John B and Kie exited the lighthouse just in time to see the Twinkie pulling away.
"Seriously?" Kie muttered irritably, hearing the police sirens drawing closer. "This way, this way," she urged them, leading them quickly through a yard, over a white picket fence, and into a nearby treeline. They moved swiftly towards the beach to avoid getting lost, staying concealed within the cover of trees.
Once they had put a good distance between themselves and the lighthouse, they slowed to a walk and caught their breath.
"Hey, look. You've got to admit, that was kind of promising," John B said to Kie. "I mean, my dad, the Royal Merchant, the keeper, the Royal Merchant. Coincidence? I don't think so."
"It's his job to know about shipwrecks," Kie replied skeptically, still not convinced.
"Okay, but the Royal Merchant?!" John B insisted, trying to reason with her.
"That's like the most famous shipwreck of all time!" Kie said, exasperated, wishing John B would listen to her. "Redfield's one of the most common names in the Outer Banks. That could mean anything. Look, as wild goose chases go, this was a really good one."
John B refused to accept that. He stopped and turned towards Kie. "Look, I don't know. Maybe we missed something at the lighthouse. We— we should go back." Kie looked at him with a mix of sympathy and doubt. "You believe me, right?" He felt a pang of insecurity. JJ would believe me. Kie looked down, and he already knew she didn't, but he needed to hear it. "Right?"
Kie looked up again, her expression softened. "I think there might be some light to moderate concocting going on at this point."
John B groaned inwardly, feeling hurt and alone that his friend wouldn't believe him. He habitually brought a hand to the brim of his cap behind him, trying to rein in his emotions. "Kie, come on," he mumbled, hoping she would change her mind and believe him.
"Look, uh... I get it. You miss your dad. I know," Kie said softly, trying to understand. "I just don't understand why he would put a clue on a compass."
"'Cause he knew it would come back to me," John B tried to explain. She didn't reply, but instead pulled him into a hug, trying to comfort him. He let her, allowing himself to momentarily imagine it was JJ he held in his arms, and he hugged back.
"You're losing it. You gotta pull yourself together," Kie mumbled in his ear, reminding him that she was definitely not JJ. He pulled away, but Kie didn't immediately step back, and he caught her eyes briefly glance down at his lips. Clearing his throat, he awkwardly stepped back, putting distance between them.
"What was that?" he asked, unsure of Kie's intentions and feeling a mix of confusion and discomfort. Was JJ right about Kie liking him?
"What was what?" Kie asked, trying to mask her embarrassment at her momentary lapse in control.
"You... um..." John B stumbled over his words, unsure if he should address what he thought he saw or not. Maybe he was imagining things.
"Uh..." Kie faltered, also uncertain of how to respond. Her awkward silence confirmed John B's suspicions, and he felt awful. He didn't realize she had feelings for him, and he knew he couldn't return them.
"I'm... shit. I'm... I'm sorry," John B apologized, feeling deeply regretful. "I... I..."
"It's okay," Kie said softly, realizing she wouldn't be able to talk her way out of it. She never intended for him to find out about her feelings.
"Oh god, I'm an idiot," John B muttered to himself, berating his own obliviousness to his friend's feelings. The situation felt awkward and complicated, leaving both of them unsure of how to proceed.
"No, it's okay, it's okay," Kie reassured him gently, sensing his discomfort. She had already known John B would never like her that way.
"It's just that I'm freaking out about my dad and the DCS stuff," John B tried to explain, searching for reasons to ease the tension. He felt terrible; he genuinely cared about Kie, just not in a romantic way.
"Stop. It's okay. I get it. I know," Kie said, smiling at him reassuringly, trying to convey that she was okay and he didn't need to worry about her. He stared at her intently, as if searching for any hint that she was lying or on the verge of breaking down. She had come to terms with her unreciprocated feelings for him a long time ago.
"It's the uh, rules, you know?" she teased lightly, attempting to lighten the mood despite the ache in her heart from his rejection. It still hurt, even if she had accepted it long ago.
"Yeah," John B nodded, playing along with her attempt to lighten the mood.
"No pogue-on-Pogue macking," Kie smiled, winking at him with a hint of mischief in her eyes.
"Right, rules," he mumbled, sensing the underlying message behind her wink but deciding not to pursue the matter further. They both understood the unspoken boundaries between them now, and John B appreciated Kie's attempt to move past the awkwardness.
Just then, a siren blared in front of them. John B cursed under his breath; they shouldn't have stopped.
"Routledge. I got you, son," rang out the deputy's voice from behind them. "Now, why don't you just be chill and not make me chase you."
John B quickly slipped his dad's compass to Kie discreetly while the deputy approached them. "Hands where I can see them," the deputy ordered, and John B raised his hands in compliance.
John B remained silent the entire way back to the police station, while Kie sat beside him, staring out the window. Upon arrival, Kie was asked to wait at the deputy's desk, while John B was escorted straight to Sheriff Peterkin's office. He sat in a chair and waited for her to speak.
"I feel for you, kid, I really do. I know since they never found your dad, a part of you thinks he might walk through that door someday. I don't blame you," Sheriff Peterkin began, pacing around the room. "But going on fandangos ain't gonna bring him back. He's been missing at sea for nine months. Your father's dead."
"You don't know that," John B said quietly, his voice filled with exhaustion and frustration. He was tired of everyone telling him the same thing.
"Yeah, I do. And as hard as it is, it'd be best for you to accept it and move on," Sheriff Peterkin said firmly. "You've been running around, getting caught up in things that do not involve you. And now you're in a heap of trouble. It's not just foster care we're talking about; it's assault, battery, JD time."
John B remained silent, his thoughts heavy with the weight of Sheriff Peterkin's words.
"I can still help you out, but we gotta do a little tit for tat. And this time, you gotta tat a whole lot better," Sheriff Peterkin continued, then sat next to John B. "I know you've gotten hold of a compass."
"I don't know what you're talking about," John B denied, feeling defensive. Sheriff Peterkin's interest in the compass only confirmed to him that something was going on.
"I know you took it off the wreck. There ain't much that happens in the OBX that I don't hear about eventually," Sheriff Peterkin said knowingly.
"Okay, what do you want with this compass?" John B asked, feeling apprehensive.
"It's evidence in an investigation," she replied sternly. "I'm gonna need it, son. Otherwise, I'm charging you."
John B wasn't willing to give up the only clue he had to his father's disappearance. "I don't know what you're talking about," he said stubbornly. "I don't have a compass."
Knowing she wasn't going to get anything out of him, Sheriff Peterkin stood up and left the room. The tension between them lingered, leaving John B alone with his thoughts in the sheriff's office.
20 minutes later, Kie's dad showed up at the police station, convinced by Kie to pay John B's bail. He was visibly angry, but he reluctantly agreed. They walked out of the police station, Kie and John B following after.
"If you skip out on your bail and I lose my money, I'm gonna hunt you down and skin you," Kie's dad said angrily, his eyes filled with judgment as he glanced back at John B.
"Dad!" Kie interjected, trying to diffuse the tension.
"Cut it," Kie's father said sharply, looking at her with narrowed eyes, and she fell silent.
"Thank you, Mr. C," John B thanked him gratefully.
"Don't thank me," Mr. C snapped back, his tone brusque, and continued towards his car.
"Yeah," John B grumbled, feeling like gum beneath the man's shoe. He walked Kie to the passenger side of Mr. C's car.
"Get in," Mr. C demanded of his daughter.
"Give me a sec," Kie retorted, then turned towards John B and pulled out the compass for him to take.
"Thank you," John B muttered gratefully as he took the compass.
"Good. You're gonna be good," Kie assured him with a reassuring smile before she got into the car.
"Kiara," her dad's stern voice rang out again.
"Sorry," Kie mumbled apologetically, then entered the car.
Her window was down, so John B could hear her dad's voice clearly from where he stood. "I told you. When you hang out with trash, you get dirty."
John B watched the car drive away, Kie looking back at him until they were out of view.
He started heading home, quickly sending a text to Pope and JJ about what had happened and that he wouldn't be meeting them at JJ's. Pope replied with an "okay" and mentioned he was going to drop off the Twinkie and head home. It had been a long day, John B sighed deeply.
An hour later, he arrived back at the chateau and saw the Twinkie parked in the driveway. He assumed JJ was inside.
"JJ?" John B called out as he entered the chateau. There was no response. Perhaps she was sleeping. He checked his own room, but she wasn't there either.
He quickly sent a text to Pope, asking if he knew where JJ had gone. JJ's phone went straight to voicemail when he tried to call, suggesting it had died. With the power out, she wouldn't be able to charge it.
Pope texted back, and John B felt his heart sink at the answer: JJ was at home. She hadn't left with Pope.
Feeling defeated, he dropped onto his bed miserably, letting exhaustion overwhelm him. Within seconds, he was fast asleep, the events of the day catching up with him.
