Birds chirped proudly outside of the windows of Tannyhill, the sun rising without fail over the land as it did every morning. The sound of a door closing woke the girl, June March stirring in her spot on the couch. She breathed in that first morning breath, stretching her body as she reveled in the bliss of forgetting where she was. Hurried footsteps is what made her confused, and she tried her hardest to drift back into sleep for a moment.

"June!" Her eyes shot open at the sound of the voice, her head turning to see who it was. Rafe was standing to the side of the couch, the boy looking down at her with some strange expression in his eyes. She took his appearance in, the boy sweaty and covered in dirt and she considered questioning it but decided she would rather continue this sleep in her bed and leave whatever the hell his issue was alone.

"What?" She said in an angrier tone than expected, her eyes squinted as she adjusted to the light. She pushed herself up onto her elbows and shrugged, Rafe still just staring down at her wild eyed.

"Go home. I've got—there's people coming over and I need you to not be here okay?" The confusion of early morning left her hesitant to leave, but he was fidgety and frantic, so he reached forwards from where he was standing, grabbing her by the arms and pulling her up from her laying position. She gasped out in surprise, the sleepiness disappearing from her body as she stood in his grip. "Go home."

For a moment she felt like everything they had talked about was for nothing, but then he let go of her arms, the girl sitting on the edge of the couch with fear and confusion in her eyes. He took a knee in front of her, grabbing her shoes from beside the couch and beginning to put them on, June watching him with so much confusion as he pulled her socks onto her feet. Her heart beat rather fast as he slid her shoes onto her feet, a hardened look in his eyes as he did so. Once the shoes were tied he stood, holding out a hand to her and waiting for her to take it. Their terms were shaky and blurry but maybe they weren't as bad as they used to be. Maybe she really could open her heart to forgiveness. She had woken up and she could remember everything, but she knew now was definitely not the time to get into any of it. She grabbed his hand, Rafe pulling her up and then not so subtly gearing her in the direction of the door.

"Alright bye." Rafe said as he pulled her through the front door and out into the yard. He let go of her hand, not a second of hesitance as he took off back towards the house. If she wasn't so fresh out of her sleep she would have been able to note that this was strange and suspicious, but really she was just worried about how hot it was outside and how much she wanted to crawl back into bed and sleep. That was the Rafe she knew, she was almost relieved her had returned to usher her back into reality.

"Bye." She said to no one in particular, her body turning as she made her way to her car. The ride home was rather uneventful, June just listened to the radio and thought about the gala. Besides the fact that she had been stalked and potentially almost murdered or kidnapped again,  it was a rather exciting evening, one she didn't mind saying she actually enjoyed until the end.

June pulled into her driveway, the girl quickly getting out of her car and heading towards the house. There were no cars in the driveway, only hers, and she wondered if anyone was home. Surely Tyler would be. She opened the front door, her eyes scanning the foyer and the kitchen.

"Mom?" She called, walking through the bottom floor of the house."Dad?"

Nothing.

She started towards the stairs, figuring she would check the bedrooms to see if everyone was still asleep. But it was a weekday, her parents were probably just at work. She pushed the door to Tyler's room open, alarmed that he wasn't in there. He did say he had an interview...maybe he got the job. She started towards the end of the hallway, her hand hovering over Adams doorknob when she heard a rustle above her, her head immediately shooting up to look.

Her dads old office was what was above her, and the last time she had heard things from up there it was because Ward and her parents were conspiring. She stood completely still, her heartbeat accelerating as she waited for the chance to see if she was just hallucinating or not. But she was quickly proven sane when she heard a terribly loud swooshing noise, her breaths heavy as she realized someone was up there.

She walked as quietly as she could towards her bedroom, running towards her closet and grabbing the gun that she had stolen in Barbados. The mission was clear; go up the stairs, see if there is an intruder, possibly shoot the intruder? Maybe it wasn't as clear as she thought it was.

June started up the stairs, her finger on the side of the gun so she didn't accidentally pull the trigger. She held her breath when she turned the corner, the door to her dads office opened but only slightly, not enough for her to see fully inside. She walked forwards, mustering up the  courage to open the door where the rustling and sounds were now very clear. She got to the door, pushing it open and  taking in the sight. The office was a mess, papers strewn across the floor and some of her dads things on the ground as well. She was quick to spot the intruder, her eyebrows furrowing as she looked at him. It was a man, his back turned to her as he was searching through one of her dads desk drawers. He wasn't wearing a mask or anything burglar related, he was actually dressed in a light blue button up and slacks. She shook her head, lifting the gun up and making herself known.

"Who the hell are you?" She said, the man seeming to jump. He turned to look at her, Junes eyes widening and her grip faltering as she immediately realized who was standing in front of her. It was the man from last night. He took in who had caught him, his eyes widening and then calming, his hands raising in the air as he looked at the teenage girl.

"I—I'm Leon Hardy. Your brother hired me as a private investigator to find you and your kidnapper. And how funny is it that the two of you just showed up back here. Made my job a whole lot easier I'll tell you that." June was convinced this man was the private investigator, but that didn't explain why he was in her house, looking through her fathers things. Or why he had been taking pictures and following her at the gala. "Did you enjoy your night last night? You don't seem like too much of a party—"

"That doesn't explain why you're in my dads office...looking through his things." Leon narrowed his eyes, using what he knew about the girl to try and determine if she would actually shoot him. However he was convinced that she might, his eyes on the gun and then on her face. She wasn't scared anymore, she knew who he was, she was more confused than anything. Maybe she would pull the trigger.

June used her critical thinking skills to really try and understand why exactly this man would be  following and tracking her, breaking into her dads office. She came to a conclusion surprisingly fast, the girl letting out a sigh and continuing to hold the gun up to him.

"You're looking for that fucking medallion aren't you?" He didn't have to answer, the crack in his calculated demeanor gave her all the answer she needed. She kept the gun raised but shook her head, blinking a few times and speaking again. "I told Singh I didn't know what he was talking about okay? I didn't know anything about—"

"Unfortunately for you he doesn't believe you. And neither do I. Give me the medallion or things will get worse."

"You're talking awful big for the one who's got a gun pointed at them." June said in an icy tone, Leon looking at her with some intimidated look. She took a step forwards, the man still holding his hands up as she spoke again. "If my brother hired you to find me and I was found, why the fuck are you still following me around?"

"Curiosity." His answer stalled her, the man clearly seeing the look on her face and knowing he needed to elaborate. "I mean breaking into your house is for work but following you is personal. You are just too damn interesting. I mean...you random girl from the Outer Banks who just happens to have the key to all of Singhs conquest shit. And then I do my research and turns out you're right in the middle of the Ward Cameron, Rafe Cameron mess. How far in the middle? I didn't know until I saw those ship manifests. Rafe Cameron stole you. You end up deserted on some island because you made a mistake when you were 14 and you're still paying for it. But then you turn around and surprise me again because I dig a little further and you're the scapegoat for a murder that a Cameron committed. And then you're acquitted. And then you find the Cross of Santo Domingo with your friends, and somehow you still have a medallion in your possession that is the key to everything. And then you make it back home after being almost killed and then you turn around and attend a charity gala with the Cameron that tried to kill you. Aren't you something?"

"How do you know all of that?"

"You are a card, June March. I gotta hand it to you. It's people like you that make this job so enjoyable." Leon chuckled a little bit, his hands dropping as he took steps towards her. June felt her heartbeat pick up again as he got closer to her, the fear of who she was making her shake. Hearing all of it simplified made her feel so very small, the man seeming to know this as he side stepped and walked towards the door. "How about this? You let me leave, you find that medallion and get it to me...and I won't ruin your life with all the dirt I have on you. How about that?"

"What dirt?"

"Enough to rip your life to pieces. You have 3 days." Without hesitating her disappeared out to the office, Junes heart bearing against her ribcage as she let out shaky breaths. She heard the front door close, running down the stairs and locking the door, her next step being to put the gun away. She sat on her bed, running hands over her head and hair and curling into the fetal position for a few moments. She thought of what she would do, knowing she only had 3 days to find a medallion that she wasn't even sure really existed. A thought entered her head,  the girl diving across the bed for her phone and pulling up a contact that she knew could help her with the shut plan she was already coming up with.

"Shit."

:::

Double update!!