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 "Everybody says it, that he's a liar. He's just like his father. And the girl, everybody knows she's a thief after her mother married a Pouge."

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WE ARRIVED AT Pope's house and the air felt charged, like a storm was brewing just beneath the surface. Pope sat with Sarah and Kiara.

''When I went back to Tannyhill,'' Sarah began, her arms crossed tightly across her chest, ''Rafe was on the phone with Ward, and he just kept saying, 'My thing, this is my thing.'''

Pope leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. ''He had to be talking about the cross,'' he concluded.

''Absolutely,'' Sarah agreed, her gaze flicking between us. ''And he's coming into Wilmington tonight at 8:00. It's being shipped by train to Raleigh from there, but this is our chance to get it back.''

''You get any other information?'' Pope asked, his brow furrowing as he processed.

''Uh, Sarah got the cargo number,'' Kiara chimed in, pulling a crumpled piece of paper from her back pocket and placing it on the table.

''Okay, well, that's a start,'' Pope nodded, rubbing his jaw.

''Yeah,'' Kiara echoed.

''They're definitely fencing that shit off as we speak,'' JJ interjected, leaning casually against the wall, though his posture couldn't mask the tension in his voice. ''So we should probably get a move on.''

''Sarah, you hear from John B?'' Pope asked suddenly, shifting gears.

''No,'' Sarah admitted with a slight shake of her head. ''I mean, he's probably off somewhere with his dad.'' She paused. ''But the problem is they have the Twinkie.''

''Our transportation,'' Pope groaned, running a hand over his face. ''I could ask Heyward for the truck.''

JJ snorted, pulling his cap lower on his head. ''Uh, what? Yeah, that's gonna go well.''

''I know, but we have no other option,'' Pope reasoned, though his tone suggested he wasn't thrilled about it either.

After hashing out the bare bones of a plan, Kiara insisted we go to her parents for support before she left. I wasn't exactly thrilled at the idea, but JJ and I tagged along, mostly because Kie wouldn't take no for an answer.

Inside the Carrera household, the kitchen was spotless, the countertops gleaming under the overhead lights. 

''Honey, I am listening to you,'' Anna, Kiara's mom, began. ''I'm just having a hard time. So I need you to walk me through it one more time.''

Kiara let out a frustrated sigh, her hands moving animatedly as she explained. ''The Cross of Santo Domingo that we found—''

''Right,'' Anna nodded, attempting to follow.

''We thought it was gone forever,'' Kiara continued. ''We just found out it's—it's gonna be in Wilmington tonight.''

''Okay,'' Anna said slowly, ''and the cross is...''

''Pope's family heirloom,'' Kiara finished.

''Priceless historical artifact,'' I added, crossing my arms.

''Priceless, which you're telling me that you found?'' Anna clarified, her brows knitting together.

''We found it, and then Rafe and Ward stole it from us,'' Kiara explained.

''Wait, do you know how insane you sound?'' Mike cut in.

''Baby,'' Anna tried to intervene.

''Ward is dead,'' Mike stated firmly, his arms crossing.

''He's not dead,'' Kiara snapped back. ''We've been over this a million times!''

''You understand that this is hard to follow, right?'' Anna interjected, her voice softening. ''I mean, we had a funeral for the man.''

''I get how it sounds, but he's alive,'' Kiara insisted, her hands planted firmly on her hips. ''I wish he wasn't, but he is. Why would I lie?'' She turned to JJ and me. ''JJ? Mimi? A little help?''

JJ pushed his cap back and shrugged. ''Ward's alive in the Caribbean.''

''Yes,'' Kiara nodded fervently.

''He's living off loot he stole from us, and he's flying the cross to Wilmington,'' I added, keeping my tone level despite the tension in the room.

Mike rolled his eyes dramatically. ''Give me a break, man.''

JJ crossed his arms, his jaw tightening. ''You're right. What do I know? Just saw it with my own two eyes. So did Mavie, so did Kiara, but whatever.''

''I'm skeptical, okay?'' Mike said, his voice rising. ''I am skeptical, JJ, as in 'I think it's all bullshit.'''

''Our story is too specific for it to possibly be a lie,'' I countered, holding his gaze.

Mike ignored me, turning his attention back to Kiara. ''I think you've been led astray, Kiara. And you, JJ—''

''Mike,'' Anna tried to cut him off, but he kept going.

''Let's get this out in the open,'' Mike insisted, his voice growing louder. ''You need to understand that I do get it.''

JJ's fists clenched at his sides, his jaw ticking. ''Sure, you do,'' he muttered, cracking his knuckles.

Mike pressed on. ''I like you, JJ, and I bet you're fricking fun to hang with, ditch school with, go down to the break, because I was once just like you, bro.''

I shook my head in disbelief, already regretting agreeing to come here.

"I didn't think that anything mattered." Mike conitnued his rant. "Thought I could make up any bullshit story and these stupid kooks would believe it."

"Mom." Kiara protested.

"But then I learned about hard work and about what really mattered." Mike said stepping closer.

''All I care about is my daughter,'' He declared. ''And all that I know is that she was a lot better off before she met you and your friends.''

He turned to me. ''I'm actually quite surprised you let them drag you along with this.''

Before I could defend myself, Kiara cut in. ''Dad, I was never better off,'' she argued, stepping closer.

''Yes, you were,'' Mike snapped.

"Please." Anna stepped in trying to stop her husband.

"I was miserable." Kiara argued back.

"Miserable? No, no." Her dad shook his head.

"Take it down a notch. Listen." Anna tried again.

"No, these pogues have ruined my daughter's life!" Mike stated while looking at me and JJ.

JJ exhaled heavily, shaking his head. ''Didn't mean any disrespect, Mr. Carrera,'' he muttered as he turned for the door. ''Y'all have a good day.''

I followed JJ without hesitation, hearing Mike's words through the door as he continued to rant.

"What are you doing?" Kie asked her dad.

"What am I doing? Protecting my daughter." Mike replied.

"Can we please—" Anna tried to cut in.

"Wait a second." Mike said. "Everybody says it, that he's a liar. He's just like his father. And the girl, everybody knows she's a thief after her mother married a Pouge." I shook my head, knowing that what he said about me was true and followed after JJ.

By the time we reached his bike, JJ was already pulling his backpack on.

''I'm sorry,'' Kiara called, running down the steps. ''Guys, wait. My dad's literally the worst.''

''It's whatever,'' JJ replied, his voice low. ''I already know what they think of me.''

''They think the same about me,'' Kiara said, climbing onto the bike behind me.

''Yeah, I don't think so,'' I muttered as JJ started the engine.

With a roar, the bike sped off, leaving the Carrera house—and its suffocating judgment—far behind.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

THE FERRY ROCKED gently as it cruised through the water, the sound of the waves lapping against its hull a constant backdrop. We were gathered around a table in the corner, trying to lay out our plan.

''Honestly, the hardest part is gonna be security, all right?'' JJ began, leaning forward, his arms resting on the table. ''Most of the guys are gonna be at the rally yard.''

Pope nodded thoughtfully, his fingers tapping against the tabletop. ''We'll need to find some place to guard it, maybe a little further down the line, like a whistle stop.''

''Yeah,'' Kiara agreed, though her brow furrowed as if she was already considering the logistics.

Cleo, sitting back with her arms crossed, gave a pointed look. ''You guys are getting ahead of yourselves, per usual,'' she remarked, her tone blunt but not unkind. ''You don't have a way to transport the cross. What you think? On JJ's motorcycle?''

''That's not my fault,'' JJ shot back, throwing up his hands in mock surrender. ''Oh, everyone, all me, right? Always JJ's problem.''

''Okay, other options,'' Pope interjected quickly, steering the conversation back on track.

Kiara turned to me, her expression lighting up as an idea struck her. ''Hey, what about your dad's car, Mavis?''

I shook my head, leaning back slightly in my chair. ''He left and took it with him,'' I replied, the bitterness in my voice hard to mask. I wasn't thrilled about my dad disappearing on me, but now it was also inconvenient.

''Oh, my God,'' Sarah exclaimed suddenly, her voice pulling all of our attention.

''Oh, my God, what?'' Cleo asked, raising an eyebrow as she followed Sarah's gaze toward the bar.

And there he was. Topper. Of all people. Sitting there as if the universe was determined to throw obstacles our way.

''Is that Topper?'' JJ questioned.

''Why... is he everywhere?'' Kiara groaned, slumping back into her seat.

Pope, however, grinned, leaning forward as a plan clearly began to form in his mind. ''Perfect.'' He turned to JJ. ''Hey, Jayje.''

''What?'' JJ responded.

''I bet you Topper has a way to transport the cross,'' Pope suggested, his grin widening.

''Actually,'' JJ admitted, nodding slowly, ''Pope's right. He does have a rig.''

''No,'' Sarah cut in sharply, sitting up straighter.

''Yes,'' JJ countered.

''No. Absolutely not.''

''Yes. Come on, Sarah,'' JJ pressed, flashing his trademark grin. ''You already got him whipped anyway, all right? So why don't you just take one for the team?''

Sarah shot him a glare, but before she could argue, she turned to me. ''Can't you ask Ashley?'' she asked.

''She ruined my already bad reputation, and I haven't spoken to her in months,'' I replied, my tone clipped.

''Okay, well, you two were close,'' Sarah persisted, tilting her head as if trying to reason with me. ''You sure she wouldn't agree?''

''We parted ways a long time ago, I can't contact her out of the blue.'' I explained, keeping my voice steady. ''And besides, Topper's right there.'' I gestured toward him, hoping to shut down the conversation.

Sarah sighed but didn't look entirely convinced. ''What would John B say?'' she asked, her tone softer this time.

''I think John B would completely understand,'' Pope replied before I could. ''Think about the circumstances. It's about treasure.''

''It's not like it's cheating if you're faking it all,'' I pointed out, shrugging slightly. Sarah shot me a look, but I met her gaze evenly.

''We can handle John B,'' Kiara added reassuringly. ''Just talk to him.''

After a moment's hesitation, Sarah stood and walked toward the bar. The rest of us watched in silence, waiting for the outcome.

A minute later, Sarah was hugging Topper, her grin wide as she gave us a thumbs up over his shoulder. We exchanged silent nods and smiles, congratulating her without a word.

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