LXVII.   stuck forever by the glue

Dylan couldn't sleep that night. Her mind wondered in different directions. She hadn't slept in an actual bed in so long that it was almost uncomfortable and she shifted all throughout the night. When she detentions that she wasn't going to be able to sleep, Dylan crawled out of bed and walked out of her room to go to the kitchen.

Her dad was sitting at the dining table in his pajamas, a glass half full of whisky in his hand. His head was rested in his hand. Dylan paused halfway down the stairs. "Dad?" She spoke.

Logan raised his head. "Dylan, honey, why are up?"

"I couldn't sleep," she answered and stepped down the stairs. She walked into the kitchen with light footsteps. "Why are you up?"

"Ahhh," he said and sighed. "I don't know. Have a lot on my mind, I guess."

Dylan frowned. She pulled out one of the chairs and sat by him. She pulled her legs to her chest. "Like what?" She quietly asked.

Logan stared at the liquid in his glass. Even when it was dark in the room with the moonlight peeking through the window, the shine reflected on the brown liquid, making it look gold. "I guess you can say I'm afraid," he admitted and looked at his daughter again, the light also illuminating her warm brown eyes. Her mother's eyes.

"Why?"

"I'm afraid I'll go asleep and wake up to you not being here. That maybe I'm dreaming and you're not really here," Logan spoke his thoughts. He scoffed a laugh. "Silly, isn't it?"

Dylan's face downturned. "Daddy. . ."

Feeling his eyes well with tears, Logan rubbed his face and sighed a tired breath. "I was angry with you. I was so ready for you to come home so I could yell at you or ground you. But then more days went by and you didn't come home, and even though I was still angry, I was getting so worried. All I thought was 'please God, don't let her be in a ditch somewhere or kidnapped'. I was so scared." There was crack in his voice and Logan looked down, tapping his fingers on the glass. "And I'm still scared. I think I'll be scared for the rest of my life."

Dylan started to cry. "I'm sorry, daddy."

Logan sniffled and rubbed his face again. "Jeez, look at us. Couple of cry babies." She laughed through her tears. He laid his hand on the table, palm open, and Dylan placed her hand in his. "DJ, you have to promise me something. No more secrets, okay? No more keeping things from me or your mother. You can tell me anything, doesn't matter how insane or unbelievable it sounds. I need you to be honest with me because I can't feel the way I feel before again. It'll probably kill me."

Dylan closed her eyes and inhaled a shaky breath. She felt more tears fall down her cheeks. Guilt pooled in her stomach and seeped through the cracks in her broken heart. What she put him through, what she put her family through, she'd never forgive herself. "I promise, dad. No more secrets."

Logan half smiled. "Good girl." He put his hand on the back of her head and brought her forward, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"What the fuck?"

Dylan stared at her phone, the text from Sarah causing her jaw to drop.

Sarah 🌞
Rafe's back on the island
the cross is coming to
Willmington tomorrow night.

She groaned and rubbed her forehead. "Seriously? We just got here—"

"Why the long face, girlie?"

Dylan jumped and Cleo raised her eyebrows. She stood in the doorway of her room. "Jesus," she muttered and dropped her hand from her forehead. "Sarah just texted me. Rafe's back on the island."

The inform caused Cleo's eyes to widen. "No chance?"

"We gotta go to the chateau," Dylan said and hurried to grab her bag that was on her desk.

The two girls rushed down the stairs. Logan came out of his office and he saw them running to the door. "Hey, hey, hey, where are you going?" He quickly stopped them.

Dylan paused and closed her eyes. Shoot. She slowly turned around. "Hey, daddy," she greeted him with an innocent smile.

Logan put his hands on his hips. "You girls got somewhere to be?" He asked with his eyebrows raised.

Cleo pointed to the kitchen island. "Imma sit over here."

Dylan glared at the back of her head for a brief second. "Umm, Sarah texted me and she needs me for something. It's important," she told her father.

Logan scoffed a laugh. "You just got back home," he said, throwing his hands up a little. "You already went to leave again?"

She frowned. "Don't say it like that."

"What else do you want me to say, DJ? You think I don't know what's gonna happen if you leave? You'll probably never come back," her dad raised his voice.

"It's not like that, dad. My friend just needs me right now," Dylan matched his tone. "I promise I'll be back but I have to go."

"What happened to being honest with each other?" Logan yelled, not meaning to but he couldn't help it. "Did you just forget about last night or were you lying to me again? I'm sick of the lying, Celeste."

"I'm not lying!"

"Well you're not leaving this house until you tell me the truth."

Dylan stood there with a gaped mouth, unable to add anything else to the argument. Her jaw shifted side to side. Of course she didn't want to lie to him. She'd been homesick for over a month and now that she was finally back home with her family, she was being torn away from them again. But it was more than just about her, it was about her friends, it was about getting justice for what was theirs.

She turned her head and met Cleo's gaze, the girl sitting there awkwardly. "You should tell him," she told her.

Logan looked between the girls suspiciously. When his daughter looked his way again, he raised his eyebrows.

Dylan ultimately sighed, knowing she didn't have a choice. "Okay," she muttered and took her bag off her shoulder. She walked over and sat it on the island then she walked up to her father. "Daddy, if I tell you, then you have trust me. Complete trust because right now I'm trusting you."

"You're not dealing drugs, are you?"

She pinched her brows together. "What?"

He shook his head. "Nothing, sorry. Go on."

Dylan sighed again and she proceeded to tell him everything, even that Big John was still alive, which caused them all to be a little late getting to the chateau due to Logan bursting into tears.

When Pope saw Logan's car pull into the chateau, he was confused. "Why is Logan here?" He voiced to the others.

The others turned their heads at the same time. Sarah watched Logan exit his vehicle along with Dylan and Cleo. "Mr. Jennings?" She voiced, puzzled.

"Hey kids," Logan voiced.

Pope shot Dylan a confused glance. She just shook her head and sat on the couch with Kiara.

"Uhh, not that we don't love to see you, Mr. J, but why are you here exactly?" JJ asked the man, turning his cap back and forward on his head.

Logan didn't answer straight away. He stood there with his hands in the pockets of his cargo shorts. "DJ and Cleo told me everything," he began to explain, the teenagers looking at the girls. "I need you all to understand something—" he pointed a finger at Dylan. "This is my daughter. She's my flesh and blood. She's my daughter and she was taken from me for a month."

Dylan frowned and looked down at her lap.

"I've never been in more pain in my life than when I thought she was dead. When I thought all of you were dead," he continued. He looked at Pope who was the closest to him and he put a hand on his shoulder. "I've known you boys since you were children. I love all of you kids. And I really don't want to relive that fear of losing you all again. So whatever's going on, don't be afraid to tell me. I don't know how much of help I'll be, but, I can sure try."

There was a moment of silence. Dylan smiled tearfully at her father. Pope grinned at him, looking across from him to JJ. The blonde smirked. "I mean, I got no objections," he claimed and rubbed the top of his cap. "What about y'all?"

"No objections," Sarah answered with a cute grin.

"I say welcome aboard, Mr. J." Kiara declared and she smiled at the man.

Logan smiled back and Dylan got up from the couch, hugging his torso. "Thank you, dad," she mumbled into his chest.

He rubbed her back. "Alright, from what I know there's a cross," Logan began and Dylan let go of him, going to stand with Pope. He took her stop on the couch. "What's this mean exactly?"

Pope smiled at her and opened his arm. "Daddy's girl," he whispered and pressed his hand to her back.

She leaned into him and smiled charmingly. "Works every time." She whispered back.

"Okay, Mr. J, what I was saying is that the cross is being shipped to Willmingon tonight at 8 o'clock. It's being shipped from a train to Raleigh from there." Sarah explained to him in a polite manner.

"Okay," Logan nodded and rubbed his chin. "Is there any other information."

"Sarah got the cargo number," Kiara answered and handed him the piece of paper with the shipping number written on it.

"Okay, good. Good."

"Okay, that's a start," Pope claimed.

"I mean they're definitely fencing that shit off as we speak so we should probably get a move on," JJ said.

"I'd say we can take my car, but. . .y'know," Logan offered but seeing as how he drove a Cadillac, there was no room to fit the cross in.

"It's a very nice car," Cleo praised while staring at the shiny black Cadillac.

"It's alright, Mr. Jennings. Sarah, you hear from John B?" Pope asked the girl.

"No," Sarah answered disappointedly. "I mean, he's probably off somewhere with his dad. The problem is, they have the Twinkie."

"That's wonderful," Dylan muttered and she leaned on her hip.

"Ummm," Pope mumbled, thinking of something. "I could ask Heyward for the truck." She suggested.

They all looked at him at the same time. "Uhh, what? Yeah, that's gonna go well." JJ quipped.

"Remember when you stole his stuck and we abandoned it in Charleston? Sorry, dad—" she quickly said when she saw her dad's face. "–you seriously think your dad's going to agree to let you borrow another one?"

"Look, DJ, I know, but we have no other options," he claimed.

"Uhhh," Logan pondered. "Why don't I go with you? Maybe I can get and talk him into it."

They were quick to find out that that wasn't a better solution. "Absolutely not!"

"This might be our last chance to go get that cross."

"Is that so?"

Logan stepped into the father and son argument. "Bobby, I know how crazy it sounds, but Pope's right. You're our only option," he spoke calmly.

"Logan, you my only friend who thinks as normal and logistically as I do. Please don't ruin that for me," Heyward declared and walked off.

"If I could just get to the mainland—" Pope tried to say but he was cut off again.

Dylan and Cleo sat on the counter, silently watching and listening to the interaction. "I knew this wouldn't go well," she whispered.

"You never wrong, girlie." Cleo stated while working her knife.

"Pop, please! Come on!" Pope raised his voice desperately. He followed his dad outside. "This is about our heritage, our family!"

Logan sighed and brushed his hands through his hair. The turned to the girls. "Stubborn man, he's always been," he stated and slowly walked over to them.

"He's stubborn but he's also protective," Dylan added. "I understand. It's risky what we're doing."

Heyward stormed back inside, Pope following close behind him. "Pop, please, I still understood that. But this is our last opportunity. I won't ask you for anything else, and I promise you, I'm done, I swear. Please, please, let me do this. Mama?"

Andrea held her hands up. "Uh-uh."

Dylan and Logan silently laughed.

"You three on board with this?" Heyward asked the other three. "DJ, sweetheart, you as level headed as they come. You really gonna go through with this? Logan, you gonna let her?"

"I'm trusting her, Bobby. I think you gotta trust them, too." Logan spoke his peace.

"Gotta strike while the iron's hot," said Cleo.

"Get off my counter!"

The girls quickly hopped down from the counter. Taking a lighter approach, Dylan followed the man outside. "Mr. H, I get it, okay? I completely understand why you don't want Pope to go. But he's not going this for himself, or for any of us, he's going it for you," she spoke deeply, gently placing her hand on the man's arm so he'd turn and listen to her. "Okay, everything you've done for him, all the support you've given him, he just wants to pay you back. This cross belongs to your family. It means everything you all have been through won't be for nothing. My father wouldn't be here advocating for him to get the cross if he didn't believe we could do it and I know you believe we can get it, too."

Logan stood there with a proud smile on his face.

"Oh, she's good," Cleo whispered.

When Heyward was still silent, Pope stepped forward and stood beside her. "Please, I'll do anything I have to. I'll work triple shifts. I'll never leave the house again. Just please let us go to Wilmington with your truck. Please, dad."

All of them now gathered outside. Heyward looked between all of them. He sighed through his nose, his eyes landing on Dylan. "You lucky I like you so much," he stated, making her smile. "Get out of here."

Pope looked shocked.

"Before your mama talk some sense into me, but you can't take my truck—"

That dimmed the excitement. "Pop, we're going to need transportation," said Pope.

"That is not my problem. I got deliveries. Somebody's got to keep the lights on. Logan?"

The man held up his hands. "Sorry. I knew I should've splurged for that King ranch."

"Okay, okay, we'll figure it out. We'll figure it out," Dylan stepped in, putting her hand on Pope's shoulder. She smiled at his father. "Thank you, Heyward."

He hummed sarcastically.

Pope gave in. "All right. Thank you so much. I promise I won't let you down."

She turned to her own father. "Go," Logan nodded at her.

"What?"

The man placed his hands on either side of her face. "I trust you, okay? But for the love of God sweetheart, please be safe."

Dylan smiled from ear to ear and she placed her hands on his wrists. "I promise. Thank you, daddy."

Logan kissed her forehead before turning to the other two teenagers. "Please be safe. Call us." He pointed at them.

"Don't break any laws. DJ, honey, keep him out of trouble!" Heyward yelled at them.

"Pope, Cleo, bring my daughter back!"

"I love you!" Dylan shouted over her shoulder, laughing brightly when Pope grabbed a hold of her hand and dragged her away with him.

"That's was amazing. You're amazing and I love you," the boy praised and grabbed her face, pulling her into him and he kissed her.

She smiled widely, her dimples on display. "I know, but please never stop saying it."

"Lets get that cross!" Cleo shouted and started running again.

"WHOO!" Dylan yelled and jumped on Pope's back, the boy hooking his hands under her legs and running, all three of them laughing like crazy.

y'all trying to write my obx books after watching season 4 is so hard lol