Outfits Link:

https://urstyle.fashion/collections/167470

Day One

Morning - The Chateau - Outside

Outside the Chateau, before sunrise, John B was seen sleeping in the hammock hanging from the trees.

John B: (voice over) "Look, for nine months, everybody's tried to get me and Isa to believe our dad's dead. They say we're in denial. Whatever."

⚓️

Inside - Living Room

Isa was sleeping on the couch.

Isa: (voice over) "Denial's underrated. You should try it sometime. It's highly effective, and it's only denial if you're wrong."

⚓️

Outside

John B was waking up on the hammock, looking around, realizing where he had fallen asleep. He took out the compass from his pocket, looking it over in his hand.

John B: (voice over) "It doesn't make any sense. Our dad is the last guy who would ever get lost at sea. This compass coming back to us, our father's compass, which was passed down for generations, it's a sign."

⚓️

Inside - Living Room

The rooster in the chicken coup was the one making enough noise to wake up Isa. Isa sighed, groaning, looking around to see that she had fallen asleep on the couch in the living room. She took out a pocket knife, opening it, flipping it open, looking over the blade.

Isa: (voice over) "Our dad's still alive. And John B and I are gonna find him."

⚓️

Figure 8 Dock

John B rode over the water up to the My Druthers boat which belonged to the Cameron family. He boarded the ship, going to replace the oxygen tanks and bags of scuba gear, about to step inside the main area when he saw Sarah sleeping on the couch inside. He tried and failed to be very quiet, walking inside with the bags and the oxygen tanks.

Sarah stirred awake, but didn't open her eyes, thinking it was her little sister. "Wheezie, shut up." One of the oxygen tanks clinked against the table. Sarah ran her hands over her head, raising her head to see John B. "You're not Wheezie."

"Correct," John B agreed. "Yeah. I'm sorry."

Sarah sighed. "What are you doing?"

"Uh, I'm just dropping off some scuba gear," John B answered. Sarah sat up. "What are--what are you doing... here?"

Sarah looked to the side. "It's our boat. It's also the only place with air conditioning."

John B nodded. "Right."

"Did you, um, top up the tanks?" Sarah asked.

"Uh, no," John B answered, coming up with an excuse. "No, power's down, so the compressors were off."

Sarah didn't buy it. "So you're sneaking onto our boat at 5:00 AM with empty tanks? I'll make sure to tell Ward."

John B tried not to react, tilting his head. "Okay, okay." He turned away. "Cool, cool." He took the bags off, placing them down. "Just drop these off."

Sarah nodded sarcastically. "Yeah, yeah, the middle of the room is fine."

"Yeah, this is pretty much what he told me to do," John B told her.

"Bye," Sarah said.

John B turned to leave, but then turned back. "Actually, you know what? What exactly were you gonna tell your dad?"

Sarah shook her head with a faux innocent face. "Nothing much. Just that you poached our scuba gear."

John B sighed, looking away. "Okay, fuck." He looked at Sarah. "I borrowed it for a few hours." Sarah nodded knowingly. "Okay? And then I brought it back intact and unharmed."

Sarah smirked at seeing John B squirm. "Minus air."

John B looked away in annoyance before looking back. "Look, please don't tell him. Okay? He'll fire me."

"What are you gonna do?" Sarah asked. "Pull a gun on me?"

John B sighed. "Okay, I didn't know JJ was gonna do that."

"That's convenient to believe," Sarah replied. "Maybe you should get better friends."

"Well, maybe you should get a better boyfriend," John B retorted.

Sarah scoffed. "Like one who doesn't poach?"

John B tilted his head back. "Look, please, just don't tell him. Okay?"

"Relax," Sarah told him. "I'm not gonna tell him anything. Your secret's safe with me, John B." John B gave a half appreciative smile, nodding. "Okay, you can leave now."

"Right, yeah," John B agreed. "I'll leave--I'll leave that right there."

Sarah laid back down to go back to sleep. "Bye."

John B walked out. "Later."

Unknown to them, Wheezie was actually in the room hiding on the stairs.

⚓️

The Chateau - Living Room

Isa had gone back to sleep after the rooster woke her up earlier.

John B nudged Isa awake. "Why are you sleeping on the couch?"

Isa mumbled tiredly, eyes still closed. "Because I'm too tired to walk to bed. So shut the fuck up and let me go back to sleep." John B smirked, chuckling. Isa looked up, seeing that John B still had a black eye from his fight with Topper. "Is it bad I still wanna kill Topper?"

"You're not gonna kill Topper," John B told her.

"What if I just punch him in the face the next time I see him?" Isa asked. "Break his nose a little?"

"Isa," John B said.

Isa shrugged. "I'm only going to hit him a little with a chair. Or softly run him over with the HMS Pogue. Or accidentally drown his ass in the ocean and see how he likes it."

They heard pounding on the door. "DCS! I know you're in there!"

John B looked toward the door. "Shit!" Isa sat up in a rush, looking out the window next to her behind the couch. JJ jumped in front of the window, causing Isa and John B both to jump, but John B was the only one that said, "Whoa!"

(Song:) It's All In Your Head - The Shivas

JJ laughed, pointing at them. "Gotcha, slicks. You should've seen your faces. Your face was like..."

Isa rolled her eyes. "Yeah, let's see if you're still laughing when I kick your ass. I'm too tired for this shit, bro."

JJ entered with a chuckle, setting the tone for mischief.

Kaylee trailed in, grinning. "Apologies, everyone. Stopping JJ's antics is like trying to stop a comet. Impossible. 'Stupid' might as well be his middle name."

In playful retaliation, JJ ensnared Kaylee in a one-armed hug, launching a tickle attack. Kaylee's laughter bubbled as she wriggled away.

John B just shook his head, casting a 'you're impossible' glance at JJ after the DCS false alarm. "JJ, why do you have to channel your inner jester at times like these?"

⚓️

On the Road - Twinkie (The Van)

John B was driving. JJ was in the passenger seat, feet on the dash. Isa and Kaylee were in the back.

JJ glanced at Isa with a mischievous grin. "Just putting it out there. Why not give it a shot with Kiara? She's totally into you. Always all 'Oh, Isa' and stuff."

Isa rolled her eyes with exaggerated flair. "Really? She does that?"

Kaylee let out a snort. "Seriously, JJ? You want to haunt me and John B with images of our sisters together?"

JJ just grinned and shrugged nonchalantly.

John B dismissed it with a wave. "You think that's bad? You didn't hear him at Scooter's place."

Kaylee grimaced. "I can only imagine, and I'd rather not."

JJ couldn't help but smirk. "All I said was Kie's dying to give Isa a taste of her 'Isa-cle'. Like an icicle. Clever, right?"

The collective groan from Kaylee, Isa, and John B filled the van.

"Dude," John B muttered in dismay.

"Are we really doing this again?" Isa sighed.

Kaylee shook her head in resignation. "Echoing my earlier sentiment: I'm officially done with that." JJ laughed at their reactions. "But I'll agree with one thing, Isa. I know you like Kie. And I know you are Kie's best friend. I don't know if it could go to more than that, considering her history, but..."

"What's the deal with her past?" JJ inquired.

"Mind your own beeswax," Kaylee retorted, feigning an attack on JJ.

JJ just grinned. "Way to be grown-up, Kay."

Isa was just exasperated with the conversation. "Can we stop talking about this, please? Besides, Kie kissed John B."

"She kissed me on the cheek," John B clarified. "It's not like we were making out or something."

JJ looked at Isa. "Low-hanging fruit, girl. Don't pretend you don't notice. I see it in your eyes. You're like 'I kinda like that', and you start blushing and shit." Kaylee flicked JJ in the back of the head. "Ow!"

Kaylee smirked.

Isa raised an eyebrow skeptically. "I blush?"

"Yes, you do," Kaylee replied.

"Really?" Isa questioned.

"Yes," Kaylee affirmed.

"Absolutely," JJ chimed in. "Besides, when was the last time you actually hooked up?"

Isa pondered for a moment. "Two weeks ago."

"A guy?" JJ inquired.

"Yep," Isa confirmed. "Now I'm on the lookout for a girl."

JJ smirked. "Playing the field, male and female. That's my girl. Though you don't need to be doing any looking when you literally have one right in front of you."

Isa gave JJ a push. "Shut up."

Kaylee smiled.

JJ leaned over to grab the compass on the dash.

John B reached over to grab the compass from JJ. "Hey, don't."

JJ moved the compass out of John B's reach. "I was just looking at it. I gotta admit, your father's compass in Scooter's boat, that's freaky."

Isa nodded in agreement. "Yeah, and that's why we're going to talk to Ms. Lana, figure this whole thing out."

Kaylee leaned against the wall of the van, crossing her arms. "I'm sure she would just love to talk to us. It's not like her husband just drowned or anything."

(Song Ends)

⚓️

Grubbs House - Outside

John B pulled up to the Grubbs house, and John B, JJ, Isa and Kaylee all got out of the van, heading over to the pink house that was covered in painted flowers and butterflies.

"You know what this house looks like?" JJ asked. "Whoever lives here smokes too much weed."

"Kinda like your daily routine, huh?" Kaylee retorted, casting a glance at JJ.

JJ gave Kaylee a sarcastic smile, and Kaylee smirked in return. They continued to walk through the yard, but stopped when they heard a crashing sound followed by glass smashing.

JJ held his hand out in front of Kaylee protectively, as the two exchanged a look with each other and John B and Isa, who had also stopped.

"Maybe we should come back," JJ suggested. "It's a little too soon."

"No, no, shut up," John B told him.

"Shut up, JJ," Kaylee whispered.

They crept closer to the house as Kaylee's hand slid into JJ's. They both looked down at their hands.

They heard Man 1 yell from inside. "Tell me where it is or I'll fuck you up!" Lana cried. "I'll sink you in the fucking--"

Lana screamed. "You're hurting me!"

JJ, Kaylee, Isa and John B all jumped a bit from hearing Lana scream.

"I--" JJ started.

"Shut up," Isa whispered. "Come on."

They continued along, running to hide along the outside of the house.

Man 2 yelled at Lana. "Where the fuck is it, you bitch?"

Lana was sobbing, crying from pain. "I don't know!"

"Is it here in this house?" Man 2 yelled. "Is it somewhere else?"

Isa, John B, JJ and Kaylee were right next to the house now, crouching beneath an open window. John B tried peering up into the window, but Isa pulled John B down so they didn't get spotted or caught.

"Still think we should stay?" Kaylee whispered sarcastically.

Man 1 was still interrogating Lana. "The compass wasn't in the boat!" Isa and John B's eyes widened. "Where is it, Lana?"

"I don't know!" Lana cried.

Kaylee winced at the sound of Lana's crying and screaming, yearning to help but aware that doing so would expose them and lead to harm.

JJ, observing Kaylee's distress, whispered in her ear. "Don't listen."

There was a louder crashing noise from just above the four Pogues. Flecks of paint chipped off the wall and fell down onto them, into their hair.

"Is that paint?" John B asked.

"Yeah, it's paint," Isa answered.

The four of them tried to shake the paint out of their hair.

Man 2 looked at Man 1. "Let's get the hell out of here, man!"

Isa and John B crept closer to the corner of the house.

"We should go," JJ whispered. "He's got smuggler written all over hi--"

John B turned back to look at JJ. "Shut up."

Kaylee and JJ followed Isa and John B.

"Got smuggler written all over him," JJ finished.

"Shut up," Kaylee whispered. "Shut up."

Lana's sobs could be heard from inside the house. The four Pogues peered around the corner as the two men got into their boat.

Isa recognized them. "Oh, those were the guys that shot at us."

"Go back, go back, go back," John B insisted, as they shuffled backwards, trying to hide from the men.

Once the men drove off, the four Pogues crept around the edge of the house, walking in from the back patio. 

⚓️

Inside

Isa, John B, Kaylee and JJ could hear Lana's crying and sobbing, looking around, noticing the house was a mess, and everything was knocked over, some things broken.

"Ms. Lana?" Kaylee asked in concern. She followed the sound of her cries, to the bathroom where Lana was on the floor, immediately kneeling down next to her. "Hey. Hey! Hey, are you okay?"

Isa, John B and JJ walked closer.

Isa knelt next to Kaylee in front of Lana, while John B and JJ stood behind Isa and Kaylee. The four of them noticed the shards of broken mirror all over the floor.

Isa looked at Lana. "It's okay, it's okay."

Lana just looked at them with a terrified look.

"Guys, she's tweaking," JJ commented.

Kaylee looked at Lana. "Do you need a doctor? Let's call the sheriff's department."

Lana finally spoke up, shaking her head worriedly. "No, no, no. No cops, please."

JJ shook his head. "Mm, that's not good. Come on, guys. Let's just go."

"You shouldn't be here," Lana told them, her voice cracking as more tears rolled down her cheeks.

"That's enough for me," JJ told them, reaching toward Isa and Kaylee for their arms.

Isa and Kaylee brushed him off.

John B walked closer. "Wait, wait."

"What do you know about these guys?" Kaylee asked.

"They were looking for something," Lana answered, looking between Isa and John B.

"Does it have anything to do with this?" John B asked, reaching into his pocket, pulling out the compass. Lana stopped crying immediately as her eyes landed on the compass, her face dropping. "Do you know anything about this?"

"It's our father's," Isa explained. "And Scooter had it."

Lana shook her head. "Scooter didn't have it, okay? Don't tell anyone that you have that."

"Why?" John B asked.

"Come on," JJ urged.

Lana's voice gradually started to raise. "They can't know that you have that! You've gotta get out of here!"

"What do you know about the compass?" Isa asked.

"Go!" Lana yelled. "Get out!"

"We gotta go," JJ tried to convince them one last time. "Let's go."

John B and JJ helped Isa and Kaylee up and they ran out of the house.

⚓️ Worlds Colliding (Outer Banks) ⚓️

Figure 8 Neighborhood

Kelce, Topper and Rafe walked along together, looking at the leftover damage from the hurricane.

"Jeez, man, this is nuts," Topper remarked.

Rafe tilted his head back. "Agatha's a bitch."

Kelce chuckled. "Damn right, she is. A bitch."

Topper put a hand to her head. "I mean, I just... I can't get it out of my head. It's just on repeat. 'Your move, broski'."

"Bro, he had a semiautomatic pointed at your head," Kelce pointed out.

Topper tapped Kelce's shoulder. "That's what I'm saying. It's insane."

"Safety off," Kelce added. "That Pogue."

Rafe adjusted his sunglasses. "They're freaking Pogues, man." He looked at Topper. "You know you should get a piece."

"What do you mean?" Topper asked.

"You gotta fight fire with fire and defend the homestead," Rafe told him. "Right?"

Kelce nodded. "Yeah. It's better than being caught without one, I can tell you that much."

Topper turned to face them. "Listen, guys. I--I'm gonna get him back, all right? I'm making it a little project of mine."

"Yeah, you should," Rafe told him.

Kelce looked away, seeing Lia across the way. "Yo, that's Lia. Rafe, you said to let you know if we see her out so you could let your dad know."

Topper and Rafe followed his gaze.

Lia was kneeling in front of a little girl. "So you left her in the boat?"

"Mm-hmm," the girl answered.

Rafe raised his sunglasses, rolling his eyes. "The fuck does Lia think she's doing? She's just dying to get locked up by Dad again."

Topper frowned. "Your dad locks Lia up?"

Rafe shrugged. "In her room. With a bunch of therapists always coming and going. She's lucky he doesn't lock her up in a psyche ward."

Lia saw them and heard them, frustrated because she knew Rafe would rat on her, but at the moment, she didn't care because she wanted to help the little girl, standing up, still level with the little girl to try and help her. "Okay, can you tell me what she looks like?"

"She has a trunk and blue ears," the little girl answered.

Lia nodded, standing up straight. "Okay. I'm gonna get her for you."

"Be careful of electricity," the little girl warned.

Lia stepped off the dock onto a fallen light post. "Don't worry, I'll be okay. It's dangerous, okay? Stay there."

Topper frowned. "What's she doing?"

Sarah walked out off the Tannyhill Estate, seeing Lia as she was balancing on the post. "Lia, what the hell are you doing?"

Rafe shook his head. "Great, just what we need. Watch Lia fall and Sarah will make a big drama out of it. Sarah always makes a big deal about how she's 'taking care' of Lia."

Sarah looked up at Lia. "Hey, there's 14,000 volts in those wires." Lia continued on, keeping her balance. "Hey, Lia, be careful!"

Lia looked from Sarah to Kelce, Topper and Rafe, and seeing Rose walking off the Tannyhill land toward them, sighing in frustration. "Fuck. Can this get any worse?"

Rose walked closer. "Oh, you gotta be kidding me. Lia, get down now!"

Lia rolled her eyes. "Sarah, Rose, calm down. I'm an athlete. I got this."

Even while Lia was walking across the post, she was acting slightly tired and out of it phase like her medication's side effects since she was aware of Rafe, Sarah and Rose all watching her.

"You're gonna get electrocuted!" Rose told her. "Get down!"

"Lia, come on," Sarah told her.

"I'm fine, Sarah," Lia told her, continuing on along the post.

Rafe took off his sunglasses, looking at Kelce and Topper. "Sarah's just mad because Lia's getting the attention instead of her for once."

Kelce, Topper and Rafe, along with Sarah and Rose, continued to intently watch Lia.

Rose shook her head in frustration. "When I tell your dad about this, Lia..."

Rafe raised an eyebrow. "Little fried Lia."

"Rafe, your sister's crazy, man," Kelce told him.

Rafe shrugged. "Has been since what happened earlier this year."

Lia reached the boat on the other end of the light post, looking inside, looking back at the little girl. "I see her!"

The little girl smiled, giggling.

Topper raised his eyebrows. "The hell is she on?"

"A lot of things," Rafe replied. "Dad's got Lia on so many meds we might as well have a pharmacy."

"Lia!" Rose snapped.

Rafe rolled his eyes, calling out to his sister finally, annoyed, walking closer. "I swear to God, Lia, when I tell Dad, this will make the last thing I was gonna tell him look like nothing."

Lia glared at Rafe because of the hinted blackmail, but intent to ignore him so she could get this done without falling.

Kelce and Topper walked closer to stand next to Rafe's side again, all three still eyeing Lia like she was insane, but not caring enough to do anything to stop her.

Sarah gave their brother a look. "Rafe! You and Rose threatening her with telling Dad all the time isn't gonna help anything."

"This is the type of shit why Lia's an outcast," Kelce remarked.

Lia leaned over to grab the stuffed animal she was getting for the little girl, very much aware of the fact that everyone was still watching.  Once Lia got the stuffed animal, she retreated back over the light post, just as careful as the trip over to the boat, whispering to herself about Rose and the boys (including her brother) watching but not seeming to actually care much unlike Sarah. "Fucking assholes."

"What was that?" Rose asked.

Lia gave a sarcastic smile, the only reason why she didn't repeat what she said for them to hear because there was still a little girl there waiting for her stuffed animal and Lia didn't want to curse in front of her loud enough for her to hear. "Nothing, Rose." She jumped down once she reached safe ground, handing the stuffed animal to the little girl, smiling. "There you go."

The little girl hugged Lia tightly as Lia returned the hug. "Thank you, Lia! Thank you!"

Lia smiled. "Go on home now, okay?"

The little girl nodded, running away to go home.

Sarah sighed in relief, placing her hands on her hips, tilting her head. 

Rose shook her head, looking away. "For the love of God."

Rose walked away to Tannyhill.

Sarah gave Lia a look. "Don't ever scare me like that again."

"I could've done a hell of a lot worse to scare you and everybody else, Sarah," Lia replied. "I was just helping a little girl get her toy back."

"Still," Sarah told her.

Lia walked toward the boys, looking at Kelce. "By the way, Tweedledee." She looked at Topper. "Tweedledum." She looked at Rafe. "Tweedle dipshit." They raised their eyebrows in surprise. "I heard every word you said about me, bitching about me and things you don't understand like a bunch of pussies." She walked past, turning back to point at her brother as Rafe turned to look at her in shock for the way she was talking to them. "And, Rafe, you might want to tone down on the blackmail unless you wanna turn 'Little fried Lia' into 'Little fried Rafe'."

Lia smirked at their speechless and shocked expressions in satisfaction, flipping them off with both her hands, turning around, walking away.

Kelce, Topper and Rafe were left speechless by what Lia said.

Sarah couldn't help but smile and laugh quietly, shaking her head, walking after Lia toward the house. "Let's do a little damage control from that little stunt before Dad finds out and ships you off somewhere."

Lia looked at Sarah, shrugging, looking away as the two continued to walk to their house.

⚓️

Later

Wheezie and Topper were walking together.

"I can't believe Lia did that," Wheezie admitted. "I mean, she could have died. She does scary stuff like that all the time. If Sarah or I say something, it'll be like we're trying to tell her what to do, and she gets enough of that from Rafe, Rose and Dad after what happened. The way they have her on lockdown, on all these meds that turn her into like a zombie with all these doctors. It's unbelievable. Though no wonder why she wants to break free more because of it."

"Yeah, I'm not asking about Lia, Wheezie," Topper told her. "I'm asking what to do about Sarah, since she spends all her time with Lia and trying to take care of her."

"Well, Sarah actually likes a guy who cares about the way she takes care of Lia," Wheezie told him. "And you didn't care this afternoon, and you tried to convince them at the party that you did, but you failed big time. You might want to step it up or you'll end up just like Denny."

"Wait, Denny?" Topper repeated. "What are you talking about? What happened with Denny?"

"She cheated on him," Wheezie answered. "And the guy before that. You know what that means? You're next. You're the next sucker up. You should've seen her flirting with John B this morning."

Topper raised his eyebrows in shock. "John--John B? The guy that works on the boat?"

Wheezie nodded. "Mm-hmm. Yeah." Topper scoffed. "She caught him stealing stuff off the boat. Did she tell anybody? Nope. She was all, 'John B, what are you doing here?'"

Sarah walked closer. "What's up, Top?" She put a hand on her sister's shoulder. "Hey, Sneezie."

Wheezie gave her an annoyed look, shaking her off. "That's not my name."

"No way," Sarah replied. She turned to kiss Topper. "Hey, been looking all over for you."

Topper's eyes were open and he didn't really kiss back.

Wheezie rolled her eyes, groaning, turning to walk away. "Oh, God."

⚓️

The Chateau - Porch

Kaylee, Isa, John B and JJ were updating Kie and Pope about what they saw, on the porch. Pope and Kie were sitting on the couch. Isa was sitting in a chair, feet propped up on the table. John B was sitting on the railing. Kaylee was sitting on the table.

JJ was walking around, acting out the scene from earlier. "And then we were right outside like this." He leaned against the wall of the Chateau. "And all we hear is just, 'Bam, bam, bam! Knocking paint off the wall, G! From the inside! All right? And I'm just looking at them, like, wait! First off, look at this shit!"

JJ walked over in front of Pope and Kie, shaking flakes of paint out of his hair onto them.

Pope looked at JJ like he was a freak. "What the hell?"

Kie had a disgusted look. "That's dandruff. Disgusting."

Pope motioned for JJ to stop. "Okay, thank you."

"Look at all that," JJ told them. "All right? That's paint. At that point, I was just, like... I'm waiting for death."

JJ turned to look at Isa, Kaylee and John B.

"Stop being so dramatic," Isa told him.

"Oh, okay, so you saw the guys that shot at us, right?" Pope asked.

"Yeah," Kaylee answered.

"Did you get a good description of them?" Pope asked. "What did they look like?"

"Anything," Kie added. "Anything's helpful."

"Anything we could bring to like a police report maybe?" Pope asked. "If we tell them about how Kaylee got grazed, and show Kay's wound, then they have to arrest them if we find them, right?"

"In theory," Kaylee answered.

"Yeah," Kie agreed.

"Burly," JJ answered.

Pope gave JJ an unimpressed look. "Burly?"

"Yeah," JJ answered. "You know, like--"

"That's not very helpful," Kie cut him off.

"Okay, well, no, like the type of guy at my dad's garage," JJ added. "I mean, you guys know he made cargo hides for drug smugglers."

Kaylee nodded. "Yeah, yes. No, we know."

"I can tell you with full confidence, guys," JJ told them, pacing back and forth before resting against the wall. "These boys, these killers..." He took a hit from his juul. "They're square groupers."

"They're square groupers, like Narcos square groupers?" Pope asked, moving his hands over his face. "Like Pablo Escobar square grouper?"

JJ nodded. "Yeah, man."

Kie gave the boys a look. "You guys, not everything is a Kingpin movie."

"Okay, so what does these square groupers look like, specifically?" Pope asked.

"Brown hair, black clothes, leather jackets," Isa answered.

"That's it?" Pope asked. "Brown hair, black clothes with a leather jacket? You know how many people are out there just like that?"

"You weren't there, bro!" JJ told him, clearly panicking. "Okay, dude? I wasn't taking little mental polaroids the whole time. Man, I was under duress. Okay?"

"Hey," Kaylee said, hand on JJ's arm. "It's okay."

JJ looked down at Kaylee's hand on his arm, looking up, nodding. "But I can tell you by the way Ms. Lana was screaming, these guys are some serious hombres, man. It's a heavy vibe right now, okay? I'm not liking this very much."

Isa looked at John B. John B took the compass out, flipping it open.

"Okay, why would they want the compass?" Kie asked.

"It's a piece of shit," Pope critiqued. "You couldn't pawn it off for five bucks if you wanted to." Realizing what he said, he looked at Isa and John B. "No offense. I know it's in your family."

John B was thinking. "The office."

"What?" Pope asked.

John B looked at Isa. "Dad, our dad's office. He always kept the office locked because he was worried about his competitors stealing his Royal Merchant research."

Isa realized where he was going with this. "We used to laugh at him like he was gonna find it."

They all stood, walking into the house.

⚓️

Inside - Hallway

Isa led the Pogues toward the office. "Now that he's gone, we've just left it like he had it."

"Yeah, for when he gets back," John B agreed.

JJ, Pope and Kie shared a look with each other that made Kaylee give a look. JJ, Pope and Kie didn't think that Big John was alive, but Kaylee was giving it the benefit of the doubt.

⚓️

Big John's Office

John B finally unlocked the door so they could walk into the office.

Pope was in awe. "I've slept over here like 600 times and I've never seen this door open."

Isa and John B walked over to a table with papers scattered everywhere.

John B grabbed one of the boards off the wall, laying it on the table to show them. "Here, look. This is the original owner, right here."

John B pointed to a scrap of paper.

Kaylee read from the paper. "Robert Q. Routledge. 1880 to 1920." She pointed to a black and white picture of a man holding the compass in his hand. "There's the lucky compass, right there."

"Actually, he was shot after he bought it," Isa explained. "Then the compass was shipped back to Henry. Then Henry was killed in a crop-dusting accident when he had the compass. After he died, the compass was given to Stephen. Stephen had the compass with him when he died in Vietnam."

They all shared a mutual worried look at the obvious pattern.

"Let me guess, he died in action, right?" JJ asked.

Isa shrugged. "He was killed by a banana truck. In--in country."

John B took a breath. "Anyways, after that, Stephen passed the compass down to him, our dad."

"Hm, sounds like there's a reoccurring pattern here," Kaylee stated.

"Yeah, you have a death compass," Pope agreed.

Isa shook her head. "No, we don't, guys."

"You have a death compass," JJ reiterated. "Get rid of it. It's cursed and it's made it's way back to you two."

John B twisted the compass open. "Look, our dad used to talk about this compartment in here, where soldiers used to hide secret notes."

Isa and John looked at the compartment, seeing that there was writing on the inside.

"What's that?" Kie asked.

"It wasn't there before," Isa admitted. "That's Dad's handwriting."

"How can you know that?" Pope asked doubtfully.

"Because he does those weird R's with like the curve," John B answered.

JJ took the compass. "Let me see it. Red--Rout--No, I think that's an A."

"It says Redfield," Kaylee told them.

"Right," JJ said awkwardly.

"What's Redfield?" Kie asked.

"Besides the most common name in the county, you mean?" Pope asked.

"Maybe it's a clue," Isa stated. "Maybe it's a clue to where our dad's hiding."

John B nodded in agreement.

"Okay..." JJ trailed off slowly.

"A clue?" Pope repeated. "Come on, Isa. That's--"

Kaylee cleared her throat loudly, giving Pope a look. "If it is a clue, maybe it's an anagram?"

John B grabbed a piece of paper, setting it down on the table. "Yes, perfect. Anagram. You need paper. Here you go."

John B slid the paper toward Pope.

Pope was at his wit's end with the rooster's tenth crowing concert. "How can you concentrate with that thing constantly crowing?"

"JJ and Kaylee are fans of our vocal virtuoso," Isa remarked.

"Absolutely," JJ concurred.

"I love the rooster," Kie chimed in.

"He's quite the charmer," Kaylee reflected. "Cute little guy."

Pope wrote down something on the paper. "Okay, let me think."

They spouted out random words that could be it.

"What about Ritalin?" JJ asked.

"Dreidel?" Kie suggested. "Fiddler?"

"Let's stick with what we're..." Pope trailed off.

"Defile," Kaylee added. "No, that's missing a letter."

John B looked out the window. "Guys! Guys! Somebody's here."

"Who?" Pope asked.

They made their way to stand by John B, peering out the window as a black truck came to a stop in front of the house. The two shady men got out of the truck.

"Holy shit," Kaylee whispered.

"Guys, guys, is that them?" Kie asked.

Isa nodded. "Fuck."

"This is suboptimal," Pope stated.

"Isa, John B, I told you," JJ told them, backing away from the window. "Why does it always--"

JJ started to freak out.

Kaylee grabbed JJ's hand, placing a finger to his lips. "JJ, hey. Look at me. We're gonna be okay."

"JJ, where's the gun?" John B asked.

"Gun?" JJ repeated. "I, uh, I don't..."

Kie was on the verge of tears. "Now, you don't have the gun, the one time we need the gun?"

"Hey, just think, okay?" Kaylee asked. "Where did you have it before?"

JJ took a deep breath to calm himself. "It was in my backpack, and then I..."

"Backpack," John B repeated. "On the porch."

JJ nodded. "It's on the porch."

"Go, go, get it," Isa urged.

"I'll go with you," Kaylee offered. "I got a lighter and aerosol hairspray in my bag."

Kie gave her a look. "What, so you can burn something else down?"

"Do you see a better option?" Kaylee replied. "If these guys have their guns, and JJ runs out of ammo, we might need something else."

Isa, John B, Kie and Pope knew they didn't have a choice.

⚓️

Hallway

JJ and Kaylee exited the room, heading for the porch. However, JJ noticed two men approaching the porch just as Kaylee, peering out the window to spot the men, failed to see them already there and nearly continued walking.

Quickly, JJ pulled Kaylee back, steering her into the hallway and pressing her against the wall, his hand on her waist and the other against the wall. "This is not what I imagined."

With a worried sigh, Kaylee nodded, and together they retreated back towards the office.

⚓️

Big John's Office

Kaylee closed and locked the door, looking at the others. "They're on the porch, guys."

Man 1 yelled from right outside the house. "John Routledge! Isa Routledge! Come on out now! Where's that compass?"

Kie started to cry. "Guys, what do we do?"

⚓️

Living Room

The two men walked into the house, trashing the place.

"Come on out, Routledges!" Man 2 called, picking up a glass, throwing it against the wall, making it shatter.

"Routledges!" Man 1 called. "Where you at, kids?"

⚓️

Big John's Office

Kaylee quickly closed the door, locking it. "Fuck this."

"We have to leave," Kie whispered.

Isa pointed to the window. "The window, get the window open."

JJ, John B and Pope were at the window in an instant.

"Hurry," Kie hissed.

The boys struggled to open the window. From another room, they could easily hear things being flipped over and smashed.

"What's happening?" Kaylee asked. "Why's it taking so long?"

"It's painted shut," John B answered.

Man 1 called out. "Routledges! John, Isa, come on out!"

"How do they know your names?" Kie asked.

Isa grabbed one of Big John's pocket knives off the table.

Man 1 threw plates against the wall. "Where the hell's that compass? Check the back rooms!"

"Come on, Isa," John B whispered.

Isa started to scrape at the paint layering the bottom of the window shut. "I'm hurrying."

Pope hushed them. "Shh, be quiet."

Kaylee was standing in front of the door. Seconds later, the knob twisted repeatedly as the shady men were trying to get in.

Man 2 yelled to them. "You better not be in there!"

Isa scraped faster at the bottom of the window. Man 2 started kicking at the door.

Isa finally scraped the rest off. "I got it."

JJ lifted the window. "Girls, go first, hurry up."

Kie quickly climbed out of the window, followed by Isa, then Kaylee. Pope followed, then JJ. John B grabbed the compass before climbing out the window. 

⚓️

Hallway

Man 2 took out his gun, shooting the lock on the office door.

⚓️

Kitchen

Hearing the gunshot, Man 1 drew his gun, searching the house.

They heard the rooster crowing.

⚓️

Hallway

Man 1 slowly made his way into the hallway toward Man 2, both with their guns ready.

⚓️

Big John's Office

Man 2 kicked the door open, but the Pogues had escaped the office through the window. Both men put their guns away and started to go through all of Big John's things.

Man 2 found blueprints, turning toward Man 1. "Ratter, check out these blueprints of the ship. The mother lode."

⚓️

Outside

Ratter and the other man walked out of the Chateau with boxes of Big John's things to take back to their car.

The Pogues were cramped in the chicken coop where the chickens were clucking loudly.

Isa looked out one of the small fenced parts of the hen house, beside John B, Kaylee and JJ, watching the men.

The rooster crowed loudly, not stopping.

"Do something, Pope," JJ commanded. "Shut him up."

"What do you want me to do?" Pope whispered, confused.

Kie was crying. "Pet it, or talk to it. I don't know."

"Tell it to shut the fuck up," Isa whispered.

"You do something," Pope whispered.

Ratter shut the back of the truck before looking over at the coop, where the rooster continued to chuck, flying closer to the Pogues, taking a few steps toward the coop.

"Fuck," Kaylee whispered.

John B whisper-hissed at JJ. "Do something."

JJ cursed quietly, knowing he didn't have a choice, quickly trying to grab the rooster.

Ratter walked closer, drawing his gun.

Kaylee whimpered as JJ finally grabbed a hold of the rooster and snapped its neck not so quickly. Kaylee covered her mouth to stifle a gasp, tears brimming in her eyes. JJ retreated to sit next to her, drawing his knees up and gazing at his hands, his face a mask of disbelief at his own actions. Kaylee turned to him, at a loss for words or actions.

Kie released a quiet sob, tears streaming down. Isa regarded Kie with worry, gently taking Kie's hand in a comforting grasp.

Ratter was still staring at the chicken coop intently with his gun ready to fire if he had to, but now it was mostly quiet.

The other man yelled for him. "Ratter! What the hell are you doing? Let's go!"

They got into the truck, driving off.

John B breathed heavily, peering out the window as the two drove away.

Kie released the cries she had suppressed. Isa embraced her, offering her shoulder for Kie to rest her head on.

Kaylee, visibly shaken by the recent fright, gazed at the rooster, tears streaming down her face.

JJ encircled Kaylee with his arms, resting his head against her shoulder and gently rubbing her back to soothe her. "I'm sorry."

As Kaylee's breathing steadied and she regained her composure, she lifted her head while maintaining contact with JJ. "I'm sorry."

⚓️

Tannyhill Estate - Lia's Room

Lia reclined in her lounge chair, which seemed as though it belonged in a high-end therapist's office, yet it was even nicer and more comfortable.

Ward walked into the room, clearly angry but trying not to let it get the better of him. "What the hell were you thinking?"

Lia glanced up, her expression distant, head tilted back as she gazed off to the side. Despite appearing exhausted, her tone remained sarcastic and casual. "What's the issue now?"

"It's you," Ward replied bluntly.

A faint chuckle escaped Lia. "Oh, join the club. I've been 'the problem' so many times I might just make it my middle name. Who spilled the beans this time? Rafe? Rose? Both? My bet's on both. They seemed pretty eager to wave their little tattle flag in my face."

"This isn't funny, Lia," Ward told her. "Your little stunt earlier was not funny."

"I wasn't trying to be funny," Lia replied. "I was just trying to help a little girl out and get her stuffed animal back for her."

"And that required you to scale a broken and bent over electrical post?" Ward asked skeptically.

Lia shrugged. "It was the only way to the boat, and the only way back to the dock."

"You could have died, Lia," Ward stressed.

"I didn't," Lia countered. "I didn't even get hurt, because I knew what I was doing."

"You never know what you are doing," Ward told her. "Not anymore."

Lia sighed. "Dad, come on. I'm not crazy. You know that. Please. I was just helping that little girl out, like I've always done with kids and other people who needed help. That's me getting back to normal. Isn't that what you and Rose wanted? What Sarah, Rafe and Wheezie wanted? For me to get back to normal? And now that I actually am--"

"There's a difference between normal and dangerous," Ward told her. 

Lia took a deep breath, hating to have to apologize when she had nothing to apologize for, but sounding completely sincere, an incredible liar and actor, enough to fool Ward. "Look, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that."

"You're right, you shouldn't have," Ward agreed.

"But I'm not going around and trying to get anyone to listen to me about what happened this year, right?" Lia asked. "I'm not begging for anyone to help me find out what really happened. The medications, the doctors... you wanted them to help me move on, keep me from feeling pain, keep me from freaking out all the time. And it's working, okay? I'm not having attacks. I'm not depressed. It's just... it's hard to focus with the meds. It's... it just makes me so tired."

"If you think that you can convince me to let you off your meds after this morning's display, you can forget it," Ward told her. "You are getting better, Lia. But you're far from being ready without your medications. And far from being ready to be out and about and taking care of yourself. We need to keep an eye on you and keep you from doing things like that."

"Dad, it wasn't a big deal," Lia told him. "You're actually trying to twist this into some kind of ridiculous intervention? I don't need one."

"I'd beg to differ," Ward replied. "Congrats, Lia. You just bought yourself a few hours alone in here. This is for your own good."

Ward walked out of the room, closing the door.

Lia understood his actions, rushing to the door. "Dad!" Ward had locked the door from the outside, making it impossible for Lia to unlock it from the inside. "Hey! Hey. Please, not again. Dad, you can't keep doing this to me." Ward remained silent, listening as Lia desperately pleaded for him to open the door. "Dad. Hey! Dad? Come back. I need to get out of here! Let me out!"

Ward exhaled deeply, his eyes shut. "You have to learn, Lia. You're improving. If you maintain your recent good behavior, things will return to normal sooner rather than later. However, if you persist with the kind of stunts you pulled earlier or what you've done earlier this year, this situation will persist, or I'll have to implement more stringent measures. Do you understand?"

Lia's glare was fixed on the door. She no longer appeared tired or distant but was visibly upset, though she realized she needed to continue pretending to be 'good' by his standards, or else the consequences could escalate. "Yes, sir."

"That's my girl," Ward responded. "Now, try to get some rest. You must be exhausted after today."

With a roll of her eyes, Lia turned away from the door.

Ward departed.

Lia waited to be sure that Ward was gone before punching the wall in a burst of anger, not hard enough to hurt herself or break the wall, just to release her anger and frustration about this entire thing, though there was so much anger, sadness and frustration inside that one punch was never going to be enough to let it out. She held her head in her hands, pacing, tears of anger and sadness in her eyes, a few tears falling, but she refused to cry.

⚓️

Topper's Mansion - Rooftop

Sarah and Topper were sitting on the rooftop.

Sarah was amused by how wobbly Topper was on his way to sit down. "You're looking a little unstable there."

Topper sighed. "All right. It's worth it for this view right here."

Sarah gestured to the view in front of them. "Oh, you mean that?"

"Oh, you too," Topper said. "No, you too." They both chuckled. "Oh, man." Topper hesitated, looking guarded. "Hey, uh... I heard you had a Pogue kinda sneaking around your house this morning."

Sarah frowned in confusion because she hadn't told anyone about that. "Who told you that?"

"Oh, it doesn't matter," Topper told her. "Um... yeah. It's just like, you gotta be careful. These Pogues are all just lowlifes, I mean..."

Sarah looked away. "Don't say that, Topper. You don't know them."

Topper nodded sarcastically. "Oh, okay. I'm sorry. I'm sorry that, uh... I'm sorry that they put a gun to my head." Sarah rolled her eyes. "You know what that feels like?"

"No, I don't," Sarah answered. "But to be fair, Topper--"

"They're dangerous," Topper cut her off.

Sarah continued. "To be fair, you threw the first punch."

Topper clearly didn't care, still sarcastic. "Oh, that's my bad. That's my.... I deserved that. Shit."

Sarah shook her head. "I didn't say that."

"You realize I'm just trying to protect you here?" Topper asked.

Sarah nodded. "I know, and I appreciate that. I get it."

"I don't think you're getting it, though," Topper told her. Taking Wheezie's advice on getting Sarah to listen and for them to be closer, Topper brought up the way Sarah cared about taking care of their other sister. "Lia was already hanging out on the beach, and she's already doing dangerous shit on her own like this morning. Imagine how bad it would be if she was hanging out with them more, or if you started hanging out with them?"

"Lia's not friends with Kie anymore, and she's not friends with the other Pogues," Sarah told him. "And Isa stood up for her at the party when that guy tried to take advantage of her. So what if JJ, Kaylee, Isa and John B wanted to give her a beer after that?"

"Yeah, because getting her drunk and leading to what happened after that was such a great experience," Topper replied sarcastically.

Sarah tilted her head. "Lia was already drunk before that. And John B works for my dad on the boats. What do you want me to do?"

Topper nodded slowly. "John B. Yeah. Yeah, yeah."

"What do you expect from me?" Sarah asked defensively. "Do you want me to use hand signals?"

"I don't know," Topper admitted. "I'm sorry that I just--just care about you." Sarah shook her head, fed up, rolling her eyes, standing, walking across the roof toward the bedroom window. "Yeah, just--you're just gonna walk away."

"Yeah, I am," Sarah answered. "I can't deal with this."

Sarah climbed through the window to go inside.

Topper knew he screwed up, sighing.

⚓️

Tannyhill Estate - Lia's Room

Lia pressed against the numerous windows in her room, attempting to open them, but they remained firmly sealed, just as she had anticipated. Ward had ordered the house to be renovated post-hurricane. "Fucking predictable."

Lia had known Ward would have the workers seal her windows to prevent her escape onto the balcony and down to the ground during her confinement. Despite knowing this, she had to test her theory.

In the hallway, Sarah walked along toward her room, calling across the hallway to Lia's room. "Lia! You up? Can we talk?"

Lia turned toward her door, instantly going over to it. "Sarah?"

Sarah walked over to Lia's room. "Top seriously has some nerve."

"I don't really give a fuck about what Topper had to say, Sarah," Lia told her bluntly. "Not after he, Kelce and Rafe were just enjoying the show and calling me crazy earlier."

"Are you okay?" Sarah asked, reaching for Lia's door handle when she reached her door, but she couldn't open it.

"What do you think?" Lia asked.

Sarah scoffed. "You've gotta be kidding me. Dad locked you in again? It wasn't even that big of a deal."

"Said the same thing myself," Lia replied.

Sarah was frustrated because there wasn't a turning lock on the doorknob, she needed a key to unlock the room. "I'm gonna have to go get Dad's key."

"No, no," Lia insisted to stop her. "If you do that, he's just gonna leave me in here longer like he did last time."

"We can't just let him keep doing this to you, Lia," Sarah told her.

Lia sighed heavily. "I know. But... please don't. Don't make anything worse. I just... I just want everything to get better, okay? I don't want it to get worse."

Sarah gave in, nodding. "Yeah. Okay. Did you check the windows? I know I told you before not to use the windows because then you'd have to climb down from the balcony outside and I don't want you to get hurt, but..."

"Of course I checked the windows," Lia answered. "Dad had them sealed shut after the storm."

Sarah turned to look at the door in surprise. "What?"

"Yeah," Lia answered.

Sarah exhaled deeply. "I know his methods suck, but I really believe he's just trying to look out for you and take care of you, Lia."

Lia rolled her eyes, unconvinced, yet unwilling to engage in another argument with Sarah as they evidently had in the past. "I don't want to talk about it. Sarah?"

"Yeah?" Sarah asked.

"Can you stay with me?" Lia asked.

Sarah nodded slightly, sadly. "Yeah. Yeah, I can do that." On either side of the door, Sarah and Lia both leaned on the door, sliding down to the floor. "I'm so sorry, Lia. I should've been here to stop him."

"We both know you can't stop Dad, Sarah," Lia replied. "None of us have been able to. But you're the only one that ever wants to. So thank you."

Sarah nodded sadly with tears in her eyes. "Of course."

⚓️

Outside

Topper walked onto the Tannyhill property to find Sarah and talk about their earlier argument.

Workers were outside and working on the house.

Ward was also outside, seeing Topper. "Hey, Top. How'd your family come through? Is the house okay?"

"Yeah, we're doing all right, sir," Topper answered. "We, you know, had a few leaks, had a tree come close to the house. But, yeah, we're doing all right."

Ward nodded. "Glad to hear it."

"Yeah," Topper agreed.

"Hey, listen, what's this I hear about a, uh, kid with a gun at the Point?" Ward asked. "Did that happen?"

"Yeah," Topper answered. "Yes, sir"

"My God," Ward said.

"You know how those Pogues are," Topper told him. "You just gotta watch them." He turned to walk away, but turned back. "Hey, sir, sir. Actually, one of the, um... I just want to say, one of these kids you gotta watch for, he works for you."

"What are you talking about?" Ward asked.

"It--it's that John B kid," Topper told him.

"What ab--" Ward started. "He's not the one that had the gun, is he?"

"No, sir, no," Topper answered. "It's just, um... I heard he likes to kinda help himself to gear. So, I'm just--"

"What gear, Topper?" Ward asked.

"I don't wanna be telling stories, sir," Topper lied, when it was clear that he did. "It's just, you got a lot of nice things laying around. I'd just make sure everything's nailed down. Good to see you, Mr. Cameron."

Ward nodded tensely. "Yeah."

Topper walked toward the house.

⚓️

Inside - Hallway

Sarah and Lia were still sitting on either side of the door to Lia's room on the floor, after Sarah had explained about the argument with Topper.

"Well, what did you expect from Topper, Sarah?" Lia quipped. "He's only concerned with numero uno, but bet your bottom dollar he's en route to charm his way back because he's a grade-A tool."

Sarah exhaled, leaning her head back against the door. "Lia..."

Topper, inching closer and catching Lia's words, wasn't shocked, just peeved. "Really, Lia? That's my label?"

Lia grimaced, yet there was no hint of regret for her words. "Hey, Top. How's it hanging? And yep, that's the word on the street. Hey, Sarah, see? Told you he'd show up."

Sarah got to her feet. "Top, why are you here?"

"We need to talk," Topper declared. "Just us."

"Ooh, are we in for a lukewarm 'I'm sorry' for snubbing the Pogues, when you're the drama king who drowned John B and confessed to giving Isa literal trauma before her splashdown?" Lia chimed in, dripping with sarcasm. "Good luck with that, pretty boy. Congrats, Top. You're officially Sarah's bitch. Be careful, because if you weren't a Kook, you'd be the one in the slammer, not them."

"Lia," Sarah cautioned.

Topper gave a mock nod. "Ah, a pleasure, Lia. Or rather, a non-pleasure since you're the one caged up at the moment."

"Topper!" Sarah's warning grew sharper, incensed by his remark to her sister.

Lia just rolled her eyes, dismissing him with a head shake and a silent middle finger through the door. "If only you could witness the one-finger tribute I'm offering right now."

"Okay, that's enough, both of you," Sarah told them.

"Yeah, why don't you take your little bitch somewhere so I don't have to listen to his halfhearted excuses for psychotic behavior and then complain that he's the victim when he's the one that almost killed someone and tried to traumatize another?" Lia asked. "That would be great."

"Could you shut up?" Topper asked.

"Both of you shut up," Sarah replied.

"Sarah..." Topper trailed off.

Sarah shook her head. "No. I'm not talking right now."

Sarah turned around, walking to her room, closing the door behind her.

Topper, compounding his blunders, shot Lia a glare through the door before spinning on his heel to leave.

Lia, catching the sound of his retreat, couldn't help but smirk. "Well, that's one for the win column, even behind bars. Catch you on the flip side, Tweedledum."

Lia clearly felt a little guilty for making Sarah mad about the two fighting, but she also didn't feel a lot guilty because she was glad that she was opening Sarah's eyes, or trying to, to the truth about Topper to try and get Sarah to see that she deserved so much better.

⚓️

On the Road - Twinkie

John B was driving. Isa was in the passenger seat. Kaylee, JJ, Kie and Pope were in the back. Kaylee had her legs sprawled out over JJ's lap. Pope dangled the compass in front of his face.

"I mean, it's obvious, right?" Isa asked. "A family heirloom. What better place to hide a message? He had to know it was gonna get back to us, right/"

Kie looked more worried than convincing. "Yeah. It's possible."

"It could also be possible that you're concocting wild theories to help, you know, deal with your sad feels," Pope said hesitantly.

Kaylee gave Pope a warning look, shaking her head. "Pope."

"Guys, you know how I process my sad feels," JJ stated. "Dank nugs and the stickiest of ickies. That's how I do it."

Kaylee rolled her eyes, moving her leg to give JJ a light kick, giving both JJ and Pope a look, shaking her head, and JJ and Pope both made sheepish, busted reactions and apologetic faces after Kaylee's reactions to what they both said.

"We're not concocting, okay?" John B asked defensively. "Our dad is trying to give us a message."

"Isa, John B, if it helps you believe..." Kie trailed off.

"Look, we--we don't need a therapy session, okay?" Isa asked.

"Look, we're not tripping out," John B told them.

"It's okay to trip, guys," JJ told them. "But--"

"Look, our dad is missing, okay?" Isa asked. "Missing. You don't know what it's like to have the person closest to you vanish and then have no idea what happened. None of you know how that feels besides me and John B. Just to wake up every morning wondering."

Kaylee, JJ, Kie and Pope gave each other concerned looks.

Kaylee looked up at the two siblings up front. "Isa, John B, if you believe it, I believe it, but we have to consider the possibility, okay? I just don't want you to get your hopes up and be even more crushed in case we're wrong, okay?"

Isa and John B knew Kaylee had a point, but didn't want to admit it, though they were just glad to have one of their friends giving them the benefit of the doubt, even if she wanted them to prepare for the worst so their hopes and spirits weren't further crushed if they were wrong.

"Thank you, Kaylee," John B told her.

"It's been almost a year," Kie told them.

"Hey, he could have been kidnapped," Kaylee pointed out, trying to reassure Isa and John B and be there for them. "That's definitely a possibility."

"Yeah, could be in a Soviet sub getting interrogated by the KGB somewhere," Pope proposed.

"Absolutely," JJ agreed. "Uh, or... Atlantis."

Kaylee gave him a warning look. "JJ."

Kie turned to Isa and John B. "Look, what do you think the message is again?"

"Redfield," Isa stated. "The Redfield Lighthouse. That's our dad's favorite place."

They passed the State Park sign, covered up by a sign that stated it was closed due to the hurricane.

Kaylee looked out through the window to watch the palm trees blur past as they drove by. JJ began to trace patterns on Kaylee's thigh with her fingers. Kaylee looked at JJ and they shared a small smile.

⚓️

Redfield Lighthouse - Outside

John B parked the van, and the Pogues all got out of the vehicle, walking toward the white picket fence to take a look at the lighthouse.

John B looked to the others. "Okay, here's what's gonna happen." He gestured to JJ and Kaylee. "You're gonna post up and look out for bogeys, okay?"

Kaylee frowned. "Wait, why us?"

"Because you two are not coming," Pope answered.

"Why?" JJ asked, slightly offended.

"Look, Kay, JJ, there are independent and dependent variables," Pope told them. "And you're independent variables."

JJ rolled his eyes. "Shut up. Just shut up, Pope."

"We don't know what you'll do, JJ," Pope told him, raising his voice a bit, holding his hands out. "And Kaylee's on thin ice with her parents and she's one more mistake away from juvie and disownment."

Kaylee rolled her eyes, placing her hands on her hips, turning her head to look to the side with a slight roll back. "All right, fine, but you guys can't use that all the time to try and keep me in check."

"We know," Kie said, giving her a look. "But this is a real possibility, Kaylee. We can't risk it over little things like this."

"Just listen to me for a second," Isa told them. They all looked at Isa. "Pope, you stand look out with Kaylee and JJ, okay?"

"If we get split up, we meet back at the Pogue Nest, got it?" Kaylee asked.

"Yeah," Isa answered.

"Great," John B agreed.

Isa, John B and Kie walked inside, while Kaylee, JJ and Pope stayed outside.

"I'm gonna work on my merit scholarship essay, and I'm trying to keep felonies down to a minimum," Pope stated.

Kaylee gave Pope a smile.

JJ kicked a hacky sack. "All right, would you just shut up already?"

Kaylee gave JJ a look, then turned to Pope. "Seriously, Pope, why the drama over the scholarship? You're a shoo-in. You're practically a walking encyclopedia."

Pope grinned, draping an arm around Kaylee for a quick hug. "You're the best, Kaylee."

Kaylee pecked Pope on the cheek. "Anytime."

JJ's lips turned downwards. "Hey, what about me?"

With a teasing glint, Kaylee leaned in as if to kiss his cheek, but as JJ angled for a proper one, she dodged with a giggle. "Too predictable, JJ."

Grinning, JJ teased back. "Admit it, Kay, you're dying to plant one on me."

Chuckles filled the air as Kaylee finally pressed a kiss on JJ's cheek, leaving him beaming.

Pope just shook his head, bemused. "You two are too much."

Kaylee pointed to the top of the van. "JJ, help me get on top."

JJ smirked. "I mean, you can always get on top of me."

Kaylee let out a laugh. "What if I'm in the mood for the opposite?"

JJ flashed a cheeky grin. "I'm down for that, too."

With a boost from JJ, Kaylee found herself atop the van, while below, JJ and Pope engaged in a game of catch.

Lounging on the van's roof, Kaylee stretched her legs and propped herself up with her arms. "I'm bored. Entertain me, my loyal subjects!"

With a playful smirk, JJ responded. "Anything for you, your highness."

The game of catch evolved as JJ and Pope began lobbing the sack to each other, while Kaylee smiled in amusement.

⚓️

Inside

Isa, Kie and John B walked inside, looking up at the stairs up above them.

"Remind me what we're looking for again?" Kie asked.

"We'll know it when we see it," John B stated.

Isa nodded. "Yep. Long way up."

They started walking up the stairs, around every curve of the spiral staircase until they reached the top.

John B knocked on a steel door at the top. "Nobody home?"

A large man opened the door. 

"Um, we're here for the lighthouse," Isa told him.

"The lighthouse is closed," the man told them, closing the door.

"Um..." Kie trailed off.

"Actually, we--we aren't here about the lighthouse," John B admitted. "We're here about the, uh... the Royal Merchant."

The man opened the door. "Then you came to the right place."

⚓️

Outside

JJ and Pope were still tossing around the sack.

Perched atop Twinkie, Kaylee's amusement had fizzled out. "Guys, my stomach's growling and I'm over this." Attempting to dismount the van, she nearly took a tumble. JJ, quick on the draw, snagged her waist. Kaylee, in a leap of faith, landed in his arms, narrowly dodging a fall. Kaylee laughed with a quip. "Look at you, my knight in shining armor."

Grinning, JJ played along. "This knight requests a royal kiss."

With a playful arch of her brow, Kaylee teased back. "Check your pockets, I've paid my dues."

JJ leaned closer to whisper in Kaylee's ear with a small smirk. "Real one next time."

Kaylee couldn't hide her small smile, looking away.

⚓️

Lighthouse Balcony

The man led Isa, John B and Kie out around the lighthouse on the balcony, where there was a hole in the balcony. "I know more... watch your step here. About the Royal Merchant than anyone else in Kildare County. Now, the Merchant disappeared in the graveyard of the Atlantic in 1829."

"With four hundred million," Isa stated.

"Correct," the man agreed. "You're bit of Merchanteers yourselves, huh?"

"Uh, something like that," John B answered.

"Well, follow me," the man told them. "I wanna show you something."

Isa whispered to herself. "Creepy."

The man led them around the balcony. "I've been working 30 years up here. The view's never changed till two days ago." He pointed across the island. "The Point's almost gone. One more storm like that, it'll take the lighthouse. I'll go with her. Now, the trick to knowing where the Merchant is... is knowing whether she was on the north end or the south end of the eye of the storm. Now, most experts believe that she was on the south end." The man turned to look at them. "Now, she's on the south end, the bands from the hurricane would have pushed her back out to sea. But I don't believe that. Uh-uh. I think she was on the north end of the eye. Which means the bands would have pushed her..."

"Closer to shore," John B finished.

"That's right," the man agreed, pointing to the other side of the island. "Now, by my calculations, the Royal Merchant is about ten miles thataway. Come on. Come on." He led them inside to the top of the lighthouse, showing them a map on the wall. "Right here is where the Point used to be. My calculations say the Merchant's right about there. Down about 1,000 feet."

"That's what our dad used to say," Isa admitted.

"Yup," the man said.

John B looked around. "Yeah, I--I know this is weird, all right? Do you know anything about this?" He showed the compass to the man. "Look, it--it says Redfield in the back, in our dad's handwriting. Yeah, we don't know why we're here, but I feel like we're supposed to be here." The man looked incredibly more creepy and paranoid, looking up. "Do--do you have anything to give to us, or to--"

The man started up some steps to the ceiling door.

"Where are you going?" Isa asked. They followed him up. Isa took the compass from John B. "Wait a minute. Look. Look, man, I know this is weird." They went up to the very top of the lighthouse in a room that had the controls for the lighthouse. "We just thought, hoped... maybe you would know something about this, all right?"

"Sir, you won't believe what they've been through in the past 24 hours," Kie told him. "I mean, threatened, shot at, home invaded."

"Home invaded?" the man repeated.

"Our rooster was killed," John B stated. "Look, man, our dad wanted us to talk to you, okay? So if there's anything you could think of that would help us, please, just tell us, okay?" He gripped the man's uniform. "Look, man, please!"

Isa tried to calm her brother down. "John B." She looked at the man. "If you know anything, just--just--"

The man grabbed his radio to speak into it. "Wanda, I got three kids on drugs up here at the lighthouse. Call the police."

Isa shook her head. "We're not on drugs, you asshole."

John B tried to take the radio out of the man's hand. "No!"

The man's hand slammed into the glass, which cut into his wrist, causing him to groan in pain.

"What are you doing?" Kie demanded.

"It was an accident," John B admitted.

"Isa, John B, we have to go," Kie told them.

John B looked at the man. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to."

"Oh, shit," Isa said, putting the compass in her pocket.

Kie, Isa and John B hurriedly ran down the steps.

The man spoke into the radio. "Wanda, I'm bleeding. I've been assaulted."

⚓️

Outside

In the midst of a heated thumb war, JJ resorted to tickling Kaylee's side, a sly move that made her recoil and lose her grip on victory.

With a triumphant grin, JJ declared. "Ha! I win."

Kaylee, not missing a beat, playfully smiled and hit him in the chest. "No, you cheated. Cheater."

Leaning in close, JJ whispered. "What was that?"

"You heard me," Kaylee retorted. "A cheating cheater who cheats."

JJ raised an eyebrow in mock indignation. "Oh, yeah?"

JJ scooped Kaylee up over his shoulder.

Kaylee let out a surprised squeal. "JJ! Put me down."

JJ snorted. "Yeah, sure. Except you called me a cheater so no." Kaylee just shook her head and leaned her head on his shoulder as she patted a beat on his back. When they heard police sirens blaring as they approached, Kaylee and JJ both looked up. "Shit."

JJ instantly put Kaylee down, and they both instantly ran for the van.

While inside, Isa, John B and Kie were still running down the steps of the lighthouse.

In Twinkie, Pope laid in the back, looking up from his essay frantically as he noticed the sirens. Kaylee got into the passenger's seat as JJ ran around to the driver's side, hopping in, starting the van.

"Do we wait for them?" Pope asked.

"We don't have time for that, Pope," JJ told him, driving off quickly.

"JJ!" Kaylee told him.

"Look, we made the plan in case we got split up, Kaylee," JJ told her. "They'll meet up with us at the Pogue Nest afterwards."

Kaylee looked out the window, trying to catch a glimpse of Isa, John B and Kie.

Isa, John B and Kie ran outside, seeing the van driving away.

"Fucking seriously?" Isa asked. "Shit. This way, this way."

Isa, John B and Kie ran toward a fence, jumping over it, and continuing to run.

"We might have to split up," John B told them.

They saw another cop car coming.

"Yeah, splitting up might have to do," Kie agreed. "Isa, come on."

John B ran one way, and Kie and Isa ran another.

⚓️

Road

Isa was breathing unevenly like she could have been close to a panic attack. "Hey, look, you've--you've got to admit, that was kind of promising. I mean, my and John B's dad, the Royal Merchant. The ranger, the Royal Merchant. Sure, it's his job to know about shipwrecks and the Royal Merchant is like the most famous shipwreck of all time, but you saw how sketchy and creepy and paranoid he was."

"Yeah, you're right, he was, but there could be other explanations about why he was so sketchy, creepy and paranoid," Kie told her. "Redfield's one of the most common names in the Outer Banks. That could mean anything. Look, as wild goose chases go, this was a really good one."

Isa turned to face Kie. "Look, I don't know. Maybe we missed something." Kie shook her head slightly. "You believe me, right? Right?"

Kie looked down, licking her lips nervously. "I think there might be some light to moderate concocting going on at this point."

Isa sighed, looking away. "Kie, come on."

"Look, uh, I get it," Kie told her. "You and John B miss your dad. I know. I just don't understand why he would put a clue on a compass."

"'Cause he knew it would come back to us," Isa answered. "And I'm sorry, okay? I know it sounds crazy, and maybe it is, I don't know. But it's not like we wanted it to go this way. It's not like we want to look crazy and doing anything we can to try and find out what really happened with our dad. It's not like we wanted to put you, Kaylee, JJ or Pope in danger. We had no idea that danger was coming for us. If Kay or JJ get in trouble, your parents could disown Kaylee, and JJ with his dad..." Isa was getting more and more overwhelmed and panicky, shaking her head. "And Pope could lose his scholarship. We all have something to lose, even when it seems like we don't sometimes."

Kie looked at her with sadness. "I'm sorry, Isa."

Isa was on the brink of a panic attack. "Don't be. You have the right to say 'I told you so.'"

Kie attempted to soothe her. "Isa, whoa, are you okay?"

Isa shook her head, her pent-up emotions surging forward, unleashing a torrent of hot tears down her cheeks. "No."

Kie wrapped her arms around Isa, offering a gentle hug. "Hey, it's going to be okay."

Seeking stability, Isa hugged Kie back, resting her head on her shoulder, her tears dampening Kie's tank top. "Is it, though?"

Kie tightened her embrace slightly, stroking Isa's hair. "I'll make sure it is. You're losing it. You gotta pull it together." As they separated, Isa, feeling emotionally exposed and acting on impulse, kissed Kie. Kie paused, shocked for a moment, before pulling back. "What was that?"

Isa was embarrassed, looking down. "I'm... shit. I'm--I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Kie told her.

Isa turned away. "I--I... Oh, God. I'm screwed."

"No, it's okay," Kie assured. "No, it's okay."

"I'm..." Isa trailed off. "It's because I'm freaking out about my dad and the DCS stuff and JB, and..."

Kie stepped closer. "No. Stop. It's okay. I get it."

Isa was shaking her head, blushing brightly. "I can't breathe sometimes."

"I know," Kie agreed. "Look, I don't even mind."

"What?" Isa asked.

Kie tilted her head. "It's just the rules, you know?"

Isa nodded, not looking at her. "Yeah, yeah."

Kie gave a small, awkward smile. "No Pogue-on-Pogue macking."

Isa bit her lip, nodding. "Right. Rules."

Shoupe pulled up behind them without them noticing since he hadn't been flashing his lights or blaring his sirens. "Isa Routledge! Got you, girl. And your brother. John B's in the back."

Isa was fed up at this point. "Fuck."

"Now, why don't you just be chill and not make me chase you like your idiot of a brother did?" Shoupe asked.

Kie walked around behind Isa. Isa took the compass out of her pocket, holding it behind her, so that Kie could grab it and make sure Shoupe couldn't get his hands on it.

Isa held up her hands.

⚓️

Kildare Sheriff's Department

Isa and John B were sitting at a table.

Peterkin was with them. "I feel for you, kids. I really do. I know since they never found your dad, a part of you thinks he might walk through that door someday. I don't blame you. But going on fandangos ain't gonna bring him back. He's been missing at sea for nine months. Your father's dead."

John B kept his eyes down. "You don't know that."

Isa and John B were clinging onto hope but both seemed so broken at this point.

"Yeah, I do," Peterkin told them. "And as hard as it is, it'd be best for you to accept it and move on."

"Easy for you to say," Isa told her. "How the hell do you expect us to accept the fact that our father went missing at sea and is presumed dead and for us just to move on from that?"

Peterkin didn't know the answer to that, looking down. "You've been running around getting caught up in things that do not involve you. And now you in a heap of trouble. It's not just foster care we're talking about. It's assault, battery, JD time. I can still help you out, but we gotta do a little tit for tat. And this time, you gotta tat a whole lot better." She sat down with them. "I know you've gotten hold of a compass."

They didn't look at her, not changing their stance in sitting or looking.

"I don't know what you're talking about," John B told her.

"I know you took it off the wreck," Peterkin told them. "There ain't much that happens in the OBX that I don't hear about eventually."

Isa looked up in confusion. "Okay, what do you want with some compass?"

"It's evidence in an investigation," Peterkin stated. "I'm gonna need it, kids. Otherwise I'm charging you."

"Like my brother said," Isa told her. "We don't know what you're talking about."

"We don't have a compass," John B told her.

Peterkin stood, walking away.

⚓️

Main Room

Kaylee walked into the station, seeing Kie. "Kie!" Kie stood instantly. Kaylee quickly walked closer, and the two sisters embraced. "What the hell happened up there?"

They pulled away.

"The guy was telling us his theories on the Royal Merchant and they lined up with Isa and John B's father, and they just lost it and started asking the guy if he knew anything about the compass," Kie explained, rambling. "And one thing led to another and John B smashed his hand against the glass and--"

Kaylee nodded. "Okay, okay. And you just had to call Dad for Isa and John B's bail?"

"I had to, Kaylee," Kie told her. "I couldn't let Isa and John B sit in that cell."

"I know, but the point is, this is gonna make Mom and Dad think that they were right about trying to keep us from being friends with the Pogues and they'll have plenty to say about how I'll end up in a cell one of these times," Kaylee pointed out.

"I know, and I'm sorry, but I didn't have another choice, Kay," Kie told her.

Kaylee sighed, knowing she was right. They looked toward where Isa and John B were sitting.

Mr. Carrera, Mike, arrived and posted the bail for Isa and John B, but he was not the least bit happy to do it.

⚓️

Outside

Kie, Kaylee, Mike, Isa and John B walked outside.

Mike looked at Isa and John B, not amused one bit. "If you skip out on your bail and I lose my money, I'm gonna hunt you down and skin you."

"Dad!" Kaylee told him.

"Cut it," Mike told her.

Kaylee rolled her eyes.

John B lowered his head. "Thank you, Mr. C."

"Don't thank me," Mike snapped.

"Yeah," Isa grumbled.

Mike got into his car in the driver's seat, while the teens stood outside, looking at Kie and Kaylee. "Get in."

"Give us a second," Kie told him in annoyance, pulling the compass out of her pocket, handing it to Isa. "Good. You're gonna be good."

"Kaylee," Mike warned. "Kiara."

Kaylee rolled her eyes, looking at Isa and John B. "I'm sorry."

Isa and John B nodded.

Kie got into the passenger's seat next to Mike. Kaylee got into the backseat.

Mike shifted his gaze between Kie and Kaylee. "I told you. You hang out with trash, you get dirty. Consider yourself fortunate it wasn't you behind bars, Kaylee. For now."

Kaylee held back her words, knowing she was already in a precarious position with her parents, her jaw tight. Kie remained focused forward without acknowledging Mike's hurtful words to her sister, while not even looking at her sister. Both Kaylee and Kie cast apologetic glances towards Isa and John B before Mike drove them away.

⚓️

Figure 8 Dock

John B was using a hose to wash himself off.

"Hey, employee of the month, where the hell you been?" a man called. "You taking some me time? Ward C's looking all over for you. You know he don't like to wait."

⚓️

My Druthers Ship

John B walked onto the ship to see Ward waiting for him.

"Have a seat, John," Ward told him.

"Yes, sir," John B agreed, sitting down.

"Who dotted your eye?" Ward asked.

"Surf--surfing accident," John B lied.

Ward turned to face him. "You've had a hard year, John. A very hard year. I feel like I've done what I could to help you, and your sister Isa. Would you agree with that?"

John B nodded. "Yeah. Yeah. Yes, sir."

"I gave you this job, helped Isa get that job at one of the fanciest restaurants on the Figure 8 as a waitress so she could help you make income," Ward told him. "I told you you could always come to me if you or Isa ever need anything. Is that true?"

"Yeah," John B answered. "I mean, you said you'd help us with our DCS case."

Ward sat down across from him. "I need you to answer a question, and I need you to be straight with me. Did you take gear off the Druthers yesterday?"

John B looked aside, nodding hesitantly. "Yes, sir, I did. Look, Mr. C, I'm--I'm not a thief, okay? It was two dollars' worth of air. It was stale, too. You don't want your daughters to breathe in that air."

Ward sat back. "John." He leaned forward. "It's the principle of the thing. I cannot have employees that I cannot trust. I don't want to do this, John, but you have made me do this. I have to do this."

⚓️

Dock

John B was walking, irritated after being fired.

Sarah walked along, seeing him. "Hey, John B." John B walked past her without a look or a word. Sarah turned after him. "I'm--I'm sorry, that's it?" John B turned to face her. "Not a, 'hey, how you doin'?' Or 'kiss my ass'?"

John B walked closer, thinking that it was Sarah who ratted him out. "'Your secret's safe with me'?"

Sarah frowned. "What secret are--" She remembered. "Oh, that secret."

"I just got fired because of you," John B told her. "And I know you can't imagine that, but some people need jobs so that they can eat."

John B smacked the bag out of Sarah's hand to the ground, turning around, walking away.

Sarah frowned, looking down at her bag on the ground before looking up. "What the fuck?"

John B walked closer again. "You are exactly who I thought you were, Sarah Cameron."

John B turned around, leaving.

Sarah scoffed, shaking her head. "Asshole."

Sarah turned around, walking away in the other direction.

⚓️

Tannyhill Estate - Lia's Room

Lia was sitting on the couch by the windows.

One of the doctor/therapists that were mentioned before was sitting in one of the chairs next to the couch. "I thought this self-destructive behavior would have stopped by now, Lia."

Lia rolled her eyes. "It wasn't self-destructive. I've said it to everyone in my family, and I'll say it again. I was just helping that little girl."

"I believe you," the therapist told her. "Or, well, I believe that you believe that. Why don't you tell me about your progress? Are you still having the dreams?"

Lia gazed off. "Yeah. Dream. Same one. Always starts the same."

"They have a habit of doing that," the therapist told her.

"I'm walking out to my friend's house on the Cut," Lia explained. "I look up, and a block away I see Robbie's house.. I have to get inside, but every time I round the corner, it's still a block away."

"So what do you do?" the therapist asked.

"I start to run," Lia answered. "But as soon as I reach it, I see him. The same way I saw him that day. Etched in my head. And then he reaches out and grabs my throat, and--"

"You wake up," the therapist finished. "What do you think the dream is about?"

Lia shrugged sarcastically, bitterly, defensive. "Robbie's apparent suicide? How I found him? My guilt about not being able to save him? Take your pick. There's so many."

"I appreciate your sense of humor, Lia, but..." the therapist trailed off.

"But you think it's just a defense mechanism against intensive therapy," Lia finished.

The therapist nodded. "Be honest. You know you're holding back."

"How can you be so sure I'm hiding something?" Lia asked.

"Maybe I'm wrong, but I feel like there's something you're not telling me about," the therapist told her.

"Well, you're wrong," Lia replied.

The therapist leaned forward. "I know that you don't like having people like me here in your room so frequently. House calls being a little out of the ordinary in my line of work, but--"

"But my father has everyone under his thumb and has enough money to get pretty much anyone to do anything for him," Lia finished.

The therapist sighed. "And I was hoping that being in your environment might help."

"Well, I applaud your persistence, but I've searched the far corners of my mind, and I'm not hiding anything," Lia stated. "From you or myself. I am an open book."

The therapist leaned back. "So all of this. Being kept away from everyone else. Going over therapy and having medications so frequently, being in here so much. Prevented from finding out about the truth of what happened to your friend. You're actually telling me you're not furious?"

Lia tilted her head. "I was. And I knew that Robbie couldn't kill himself. Not like that. Cops said that someone could've killed him, and I saw him get threatened before he died. Before I found him. I was furious that my dad wouldn't let me defend Robbie against the cops and try and find out what really happened to him, if it was murder or not. But... I can't let that anger get the best of me anymore. I can't let denial get the best of me anymore. Maybe that's why I'm having nightmares. It's why Dad has me like this. So yeah, maybe expressing rage and sadness is part of a healing process, maybe I can't move on until I let it out, but I'm not going to do that and risk losing everything. I have to accept it. Robbie's gone, and nothing's going to change that. I'm done. I have to let it go."

The therapist nodded, seeming pleased, but guilty because of Ward wanting to get Lia to the point of accepting and letting it go, even if there were too many signs of something wrong, more than what was revealed in this therapy session. "Very good, Lia. You're getting better. You're doing extremely well. I'll be sure to tell your father, and we can discuss what happens next."

Lia nodded. "Thank you." The therapist stood, walking away, leaving the room. Lia rolled her eyes, sitting up, her sad and defeated expression turning to one of annoyance and satisfaction as she had managed to lie and fool someone else, because clearly she was not accepting or moving on because she knew that her friend wouldn't commit suicide, and she was determined to find another way to figure out what happened. "Too easy."

⚓️

The Wreck

Kaylee and Kie entered the Wreck alongside Mike, spotting their mother, Anna, working and waiting.

Anna approached, reprimanding them. "Damn it, girls. I warned you about the consequences of befriending those Pogues back in third grade, Kaylee. They've brought you nothing but trouble. If you land in jail again, don't expect us to bail you out after all the warnings. Even living in a treehouse in the woods for a taste of freedom from our rules won't change that."

"Mom, I understand," Kaylee responded, exasperated. "Dad has already lectured me with the 'I told you so, you're heading to jail' talk. No need to repeat it."

"It seems you do need it," Anna countered.

"I won't abandon my friends as you pressured Kie to do all last year," Kaylee shot back. "I'm not the type to give up on my friends."

Kie glanced down, feeling guilty.

"Kaylee—" Anna began.

But Kaylee interrupted. "No, don't 'Kaylee' me. Why are you so obsessed with this? You're a Kook who fell for a Pogue, resulting in me and Kie. Look where that's gotten our family."

"Don't start this again," Mike told her.

Kaylee scoffed. "No, you two are the ones that started it. I'm finishing it. I don't want to listen to hypocrisy right now. I'm gonna go work."

⚓️

Restaurant

Isa was working at the fancy restaurant that Ward had mentioned, in a uniform, just now getting off her shift, leaving the restaurant.

⚓️

Outside

John B was outside, waiting to pick Isa up after her shift.

Isa walked outside. "Hey."

"Hey," John B replied. "How was work?"

"Boring and filled with hypocritical one percenters," Isa answered. "You?"

John B shook his head. "Don't ask. Explain later."

The shady men's black truck pulled up next to Isa and John B, who both looked at it warily. Ratter rolled down his window, and when Isa and John B saw that it was the shady men, they were both exasperated and worried for themselves/each other.

The other man cocked his gun, aiming it outside at them. "Time's up, kids."

Isa and John B both took off running.

Ratter got out of the truck. "Damn it! Don't run, kids!" Isa and John B were trying to get the quickest down the road. Rutter chased them, and the other man was backing his truck down the road quickly to try and get to them. "John B! Isa!"

Isa grabbed John B's arm, pulling him through an alley, and they jumped over a fence to get to the other side, running away as Ratter continued to chase them, climbing over the fence as they ran through someone's yard.

Ratter ran up behind them, trying to grab Isa. Isa managed to twist free out of his hold, kicking him to the ground. John B grabbed Isa's hand and they continued to run, hands letting go and pumping at their sides as they ran as fast as they could, reaching another street.

The other man nearly ran down Isa and John B with his truck, making them both stop in shock as they had almost been run over, but they soon started running again and turned down another road.

The other man backed up his truck toward the street they turned down. "Stop!"

Isa reached a fence, looking back at John B behind her. "Come on!"

Isa tried to climb the fence, but a live wire was touching the fence, causing the fence to give a slight electrocution to Isa, still excruciating, making her fall to the ground.

John B was horrified, kneeling next to her. "Isa! Isa, can you hear me?"

Isa was gasping for breath in agony, not able to speak right at the moment, but the electrocution wasn't fatal, though it could have been.

Ratter walked closer now that they weren't going anywhere. "You gotta watch those live wires after a storm."

The other man got out of the truck, walking closer, as the two of them loomed over Isa and John B.

John B glared at the men, staying protectively by Isa's side. "Get away from us."

The other man kept John B at gunpoint so he couldn't do anything.

Ratter leaned over to look between Isa and John B. "Now you're gonna give us what we want."

Peterkin drove up on the other side of the fence, blaring her siren.

John B managed to sigh in relief.

Ratter and the man knew they had to leave, walking back over to the truck, but not before giving both siblings one last warning glare.

Once they were gone, John B helped Isa sit up, holding her close in relief. Isa was recovering, still in extreme pain, but able to return the embrace.

⚓️

Peterkin's Car

Peterkin sat in the driver's seat. Isa sat in the passenger seat. John B sat in the back.

Peterkin looked over at the siblings. "So, how's it working out, kids? It's a whole lot safer if you give it to me than anybody else." Isa looked hesitantly over to John B. John B nodded sadly, knowing they couldn't risk something like that again. Isa hesitated but pulled the compass out of her pocket, handing it to Peterkin. Peterkin looked at the compass in her hand, looking at Isa. "This thing probably saved your life. Concentrated the shock. Lucky."

(Song:) Someday Soon - Harlem

Isa and John B got out of the car, and Peterkin drove away. Both were desolate, and John B wrapped an arm around Isa in relief knowing that she was so lucky to be alive right then.

Isa: (voice over) "Maybe our friends were right. We should let it go. Move on."

⚓️

The Chateau - Living Room

Isa, even though she was still recovering, was still good enough for her to clean up the living room which was trashed from the shady men.

John B was helping clean.

Isa found a picture of Young Isa, Young John B and Big John, placing it on the table where it was supposed to be.

Isa: (voice over) "Pull ourselves together. Pick up the pieces. Stop living in denial. Leave the past behind."

⚓️

Outside

John B was outside, putting Big John's ruined board from his office into a pile of trash, striking a match.

John B: (voice over) "And bury the dead."

John B tossed the match onto the pile, pouring lighter fluid over it, watching the pile burn.

Isa walked closer, watching the fire.

After a moment of hesitation, John B pulled the board off the pile with a large tree branch, stomping out the fire.

"What are you doing?" Isa asked.

John B shook his head. "I can't do it."

Isa sighed knowingly, understandingly, looking down at the board, seeing that a piece of paper, burned and ripped, was still readable on. "Olivia. R. R. Dad's handwriting." She realized. "Olivia Redfield."

John B and Isa exchanged a look of shock.

⚓️

Docks

John B was in the driver's seat as Isa was in the passenger seat, pulling up to a stop by Heyward's shop, honking.

JJ and Pope were waiting.

"Let's ride," JJ commented.

Pope stood. "This better be good."

⚓️

The Wreck

Kie and Kaylee were working.

"I can't believe you're still here after earlier," Kie admitted.

"Where else would I be?" Kaylee asked.

Kie smirked. "JJ's bed."

Kaylee raised her eyebrows at Kie, smirking, before making a sarcastic, mocking comment. "Mom doesn't want us to have Pogue boyfriends, Kie." She tilted her head at Kie, wondering about her and Isa. "Or girlfriends for that matter."

"Well, you can't even if you wanted to," Kie told her. "No Pogue-on-Pogue rules, remember?"

Kaylee rolled her eyes. "Fuck that rule. It's dumb as fuck. Like I get why we have it, but it's still stupid."

Kie flashed a mischievous grin. "You're just dodging the rules to flirt with JJ, aren't you, Kay?"

Kaylee nudged Kie playfully. "Zip it, Kie. That's not it."

"Admit it," Kie nudged back. "It's so obvious."

Kaylee's smirk matched Kie's. "You're the worst."

Kie beamed. "Nah, you adore me."

Kaylee laughed, draping an arm around Kie and planting a theatrical kiss on her forehead. "You got that right. Love ya, Kie."

Kie's smile was warm. "Love ya more, Kaylee."

As they got back to work, Kaylee stole a glance at Kie. "Spill it. What's the scoop with you and Isa?"

Kie's smile wavered. "Zilch. Why? Isa been talking?"

Kaylee shook her head with a smirk. "Not a peep. Just curious."

Kie shifted, looking anywhere but at Kaylee.

Pope charged in like a bull in a china shop. "Gear up, crew. Isa and John B are in a pickle."

Kie froze. "Count me out."

"Excuse me?" Kaylee blinked. "And why's that?"

Kie brandished a paintbrush like a sword at Kaylee. "I'm on the clock, and I don't ditch work like it's a bad date, unlike some people."

Kaylee scoffed.

Pope's jaw dropped, and he scampered off, mumbling under his breath.

Kaylee gave a mock salute. "Right. When you decide to spill the beans about your secret life, I'll be with the gang."

⚓️

Outside

Pope ran outside toward the van. "Kie says she's not coming."

JJ leaned out the window. "Why not? What did you do to her, Isa?"

Isa sighed in frustration, hitting the dashboard. "Shit. Hang on. I'll deal with it."

Isa got out, walking toward the Wreck.

⚓️

Inside

Kie swiveled to Kaylee, exhaling dramatically. "Apologies. Stress is my middle name right now."

Kaylee offered a knowing nod. "Loud and clear."

Kie jerked a thumb towards the exit. "Scram, Kay. I bet you a crisp twenty Isa's about to make an entrance."

Right on schedule, Isa breezed in, fingers combing through her locks. "Yo, Kaylee. Yo, Kie."

Kaylee sidestepped, giving Isa's shoulder a casual tap. "Sup, Isa."

"Kay," Isa shot back.

And with that, Kaylee was out the door like yesterday's news.

⚓️

Outside

Kaylee stepped outside.

JJ beamed, hanging out of the passenger window. "Ah, the belle of the ball!"

With a grin, Kaylee hopped into the van. "What's up?"

JJ's smirk widened. "Been missing my partner in crime. Teasing Pope solo just isn't the same."

Pope rolled his eyes, giving them a flat look. "You two were apart for what, a whopping two hours?"

JJ let out an exaggerated groan. "An eternity, my friend."

Kaylee's smile sparkled. "Felt like forever to me too."

Then, JJ and Kaylee broke into their signature handshake.

(Song Ends)

⚓️

Inside

Isa hesitated, approaching Kie. "Hey, uh, what are you doing?"

"What does it look like?" Kie retorted.

"We're on the brink of making history," Isa reflected. "You don't have to come if you don't want to, but it would be amazing if you were a part of it."

Kie strode past her. "Concocting again?"

Isa followed. "Yes, I'm concocting. More than ever before. It's all because John B and I were chased by those maniacs, and I got electrocuted."

Kie stared at her, astonished. "Seriously? That explains why you look so rough."

"Appreciate it," Isa responded dryly.

"You know what I mean," Kie clarified. "Your hair's all frizzy. Anyway, are you alright?"

"Not exactly," Isa confessed. "Look, I know you're trying to be a good friend, and you're not encouraging me or JB's fantasies, but... And I'm aware your parents don't want you or Kaylee involved with us, but hear me out, please." They paused in the doorway, Isa's anxiety palpable. "You're one of my closest friends, and I need you now. You know I'd be there for you in a heartbeat. And about the kiss, I'm sorry. If you don't want to come, that's okay, but I needed to apologize."

Kie exhaled, giving a nod of understanding. "I understand." She gave Isa a peck on the cheek. "Friends?"

Isa nodded. "Friends, yeah." Kie and Isa did their handshake. Kie walked away. Isa sighed, not happy, but knowing it was better than nothing. "Back in the friends zone."

Isa walked with Kie.

⚓️

Night - On the Road - Twinkie

John B was driving. Isa was in the passenger seat. Kaylee, JJ, Kie and Pope were in the back.

JJ was laying down with his head on Kaylee's lap, rolling a blunt. "You mind if I just relax on this one?" Kaylee was trailing her hands through his hair gently, which he clearly liked as he looked up at Kaylee with a smile. Kaylee returned the smile. "It's been a long day and a lot of weird stuff's gone down." He waved the blunt around. "I'm just gonna lay low." He held the blunt out toward Pope. "Oh, did you want a hit of this?"

Kaylee smirked, since they knew that Pope didn't smoke.

Pope held his hand out, blocking JJ from bringing the blunt any closer to him. "I keep the signal clear."

"Dude, okay," JJ said. "Do you understand that your problem is that you don't get creative? If you got creative, then--"

Kaylee took the joint from JJ. "Give me that."

Kaylee brought the joint to her lips, taking a hit, releasing the smoke in the air when she exhaled.

JJ smirked slightly. "That's my girl."

Kaylee smirked, taking another hit.

"Look, I--I know Isa and I were wrong about the light house, all right?" John B asked. "And pretty much wrong about everything else going on. But we--we were right about one thing, okay? Our dad is trying to tell us something."

"Isa, JB, as much I love to have hope for Big John, our last idea ended up with you two getting arrested," Kaylee pointed out.

John B groaned. "Come on, Kaylee. We just need you guys to stick with us a little longer."

"I think we've figured it out this time," Isa told them.

"What happens when this plan doesn't work out, huh?" Kie asked. "Are we just going to call everyone in the phonebook with the last name Redfield? That's like the most common last name on the island."

"We're not giving up until we find something real and find out what really happened, whether Dad's dead or alive," Isa told them.

John B sighed, refusing to believe. "He's not dead. We'll find him alive, Isa."

Kaylee looked at them sadly in sympathy. JJ, Kie and Pope exchanged a look.

⚓️

Cemetery

John B pulled them to a stop in the cemetery. "Come on, hey. Hey, come on."

Kaylee glanced around with exaggerated skepticism. "Oh, a cemetery, how quaint! Because nothing says 'fun hangout spot' like a bunch of tombstones, right?"

JJ couldn't help but chuckle at her mock enthusiasm.

"This place is scary," Kie whined. "Isa, John B, what are you doing?"

"Shh," Isa told her. "Okay, so you know how you try to remember a song and you can't remember who sings it?"

"Yeah," Kaylee answered.

"So, Redfield," Isa stated. "This whole time, we thought it was a place, right? But it's not a place. It's a person."

John B lifted his lantern up, illuminating the name Redfield on one of the mausoleums.

JJ slung his arm over Kaylee's shoulders, praising the discovery made by Isa and John B. "Voi-effing-la."

"See, our great-great grandmother Olivia Redfield," John B explained. "That was her maiden name." They all stood and looked at the mausoleum for a second, as Kie shone her flashlight on the door. "Help me with the door. Come on."

John B stepped up to the door.

Pope followed, looking up at the name once more before standing next to John B. "All right."

John B and Pope both counted. "One, two, three."

"Go," Kie encouraged.

The boys tried to pry the door open, but it didn't budge.

"Are you pushing?" Pope grunted.

"Yeah, I'm pushing," John B responded.

JJ handed Kaylee his flashlight, moving to help John B and Pope. "Hold on, I got it."

JJ made his way between them, trying to help get the door open.

"Come on, this door is like 700 pounds, man," Pope complained, sounding defeated. "It's not gonna budge."

"We didn't come this far to get this far, all right?" JJ asked, determined to get into the crypt.

Suddenly, they heard a hissing sound, and Isa, Kaylee and Kie looked down to see a snake slithering out of the mausoleum, making all the Pogues jump backwards into each other.

Isa had fallen into Kie, and Kie was quick to wrap her arms around Isa to keep the two from tumbling to the ground. Isa held onto her arms lightly, Kie was reluctant to let go too. Isa looked up at Kie, and the two seemed to snap out of it after remembering earlier that day. Kie dropped her arms from around Isa, and Isa stood up straight.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Kaylee said. "Guys!"

"That's a moccasin, all right," JJ observed. "Ye olde Dr. Cottonmouth. Death in tall grass."

JJ launched into a barking frenzy at the sight of the snake.

Kaylee's hand met her face with a smack.

"JJ, shut up," Kie commanded. "Shut up!"

Isa gave JJ a nudge. "Dude, you'll rouse the zombies at this rate."

"You're gonna wake the dead, man," Pope agreed.

JJ pointed at the snake. "They're afraid of dogs. Everyone knows that, guys."

Kaylee scanned their surroundings. "Wait, hold on, hold on, hold on."

In unison, Isa and Kie queried, "What?"

They shared a knowing glance.

"If there's one, there's probably more," Kaylee suggested.

"What?" Pope chimed in.

"All around," JJ added ominously.

Kie's eyes rolled skyward. "Oh, my God. Can you stop? You're scaring me."

JJ's barking escalated.

John B shot JJ a stern look. "Stop barking at the snakes!"

Pope tried to interject. "Look, guys--"

"Just making sure it's clear," JJ defended.

"Shut up," Pope told them. "Isa, John B, look. We're not gonna get in there, all right? It's not budging. We should probably just go."

Isa shone her flashlight up toward a hole in the top of the doorway to the mausoleum. "I can get through."

"Oh, absolutely not," Kie immediately tried to shut her down.

John B gave Isa a look. "What? No, no, no, no. You think you're gonna climb through the hole? You just got electrocuted, Isa."

Kaylee wrapped an arm around Isa in concern, making sure she was okay.

Isa looked at Kaylee in appreciation, but gave John B a look of her own. "I'll be fine. Look, this is about Dad. We deserve to know the truth. And if there's a chance that it's in there, I'll do it."

Isa walked closer to the mausoleum.

"I'll get those," JJ told her, rushing to help Isa with the branches and vines that covered the hole. "You be careful."

Isa nodded in agreement.

Kaylee helped move the last of the vines out of the way, looking at Isa nervously, worriedly. "Are you sure about this? I mean, you're okay enough after earlier?"

"Yeah," Isa answered.

Kaylee sighed, nodding, supportive but concerned. "All right, be careful."

Kie looked at the boys as they held the vines back. "You got it?"

"Yeah, we got it," Pope answered.

"Kay, Kie, give her a boost," John B proposed.

"Sure thing," Kie nodded.

Isa placed her flashlight atop a gravestone.

"Ready for a lift?" Kaylee inquired. "Trust me, I'm practically a stunt double with all the movies I've watched."

Isa grinned. "Well, that's reassuring."

"Remind me what we're looking for again?" Kie asked.

"I'll know it when I see it," Isa assured, handing off her flashlight. "Hold my flashlight."

Kaylee nodded. "Right. Ready, Isa?"

"Yeah," Isa answered.

"Okay, here we go," Kie said. "1, 2, 3."

Isa put her hands on Kaylee and Kie's shoulders, lifting her feet as they both grabbed her legs and gave her a lift up to the hole in the mausoleum.

Isa crawled through the small space, jumping down to the floor in the crypt, looking around. "I need a light!"

Kie stuck Isa's flashlight through the opening. "Yeah, here."

Isa clutched her flashlight, surveying the crypt's gloomy interior.

"You alive?" John B's voice echoed, tinged with worry. "You got, like, a--a heartbeat and everything?"

"Yep, totally flatlined," Isa quipped with a deadpan expression.

John B just gave a theatrical eye roll and a head shake. "Smartass. You nearly became a crypt resident for real, Isa, so maybe dial back the dark humor."

"Take a breath," Isa retorted. "Lighten up and find your funny bone." Kaylee and JJ couldn't help but snicker, while Kie and Pope just exchanged weary glances. Isa cleared her throat, looking around the darkness. "Uh, I need some more light."

Kaylee put a lantern through the hole. "Yeah, yeah, here. Yeah, I gotcha."

"Did you find something?" JJ asked. "Is there gold?"

Isa spotted something, her mouth dropping as she slowly walked closer. "Oh, my God."