𝟎𝟕𝟕.                  𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐬𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭

trouble          ────          cage the elephant

☀︎ 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐥𝐲𝐧'𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐯

𝖨'𝖵𝖤 𝖭𝖤𝖵𝖤𝖱 𝖢𝖮𝖭𝖲𝖨𝖣𝖤𝖱𝖤𝖣 𝖥𝖫𝖨𝖭𝖦𝖨𝖭𝖦 𝖬𝖸𝖲𝖤𝖫𝖥 𝖮𝖥𝖥 𝖠 𝖡𝖴𝖨𝖫𝖣𝖨𝖭𝖦，𝖭𝖮𝖳 𝖴𝖭𝖳𝖨𝖫 𝖨 𝖬𝖤𝖳 𝖤𝖬𝖮𝖱𝖸．We've been incognito, hiding ever since we discovered where they were keeping Kiara as, of course, my ruse worked and the cat lady fell for my tears.

May Marley rest in peace.

Anyway, I've never been so close to either pushing myself off the highest building or pushing her off the highest building. She's incessant, constantly yammering on in my ear about how much she knows about each of us. She's wanting some kind of reaction out of me for all the information she knows, but I barely flinch when she speaks, I just stew in quiet anger.

JJ, who I've never known to be so silent in all my life, is probably trying to find an easy way out too as night begins to settle over Kitty Hawk. He's growing just as tired of Emory as I am, that much I can tell from the way he looks at me.

If Emory wasn't with us, I can promise you that this wouldn't be such a harrowing experience. I've had a lot of hardships in my life, but I'll tell you now that I've never had a hardship like Emory fucking Thorne.

Coincidentally, her last name suits her personality as she quite literally is a thorn in my side. Earlier, she had said, "You two aren't exactly dressed for covert-ops."

I then responded with, "And you are?" I eyed the neon-pink shirt she's wearing── no joke. "Your shirt says tuesdays suck. It's not even Tuesday."

"I know it's not, but they do suck."

She's insufferable. I can't stand to be around her, not for a second longer, but I need to get Kiara back, and annoyingly, she is my only hope as she knew where Kiara was being sent. I swear, the moment we've got Kiara back which will happen very soon as we know where she's located, we're ditching her. For all I care, she can take a taxi.

Guards are scattered around the camp, and while we're not dressed for covert-ops, we are trained in avoiding the wrong people. "Okay, we can..."

"Go," Emory finishes, already moving the second the guard we've been eying for the past five minutes moves, heading off in a different direction and away from the entrance to Kiara's prison.

I sigh loudly. "Bitch."

Following Emory── something I don't wish to be doing── we head up the steps that lead to the room we saw Kiara get pulled out of by that cat lady who took my bait. This is the reflection cabin according to the sign on the door, whatever that means. Hopefully Kiara has reflected enough because she is leaving this hellhole now.

"Is this the right one?"

"Yep." Emory holds her hand out to JJ who holds the pliers we found in the Twinkie. "I can't believe they chain the fucking d──" She looks to JJ, finding that he's not handing off the pliers. "What are you doing?"

He steps forward, invading her space so he can break open the door. "Step out of the way."

"Wow, blondie really has found his voice, huh?"

"Shut your mouth," I bite out, glaring at her as she takes a single step back, allowing JJ to break the chain around the door handle and crack open the door.

Once the door is open, the lock disregarded on the ground, we each walk inside the confined space to find that Kiara absolutely isn't in here. It's pretty easy to tell that she isn't here given that there's just a bed and literally nothing else. How can somebody reflect in here? This place is downright depressing.

Emory scuffs her boot against the hardwood floor, scoffing. "Well, this is cute."

I've never hated Kiara's parents more than I do now because they have no idea what kind of nightmare they've pushed Kiara into, and for what?

"Hey. Look." I move towards JJ, noticing a carving in the bed frame that reads, P4L Cabin 6.

I smile, knowing she left this for us. "Kie."

"P4L? Seriously?"

Barging past Emory, I move down the steps quickly, double checking the guard still has his back turned. Hoping JJ and Emory are following me, I duck behind the building, scaling it so I can stay hidden and head off in the direction of the cabins that are lined up. It shouldn't be too hard to find cabin six.

Checking for guards left and right, I follow the path that heads towards the dozens of cabins that host as many prisoners── girls, sorry── as it can fit. When I find ten, I follow it down, Emory and JJ close behind me as I track number six down.

I come to a stop in front of the door, unsure on what I'll find when I step inside. "Okay."

"Are we all going in or..."

"I'll go," both Emory and I say, our heads slowly turning to look at the other as we realise that we both want to go in there and get Kiara.

I think I hear JJ laugh, definitely amused by the fact that Emory and I can't seem to get along, not in any kind of way. I open my mouth, about to explain why I should be the one to go in when Emory chimes in. "Why do you need to go in?"

"She's my best friend," I argue, finding that to be the only plausible reason.

"Wow. Do you have that in writing?"

Again, I need directions to the highest building so I can shove her off the damn thing.

"Why do you even wanna go in? You don't like her."

"No, Kiara doesn't like me. Just between us, I don't dislike her."

"Oh." JJ chuckles, doing his best not to listen in on our conversation but failing completely. In his defence, we are talking loudly.

"She won't wanna see you so I will go in."

"And how do you know what she wants?"

"I know Kiara," I fight.

Emory crosses her arms over her chest, one shoulder lifting in a shrug. "Yes, you've made that perfectly clear."

"Okay. I am going in."

"No, I am."

"Okay!" JJ steps in between us as he must sense a fight looming. I'd love to sink my claws into her, throw her off the nearest building and just let her drop. I don't like her, if you can't already tell. "How about you both go in and I'll stay on lookout, alright?"

That would be the smartest choice. The easy choice. Although, let's face it, when have I ever just taken the easy route? I like being difficult, and it's probably my worst trait.

I stare at Emory, finding she's already staring right back at me. She hates me, I can see it in the way her eyes narrow whenever she catches glimpse of me. I can feel it in the way she talks to me like she finds that I am the thorn in her side, preventing her from getting close to Kiara.

No, bitch, Kiara just don't like you.

Reluctantly, and without much fight as I ain't about to argue with JJ over something so stupid, both Emory and I suck it up and pretend that, for a singular moment, we actually can stand to be in each other's vicinity for a minute while we step into cabin six to retrieve Kiara.

The floor creaks under the weight of our feet but I force myself to keep walking into the dark cabin. It's much darker in here than I thought it would be all the windows having dark curtains hanging over them. It's dark.

"Kie," I whisper, wincing when my foot lands on a particularly squeaky piece of wood. Great. "Kiara." I don't hear Emory whispering, not that I thought she would. I guess she's just here to, you know, be a thorn in my side. "Kiara."

"Hey, genius." Emory speaks in her usual tone, not a hushed one. She obviously doesn't care about waking about two dozens girls, does she?

I turn to her, annoyingly finding her to be standing right next to me in the dark room. "What?" I remain quiet, speaking just below a whisper.

She tilts her head in the direction of the bunk beds to our right where we find that several girls have began to awaken from their sleep. A few even move to flick on their lamps, bringing a touch of light into the darkened room. "What are you doing in here?"

"Oh, we're just breaking in, ignore us."

My head hits my hand, knowing that if Emory wasn't with me, we wouldn't be on the verge of getting caught by somebody much worse than a bunch of camp girls.

"Oh, hey." We both look to JJ who's peering his head in. "You've been noticed."

"Yeah, J, we got that," I say, offering him a thumbs up as I know we've been caught by these girls. We weren't exactly sneaky. Well, I was, thank you very much. Emory went ahead and screwed it up.

Emory huffs out a laugh. "This is going well."

"Shut up." I exhale a breath, turning to look at the girls who are lifting themselves up."Hi, I'm sorry to bother you all. We come in peace."

"We're not starting a war, Routledge." Saying my last name while breaking into this camp is not the ideal thing to do, but that's Emory for you. She'll let me get caught and run away giggling.

"I'm just looking for someone," I explain, making it explicitly clear that I am looking for this somebody, not Emory. "I'm looking..." My eyes move along the row of beds, checking to see if anyone stands out to me. "I'm looking for──"

"Me."

I spin, looking to the adjoining row of beds, eyes immediately searching for those familiar brown ones that I always seem to find in the dark, regardless of the situation. A laugh ripples out of me, pure relief blooming in my chest as I watch my best friend begin to climb down the ladders from the top bunk, desperate to join me in the middle.

"Kie," I breathe out, moving to meet her.

The second we meet in the middle, I throw my arms around her, feeling her arms engulf me too in the most bruising, heart-aching hug I think either of us have ever shared. I relax entirely, all the frustration and anger I had before being replaced by warmth and radiating joy that I found her── that we found her.

Kiara pulls away from me, hands moving up and down my arms like she's checking to see if I'm really alive. "How did... How?"

A figure comes to stand behind me, and when I cast a glance over my shoulder, I find that her grouchy expression is no longer on show, instead replaced by an expression I know very, very well. I then look back to Kiara, finding that her eyes have widened in surprise, but there's only shock behind her look for a quick moment as she displays a very similar look that Emory is offering her.

It's an expression of contentment── an expression I know well because it's a look JJ and I share on a daily basis. There's something familiar behind both their eyes like they've looked at each other like this for a little too long in the past.

I think it's safe to say that they both have some kind of feeling towards each other, and those feelings are not platonic.

"We need to go," I say, breaking the intense eye contact that's happening right before my eyes.

Emory snaps away first, looking towards the girls that sit up in their beds, watching the scene unfold. Somebody breaking in is probably the most excitement these girls have gotten in months. The poor things, I wish I could free them all, but some might actually need to be in here, so I'll just save the one that matters right now.

"Goodbye!" Emory waves, practically skipping out of the cabin.

I laugh, throwing my arm over Kiara's shoulder as she retrieves her bag from the end of the bed she will no longer be sleeping on. "You have a lot of explaining to do," I say, pulling her into me.

"I'm sorry," she whispers, waving to the girls as we rush out of the cabin. "Whoo!"

We step out of the cabin, greeted by JJ who shakes his hand against Kiara's in the famous Pogue handshake, and then we run.

Like all those previous times where I've hated running, this time it ain't so bad. It's freeing, completely relaxed and very, very needed as we're running towards something that will solve all of our problems.

We're going to South America.

"I never thought I was gonna make it out!" She cheers, throwing her middle finger up at this fucking waste-of-a-space camp. "This place can suck it!"

"Whoo!" I cheer, reaching for JJ's hand and clapping mine over Kiara's in a celebratory we saved you moment. She's free, and now that she's escaped, we can safely get the hell out of this place.

Once we're clear of the camp, crouched behind bushes on the side of the road, JJ and I take it in turns explaining the entire plan to Kiara.

We tell her about how we left the Twinkie behind as decoy to which she laughs, very grateful that we gave up the Twinkie for her life. We tell her about Barracuda Mike and how he's going to help us get to South America as we absolutely missed the flight with our friends.

We'll meet the others once we're in South America, we'll track down the Pogues and be on our way to success── to the damn gold.

Mike pulls up to us minutes later as we stand at the side of the road, waving him down once we find that the coast is clear. He rolls the window down, greeting us, and my God, I've never been so happy to see Barracuda Mike in all my life. "You guys ready?"

JJ is in the car first, followed by Kiara and just as I'm about to get in, I realise that Emory is backing away. I sigh, peering at Kiara who isn't meeting my gaze, instead looking towards Emory.

"Hey." Emory looks at me, bottom lip tucked between her teeth. "Get in the car."

She scoffs, head shaking like she can't believe that I'm saying that. Honestly, I can't believe I'm saying it after I just swore to myself that I'd let this girl walk back home after all she's said and done in the past few hours, but here I am, inviting her in.

"Seriously?"

"Look, you don't have to learn the handshake or call yourself a Pogue── I certainly don't want you to── but..." I know Kiara is watching us, and I don't think she realises just what I'm doing so she can have what she wants. "You helped get Kiara back, and I'm grateful."

"You?" She laughs, tongue dragging across her teeth. "Wow. You're grateful?"

"Just get in the car, alright?"

"Well, if you insist, B."

She moves to get into the car, arm brushing mine. "Yeah, you ain't allowed to call me that."

She doesn't say anything, just pulls herself into the car, slotting right next to Kiara. I may regret this, but the moment I catch the subtle smile on Kiara's lips, I know I won't need to regret this.

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𝖨 𝖲𝖫𝖤𝖯𝖳 𝖳𝖧𝖤 𝖤𝖭𝖳𝖨𝖱𝖤 𝖯𝖫𝖠𝖭𝖤 𝖱𝖨𝖣𝖤 𝖶𝖨𝖳𝖧 𝖬𝖸 𝖧𝖤𝖠𝖣 𝖮𝖭 𝖩𝖩'𝖲 𝖲𝖧𝖮𝖴𝖫𝖣𝖤𝖱．When I woke, I found that we were landing in South America. I also found Emory and Kiara laughing across from me── about what, I don't know, but it was kind of refreshing to see Kiara enjoying herself with somebody who isn't us. I'm happy for her, it's why I gave in to letting Emory join us.

Whether or not she entertains the idea of our little family after this journey to South America, I'm still glad Kiara found comfort in another even if I don't exactly like the girl. Until recently, I didn't think Kiara liked her, but maybe she has this entire time just to throw me off.

Having missed the plane ride, I certainly wasn't about to miss the bus ride to Tres Rocas that we had to take. I promise Mike over and over again, reassuring him that I will get him his money for the lost load that was lost thanks to my very intelligent boyfriend. I may even throw in a tip if we actually manage to scrounge up that gold.

God, I really hope we find the gold.

We're cramped on this coach, my body squished in between Emory's and JJ's as a man in front of us attempts to explain a map to us on where we need to go. "So right here, you have Tesoro. Up here, Orinoco, right?" We nod, following his finger. Emory supposedly has some clue on what's going on as Kiara explained most, if not all, the details dating from the very beginning to now.

Must've been one heck of a story── seventy-seven chapters long, to be precise.

"And they say up here, El Dorado," he tells, his finger pinned on a specific location.

"Who says?"

"All the world," he replies, a bit bluntly, I must say.

"The whole world?" Emory scoffs, obviously not a true believer in all this. "If the whole world says it, why hasn't it been found?"

"Some people say it doesn't exist. Some people say it's hidden, and only one very special person can find it."

Emory nudges me, her elbow digging into my hip. "Well, you're outta luck, B."

Well, I have to laugh at that because I would've said the exact same thing had I not been trying to be a little more open to the idea of us having a potential eighth member in our crew. Well, I do like even numbers.

"Most people say it's maldito," he continues.

"Maldito?"

"Cursed," Emory answers, surprising each of us. She shrugs casually, watching as the man nods in agreement. "What? I took Spanish."

Not to be rude, but she seems like the type of person who flunked out of high school, who never went to a class and just lived on the high side of life── literally. Although, perhaps, I've read her all wrong.

"Over the years, people that go up, they don't come back."

"Could say the same thing about men," Emory chimes, grinning like a fucking cat.

"Funny." JJ laughs, lifting his arm and placing it over the back of my seat. I lean into him. "Very, very funny."

Emory kicks one leg over the other. "I know."

I don't think JJ found Emory funny, I think he finds this whole El Dorado situation funny because if what this man said is true, and that once you go up, you never go down, we may be screwed and dead.

Upon arriving in Tres Rocas after a journey that had me literally sweating, I'm more than relieved to get off the bus. It's too hot, and if I want to travel in the future, I need to suck it up and embrace the warmer weather even if my skin isn't entirely agreeing with it.

As we're getting off the bus, pushing and shoving at the strangers in front of us, two familiar faces rush past the bus. Like fate, Pope and Cleo land right in front of our faces, running for their lives because, naturally, that's what we always have to do.

I stick my arm out the side of the bus. "Pope, hello!" He laughs, not expecting to see me but still clapping his hand over mine as he runs.

"What's going on?"

"We gotta run!" Cleo yells, running ahead, and we don't waste any second, we push ourselves off this crowded bus and run.

"Is this all you people do?" Emory asks, already out of breath as she pulls her hair up into a ponytail whilst sprinting after two people she doesn't even know. I tell you, girls can do a lot. She's also correct, we do run a lot. We usually run because our lives depend on it, and this case is no different.

"Singh's men are right behind us," Pope tells us as we catch up with him. I feel sweat trickle down my forehead, making me feel ill. "They're after us. We gotta think of a plan."

"Why don't we hijack the bus?" JJ suggests.

"You're not very bright, are you?"

I smack my hand against Emory's arm, my hatred for her seeping back in. "Hey, don't talk about him like that."

"Well, is it a good idea? The bus goes ten miles an hour." Yeah, she has a fair point, but she still doesn't get to call my guy dumb. I'll knock her out if she does it again, I swear.

"Hide!"

We do as told, ducking behind the closest thing to us── a couple of fruit stands. We notice a few of Singh's men in front of us, rushing to try and catch up with us but they fail to notice us... for now. We just need to stay here until the area is clear which it will be very soon. I hope.

"Hey." Pope moves to hug Kiara, relieved to have her back too. "You're okay."

She nods, smiling. "I'm okay."

"Who's this?" Cleo asks, eyeing Emory up and down, obviously trying to figure her out, but Emory stares right back at her, attempting to be just as intimidating.

"Guys, meet Emory, she helped save Kie."

"Oh, the one who stole your life?" Pope asks, directing the question towards Kiara.

"Ah, yes, that's what I'm formally known as."

"Can she be trusted?"

"Well, that's debatable," JJ comments under his breath, making me feel awfully proud.

"She can trusted," Kiara assures, her and Emory sharing a small, subtle glance that nobody but me would recognise as I notice just about everything, especially when two people are in the process of either making a great mistake or falling in love── it's hard to tell.

"Well..." Cleo steps forward, taking Emory's hand and shaking harshly. "Welcome to South America."

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❀ soph speaks

i'm in mourning bcos i think it's rlly over

madison unfollowed rudy back :(

i have a love/strong hate relationship with obx rn i wont lie,, i'm frustrated

i rewatched the jiara kiss for this chapter and it just made me so sad that they barely had a relationship in season four like we deserved more jiara,, it was disappointing

sorry, i'm mournful

thankyou for reading!!

not long till the end of act three and the start of what will be the hardest act to write i imagine