miss americana | jj maybank

nine | going full kook

nine | going full kook
[103: the forbidden zone]

Back at the Chateau, they poured out of the Twinkie and around the dining table. Tess stood behind John B's shoulder, leaning in in anticipation. Meanwhile, JJ was making a sandwich in the kitchen. Pope saw this, saying concernedly, "That bread had mold on it three days ago."

"Yeah, I'll just pull off the bad parts," JJ said with little care. "Plus, mold is good for you. It's just a natural organism."

Kie called him back to the table. He came to stand at Tess's side, looking up at her not-so-subtly. She turned towards him, saw his moldy sandwich. "Really? That's what you're going with?"

"Yup. Hot damn, let's do it," he said, taking a confident bite from the sandwich. Tess kept her eyes on him as he held the bread in his mouth for a moment. He saw her still looking, tried to keep it in, but quickly gagged and spat the bread out in his hand, running to throw it away.

Tess nodded and turned back to the Pogues where John B was splitting the yellow envelope open. He unfolded a large paper: a map of the coast of Kildare Island. "Holy shit," he muttered.

"X marks the spot," Pope pointed to the corresponding marking.

John B started drawing with his finger the longitude and latitude before realizing that inside the envelope was another trinket. He pulled out a grey tape recorder. JJ questioned what it was and Kie answered snarkily. John B looked up at Tess. She nodded at him, encouraging him to go on.

He stared at the thing for another moment before he pressed play. "Dear Bird," Big John's voice began.

"Who's Bird?" JJ asked.

A shiver ran up Tess's spine. "That's JB," Tess replied quietly.

"That's what my dad called me," John B added, matching her softened tone.

"I hate to say 'I told you so,' but I told you so," Big John laughed on the recording. His voice was warm and breathy, hesitant on this recording like it never was in person. When Tess knew him, Big John was always confident and hardheaded. Never as soft spoken, never as gentle as he was here. "And you doubted your old man.

"I suspect at this moment, you're filled with guilt and self-loathing over our last fight, but don't kill yourself just yet, kid. I didn't expect to find the Merchant either."

Tess couldn't rip her eyes away from John B. The emotion in his eyes, the memories on the tip of his tongue. He looked up at Tess at the naming of the shipwreck that their parents fought for. She shook her head in silent disbelief.

"You were probably right to call me out," Big John continued. "Wasn't exactly Father of the Decade. What can I say, kid? I could smell the barn." He sighed. "And hopefully we're listening to this in our brand new sugar-shack down in Costa Rica livin' off passive investments and pulling on permits. If not, and you find this for less than optimal reasons, well, that's what the map is for."

Tess took a shaky breath in. If she was understanding Big John correctly, Tess may have unfortunately been right. That even if he had found the Merchant, he should have been back with the loot by now. And this hunt that John B had been sent on was a last resort.

"There she is, the wreck of the Merchant," Big John said. Tess's eye was drawn to the x on the map. "If something happens to me, finish what I started. Go for the gold, kid. And take the Madigans with you."

Tess perked up at the sound of her name. The one she'd fought to keep even as her mother became a Cameron. The one that belonged to her father.

"Nate, and his kid, too, they need the win just about as bad as us. You take care of her for me, alright? I love you, Bird. Even if I didn't always act like it. I'll see you on the other side."