Sink or Swim || Outer Banks || JJ Maybank

Chapter 13

Madison walked into Heyward's pulling her hair back in a high ponytail to keep it out of her face. "Hey, Pops," she called out, making her way further into the store looking for the older man. "Sorry I'm late, Anna had me cleaning out the grease trap for missing my shift last week."

"Maddie?" Pope walked out of the backroom and almost dropped the box he was carrying. She shot forward and grabbed it as he readjusted his grip. "Where the hell have you been? We've been calling you all day."

She pulled her cellphone out of her back pocket showing him the dark screen, "I forgot to charge it last night, it died halfway through my shift at The Wreck and then I got stuck there. You do not want to know how nasty a grease trap is. I swear I'm going to have to take an hour long shower just to even feel human again. Tell Pops I'm so sorry I'm late. I would have called but..." she put her dead cellphone back in her pocket.

"You haven't heard," Pope set the box on the counter and gave her his full attention.

Madison slowly shook her head, an uneasiness settling deep in her stomach. "Heard what? Did something happen?"

"Shit," Pope cursed, only further freaking out Madison who knew now without a doubt that something was wrong. "I didn't ask him to do it. I swear I didn't know he was going to take the blame."

"What are you talking about?" Madison was trying not to panic but Pope said 'he' and that meant that it was either JJ or John B that he was referring to.

Pope walked around the counter and stood right in front of her. "Remember when I kind of sunk Topper's boat?"

"Yeah..."

Pope took a deep breath, "And remember how last night there was sort of a scuffle between us?"

"Vaguely," Madison rolled her eyes, having been there for both instances. It did make her realize though that Pope was talking about JJ because John B hadn't been there for either of those moments. "Pope, where's J?"

He put a hand on her shoulder, knowing she wasn't going to take it well, and he could feel her trying not to shrug him off. "Shoupe came into the shop this morning. Had a warrant to arrest me for felony destruction of property. JJ stepped up and said it was all his idea. They arrested him, Maddie."

"Felony," the word came out of her mouth barely over a whisper.

She felt as though the ground moved beneath her and her whole world shifted. If he didn't make some plea deal he would be sent to juvie. He'd be taken away from her for who knows how long. If he did make a deal that means he would have been released to Luke's custody who wouldn't have been happy to get a call to come to the police station which would mean another beating. Neither option left her feeling hopeful.

"Maddie," Pope gently squeezed her shoulder as he watched her eyes glass over.

She swallowed hard and blinked back the tears. "I gotta go."

X-X-X

Madison sat on her front steps with a joint in her hand trying to calm her nerves. She had gone to the police station the second she left Heywards in the hopes that if Luke was passed out somewhere maybe he hadn't picked JJ up yet but he was already gone. She drove over to the Maybank residence and saw Luke's truck parked out front. She knew better than to knock on the front door and made her way around to JJ's window but his room was empty. It wasn't until she was walking back to her car that she noticed the dried blood on the passenger side window of the truck and her hands shook with anger.

She spent three hours driving all over the Cut checking and rechecking every place she could think of that he would go but she still couldn't find him. John B and Sarah had gotten back to the Chateau forty five minutes ago and while her brother tried to reassure her that he was probably just cooling off somewhere he knew she was trying her best not to send herself into a panic attack. Sarah had given her a quick hug and whispered in her ear that they would be inside if she needed anything but ultimately they left her alone with her thoughts.