Jackson Maybank was the light of Talia Routledge's life. Every day that the Maybank boy was in the Routledge girl's life was a day guaranteed to start with the sunrise and end with the sunset, no matter how awfully terrible the weather got, that sun...
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05 we need to make it count
The next morning Talia was pacing the room, Rafe soundly asleep on the floor, sighing she turned her attention to the window where she saw a guard. Moving swiftly and quietly over to the window she began tapping as lightly as possible but still with enough force for the man to notice. "Hey! Hey!" She spoke in a hushed tone, the man's attention now on the blonde girl. "I need to talk to Mr. Singh." Talia continued knocking. "Hey, go get Mr. Singh." She began motioning to try and explain what she was saying. "What are you doing?" She heard Rafe's voice, her head slowly turning to look in his direction.
"Hey, you! I need to talk to Mr. Singh." Talia tried again. "Shut up. Shut up. Shut up." Rafe began, flinging the blanket that was wrapped around him off and getting up off the floor which was his bed for the night out of respect for Talia. "Hey, what the hell are you doing? What are you doing?" Rafe asked, grasping onto the blonde's wrist. "Like I owe you an explanation." The blonde rolled her eyes at him before releasing her wrist from his hold and walking away from him. "Think for a second! Tal, what are you doing?" He asked as she made her way over to the door. "Hello?" She began banging on the door. "Hey! What are you doing?" Rafe questioned, following her once again.
"Don't talk to me." The blonde reacted, hurt overtaking the boy's features once again. Stone faced, he took three steps towards the girl, now next to her. "You're lying, about this diary thing." He concluded. "You know where it is." His eyes searched hers, closing them for a second she sighed. "No, I don't." She finished before walking away from him again. "You don't? Okay. Okay. I wouldn't tell me either." Rafe stated. "Hey!" She began banging on the window again. "But he's never gonna believe we don't know something, all right?" Rafe followed her once again. "Hey! Hey, Singh killed that-" Talia turned around, a gasp being let out of her mouth as her body was trapped between Rafe and the window, now facing him, their faces inches apart.
"Tal, I'm the only one you've got. There's no one else around right now. I need you always, okay? Hey, hey. Look at me." Rafe demanded as Talia looked downwards to avoid his gaze, his soft hands turned her head up from their place on her chin, forcing her to look at him. His eyes darting between hers. "I need you always, but right now, you need me too. If we're gonna get out of here, we need each other." Rafe finished as the door unlocked, a guard pushing it open, Talia pushed away from Rafe. "I need to talk to Mr. Singh. I have something to tell him. It's urgent." The blonde informed the guard. "Yes." He replied, leading Talia out of the room.
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"I lied. I know about the diary. I don't have the original, but I can get you a copy." The blonde began. "I'm relieved to hear you say that, you know. May I offer you something to eat?" Singh offered. "I'm not hungry." Talia deadpanned. "Relax. Nothing's gonna happen to you now. You're cooperating and I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable, you know." Singh informed her. "I just want you to get what you want and then I want to leave. Look, I know where it is, but I have to go by myself. Alone." Talia proposed, inciting a chuckle from the man in front of her. "But how would I know that you'd come back? You know, I need some collateral." Singh wise enough to know Talia wouldn't return. "Rafe's here. Keep him." She offered, her heart hurting slightly at the fact the word's just came out of her mouth. "Rafe." Singh laughed, rising from his seat at the table and walking towards Talia. "How did someone so young, get in to so much trouble?" Singh questioned as he walked past the girl. "Look I know where the diary is, and if you let me go, I promise you, I can get it to you." Talia tried to assure once again.
"You know, I built this fortune myself, you know, from nothing. From absolutely nothing. Do you know how that happened, Miss Routledge? Hm? I can assure you, it was not by being a fool. Don't waste my time. The diary holds the key to the ultimate conquest, and that, my young friend, Miss Routledge, is my destiny." He was now facing her again, only a step away from her as he tried to intimidate the girl. "So you need to tell me where it is, or I'm gonna—" Singh was interrupted by his phone going off, with a sigh, he rubbed his hands down his face and moved to pick the phone up. After unlocking it and reading the message, he let out a laugh.
"Amazing. A text from our friend Jimmy Portis. From beyond the grave, apparently." Singh motioned with his hands to highlight how ridiculous that sounded. "It seems Mr. Portis has captured your friends." Singh chuckled, turning the phone to show her the screen, a photo of Sarah and John B filling the screen. "Ryan!" He called out, leaving the room, sending a guard in moments later to take Talia back upstairs. Panic immediately setting in. Singh knows it's not Portis on the other end of that phone.
Rafe was pacing the bedroom when Talia was forced back into it. "Rafe." She let out, hurt flashing across his features as he moved quickly to grab the girl as she began to fall. "Tal." He spoke to her. "Talia, baby. Breathe. Breathe, Talia." He held her tightly while she sat in his lap, trying to calm the girl. His steady heartbeat being something to focus on, helping slow the rate of her own. "I know you don't trust me anymore, Tal. And that's okay. But I'm trying, I'm trying to get better for you. I've got a boat." He whispered, moving a piece of hair from her face. "I've got a boat that can get us off the island. But we've got to work together and we've got to get out of here first, okay?" Rafe assured, a truck pulled up outside of the window, it's engine loud, voices followed after, Talia jumped out of Rafe's lap and raced over to the window. Rafe following.
"They're leaving?" He asked. "Yeah." Talia sniffled. "They're going to find John B and your sister." Talia confirmed, her heart beginning to beat fast again. "Sucks for them, that's good for us though." Rafe noted, watching the truck leave through the window. "Rafe." Her voice continuously sounded more and more broken every time it came out of her mouth, and it was hurting the boy every time he heard it. "That's your sister." Her brows furrowed. "And my big brother. You don't care?" She questioned the boy in front of her. "I only care about you, Talia. What about that aren't you getting?" He sighed, running his hands down his face once again. "This may be our only shot at getting out of here, we need to make it count." Rafe concluded.
