𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐄𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧
[𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒂𝒍𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒔𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒔]
❧

TAPPING HER PENCIL AGAINST THE PAGE IN HER HAND, Marina nods her head to the music playing in her ears. Laying against the pillows on her bed, she was really just trying to avoid her father. She didnt know what had gotten into him lately but she didnt like it. Marina sighs as she continues to draw before hearing a light tap. Her eyebrows furrow as she glances around but doesn't pay much mind to it.

That was until the tapping got much louder and more excessive. Marina takes off her headphones, looking around before her gaze lands on her window. Her eyes widen in the slightest as she stares at the man outside. "Rafe?" The name foreign on her tongue because she couldn't think of one reason he was outside her window right now.

She quickly gets up from her bed, moving to her window and opening it slightly. "What the fuck are you doing here?" She wanted to ask him how the hell he knew where her house was but that would be for another time.

"I-i um, I just--"

"Do you have any idea what my dad will do if he sees you?" Marina asks him with a scoff. Surely he had a death wish because her dad made things perfectly clear if he were to see the man again.

"I didnt have anywhere else to go, okay?" Rafe retorts quickly and she could see the way he faltered slightly. "I-i don't have anywhere to go." He says again and there was no way she heard sadness in his tone. Rafe Cameron was a sociopath.

He definitely could've gone to Topper's house or one of his other kook friends but decided to come here instead for whatever God forsaken reason. Marina glances around but let's out a sigh, opening the window fully. "You can stay the night but that's it." Marina says bluntly, letting him climb into her bedroom. "Why can't you just go home?" She asks, although she didn't actually care.

"My dad kicked me out." Rafe tells her as he shuts the window behind himself.

"Did you steal from him?" It wasnt meant seriously, but he had made fun of her for stealing from her dad, so. But when she got no response, she saw the look on his face. "And you called me stupid." Marina says as she shakes her head, grabbing her notebook.

"I was trying to replace what I took but then Barry came over and-- my dad had enough of my shit apparently."

"You don't ever make deals with Barry, dude. You kooks are dumb as shit." She grumbles. Barry was on her dad's supply list which is how she knew to not go to him for anything. It wasn't that he was rude to her or anything, he just always had druggies at his place and her dad kind of forbade him from being within two hundred feet of her.

"You doing okay?" Rafe asks awkwardly, his hands in his pockets as he stares down at her. Marina didn't get why he cared, sure, it was a fucked up thing she experienced but normally he didn't give a damn about anyone, not even his own family.

"I told Kie." She mutters, staring down at her page.

"Good, that's good." Rafe says as he rubs his chin a bit. "You gonna like, go to the cops or something?" He asks and she almost let out a laugh at his suggestion.

"They never believe pogues."

"Well, there's two witnesses."

"Topper is gonna defend me? I highly doubt that after what he did to John B." She sneers. Marina still couldn't believe the boy almost killed John B and then had the nerve to sit right beside her like he didn't do anything.

"I'll testify."

"If it even goes to court." Marina knew they most likely wouldn't try and press charges. They'd tell her 'don't ruin a young man's life over one little mistake' 'he's a good guy' 'are you sure you didn't say yes?'. Yeah, she'd pass on the judgment. "Why do you even care, Rafe? You hate me, no?" She states, crossing her arms against her chest.

"I told you, got a soft spot for ya." Rafe says, sending her a small wink making her become instantly repulsed.

"Ew."

"Oh, I forgot. Miss darkside hates everything and everyone." He teases with a small smile and she just stares back at him blankly before throwing a pillow in his direction.

"Youre sleeping on the floor by the way." She tells him as he catches it.

"Aww, i thought we'd cuddle." Rafe jokes, tilting his head. She doesnt say anything, only grabbing a few blankets from her storage box and tossing them on the floor. "Uh, thanks-- for letting me in." He says, a more genuine tone in his voice now.

"Yeah, you should be thankful because I could've let your ass sleep outside." Marina states as she climbs into her bed. "Especially after everything you've done." She mutters and Rafe doesn't say anything, knowing she had every right to through him to the wolves.

"Mari, do you--" Ryder stops mid sentence, his hand on the doorknob as he stares at them. His eyes move from his sister to rafe numerous times but none of them say anything. Ryder simply shakes his head, raising a hand in the air. "I don't even wanna know." He denies, only closing the door once again.

Marina groans to herself, knowing she was going to get an interrogation tomorrow. She just turns off her light, not letting Rafe have a word as she pulls the covers over herself. "Night." She hears his soft voice through the quiet room.

"Mhm."

❧

A YAWN ESCAPES MARINA'S LIPS AS SHE WALKS TOWARD THE KITCHEN, Rubbing her eyes, she heads toward the coffeemaker immediately, needing caffeine to fuel her for the day. Luckily there was already some made so she didn't have to wait for it. Grabbing a mug, she places it on the counter. "Morning." She hears from behind her. Marina doesnt even turn around, knowing it was her brother. "Rafe joining you for coffee?" Ryder asks her curiously and she just scoffs as she pours the coffee into her mug.

"Dont start."

"How can I not say something? You had rafe cameron in your bedroom." Ryder tells her, crossing his arms against his chest. Marina grabs her mug, looking toward her brother.

"It wasn't anything." She denies and Ryder seemed suspicious, not exactly believing her.

"Did he try something with you?" He asks, anger seeping through his tone.

"Ew, no."

"Then why was he here?" Ryder asks and he could see the way she cautiously glanced toward her room. "Is he still in there?" He scoffs a bit and she rolls her eyes.

"Hes sleeping." She tells him.

"And I'll ask again, why is he here?"

"I just owed him."

"Owed him for what? Beating your friends to a pulp? Almost killing you?" Ryder questions. He didn't get how any of that could constitute owing him for something.

"It's nothing." She denies as she takes a drink from her mug. Marina goes to turn but her brother grabs her arm.

"Seriously, what could rafe cameron do that would warrant you being nice to him?" He asks her and she flinches away from his touch, her gaze hardened.

"Dont touch me." Marina threatens and Ryder pulls his hands away fast. He frowns a bit, furrowing his eyebrows. They were never touchy siblings but she had never flinched away from him before. "It was nothing, okay? Can you drop it?" She pleads, not even giving him time to answer as she makes her way back to her room.

Marina closes the door behind her, sighing as she walks over to her desk, drinking more of her coffee before placing it down. Her eyes look toward the floor, seeing Rafe moving a bit. "Youre awake." She says bluntly. But it was hard not to be when she slammed the door shut.

"Mm." Rafe hums as he stretches his arms a bit. Marina's gaze shifts to his bare skin momentarily, the man having apparently shed his shirt during the night. She clears her throat, turning away from him.

"You should leave soon, my dad normally checks up on me around this time." Marina tells him, which wasn't a lie, she just didn't know if he was gonna do it today. Rafe scoffs as he sits up, running a hand through his messy hair.

"Hes lucky I don't beat his ass for sending you to that party."

"If you and my dad got in a fight, you would not be winning." Marina denies as he stands up from the floor, his pants low on his hips.

"So, this the last I see of you, pogue?" Rafe asks her, fake wiping a tear away. Marina just grabs his shirt from the chair beside her.

"I doubt it. You're like a leech."

"Youre always so sweet to me, Mari." He tells her and she only rolls her eyes, throwing his shirt at him. Rafe chuckles, catching it and throwing it on his body.

❧

AS THE TWINKIE PULLS UP TO MARINA'S HOUSE, JJ swings the door open as John B puts the van into park. "So, why are we picking up Mari?" Pope asks, furrowing his eyebrows a bit. They hadn't even told her they were coming so she could very well not even be at home.

"Kie is likely to be less pissed at us if shes with us." JJ points out and John B shares a glance with Pope.

"Wow, a smart idea for once. Who are you?" John B teases him and he just narrows his gaze a bit.

"Ha ha."

"And what about Sarah?" The man asks and Pope just presses his lips together tightly.

"Yeah, you're on your own with that one." Pope admits and John B glares at both of them.

"Thanks, guys. So helpful." He mutters and JJ jumps out of the van, turning back to his friends.

"Just hold up here. I'll go grab her." JJ states before closing the door and jogging up to the side of the house. Moving toward where he knew her window was, he whistles slightly, tapping his hand against the side of the house. As he turns to knock on her window, he stops himself short as he looks inside. "What the hell?" He mutters to himself, seeing Rafe pulling on his shirt.

As Rafe goes to turn, JJ practically faceplants as he turns quickly as to not be seen. He rushes toward the front of the house, hiding behind a bush quickly. JJ looks back toward the twinkie, seeing John B had rolled the passenger window down.

"What are you doing?" He mouths, holding up his hands but JJ just puts a finger to his mouth before gesturing for them to get down. They didn't seem to get the message though as they continued to stare at the man with pure confusion on their faces.

That was until they saw Rafe appear in the yard. "Shit, that's rafe." John B says as they both duck down quickly.

"What is he doing here?" Pope asks but he doesn't get a response as they creep their eyes to the window. They watch as rafe puts on his helmet, glancing around as he gets on his bike. Turning it on, he revs the engine before pulling off the driveway and driving down the road.

JJ was quick to run toward the twinkie, jumping inside as Pope opens the door. "You guys saw that, right?" He asks them as he leans back against the seats.

"Rafe leaving her house? Yeah." John B says with a scoff, looking back toward the house for a moment.

"He was in her bedroom, dude." JJ states and this causes both of their mouths to drop a bit.

"No way." Pope couldn't believe it for a second.

"Yes, way, man. I saw it with my own eyes." JJ says as he points toward his eyes with his fingers. Pope shakes his head, bringing his hands to the back of his head.

"Theres gotta be some sort of explanation."

"Shes screwing a kook." JJ states. He didn't want to believe that, he didn't even want to think of it. He wouldn't really ever think of saying something like this about Mari but rafe was shirtless in her room. What else could it be?

"Not that one." John B denies and JJ glares at him a bit.

"Is it that far fetched?"

"Its Mari." He responds bluntly. John B could see Marina punching a kook, maybe strangling one, but sleeping with one especially rafe cameron? No way.

"Well, we could just ask her." Pope suggests and JJ looks toward him, looking at him like he was stupid.

"Ask-- are you serious? You're supposed to be the smart one." JJ sneers back at him and Pope only glares toward the man.

"What are you losers doing?" A sudden voice makes them all jump. They look toward the passenger window, seeing Marina standing there with her hands on her bag straps.

"Oh, h-hey Mari." Pope says with an awkward wave. Marina just stares at them.

"Why are you parked outside my house like some stalkers?" She asks curiously and John B rubs the back of his neck as he looks toward his friends for an answer.

"We were um, just coming to pick you up." John B tells her and Marina gazes into the van, only seeing Pope and JJ in the back.

"Wheres kie?"

"Uh, that's why we came here." JJ adds but the way they were all being skiddish worried her a bit.

"Is she okay?" Marina asks them, the smallest frown on her face.

"We may not be." John B mumbles and she just squints her eyes. "We stranded her and sarah on the boat together." He admits and she looked a bit amused at them.

"So, should I start planning your funerals now?" She questions before pulling open the back door and stepping inside. There was awkward tension in the van as she closed the door behind her.

"Uh, where were you heading to?" Pope asks curiously as it was clear she was going somewhere before she came up to the van.

"The bookstore."

"Meeting someone?" JJ asks and he could see the look John B shot him. Marina slowly places her bag on her lap as she sits down.

"The librarian?" She answers him, not understanding his question. It goes quiet again, John B hitting the steering wheel with his fingers.

"Hey, so, really weird and totally unrelated-- We were driving down the street and saw Rafe." John B tells her and she stares back at him. She knew they must have seen him if they were sitting outside of her house so there was no point in lying.

"Is there a question?"

"Why was he at your house, Mari?" JJ seemed to snap at her and Pope covered his face with his hand.

"Hes seeing my brother." Marina retorts bluntly before rolling her eyes. "He just slept on my floor." She tells them and this didn't exactly make any of them feel less uneasy.

"Why?" John B questions.

"I owed him one." Marina answers him with a small shrug and JJ scoffs.

"Uh, for what? Beating the shit out of us?"

"Unrelated." She responds, not really wanting to talk about it but they all just stare at her silently. "Are we going to get them or are yall just gonna keep sitting there with your dicks in your hand?" Marina snaps at them, raising an eyebrow.

John B clears his throat, turning around in his seat and starting the engine. Pope just kept his eyes to his hands but JJ was the only one still looking at Marina. He didn't care what Rafe was doing there, he just wanted her to tell them the truth.

Okay, that was a lie, he did care a little bit. Mainly because what was so wrong with him that she didn't want to even be friends with him and yet she can hang around Rafe Cameron in her bedroom? It just pissed him off a bit. He was way better than that kook.

Marina just looks away from the man's sharpened stare, trying to just forget about him as she pulls her sketchbook out of her bag.

❧

IT WAS AN EERY BOAT RIDE OUT INTO THE MARSH. Marina was simply listening to her cassette player the whole time, avoiding any unwanted questions from the others. JJ was driving the boat, leant back against the seat as his eyes kept drifting to Marina every few seconds. Pope and John B were just lounging on the front, mainly just staying quiet as to not provoke an argument.

"Uh oh!" Pope calls out, standing up a bit as they get closer to where Sarah and Kiara were.

"You forget your keys or something?" Jj asks them with a smirk on his face.

"You guys need a tow?" John B adds before they stop the boat, throwing Kiara the rope. "You gotta admit it was funny." He adds and Kiara just squints her eyes.

"John B."

"Uh, what's that?"

"Mastermind, huh?" Kiara asks, raising an eyebrow as she plants her hands on her hips.

"I'm always planning."

"Some patriarchal bullshit." She mutters with a scoff, looking away from them.

"Yeah, that sucked." Sarah chimes in with a nod of her head.

"Still love us though, right?" JJ asks and Kiara hums as she looks back at the group.

"Yeah, whatever."

"You still hate me?" John B questions Sarah as he tilts his head and she presses her lips together tightly.

"A little. We're both gonna get you back when you least expect it." Sarah tells him as she crosses her arms against her chest.

"Watch your back, boys." John B teases as he looks back at his friends.

"I for one welcome that challenge." Pope admits.

"Me too." JJ agrees. Marina simply takes off her headphones in order to actually hear the conversation that she had been tuning out. Her eyes go to Sarah and she couldn't help but glare at the blonde who simply glances away from her.

"So, did you guys, you know..." Pope trails off and Kiara just scoffs.

"Reconcile our differences?"

"Mm-mm." Sarah denies, shaking her head.

"Not even close." Kiara tells them.

"But we're willing to work together?" Sarah asks, looking toward Kiara who shrugs her shoulders.

"You know what? That's a victory." John B tells them as he claps his heads together.

"Yep." JJ adds but Marina could see the wink Sarah sent Kiara which made her frown a bit.

"Woogity, woogity, woogity!" Jj and pope wiggle their fingers together.

"You know what it was guys? Hydroponic." Jj tells them and Pope groans as he tilts his head back a little bit.

"Dont say that."

"All right, shut up. Yall ready to jack some loot?" John B asks the group, holding out his hands.

"Yeah, whatever." Kiara says as she makes her way onto the smaller boat. "I hate all of you." She tells them and Marina finally chimes into the conversation.

"Excuse me?" She asks, tilting her head and Kiara instantly smiles, rushing over to her best friend and wrapping her arms around the girl tightly as she sits beside her.

"Except my lover, of course." Kiara teases and Marina allowed the girl to wrap herself around her. She sees the others in their own world so she takes the opportunity to talk to Kiara.

"You didn't forgive her, right?"

"I don't know, she's not that bad." Kiara denies with a small shrug. Her and sarah seemed to push past their differences. It had been both their faults after all.

"Shes the devil." Marina corrects her and Kiara furrows her eyebrows. She thought Marina only hated Sarah because she did, but maybe there was more to it than she knew.

"Hey, any reason why your brother would be crashing on Mari's floor?" John B asks as he looks toward Sarah and this caught Kiaras attention.

"What?" She asks, looking at Marina with wide eyes. Marina glares toward John B.

"Seriously?"

"It's a question." John B says innocently as he shrugs his shoulders.

"Rafe was in your house?" Sarah questions, a bit confused and Marina just crosses her arms against her chest.

"He just stayed over for the night and these idiots are acting like it's the beginning of world War three."

"It basically is. Sleeping with the enemy." JJ pipes up and Marina wanted to physically push them all off of the boat right now. Sarah became a bit slack-jawed.

"You and my brother--"

"Ew, no, of course not." She instantly denies, almost gagging. "I just owed him one." Marina admits and it suddenly hits Kiara, making her become quiet.

"And you still won't tell us why." JJ points out and Marina just gives him a hardened glare.

"It's none of your business."

"If it's not the obvious answer than why won't you say it?"

"Guys, just shut up." Kiara snaps at them making them all glance toward her.

"Kie, she let Rafe Cameron stay at her place." Pope adds, even he was a little mad that she decided to willingly be around the man who beat him up.

"Okay? And?" She just raises an eyebrow, her tone sharp.

"And? He literally beat us up and I have to pay 30 grand because of him." JJ sneers back at her, not understanding why she wasn't just as mad as everyone else.

"Uh, no, that was your own stupidity." Kiara retorts back and she could see the thankful look Marina gave her. "Seriously, guys, leave her alone." She mutters, resting her head on Marinas shoulder.

John B clears his throat, looking toward JJ and signaling for him to start the boat. The blonde was reluctant but rolled his eyes, steering the boat off in the direction of the chateau.

❧

AS THE POGUES DROVE DOWN THE ROAD, the lighthearted conversation fluttered between them once more. Everyone seemingly leaving the tension of the boat behind. Well, except Marina who kept glancing toward Sarah. The blonde noticed but kept her mouth shut, simply playing with a string on her jacket. "Who's ready to be rich?" John B announced as he hits the roof.

"I'm ready to get the fuck off this island." Marina admits as she tilts her head back. Kiara laughs as she pulls the girl against her, although she knew soon Marina would start to become overwhelmed by her constant touch.

"Saving sea turtles all around the world." She adds and Marina can't help but smile a little bit. Her phone buzzes in her pocket making her sigh a bit. She takes it out, seeing it was her father calling her. Deciding not to ignore it, she presses answer and brings the phone to her ear.

"Dad."

"Mari, did you take my gun?" The statement was harsh, her word not even really registering before he began to speak. Marina furrows her eyebrows at the accusation.

"What? No, why would I take it?" She denies, not getting what she would need with the gun. Well, that was unless JJ lost the one they had and she wouldn't put it past him.

"Because you have a recent history of taking things from me." He tells her and her jaw clenches. Marina thought he would at least trust her more than this.

"I didn't take it, dad."

"Is there a reason your brother stormed out of the house an hour ago?" Diego asks her and Marina just rubs her face a bit. Kiara was staring at her curiously but Marina just shook her head.

"I wasn't there, how would I know?" Marina retorts bluntly. How would she know what her brother was doing?

"Well, what i know is my gun is not in my office anymore and now your brother's MIA too." It suddenly hit her why he was asking. Ryder must have taken the gun. Had he figured it out? He was looking at her weirdly this morning and after she flinched away from him.... he couldn't know, could he?

"Shit." She mutters, catching the others attention.

"Find him before he does something stupid." Diego then hangs up the phone and Marina felt her heartbeat pick up a little bit.

"What?" JJ asks, noticing the shift in the girls behaviour.

"We need to find Ryder."

"Why, what's wrong?" Kiara asks, concerned but Marina really had no time to explain.

"We just need to find him, okay?" She tells them and Pope looks at everybody.

"But we're headed to-"

"Oh, my god. The gold doesn't matter right now, just drive!" John B presses on the gas, not exactly knowing where he was going but he knew something had to have happened if Marina was like this.

❧

THEY WALK ALONG THE BEACH, Marina having tracked his phone here. It wasn't a mystery that he'd be somewhere on figure eight. If he had truly figured it out, he would be looking for Liam and the man always hung around rich folk. "How are we supposed to find him?" Sarah asks curiously, looking toward Marina.

"Trust me, we'll know." She mutters. Marina knew there would be chaos wherever her brother was. Especially if he had found Liam.

"I'd rather not be at a kook bonfire." JJ mutters, glancing around and seeing the looks they were getting.

"Suck it up, JJ." Kiara snaps as she nudges him. Marina's eyes land on the older Cameron who was seemingly taking a hit off of someone's blunt. Walking over to him, she hits his arm getting his attention. He seemed angry at first until he noticed it was Marina.

"Rafe, have you seen my brother?"

"What?" He asks, the loud party being a deterrent between them. Marina just crosses her arms against her chest.

"Ryder, is he here?" She asks again and she could see his eyes drop for a moment and the way he fiddles with the drink in his hand.

"I don't know, why?" Rafe responds, clearly lying. She wouldn't be surprised if he had confirmed Ryders suspicions.

"You do know, Rafe. Where is he?" Marina demands but before he could answer, a huge commotion breaks out. Her head snaps toward the people shouting and she was quick to make her way down the beach.

"Dude, let him go!" She hears someone shout. She pushes her way through the crowd, only to see Liam on the ground with Ryder on top of him, punching him repeatedly.

"Ryder!" Marina calls out, running over to him and trying to pull him away but the man doesnt budge. "Ryder, stop it!" She pleads but it was like he didn't even hear her, being filled with rage as he glared down at Liam.

"You wanna put hands on my sister, huh?!" Kiaras eyes go wide as she stops, seeing the scene before her. The others stop near her, watching as Marina struggled to pull her brother away. "That make you feel good!?" Ryder shouts as he lands another blow to the man's face.

"God, Ryder, stop!" She demands, yanking at his arm but Ryder only pushes her back slightly but not enough to actually hurt her.

"I didn't do nothing--" Liam chokes out and Ryder let's out a humourless laugh.

"You didn't do anything, hm?" He asks and Marina was too late as she saw the gun in his waistband. He had already reached for it by the time she tried to intervene. Ryder now pressed the gun against Liam's temple making the boy freeze.

Numerous screams and shouts were heard but Marina wasn't listening to any of them. "You wanna say that again?" Ryder dares him, his finger on the trigger. Marina bends down, trying to get her brother to see her.

"Ryder, look at me." She pleads and she could see his eyes flicker to her momentarily. "Ryder, just give me the gun." Marina tells him, holding out her hand. He just shakes his head as he focuses on what he was doing.

"This mother fucker hurt you, Mari." Ryder snaps, not getting how she was just going to let him get away with it. Well, he wasn't. No one hurt his sister and got away with it.

"I know, okay? But you don't need to do this." She denies. This would only land him in prison and she really didn't want that. The pogues were the only ones really left hanging around as everyone else had scattered the moment the gun was brought out.

Ryder seemed to soften a bit but his eyes glared down at Liam. "You ever lay a finger on my sister again, I won't hesitate to come back and put a bullet in your head, you understand?" He warns and Liam nods his head. Marina let out a sigh as he brother pulled the gun away from Liams head.

"Give it to me." Marina states sharply as she holds out her hand. Ryder reluctantly gives the gun to her. She instantly turns the safety on before holding it out and JJ grabs it from her. She stares at her brother who only wipes his face with his bloody knuckles. It didn't seem like Liam really got the message though.

"She fucking wanted it." He grumbles out and Ryder saw red as he turned to the man. John and JJ were quick to hold him back as Marina stood in front of him, pressing her hands to his chest.

"Just stop." She tells him, her voice cracking in the slightest. Marina barely showed emotion, even toward her own brother but in this moment she couldn't help it. Because although she didn't want him to go to jail, she felt so thankful toward her brother for defending her.

"I'm sorry." Ryder says after calming down a bit, his breathing heavy as he stares at his sister. Tears form in his eyes as he looks at her, only seeing the little girl he swore to protect even if he was only two years older than her. "I-I'm sorry." He says again but she shakes her head, suddenly wrapping her arms around him.

This was rare. Physical touch between the two siblings. It had only happened a handful of times and each time, it was when the other desperately needed it. A hug, someone to just be there, even a simple touch on the shoulder. Marina needed it. And so did he. Ryder held onto his sister tightly, feeling like he failed as the tears slip out of his eyes.

And even if they didnt say those three little words to each other, it was unspoken between them. Marina felt a few prickle in hers as well but she blinks them away, just holding onto her brother a little way longer before pulling away.

"Go home. Dont do anything else, okay? Just go home." Marina tells him and Ryder sniffles but nods his head, his eyes drifting to the gun JJ was still holding. "I'll give the gun back to dad. Go." She says, just wanting him to get out of sight. Especially if the kooks decide to call the cops.

Marina takes a shaky breath as she watches her brother walk away. Liam was still in the sand but she wasn't exactly jumping to get him help. Her eyes look back at her friends and they were all just staring at her. She knew that look. Pity. It's exactly what she didn't want. Kiara knew because Marina trusted her with her entire life. But everyone knowing it just made her feel like she was weak. Like they'd now treat her different knowing this happened to her.

She just clears her throat as she grabs the gun from JJ, putting it into her bag and closing it over. He stared down at her, unsure if he should say something. He really wanted to apologize if anything but he didn't know if it was the right time.

"So, when you said you owed Rafe--"

"JJ." Kiara shakes her head at him and he clamps his mouth shut. Marina puts her bag back on her shoulders as she just clenches her jaw a bit.

"Lets just get the gold." She mutters as she moves past them. Kiara was quick to follow after her while the others lingered back a bit. Their minds circled with the words that Ryder had said and it wasn't a huge puzzle to put together.

JJ felt horrible for accusing her of sleeping with Rafe, his head dropping slightly. He should've just left it alone but his jealousy got the best of him. John B nudges him slightly, getting his attention and seeing that everyone else was leaving as well.

The blonde let's out a sigh but follows after the group, his hands in his pockets as he keeps his eyes low, not daring to look Marina in the eye anymore. He didn't deserve to.

❧

Authors note; rafe..... yeah there's gonna be a love hate relationship with him in this book.