? it's- it's just, uh, like a-a business meeting.." John B said as JJ air sucked something he was holding making Pope and Ace laugh.
"look, once we get what we need, we cut her loose, all right? plus we need the map." John B told her.
Ace ignored the two fighting playing with the ends of JJ's hair, he leaned his head back to look at her and smiled, she smiled at him blowing him a kiss shutting her eyes. the blonde turned around to face her running his fingers through her hair. the four stayed quiet in the van waiting for John B to come back with the map, Ace was half asleep on the seat while JJ kept running his fingers through her hair.
"Rafe and Kelce followed me—"
"wait, do you guys hear that? sh." Kiara shushed the boys, Ace sat up rubbing her eyes hearing a scream from a far.
"oh, wait, no, i hear that." JJ said as the four ran out of the van following the noise. Ace spotted John B on the ground rushing over seeing Sarah holding him.
"Sarah! what happened?" Pope asked.
"i don't know what to do. he needs help. Topper shoved him" Sarah sobbed.
"where the hell is he?" JJ snapped.
"please, please, please get help. i don't care who. just call someone." Sarah sobbed, Pope ran back to the van to call someone while everyone watched Sarah hold onto John B crying waiting for help to arrive.