𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐞𝐧
[𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒂𝒍𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒕 𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕]

❧

BRIGHT LIGHT BURNS INTO MARINA'S EYES AS SHE SLOWLY OPENS THEM. She could feel her head pounding, her limbs in pain and a queasy feeling churning In her stomach. She brings her hand up to her head, rubbing her face as a low groan leaves her. Adjusting to her surroundings, she realized that she was in a completely new space. She didn't recognize the room she was in, nor who it belonged to

She furrows her eyebrows, her gaze shifting around the empty room. Marina allows her feet to swing over the edge of the bed before hitting the cool wooden floor. Carefully making her way around the room, she sees two seperate doors to choose from. Although one was ajar and she could see it lead into a bathroom.

Who had a seperate bathroom?

Marina feels nausea rush over her and shes covering her mouth, sprinting into the bathroom and throwing up into the toilet. She coughs as she holds her stomach, one arm leaning against the toilet. Flashes of memories move through her mind from the previous but right now they were jumbled, not being able to specifically place anything.

"Hey, you okay?" A voice asks her suddenly, startling the girl. Marina was finally able to lift her head, her gaze shifting to the door and who does she see other than Rafe Cameron standing before her.

Marina had no idea why she was even remotely close to the man, let alone in a room alone with him. "Where am I?" She asks him, her voice cracking because of the dryness in her throat.

"Uh... my room." Rafe answers her awkwardly as he rubs the back of his neck. He seemed to notice her cautious behavioir. "You were really out of it but it didnt seem like you wanted to go home or to Kie's so I took you here." He explains to her and she just looks back at the toilet.

"God, i really don't feel good." Marina mumbles as she squeezes her eyes shut momentarily.

"Yeah, i think someone mightve slipped something in your drink." Rafe tells her and that connects a few of the pieces in her mind. She didnt want to connect them all though, already feeling the bile in her throat as she just thought about it.

"Someone?" She knew who it was. No matter how much she wanted to forget, she couldnt. The image of him hovering over her on the bed would be permanently scarred in her mind.

"Do you remember anything from last night?" He asks hesitantly, stepping slightly into the bathroom. Marina sits back a bit, flushing the toilet and just leaning her head against the wall.

"I wish I didn't." She admits. Marina honestly thought it would be better to just not remember a thing. At least then she wouldnt have to live with the fact that he'll most likely get away with what he did. "Why did you help me?" Marina asks after a moment, her gaze Flickering back over to Rafe.

"Come on, Mari. I wasnt just gonna leave you like that." He denies, crossing his arms against his chest. "Remember, I'm a dick, but I'm not that much of a dick." Rafe says with the smallest smile on his face. Marina could only nod, her eyes going to her hands before a thought crosses her mind.

"C-can I borrow some money?" She questions and he furrows his eyebrows.

"Yeah, of course. Why?"

"I-i just um-- i don't remember if he... i need to buy the morning after pill." Marina explains to him, trying hard to not just vomit at the words that left her mouth. Rafe seemed to be taken aback by her comment but cleared his throat.

"I can get it if you want." Rafe suggests but she shakes her head.

"No, i can do it."

"You want people to be whispering about you? Come on, it won't mean anything if people see me."

"People always whisper about me."

"Just let me get it, okay?" Rafe's tone was a little snappier but it wasnt harsh. "Did you want to shower? I can go grab some clothes from Sarah's closet or if you want, you can borrow a shirt from me." He tells her and she slowly nods her head. "Okay, um, towels are in there, shout if you need anything." He says, pointing to the closet before closing The bathroom door.

Marina just kept her seat on the floor for a second longer before standing up. Her eyes went to the mirror in front of her. Dry mascara streaks stained her cheeks, her hair was a mess and her clothes werent fully on right. It was clear Rafe had just moved them enough to cover her.

Shakily, her hands moved toward her clothes, heavily breathing as she slowly removed them from her body. As in doing so, she noticed the small bruises starting to form along her arms and legs. Marks surrounding her wrists and small circular bruises on her collarbone.

Marina felt sick again, glancing away from the mirror and squeezing her eyes shut yet again. Flashes from last night come through her mind again and the bile in her throat raises slightly. Taking a deep breath, she moves over to the shower, turning it on after grabbing a towel and placing it on the railing.

Stepping Into the steamed filled shower, the hot water hits her skin and allows her to relax for just a millisecond. It wasn't long before she was scrubbing every inch of her skin with soap, not caring if it was making her skin red. She didn't want to feel one ounce of that boy on her, she didn't want to even think about it or have to see it.

But those bruises would last, and it would be all she saw of herself when she looked in the mirror, even after they disappear.

"Hey, I'm just gonna put the clothes on the counter, okay?" Rafe's voice calls out and she could see his shadow moving toward the counter before heading back out the door.

It was another few minutes before she was out the shower and putting the tshirt and sweatpants on that Rafe provided her with. The sweatpants seemed to be sarahs since they werent too big on her, but the shirt was clearly rafes, it was baggy and went down to her knees, it also smelled a little like him.

As she opens the bathroom door, Rafe was just sitting on his bed scrolling through his phone. But whenever he heard the door squeak, He was quick to get up and move over to her. "I can take your clothes." He admits, holding out his hands. She gives them to him with no hesitation.

"Burn them, I don't care."  She mumbles as she moves over to her bag that was sat on the chair in the corner of the room. Opening it, she still sees the money sitting inside and it seemed that Rafe hadn't taken any. Marina sighs as she starts pulling some of it out.

"Keep it." Rafe tells her after noticing what she was doing but Marina rolls her eyes.

"I don't need your pity."

"Seriously, Mari. It's yours." He assures her. Marina stared at him for a moment but put it back into her bag nonetheless. "Topper dropped your bike off but I can still give you a ride if you want." Rafe suggests though Marina shakes her head.

"No, I'm okay." she denies and Rafe just looks toward his window, the awkward silence moving between them. "Rafe." marina says, gaining his attention. "Thank you." She didnt say that lightly, in fact she rarely said it unless she absolutely meant it.

"You can um, text me if you need me. If that asshole shows up again." Rafe tells her, his tone sincere but the hesitance was clear. Marina nods slightly before heading out of the room. She closes the door slowly, just staring at the doorknob for a moment. Taking a shaky breath, she tries to push all the images from last night out of her mind.

As she goes to turn around, she's met with a pair of surprised eyes looking right back at her. Sarah Cameron. It was clear Sarah was shocked to see her here, especially coming out of her brothers bedroom. But who wouldn't be? Not a lot of people would ever out Rafe Cameron and Marina Emery together.

But Sarah could see the bags under her eyes, the way her skin was pale and the way she was clutching her bag to her body. Although before she could say anything, Marina was running down the stairs and escaping the awkward interaction.

❧

WHEN THE DOORS TO THE WRECK OPENED, Kiara almost thought she was seeing things when Marina came through the door. "Where have you been? I've been calling you like crazy." She asks with a scoff, wrapping her arms around the girl. Marina stood there until Kiara pulled away from her. JJ, Pope and John B were just sat at one of the tables.

"My phone died, I just got your message to come here." Marina tells her. Which was the truth. She had gotten home, changed into her own clothes and plugged her phone in the battery pack her dad had. It was only then she saw the numerous missed calls from Kiara.

"God, you'll never believe the night we had." Kiara responds, shaking her head as she crosses her arms against her chest.

"Yeah, me too." Marina responds, inaudible and to herself as she looks down at the ground. It was then she saw the cast on John B's arm. "What happened to you?" She asks him, furrowing her eyebrows.

"Topper pushed him off of the hawks nest." Kiara answers her and Marina was shocked. Not just by the fact this happened last night but that Topper went to a freaking party afterwards and acted like nothing happened.

"What?"

"Yeah, and then ran like a pussy." JJ grumbles as he just stares at the table.

"We got the map, it's all that I care about right now." John B admits with a small sigh, leaning forward and Kiara couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"Right. From sarah." She mutters, her eyes moving back to her best friend. "Hes with Sarah." Kiara tells her and Marina narrows her gaze, looking toward John B who lets out a long groan.

"I'm not with her."

"Oh, so you're not staying at Tannyhill?" Kiara asks sarcastically which made Marina's stomach twist a bit. He hadn't been there this morning, had he?

"Her dad bailed me out, how many times do I have to say that?" John B retorts.

"Guys, can we just get going? We know where we have to go, right? Battery jasper." Pope points out, finding all this arguing quite useless.

Marina feels her phone buzz so she takes it out of her pocket, seeing a message from someone who she assumed was Rafe.

I got it, wanna meet up?

Her eyes move to Kiara who was still arguing with John B. Marina sighs slightly as she types a message back.

I'm with my friends.

At the wreck? I'm pretty close to there.

She would not hear the end of it if they saw Rafe show up here.

Just meet me outside.

Putting her phone away, she brushes her hair out of her face. "I'm just gonna go to the bathroom." She tells them, pointing behind her.

"Yeah, okay." Kiara says, crossing her arms against her chest, still mad at John B.

"Don't take too long, gold waits for no one." JJ calls out to her and Marina just glances back at him.

"Its been waiting for a over a hundred years, I think it can wait a few more minutes." She retorts before heading down the hall. Marina makes sure no one is looking as she slips out the back door. She hears Rafe's bike coming down the road, the man pulling into the lot.

He gets off, reaching into his pocket and pulling out the small box. "Here." Rafe says, taking his helmet off in the process. Marina simply takes it from him, putting it in her jacket. "You doing okay?" He asks her curiously.

"Rafe, I got what I needed, okay?" Marina responds, not wanting to have a whole conversation. What he did for her was nice and all but it didnt mean things between them were suddenly okay.

"Yeah, yeah." He responds, rubbing his neck. "Just um, I'd still watch out. Those things aren't a hundred percent." Rafe points out and she just turns to head back inside.

"Right." She simply says, shutting the door behind her. She quickly makes her way to the bathroom, opening the box and taking the pill out. Taking a shaky breath, she puts in in her mouth before turning the tap on.

Taking a drink of the water, she washes it down before shoving the box deep into her bag. Turning back to the door, she heads back down the hallway, seeing Kiara waiting for her. "You good?" She asks her curiously. Marina nods her head.

"Yeah." She says with a forced smile on her face. Kiara gives her a wary look but doesn't say anything more, all of them making their way out of the restaurant and heading toward the twinkie.

❧

AS THEY PULL DOWN THE ROAD TOWARD WHAT SHOULD BE WHERE THE GOLD IS, John B comes to a stop and Marina looks up from her sketchbook. "That looks like a stone wall to me." JJ admits as he opens the van door so they could all jump out. It was then they realized just what house they were in front of.

"Not the Crain house." John B says as they stand in front of it now.

"Are you kidding me?" Kiara asks with a small sigh.

"Worst case scenario." JJ mumbles and Marina just looks at the old house with interest.

"Whyd it have to be here, of all places?" Pope questions. Of course this is where the gold brought them cause it was just their luck.

"This is so cool." Marina admits with an actual smile on her face. They all turn their heads toward her slowly, staring at her like she went crazy.

"Youre such a freak and I say that with all the love possible." Kiara says, shaking her head as she grabs a hold of her best friends hand. Marina just laughs a bit, knowing Kiara never meant anything bad by it.

"I heard that Mrs Crain buried her husbands head on the property." JJ admits as they start to make their way through the woods.

"He probably haunts the place." Marina admits and JJ snaps his head toward her.

"Now why would you say that?"

"Look, you guys know whose house this is, right?" Kiara asks them curiously.

"Oh, yeah, no i do." JJ says with a nod, trying to ignore what Marina had just said.

"Honestly, I don't really believe the stories of this place." John B denies as JJ makes his way over to Kiara.

"Which stories did you hear?"

"The one where she killed her husband with an age and that she's been holed up ever since." Kiara tells him.

"I heard he deserved it." Marina adds as she simply looks down at her fingernails.

"What man doesn't?" Kiara says with a snort as they continue walking. "On certain nights when the moon is full, you can see her in the window." She says, wiggling her fingers and making a spooky sound as she turns to JJ before laughing with Marina.

"No, kie, it's not funny cause it's all true." JJ responds. "I swear to god, guys, this is all real. I knew Hollis-- geez!" He jumps at the sight of a angel statue.

"Wait, you knew Hollis Crain?"  Pope asks him, looking confused.

"Yeah, dude."

"Dude, how do you know Hollis Crain?"

"She was my babysitter, man. She told me all about it. Told me the truth about her mother and what happened in this house. So as a kid, she heard all the stories that her mother killed her father, and she was a murderer and all, hollis didn't believe it. Until that night."  He explains to them and Marina raises an eyebrow.

"What night?" John B questions.

"It all came back to her. When Hollis was six years old, she heard her parents arguing downstairs. So she goes downstairs to see her mom washing her hands in a sink.... full of blood." JJ starts to tell them and Marina shakes her head, glancing away uninterested. "Her mother just says that she cut her finger. The next morning, she says her father and her split up. But then, hollis noticed something. Her mother going into the parlor constantly, in and out and in and out with plastic bags. Weeks pass, and Hollis decides to use the outhouse. And as she's using it, she looks down, and there, in the outhouse, is her fathers head looking straight back at her."

"God, you are so full of shit." John B mumbles as he shakes his head.

"Dude, i swear to god, man."

"Did she call the police?" Pope asks curiously, furrowing his eyebrows.

"She didn't have time-- wait, hold on." JJ says as he sees John B start to walk off.

"What, dude, what?!" John B snaps back at him.

"You sure you wanna do this? She's an axe murderer. You got a cast on."

"And we've got Mari." John B retorts, gesturing to Marina who most definitely had an assortment of weapons in her bag. Although she didnt feel the safest right now since she let her guard down last night. "I don't give a shit if she's an axe murderer, okay? I got nothing to lose, right? You coming or what?" He asks before walking off with Kiara.

"See, i should get paid more. I'm the groups protection." Marina tells the blonde who glares at her before they follow after the pair.

"Hey, come here. So heres the plan. We need to look for the wheat near the water like it said in Denmarks letter." John B explains to them.

"Okay, like, what kind of water? Like, pond water?" Pope questions.

"Bong water?" JJ says with a snort making all of them look at him like he was stupid.

"No, it-- it just said look for water, okay?"

"That's the shittiest secret message ever." Kiara admits and John B glares at her.

"You wanna complain a little more, Kie? Nobody said it was gonna be easy." John B mumbles as they head off to search the south of the house.

"I'll search the northwest quadrant, you search the northwest." Pope says as he turns to JJ and Marina before heading off as well.

"The decapitation quadrant." JJ corrects him and Marina sighs as she just moves toward the blonde.

"Come on, scaredy-cat." She says, nudging him to walk but he looked at her with offended expression.

"I'm not scared." He denies quickly and she just tilts her head, not believing him for a minute.

"Really?" Marina asks, staring at the man who snapped his head at the sound of a tree branch snapping.

"Y-you go first." JJ admits, pushing her a bit in front of him. Marina scoffs as she shakes her head but she found some amusement in his fear.

"My hero." She mumbles as she walks ahead of him, the boy following closely behind, practically bumping into her every two steps.

It was only when a bird sqwauked that he all but jumped out of his skin. "What was that?" He asks as he looks around and she gives him a curious expression.

"A bird." She states bluntly before noticing him looking around frantically. "Do you need to go wait in the van?" Marina questions, blinking a few times and he scoffs, trying to brush off the fact that he almost let out a loud scream.

"I'm as cool as a cucumber." JJ tells her and she presses her lips together tightly, her eyes running over him.

"I can see that."

She goes to start walking again when there's another noise and JJ jumps closer to her and she suddenly feels something. Glancing down, she noticing that he was holding her hand. She stares at it for a moment before looking up at the man. JJ seemed to notice, his cheeks turning a bright shade of red as he pulled his hand away.

"Yeah, s-so it's not over here. Definitely. We should go." JJ stutters awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. Marina shakes her head as she heads back toward the house, having a hard time since JJ seemed to be rushing her.

"Stop pushing me." She grumbles at him and since he was so close, the branch she pushed past ending up slapping back and hitting him straight in the face.

"Ow!" JJ complains as he pushes the branch away, pouting as he rubs his nose. "Whyd you do that?" He asks her and she just shrugs her shoulders.

"Youre the one right behind me." She points out innocently and he only scoffs as he moves out from the trees.

"Youre the one going to slow." JJ retorts and Pope glares at them both, having heard them from across the whole yard.

"Seriously, could you two be any louder?" He snaps at them in a whisper. Both of them go quiet as they see John B ushering them over.

"Hey, psst. Hey, come on. This is the only place we havent looked." He tells them and they move over to the entrance to what seemingly was the basement. "Here we go." John B mutters before entering, the rest of them following closely behind.

"Down came Mrs Crain and cut off all our heads. Up came the sun and dried up all the blood." JJ sings to himself and Marina raises an eyebrow, smirking gently.

"Can you stop?" Pope complains and he just looks back at the man before gesturing to Marina.

"Mari liked it."

"Mari likes all things creepy." Pope grumbles. Marina couldn't exactly deny it since it was true.

"See any water?" Kiara asks, seeing nothing but a stone basement filled with useless items. "Another dead end?" She adds with a scoff, placing her hands on her hips.

"There's not even water on the pipes." JJ points out as he touches them.

"There's no water here." Pope denies.

"Not a dropamino." JJ mutters as he looks around.

"Know why we didn't find it? Bad karma." Kiara points out and John B groans as he tilts his head back.

"Oh, god. Here we go."

"You know, we had a good thing going. And then you decide to rope in barbie and now the trails gone dry. Coincidence? Probably not." She admits, shrugging her shoulders and John B rubs at the furrow in his eyebrows.

"This is exactly why I didn't wanna tell you about Sarah." John B admits and Kiara raises an eyebrow.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. What the hells the deal with you two?" He questions and Kiara only scoffs, looking away from him.

"Nothing." She bluntly answers him as Marina stares at the girl, sharing a look with her.

"Nothing? Is it because I kissed you? Is that the problem?" John B asks and within a split second, Kiara slaps him across the face. Marina smirks as she crosses her arms against her chest.

"Oh!" Pope exclaims.

"Oh, shit!" JJ couldn't help but laugh a bit.

"Stop treating me like I'm some girl that's obsessed with you instead of your best friend who's actually trying to look out for you." Kiara sneers at him with a frustrated look on her face. He only rubs his cheek as he looks back at her.

"Did you uh... hit me?" John B asks, his jaw clenched. Kiara just holds up her hand, showing the dead bug.

"Skeeter."

"Skeeter?"

"Yeah, you see it?"

"Yeah."

John B suddenly slaps her making Marina raise her eyebrows. "Ooh." Pope covers his mouth while JJ looks at his best friend like he was crazy.

"Okay, all right--" JJ tries to say but Kiara cuts him off as she glares at JJ.

"Where's your proof?" Kiara asks him and he just raises his hand the same way she did.

"Skeeter."

"Yeah? There's probably one right there." She admits, hitting his chest and he does the same thing, hitting her arm.

"Theres one right there."

"Yeah, really? Cause you saw that?"

"On your forehead." John B hits her forehead and she laughs, but there was an undertone of anger as she starts backing up.

"Youre dead. That's it. Today's the day that you die." Kiara warns him as she pushes him back. "Its your funeral." She tells him.

"Seriously, tiny vampire bats just leave me alone." JJ mutters as he swats them away and that's when he sees Marina about to hit him. "Dont you dare." He snaps, grabbing a hold of her wrist, not noticing the way she flinched.  "Oh, my gosh. Can we leave? Cause I'm already itching to leave. Hah, punny." He says with a smirk before he bends down and picks something up. "I just found Mrs crains voodoo doll, guys." He tells them causing them to glance at him.

"Oh, shit." Kiara laughs as she shakes her head. JJ places it back down, seeing Marina step toward it.

"Youre not taking it."

"Good choice, I was gonna put it in your bag when you weren't looking." Marina tells him and he just narrows his gaze at her.

"Youre rude, you know that?" JJ retorts and Marina couldn't help but laugh lightly as she looks around the basement.

"None of this shit is real." She denies and he bites the inside of his cheek.

"Mhm, when you're haunted by the ghost of Mr crain for joking about it, don't expect me to exorcise your ass." He tells her and she just rolls her eyes a bit before they hear a loud bang, looking over to see Pope moving things.

"Hey, Pope." John B scolds him.

"Shh."

"Hey, help me move this." Pope tells them quietly.

"Okay, just quiet." JJ mutters, all of them walking over to help move things off of the wood before lifting the planks to the ground. Once they do, they see a deep well in front of them. They all kneel down, looking down it.

"Well, well, well." Pope says and Marina shakes her head with a roll of her eyes.

"Thats a good dad joke." John B says, all of them just continuing to stare down the deep hole.

"They built this part of the house right over it." Kiara states in complete surprise.

"This is where she hid the bodies." JJ whispers and Pope looks at him annoyed, glaring at the man.

"Oh, dude, come on."

"Stop." Kiara demands but JJ doesn't, just continuing on.

"No, im dead serious."  JJ admits and Marina just tries to see further down, although it seemed to be just stone.

"Stop it!" Kiara sneers at the boy.

"It was never an outhouse."

"She probably doesn't even know it's here." Kiara retorts and this shuts JJ up.

"So.. we found water." Pope says with a smile as he looks at John B who shares his expression.

"Were gonna need a really big rope."

❧

AS THE GROUP ALL LOUNGE AROUND AT THE CHATEAU, Marina was a little tense as the adventure gave her a temporary relief from her memories but now they were just sitting down, she didn't have too much to distract her. "I can't believe we actually found it guys." Kiara says with a smile on her face. She believed it was all fake at first but now, now it had a chance to really be real.

"We need a celebratory drink." JJ announces, standing up to grab the beers. Marina feels her stomach churn just thinking about drinking anything ever again. She gets up, rushing down the hall which catches everyone's attention. "Whats up with her?" He asks curiously.

"Probably annoyed by your presence." John B retorts and JJ immediately flips him off.

"So funny, John B."

"God, my wrist is killing me." John B admits with a groan, holding his cast. Kiara only reaches for Marina's bag.

"Shes probably got some aspirin in her bag, she's always inhaling that shit." Kiara mutters, shaking her head. She told her not to take that much but when did Marina ever listen to her.

As shes rooting around the bag, she stops, staring at something near the bottom. Kiara furrows her eyebrows, grabbing it and turning it over. She almost gasps at the sight but holds it in, simply staring at it wide eyed.

"Yo, you gonna toss it to me." John B asks, bringing her out of the trance and Kiara clears her throat, grabbing the aspirin bottle from beside the box.

"Uh, yeah. Here." Kiara tosses it at him, zipping the bag back up and placing it carefully on the chair.

"What, she got a secret porn stash in there or something?" JJ asks with a laugh, seeing the freaked out expression on the girls face.

"Shut up, JJ." She snaps back and this catches them all off guard.

"Geez, i was making a joke. Lightening the mood."

Kiara only gets up, walking down the hall to where Marina went. She notices the girl coming out of the bathroom. "Hey." She says with a soft smile and Marina returns it. Kiara glanced behind her, making sure none of the boys followed her before looking back at Marina. "You know you can talk to me, right? About anything." Kiara asks her curiously.

"Of course." Marina responds with a nod.

"And if you need help, I'm always here." Her voice was quiet and Marina raises an eyebrow, laughing lightly.

"Why are you being so cryptic?"

"I just... you never told me you were seeing someone." Kiara didn't want to be blunt with it, she didn't truly know how to approach the subject.

"I'm not." She denies and Kiara bites her bottom lip.

"Mari. If you're in trouble, you can tell me." Kiara admits but is only met with a confused look.  "I found the plan b in your bag." She states and she could see the girls face go pale.

"Why were you going through my bag?" Marina accuses, suddenly angry as she scoffs at Kiara.

"I wasn't. John B asked for an aspirin--"

"Its not mine, it's a friends."

"A friend? What friend?" Kiara asks, furrowing her eyebrows and Marina just shrugs her shoulders.

"You don't know her." She denies and Kiara knew better than to believe her.

"Really? Cause I'm pretty sure I know all of your friends and I'm looking right at them." She admits, gesturing to where the living room was. Marina just bites her tongue as she goes to walk past her.

"Well, you don't have to know everything about me." Marina snaps back and Kiara grabs her arm, looking confused.

"Why are you so defensive?"

"Why do you have to be in everybody's business?" She retorts harshly and Kiara frowns, not understanding why Marina was so mad.

"Look, if it's yours I'm not gonna tell anybody. I just wanted you to know I'm here for you." Kiara assures her but it didnt seem to dimmer the tension between them.

"Well, it's not." Marina denies, pushing past her and Kiara let's out a sigh.

"Mari--"

"I have a shift to get to." She states, heading back toward the living room and Kiara follows after her.

"Wait." She pleads but Marina doesnt stop. "Mari, wait." Kiara tries again. Marina grabs her bag, heading for the door as the boys watch the interaction. "Mari!" Kiara calls out after the girl who rushes outside to her bike. Kiara grabs the phone off of the chair, holding it up. "You forgot your--" But she was already too far to hear her or she just wasn't listening. "Phone." Kiara finishes, mumbling it as she drops her hand to her side.

"What was that all about?" Pope questions, not getting what happened in the two minutes they were alone.

"I don't know." Kiara admits before her eyes move to the phone in her hand. She thinks for a moment, biting the inside of her cheek before she lifts it, turning it on and entering Marinas password.

"Um, should you be doing that?" John B asks her, looking over at Pope and JJ who shared the same expression.

"Kie, i don't think--" JJ starts to say but doesnt get to finish since Kiara cuts him off.

"Just shut up." She mumbles as she scrolls through the texts before seeing the ones between her and rafe and she freezes. "What the hell?" Kiara mutters to herself, her eyebrows furrowing as she reads them.

"What?" Pope asks her, wondering what was going on. But Kiara doesn't answer him, moving toward the door.

"Come on, we're going for a ride." She tells them and they get up to follow her, all of them still confused.

"To where?" John B questions as they get to the twinkie.

"Tannyhill."

"Tannyhill?" JJ asks, shocked that she would even suggest it. But Kiara wasn't about to wait around for them.

"Just come on!" She demands and they quickly get in, John B starting the van and taking off down the road.

As they reach figure eight, pulling into the driveway of sarahs house, Kiara had still yet to tell them what they were doing here. "Are we here to talk to sarah?" John B wonders as he stops the car but the woman opens the door. "Kie." He tries again but gets no answer.

"Kie, what are we doing here?" JJ asks with a small sigh.

"If you're gonna talk to sarah--" John B starts.

"I'm not." Kiara denies as she stares at the house. "I'm most definitely not talking to Sarah." She states as she steps out and Pope furrows his eyebrows.

"Then who--"

"Just stay here." She slams the door in their faces and they were left to just stare at each other. JJ only scoffs as he leans back against his seat.

"Shes being bitchier than usual." He mumbles and John B and Pope both nod their heads in unision.

Banging on the front door, Kiara doesn't stop until it opens and she comes face to face with an angered Rafe who's expression turns a bit shocked. "Kie?" He asks, glancing around and seeing if she was alone but she only pushes him back causing him to stumble. "Woah, what the fuck?" Rafe scoffs as he stares at the woman.

"What did you do to her, huh?" Kiara hisses as she glares at the man. Rafe furrows his eyebrows as he blinks a few times.

"What are you talking about?" Rafe asks her, confusion on his face but the woman scoffs.

"Dont bullshit me, rafe. Shes fine last night and all of a sudden she's acting weird today and you're buying her a plan b? What the fuck did you do?" It clicked that she was talking about Marina and it made Rafe quite irritated that she thought it was him.

"Seriously, Kie. Mind your damn business." Rafe sneers back at her, not about to be accused in his own house.

"Mari's my best friend so it is my business because if you hurt her--"

"God, I didn't hurt her." He cuts her off harshly.

"You expect me to believe that?" Kiara asks him with a humor less laugh, crossing her arms against her chest.

"I don't give a shit what you believe." Rafe denies. He knew what her and the pogues most likely thought already.

"So, what? You get her drunk, take advantage of her and then in the morning you said it was just a drunken mistake and buy her the morning after pill, is that it?" She asks him, accusing him of being the one to harm her. Rafe seemed rageful as he steps closer to her.

"I wouldn't fucking do that."

"Oh, yeah. Cause i forgot you're such a good guy, rafe." Kiara snaps as she scoffs, glaring at the man. "Did you hurt her? I swear, Rafe you better tell me--"

"It wasn't me, all right!? I didn't fucking do shit to her." He shouts at her and she was quiet momentarily, confusion washing over her.

"What do you mean it wasn't you?" Kiara asks but it was then she noticed his bruised knuckles and she couldn't help but stare at them. Rafe seemed to notice, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"Talk to her." He tells her and Kiara frowns slightly.

"She ran out--"

"I tried calling you last night, you didn't answer. Maybe she realized you're not as reliable as she is." Rafe sneers and Kiara didn't know what to say to that. He was practically accusing her of not being there for Marina.

"Excuse me?" Kiara was a bit frustrated but Rafe only opens the door, gesturing for her to leave.

"Get out of my house, all right? I'm done talking." Rafe mutters. Kiara clenches her jaw but doesnt say anything else, storming out of the house as the door slams behind her.

As she gets to the twinkie, she gets in, shutting the door roughly. "Drive." Kiara tells John B as she crosses her arms against her chest.

"What happened?" John B asks her curiously. Pope seemed to notice the tense nature the woman was in, leaning forward.

"Kie, hey--"

"Just drive!" Kiara shouts at the man who stares at her in shock but turns around and starts the van. She leans against the door, staring out the window as the others were utterly silent, wondering what the hell had just happened.

❧

KIARA WAS GLAD WHEN SHE SAW MARINA RIDING TOWARD THE CHATEAU ON HER BIKE. Mainly because she needed to talk to her but also because she seriously couldn't be around Sarah without support. She walks down the steps, walking over to the girl. "Youre here." She points out and Marina just sets her bike down.

"You have my phone." Marina answers bluntly. Kiara sighs as she tilts her head.

"Mari, can we please talk?" Kiara asks as she hands the girl back her phone. Marina shakes her head though.

"I'm not in the mood, Kie."

"I talked to Rafe." Kiara admits and this makes Marina freeze. "Mari, you know I'm here for you." She assures her, her tone gentle as her gaze was soft.

"Not right now." Marina denies as she glances down at the ground before her eyes moved back to Kiara who could see she was trying to hold her tears back. "Kie, please." She pleads and Kiara nods her head.

"It probably won't help that queen bitch is here." Kiara admits and Marina was confused until she looked toward the patio and saw Sarah sitting next to John B.

"Youre kidding." She mutters and Kiara sighs, locking their arms as they walk back up to the others.

"At least I know someone's on my side."

"Look, all I care about is her cut comes out of your share." JJ announces as he points toward his best friend.

"You know, i don't remember taking a vote. This is our thing. A pogue thing." Kiara adds as she glares toward John B.

"I gotta say, I'm just a tad uncomfortable with all of this." Pope admits.

"Thank you!"

"When are you not uncomfortable?" John B questions back, a bit irritated.

"I don't know. I rode here on the back of JJ's motorcycle pretty comfortably."

"Its true. Most relaxed I've ever seen him." JJ adds to it and John B only gives them an annoyed look.

"Thats cute, guys." He mutters before looking toward Marina.  "Youre acting like Mari didn't just become a part of this too." John B points out and Kiara furrows her eyebrows.

"Thats different."

"How is that different?"

"Shes been my best friend for years and she wants to find the gold just as much as we do. Little miss princess here is just here to screw everything up." Kiara says as she gestures toward Sarah.

"Okay, so you can invite Mari into the group but I can't invite sarah?" John B asks with a small scoff.

"An invitation requires the whole group being on board with it." Kiara points out, gesturing to everyone and John B crosses his arms.

"Does it matter?"

"You know we were all extremely comfortable until you brought her." She states and Sarah seemed to have enough, glaring at Kiara.

"Stop talking about me like I'm not here." Sarah demands and Kiara just gives her an annoyed glance.

"Then leave."

Sarah scoffs, looking toward John B. "I told you." She says and Kiara flickers her eyes between them.

"Told him what, exactly? That you're a liar?" Kiara asks her and Sarah just looks back at the girl.

"No, that you're a shit talking bitch." Sarah snaps back and Marina instantly begins to take her earrings out as Kiara just stares back at the blonde angrily.

"Oh, shit." Pope mutters, looking toward JJ who holds out a twenty.

"My money's on kie." JJ admits and Pope goes to grab money from his own jacket.

"Kie, say the word." Marina mumbles, looking toward Kiara.

"When have I lied to you?" Sarah asks, genuinely wanting to know what her problem was. Kiara only rolls her eyes.

"You know, you get somebody close to you for like a month--"

"I didn't lie about shit!"

"Oh, that is such bullshit." Marina chimes in and Sarah now glares over at her.

"This doesn't concern you." Her voice was rude which made Marina take a step forward.

"Stand up and say that to my face, bitch." Marina retorts and Pope raises his eyebrows while JJ just takes another twenty out, only watching the argument.

"Everybody shut up!" John B shouts, making everyone be quiet.  "Kie, you are my best friend, right?" He asks and Kiara begrudingly nods her head. "And Sarah, you're... you're my..." He trails off as he stares down at the blonde who smiles slightly.

"Say it."

"Youre my girlfriend." John B states and Marina rolls her eyes.

"Ohh... that's new." Pope mutters under his breath.

"Shes your girlfriend, now? What was all that talk about you just using her for information? Get a map, cut her loose?" Kiara asks in an accusatory manner making Sarah look a bit hurt.

"You said you were using me?" Sarah questions and John B was quick to shut it down.

"No." He lies making JJ and Pope both furrow their eyebrows.

"Yeah--"

"You said those things." Pope confirms and John B glares at them.

"So, you kissed kie to what? Mess with her?" Marina snaps at the man, defending her best friend. John B brings his hand up to his face.

"Look, love just walked in, okay?"

"Oh, vomit." Kiara grimaces, looking away from him.

"I didn't expect it, it just kinda happened. And I'm not gonna deny it, right?"

"Oh, that's corny." Pope admits, JJ gagging at the words.

"Look, cut the bullshit, John B. If she's in, I'm out." Kiara states, not about to be in a group with the bitch that cut her off.

"I'm not doing this." John B denies as he shakes his head.

"You are gonna decide." Kiara demands and he glares back at her.

"I can't!"

"I'm very interested, actually, me or her?" She asks, crossing her arms against her chest. John B just scoffs as he shrugs his shoulders.

"Both."

Pope whistles as he shakes his head. "Went for the hail Mary." JJ mumbles, rubbing his neck. Kiara just stares at the man, clearly hurt before walking off the patio. Marina watches her before starting to follow her.

"Yeah, go be a little guard dog." Sarah mutters underneath her breath but Marina heard her. Her fists clench and she turns around, about to swing on the blonde but John B interferes, blocking his new found girlfriend.

"Mari, stop." John B demands and Marina glares at him, her eyes flickering between them.

"You know, what? Youre nothing but a liar and a fucking rat." She sneers at Sarah who stares down at her hands. John B looked confused making Marina only scoff. "Or maybe you didn't tell your little boyfriend about that part." Marina adds. Pope and JJ just looked like they wanted to be anywhere else right about now. Her eyes then move solely to John B. "Let go of me or you'll have more than a broken wrist." She warns him and he quickly let's her go.

Marina turns, walking off in the direction that Kiara went, leaving the others on the patio. "What is she talking about?" JJ asks curiously, looking toward the Cameron girl who only ignores him, instead looking at John B.

"Itll be cool, right?" She says, clenching her jaw before standing up. "Im gonna leave." Sarah tells them. John B let's out a sigh.

"Sarah--"

"No, you guys talk. Let me know." She mutters before walking off. John B just groans, letting his head fall back and hit the wall.

Meanwhile on the dock, Marina finds Kiara sitting on the edge just staring at the water. She sits down beside her best friend, nudging the womans arm. "Hes an idiot." Marina tells her and Kiara only sniffles, shaking her head.

"I just thought after everything we've been through, he wouldnt just throw it away, you know? And for her." Kiara says, the tears leaving her eyes as she quickly wipes them away. Marina fiddles with her fingers.

"We can teach him a lesson." She suggests and this earns a small laugh from Kiara.

"Maybe another time." Kiara says with a soft smile before it falters a bit. "I didnt mean to overstep. I know I can be too much..... that i butt into other people's business." She apologizes, hating herself for it. She felt like she was just making everything worse. "I won't push the subject if you don't want to talk about it." She tells the girl who shakes her head.

"Youre family, Kie. What is family if not getting into each other's business?" Marina teases her and Kiara wanted to laugh but her mind was stuck on what Rafe said to her.

"Rafe bought you a plan b?" She asks and Marina was silent for a moment before nodding, confirming kiaras thoughts.

"He didn't do anything to me." Marina denies, not wanting rafe to get shit for it. There's plenty he deserves to get punched for but not this.

"I know." Kiara admits with a sigh. "But someone did." She says and Marina stares down at her hands, taking a shaky breath in.

"I went to a kook party last night-- my dad made me because he found out I stole from him."

"You stole from him?" Kiara asks, wondering when the hell this happened.

"I gave JJ some money for his restitution." Marina admits and Kiara's eyes softened. JJ hadn't said anything but maybe Marina told him not to. "Dad found out and he wasn't exactly happy. He told me to go to the party and earn the money back. I ran into rafe and he helped me sell the drugs." She explains as she rubs her face a bit.

"He then gave me a drink, said I should relax and... God, i don't know why i thought relaxing at a kook party was gonna be anything but bad news. I hadn't even drank that much and even smoking the blunt-- i mean, I do that all the time, i didn't get what was different." She admits as she remembered the previous night. "I started to feel really weird, my vision was going in and out, I could barely understand anything." Marina stops herself for a moment and Kiara felt her heart tighten as she listened.

"Mari..."

"I went to go to the bathroom and I felt someone grab a hold of me. I thought it was rafe at first, I dont know why." Marina thought he was just being nice and helping her but she should've known better. He hadnt even acknowledged her when she got up. "Instead of going to the bathroom they brought me to a bedroom. Its all pretty fuzzy... but there's moments that stick out. Faces. How it--" Marina cuts herself off, closing her eyes. Kiara places her hand on top of Marinas, hoping to comfort her a little bit.

"Rafe found me. Beat the crap out of him and took me back to his place because I was too scared to go back home." Marina admits and Kiara was dead silent as she stared at the girl. Marina could see the tears she was fighting back as she chewed at the inside of her cheek.

"So.. s-someone-- they r-- they took advantage of you?" Kiara couldn't even say it, she swore she would be sick if she did, knowing someone did that to her. Marina nods her head slowly.

"It wasn't just someone." She denies and Kiara furrows her eyebrows. "It was Liam." Marina didn't know whether or not she should say his name, she wasn't sure how Kiara would react.

"What?" Her tone was full of anger, her eyes filling with rage as she heard the name.

"Please dont tell the others. I don't want everyone to know and start treating me differently." She denies and Kiara instantly frowns, grabbing a hold of the womans hand gently.

"No, i would never." She assures her, quickly shaking her head. "I am so sorry." Kiara admits, her voice shaky as she pulls the girl in for a hug which Marina accepts with no hesitation, actually hugging her back immediately. "I'm sorry I wasnt there." She apologizes but Marina didn't blame her, why would she? Marina was the one who let her guard down.

"I was so scared." Her voice breaks and Kiara felt her stomach drop. Marina barely ever showed emotion, especially not like this. "I-I couldn't move, I couldn't do anything." Marina tells her and Kiara squeezes her eyes shut momentarily before pulling away from her.

"I will never let anything like that happen to you again, do you hear me? Never." Kiara states firmly, her hands going to Marinas cheeks, the girl sniffling. "Youre safe, here. I'm right here with you." She would make sure no one ever did anything like this again. And she would sure as hell make sure Liam paid one way or another.

Marina was about to respond until she saw Pope walking down the dock. "Shit, pope's coming." She says, both of them quickly wiping their tears before the boy got to them.

"Hey, um, can I sit?" Pope asks curiously, awkwardly standing near the pair.

"I'm just gonna head home. My brother wanted to see me anyways." Marina admits as she stands up and Kiara instantly went to stand with her.

"You sure you don't want me to go with you?" Kiara questions and Marina gives her a gentle smile as she shakes her head.

"I'm okay." She assures the girl who seemed hesitant but sat back down. Marina nods at Pope before heading back down the dock and over to her bike. She noticed JJ lingering on the patio.

"Hey, you leaving?" JJ asks as he walks down the steps. Marina just glances over at him as she picks up her bike.

"Yeah."

"Sarahs gone." He informs her but she just shrugs her shoulders.

"I have to go home anyways, Ryder wants to talk." She tells the man who seemed a bit upset she was leaving. But he covers it up, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Well, i uh, I can take you. Faster than your bike." JJ admits as he gestures to his motorcycle. Marina glances toward it. If she was being honest, she didn't really feel safe riding alone right now, she just didn't want to worry Kiara. She knew she could trust JJ, she just didn't want to make him go out of his way.

"You'd do that?" She asks him and he laughs a bit, sending her a smile.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I?" He responds with a shrug. Marina could see he was being genuine, his smile bright and kind. She chews her bottom lip as she stares down at her bike.

"Okay." Marina places it back down on the ground, missing the way JJ got extremely happy she said yes.

"Cool, I'll grab my keys." JJ says, trying to be nonchalant as he all but trips over his feet going into the chateau. It was minute before he reappeared, John B only staring at him confused as he practically raced out of the house. "Here, you can wear the helmet." He tells her, holding it out to her. Marina takes it from him as he gets on the bike. "You ever riden on a motorcycle before?" He asks her curiously and she shakes her head.

"Its pretty easy, just climb on and put your arms around me." That made her reluctant. Marina didnt like physical touch, especially now after last night but something about JJ made her nerves settle a bit. "You okay?" JJ asks, a small frown as he saw the slight fear that showed in her eyes.

"Yeah." She admits as she puts the helmet on, securing her bag on her shoulders before getting on the bike with him.

"I can't start until you hold onto me, don't want you falling off." JJ tells her and Marina was hesitant but moved her arms to his waist. He puts his hands on the handles, starting the engine. "Ready?" He asks her and she nods her head.

He drives off, a small gasp leaving her lips as the wind hits her skin. Her hands gripped in a bit tighter as he sped onto the road. But he seemed to slow down once he noticed she had a death grip on him. Marina felt her heartbeat slow down as he hands relaxed around him and part of her felt safe as she glances around the surrounding area.

JJ was focused on the road until he felt her head against his back. His stomach flutters as a small smile creeps onto his face. He brushes it off though, paying attention to the road in front of him

❧

Authors note; i did not mean for this chapter to be this long lol