the middle ≫ jj maybank

xii. the letter

In the days that followed JJ's arrest, Slater continued to sneak time away with the pogues. She was shocked to hear that during the day the rest of the pogues had been surfing, John B had been with Sarah Cameron in Chapel Hill.

She knew that Kiara hated Sarah, so Slater was a bit surprised to walk into the chateau one day to find Sarah seated next to John B on the couch. She had seemingly joined their search for treasure.

"Oh, so we're letting all the kooks in now?" JJ said, shooting a joking grin in Slater's direction.

Her face flushed as she recalled the moment the two had shared in her bedroom. She really liked JJ, and it had been hard keeping their coupledom — if that's what it was — a secret from the others.

"I don't see what help she will actually be," Kiara said, her arms crossed over her chest as she stared daggers at Sarah.

"She was already a lot of help, Kie," John B said.

"She's also dating Topper," Kiara added. "And is Rafe's sister. Who, if you've forgotten, almost killed Pope. Twice."

Sarah scoffed. "Come on, don't at least get a chance to defend myself?"

"No," Kiara replied. "Not to me."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Well, look. Let me at least explain why John B and I were in Chapel Hill. And, why I could be exceptionally useful to you in your little quest."

Kiara remained silent as Sarah and John B began the story of their time in Chapel Hill. Sarah's home, Tannyhill, had once been owned by a man named Denmark Tanny, who was the only survivor of the Royal Merchant wreck. A freed slave, Tanny appeared out of nowhere with inexplicable wealth.

Apparently, John B and Sarah had found some interesting items at the archives at Chapel Hill, including a letter from Denmark Tanny to his son on the day he died, and a picture of what looked like the lost gold. The letter was in a different language, though, so they would need to decipher it.

"Wait," Pope said, peering over John B's shoulder as he inspected the photo of the letter. "This letter is in Gullah. It's a Creole language that would have been spoken here around this time. I bet Denmark Tanny knew it. His son, too. He wrote it in this language so that no one else could intercept the message."

"Okay, so what do we do with it?" JJ asked.

"Mr. Sunn, at school. He's talked about this before," Pope said.

"Yeah, he doesn't like me," JJ said, scratching the back of his neck.

"Well, maybe he can help us," Kiara said.

Pope nodded. "We can go talk to him. JB?"

John B nodded. "Yeah, I'll come with. Anyone else?"

"I've got to go home," Kiara said, glancing at her phone. "Get ready for Midsummers."

"Me too," Slater said, sighing, as Sarah nodded in agreement.

"Right. The kook festival," JJ said, rolling his eyes.

Slater didn't enjoy going to the country club. She did the first year they had their memberships. It was fun to play tennis and drink fancy drinks with her little sister. The novelty wore off quickly, though, when she got to know many of the people that frequented the place, including Rafe Cameron.

She stood up, glancing quickly at JJ before heading out with Kiara, who had driven them both from the Wreck. Slater was still grounded, so the only way she got to the chateau or other places with the pogues was if she got a ride.