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''Down came Mrs. Crain and cut off all our heads. Up came the sun and dried up all the blood.'' 

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I ACCEPTED THE drink from Kie, taking a sip as she brought up the subject of John B's new living situation. I nearly choked when he casually mentioned, ''Tannyhill.''

Kie, already suspicious, arched an eyebrow. ''So, you're living with Sarah Cameron?'' she pressed.

''Which also means you're living with Rafe Cameron, my enemy number one,'' I added, shaking my head. The idea of staying under the same roof as Rafe was... well, it was hard to put into words, but unsettling was a start.

John B looked over at me, a half-smile almost apologetic. ''Look, the only reason I'm living there is because her dad bailed me out, all right? It's way better than foster care, which is exactly where I was about to go if Ward hadn't stepped in.''

Pope leaned in, his tone lighthearted but clearly interested. ''Hey, so do you have a membership to the club now?'' He grinned as John B shrugged, clearly embarrassed.

JJ jumped in, unable to resist. ''What about those fancy golf carts they drive around? Did you get one of those, or what?'' He raised his eyebrows, leaning back with a smirk.

Pope added, ''Does it come with a sweater vest, or do you have to buy one of those on your own?''

Kie, though, wasn't about to let it go that easily. ''Look, you promised,'' she reminded him. ''You said you weren't with her.''

JJ rolled his eyes. ''Bro, just own it. She's got you wrapped up.''

''Look, if you wanna hang out with her, that's fine,'' Kie told him, crossing her arms. ''But I'm letting you know now, I'm not doing anything with Sarah. Just saying.''

John B put his hands up, exasperated. ''Do you guys see her here? No, right? Okay. Can we please focus? We have the map, remember?'' He pulled it out, spreading it in front of Pope.

JJ squinted at it, tilting his head. ''It's out of whack cause the guy was ganja'd when he drew it.''

''No, it's because the coast has changed,'' John B corrected, leaning over the map. ''We just need to look for landmarks that haven't changed, right?''

''What about the old forts?'' Pope suggested, examining the lines closely.

Kie's eyes lit up. ''Battery Jasper.'' She pointed to the map.

After we wrapped up, everyone piled into the Twinkie, but Kie pulled me aside before I could join them. ''Hey, Mavis,'' she began, her voice low. ''Can we talk for a sec?''

''What's up?'' I asked, curious.

Kie's face softened, almost like she was treading carefully. ''I was thinking... maybe you could consider living at the Camerons', too?''

I blinked at her. ''Kie, you're joking, right? John B's staying there because he works for Ward. I don't exactly have an in with them, you know? Besides... Rafe?'' Just the idea of it made me shiver.

Kie gave me a look, a mix of sympathy and persistence. ''Okay, maybe not living there, but... would you at least talk to John B about maybe sticking around the house with him sometimes? He just got out of the hospital, Mavie, and he's still supposed to be working. I don't want him doing too much on his own.''

I sighed, glancing over at the van where everyone else was waiting. Part of me wanted to argue, but Kie was right; if John B needed support, I didn't want him to go through it alone. And... okay, maybe I was a little curious to see how things were between him and Sarah. It felt like I'd blinked, and suddenly, everything had changed.

''All right,'' I agreed reluctantly, meeting Kie's relieved smile. ''I'll talk to him. But I'm just checking in, not moving in or anything, got it?''

Kie pulled me into a quick hug. ''You're the best, Mave. He'll appreciate it, trust me.''

I climbed into the Twinkie, where JJ looked back at me, already looking suspicious. ''What's with the secret meeting?'' he teased, raising an eyebrow.

I rolled my eyes, brushing it off. ''Nothing, just some girls stuff.''

With everyone finally settled, we set off toward Battery Jasper, the van bouncing along the road.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

WE PULLED UP to the house and I leaned forward, staring through the van window at the sprawling property that stretched out in front of us. 

''Not the Crain house.''

Kie looked like she'd just stepped into her worst nightmare. ''Are you kidding me?''

''Worst case scenario,'' JJ muttered.

Pope shook his head with a deep sigh. ''Why'd it have to be here...of all places?''

JJ glanced at Pope with a serious expression. ''I heard Mrs. Crain buried her husband's head somewhere on the property,'' he said.

We all stood there for a beat, taking in the house. Despite myself, I felt a chill go down my spine. I tried to brush it off, stepping forward to follow them onto the property, crunching over the dead leaves littering the path.

''Look, you guys know whose house this is, right?'' I asked, eyeing the place warily.

JJ nodded. ''Oh, yeah. No, I do.''

''Honestly, I don't really believe the stories about this place,'' John B said, though his eyes darted around as if expecting something—or someone—to jump out.

Kie glanced over. ''Which stories did you hear?''

John B shrugged. ''The one where she killed her husband with an axe and has been holed up ever since. And, you know, on certain nights when the moon is full...'' He trailed off.

Kie grinned mischievously, stepping in front of JJ and waving her fingers in a spooky motion, mimicking a ghostly figure. ''You can see her in the window...''

''No, it's not funny, because it's all true,'' JJ huffed, clearly annoyed. "I swear to God, guys, this is all real. I knew Hollis." He took a step back, shivering a little, then turned around and nearly jumped out of his skin when he spotted a statue looming beside him. He clenched his fists, squaring off as if he were about to fight it.

John B chuckled. ''Wait, you knew Hollis Crain?''

''Yeah, dude.'' JJ nodded.

Pope raised an eyebrow. ''Dude, how do you know Hollis Crain?''

JJ hesitated, then shrugged. ''She was my babysitter, man. She told me all about what happened here. The truth about her mother and everything that went down in this house.''

''The babysitter you had a crush on?'' John B grinned, nudging JJ.

''No, I mean yeah, but that's not the point,'' JJ replied, rolling his eyes.

Kiara raised an eyebrow. ''You had a crush on Hollis Crain?''

JJ glanced between us. ''Hear me out, all right? When Hollis was a kid, she heard all these stories about her mother killing her dad, and she didn't believe it... until that night.''

''What night?'' I asked, finding myself more curious than I'd like to admit.

JJ's gaze shifted to the house as he continued. ''When Hollis was six, she heard her parents arguing downstairs. So she sneaks down, and there's her mom, washing her hands in a sink... full of blood.'' He stepped closer.

''Her mom told her she'd cut her finger, but the next morning, she just said her dad had left. But then Hollis noticed her mother going into the parlour constantly, in and out with plastic bags. Weeks later, she's using the outhouse and looks down. There, staring back at her, is her father's head.'' JJ raised his fingers to his eyes dramatically, staring at John B.

John B shook his head, exhaling. ''You're so full of it.''

JJ's face went serious. ''Dude, I swear to God.''

''Did she call the police?'' Pope asked, looking genuinely horrified.

JJ shrugged, his voice dropping to a whisper. ''She didn't have time because—''

John B suddenly turned towards the house, clearly fed up. ''All right, enough ghost stories. Let's do this. I don't care if she's an axe murderer; I've got nothing to lose.''

JJ shot him a look, eyes narrowing. ''Dude, you sure? You've got a cast on, remember?''

''I don't give a damn,'' John B replied, brushing him off. ''You coming or not?''

We all pushed forward and entered the house, the air thick with dust and silence. John B turned to us. ''Okay, here's the plan. We need to look for the wheat near the water, like it said in Denmark's letter.''

''What kind of water?'' Pope asked, squinting in thought. ''Like, pond water?''

JJ let out a snicker. ''Or, you know... bong water?'' He laughed, but everyone just shot him blank stares. I shook my head.

''It just said water, okay?'' John B clarified, clearly annoyed.

Kie rolled her eyes. ''That's the worst secret message ever,'' she muttered.

John B turned on her. ''You want to complain some more, Kie? Nobody said this was going to be easy.'' He marched off, and Kie followed with a reluctant sigh.

Pope turned to me and JJ. ''Mavie and I will search the northeast quadrant. JJ, you take the northwest quadrant.''

JJ made a face, looking at me. ''And why can't she come with me?''

I arched an eyebrow, smirking. ''Maybe because you're a dumbass?'' I didn't wait for his response, following Pope as he rolled his eyes at JJ's reaction.

A few minutes later, John B called us over, crouched down beside a hinged door. ''Hey, come over here. It's the only spot we haven't checked.''

''Oh, damn...'' JJ mumbled, stumbling towards him as a bird suddenly shot out from the rafters, making him jump. I couldn't resist the opportunity.

''Maybe you should bark at it,'' I quipped.

JJ looked at me, shaking his head with a wry grin. ''As far as I know, that only works on snakes, Mave.''

The old basement smelled damp and stale, and the weak light from Pope's flashlight barely penetrated the shadows. Every step creaked on the rotting wood beneath us, and every corner of the basement sent a shiver down my spine.

Suddenly, JJ broke the silence with a morbid little tune. ''Down came Mrs. Crain and cut off all our heads. Up came the sun and dried up all the blood.'' 

''Can you stop?'' Pope interrupted, shooting JJ a stern look.

Kie shook her head, clearly fed up. ''No kidding, JJ, I'll kill you if you keep this up.''

''If Mrs. Crain hasn't done it by then,'' JJ muttered, a slight smirk playing on his face, though the look we all gave him shut him up pretty fast. ''Right,'' he mumbled, stuffing his hands in his pockets as we kept moving deeper into the basement.

''See any water?'' Kie asked, scanning the floor as if expecting it to appear like some obvious clue.

We spread out, and just as I was moving forward, JJ let out a yelp as he stumbled backward, nearly falling as he tripped over a creepy, old doll lying on the floor. His foot cracked through a loose board, and he wobbled, looking embarrassed as he tried to regain his balance. I reached over, grabbing his arm to steady him.

''You're lucky I'm always around to save your ass,'' I murmured, a hint of a smirk on my face.

JJ straightened up. ''Yeah, it'd be a shame if my buns weren't saved,'' he retorted, leaning forward slightly to show off his butt with a smirk.

I rolled my eyes. ''It's not a strip club, JJ.''

He laughed, straightening up as we kept searching. Pope was looking around with frustration.

''There's no water here,'' he observed.

''Not a dropamino,'' JJ added, and I couldn't help but shake my head at his inventiveness with words.

Kiara crossed her arms. ''Know why we didn't find it? Bad karma.''

John B groaned. ''Oh God, here we go.''

Kie turned to himn. ''We had a good thing going, and then you decided to rope Barbie into all this. Now the trail has dried up. Coincidence? Probably not.''

I could see the frustration building in John B's eyes as he stepped closer to her. ''This is exactly why I didn't want to tell you about Sarah.''

''Yeah?'' Kie's voice was challenging, daring him to say more.

''Yeah. What the hell's the deal with you two?''

She shrugged, though the tightness around her mouth showed she was anything but indifferent. ''Nothing.''

''Nothing? Is it because I kissed you? Is that the problem?'' 

Without warning, Kie's hand flew out, slapping him right across the face with a satisfying smack. The sound echoed in the basement, and I couldn't resist a quiet, amused mumble. ''Damn, Kie, you should've warned me. I would've made a nice gif out of it.'' I pulled my phone halfway out of my pocket, but the moment had already passed.

JJ's eyes widened as he looked around. ''Oh, shit! That echoed, dude!''

Kie glared at John B. ''Stop treating me like I'm some girl who's obsessed with you, instead of your best friend who's actually trying to look out for you.''

John B blinked, rubbing his cheek in disbelief. ''Did you... hit me?''

Kie raised her hand with a smirk, showing him a tiny squashed mosquito on her palm. ''Skeeter.''

''Skeeter?''

''Yeah, you see it?'' She tilted her hand closer, and John B nodded. ''Yeah.''

Then, in a flash, John B slapped her back, and JJ jumped between them, holding up his hands like a referee. ''Oh, hey. All right, no.''

I shook my head, smirking. ''Are we just going to slap each other like one big happy, totally functional family or what?'' I gave JJ a light tap on the arm to ''kill'' another imaginary mosquito. He barely even reacted.

Pope shook his head, glancing around the dark basement. ''Why are there so many mosquitos down here?'' he muttered, more to himself than anyone else.

JJ scratched at his arm. ''Oh, my gosh! Okay, can we leave? Because I'm already itching to get out of here.''

Just then, Pope froze, his flashlight catching on something on the floor. ''Yo, I just found Mrs. Crain's voodoo doll, guys.'' JJ picked up a strange, dusty doll from the floor, holding it up in front of Pope's face with a grin.

Pope jumped back, startled. ''God, JJ!''

Ignoring him, Pope turned his attention to the wooden boards covering a section of the floor, his eyes narrowing in concentration. He quickly started prying them up, looking focused. ''Hey, John B, help me with this.''

John B came over, and they both began lifting the boards, one by one, the sound of creaking wood filling the basement. And then, there it was—a hidden well, its mouth gaping up at us like some dark portal.

Pope looked down. ''Well, well, well.''

JJ smirked, patting him on the shoulder. ''That was a good dad joke.''

Kie leaned over, peering down into the well. ''They built this part of the house right over it.''

JJ, of course, couldn't help himself. ''This is where she hid the bodies.''

I gave him a withering look. ''If you keep this up, you'll be next.'' He only rolled his eyes, unfazed.

Pope sighed heavily. ''Dude, come on.''

JJ lifted his hands in mock surrender. ''No, I'm dead serious.''

''Stop it!'' Kie hissed.

''It was never an outhouse,'' JJ continued, undeterred.

Kie shook her head. ''She probably doesn't even know it's here.''

Pope looked down the well. ''We found water.''

John B's eyes lit up. ''We're gonna need a really big rope.''

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