Slater's head still ached by sunset, though she'd lost the dizziness and could now walk in a straight line -- or as straight a line as she'd been able to walk before, her balance had never been gymnastics-worthy. JJ kept checking to make sure her pupils were the same amount of dilated, as he'd once watched in an action movie that uneven pupils were a serious side effect of a concussion.

"I didn't pass out, I'm not throwing up, I think I'll be fine," Slater said from her spot under an old oak tree. She was wearing JJ's hat and a pair of sunglasses, in an attempt to hide her eyes from the receding sunlight.

"You should have just gone and gotten checked out," JJ said, shaking his head. "I told you my cousin Ricky could --"

"And I told you I didn't want to miss sending John B and Sarah off!" Slater didn't say it, but the very real likelihood that she may never get to see John B and Sarah ever again was heavy on her mind.

"Can you guys stop your bickering for like thirty seconds?" Kiara groaned. "We get it, you've got your 'old married couple' vibes down very well already." She paced the pier, letting out an exasperated sigh. "Dude, where is John B?"

"Give him a second," Pope replied, shooting Kiara a look. "He'll be here."

"We've given him ten thousand seconds," she muttered, reaching down to grab a stone, which she promptly chucked in the water.

Sirens echoed in the distance, and Slater shoved fingers in both of her ears, groaning as the sound rattled her brain. She could have sworn they sounded even louder with her fingers plugging her ears -- until she realized they actually were getting louder, and closer.

A squad car approached and Slater shot to her feet, running towards the boat, her feet wobbly from the sudden ascent in her possibly-concussed state. She didn't dare turn around or wait to see which officer got out of the squad, knowing it wouldn't matter if it was Vic or not.

"Get back on the boat!" JJ yelled as Slater and Kiara clamored back on board, the latter hurrying to untie it from the dock.

Slater took the time to look at the squad, a surprised laugh escaping her lips as she made eye contact with the driver.

"What the fuck, John B?" Slater chuckled as John B made his way towards them.

"Umm, what?" Kiara gawked.

"No way!" JJ cheered as he climbed off of the boat, making a beeline for the Routledge boy, pulling him in for a hug.

"You've gotta be kidding me," Pope muttered, all of the pogues staring at John B in disbelief.

"Your dad let me borrow it," John B said with a smirk, nudging Slater with his elbow.

"Yeah, sure he did," Slater laughed.

"I'll buy that for now," Kiara said, shaking her head and laughing as John B boarded the boat.

"Here she is, the Phantom," JJ said, his arms stretched wide as he gestured to the boat. "Wasn't an easy acquisition, but she runs like she was made yesterday."

"I wouldn't say yesterday," Slater teased. "Maybe a week ago, if we're feeling generous."

John B, however, was clearly in a different headspace as he stared at the boat. "Where's Sarah?"

"What do you mean?" Kiara questioned. "Isn't she with you?"

John B quickly shook his head. "No, we got separated out on the marsh. I told her to meet me here."

"We haven't seen her," Pope replied.

"JB, man, clock's ticking," JJ said, gesturing to the setting sun.

"I'm not leaving without her," John B exclaimed, spinning around to face his best friend.

"There's no time, man. Look, I know you'll feel bad for leaving, but you don't have a choice. She'll understand. Now look, you've got water and food, you've got gas, just take a --"

"I'm not leaving without Sarah, JJ," John B said firmly, his eyes drifting to Slater. "Would you leave without Slater?"

JJ fell silent, and his eyes drifted to the girl. Slater knew in that moment that JJ's answer would be a resounding no. She'd never leave without him either, but that wasn't what John B needed to hear.

"Yes, he would, John B," Slater said quietly, taking a step between the two friends. "And I'd want him to, if it meant he'd be safe."

Thunder rolled in the distance, bringing John B to attention. He looked at his friends and nodded, then hopped aboard the boat.

"Alright, saddle her up, saltwater cowboy," JJ said, hopping off the boat. "Let's do this."

The other pogues scrambled overboard, hurrying to help John B detach the boat from the pier. Slater took a step back, wondering how the hell her summer had come to this. At the beginning of it, all she'd do was work and eat ice cream and go surfing with Maeve. Even at the beginning of her friendship with the pogues, things had been easy. Drinking beer, hanging out at the chateau ... the treasure hunt.

The gold and the treasure hunt seemed like a fever dream of the past, compared to what had happened in the past twenty-four hours. Even her first kiss with JJ seemed like ages ago.

Just as they were about to push John B afloat, he took a step forward. "Hey, hey," he interrupted, causing the group to freeze. "Look, I'm sorry for basically throwing us off a cliff this summer, with the whole treasure hunt thing," he said, tears pooling in his brown eyes.

He sniffled as JJ said, "Hey man, we were bound to jump off a cliff at some point, right?"

John B chuckled and nodded. "Yeah."

"At least we did it together though, right?" JJ said, slinging his arms around Slater, Kiara, and Pope. "Pogue style."

"Pogue style," John B echoed.

"Go on, get out of here," Kiara interjected, wiping at her eyes as she smiled up at John B. "Please. Otherwise all our work will have been for nothing."

"Alright, alright," John B said, turning around. "I love you guys. And tell Sarah I said goodbye, okay?"

"We'll tell her," Kiara sniffled, leaning her head onto Slater's shoulder.

"Love you too, bro," JJ muttered, raising his hand from Pope's back to give John B a wave.

"I'll see you in two months, down in Brownsville." John B gave them one final wave before stepping into the cockpit. The pogues watched from the dock as he sailed away into the sunset.

Once the boat had disappeared into the marsh, the wake of the Phantom barely visible in the slow water, Kiara pulled Pope aside, while Slater turned to JJ, watching as he stared out at the horizon.

"Penny for your thoughts?" She asked, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.

"That depends," he said, turning towards her with the slightest of smiles. "Do you have an actual penny?"

She shook her head and laughed. "No, no I do not."

"Well then, I guess I have nothing to say to you," he teased, pressing a gentle kiss to the side of her head. "You sure you're feeling okay?" He gently brought his fingers up to her head, where she'd hit the boat. There was a cut that had since dried, but otherwise, it didn't look too bad.

"Well, I don't think my brain is bleeding internally, if that's what you're asking," she replied. "But thank you for caring."

"Anytime, milady," he drawled, giving her hand a squeeze.

Sirens, real sirens, not those from stolen police cars, echoed down the road, accompanied with flashing red and blue lights.

"I don't think those are John B," Pope said, ushering for JJ and Slater to join him and Kiara. "We gotta go."

JJ helped Slater to her feet, but before they could even reach the end of the dock, the four friends were surrounded.

Victor Shoupe hopped out of the lead car, along with a handful of other deputies and even state agents.

"Hands up," an unfamiliar officer, dressed in an SBI uniform and holding a pistol, ordered, and the pogues reluctantly obliged. Vic was the only officer to keep his gun sheathed, though he led the group of officers forward.

"Goddammit, we're too late," Vic said, brushing past Slater as he walked out on the dock, scanning the water. "Bratcher, have your guys stand down."

"He could still be around," the other officer, Bratcher, Slater presumed, said, shaking his head. "Search the grounds, and search these four."

"I said, have your guys stand down!" Vic yelled, swiveling around to face the SBI agent and the other officers. He made a beeline for one of the SBI agents that had his weapon aimed on Slater, even though the girl's arms were well above her head. "Get your gun off of my fuckin' daughter," he said, shoving the man. "Let me talk to these kids."

"Dad--"

"Don't start, Slater," Vic hissed, shaking his head as he paced around the group. "Where the hell is he? Where the hell is he?"

When the group remained silent, he took a step towards JJ, a sneer on his face. "JJ? I see you're livin' up to your name. Funny, I thought my daughter told me otherwise." Shoupe turned back towards Slater. "I thought you said you didn't know where John B was?"

"I didn't know," Slater admitted. "When you asked me. And I don't now," she said truthfully.

Vic turned his attention on Pope. "What about you, Pope? This isn't a fucking game! I know you want to do the right thing, so where is he? Where did he go? Kiara?"

When it became evident that the pogues' lips were sealed, Vic swore and kicked at the pier with his boot, spinning on his heel as he marched back towards the other officers. "Dammit, I don't have time for this! Get them in the squads, we'll continue back at base." His eyes narrowed on Slater and JJ. "I want these two in my car."

Pope and Kiara were carted off by Deputy Plumb, while Vic ushered Slater and JJ into the backseat of his own squad. Agent Bratcher moved to take the front passenger seat, but Vic quickly shook his head. "If you don't mind, Agent Bratcher, I'd like a word in private with my daughter and her friend."

Bratcher's eyes widened as he made the connection between Slater and Vic, and he quickly nodded. "Yes sir. I'll ride back with Plumb and the other two."

Vic nodded. "Thank you."

As soon as the door was closed, Slater pounded on the caging that separated the back and front seats. "So what, you're actually treating me like a prisoner now? Why don't you just throw us in handcuffs?"

"I might, if you don't put on your damn seatbelt!" Vic yelled back, putting the car into drive and flicking the lights and sirens back on. "Slater Althea Cambry, I do not have the energy or time to fight with you right now, so unless you plan to tell me something useful, I suggest you keep your mouth shut!"

"Althea?" JJ echoed, a snort escaping his lips as he laughed into the back of his hand.

"You too, Maybank."

"Sorry sir," JJ quipped, still laughing to himself. "I just didn't know Slater's middle name was Althea."

"I will not be discussing Slater's middle name with you, JJ," Vic snapped, glaring at JJ and Slater from his rearview mirror.

"Ooookay," JJ said, slouching back in his seat. "Well, Shoupe, I really don't want to tell you how to do your job, or how to be a father, but I think if I were you, and I had thrown my daughter so carelessly into the back of a squad car, I would probably check to see if she had a head injury or not first."

"JJ..." Slater groaned.

Vic's eyebrows furrowed in the mirror. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Rafe Cameron shoved her into a boat and she hit her head pretty damn hard, and we're all fairly certain she has a concussion, but she's too damn stubborn to get it checked out! Stubborn as my cousin Ricky's old pet donkey, probably has you to thank for that," JJ muttered. "You said to let you know if I had any useful information, and well, I'd consider that pretty damn useful."

"Slater, is he telling the truth? Did you hit your head?" Vic said, concern filling his angry face.

"Yeah."

"Jesus fucking Christ," he muttered, shaking his head. "You weren't going to tell me?"

"It's not important," Slater replied. "Like you'd give a shit anyways."

"Of course I give a shit, Slater! That's all I do is give a shit, even when you seem not to! Everything I do for you and your sister, everything you hate me for, I do to protect you. And now, you're sitting in the back of my squad car with a Maybank and a goddamn concussion." Vic grumbled something incomprehensible before muttering, "We've got paramedics on standby. I'll have them check you over." His eyes drifted to JJ in the mirror, studying his bruised and cut face. "You too, Maybank. You don't look any better." 

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ author's note ✫・゜・。.

victor shoupe redemption arc coming soon??? i know he's done some shady things in the show, but i honestly believe he's a decent human being. and, in this story, he'd do anything to protect his family. you guys have no idea how much i want to write a scene of vic beating the shit out of rafe and ward. 

anyways .......

happy sunday! what did you guys do to enjoy the weekend? 

i was actually off, so i spent some time outside enjoying the sun, because literally all it's done is rain this summer. i also got some reading and writing done, hit up the farmers market, and made some delicious food.

don't get me wrong, i enjoy my job, but i'm sad it's monday tomorrow. summer goes by way too fast! it's my favorite season and it feels like it's literally the shortest.

thanks for reading!

xx,

madi