'✦ ˑ ִֶ 𓂃⊹ t h e m a s k .ᐟ
episode three. ▌𝚀𝚄𝙴𝚂𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽𝚂

the next morning came, but the tension still lingered from the previous day. the image of the shadowy figure from the previous night lingered in daisy's mind.

as she made her way to the kitchen, finn was already there, staring into a half-empty cup of coffee, dark circles forming under his eyes.

well she wasn't the only one who had a restless night.

"you're up early." daisy commented, as she made her way to grab a mug from the cabinet.

finn looked up, his expression grim. "couldn't sleep. kept thinking about yesterday. and-- other things." he trailed off, but daisy knew what he meant.

before she could respond, jj and john b shuffled in, followed by kiara and pope. none of them looked well-rested.

"guess we all had the same nightmare, huh?" jj joked as he began to rummage for cereal.

"not funny." kiara muttered, tying her hair back. "so, what's the plan? are we just going to sit around and wait for another attack, or are we actually going to do something?"

"i've been thinking about that." finn replied, straightening up. "we need to figure out more about billy summers. who he was, who might've had a reason to go after him."

john b nodded. "and we need to find out if sheriff peterkin has any leads. maybe we can overhear something or get pope's dad to spill some info."

daisy broke through the conversation, "i knew a little about billy-"

kiara quirked an eyebrow, turning her attention to daisy, "you do?"

daisy hummed, "i saw him at kook parties—regular partygoer, he'd sometimes let me into the parties."

jj quipped up, "you hook up with hi—?"

jj was cut off by a large hand slapping his shoulder, pope. "ouch, dude!" he began to rub his shoulder. "you can't just ask that."

"i have another idea." john b stated, leaning against the counter, "we can talk to rafe. d, you saw him at the docks, right? the guy always knows more than he lets on."

daisy frowned, the memory of rafe's intense gaze making her stomach twist. "yeah, but do you really think he'll tell us anything? rafe's not exactly the sharing type."

jj smirked. "he'll talk. one way or another."

kiara rolled her eyes. "great. let's just add assaulting a cameron to our list of plans."

the group got ready for the day ahead of them, they finally agreed to split up.

john b and pope would head to the docks to eavesdrop on any police chatter. kiara and jj would try to dig into billy's background, asking around discreetly. daisy and finn, much to her likeness, would confront rafe.

finn and daisy approached the cameron estate cautiously. the golden hues of the setting sun reflected off the large windows. daisy's stomach churned with unease, a knot tightening as they made their way up the long driveway.

"why do we always end up dealing with rafe?" daisy muttered, her arms crossed tightly over her chest.

finn glanced at her, his usual thoughtful expression replaced with determination. "because, like it or not, rafe always seems to know more than he should. if he was at the docks, he might've seen something we didn't."

they reached the front door, and finn raised a hand to knock, but before he could, the door creaked open. standing there, leaning casually against the doorframe, was rafe cameron.

"well, well," rafe drawled, a smirk spreading across his face. "if it isn't two of the ogues. looking for handouts?"

daisy rolled her eyes, stepping forward despite the chill creeping up her spine. "cut the crap, rafe. We're here to talk about what happened at the docks."

rafe's smirk faltered slightly, but he quickly recovered, leaning closer with an almost predatory glint in his eyes. "oh, you mean the murder? poor guy. shame what happened to him."

"don't act like you care," finn said sharply, his voice low. "we saw you at the scene, rafe. you were hanging around, watching. you know something, don't you?"

rafe's gaze shifted to finn, his smirk fading entirely. for a moment, his jaw tightened, and his fingers twitched at his side. "you think i had something to do with it?" he asked, his voice calm but with an edge of warning.

"we're not accusing you." daisy interjected quickly, trying to ease the building tension. "but if you know something, anything, it could help us figure out what's going on. someone's targeting people, rafe. that could mean any of us next."

he chuckled darkly, his laughter dripping with mockery "you think i'm gonna help you out of the kindness of my heart? that's cute." he stepped closer, his tone lowering to something more menacing. "you don't get it, do you? this isn't a game, daisy. people like billy—people like you—get caught up in things they don't understand. maybe it's better if you don't know."

finn stepped forward, his fists clenched. "enough with the bullshit, rafe. if you know something, just say it. who's behind the mask?"

for a moment, rafe just stared at them, his blue eyes cold and calculating. then, he leaned in close, his voice barely above a whisper. "if i were you, i'd stay inside after dark. whoever did this-- they're not finished. and if you stick your nose where it doesn't belong, you might end up just like billy."

daisy's breath caught in her throat, her heart pounding as his words hung in the air. she wanted to push for more, but the intensity of his gaze made her falter.

"is that a threat?" finn challenged, his voice trembling with barely-contained anger.

rafe smirked again, stepping back into the doorway. "no, finn. that's a warning."

before either of them could respond, rafe slammed the door shut, leaving them standing on the porch with a mix of frustration and fear.

finn let out a shaky breath, running a hand through his hair. "what the hell was that?"

"i don't know." daisy murmured, still staring at the door. "but whatever's going on, rafe knows more than he's letting on.

they exchanged a glance, the weight of rafe's warning sinking in. without another word, they turned and headed back down the driveway.

the pogues regrouped at the wreck later that afternoon, tension still thick in the air. john b and pope didn't have much to report—sheriff peterkin was tight-lipped around the docks, and the officers on duty weren't talking.

kiara and jj had better luck. they found out billy was known to hang around with a sketchy crowd, people who owed money or dealt with shady business on both sides of the island.

"but it still doesn't explain the mask." kiara said, frustrated.

"that's where we come in." finn glanced at daisy. "he said something weird." daisy admitted.

"like—when we asked if he knew anything about billy, he just smiled and said, 'maybe it's better if you don't know.'"

"classic rafe." jj scoffed. "always the confusing asshole."

"yeah, but he also said something else—" finn added, his expression serious. "—he said, and i quote ' if i were you, i'd stay inside after dark.'" the group fell silent, the weight of his words sinking in.

"what does that even mean?" kiara asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"it means.." finn's jaw tightened, "this isn't over."

AUTHORS NOTE 

i haven't updated in forever i am sorry 😭😭😭😭. hope you all enjoyed this chapter <3

 who do we think the killer is 👀 ???????