Weeks had passed. Jack was spending less and less time keeping tabs on her, though she knew he didn't trust her. Everyone who knew her on the island gave her weary looks, as if she was going to break at any minute. The only one she could stand to be around, to her own surprise, was Sawyer. He was unsympathetic and harsh, the only real treatment she was receiving from anyone.

"Kate said she saw two figures moving around in the opening to the jungle last night," Shannon continued talking, though Sawyer tried to appear too indulged in his book to even look up at her for the past ten minutes, as they sat under the tent. She found herself coming up to him whenever she was left alone. Deep down, she knew she was afraid of the visions she had had during her last attack, and maybe even afraid of herself at this point.

"Kate, huh?" he repeated, his first non-sarcastic response, as he finally looked up from his book, readjusting his reading glasses as he looked at her. "Where is she now? She didn't do something dumb like go out there looking around for these people, did she?" he asked, stressing the word as if it was all apart of Kate's imagination. Though, for him to even ask where Kate was, it was obvious that he was concerned, in his own way.

"So? What if she did?" Shannon shot out, finding herself annoyed that he would only have the slightest bit of communication with her if Kate was brought up, or even Walt. "Maybe it wouldn't actually be a dumb thing, because you know damn well I saw someone too. Someone's out there, maybe even the same people who took Walt, and we should go out and find them already!" she snapped, her voice high pitched as she sprung up from her seat. His eyes followed her, but she didn't give him the chance to say anything else, as she spun around and left. As irritated as she was, she knew she'd come back at some point. She always did have a knack for talking to people who didn't really want her around.

Assuming that Sawyer might still be watching her, Shannon made her way clear across the beach, until she came up to the vast patch of trees stretched out in front of her. She hesitated at first, but only a few seconds, before plunging into the jungle herself. She knew Kate hadn't went out here looking for these people by herself yet, she had to talk it over with Jack and the others first, possibly being too afraid to go alone. But Shannon hardly cared at this point. She had been out here by herself many of times, especially after Boone's-.… and nothing had happened to her. As long as she didn't go too far back, she assumed she was fine.

After going far enough out, Shannon turned around, only to find Sawyer hadn't even cared to follow her. She didn't know why she wanted that attention from him, when she was trying to escape it from everyone else. Maybe she missed the bantering relationship that she had shared with Boone, and could only find a match in Sawyer. He was annoying, after all.

Shannon stopped walking after a few minutes, looking around in confusion. She hadn't even realized that she had kept walking after looking for Sawyer... Lost in thought, she realized she must have started pacing around, until she had reached a part of the jungle she didn't recognize. It was too thick in this part, not the dense, shallow opening that she was used to. She had wound up too far out, and spinning around, looking to all sides of her, she couldn't even tell which direction she had come from.

Fear coursed through her, and then utter panic. Her breath caught in her throat, she even imagined someone reaching from behind her and grabbing her. It felt so real that she let out a scream, but no sound came out… A hand was over her mouth. And that's when full terror set in, someone had grabbed her, and now had their hand over her mouth, with their arm wrapped tight around her waist, practically lifting her up from the ground as they pinned her body back against theirs. It was a man, she could tell by the strength and grip. Her mind became blank, she couldn't even move. Just when she thought she was ready to burst into tears, or pass out, or even have an attack, something hit the man from behind her. She could feel the force of the blow, since she was so close to him. Someone had hit the man in the head with something hard, causing him to jerk and tighten his grip on her for a brief second, before his arm loosened around her waist, and his hand dropped from her mouth. In that instant, Shannon stood still, feeling the man fall to the side and hearing him hit the ground with a thud. She was too paralyzed to turn around or move, and before she knew it, her knees had buckled under her, and she fell forward, landing face-down into the wet grass below.

Flashback

"Come on, they won't miss us," Scott whispered to her drunkenly, pulling on Shannon's hand as he led her out of the side door of the school, and into the parking lot. He was sixteen, captain of the wrestling team, with silky dark hair and soft green eyes. He had had over twenty girlfriends since their junior high days, but when he had shown interest in her, especially since she was only fourteen at the time, Shannon immediately thought she had to be something special, that maybe he had fallen for her, and the other girls were nothing serious. He had told her he wanted to buckle down, that she had made him want to be a better man, that he wanted her to be his girlfriend and that he would take care of her, all that romantic stuff that could steal any girl's heart after hearing them for the first time.

It was the night of the prom, and she was the youngest one there, only being allowed to go because Scott had asked her, since he was a junior. Boone, of course, had warned their parents, telling them horrible stories about Scott and trying his damnedest to convince them not to let her go. But it was Shannon's hold over her father that got them to agree, promising him she'd let Boone watch over her the whole night, and that she would be back as early as 10.

"But--what are we going to do out here?" Shannon asked, knowing it was a dumb question. He was taking her to his car, she knew that, she wasn't stupid. Maybe he wanted to make out though, he was older, he had needs, and they had never hit second base yet. They had hardly touched first. "I was having fun in there." She laughed, to show him she wasn't trying to be childish about this. Maybe she could play dumb though, and back-out later. She did love him, and she didn't want to ruin this. In her eyes, they were going to be together throughout high school, maybe they'd even end up at the same college, if she went.

Scott didn't answer. He only smiled, that deep, charming smile that she couldn't resist, and she fell silent, until he had led her into the backseat of his car. It was like some made-for-TV movie that she wanted to get out of. She didn't want to go as far as he probably had planned, but she had tried to assure herself that it wouldn't. Everything that had happened next came too fast, making her mind a blur, it had almost seemed like a dream. The next thing she remembered, he had her pinned down on the backseat, his hands tightening around her wrists, his mouth pressed hard against hers. She hadn't even realized that she had been struggling until he was pulled up off of her, and yanked out of the car.

She was too stunned to react at first. She laid there disoriented and confused, looking down at herself and thankfully finding her clothes still in-tact. Pulling herself up, Shannon quickly tried to straighten up her hair and clothes, so no one could tell what might have happened.. That's when she saw it--Boone was standing over Scott, who was lying limply on the parking lot. There was blood gushing from Scott's mouth and nose, the whole top part of his face was covered in purplish bruises, and his arm was twisted behind him at an odd angle. He moaned out so painfully, that is sent chills up her back. And then there was Boone--not a mark on him, standing over Scott, completely frozen as he stared down at him. It wasn't until she heard the gurgling noises coming from Scott that she realized, Boone could have actually killed him. He almost had. She had never seen her brother fight before, or so much as yell, and now, he had almost killed a guy, because of her.

Boone was arrested, as Scott was taken away in an ambulance. Charges were dropped though, once Scott came-to. Maybe he was worried that Shannon would file assault charges, and she would have, if he had tried to press charges against Boone. All she had to do was show them the bruises on her wrists, and all Boone had to do was verify her story, and Scott would have been in trouble himself. But no one was charged. Boone was released, and Scott would be fine, after his broken arm healed, and the swelling died down. He was kept in the hospital for awhile though. He had fractured ribs, and so many other things wrong with him, that would luckily heal over time. He had to tell his parents that him and Boone were drunk, and were fighting over a girl, which was partially true.

Boone never fought again after that, he never tried to. Shannon knew he would have though, if it came down to her being in any real danger, she knew he might… But through the years, when she had pulled stunts to try and get money from him, and would claim to be in abusive relationships, Boone would come to her rescue as always, keeping a close eye on her as he tried to solve things in a more humane manner, by simply paying the men to leave her alone and disappear. She knew he would do this, pay them instead of kill them, and that's why she lied, because she knew she could get her share of her father's money that way.. Sure, if she had asked Boone, he would have given her money to live off of, but she was too proud. She hadn't even went to college, and she had spent most of her money drinking and supporting various boyfriends throughout the two years since she had finished high school. And now that her money was dwindling, she needed a fast fix, but didn't want to lose the respect and adoration of her brother... She still wanted him to save her, in more ways than one.

To Be Continued…