Alicia surfaced with a large gasp, shocked by how cold the water was. Her arms instinctively made small circles as she struggled to keep afloat. She spit out seawater, starting to look frantically around for her friend, "Jack?!"

"Alicia!" He called back as he swam over to her; his clothes weighing him down.

Alicia treaded water for a moment before looping around when she heard the whirling buzz of a motor approaching. A sense of relief swept over her upon seeing it was her mother and stepfather in the launch.

"Alicia!" Her mother called out, guiding the dinghy over to the two. She unconsciously frowned when she saw Jack. She turned her dark greens eyes over to Alicia, "Come on."

Madison held a hand out to Alicia for her to grab so she could hoist her daughter into the dinghy.

Jack continued to bob near the launch, unable to look at Travis or Madison. He blinked abruptly when a hand appeared in front of his face. He shifted his dark eyes up to see Travis reaching out for him. He hesitantly grasped it before being pulled into the raft.

Madison's brow drew together, questioning her boyfriend's actions. She shifted her eyes back and forth between her daughter and Jack. They sat next to each other, shivering, breathing deeply. Madison respired, turning her eyes to Travis who was nodding as if to signal it was okay to bring Jack back with them. She opened her mouth to dispute and then craned her neck at the young man, "Jack, we're going to take you to shore."

"Mom, no." Alicia protested, shaking her head, "He'll die if we take him back."

"It's true, Maddy," Travis attested.

Madison remained silent, her eyes side-glancing Jack.

"We should give the boy a chance. He did try saving us."

"We don't even know if we can trust him!" Madison returned her gaze to Travis after what he said.

"I trust him," Alicia protested; her body shuddering.

"Alicia, no." Madison countered with a stern voice, giving Alicia a hard look before casting it onto Jack, "I'm sorry but we're taking you to shore."

"Mom," Alicia opposed again, wanting to give Jack a chance to redeem himself. She questioned why her mother would not grant him that opportunity, "Why won't you just give him a chance?"

"How do we know these people were his only friends? He could bring more of them down on us!"

Jack swallowed the lump in the back of his throat; the foul taste of salt water in his mouth. It did not bother him that these people were having this discussion in front of him, acting as if he was not there. He had accepted an outcome of being left behind. Nonetheless he found himself quickly demurring aloud, "These people weren't my friends,"

"I believe the boy. He simply got mixed in with the wrong group. He means well."

Madison tried to comprehend why her daughter and boyfriend were standing up for Jack like this, she hardly believed him standing up to Reed was enough to trust him. "No. We're taking Jack to shore and that's final."

Jack nodded, not wanting to cause any trouble. He turned to face Alicia, "It's better this way. I'll be fine on my own."

Alicia frowned, shaking her head, "It shouldn't have to be like this."

"Maddy," Travis pleaded, not wanting to repeat another scenario like they did with Alex, "We can't keep leaving people behind. We'll make it work."

"Travis, are you listening to yourself?" Madison scoffed, "We can't take the risk."

"Hey, I had your back when you wanted to bring Seth and Nina back to the boat."

"That was different." Madison hissed.

"It's the right thing to do; I'm asking you to give the boy a chance. We can't just leave him to die."

"I…" Madison grumbled at Travis, wondering why she was having this debate with Travis and Alicia. She felt pressured by their insistent stares.

"Fine," Madison gave in, rolling her eyes, "We'll give him a chance."

"I want to thank you," Jack spoke up with a sheepish expression, "And I want you to know that back on the boat, I wasn't there to hurt anyone. I didn't enjoy what I was doing but I felt I had no choice. When someone saves your life, you owe them. You just saved mine; I'm in your debt now."

"Don't be so quick to thank us; we still have to convince Strand." Madison remarked.

Back on the Abigail, Victor Strand was pacing back and forth on the upper deck while Nick leaned against the railing peering through the binoculars. He stopped pacing when Nick proclaimed that they were headed back.

"Good, about time. We need to move on from this mess."

"Wait," Nick frowned, looking through the binoculars again, watching the launch get closer, "There's someone else with 'em."

"What? What do you mean someone else?" Victor inquired, reaching for the binoculars, "Give me those."

He brought the binoculars up to his eyes, glaring through them.

He quickly caught sight of a young man in the dingy with the others. He closed his eyes, whispering to himself, "Damn it, Madison. What have you done this time?"

Below deck, in the main gathering area, Ofelia was sitting on one of the benches reading a book. Salazar was standing at the stern of the ship, the side of his hand pressed against his forehead to shade his eyes as he looked outwards to the watch the approaching launch. Luis sat opposite of Ofelia, tapping his foot impatiently.

"Are they back yet?" He asked, breaking the silence in the room.

Salazar frowned, peering down at the loading dock, watching Madison, Travis, Alicia, and Jack get out of the launch. He felt for his gun in his back pocket, speaking over his shoulder at Luis, "We might have trouble."

Ofelia put the book down in her lap, a worried expression coming over her face, "What do you mean?"

Nobody answered her and she was left to watch her father raise his pistol up to eye level. She frowned, placing the book on the bench, and got to her feet.

Luis walked over to Salazar, scowling in frustration when he saw an unfamiliar face with the others. "No, no, no," he tsked, muttering in Spanish, "You people are foolish."

Nick and Strand came down the stairs and strolled into the main gathering area. Nick's expression was unmitigated which contrasted with Strands aggravated one.

Madison, Travis, Alicia made their way up to the lower deck all in a row. Jack lingered at the bottom of the stairs; his hands grew clammy as he gripped the railing on the stairs. He let out a deep breath before ascending the steps.

Daniel clicked the hammer of his gun as soon as Jack came up on deck. Alicia held her hands up at Salazar, stepping in front of him, telling him not to shoot and that Jack was with them. He looked at Madison and Travis for an explanation.

Travis looked around, knowing half of them would not understand the decision he and Madison had made. Convincing Strand would be the hardest part.

Madison pushed out her bottom lip, looking at Jack then turned her gaze onto Strand, "He's coming with us."

Strand stepped forward, speaking with exasperation, "No, you put him back where you found him. We have neither the time nor the room."

Alicia pointed behind her in the direction of the dry docks, "He's going to die out there if we take him back."

"That's his problem, not ours." Strand retorted.

Ofelia did not have any animosity toward Jack because he had courageously stood up to Reed. She voiced her opinion, feeling she had a say in the matter, "He did try to save us, we at least owe him that."

Salazar scoffed, "Yes, tried. He is of no use to us now. I say let the boy swim back to shore. Perhaps he will find new friends out on the water. "

Ofelia gave her father a look before she peered back over at Strand, "If Travis and Madison want to bring him on board then so do I."

Strand shook his head, "He's not coming, end of discussion. My boat, my rules."

"No, we're taking him with us. It's the right thing to do. Nobody gets left behind anymore." Travis tried the same argument he had used with Madison.

"What part of what I'm saying do you not understand?"

Alicia stepped forward, raising her voice at Strand, "Without him you wouldn't even still have the Abigail. He stood up to Reed—he would have killed us all if it hadn't been for Jack. My mom told me what happened—Jack, he gave me the crowbar to use against Reed. If it hadn't been for that, you'd all be dead. He gave us a chance."

"One good deed does not redeem a man." Daniel said, lowering his gun to his side.

"What he said." Strand intoned.

Luis shook his head, speaking emphatically, "You people need to stop debating. We are wasting time. We will miss our chance to cross into Mexico. Adding one more is a problem; we're eight too many as it is."

Jack drew his thick brows together, "You're going to Mexico?"

"That is none of your concern." Daniel snapped.

Luis turned to Strand, a consistent scowl etched on his face, "How do you expect to get through the flotilla anyhow?"

He held up two fingers, "I have two bars of gold, enough for two people." He waved the two fingers in the air, "Not eight, not nine…"

"I told you before, everything is a negotiation." Strand sighed, clearly peeved.

Jack stood with his arms crossed over his chest in an attempt to keep warm, listening intently to the conversation. An idea dawned on him, although, he was not sure how much he would benefit from it. He smacked his lips, his mouth very dry. He finally found his voice, "You folks really think money will get you across the border?"

"Uh, uh, uh," Luis chided, shaking a finger, "Nobody asked for your say in the matter."

Strand smirked to himself, "Let's hear what the boy has to offer, I'm curious."

Jack could feel all eyes on him, creating an immense pressure to give a proposal made him nervous, "Money has no value anymore. It's all about resources. I'm offering you resources; Connor, he has a room full of supplies—food, medicine, weapons…"

"Ah, we have a negotiator on our hands." Strand spoke sarcastically, leering under his breath.

"Oh, no, no, no, we're not walking into some trap. No, we go as planned. His plan will get us killed." Luis said with irritation.

Strand countered, "The boy has a valid point. Money has no value any longer. Miguel is avaricious and a scrounger. He'll do anything to save his own ass; including backing out of our deal. The boy is smart. I'll give him that."

"And you're impulsive." Luis bickered, rolling his eyes.

"I adapt." Strand sneered.

"You're seriously going to listen to a kid you just met?!" Luis bayed.

"No, I am not. We don't have time to diddle-daddle on some precarious mission; which is why we stick to the course."

Luis sighed in satisfaction, "Great, let's toss the kid overboard and continue heading south."

Jack's eyes widened slightly as he gulped. He now truly understood what Alex must have gone through with these people. He quickly regretted coming, thinking he had made a huge mistake.

Strand kept a straight face, "I am a lot of things Luis but I am not that forbidding. Unfortunately, we have neither the time nor the means to return the boy to shore and I am certainly not giving up my launch."

Alicia listened to the two men bicker, starting to become hopeful with the results of their conversation, "So Jack stays?"

Strand rubbed his face with one hand down to his chin, shaking his head with closed eyes, "Seeing that I really have no other choice in the matter being we're pressed for time, and as much as it pains me to say this, the boy can stay."

Jack blinked, surprised by the change of heart, "Thank you, really, I mean that. I'll pull my own weight; I'm good with radios, radars, sonars…" He added, wanting to prove his worth to Strand.

Strand stared back at Jack looking unimpressed," Don't press your luck. The moment you even look like you're up to something, I will toss you overboard."

"Now if you people will excuse me, I've got a boat to start back up." Strand left to go back to the wheelhouse with Luis trailing behind him with an annoyed look.

Madison waited until they were out of sight before she turned to her daughter and Jack. "Let's get you two a change of clothes…"

She forced a smile; she was not 100% on board with the idea of letting Jack on the Abigail. She had given in because of Travis and Alicia. She was also giving Jack the benefit of the doubt simply because he had stood up to Reed; she wanted to believe he had gotten mixed up with the wrong group. The fact was she still did not trust him.

Alicia and Jack did not have to be told twice; they were both sodden and freezing. They followed behind Madison below deck.

After the three of them had left, Salazar turned to Travis, "You're making a mistake letting the boy stay."

"I've already said, it's the right thing to do. He tried saving our lives, we're returning the favour."

"Like I have said before, you'll see what doing the right thing will get you."

Ofelia and Nick exchanged glances; unsure how this was all going to work out civilly.

Below deck, Alicia went into the crew quarters while Madison took jack to her and Travis's room because she thought Jack would fit into Travis's clothes. Alicia stepped into the bedroom shivering; her jade eyes looked around and noticed Chris and Nina. Chris was lying on his back in his bunk staring up at the ceiling while Nina lay on her back in her bunk staring up at the bottom of the top bunk. Alicia remained silent as she stepped over to her suitcase underneath the bunk she shared with Nina.

Nina moved her eyes and propped herself up to watch Alicia. Chris sat up, staring down at his stepsister, "You're back. My dad back? Is he okay?"

Alicia stopped rummaging through her bag and twisted her torso around to look up at Chris; she unintentionally had a chary look etched on her face. She had been made aware that Chris had shot Reed. "Yeah, yeah…we're okay. Everything's good."

Chris nodded with a shamefaced expression; he did not want to face his dad yet because of what he did. He fathomed his father would not understand even though he felt he had done nothing wrong, "Tell him I don't want to see him."

Alicia arched her brow, confused by Chris's request, "Uh, sure. You okay?"

"I'm fine." Chris said rather darkly before he laid back down and went back to staring up at the ceiling.

Alicia revolved back to her suitcase, picking out an outfit. She looked up and met eyes with Nina for a moment but could not think of anything to say. Alicia slowly got to her feet and left the room.

A few hours later, sometime in the early evening, neither Chris nor Nina had left the bedroom; neither had spoken a word to one another either. Alicia and Jack were in the main gathering area playing a card game; Ofelia had gone back to reading. Daniel was out on deck fishing while Strand and Luis remained in the wheelhouse. Travis and Madison were in their stateroom discussing about what had happened the past day and a half, if they made the right decision bringing Jack along, and how to approach Chris about what he did.

"I'm worried about him, Travis. Reed wasn't sick and he certainly wasn't about to turn."

"We don't know that." Travis retorted, shaking his head.

"Travis," Madison gave him an astute look, "I hate to say this but I think Chris deliberately shot him. Something must have happened that provoked him."

Travis let out a heavy sigh, wanting to believe his son had killed Reed because the young man was about to turn, "I'll talk to him, okay? I'll find out what happened."

Madison opened her mouth to respond when she was interrupted by a knock on the door. She and Travis shared looks before she went over to open it revealing Nick.

Nick rocked on the balls of his feet, "Can I come in?"

"Yeah, sure. Is everything okay? Is it Chris?" Madison asked, opening the door wider to allow Nick to slide through.

"What? No. I came to talk to you guys about something." Nick responded, looking back and forth between his mother and stepfather.

"About what?" Madison crinkled her brow, slightly fretful about what Nick might tell them.

"Have you guys noticed anything strange about Nina?" Nick started, continuing to shift his eyes back and forth between his parents.

Madison's frown deepened, "No, why? Should we?"

"Well, for one thing, I haven't seen her sleep since we rescued her," Nick voiced his concern, "I really think she's taking something."

"What?" Madison queried incredulously, "What do you mean? Like drugs?"

Nick nodded, "Yeah, the prescription kind."

Travis appeared confused and sceptical, "Did you actually see her take something?"

"Well, no," Nick replied, "but the way she's been acting. She went into this rant earlier and—"

Madison raised her eyebrows, interjecting, "That doesn't mean she's taking something."

"But I'm telling you—"

"Nick, she's probably rattled by whatever Reed did to her. I'll go talk to her in the morning. Right now, we need to deal with Chris."

Suddenly, a distant voice started yelling out 'Dad' repeatedly; it sounded as if it was coming from above. Travis, Madison, and Nick all looked at one another before scarpering out of the bedroom to investigate.

As Nick was having the discussion with his parents, Chris sat up in his bunk and looked around; he needed to get some fresh air. He stared over at Nina and watched her for a moment; she was sitting up in her bed with her knees pulled up to her chest and her back against the wall. She appeared out of it as she stared out into space. He broke the silence, realising they had not spoken since he had shot Reed, "Hey, how's it going?"

Nina blinked, coming back to reality, her voice breaking, "I'm okay."

"I'm going up on deck, you wanna come with?"

"No, I'm fine," She respired, finally meeting Chris's gaze.

He stared at her longer than he meant to. He swallowed dryly and averted his eyes while a sense of bashfulness came over him. He then crawled out of his bunk and left the room. He made his way up the stairs located in the crews quarters which lead up to the promenade.

Once on deck he took in a deep breath enjoying the smell of the sea; his eyes looked out to the horizon where the sun hovered. His eyes felt tired all of a sudden as he came to the realisation that he had not slept for the past day and a half. He quickly shook the thought away and began to stroll down the promenade until he got to the sliding door that opened into the main gathering area.

He briefly glanced into the room and decided he would see what everyone else was doing. He casually stepped into the room with his hands in his pockets. He blinked when he noticed a familiar face sitting next to Alicia. His mind attempted to process what he saw; he wondered if he was in a dream at first, "What the hell?"

He muttered before he started shouting, "Dad? Dad!"

Jack and Alicia immediately looked up and over at Chris appearing as if they had been caught doing something they were not supposed to.

Chris stepped forward, glowering at Jack, he spoke in a threatening manner, "You get away from her!"

Jack knew his presence would not be welcomed yet it still startled him the amount of acrimony Chris seemed to have toward him.

Alicia got to her feet, speaking rapidly, "Chris, it's okay. It's okay. He's not here to hurt anyone. He's with us now."

Chris raised his voice even louder, wishing he had a gun, thinking he was reliving another hostage situation. He did not even hear what Alicia was saying, "Dad!"

Travis came bolting into the room, nearly out of breath, "Chris? What—what is it? What's wrong?"

Madison and Nick followed, it did not take them long to realise why Chris was calling out for his dad. Daniel came into the room curious as to why Chris was yelling; he shook his head when he figured it out and left the room to continue fishing. Ofelia continued to peer up from her book to watch things unfold.

Chris looked back at his dad, wanting an explanation, "What's he doing here?"

Travis swallowed, steadying himself, he spoke slowly and calmly, "He's coming with us."

Chris's eyes narrowed at the news, he glared back over at Jack, "Why? He shouldn't even be here!"

Travis peered around the room at everyone, deciding this was his opportunity to have the one-on-one with his son that he need to have, "Chris, why don't you and I go talk somewhere private?"

"No," Chris scowled, giving his father a hard look before turning his eyes over to Alicia and Jack, "Alicia, get away from him!"

Alicia shook her head 'no', "Chris, calm down…"

Jack stared over at Chris, holding his hands up in defence, "I'm not here to cause any trouble."

"Shut the hell up!" Chris spat, narrowing his eyes. The last person he wanted to hear from was Jack. He could not understand why nobody else seemed to be bothered by Jack's presence.

"Chris, enough," Travis reprimanded, going over to put a hand on his son's shoulder so he could guide him out of the room and back toward the promenade, "Let's just talk about this, okay?"

Chris jerked himself away from his father's grip, casting another scowl around the room before he left.

Madison waited a moment before she went back downstairs, deciding she did not need to be part of the conversation between Travis and Chris.

Nick lingered behind, going over to sit down next to Ofelia, feeling a heavy tension in the room.

After Chris left the room, Nina sat there staring ahead observing a glow around all the objects in the room. She blinked very slowly, convincing herself it was all in her head. She ignored the yells coming from above deck as she started to lick her lips, parched for water. Keeping her eyes forward, she reached beside her for the water bottle she kept stashed between the mattress and wall. She sulked when she realised it was empty; it meant she would have to go upstairs to get a refill. She sighed with disappointment as she scooted from her bunk and got to her feet. She did not want to leave the comfort of the crew quarters; it was safe and quiet, away from everybody else—at least for now.

She left the room and paced herself up the stairs leading to the deck. She grumbled to herself, wishing there was another way into the galley than having to go through the main gathering area. Her eyes immediately went to the horizon to stare out at the last remaining bits of light from the setting sun; it cast a beautiful orange and red glow across the sky. Her eyes started to feel heavy with fatigue; she opened her eyes wider with an exhale, convincing her body to stay awake.

She leaned against the railing, inhaling slowly while she took in the view. The light from the sun made everything hazy; the clouds almost appeared painted in the sky. As she held her breath, the sunset reminded her of being back on Catrina Island with Seth. She exhaled sadly at the memory of her friend. She hoped he had ended it rather than letting himself turn. She dismissed the distracting thought from her mind, not wanting to dwell on such melancholy subjects anymore. She pushed herself away from the railing wanting to get water from the galley and return to the bedroom as quick as she could.

She stepped over and into the main gathering area; she started to head left in the direction of the galley when someone caught her eye. She lost the grip on her water bottle as her eyelashes fluttered, her eyesight adjusting to what she saw. She stifled a gasp, a knot quickly formed in her stomach while a heavy pressure built up in her chest. Her heart started to palpitate; the rhythmic vibrations resonated in her head. She pressed the back of her hand against her lips, thinking she was about to vomit.

"No," she shook her head, 'no, no, no, no..." She ranted frantically with intonation, taking a step backwards becoming misty-eyed.

Everybody in the room averted their eyes in the direction of Nina; quickly catching on that something was amiss. Alicia spoke up first, sounding alarmed, "Nina? Nina, what's wrong?"

Ofelia put down her book, her lips parting with a sharp inhale out of wonderment; she wanted to know what could be upsetting the young woman.

Nina looked over at Jack and then burst into tears; the room seemed to crash in on her. Memories of Reed flashed throughout her mind. She fell to the floor landing in a side-sitting position. She let out another cry believing it was happening all over again; she would be doomed to repeat the events of the night before.

Nick frowned with concern, unsure if he should intervene and approach Nina in this time of distress.

Jack fidgeted in place, putting his head down; his eyes fell to the floor. His face flushed, and he forced himself to swallow while he pulled at the collar of his shirt like it was choking him.

Once outside, Travis and Chris had gone over to sit on the benches at the stern. Travis looked at Chris as he spoke.

"You'd do that? Just let him stay? After what he did?"

"The boy tried to save us." Travis responded, knowing his answer would not gratify Chris.

"So? What? We trust him now? No—he was with Reed. We can't trust him," Chris leaned his elbows further against the table.

"We're giving him a chance," Travis intoned, "it's the right thing to do."

Chris scoffed with a glower; in disbelief his dad was so trusting of someone who had just tried to take over the Abigail.

Travis sighed, "We need to talk about Reed. Tell me, what happened?"

Chris contracted his eyes, defending himself, "I didn't do anything wrong."

"That guy you shot wasn't sick." Travis countered, intertwining his fingers as he laid his hands on the table.

"Who said that? Who said he wasn't sick?" Chris sat back, looking astounded. He waited for his father to answer but was met with a blank face. It dawned on him suddenly as he derided. "Madison?"

Travis respired, appearing concerned, "She's worried about you."

"She said she believed me, Dad." Chris said dejectedly.

Travis stared over at his son, keeping mum.

"You believe me, right?"

"I…" Travis started, wanting to believe his son, unsure of what to think.

"Dad?" Chris's voice cracked, a sense of betrayal coming over him.

Travis deliberately gulped, nodding slowly, fluently lying as he gave in to his son's plea.

The sound of weeping drifted out onto the deck causing Chris and Travis to look toward the main gathering area. They both frowned and then got up to investigate.

Alicia got to her feet when Travis and Chris came into the room. She craned her head in their direction, her eyes full of fret.

"What happened?" Travis asked in awe, his eyes shifting around the room before landing on Nina again.

"I…" Alicia shook her head slowly, turning her eyes back onto her friend, "I don't know."

Chris watched Nina with curiosity before he spoke up with an ominous tone, side-glancing Jack with a dark glare, "Reed's what happened."

Travis closed his eyes at his son's remark; he felt clueless on how to handle the situation.

Nina continued to weep; she had leant forward pressing her forehead against the floor. She struggled to breathe with each sob.

Nick had witnessed something similar once in rehab when a girl panicked in group therapy. He attempted to recall what the counsellors had done to deal with the situation. He stood and went over to Nina, kneeling in front of her, "Hey, it's okay. You're okay. You're okay."

He hesitantly placed a hand on her back but jerked it away when she flinched.

Nina sat up, looking affright for a few moments until she realised it was Nick beside her. Her breath staggered while she tried to compose herself.

"You okay?" Nick inquired before it dawned on him that had been a dumb question to ask.

She wiped at her eyes, sniffling, keeping her eyes locked onto Nick. She stumbled to her feet, rolling her dark orbs around the room, muttering incoherently. She placed a hand on her forehead and closed her eyes while tears remained cascading down her rosy cheeks. She briskly left the vicinity and went below deck with a perplexed expression.

Nick watched her leave and then turned back to everyone else who was staring at him for an explanation. He shrugged with his arms up in the air before he rose to a standing position. He then followed Nina, leaving everyone in the room stunned.

Nick cautiously walked into the bedroom in the crew quarters; he gently rapped his fist on the doorframe to gain Nina's attention.

She sat on her bed, eyes fixated to the floor. She was no longer crying; she did not even have to look up to know who had followed her. Nina's voice broke, "Why is he here? Why is he here?"

"Uh, um," Nick started before being interrupted.

"Is he gone? Reed, is he gone?"

Nick drew in his brows, puzzled by her question, "Reed's dead."

"But I thought…" She trailed. Keeping her head down she slowly brought her eyes up to meet Nick's, "Jack, he—"

She cut herself short, shaking her head, starting to become upset again, "I don't—it doesn't make sense—"

"Hey, it's going to be okay. Jack, he's not here to hurt anybody." He waited a moment, seeing Nina was becoming upset again, "Do you want to talk about it? It'll help to talk about whatever happened."

"No," she objected rather sternly, turning her head away, "I just want to be left alone."

"Alright, alright, I'll leave you alone," He pouted, "Just try to get some sleep or something, okay?"

Nina barely acknowledged his request as she went back to staring at the floor.

"When you're ready to talk, I'll be here." Nick kept his eyes on her for a minute before he turned around to leave. He glanced back at Nina one more time before he left the room and shut the door.

It was almost midnight, and the Abigail continued to head south. Luis steered the boat while Strand slept in the captain's room. Daniel was sitting on the edge of his bed in deep thought; Ofelia slept soundly in her bed. In the crew quarters, Nick rolled over in his sleep and Chris lay in his own bunk staring up at the ceiling. Nina was on the upper deck lying on the bench staring up at the stars. Alicia slept on the couch in the main gathering area; Jack slept on a bench in the same room, his back facing Alicia.

In Madison and Travis's stateroom, the two of them sat in bed talking. Travis was propped up against the wall with his pillows, staring out into the room. Madison was also propped against the wall, her eyes on Travis.

"You think Nick could be right? He would know about these things better than we would." Travis shifted his eyes over to Madison.

Madison responded with a small sigh, "I hardly think a meltdown means she's taking something. Nina was upset about Jack; she's gone through a lot the past few days. We all have."

"We can't cross the possibility out."

"We could always do what I used to do with Nick and go through her things." Madison suggested.

Travis raised his eyebrows and considered the option, "I'd still feel better if we talked to her."

"Then we'll talk to her in the morning, okay? Why don't we try getting some sleep?"

Travis nodded, barely glancing over at Madison.

"Goodnight, Trav." Madison sunk into the sheets, rolling over on her side, and shutting her eyes. Exhaustion quickly taking over.

Travis remained silent as he turned off the lamp; he waited there a moment staring out at the bookshelf thinking in the dark. Shaking his head he laid down and attempted to go to sleep.

Dawn had barely broken over the horizon; nearly everyone was still asleep. Jack and Alicia had woken before the sun had risen and were standing on the landing dock watching the sunrise. A mustard coloured hue spread across the morning sky, the bottoms of the clouds were a shade of pink and a gentle breeze blew in from the west.

"I bet the sunrise is more beautiful in Hawaii," Jack lightly joked.

Alicia smirked, rolling her eyes, "What's your obsession with Hawaii?"

Jack shrugged, "Cause it's a paradise? I dunno, it seems isolated, maybe it hasn't gone to shit like the rest of the world."

"Maybe," Alicia's brow crumpled, contemplating his words as she stared off into the distance, "I guess we'll never know…"

Jack kept his eyes on Alicia, scanning over her features before he broke the wave of silence that had come over them, "I really like the way the sun lights up your eyes."

"Wha—oh, um, "Alicia blinked; his statement caught her off guard, "Thank you."

Jack smiled softly, watching her blush. He slowly turned his dark eyes out to the horizon with a grin still playing at his lips.

After a moment, Alicia shifted her eyes onto Jack to watch him when she noticed Nina coming down the stairs. Her eyes followed Nina picking up on a determined look etched on her friend's face, "Hey, Nina."

Nina ignored Alicia and narrowed her brown eyes as she approached them. She glared at Jack, "You don't belong here."

Alicia sighed, tilting her head to the side ever so slightly looking annoyed. She scoffed, "Please, don't start."

Nina barely glanced back at Alicia, "Was I talking to you?"

Alicia made a face, "Seriously?"

Nina went back to scowling at Jack, before she shoved him, "You're not supposed to be here."

Jack frowned, taking a step back, "What the hell? Look, I don't want any trouble…"

Nina pushed her hands against Jack's chest again with a small growl.

Alicia tried to intervene, "Nina, stop it."

Nina took another step forward, shoving Jack again, "You've come to punish me, didn't you? I know you know—admit it!"

Jack instinctively stepped backwards a few steps, getting closer to the edge of the dock. He cast a confused expression at Nina, "What?"

Alicia raised her voice, "Nina, quit it!"

Nina glanced back at Alicia, 'You're so stupid, Alicia. Don't you get it? He's just like Reed—he's here to punish us for what we did! He'll probably try to murder one of us in our sleep—probably going to try and rape you—I won't have it, I won't!"

Alicia appeared baffled, "Nina, you're talking crazy!"

Jack frowned again, attempting to take a step forward, "What's your problem?"

Nina turned to face Jack again, "My problem? My problem is you!" She proceeded to shove him back with all her might. He stumbled backwards, lost his balance, and fell overboard.

Alicia gasped, her eyes widening, "Oh, my god! Jack!"

Jack resurfaced with a curse, noticing the boat had moved a few feet. He shouted back, struggling to stay afloat, "Alicia!"

"What the fuck did you just do?!" Alicia glared at Nina, before she started to yell, "HELP! SOMEBODY HELP!"

"You want me to push you in next?" Nina returned the scowl before she stomped off.

Alicia blinked at Nina's threat, appalled. She quickly went back to looking out at Jack, shouting again, "HELP! HELP!"

It was not long before nearly everyone came running out from below deck to see what all the yelling was for—Madison, Travis, Ofelia, Daniel, and Nick.

Madison descended the stairs as quick as she could; Travis trailed behind her, "Alicia! What? What is it?"

"STOP THE BOAT! STOP THE BOAT!" Alicia screamed with tears in her eyes, she turned back to her mother, "We've got to stop the boat—Jack—he's in the water. Nina pushed him!"

Travis gaped, "She what?!" He turned his dark eyes outwards, "Oh, Jesus."

Ofelia stood on the stern, looking down at the loading dock before she peered out at the horizon. She quickly caught sight of Jack; she brought a hand up to her mouth, "Oh, God."

Alicia ran away, nearly tripping on the stairs as she made her way up toward the bridge in order to get Strand to stop the boat.

Madison followed her daughter, "Alicia!"

Nick pushed out his bottom lip, deciding he would search for Nina. He headed back to the stairs to go below deck.

Travis made his way up the stairs to stand with Salazar and Ofelia; all the three of them could do was stare out at sea. The boat had moved at least fifteen to twenty feet away from where Jack had fallen.

In the wheelhouse, Strand shrugged, staring back at Alicia and Madison, "He needed to get off my boat."

"Seriously?" Alicia's jaw fell open, shocked by Strand's statement, "Is that some kind of sick joke?!"

Madison glared, "We're not doing this again. You don't get to decide who lives and who dies—we're not leaving him in the water. Now, stop the goddamn boat!"

Luis cut in, "Hey, lady, Jack is lost to the sea. Sorry, we don't have time to stop the boat. We continue to head south; we're going to miss our window to cross."

Strand sighed heavily when he heard Luis. He reached out and stopped the boat, looking at Madison, "You've got ten minutes."

"Oh, thank God!" Alicia respired before jolting out of the room.

Madison kept her eyes on Strand, in disbelief that he had seriously thought about leaving Jack to his doom, "Thank you."

"Don't thank me. I'm through doing favours for people. You owe me."

Madison did not answer him; she shook her head and left the room.

As Madison and Alicia were having their discussion with Strand, Nick had wandered into the crew quarters. He noticed Chris brooding in his bed, "Hey, man, have you seen Nina?"

Chris slowly looked over at his stepbrother, "No. What's with all the yelling?"

"She pushed Jack overboard and—"

"Good." Chris interrupted.

Nick crinkled his brow, "Not helping. Look, man, I just really need to find her."

Chris glared at Nick, "It's a boat, how far could she have gone?"

Nick shook his head and left the bunk room without another word.

Travis scampered down the stairs to help Madison and Alicia prepare the launch.

Salazar stayed up on deck with his daughter as they watched things unfold.

After a moment, Ofelia turned to her father, "I'm going to grab a blanket..." She stepped away to go to a supply closet where extra blankets would be.

Salazar shrugged, watching the launch speed off in the direction where Jack was floating.

Once the launch had returned, Strand had restarted the boat; Ofelia handed Jack a blanket as he stepped into the main gathering area with Alicia and Madison.

Jack thanked Ofelia and wrapped the blanket around himself as he sat down on the edge of the bench; his entire body shivering.

"I'll go make some tea," Ofelia left and headed toward the galley.

Madison sighed, watching Jack for a moment before she looked over to see Nick coming from below deck, "You find Nina?"

Nick shook his head 'no', "She's not below deck. I'm going to go check the sundeck."

"I'll look with you," Madison stated, not giving Nick a choice in the matter.

Travis chimed in, "I'll come with."

The three of them found Nina on the sundeck sitting on a bench. She was leaning back with her elbows resting on the railing; her head turned toward the bow.

Madison approached cautiously as she cleared her throat, raising her voice against the gentle breeze, "Nina? You okay?"

Nina frowned slightly, turning to look back at the three of them with confusion; she was met with troubled stares. Her frown deepened, "Why are you people looking at me like that?"

Madison looked at Travis then Nick before returning her gaze at Nina, "You pushed Jack off the boat, remember?"

Nina looked doubtful, shaking her head, "No, I didn't. He must have fallen."

Travis and Madison exchanged glances with one another at Nina's blatant lie. Nick had his chin pulled into his neck, his head down. He stroked his chin, his eyes staring at the floor as he listened to Nina.

Travis shook his head, "No, Nina, you pushed him."

Nina viewed their expressions, her glistening eyes narrowing, "Why are you people so mad at me? Aren't you proud of me? I did what no one could. Don't you see—things will be better now…"

She gave a short closed-mouth smile as she sniffled again, a few tears falling down her cheeks.

Travis blinked at Nina's response, startled by how cold she had been in delivering her confession.

Madison moved over to Nina, deeply concerned, thinking the girl was in need of major counseling. She sat down next to the young woman, and then looked back over at Travis and Nick, "Hey, Travis, will you get Nina's backpack for me?"

Travis nodded slowly, not catching onto why Madison wanted Nina's backpack.

Nick peered up at his mother with a knowing expression as if to say 'told you so', he craned his head over to his stepdad, "I'll go with you, Trav."

Travis trailed into the bunkroom behind Nick, glancing around the room until his eyes landed on his son. He slowly brought his eyes down and over, spotting Nina's bag sitting on the edge of her bed. He stepped over to the bunk with his stepson.

Chris propped himself up and watched the two of them with interest.

Nick grabbed Nina's bag and dumped out the contents onto the floor, making sure to go through every pocket to make sure the bag was completely empty in case she stashed anything inside the lining. His dark eyes widened slightly at the vast array of items spread out on the floor. There were clothes, a couple of books, two empty toilet paper rolls—smoke bombs, and a couple packets of pool shock (chlorine). There was also a bottle of brake fluid, a small bottle of bleach, about a dozen mini alcohol bottles, a first aid kit, a pile of feminine-pads, and three bottles of cayenne pepper. There was also a water canteen, two packs of batteries, seven packets of gum, a tin can, a lighter, four empty water bottles, a flashlight, a water canteen, a switch blade, and a small pistol.

Travis's eyes widened in awe, "Jesus, this is a lot stuff …" He knelt down to pick up a packet of pool shock to investigate.

Chris quirked his eyebrows at all the stuff, curious as to why his dad and Nick were digging through Nina's bag, "What're you guys doing?"

Nick sighed, reaching into the backpack, "Looking for something…"

He felt an inner pocket that had missed that had five cylinder shaped objects; he pulled out the bottles, placing each one on the ground, "Hello…"

One of the pill bottles was almost empty; the other four were completely full. Nick kept a pill bottle in his hand and read the label.

"What are they?" Chris asked, sitting up further.

"Some heavy shit…" Nick answered with a mumble, looking up at his stepfather, "Adderall."

"What's that?' Travis asked with a distracted tone, looking up from examining all the content on the floor. He dropped the packet of pool shock back onto the pile.

"It's an amphetamine; used for ADHD," Nick continued, checking to see if all the bottles were the same drug—all contained Adderall but each bottle had someone else's name on the label.

Travis furrowed his brow, "Why would she have this? You think she has ADHD?"

Chris scoffed, "Kids take it to study, Dad."

Nick almost laughed at Travis, finding him to be so naïve, "They also take it for the high. It's basically legal speed. This explains so much…"

Travis sighed, "Well, Maddy will want to see this."

Nick nodded, grabbing all five bottles and left the room.

Travis got to his feet and looked up at his son, "Chris, you alright?"

"I'm fine," Chris said darkly before lying back down. He rolled over, grumbling something under his breath.

Travis took one more glance back at his son before he left the room; hating to see Chris like this.

Madison sighed, staring at the young woman, "Nina, talk to me…"

Nina continued to stare off into the horizon for a moment longer before she slowly craned her head, "Why are you mad at me?"

"Nobody is mad at you, I'm just concerned about you, that's all. You want to tell me why you pushed Jack off the boat?"

"I did what I had to do. He doesn't belong here." Nina answered, moving her head so she could peer out at sea.

Madison let out a heavy sigh, noticing Travis and Nick coming up from below deck. Her eyes followed them as they approached.

Nick placed the pill bottles on the cocktail table, "Thought you'd be interested to know I found these."

Madison reached out and picked up one of the bottles, reading the label. She turned her green eyes onto Nina, "Adderall, huh?"

Nina's eyes widened, turned her head to stare down at the table until her eyes landed on the pill bottles. Her eyes shifted back and forth quickly as she started to mumble something under her breath, not able to look up at anyone.

Travis sat on the bench near Madison, "Nina? You want to tell us about the pills?"

Nina spoke in an undertone, appearing ashamed, "They're my secret weapon…"

Nina frowned, unable to make out what she had said, "How many do you take a day?"

Nina kept her dark orbs glued to the table, beginning to speak in a dreamlike manner, "90mg. That's one, two—three pills a day—sometimes four."

"Jesus," Nick sounded appalled, "That's more than a recommended dose."

Travis and Madison frowned at hearing this; each keeping their eyes on Nina.

"Why do you take them?" Travis asked tentatively, hoping not to upset the young woman in anyway. She seemed to be in a fragile state.

Nina brought her eyes up, blinking slowly, her tears drying up, "I take them to forget; to forget all the sorrow in the world. They make me feel good and I can stay awake for days. Focused, alert…"

"When was the last time you slept?" Madison inquired, never having dealt with something like this before.

"Six days," Nina stated calmly, "I don't sleep. I have to stay focused or else it'll happen again."

Travis gulped, shocked, "So what doesn't happen again?"

Nina looked away again, her eyes fixated on the horizon, "So no one else has to die…"