CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR:
WHITE DAISIES
(episode eight: the cross)

■ ■ ■ ■ ■

SARAH CAMERON CAME BARRELING down the Chateau driveway like a heroine in an action movie. Blonde hair falling in soft waves around her shoulders, she marched up the porch steps and right towards the group with a confidence that Haven had never seen in her. She didn't seem the slightest bit phased, not even when Haven's face went pale at the sight of her, or when John B's eyes narrowed into a glare.

"Shouldn't you be on Figure Eight?" the boy in question asked, unable to stop the words from overflowing. "With your little group of polo players?" To give credit where credit was due, Sarah tried not to rise to the bait. But as Haven knew personally, John B had a knack for getting under someone's skin when he was annoyed. He kept on looking for sore spots until one blow hurt too much. "Or did you break up with Topper?"

"We're just friends," she corrected, smiling condescendingly as she moved to sit at Arden's side. For a moment, it was silent apart from the two girls giggling at Logan in Arden's arms. Haven waited, heart hammering, for Sarah to look at her at John B's side, for old arguments to erupt. Just as the thought came, their eyes met.

"You know, you have a lot of friends, Sarah Cameron."

Yikes.

"Yeah," she didn't deny it. "But it seems like you've got some of your own, too."

Oh, god. Was there a word for worse-than-yikes? Haven needed it then.

With a barely noticeable glance in her direction, John B sat up, jaw locked. "Alright, what are you doing here? What do you want?" She had a feeling he would've kept going until there was no turning back, but Haven's face was like an open book. She was nervous, and he didn't want to make things worse for her.

With a roll of her eyes, Sarah retorted, "I'm here for Pope." Well, that wasn't what Haven was expecting.

"Oh?" the boy in question piped up then, failing to hide his confusion.

"I think I found the Island Room."

Okay, that certainly changed things...

So much for avoiding Sarah Cameron until she couldn't anymore.

Not wanting to waste a second, the pogues piled into the Twinkie, John B and Haven up the front while the rest of them crowded into the back. Pope had brought along Denmark Tanny's diary, and was flipping through the entries with the others when he found one in particular.

"Guys, listen to this," he exclaimed, eyes darting over the photocopied pages. "The diary says that the cross holds the most holy relic in all of Christendom, the Garment of the Saviour―"

"The what now?" Arden cut in with a frown.

Kie seemed to share the same confusion. "So wait. He's saying there's a holy garment inside the cross?"

"Yeah," Pope nodded eagerly. "It says the garment is capable of healing the sick from any malady."

For a second, he was quiet, allowing the words to sink in. "Oh, yeah." But of course, JJ was the one to break that silence, quoting, "If only I may touch His garment, I shall be made well." Haven's eyes widened in sheer surprise as a sound of disbelief echoed through the group. "What?" he scoffed at them. "I went to Sunday School."

"Hey, twins," Haven sent him a grin over her shoulder. "Which is weird, because my mum isn't religious in the slightest and neither was my dad."

"Well, my dad definitely wasn't religious―"

"Can we talk about this later?" Arden interrupted with an impatient sigh.

Strapped into the car seat beside her was Logan, the baby girl kicking her legs obliviously. Arden had been trying to contact Liam the whole morning after he failed to show up to watch Logan, but after several missed calls and messages left on sent, it was decided that they'd bring the girl along, at least while Sarah showed them the room. They could worry about babysitting when it came to it.

With JJ and Haven now quiet, sharing sheepish smiles, Pope continued. "Well, that explains why Limbrey would want the cross so bad. She thinks it can heal her."

"But that's just crazy," Haven scoffed.

At that, Kie made a sound of agreement, leaning over for a better look at the book. "What else does it say?" she asked curiously.

Pope took a moment to read over the words before repeating them aloud. "Many feel that we have sinned to steal such a sacred thing, and God will strike His vengeance on us..."

"Thing is, God did have His vengeance..." Kie pointed out, sitting back in her chair with a grim frown.

"He sent a hurricane to sink the ship. Only Denmark survived."

The rest of the car ride was silent. Pope continued to pour over Denmark's life, occasionally pointing out passages to Arden and JJ as they sat on either side of him. At one point, John B slowly reached for Haven's hand over the centre console, intertwining their fingers on her lap. She squeezed tight, grateful for the touch. Everything just felt tense now, even when they didn't mean for it too. She and Pope were okay. She and Arden were being civil. She and John B were... something. But there was Kie, who remained at arm's length, and Sarah... Sarah was watching them, face blank, and Haven would've pulled away had it not been for them arriving at the girl's old home.

The Mansion-like building was empty inside, no Rose or Rafe or Wheezie anywhere in sight. It was like a ghost town, abandoned now that the patriarch had jumped ship. Nevertheless, Haven couldn't help feeling an eerie shiver down her spine as they followed Sarah down the spiralling corridors. Instinctively, she looked for something dangerous hidden in the walls, something to be feared. But it was just a normal house, a family home torn down by blood and massacre.

At long last, they reached what looked to be an old dining room. A chandelier hung from the roof above a long oak-wood table. The curtains were left open to allow in the natural light. But the strangest thing of all had to be the wallpaper. What was once an olive green hue was now an intricate artwork of all the major spots in Outer Banks. Hanging from them were torn pieces of paper, like an animal had ripped at every seam to lay the room bare for the taking.

"You've got to be kidding me..." Pope trailed off, unable to say anything else. Haven didn't blame him. She was at a loss for words too.

"I know, right?" Sarah smiled as she looked around. "It's been here this whole time."

Bit by bit, they took in the artwork, breaking off into separate corners that eventually lead back to each other. John B met Haven's eyes with a smile as they met in the middle of one wall, a stray strand of hair falling in his line of vision. She chuckled as his brows tugged into a frustrated frown, reaching up to tuck it back for him. Instinctively, he kissed her raised palm in thanks before turning his gaze back to the wallpaper. Haven remained there for a moment, stunned and smiling an oh-so-obvious giddy smile. She caught Arden's gaze then, and watched warily as she turned to whisper something to Sarah.

"Yo, this is a map of the whole island," the sound of John B's voice had her quickly looking away, attentive.

"John B, I think you're right," JJ declared a second later. "Because this is Rixon's right here. Then there's the Lighthouse."

"And over here," Kie piped up. "Parcel 9 and the well."

"Okay, so if that's Parcel 9 and if that's Rixon's, then that's gotta be the surf break at Mase." Slowly, everything was making more sense. Haven didn't know half the places they were mentioning, so she lingered at the back while the boys attempted to put them together, listening as JJ called Pope over, "Hey, look, this has got to be Denmark's handwriting for sure."

"The drawings, they match up," Pope pointed out breathlessly. "These are all his drawings. He... he painted this entire room."

"That's amazing," Arden gasped in response, fingers ghosting over a set of crashing waves behind her and Sarah. "But what's he trying to tell us? He wouldn't do so much for nothing."

"It's got to have something to do with the key, right?" JJ said, causing Haven to sigh.

"Everything comes back to the key," she pointed out, which drew their eyes towards her. "Are we meant to figure out where to take the key from this? Or is there a key painted somewhere that might give us another clue? We still don't know enough."

"We never do."

Subconsciously, Sarah had moved closer to Haven's side. For a split second, their eyes met before the blonde turned away, hesitant. Sooner or later, she'd find out. Would she be so tentative then? Or would she erupt like an overflowing volcano? Haven was scared to find out.

"How did you know to uncover this?" John B asked the girl with evident scepticism.

"I didn't," Sarah shrugged back, painfully indifferent. "It was like this when I got home."

"Then who uncovered it?"

"The freaks."

Haven let out a shout with the rest of them as a new presence made themselves known. Wheezie Cameron had slipped through the shadows without a sound, giggling to herself as the group of older teens jumped in fright. Sarah immediately approached the girl, pulling her into a hug as JJ hovered behind them nervously.

"Uh, what freaks are we talking about, Wheeze?" he asked.

"Uh... that sick lady and her attack dog." Oh, fuck. "They showed up last night and wanted to talk to Rafe..."

"Wait, a pale blonde lady?"

"Did she have crutches?"

As Haven knew she would, she nodded. Shit, shit, shit. Of course Limbrey had gotten there first. What else did they expect to happen?

"At first, they searched the whole house looking for something, and then Rafe told me to go upstairs. But I didn't wanna miss out, so I listened through the grate. They were talking about getting across the sand flamingo..."

"That's gotta be code for something," JJ said eagerly, causing Haven to scoff.

"Wheezie, are you sure they didn't say the Cross of Santo Domingo?" At JJ's frown, she shrugged. "What? It sounds similar. Am I right, Wheezie?"

"Yeah, that's it," the girl nodded. "Oh! And they were talking about angels... a lot of angel talk, I don't know why..."

"Oh, my god," Pope gasped as realisation hit him. "Guys! Denmark's last words! He buried the real treasure at the foot of the angel. They're looking for an angel, so we have to find the angel in the room."

Knowing they didn't have a second to waste now that Limbrey and Renfield were on the case, the group were quick to spread out again, scouring every inch of the wallpaper while exchanging frantic questions. Haven and Sarah somehow found themselves searching the same wall, hands trailing across the surface like they'd somehow find it quicker that way. Eventually, Haven came to a stop in front of a tree. The branches were thick, luscious green leaves hanging from the ends in thick curtains of flora. But what caught her attention was the knot in the trunk... it almost looked like a keyhole...

"Haven, you found anything?" JJ called out as he bounded over to her side. "Haven?"

"J, look at this," she breathed out, tearing her eyes away for a mere second just to pull him towards her. "Look. Do you see it?"

She took his silence as a yes. Through the chatter of the rest of the group, JJ was quick to shout excitedly, "Guys! Guys, I think we found something!" Immediately, they rushed over, Pope leading the charge. "This humongous tree is still on Goat Island. You know what it's called?

"Angel Oak..."

"And look right there," JJ beamed, meeting Haven's eyes as she added, "It's a keyhole."

Finally, they had done it.

"That means," Pope exclaimed, his voice thick with emotion. "That means the cross is buried at the foot of the angel. That must be where he put it."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Arden frowned. "If Limbrey's there now, we've gotta go."

Everyone started rushing towards the door, Pope and Kie with their heads reburied in Denmark's notes, Sarah and Arden chattering over Logan's head, John B with his arm around Haven's shoulders.

"You're a genius, Haven," he murmured in her ear, just the brush of his lips on her skin sending a shiver down her spine. This time, it wasn't so eerie. "My genius."

"Hey now, don't get too ahead of yourself," JJ scowled as he appeared at their side. "I'm the one who figured out what the tree is called. I think I'm Sherlock Holmes."

At that, Haven snorted. "I'm surprised you even know who that is."

"Hey, Haven?" Arden called out from the doorway. Momentarily, the dark-haired girl froze, eyes darting towards Sarah waiting at her back. Had she told her? Fuck, Haven really should've just done it herself, ripped off the band-aid and got it over with. She was sick of not knowing. "Do you think your mum would watch Logan if we made a quick pitstop?"

"Can't we just bring her?" JJ frowned.

Arden shook her head, gaping at him like she couldn't believe he would suggest such a thing. To be fair, it was risky. "I'm not bringing my daughter anywhere near Limbrey or her lap-dog," she snarled. Haven caught JJ's just clenching, just for a second, before he looked away. "And definitely not near Rafe..."

"I'm sure she'll do it," Haven cut in before her cousin could retort, as she knew he would. "We can just tell her that Liam said she would. She won't say no then."

■ ■ ■ ■ ■

DROPPING OFF LOGAN WITH Melinda took way longer than Haven expected it would. Her mother insisted on asking questions, half of which the group either couldn't or wouldn't answer, but in the end gave up when she saw she wasn't getting anywhere with them. Instead, she took her nephew's daughter in her arms, snapped a warning at Haven and JJ not to do anything too illegal, then promptly closed the door in their faces.

"Well, that went well," JJ grumbled as they made their way back to the van.

"She's definitely pissed at us," Haven sighed from beside him. She wasn't looking forward to seeing her mother later, and having to deal with that all over again.

"Look, we can worry about Melinda later, okay?" Arden dismissed their concerns from where she lead the charge down Haven's driveway. She had Sarah at her side, their arms interlinked, barely even glancing over her shoulder at JJ when he spoke. "She's got Logan now, so let's get going."

With her daughter out of harm's way, Arden Kim was back to business. Haven listened to her questioning Pope the whole way out to Goat Island, amazed at just how serious the girl remained. In a way, Arden Kim was a stranger to her, even more so than usual, and Haven didn't know what to make of it. Neither did JJ, it seemed, for even when Arden reached for his hand to placate the easy-to-spot frown on his face, the look of confusion lingered.

At last, they were almost at Goat Island, where Pope pointed out a small white building nestled amongst withered shrubbery. It looked familiar to Haven, which Pope confirmed as he said, "Guys, we're coming up on Freedman's Church. It's the church that Denmark built for all the slaves he freed."

And in the distance sat Angel Oak, its ancient branches reaching for the afternoon sun that shone overhead. The pogues were well and truly off the main road by now, forced to guide the Twinkie down an overgrown grassy lane. On either side of them were thickets of trees, large enough to cast shadows that blocked out the sunlight but nowhere near as grand as the one that waited at the end of the road.

Suddenly, John B pulled the van to a stop, cursing under his breath as he did so.

"Shit!" he said, unsure whether or not to continue. "The tide's coming in..."

At that, Pope poked his head between the front seats, frowning at the evident tyre tracks that lined the grassy lane. Not even a metre away, water was spilling over the tracks, leaving a muddy path ahead. "Those have to be Limbrey's tracks," he exclaimed, several emotions passing over his face before one settled and remained; determination. "Guys, we've gotta keep going."

Still, John B hesitated, sharing a look with JJ in the passenger seat. "What do you think, chief?" the blonde boy asked him.

"I'm thinking it's looking a little dicey."

"Yeah, I'm gonna have to agree with that statement."

"Okay, well, clearly they made it, so why shouldn't we?" Kie pointed out with a frown. She was sitting at Haven's side, head angled closer to hers so she could see through the windshield.

JJ scoffed. "In a two-wheel drive? I don't know about that."

"So, what, we're just going to give up?" Arden scowled, her arms crossed over her chest, like she couldn't believe they were even entertaining the thought of letting Pope down like this.

Sarah made a sound of agreement at her side. She wore a surprisingly amused smile as she said, "Arden's right. Why are y'all acting like you're not gonna do it anyways? Like when have y'all ever done the safe thing?"

For a moment, no one spoke, seemingly realising that their hesitation would be pointless in the end. Haven snickered as John B made a face of realisation, turning once again to JJ for his opinion.

JJ let out a sigh of doubt, but after a pointed stare from Arden as her gaze flickered between him and an obviously hopeful Pope, he seemed to accept their fate. "Alright, speed is your friend here, okay?" he informed John B as the boy in question braced his hands on the wheel in preparation. "So, put her down in second and hammer down, brother."

"Oh, okay, so we're really doing this," Haven muttered under her breath, subconsciously looking around for something to hold onto. Kie had already gripped onto the door already, face twisted up in obvious scepticism, while Arden held onto one of Sarah's hands as her free hand gripped Pope's jacket, leaving Haven to sit uncomfortably in the middle. So she wrapped her arms around herself, momentarily meeting John B's gaze in the rear-view mirror when he peered up at the sound of her voice. "Try not to kill us, JB?"

He smirked, winking at her before turning back to the front. "No promises, sorry."

"Alright. Here we go."

Almost as soon as the tyres sunk into the muddy tracks, the Twinkie began to struggle, even with John B's foot pressed down on the accelerator. Haven winced as they slid to the right, John B frantically attempting to spin the wheel as JJ chanted about speeding up in his ear.

"You're fishtailing already!"

"Yeah, I know."

"Not to put any more pressure on you," Pope spoke up, a nervous edge to his voice as he released his grip on Arden to lean between the seats again. "But if you don't make it through, we'll be stuck here forever."

"I say we eat JJ first," Haven suggested, grinning despite the fast pace of her heart.

JJ whirled around in his chair to glare at her. "Who said anything about eating people, Haven?"

"It's called survival of the fittest."

"I think you're just a cannibal, to be honest."

"Okay, can we stop talking about cannibalism, please? There won't be anyone around to eat us when we're all dead!" Arden screeched as the car slid once more; then, all of a sudden, settled as the van's tyres met the smooth dirt path that waited on the other side of the tide. "Oh, uh, nevermind..."

"See?" John B smirked in triumph as a sigh of relief slipped past Haven's lips and the others let out cheers. "I told you we'd make it!"

Now that they'd made it past the first obstacle, it was time to face the actual root of their problems; Limbrey and Renfield. John B parked the Twinkie beside a creek of some sorts, camouflaging the vehicle behind trees and bushes. Then, he and JJ hopped out of the front, opening the back door for Haven and the others to join them. John B was at Haven's side almost immediately, ignoring Sarah climbing out behind the girl as he slung an arm around Haven's shoulders.

"Okay, so, word to the wise," JJ piped up then, giving John B's proximity to his cousin a pointed stare. John B merely grinned back at him. "Definitely know that gators nest back here, so keep your eyes peeled, okay? You don't wanna step on a mama gator. That's the last thing you want..."

"And how do you know that?" Arden raised an eyebrow at him.

"Have you stepped on a mama gator before, J?" Haven added with a smirk. "Are you speaking from experience?"

JJ glowered at her. "Laugh at me all you want, Havey, but I'll be the one laughing when you lose a leg."

"You're so dramatic."

"Hey, I'm just giving y'all a warning," he raised his hands defensively. "Survival of the fittest, remember? Or does that only apply to your cannibalistic tendencies?"

Haven rolled her eyes at that, leaning into John B's side once Arden intervened to protest about the topic. JJ merely continued to talk about gators and chewed off calves until they reached the creek and he suddenly dropped into a crouch at the edge.

"What are you doing?" Kie sneered down at him.

Ignoring her pointed stare on his back, JJ reached for a nearby stick and slammed it through the water, creating ripples across the surface. Arden sighed, dropping her head into her hands while Haven let out a laugh.

"Oh, please let me push him in," she whispered into John B's ear while the others scolded him for his idiocy. If there really were gators in the creek, he just alerted all of them of their presence.

"While I'd love to see it," John B said. "I don't want to deal with his complaints for the rest of the day."

"Oh. That's a good point."

"Hey, shhh!"

At the sudden hushing sound from Pope, the pogues went quiet, listening attentively for whatever he'd noticed. Haven heard it then, the unmistakable beeping sound of a reversing truck, as well as the murmurs of nearby voices. They were close.

Slowly, the group crept towards the treeline, hiding behind a thicket of shrubs and peering out at the scene before them. Haven's heart almost immediately dropped. So close, but too late. Limbrey was sitting in a chair just a few feet away from them, watching carefully as Rafe and Renfield commanded a group of workmen that tore up the ground beneath the shade of the Angel Oak.

"I don't see shit," Rafe's voice sent a shiver down Haven's spine. Her hand reached for John B's, squeezing tight. "You sure this is the right spot?"

"It's there," Limbrey insisted, a bemused sort of tone to her words, like she was addressing a toddler rather than a nineteen-year-old boy. "The garment will be in the cross, and the cross will be at the foot of the tree."

Glancing at Pope's face, Haven frowned at the pure disappointment that settled in the harsh lines of his furrowed brows. Something so important to him, to his heritage, taken right out of his hands.

All of a sudden, Limbrey let out a shocked cry, the sound echoing around the clearing as she shouted for the workers to stop. She murmured something in Renfield's ear, then allowed him to help her up out of her chair and towards the hole in the ground.

"This has got to be the cross," Haven heard her say gleefully as the workers started digging by hand rather than with their machinery.

It didn't take them long to find something. What seemed like seconds later, Renfield and Rafe, along with the help of two other men, came up from the ground with a long rectangular wooden box.

"They've got the cross?" JJ murmured, wide eyes meeting Pope's helpless stare. "What do we do?"

Despite what it looked like, Haven didn't have a good feeling about the box Limbrey leant over. How would Denmark fit this cross that towered over the heads of even the tallest men in a measly box? A box that looked like a casket...

"Guys," she breathed out. "I don't think that's the cross... I think they just dug up a body..."

As it so happened, Haven was spot-on. Once Limbrey declared they were going back to the Island Room, that their search couldn't be over so soon, they took their machines and cars, and left the way the pogues had just come. For a moment, the teens lingered behind the trees, waiting to see if it was really safe to enter the clearing. As soon as the last car engine faded into the distance, Pope lead the way to where they'd left Denmark's secrets open to the elements.

Upon a closer look, they found a decayed skeleton, nothing but ash and dust inside. Above their head was a small golden plate imprinted with a painfully familiar name.

Cecilia.

"Cecilia Tanny, Denmark's wife," Pope breathed out, going teary-eyed. "He wasn't talking about the cross. He buried her at the foot of the angel."

"The true treasure," Kie murmured in amazement. She, too, had teary eyes. All of them did as they watched Pope kneel beside his ancestor's casket, his head lowered in a sign of respect. "His wife."

One-by-one, the pogues sat beside him, waiting for as long as he needed them to. He didn't speak at first, and Haven found herself listening to the sounds around them; the cicadas conversing in the bushes, the birds chirping on tree branches. No sign of anyone else, they were entirely alone, safe to sit there while Pope Heyward mourned the sheer disruption and disrespect of his bloodline.

"Denmark was hung for burying his wife," he spoke at last, with so much anger that Haven could feel it in her bones. "And now they defiled her grave."

At that, Arden moved closer to the boy, wrapping a comforting arm around his shoulders and murmuring something in his ear. Haven looked away, just waiting until Pope was up for talking again.

"We can't leave her like this."

They never would've in the first place, even without Pope's close connection to the woman. Cecilia deserved more than that.

"We won't," Arden was quick to promise him, holding out a hand to help him up.

And so they got to work giving Cecilia Tanny a second chance at peace.

John B and JJ hammered the lid of the casket back in place, so that Cecilia's body could be preserved as Denmark had wanted. The girls helped Pope gather up some nearby flowers, creating a bouquet of white daisies that Haven tied together with the hairband on her wrist. She handed them back to Pope then, at John B's side, where she watched as JJ helped Pope lower the casket back into the earth.

As her husband had intended.