𝐋𝐔𝐃𝐈𝐂𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐒. ᵒᵘᵗᵉʳ ᵇᵃⁿᵏˢ ¹

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 37.

"𝐀𝐋𝐑𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓, 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐆𝐔𝐘𝐒 𝐆𝐎𝐓 the rope?" John B called into the back.

I was sitting in the passenger seat as we drove over the bridge, the sun completely down in the distance, with the smallest of stars beginning to shine in the dark sky. No one could sit still. What awaited us, was possibly four hundred million dollars in British gold, buried in an underground well, in the basement of an axe murderer's house.

It was baffling— to say the least. I didn't know which part was more terrifying, actually possibly finding the gold that had been missing for more than a hundred years, or the scary lady and her eery basement filled with dolls.

"Got it," Pope answered from the backseat.

"Grappling hook?" John B asked, his voice calm. He lightly trailed his thumb on the skin of my leg, his hand softly placed on my thigh as he drove.

    I looped one of my fingers around his own, "Grapling hook," I repeated, with narrowed eyebrows.

    "No, John B," Pope sighed with an annoyance, "We don't have a grappling hook."

    "We're not Batman," I giggled.

    "Pulley?" John B ignored, and continued with the list in his mind.

    "Check." Kiara hummed.

    "Dark clothes." John B looked to everyone in the rear-view mirror.

    I glanced down at John B's black hoodie draped over my body, "Got it." I grinned, mostly to myself. Everyone else agreed.

    "Flashlights?" John B questioned.

    "Check," Jj responded for everyone, while a strike of light beamed from the backseat, reflecting off of the front window. I shut my eyes from the glare, laughing quietly.

    "All right," John B announced with a proud tone, right as the van stopped. We were pulled over in the same spot as the day before, when we had visited the Crain House during the day, parked underneath a few long branches on a long and dark street. "We're ready." He turned his head to me.

    I looked over at him, and couldn't refrain from smiling widely, even though my fingers were shaking with nerves. "Let's do this shit," I breathed out, my teeth biting down onto my bottom lip.

    As everyone else in the back made shuffling noises, gathering their things, John B pushed himself forward towards me and placed a kiss on my cheek. I jokingly pushed him away with a hand on his chest for being cheesy, while my cheeks tinted red. He bit down onto his bottom lip, the cheekiest of all smiles plastering over his face, and he laughed quietly. His eyes were twinkling. I stared at him for a long moment, while he turned away and pushed open his door.

    "Let's go get rich guys," Jj mused happily from the back, as he hopped off the seat and crouched down.

    "Yeah, hell yeah," Kiara laughed, her tone of voice filled with excitement. I turned my head around, and we made eye contact. Immediately, a wide grin took over her facial features, her cheeks creasing, which caused me to smile back, as a happy feeling began to swarm inside of my stomach.

    "Let's get to it," Jj joked.

    "Right on," Pope said, with a southern accent.

    As I was climbing into the back, stepping over the cup holders, John B slid the van door open. Right before Kiara was about to jump out first, he stopped her.

    "Wait, wait." John B mumbled, sounding concerned.

    I stopped, my hands on Pope and Jj's shoulders, as he looked around at each of us.