The Guest at the Chateau : Outer Banks

Chapter 3

"I'm sorry who?" asked Kie after a moment of stunned silence.

Joanne's hand was stick stuck out in greeting. She slowly retracted it as she stepped backwards. Her hands now where clasped out in front of her and she kneaded them anxiously.

"Joanna Routledge, I don't expect you to know me, but I was wondering if you knew a man called John Routledge?" she asked, her British accent was clear as she annunciated his name.

"which one" JJ asked, he the shock of her name had replaced his anger with confusion.

"Pardon"

"Which one?" he scoffed "you know, Big John or John B."

"oh ah, the older man. He would be about 50 now? He has a son - they should live here?" she rambled, "of course you know them you are at their house. This is their house, right?"
"What do you want with them?" said JJ.

"Please do you know where I can find them?" Joanna said, clearly begging.

"Ah, I think we should sit down." Kie injected.

Joanna gave a small nod at let herself be led back up the rickety steps to the chairs on the deck.

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They settled into the seats. JJ and Kiara sat facing Joanna. To the onlooker, it may look like a job interview of sorts.

"Ok so before we tell you anything, we need some answers." Kie said. She was visibly rattled by the constant mentions of her dead best friend and his father.

"And they better be good, or we won't say anything," JJ added.

Despite her nervousness a smirk appeared on Joanna's face "Righto Bond"

Kiara's mouth twitched and shock was spelt out over JJ's face.

"First, accent and kook clothing" JJ said, back to business.

"Well, I am British and kook?"

"Ignore him," Kiara dismissed, "what he means is, what are you doing here?"

"And you do know the Routledge's?" a nod from the pair let her continue. "Well then bear with me. My mum goes to America once a year. She has these meeting type social gatherings in New York every autumn. Her tickets for this year's trip fell off her desk so I went to pick them up, but they were to Raleigh not New York. I asked her about them, and she started crying. She begged me not to tell dad about them. She told me to drop it. I was too confused to press. In hindsight, I is crazy that she believed I would actually let it go." Joanna let out a little laugh, her gaze was no longer on the couple in front of her but removed from her setting, "I found an old picture book at the back of her wardrobe. There were pictures of her next to a man. This man. "Joanna said, pointing to the photograph in her hands, "She had many photos of just a baby boy. The oldest he gets is about 2, I think. On the back were handwritten notes. One was happy anniversary, my love. I found a sheet of paper with the sentence, my name is John B, written over and over again. There was a letter. Addressed to one John Routledge at the Chateau. It was full of apologies and regrets but nothing that useful to me. Finally, I found a ferry ticket to outer banks. I was starting to piece together everything, so I booked the first flight to Raleigh, as soon as school let out. I got the ferry over here and asked around for direction to the chateau. And here I am" She finished shrugging her shoulders. "Was an acceptable answer that warrants so information on how I can get in contact with this man who has something to do with my mother's past. And maybe what seems to be her son?"

A/N : Soooooo thoughts?