─☼☼☼─

"THEY'VE BEEN DOWN there a long time," Charlotte said, pacing nervously from one end of the boat to another. "What if something happened?"

In actuality, they had only been down for fifteen minutes, but each minute that passed felt excruciating to Charlotte, like each passing moment was a stab to her heart. She hated them being down there...hated not knowing what was going on. 

"They have 45 minutes of air," Pope reminded her. "They shouldn't be too much longer."

But 45 minutes felt like an eternity. Charlotte let out a deep exhale, lowering her jittery body onto the bench. Looking up into the night sky, her eyes caught on the fog that was rolling toward them, basically encasing them in a cloak of invisibility. She knew Sarah and Cleo would be having a hard time keeping eyes on them. "Is no one else nervous?" She wondered, looking to the two boys. 

Pope and John B shared a brief look before Pope spoke, "I'm feeling quite nostalgic."

Charlotte rolled her eyes at the lack of moral support she was receiving from her friends, but she wasn't entirely surprised. She always was the high-strung one. 

John B looked down at the depth reader, his brows pinching for a quick moment before he shook the look. "Charley, you're going to make yourself sick if you keep worrying. JJ's got Kie, they'll be alright."

Too restless to continue sitting, Charlotte came and joined the boys at the wheel. She was silent for a moment as she glanced down at the reader. "We're drifting," she suddenly announced, nerves resurfacing. 

Pope followed her gaze, letting out a quiet curse. "She's right. Bring it back to starboard." 

John B cranked the wheel, bringing the boat the other way. "Your other starboard," Charlotte snapped, pushing him out of the way as she cranked it the other way which earned her a glare from the younger boy. 

"Sorry," Charlotte muttered, "I'm just a bit stressed."

"We know," Pope and John B deadpanned. 

Ignoring them, Charlotte refocused on their coordinates, brow furrowing, "The tide is changing," she announced, the fear crawling its way up again. 

"And the fog is getting thick," John B agreed. "They have fifteen more minutes."

John B was right, the fog had almost completely engulfed them at that point, making them near invisible, but also making it hard for them to see anything. 

With their lack of visibility, all of their other senses were heightened, meaning when the sound of a boat engine in the distance met Charlotte's ears, she felt her heart plummet. "Do you guys hear that?"

Pope and John B were quiet for a moment before both of their faces dropped. "That's a boat engine," Pope declared.

John B did his best to remain calm. "Chill." He instructed, keeping his eyes locked forward. "Just chill."

"Cut the engine," Pope ordered, taking the less calm route. "Cut it!"

Charlotte squinted through the fog, looking for any sign of who was coming toward them. She could see nothing, but could hear whoever it was getting closer and closer. 

"Are the running lights off?" She questioned, tearing her eyes from the fog covered ocean to refocus on the boys.

John B nodded. "Everything is off. Just--just get down. Slowly." He instructed, grabbing onto Charlotte's arm to slowly bring her down to the floor of the boat. 

Wedged in between the two boys, Charlotte swore they would be able to hear her heartbeat. Each of them let out quiet, panicked breaths, trying to remain as silent as possible. The roar of the oncoming boat was only getting closer. 

Suddenly, a voice broke across the sound of the motor. "We're close! It's gotta be right up here."

Adrenaline pumped through Charlotte...this wasn't the coast guard. "They're looking for the same thing we are." She whispered, a daunting thought crossing her mind. "We need to get Kie and JJ out of there, now."

From beyond the fog, the silhouette of a small boat could be seen no more than a few meters from where the three of them sat. In that boat were a number of men that outnumbered them, visible weapons on each of them.

Finally on the same level of urgency as Charlotte, the boys nodded. "We gotta start looking for them." John B agreed. All three of them scrambled to their feet, pointing their flashlights onto the water surrounding them, looking for any sign of their two friends. 

With each second that passed, Charlotte worried more and more when there was no sign of them. They couldn't have had anymore than five minutes left, meaning if they didn't resurface soon then...

Horrid thoughts flashed through Charlotte's mind as she continued to scan, praying to catch them on each pass. 

Finally, the sound of the water being disruptive not far from the boat caused her to perk up. The yelling that followed send relief flooding through her. 

"Over here!"

Charlotte all but ran to the bow of the boat, eyes landing on two figures who were frantically waving their arms. "It's them!" She announced, already beckoning them toward the boat. She dropped her voice, "Get over here!" 

Pope and John B joined her at the edge of the boat. "Stop yelling!" Pope ordered to the two who were swimming their way over to the boat. "Quiet."

Basically in the water at this point, Charlotte was there to greet them the minute they reached the boat. She reached out for her sister, helping her onto the ladder. "Where's your BCP?" She questioned, having noticed that Kiara had resurfaced without the gear she had gone down with.

Kiara flopped down onto the bench as Charlotte turned to help JJ onto the boat. "It's gone," She panted, trying to catch her breath.

"Gone?" John B echoed, "What do you mean it's gone?"

"I mean it's gone," Kiara winced as she moved slightly.

JJ gratefully accepted Charlotte's hand, leaning into her to catch his breath once he was aboard. "Some guy down there tried to kill us, Charls."

Charlotte supported his weight as John B helped Kiara free herself from the wetsuit. Pope had taken his spot at the wheel once again. "We saw a boat out here too." He told them, firing up the engine. "And they were armed. We have to get the hell out of here."

"Okay, go!" John B ordered, craning his neck to check for any sign of the other boat. "Pope, go!"

"I'm going!" Pope yelled, shifting the boat into drive, lurching it forward. 

Collapsing onto the seat next to JJ, Charlotte looked between her sister and best friend. Each of them looked exhausted, their eyes closed as they fought for air. "Breathe," she ordered the two of them, immeasurably grateful they were alive. "Deep breaths."

JJ turned his head slightly, giving her what she assumed was supposed to be a comforting smile, but in reality it was the most drained looking smile she had ever seen. Kiara looked in equally as bad shape as he did. 

By the time they reached Poguelandia, neither of them were looking any better. 

"Okay, what happened?" John B asked, knowing they were now in the clear to discuss freely. 

Kiara let out a pained breath, hand on her stomach. "Someone tried to kill us."

"What?" Pope challenged as Cleo and Sarah met them at the dock. "Why would someone try to kill you? That doesn't make any sense."

Charlotte hadn't moved from her spot next to JJ, her concern not faltering. "It makes sense if they were looking for the same thing we were."

"That amulet was worth something. That old man is keeping some secret and then someone else is waiting down there. That's some bunk!" Cleo exclaimed. But Charlotte barely even heard her, she was too focused on the way JJ and Kiara were crumpling in pain.

"My stomach feels like shit!" Kiara groaned, leaning into Pope who was by her side.

Realization dawned on Charlotte. "J, did you take your safety stop?" She asked of JJ, lifting his eyelids to check his pupils. 

JJ glanced at her. "Charls, I'm gonna say this again. Someone was trying to kill us. We did not take our safety stop."

Fuck.

"They have the bends." Pope announced to the others who might have been confused. "We have to get them to the hospital."

Charlotte already had JJ on his feet as Pope did the same with Kie. Ignoring the fact that she was basically supporting all of his weight, Charlotte rushed JJ down the dock, the fear from before resurfacing. They weren't out of the woods. 

"You're gonna be okay," she promised, throat tightening as she spoke. She feared she might have been lying. 

JJ turned his head slightly, giving her a lopsided grin. "Stop stressin', Charls. You're gonna give yourself wrinkles and mess up that beautiful face of yours."

Charlotte ignored his shameless flirting. She'd told him he had to stop saying things like that to her, but now wasn't really the time to address that. 

Frantically, the seven of them piled into the Twinkie, John B behind the wheel as the rest of them piled into the back. Charlotte sat on the floor between Kiara and JJ, her eyes darting between the two of them to ensure they were both still breathing as John B peeled out onto the road. "Deep breaths." She ordered. "Deep breaths."

"John B, can you please go faster?" Sarah demanded, her face tight with worry. John B did as she said, kicking the Twinkie into a gear Charlotte didn't even know it could reach. 

"So who was down there?" Pope questioned again as John B laid on the horn, swerving around the traffic,

JJ let out a grunt, "No idea, Pope." He shifted slightly, reaching into his pocket with pained movements. "But, y'all are not gonna believe this." He pulled out something wrapped in a towel, shakily placing it into Charlotte's hand.

Charlotte glanced down at it for a moment, heart climbing to her throat as she carefully unwrapped it. A gasp slipped from her lips as she looked down at what JJ had given her...it was the amulet. 

She looked up at him, her eyes wide as they shifted to her sister as well. "You found it?"

Kiara and JJ both gave small nods, the best they could muster with the amount of pain they were surely in. 

"Oh, shit." Cleo whooped. "That's the thing they was lookin' for?"

Pope and John B were letting out a string of "holy shits" as they registered what this meant. Sarah leaned toward Charlotte, her own eyes studying the amulet in the older girl's hand. 

"Why didn't you tell us sooner?" John B questioned. 

JJ shook his head, "I was too busy dying," he gritted out. 

Cleo looked to Kiara. "You're a rockstar, girl! Fifty thousand!"

JJ dropped his head onto Charlotte's shoulder, "Fifty K." He repeated, as if he didn't quite believe it yet. 

From beneath her worry, a new feeling surged in Charlotte. Nostalgia...and hope. 

They had been in this position before when they found the gold two years ago. Everything had been so exciting then. She just hoped nothing was going to get in their way this time. 

─☼☼☼─

It seemed that everyone else had the same worry of letting the money slip by them once again. 

As soon as JJ and Kiara had been dropped off at the hospital, and sentenced to twelve hours in the hyperbaric chamber, the other five had agreed to head back to Genrette's and demand much more than fifty thousand dollars. They were done risking their lives for a portion of what they deserved. 

Goat Island looked a lot nicer when the sun was shining, but it still sent chills up Charlotte's spin as they neared the boathouse. 

"If these people are willing to kill for this amulet then I wonder how much it's worth." Pope pondered, bringing up a valid point. There was no way that the people they had met out on the waters the night before were after the amulet to break some curse. 

John B nodded, "Alright. Let's show him the piece and then throw out a price?"

Sarah's answer came instantly. "A million dollars."

"I like it," Cleo agree, rubbing her fingers together.

"Go big," Sarah added. "My dad taught me that."

Charlotte nodded in approval. "I'm on board. We highball him and even if we don't get that much I'm sure we'll get something reasonable."

Pope and John B weren't listening to the girls, instead their attention was on the dock that was quickly approaching. "Is that Shoupe?" Pope questioned, bringning everyone's attention to the crowd of first responders who were gathered by the boathouse. 

Something flipped in Charlotte's stomach at the sight. "Oh, no." She muttered, watching as Shoupe turned toward them.

John B shook his head. "We're gonna turn around."

"Don't." Pope argued, not wavering. 

"What?" John B sputtered. "Pope, you don't voluntarily go toward cops."

"I agree with John B, it's too risky." Cleo piped in. 

"No," Charlotte argued, moving so she was next to the two boys. "Pope's right. We run now and we trigger the chase mechanism. We didn't do anything wrong. There's no reason to run."

"Exactly." Pope confirmed, keeping his eyes locked on Shoupe. "And here he comes."

John B steered the boat toward the dock, letting out a quiet curse. "We didn't do anything wrong." He repeated. "Didn't do anything wrong."

"There they are!" Shoupe greeted once they were close enough. "The Great Treasure Hunters!"

Charlotte lifted her hand in a small wave, "Hey, Shoupe. Everything okay?"

"No, Charlotte." Shoupe answered as he grabbed their rope to tie up the HMS Pogue. "Everything is not okay. But lucky me, 'cause I was just comin' to see you."

John B cut the engine. "Why were you coming to see us, Shoupe?"

"You know the, uh, old guy who lives here?" The sheriff wondered, his tone of voice changing. "Who you talked to yesterday?"

Pope looked slightly lost. "...Yeah?"

Shoupe nodded as if he'd just solved whatever was going on here. "Okay, so you did talk to him?"

Charlotte furrowed her brows. "Is that a crime?"

A humourless laugh fell from Shoupe's lips as he dropped his head slightly, giving it a quick shake. "No, Charlotte. That's not a crime...but murder is. And that old guy up there is dead. And it just so happens that besides his son-in-law, you all were the last ones to see him."

Shocked ripped through the group. He'd been completely fine yesterday when they had spoken to him. 

Sarah looked to Charlotte. "The curse?" she mouthed, mirroring Charlotte's wondering.

Shoupe studied the reactions of the five. "So y'all aren't going anywhere. Why don't you, uh, step on up here for me. We got a lot to talk about."

Ten minutes later and Shoupe was working his way through the five of them, questioning their every move over the past twenty four hours. 

"Be for real right now, Shoupe," Charlotte levelled from where she sat on the arm of the couch. "Do you really think we did this?"

"You be for real, Charlotte." Shoupe fired back as if they were children arguing. "Y'all don't have the cleanest record when it comes to staying out of trouble."

The Carrera girl rolled her eyes. "Trouble and murder are two different things."

Shoupe ignored her attitude. "So what I've gathered is that Mr. Genrette hired you idiots to find some treasure."

"What are you callin' us idiots for?" Charlotte bit back. "But yes, he did."

"Hey," Shoupe called, eyes locking on Sarah who was pacing behind Charlotte. "Don't touch anything."

"Sorry!" Sarah called back.

Refocusing on Charlotte, he continued. "So you spoke to Genrette yesterday afternoon. Was there anyone else here when you left?"

"No." Charlotte answered, "Like I already told you five times, it was just him, the son-in-law and the groundskeeper here. But we left just after lunch...a lot of things could have happened in that time."

"Like you could have returned and murdered the old man?"

"Seriously, Shoupe?" Charlotte snapped. "Do we need lawyers? Because I will get us one if you're gonna be an ass."

He pointed his pen at her. "Watch you're attitude." 

She narrowed her eyes at him, "You first."

"You know what," he snapped, slamming his notebook. "You were supposed to be the easy one here. You're a smart girl Charlotte. What are you doin' get in wrapped up in more of these Pogue shenanigans?"

Charlotte shrugged, "I'm a Pogue. That's what happens I guess."

Taking a deep breath, Shoupe re-opened his notebook. "So Genrette hired the seven of you to find some..."

"Amulet," Charlotte supplied. 

"Amulet. Right." Shoupe nodded. "What's in it for you guys?"

"Fifty thousand...or so he said."

"But now he's dead," Shoupe recounted. "And you didn't get your money?"

Charlotte shook her head, "Nope." She answered, popping the p. "So, therefore there is literally no motive for us and thus we did not commit the crime."

Shoupe let out an exhausted sigh. "I never said there was a crime committed."

Charlotte rose her brows, "Then why are you interrogating us?"

"That's what I said!" Sarah called from behind.

"I am not interrogating you!" Shoupe snapped, his patience worn thin by the five young adults who were making his job--and life--ten times harder. "You know what?" He shook his head. "Y'all can go. We're done here."

Charlotte smacked her hands against her thighs as she stood. "Pleasure as always, Shoupe." She said, giving him a sickly sweet smile. 

He ignored her attitude once again. "Don't go too far, y'all hear me?"

The group of them reunited from where they'd been spread out between the two rooms. "Got it." John B saluted. "We won't go on the run or anything."

Shoupe didn't appreciate their humour. But Charlotte didn't appreciate his accusations anyway. 

Either way, this whole thing just got a lot more complicated...like always. 

─☼☼☼─

-an-

sorry for the lack of updates...i've been in mourning over what happened in episode 10 (im still in mourning but decided to write)

ps. a reunion is coming kind of soon ;)

-maddy xoxo