18 | hiking

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SEASON THREE,
CHAPTER 18:

HIKING

"Is this ride or die?"

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"Is this ride or die?"


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BARRACUDA MIKE FOUND the group of teens lingering around the fruit stands, just minutes after they all managed to slip through the grasp of Singh's guards. The man wasn't particularly pleased by them not listening to his warning about laying low, but he quickly let it slide because he doesn't expect any less from the group. Delilah, however, would argue that it wasn't even their (her, JJ, and Kie's) fault because the chaos started before they even got off the bus.

Nevertheless, Barracuda Mike leads all of them away from the crowded streets and down a dirt path. It is extremely quiet, with nothing except tall, thick trees surrounding them. The adult and the teenagers soon reach a river where a single boat can be seen resting on the bank, a thick rope tied to a wooden beam in order to prevent it from floating away. Delilah stares at the boat from a moment, noticing how it doesn't look any better from the HMS Pogue that they own back at home.

"Have you guys got anything to protect yourselves while you're doing this?" Barracuda Mike asks.

"Oh, uh... We're working on that part." JJ admits.

Without saying a word, Barracuda Mike then shoves the beige-coloured bag that he was holding into JJ's hands. A furrow forms between JJ's eyebrows as he glances between the man and the heavy bag, unsure of what it could possibly be inside — especially after he asked if they had anything to protect themselves. Pope and Kiara silently eye the bag from beside their friends, dreading the idea that JJ (out of all of them) has just been handed over a bag of weapons.

Delilah, however, finds herself feeling too impatient to wait around to figure out what is contained inside the bag, her curiosity getting the best of her. The girl leans closer to JJ and pulls back the string from the bag, peeking inside to reveal five machetes resting at the bottom. Almost immediately, Delilah and JJ turn to exchange looks, knowing what one another is like with weapons — back at Scooter Grubbs' hotel, all those months ago, she was the one who grabbed the gun first, and it was JJ that kept it the entire time.

"Oh, I'm also adding the cost of this rig to what you already owe me. I don't expect to be seeing it again anyway." Barracuda Mike tells the blond boy.

"Okay, got it." JJ replies with a small nod.

"I asked around the landing today. Your buds did leave this morning, but I was able to get directions to El Tesoro. Only Jose knows the real way, but it can get you in the right zip code, maybe." Barracuda Mike explains.

THE REDHEAD ☾ jj maybankWhere stories live. Discover now