LEVI AND POPE SHOWED UP AT THE SAME TIME AS KIE AND AINSLEY.

the boys came down the driveway at the same moment kiara and ainsley shut the boat off, emery wordlessly motioning for her brother to follow them down the dock where jj and john b were already running towards the hms pogue.

"wait! guys! don't tie up!" jj called, kiara looking at him confused.

"why? what's going on?" ainsley asked.

"we're dipping." jj said shortly, tossing the backpack he had on onto the hms pogue.

"what're you guys talking about?" pope asked.

"where'd you guys go? what happened last night?" john b asked, looking between pope and levi, then ainsley and kie.

"we slept on the break." ainsley said bluntly.

"we stayed at the cove. why? what happened?" levi asked, looking at his sister.

"slept, yeah, right- we were up all night." jj said bitterly as he patted kiara on the shoulder.

"we gotta get the hell out of here." john b breathed.

"rafe and barry know we're here." emery explained as she helped mara down the dock. "they showed up last night."

"like, showed up here?" levi asked, emery nodding quickly.

"he shot at us." she breathed, helping mara get into the boat, shoving the boat away from the dock as john b started it. the pogues managed to find their way to a part of the island that was far enough away from the main part to be unnoticed. emery, mara, kiara, and ainsley all covered the boat with tree branches and leaves while the boys collected firewood.

eventually, when they had done all they could to get the island hospitable, they sat in a circle off the sand.

"look if rafe and barry know, it's only a matter of time." kiara said bluntly.

"before everyone knows." pope added, jj scoffing from where he was pacing behind emery and mara.

"i told you. we should've just gone south, man." the maybank said agitatedly.

"just stop it." john b breathed.

"why does no one every listen?" jj exclaimed, john b attempting to calm his friend down.

"i get it. i get it. i understand." the brunette said firmly.

"just hear me out!" emery cut the two boys off, everyone turning to look at her. "i'll go to my house- lee, is mom home?"

"she should be." the older melville replied.

"mom can fix this, she always does." emery said, looking around. "and besides, jackson's gone, he's not even on the island, is he?"

"i haven't seen him." pope stated bluntly.

"he was also here for a year and no one knew, ems." levi said. "you shouldn't go back there by yourself."

"who else is gonna bail us out of this?" emery asked loudly, looking around the pogues again. "anyone else's parents gonna find a way to get us out of this mess unscathed?"

she was met with silence all around, taking a deep breath through her nose and exhaling heavily, turning to john b.

"my mom is our only shot at getting out of this, okay?" she said, looking around the pogues again. "now we can sit here and we can figure out how to do this the hard way, or we can take the shortcut. i just need a couple hours."

silently, all the pogues looked around at each other, john b eventually making eye contact with emery and motioning for her to go to the boat. the melville girl took another deep breath, standing up and walking down to the beach and pulling the leaves and branches off the boat. she waved to her friends, pushing the boat into the water and starting the engine.

THE SUN WAS SHINING GOLDEN OFF THE WATERS OF FIGURE EIGHT.

emery idled the boat down as it approached the dock of her family home, tying the bowline off and climbing onto the dock, walking up the long wooden walkway towards the sliding glass back door she knew would be unlocked. what she didn't expect was to pull the door open to yelling from the kitchen, or for one of the voices to be jackson.

"no, jackson, i don't want to hear it!" amelia exclaimed. "you left the kids! you weren't there for emery or for levi ever, you sure as hell haven't been there for levi while he's been grieving- you didn't even care enough to show up to emery's funeral!"

"i didn't miss her funeral because i wanted to, amelia- i was grieving too!" jackson screamed, emery's breath hitching in her throat as she slowly pulled the door shut, ducking behind the staircase and peeking around the corner into the kitchen where jackson was standing on one side of the island while amelia stood on the other.

"oh, really?" amelia asked, voice bitter. "i was grieving too, but i knew that emery wouldn't have wanted me to waste my life away because she died. and if you cared about her at all-"

"why should i have?" jackson yelled. "you and i both know she wasn't my kid, you were too busy whoring around in crack houses to care about my life. we had already had a kid together, amelia. and you decided you didn't want that family because you wanted to be with him and emery."

"don't try and make me the villain so you can justify your treatment of her. emery may not have been your biological daughter, but what i did was not her fault, and yet you still resented her for it and didn't even try to hide it."

"oh, so what? i'm supposed to raise someone else's child because he's too high all the time to do so himself? that's not how the world works, amelia." jackson spat. "and if that little bitch was alive today, i'd do it over and over again."

emery's breath hitched in her throat as she watched amelia round the island and smack jackson across the face, the taller man immediately doing the same. emery's blood boiled at the sight, the girl throwing herself around the corner and grabbing the man pulling him backwards as his feet slipped out from under him, sending him toppling to the floor, emery scrambling away from him and looking up at amelia, who was staring at her with wide eyes.

"emery..." the brunette breathed, but emery turned her gaze back to jackson, breathing heavily as she looked at him, his eyes wide.

"call me a bitch again and i'll do a lot more than trip you up." she gritted. "now get the hell out of my house."

"who do you think you are?" jackson snarled, but he was still on the ground. emery rested her foot on the side of his face, rolling it over so jackson was facing away from her.

"y'know what happens to guys like you in prison?" emery taunted. "they get hauled off to the hospital after they've had the shit beat out of them, and the ambulance takes the long way."

"y'know what happens to people like your boyfriend in prison?" jackson replied, teeth gritted. emery shifted more of her weight to that leg, jackson groaning in pain.

"does that hurt?" emery asked with fake sympathy, moving so she was practically standing on jackson, the man letting out a small scream of pain. "just thought i'd let you know that i will be testifying against you in court, y'know, for lying to the cops and saying john b shot the sheriff and all."

"emery, get off him." amelia said firmly, emery glancing at her mom and back to jackson.

"but this is so fun, mom." she said, mimicking a child who had just been told they had to stop playing to eat dinner.

"emery, now." amelia repeated, emery rolling her eyes and stepping away from jackson.

"crybaby." she mumbled.

"emery." amelia snapped, the blonde smirking at her mother.

"can't i have a little fun?" she asked, jackson standing up, a red mark on his face in the shape of emery's shoe, but it was already starting to fade.

"why're you here?" the man asked, teeth gritted.

"sure as hell not to talk to you- did i stutter when i told him to leave my house?" emery asked, turning back to amelia, who narrowed her eyes at her daughter who glanced at jackson as she leaned on the island, nodding her head towards the door. "toodaloo, bitch. get out."

"emery." amelia repeated again. "stop it."

"do you want him here?" emery asked, eyebrows raised as she looked between her mother and jackson. "cause i sure as hell don't."

"okay- y'know what-" jackson started walking towards emery, the girl scrunching her face up in disgust and walking behind the island, reaching into a cabinet and grabbing a frying pan.

"don't think so." she said bluntly. "now let's back the hell up, micheal myers."

"emery, why are you here?" amelia asked, sounding more concerned than anything. suddenly, a lightbulb clicked in emery's head, the girl turning to jackson.

"the night of the storm you told me that if i came back that you would tell the truth, did you not?" she asked.

"i did." jackson said calmly.

"now, it's not like i expect you to keep your word or anything, you've proven yourself to be a backstabbing whore once." emery said bluntly. "however, there are..." she trailed off, pretending to count in her head, "three witnesses who were in the tarmac, two witnesses who know rafe wasn't at his house that day, and one witness who knows about your history of pathological lying and manipulation- the stars just really aren't lined in your favor today, are they jackie?"

"emery, it isn't that simple. i can't just go back on my word, i was under oath-"

"so that's how many years that'll be added onto your sentence?" emery cut him off, looking at the dark haired man and waiting for an answer. "cause it really isn't looking good for you just based off what i have, id hate to know what you, your boyfriend, and the redheaded stepkid are gonna get."

"emery, please." jackson pleaded. "emery, im you're family-"

"bullshit!" emery yelled. "you just said yourself that you're not my dad so you don't care about me and that if i hadn't supposedly died you would've left me again. so don't tell me that you're my family, because you're not."

"i'm not going back on rafe and ward. we're too far in to go back now." jackson said firmly, amelia's face falling.

"okay." emery said, sounding perfectly content. "everyone's gonna know i'm alive in a couple days, and you can't stop me from testifying."

"y'know what, that's perfectly fine." jackson replied bluntly. "who in their right mind is gonna believe you over me?"

"this whole household saw how manipulative you are, how you use others to get your way. i'm sure i won't be the only one calling you a liar." emery said confidently. "now, at the risk of repeating myself..." she trailed off, nodding towards the front door. jackson turned on his heel, slamming the door behind him as he walked out of the house. as soon as he was gone, amelia pulled emery into a hug.

"okay, i'm glad you're okay, but you really have to go." amelia mumbled, emery nodding and hugging her mom once more.

"love you." emery mumbled, running out the back door and sprinting the rest of the way down the dock. she fumbled the bowline, struggling with the keys before getting the boat started.

"shit." the blonde mumbled. jackson had rounded the corner, his phone pressed to his ear. emery idled the boat all the way up as she sped away from her house. eventually, the island came into view, the pogues all running down to the island to meet her.

"emery!" mara yelled as emery killed the engine, the boat sliding up onto the sand.

"how'd it go? can she help?" john b asked.

"jackson's back." emery breathed. "he knows im back, he was at the house." she added, looking at levi, who's face had fallen.

"you're joking, right?" john b asked, emery shaking her head.

"i think he called the police- guys, we have to get the hell out of here." the melville breathed.

"it's too late." kiara said, looking out to the water. everyone's gaze followed hers to the water where multiple police boats were covering the water, coming towards the island from all directions.

"oh shit." levi whispered.

"did they follow you here?" john b asked emery, who was shaking her head.

"i didn't know they were behind me." she breathed.

"stand on the beach with your hands up!" one of the policemen exclaimed over a megaphone.

"something tells me we're not gonna listen to him?" mara asked.

"of course not- come on!" jj urged. the pogues all ran away from the beach past where they had been sitting earlier, back past the trees that lined the back of the island,

"come on, come on!" levi urged from where he and jj were helping people down from the ledge of the island into the water below. jj grabbed mara's hand, levi taking emery's as the two girls waded through the waist-deep water, john b, pope, ainsley and kiara right behind them.

"up here, come on!" emery urged, practically dragging mara up the bank and towards a large oak tree, the pogues all hiding behind it. it didn't take long for multiple cop cars and trucks to surround the area.

"shit- we're trapped." levi breathed, emery looking over to jj, who has pulled the gun and his bandana out of his pocket.

"we gotta make a stand." he gritted, emery's eyes widening. she turned her gaze to john b, who looked at her and then over to jj. the maybank was putting his now dried back into his gun. john b stepped over emery, grabbing the boy by the shoulders before he could round the tree, jj struggling against him for a moment, but john b took the gun by the barrel.

emery's heart sank as she remembered how just a few months prior he had taken the gun from jj in the same way, under completely different circumstances. how jj had told the routledge that he "couldn't grab a gun like that." emery's whole world froze for a second.

they were just kids.

they were just kids looking for a shipwreck.

how had everything gone so wrong?

john b grabbed the side of jj's face after dropping the gun on the ground in front of the maybank, giving him a smile emery could tell was forced.

"it's gonna be alright." the routledge whispered, jj kicking dirt over the pistol reluctantly. emery stood up, grabbing john b's hand before he rounded the tree, the routledge staring at her for a moment before stepping closer to her and pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

"i love you." emery whispered, her voice cracking as she lifted john b's hand, kissing his dirty knuckles gently.

"i love you too." he whispered, dropping emery's hand and rounding the tree, hands in the air while the cops all shouted orders at him.

"john b!" shoupe shouted. "step out into the clearing! get down. do not move!"

"i'm surrendering!" john b yelled back.

"don't move!" plumb ordered.

"hands up, john b!" thomas shouted, the tree officers all approaching the tree where the pogues were hidden in addition to a number of people in federally marked jackets and assault rifles clutched in their hands.

"alright, the rest of yall, stay right where you are. keep your hands where we can see them." shoupe told the rest of the pogues, who all stepped out from behind the tree into a line like they were in for police questioning, their hands held high.

"listen, shoupe, i wanna testify!" john b shouted over the ruckus.

"about time!" shoupe said bitterly. "get down, do not move a muscle. everyone else, don't move."

thomas stepped up, apparently to cuff john b. but the pogues were all taken by surprise when his arm wrapped around john b's neck, tossing the boy onto the ground.

"are you serious?" jj shouted. "come on!"

"hey- thomas!" shoupe started, but thomas wasn't paying attention.

"get off him!" emery screamed.

"stop! let him go!" kiara yelled. thomas was now kicking john b in the stomach, the routledge curled up in pain on the ground.

"sheriff, what is that? you're gonna let that happen?" jj yelled, but the only answer he received was a gun pointed at his chest. he looked over next to him, where emery was struggling to even stand, her whole body shaking with sobs.

"stop! stop! leave him alone!" she screamed hysterically, tears streaming down her face as she watched thomas grab john b by the shirt, pulling him up into a standing position.

"thomas!" shoupe yelled, but the man wasn't listening as he shoved the sheriff away. none of the pogues caught what he said, but they were all forced to watch as the man laid a punch to john b's face, the boy falling limply onto the ground.

emery's arms fell as she crumpled onto the ground, sobbing hysterically. jj immediately dropped to his knees next to her, pulling the melville into his chest.

"hey- hands off her!" one of the deputies yelled.

"have a little soul, you just let him beat the shit out of her boyfriend!" levi snapped back, the deputy mumbling something to his partner, who stood near jj and emery, the twins hugging each other like they were the last two people on earth.

kens speaks 🪐

hey i'm back

happy 2024

that's all i got