Strawberry Sunscreen - JJ Maybank - Outer Banks

Chapter 18 - Spy Games || Part 1

"It's not there. Look, just... just pull the drone up," John B sighed as the thunder continued to rumble. "Shit." Elizabeth, Kiara, Pope, and John B all watched the video, but all that was left of the merchant was debris and a skeleton of what used to be.

"Look, we can do another pass. recharge the battery. We can... we can go back down," Pope attempted to uplift John B, but the boy just sighed in defeat.

"We've done it three times. There's nothing there," explained JJ, the frustration clear in his voice. JJ was extremely disappointed— he definitely needed the money for reasons he never wanted to admit.

"Shut up!" Kiara yelled at him.

"He's not wrong. It's not here," said Elizabeth, walking over to JJ. The girl gave him a sympathetic look as he stared sternly back at his friends.

"The gold could be buried. We don't know," stated Kiara. Elizabeth sighed, wishing she could be that optimistic.

"If it was there, it would've been found on the metal detector, okay?" John B stated. So it was true, the gold was gone. "Somebody beat us to it."

"Or it was never there," mumbled JJ as he turned the steering wheel to drive them back to the chateau. John B placed his hood over his head, placing his head in his hands. He was sure the group was missing something, but the boy had given up.

As soon as the group got back, Elizabeth decided that she had to go home. It had been a few days since she took one of her mothers cars, and she knew Mrs. Thornton would have called the police claiming it was stolen by now.

"Hey, I'm going to head back and drop off the car at my place, maybe grab some more of my stuff too. Anyone need a ride?" Pope and Kiara shook their heads, as one of their parents was picking the two of them up.

"I'll come with," stated JJ. "I wouldn't mind riding in this baby one more time." Elizabeth laughed, waving goodbye to the others as the two walked towards her mothers car. The car ride was fairly short, with the two friends talking about the treasure hunt that led them astray. As they pulled up to the Thornton home, Elizabeth shuddered as she noticed both Topper's and her mothers cars in the driveway.

"Want me to come? I feel like maybe I should," JJ stated in a calm tone. Elizabeth took a deep breath and nodded slowly, unsure of what she really wanted. On one hand, the presence of the blonde boy could piss off both her mother and Topper, but on the other hand, it eased her feelings knowing someone else would be around to mediate. JJ jumped out of the car, speed walking around the front and opening Elizabeth's door for her.

"C'mon, Lizzy. It's now or never sweetheart." In a normal situation, the girl would have argued with him as she heard the nickname or laughed at his chivalry. At this moment, however, she was too worried to care.

"Thanks," Elizabeth mumbled as JJ rubbed the girls back gently. They walked towards the door, Elizabeth using her key to unlock it. Elizabeth put the keys on the hanger where she had taken them from days prior. She wished that she could have gone unnoticed through her bedroom window, but there was no doubt in her mind that it had been locked. The girl stopped, peeping around the corner as she saw her mother and Topper speaking to some man.

"Boat like this don't just sink, Dr. Thornton," stated the man. Elizabeth and JJ shared a look as they overheard the conversation.

"How much is this gonna cost me?" Mrs. Thornton asked, eyeing her son.

"Ah, submerged 24 hours, so you're lookin' at 25, 30K," the man stated. Elizabeth widened her eyes as she looked at JJ, who had a small smirk peaking onto his lips.

"And insurance won't cover it?" Elizabeth's mom asked, seemingly surprised at the amount it would cost.

The man chuckled, "No. Not for operator error. Plug wasn't in there."