𝐇𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲 - 𝐒𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐡 𝐂𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐧

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐄𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍 - 𝐊𝐈𝐀𝐑𝐀 𝐃𝐎𝐄𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐓 𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐕𝐄

"Hey! You okay?" Kiara asked when Willow returned to the table. "You were gone a while."

"Yeah, long line," Willow lied. "Women's bathrooms, you know?" Kie chuckled and handed Willow her drink.

They both looked over when they heard JJ shouting, "Look — look, man, I can walk myself. I got legs. Can you see that, brother? I really appreciate what you did back there. Let me just walk out by myself."

"Oh, god," Willow muttered, walking his way.

"Oh, Mr. Dunleavy, I see you got your drink. Good, that's really nice of you. I'm actually gonna down that."

"What the hell?" Willow hissed, walking side by side of JJ and the security guard escorting him out.

"It's a long story," JJ told her. "Actually, it's not, I just don't wanna get into in front of Daryl here. You know, I really appreciate the discretion, Daryl, you know? It's okay, everybody! Do not panic! Leave it to the men and women in uniform. Let's hear it for them. Rose! You look like Lady Liberty."

"Let go of him!" Kiara shouted. "You can't just boot him! I invited him here."

"Kiara, stop it," Kie's mother said.

"I'm a member of this club!"

Suddenly, JJ pushed the guard away and said, "Sorry about that. Hey, mandatory power hour at Rixon's, Kie! Pope, you ask well, all right?"

Willow smiled and grabbed Pope by the wrist as they passed, trying to get him to follow. There was something in her smile that no one could resist. So without a look to his dad, Pope ripped off his apron and grabbed Willows hand, both of them taking off towards JJ and John B.

Willow giggled, picking Kie up in a hug when she ran toward her while Pope embraced JJ and then John B. Sarah watched with a sad smile as Willow left.

"Hey, guys. So, like, my dad's already gonna kill me," Pope said as they sat around a fire. "So what's this mandatory meeting about?"

"Might as well tell him, man, before we're gaffed," JJ to John B and Willow.

"You ready for this?" John B asked. "So, the gold never went down with the Royal Merchant."

"Oh, my god. Here we go again with this," Pope complained.

"No. All right, wait. Hear him out," JJ told him.

"It's been here the whole time. It's on the island."

"Are you serious?" Kiara asked. "Oh, my god."

"I'd like to voice my skepticism," Pope said.

"I'm sure you would, Pope, but can I please present you with my evidence, sir?" Willow asked, standing up. "So, in John B'a backpack, I have a letter from Denmark Tanny."

"Who the hell's that?" Kie asked.

"Denmark Tanny was a slave that survived the Royal Merchant wreck. Okay, slaves weren't mentioned as crew members on the ship, but Big John, he found the complete manifest. That was his big discovery. So Tanny used the gold from the Merchant to buy his freedom. After that, he bought his farm. Drumroll, please, because that farm is... Tannyhill Plantation."

"Tannyhill?"

"Yup. So, after that, he used his money to free even more slaves, and then he told a shit ton of rice, which pisses off all the white planters, and then they decide to lynch him. So on the day they were coming to get him, he writes a letter to his son as a farewell, and in the last line of that letter, he leaves a coded message about where to find the gold."

"Where?" Kiara whispered, looking at Willow with a grin.

"Harvest the wheat in parcel nine, near the water. Except...there's no wheat. Wheat is code for gold. Check this out. The gold is in parcel nine, near the water."

"Holy shit," Pope whispered.

"All we need is an original survey map of the property, and we've found the gold," Willow grinned.

"Okay, so this might have a small chance of being actually true," Pope said.

"Dude, it's like King Tut," Kiara added.

"Okay, so, guys. What's the plan?"

"Good question," John B said, pointing at Pope. "Willow?"

"Sarah Cameron's coming tonight. She's gonna bring an original survey map—" Kiara cut Willow off.

"Hold on. Sarah? Wh-why Sarah?"

"This is gonna be good," JJ smirks.

"Sarah, um, she— she got me into the archives in Chapel Hill yesterday cause John B was laying low, and that's where I got the letter."

"You we're in Chapel Hill with Sarah Cameron?" Kie asked, anger laced in her voice.

"Yeah, um—"

"She was mackin' on her," JJ said. Willow turned, her eyes glaring.

"I wasn't macking," Willow scoffed.

"You were totally macking," John B smirked.

"I wasn't macking on her, okay? John B, you're the reason I went, it was just for access. That's all it is."

"There was access, all right," JJ snorted, him and John B giggling like school girls in front of the fire while Willow tried to defend herself against Kiara.

"Did you tell her about the treasure?" Kie asked.

"I was trying to get into the archives."

"Is that a yes?"

"I-- I left out key details!"

"Yo, what?! You let a kook in on our secret? What about Pogue Lyfe? What about the t-shirt company, bro?"

"It was just for information," Willow argued.

"Why don't I believe you?" Kie scoffed.

"Trying to help make us filthy rich here! Okay, so we can pay off a boat, or--" She pointed towards Pope. "Send you to autopsy school to study dead bodies. You guys know me. Do I look like the type of person to fall for Sarah Cameron."

"Do you want us to answer that?" Pope asked.

"Just--Just stop."

"Look, you don't know her yet. I do!" Kiara argued. "You can't trust her."

"Her brother did hit me in the back with a golf club," Pope said.

"First of all, when the fuck did that happen? Second of all, Rafe and Sarah are two very different people. Rafe is a literal psychopath!" Willow said.

"What did she do to you, exactly?" JJ asked Kie.

"She's like a-- like a spitting cobra. First, she blinds you, and then--"

"This is a bad analogy," Pope told her.

"Listen to me!" Kie shouted. "Whatever we get, she's gonna try to take."